Please Repay Me with Marriage! - Chapter 25

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Make it up to me by marrying me!
Episode 25
Michel was at least in a slightly better position. Hiss, who had only been able to eat the plain rye bread the Guild HQ provided that morning, clung to his last shred of hope.
“Maybe he didn’t hand over all five hundred million. Ray can always get the money back, right?”
“Yeah, I think the same. He probably got at least four hundred million back. But Ray’s no fool, so he’d have kept thirty million to pay off his debts.”
Michel flatly rejected the idea that he’d have held onto at least ten million.
“No, that guy’s an idiot. That’s why he tried to make a deal with the Second Prince in the first place.”
“Well, what else could he do? He needed thirty million Rarc right away. Did Ray have any other option? He’s still bound by the contract with the Countess.”
Every job contract a mercenary signs is sent through the various branches set up across the Empire to the Guild Master at headquarters.
When a job is completed without trouble, the contract is stamped as finished once a certificate bearing the client’s confirmation is submitted. Conversely, if the job fails, the mercenary must personally go to headquarters and report the cause of failure to the Guild Master.
If the cause of failure lies with the mercenary, a crack is carved into the center of their Mercenary Badge, and if they fail another job in that state, the badge splits apart and they can never again call themselves a mercenary.
If Leonard had entered the contract with the Countess without knowing the House of Elpias was in debt, the Guild Master might have taken that into consideration.
But Leonard signed the contract knowing full well that the Count’s house was drowning in enormous debt. So the Master won’t accept that he lost his Count Title because of that debt.
What’s more, the Guild Master even took Leonard’s circumstances into account and issued him two Mercenary Badges, which was unprecedented.
-Ding-a-ling
“At the very least, we shouldn’t blame Ray. The reason that kid accepted the Countess’s contract was…”
“Huh? Wait, look over there.”
Michel’s wistful reminiscing didn’t last even a single minute.
The hand that had been about to smack Bin’s back, telling him he couldn’t read the room, froze because of what he said next.
“That man over there, isn’t he a knight of Marquis Blair…?”

* * *
He had lived in the Capital for half his life, but today was the first time Hawk had ever set foot in the Mercenary Guild headquarters.
Part of that was because Hawk had been tied to the Back Alley Arena for most of his adult life, but it was also because he had never had any reason to hire a mercenary to begin with.
‘I figured I’d never have one, either.’
As Hawk looked around the interior, which looked less like a Guild headquarters and more like a large tavern, a one-eyed man approached and spoke to him.
“You look like a gentleman serving some high-ranking lord… Hm? Blair? Are you by any chance a knight of House Blair?”
A knight’s allegiance can usually be identified by the crest engraved on their armor.
Hawk, who was about to set out on a long journey, wore tough leather clothes and guards on his arms instead of armor. Still, the crest of Blair was carved into the hilt of the sword at his waist, so it wasn’t hard to tell where he belonged.
“That’s right. I came to commission a job.”
“It’s the first time a knight has come in person, too. Where is Blair Trading House headed this time?”
Blair Trading House crossed not only the Empire’s borders but those of several other nations, and every time they went on a trade run, they hired mercenaries to guard their caravans.
Trading houses often hire mercenaries like this, but no other employer looked after its mercenaries’ treatment or paid their fees as generously as Blair Trading House did.
That was exactly why the mercenaries, who were pretending not to be drinking away their days, were listening so intently to their conversation.
“This isn’t on behalf of the trading house, it’s a personal commission. Today’s my first time visiting the Mercenary Guild, so I’m not familiar with how things work. How do I hire a mercenary? Do I just tell you?”
“Right. I’m the receptionist. Come this way, and I’ll explain everything nice and easy.”
Even with a smile, the one-eyed man, with three large scars on his face alone, came across as nothing but a threat.
But Hawk had lived through too much turbulence to be cowed by a face like that, so he followed the one-eyed man while glancing around without much thought.
“So what kind of job are you looking to hand off? If it’s something a bit secret, we can talk in the room in the back.”
The one-eyed man tilted his chin toward the tavern beyond the low partition. It meant that if they talked in the lobby, everyone over there would hear it all.
“We can talk here. It’s not the kind of job that requires secrecy.”
“Then let’s sit here and talk. Sally! Something for the guest to drink… Actually, I don’t think alcohol’s an option. Will you have a glass of cold water?”
“Don’t you have any juice? I’d prefer something sweet.”
At that, the one-eyed man burst out laughing, looking at Hawk.
“What, why not just ask for wine while you’re at it?”
“I’m on duty, so I’d better steer clear of liquor.”
“You’re a particular one, aren’t you? Sally! One juice over here!”
Hawk sat at a table near the reception counter and sipped the chilled juice.
His gaze wandered over the job notices pinned to the large board, but his attention was turned toward the back, where the stares poured down on the back of his head, carrying greed, killing intent, and every other kind of gaze imaginable.
‘Ugh, this…’
Having come from the arena, he found it no trouble to ignore sharp glares meant to provoke him. Still, they were quite irritating, so Hawk scratched his head while filling out the request form.
