There are several ways for wizards in this world to make money.
The most famous method is, of course, to rely on a noble house.
If you are affiliated with a noble house and receive research funds, there’s nothing more comfortable than that in the world.
That’s what Kelton had said.
Since I had never experienced that kind of situation, I didn’t know how comfortable it was.
To be honest, being under the orders of a noble didn’t seem all that comfortable to me.
Getting employed by a noble house wasn’t something that could be done unless you were at least a 4th-tier mage.
In other words, it wasn’t something I could do right now.
Let’s move on.
The second option was to be affiliated with the Empire.
But even if you were part of the Empire, the work itself was similar to being affiliated with a noble house.
The only difference was that the one giving orders would be the imperial family instead of the nobility.
So, again, you had to be at least a 4th-tier mage for this to be possible.
This, too, wasn’t something I could do.
The third option was the Magic Tower, but the Magic Tower was more of a pure academic group, so if you wanted to make money, it wasn’t a good choice.
Thus, the only choice left for a 3rd-tier money-hungry wizard like me was one.
“Are you a mercenary?”
“Yes, I’m a mercenary.”
A mercenary.
The job that a 5th-tier wizard had dedicated his whole life to was now going to be mine.
I put a pipe in my mouth and entered the mercenary guild.
The sounds of various people drunkenly yelling hit my ears.
Mercenaries were like a hope for orphans and people with bottom-tier lives.
It was natural for this kind of atmosphere to form in the mercenary guild, their base.
I exhaled the smoke slowly and walked toward the desk.
“I’d like to register as a mercenary.”
“Just a moment.”
The receptionist hurriedly prepared something.
It seemed like they were taking out some documents.
Mercenaries were classified into six ranks.
From rank 5 to rank 1, and then an additional special rank, making a total of six levels.
The receptionist took out the papers and asked me.
“Please describe your specialty.”
“I’m a wizard. I’m at rank 3.”
“May I see your face?”
Surprisingly, the mercenary guild tried to filter out criminals as much as possible.
Even so, there were still incidents that continuously lowered the average mercenary’s reputation.
If your trustworthiness broke the limit and was shattered, no one would trust you with a contract, so it was an unavoidable measure.
I slightly lifted my robe and showed my face.
The receptionist flinched a little, then wrote something down on the papers and spoke.
“Please wait a moment.”
After a brief wait, the receptionist handed me a round medal.
The medal had the date and location of my mercenary registration, along with my name and hometown written on it.
The material was copper. It indicated that I was ranked 5th.
For a 3rd-tier wizard, it was a very low rank, but everyone who registered as a mercenary for the first time received a 5th-tier ranking.
It couldn’t be helped.
The rank system was designed to distinguish between “people who can’t be held accountable by the guild even if something goes wrong” and “people the guild can vouch for.”
If they gave high ranks to just anyone, and something went wrong, the distinction between ranks would be shattered.
The mercenary guild, whose goal was to attract as many clients as possible, had to avoid this at all costs.
“Ruina, over here.”
Leon, who had registered as a mercenary earlier to earn travel expenses, confidently stood in front of the request board.
This request board was like a billboard. It was a much lighter method than the guild directly connecting mercenaries to jobs.
Requesters could pay a fee to post an ad, but this increased the likelihood of meeting mercenaries of lower quality than those directly recruited by the guild.
Mercenaries, on average, were already lower in quality.
Looking at those mercenaries, I was impressed by how Kelton had lasted decades.
Truly admirable.
Since illiteracy rates were high in this world, the request board was full of papers with both text and pictures.
Leon pointed at a request with a drawing of a cart.
“How about this one? It seems like the perfect request for us.”
I was taken aback by his words.
“You can read?”
“…I spent a long time in the church. I learned various knowledge.”
“I had a feeling you might be able to.”
I lifted my head and read the request.
As a wizard’s apprentice, I could read.
[Looking for escorts to West Shade Grapeton]
[Reward: 50 silver coins]
[Departure: September 3rd, noon, East Gate]
[Meals provided]
For a long-term escort mission, the pay was quite low, but the meal provision made it acceptable.
The destination was exactly where we were heading—West Shade Grapeton—and the departure time was noon today, so we could leave right away.
“Let’s go with this one.”
“Understood.”
We left the mercenary guild and quickly finished our travel preparations.
We packed provisions, clothes, blankets, water, and so on into our backpacks, and before long, it was almost noon.
I headed toward the east gate with Leon.
The east gate had a lot of foot traffic, and as a result, there were many people with carts nearby.
