Episode 151: Fafnir (1)
“Alright then, come with me right away.”
“Oh, I’m afraid I can’t do that.”
Damian flatly refused the Mercenary King’s proposal.
“I’m on my way back to my family. I’ll visit you again after I’ve seen them.”
“Are you saying you’d prioritize your family over my offer?”
The Mercenary King looked visibly annoyed, but Damian remained unfazed.
“Wouldn’t you do the same, Your Majesty?”
That single remark left the Mercenary King speechless.
“Ah, you’re no fun at all. I thought I’d tease you a bit.”
The Mercenary King scratched his head and said to Damian, “I’ll give you five days. Come to the Pell Plains by then. I’ll be waiting.”
With those words, the Mercenary King disappeared into the forest with his men.
Once the Mercenary King was gone, Damian headed towards the Haxen estate.
When Damian arrived at the Haxen estate, he was taken aback.
For some reason, a long line of people stretched from the entrance of Spring Castle. Nobles and merchants alike were among them, all anxiously watching the castle.
“Was it always this crowded?”
It hadn’t been. When Damian left for the White Kingdom, Spring Castle was quiet.
“When did we start getting so many visitors?”
Damian made his way through the crowd towards the entrance, but the throng of people made it difficult to get through.
“Excuse me, please let me through.”
When Damian spoke to the people blocking his way, one impatient man snapped at him.
“Who do you think you are, cutting in line? Wait your turn like everyone else!”
“Yeah! Do you think we have all the time in the world?”
The crowd shouted angrily at Damian, who replied with a wry smile.
“I don’t need to wait to get in.”
“Who are you trying to fool?”
“Young man, you shouldn’t deceive people like that!”
Despite Damian’s explanation, the nobles and merchants were furious. Then, one of them took a closer look at Damian’s face.
“Wait a minute, could it be…?”
“Damian!”
A voice called out from inside the castle. It was Victor, waving at Damian.
“You’re back! Come on in!”
Victor pushed through the crowd to reach Damian, allowing him to enter the castle with ease.
“What on earth is going on? Why are there so many visitors all of a sudden?”
“It’s all thanks to Lady Olivia! While you were away, she worked hard to expand the family’s influence.”
Victor spoke with pride.
“Everyone wants to establish ties with our family, or they’re merchants looking to buy the grain produced in our lands.”
Damian knew Olivia was capable, but he hadn’t expected this level of success.
‘Abel really found a great partner.’
Damian had played a significant role in their marriage, so he couldn’t help but feel pleased.
“But what are you doing here?”
“Lady Olivia tasked me with greeting the guests and compiling a list.”
“Ah, you’ve moved up from chopping wood.”
“Hehe, it’s all thanks to my skills.”
Victor chuckled.
“By the way, has anything unusual happened recently? Not with the family, but with you.”
“Nothing much, really. Oh! The church did come by.”
“The church?”
“Yes, they said they were investigating someone named Victor. Something about looking for a dark mage?”
Damian opened a pocket of space and handed Victor a silver coin. Victor looked puzzled.
“Why are you giving me this?”
“For your name. Keep up the good work.”
Damian started to head inside the mansion but turned back to Victor.
“Oh, and let those four over there in a bit later. They came to our family but couldn’t even recognize me.”
The four people’s faces turned ashen at Damian’s words.
“You’re really holding a grudge, aren’t you?”
Victor shook his head and muttered.
“Damian!”
As soon as he entered the castle, his mother embraced him. Abel and Olivia, who had been having tea with her, stood up immediately.
“Brother! Where have you been this time?”
“Abel was so worried about you.”
“Please, don’t bring that up.”
Abel protested, his face turning red.
“I’ve been traveling around. Where are Father and Sister?”
“Your father is in the study, meeting guests! Louise went out with Ballad. I think they’re starting to prepare for the wedding.”
His mother spoke with anticipation.
“I’m glad you and Olivia are here. I need to talk to you both.”
Though puzzled, the two followed Damian.
“Is there a secure place in Spring Castle to store important items?”
“Ah, there’s a vault in the basement.”
Olivia led Damian to the underground vault. Once inside, Damian addressed them.
“Whatever I show you now, you mustn’t tell anyone else.”
Damian opened the pocket of space in his necklace and began to take out the relics he had acquired from the ruins.
Abel and Olivia’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“B-Brother… where did you get all these…?”
“Don’t ask for details.”
“Is there a reason you can’t explain? Don’t worry, we’ll keep it a secret…”
“It’s just too much of a hassle to explain.”
Abel’s face went blank at Damian’s bluntness.
Damian was being sincere. He couldn’t recount everything that happened at the ruins, and making up a story was too bothersome.
“These are armor and weapons for the soldiers, and those are war machines. Be careful; they explode.”
Damian pointed to each relic, giving a brief explanation.
“Don’t use these relics recklessly. Only in emergencies.”
Before leaving the White Kingdom, Damian had scoured the sixth floor for relics the soldiers could use.
Unfortunately, there weren’t any extraordinary items left. The real treasures had long been excavated and sold by the White Kingdom.
Still, the remaining items were impressive enough. Equipping the soldiers with them would significantly boost their combat abilities.
“And these are manuals on swordsmanship and mana cultivation that I wrote. Have all the soldiers learn the swordsmanship, and give the mana cultivation to those you trust.”
Damian handed over the books he had written on his return from the White Kingdom.
He had prepared these to ensure his family’s safety in case of a conflict with Pandemonium.
“Brother, why are you giving us all this…?”
“Because you two will be leading the family from now on. Just so you know.”
Abel would inherit the Haxen estate, but Olivia was likely to be the real power behind the scenes.
“Take good care of the family.”