“Is it always this… peculiar, hiring a mercenary? At this rate, anyone with a weak heart couldn’t even get a job done.”
“Ha, well, that’s because you’ve got a sword at your waist. Mercenaries, as a breed, just can’t stand being bored.”
“Get bored twice and you’ll send someone to an early grave.”
There was one more reason they were eyeing Hawk with such curiosity.
A knight of a noble.
Nobles usually hired mercenaries to find someone who would dirty their hands in their place.
In a word, they were looking for someone to use and throw away.
But for that purpose, they usually sought out mercenaries in the dead of night, before dawn, under the cover of secrecy.
It was rare for a knight to come openly to headquarters in broad daylight to hire a mercenary.
“Done writing.”
“Well, well. What brings our knight all the way here, I wonder… Hm?”
The one-eyed man confirmed the purpose of the request and narrowed his good eye.
“You’re looking for a guide to take you all the way to Elpias County?”
Hawk nodded, tipping back the rest of his juice.
Oblivious to the fact that the ones hunched over in the back, straining their ears, had nearly jumped out of their seats at the words Elpias County, the one-eyed man tilted his head to one side.
“If you only needed a guide, you wouldn’t have had to come all the way here… So what’s your destination in Elpias County?”
“The Lord’s Manor.”
“Oh?”
It wasn’t a hidden ruin, and it wasn’t some treacherous mountain range. Why would anyone need mercenaries just to reach a manor?
Noticing the question that had surfaced on the receptionist’s face, Hawk scratched the back of his neck roughly and explained.
“I’ve got my reasons, and I need to get there as soon as possible. I need someone who knows the shortcuts, but an ordinary guide would probably tire out fast, so I’m looking for a mercenary.”
“How many days do you need to get there?”
“There’s no set deadline… I just want to hurry as much as I can. Oh, and I plan to take a carriage.”
“Hmm, then it’ll be a bit tough, I’d say…”
Once a carriage was added to a journey that had to be rushed, the whole story changed a little. After all, it couldn’t pass through narrow paths.
“Is a simple guide really all you want? What I mean is, I’m asking whether you need the carriage escorted.”
“Ah, it’s an empty carriage, so no escort is needed. Though if we run into bandits or the like along the way, I’ll have to keep it from getting smashed.”
“I see. But why did you leave the commission fee blank?”
“Like I said earlier, this is my first time hiring a mercenary, so I don’t know how much I should pay for this job. What’s the going rate?”
“For a simple guiding job, the cost depends on distance and time. But when the schedule is tight, you have to add on extra for the extra hardship…”
The one-eyed man tapped the table with his index finger, studying Hawk’s face.
“Two hundred thousand rarc, at the least.”
Hawk knew full well that the figure had been inflated just to see how far he’d go. Even so, he nodded. And then, just for good measure.
“Three hundred thousand rarc.”
“What?”
“Instead, I’d like to hire someone who can leave right away. Like I said, it’s an urgent schedule.”
“Ah, for three hundred thousand rarc, everyone and their brother will be jumping at it…”
“Perfect! Hey, mister! I’m from Elpias County! I could get there blindfolded!”
“Don’t make me laugh! He’s full of it, so don’t believe him. I’m not from there either, but I’ve worn the soles of my boots thin going in and out of the place…”
“Two days to reach Elpias County! Can I eat my meals on a galloping horse?”
“Just eat? I’d sleep too!”
Three hundred thousand rarc was equal to one month’s salary for a clerk working at a shop in the capital’s bustling district, or perhaps a little more.
It was only natural that the mercenaries eavesdropping on the conversation would raise their hands, one after another, at the idea of earning that much for guiding a group for just a few days.
“You shameless bastards! If it’s a guiding job to Elpias County, obviously it should go to us! We lived there for three whole years!”
Hawk glanced over, pretending not to, at the man with blue hair and blue eyes who was shouting this.
‘So it’s that one.’
There were one more man and one more woman seated at the table where he sat.
A white-haired woman who kept her right hand beneath the table, out of habit. And a muscular man with dark, tanned skin and a rather large build.
There was no doubt about it. They were the very people who had made a commotion at the front gate of the Auction House.
‘If I go to the Mercenary Guild headquarters, I should be able to see the people from the Auction House yesterday again. There’s no way they won’t be there. Kiri already looked into it.’
‘If the receptionist asks whether I want to go inside, just say we’ll talk in the lobby. Say you’re heading to Elpias County loud enough for them to hear. Then they’ll probably try to take the job by any means necessary.’
“Wow… My guys aren’t usually this eager. You really are a knight of House Blair. You’ve got to hand it to you for being generous.”
“Looks like there’s no shortage of bored people, after all.”
Hawk pretended to think for a moment before he spoke.
“Then how about this? I’d like to hold an auction for the commission fee, starting now.”
“An auction for the commission fee?”
“I did call out three hundred thousand rarc… but who’ll take the job for two hundred and ninety thousand?”
At his words, a silence fell over the mercenaries who had been raising their hands.
But it didn’t last long. The Mercenary Guild headquarters soon turned into a chaotic marketplace.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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