“Anyone who wishes to take on an escort mission to Clamps Baron’s Estate, please gather here!”
“Escort mission to the Imperial Capital!”
“To the Holy Kingdom!”
Various people were shouting out calls.
I suddenly made eye contact with someone.
It was a man with a fairly large cart beside him.
As soon as our eyes met, he let out a sigh of relief and approached.
“Are you by any chance here for the escort mission to West Shade Grapeton?”
“You figured it out well.”
It was surprising.
The request board only informed mercenaries of where the requester was, and contracts were made on the spot, so there was no way to know in advance who would come.
To my question, the requester whispered almost like a confession.
“Actually, I’ve been keeping an eye on who would be interested in my request on the mercenary board.”
That was truly creepy.
Then what was the point of using the request board?
“In that case, wouldn’t it be better to go around looking for mercenaries on your own?”
“Then I wouldn’t be able to filter out the strange ones.”
So that was the purpose of the filtering.
If we had seemed suspicious, he probably would’ve run away without a second thought.
“It seems like Leon looked suspicious, but my presence balanced that out, huh?”
“My name is Chris. It’s nice to meet you.”
“I’m Ruina.”
“I’m Leon.”
I shook Chris’s hand.
Then I brought up something I had noticed earlier.
“A woman pretending to be a merchant. You must have some big goals, huh?”
“Why?”
“Is it that obvious?”
I was surprised by Chris’s reaction.
It was a disguise?
Chris asked in a flustered voice,
“I’ve cut my hair short, and I’m even purposely taking herbs to change my voice. Even then, do I still stand out?”
“It’s Ruina who’s strange. I didn’t notice at all.”
Leon was the one who replied to Chris.
He treated me like I was the strange one. I felt so unfair.
I calmly explained why I had made that judgment.
“I thought you just had a preference for not covering your neck, like a man. But if you’re a woman dressed as a man, how can you not cover your Adam’s apple?”
“Most people don’t focus on someone’s Adam’s apple.”
“Also, your face is more feminine than a simple handsome man.”
I’m sure that the guy who tried to hit on Leon would’ve had no reaction at all if he saw Chris.
“…I can roughly guess what you’re thinking.”
“It’s a misunderstanding.”
“Please tell me your name and hometown.”
“My name is Ruina. My hometown is West Shade Grapeton.”
I intentionally gave a different name for my hometown. It was one of the tips Kelton had given me.
Kelton had even suggested using a fake name, but I didn’t go that far. Fake names were a hassle.
The receptionist placed the pen down with a clack and began organizing the papers.
“Ruina, everything is confirmed. The registration fee is 10 silver coins. Is that alright?”
“Yes.””Please wait a moment.”
After a brief wait, the receptionist handed me a round medal.
The medal had the date and location of my mercenary registration, along with my name and hometown written on it.
The material was copper. It indicated that I was ranked 5th.
For a 3rd-tier wizard, it was a very low rank, but everyone who registered as a mercenary for the first time received a 5th-tier ranking.
It couldn’t be helped.
The rank system was designed to distinguish between “people who can’t be held accountable by the guild even if something goes wrong” and “people the guild can vouch for.”
If they gave high ranks to just anyone, and something went wrong, the distinction between ranks would be shattered. The mercenary guild, whose goal was to attract as many clients as possible, had to avoid this at all costs.
“Ruina, over here.”
Leon, who had registered as a mercenary earlier to earn travel expenses, confidently stood in front of the request board.
This request board was like a billboard. It was a much lighter method than the guild directly connecting mercenaries to jobs.
Requesters could pay a fee to post an ad, but this increased the likelihood of meeting mercenaries of lower quality than those directly recruited by the guild.
Mercenaries, on average, were already lower in quality.
Looking at those mercenaries, I was impressed by how Kelton had lasted decades. Truly admirable.
Since illiteracy rates were high in this world, the request board was full of papers with both text and pictures.
Leon pointed at a request with a drawing of a cart.
“How about this one? It seems like the perfect request for us.”
I was taken aback by his words.
“You can read?”
“…I spent a long time in the church. I learned various knowledge.”
“I had a feeling you might be able to.”
I lifted my head and read the request.
As a wizard’s apprentice, I could read.
[Looking for escorts to West Shade Grapeton]
[Reward: 50 silver coins]
[Departure: September 3rd, noon, East Gate]
[Meals provided]
For a long-term escort mission, the pay was quite low, but the meal provision made it acceptable.
The destination was exactly where we were heading—West Shade Grapeton—and the departure time was noon today, so we could leave right away.