Damian spoke sincerely to the still-dazed pair.
After that, Damian spent leisurely days hunting with his father or playing chess with Abel.
A few days later, he packed his things and headed to the Pell Plains, where the Mercenary King’s company was stationed.
“Wow… this is impressive.”
Upon reaching the Pell Plains, Damian couldn’t help but marvel at the size of the mercenary company.
Dozens of tents were lined up across the vast plains.
Horses grazed, and even more people bustled about.
The ‘Fafnir’ Mercenary Company.
Named after the legendary dragon said to have scorched half the continent.
True to its reputation as the largest and strongest on the continent, the company’s size was staggering.
‘It’s like an entire territory on the move.’
Damian approached the Fafnir Mercenary Company’s camp.
Two mercenaries guarding the entrance stepped forward to block his path.
“This is the territory of the Fafnir Mercenary Company.”
“Leave now if you don’t want to get hurt.”
Surprisingly, both were trained in mana cultivation, at least at the level of aspiring knights.
The fact that even the gatekeepers could wield magic spoke volumes about the Fafnir Mercenary Company’s strength.
“My name is Damian Haxen. I’m here to see the Mercenary King.”
At the mention of Damian Haxen, the two mercenaries’ eyes widened slightly.
Perhaps they had been briefed by the Mercenary King. The two mercenaries stepped aside.
“Please follow me. I’ll take you to the Mercenary King.”
Damian followed the mercenary into the camp.
They stopped at a circular clearing inside the camp. A crowd had already gathered around, as if an event was about to take place.
“Ha! Well done! Keep pushing!”
“Hey! Your reaction time is too slow! Can’t you move faster?”
In the clearing, two young men were sparring with training weapons.
The onlookers cheered them on.
‘They’re all bloodlines.’
Both the mercenaries fighting in the clearing and those watching were of noble blood.
“Ha ha ha! They’re both quite skilled!”
Recognizing the familiar voice, Damian turned his gaze. The Mercenary King was among the crowd.
Unlike the others, he lounged lazily in the palanquin, receiving the luxury of being fanned by two women in thin dresses on either side.
He looked more like a nouveau riche than a mercenary.
“Ha ha ha! We won! We won!”
“Oh no… I’ve lost all my money.”
At that moment, one of the boys fighting in the clearing dropped his weapon. As the outcome became clear, the spectators groaned in disappointment.
The boys gathered their weapons and retreated. Seizing the moment, the mercenary who had escorted Damian shouted out.
“Lord Hopper! Sir Damian Haxen has arrived!”
All eyes turned toward Damian.
“You rascal! You’ve finally made it!”
The Mercenary King leapt up from the palanquin, beaming.
“How do you manage to arrive exactly on the fifth day? Come over here.”
The Mercenary King stepped into the clearing, and Damian approached him.
“Let me introduce you! This handsome young man is Damian Haxen! I’m sure you’ve all heard the rumors!”
The crowd’s gaze fixed on Damian, a look he was all too familiar with.
In his wilder days, those who looked down on him wore similar expressions.
‘Or perhaps it’s a bit more arrogant than that?’
Was it because they took pride in being acknowledged by the Mercenary King?
Or perhaps because all the so-called geniuses brought in from outside had turned out to be nothing special?
The Bloodborn looked at Damian with faces full of disdain.
“He’s a hard-won ally, so show some respect, alright?”
Despite the Mercenary King’s words, their expressions didn’t change.
“Ah, look at those eyes! They clearly have no intention of listening to me! I apologize, but mercenaries only believe what they see with their own eyes.”
The Mercenary King, looking somewhat troubled, turned to Damian with a suggestion.
“It seems they doubt your skills… Would you mind showing them a little of what you can do?”
Though he asked to see Damian’s skills, it was really a test to see if he was truly a genius worthy of competing with the Bloodborn.
‘Isn’t what I showed last time enough?’
Or perhaps they believed the Bloodborn could match that level of skill.
After all, the Bloodborn were descendants of dragons.
‘Come to think of it, I always seem to be tested like this.’
Whenever he got involved with a group, Damian found himself having to prove his abilities.
But this time felt different.
‘It’s been a while since I’ve been looked down on so openly.’
Since rising to the middle class, people might have doubted his abilities, but they never looked down on him.
Yet the Bloodborn here were different. They were certain he couldn’t measure up to them.
‘I can’t just stand by and take this insult.’
For Damian, it was more than just unpleasant—it was infuriating.
He felt an urge to knock them down a peg or two.
“Sure, I can show you what I’ve got.”
“Ha ha ha! I like this young man. So, who wants to be the first to experience Sir Damian’s skills?”
At the Mercenary King’s question, one of the Bloodborn stood up.
He was a broad-shouldered man with unusually long arms.
“Grandfather! Let me go first!”
“Valtin, is it? You’re qualified. Go ahead.”
The man called Valtin stepped into the clearing and selected a training spear from the weapon rack.
“I’ve heard a lot about you, Damian Haxen. They say you’re quite the genius.”
Valtin spoke with a slight tilt of his head, as if looking down on someone beneath him.
“But you know, people outside throw around the word ‘genius’ too easily. So I’ll see for myself if the praise is deserved.”
His arrogance was evident in every word and gesture.
Damian couldn’t let such treatment slide.
He approached the weapon rack, contemplating his choice.
‘Let’s see… How should I make my point?’
After a moment’s thought, Damian picked something from the rack.
Valtin looked puzzled.
“A spear? I heard you were a swordsman.”
“The renowned Bloodborn are curious about my abilities. I thought I’d show you something special.”
Damian replied nonchalantly to Valtin’s question.
“From now on, I’ll face anyone with the same weapon.”