“Let’s go with this one.”
“Understood.”
We left the mercenary guild and quickly finished our travel preparations.
We packed provisions, clothes, blankets, water, and so on into our backpacks, and before long, it was almost noon.
I headed toward the east gate with Leon.
The east gate had a lot of foot traffic, and as a result, there were many people with carts nearby.
“Anyone who wishes to take on an escort mission to Clamps Baron’s Estate, please gather here!”
“Escort mission to the Imperial Capital!”
“To the Holy Kingdom!”
Various people were shouting out calls.
I suddenly made eye contact with someone.
It was a man with a fairly large cart beside him. As soon as our eyes met, he let out a sigh of relief and approached.
“Are you by any chance here for the escort mission to West Shade Grapeton?”
“You figured it out well.”
It was surprising. The request board only informed mercenaries of where the requester was, and contracts were made on the spot, so there was no way to know in advance who would come.
To my question, the requester whispered almost like a confession.
“Actually, I’ve been keeping an eye on who would be interested in my request on the mercenary board.”
That was truly creepy.
Then what was the point of using the request board?
“In that case, wouldn’t it be better to go around looking for mercenaries on your own?”
“Then I wouldn’t be able to filter out the strange ones.”
So that was the purpose of the filtering.
If we had seemed suspicious, he probably would’ve run away without a second thought.
“It seems like Leon looked suspicious, but my presence balanced that out, huh?”
“My name is Chris. It’s nice to meet you.”
“I’m Ruina.”
“I’m Leon.”
I shook Chris’s hand.
Then I brought up something I had noticed earlier.
“A woman pretending to be a merchant. You must have some big goals, huh?”
“Why?”
“Is it that obvious?”
I was surprised by Chris’s reaction.
It was a disguise?
Chris asked in a flustered voice,
“I’ve cut my hair short, and I’m even purposely taking herbs to change my voice. Even then, do I still stand out?”
“It’s Ruina who’s strange. I didn’t notice at all.”
Leon was the one who replied to Chris.
He treated me like I was the strange one. I felt so unfair.
I calmly explained why I had made that judgment.
“I thought you just had a preference for not covering your neck, like a man.
But if you’re a woman dressed as a man, how can you not cover your Adam’s apple?”
“Most people don’t focus on someone’s Adam’s apple.”
“Also, your face is more feminine than a simple handsome man.”
I’m sure that the guy who tried to hit on Leon would’ve had no reaction at all if he saw Chris.
“…I can roughly guess what you’re thinking.”
“It’s a misunderstanding.”
“Anyway, most people will think I’m a man based on my voice and appearance.”
I can get through this.
But I can’t stand learning common sense from an apprentice knight who got tricked three times in broad daylight.
I pursed my lips and muttered.
“If Leon understood the world better, he wouldn’t naively—”
“Honestly, no one has noticed so far, except for you two.”
“Really, am I the strange one here?”
I backed off in response to Chris’s support.
Although I was retreating strategically for now, I would definitely reveal the truth next time.
I calmly spoke up.
“If you’re thinking of making a contract, I’ll take the advance payment.”
“What are your mercenary ranks?”
“5th rank.”
“5th rank.”
Me too.
“Got it.”
Chris nodded and handed us 10 silver coins.
The advance payment was always 1/5 of the total fee.
It was an unwritten rule in the mercenary industry.
After receiving the silver coins and placing them in my coin pouch, I climbed onto the cart and spoke.
“Shall we go?”
All roads, except those guarded by imperial knights, carried their own risks.
Monsters, bandits, raiders, and mercenaries thrived along these paths.
What’s interesting is that bandits, raiders, and mercenaries are usually the same group of people, always working to lower the average quality of mercenaries.
“Save, save me!”
“I’d appreciate a sincere response.”
From now on, the men, who could have been bandits, raiders, or mercenaries, desperately nodded at my words.
I shook the lantern and asked three questions.
“Is there anyone here who owns magic, is willing to share magic, or is willing to transfer magic?”
“No.”
That was unfortunate.
I closed the lantern and ignited the flame.
At the same time…
“Wait! Magic! I have magic! Please stop!”
Someone shouted loudly.
I stopped the magic and looked at the man who had shouted.
He trembled and continued.
“Y-Yes, I learned magic from a retired apprentice knight.
So I know some magic too. I’ll give it to you. I don’t know how to give it, but I’ll give it.
I really will. Please, please spare me.”
I closed the lantern.
And I smiled.
Finally, I found it.