The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - Chapter 54

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

Chapter 54. Traces (1)
Bernard informed me that a visitor had arrived at Whitewolf Territory.
And he said it was ‘just now’.
I pressed him urgently for details.
“Who is it? A visitor who came to Whitewolf Territory?”
“A guest from Beneron Barony House, sir.”
“…Beneron Barony House?”
“Yes, sir.”
Despite myself, disappointment flickered across my face.
It wasn’t Ian.
But the name Beneron Barony House.
For some reason, it felt familiar.
Where had I heard that before?
Not during my time with the Allied Forces…. Ah, that’s right.
“Wasn’t the visitor who came to Whitewolf Territory last time also from Beneron Barony House?”
The guest who had arrived after the subjugation of Gelu Drake.
It seemed they had mentioned something about Beneron back then too.
“That’s correct, sir.”
Bernard nodded, confirming my suspicion.
“But why have they come again?”
“It appears they’ve returned regarding the proposal they made at that time.”
“A proposal?”
“That is….”
Bernard trailed off.
It seemed difficult for him to broach the subject.
I couldn’t fathom what sort of proposal Beneron Barony House had made.
“Bernard, handle it as you see fit.”
I didn’t particularly care.
There was no reason to care.
At that, Bernard’s expression grew somewhat disappointed.
It seemed my recent conduct—tending to the territory’s people and single-handedly confronting legions—had shifted their perception of me.
They appeared to harbor expectations of me as a capable lord, but I’m afraid I had no intention of fulfilling those hopes.
I had no desire to become the lord of Whitewolf Territory.
Once Ian arrived, I would settle the matter of Seraphia and Kai’s fates, then depart.
Unless the visitor to Whitewolf Territory was Ian himself.
Any further concern would be a waste of time.
For now, I needed to head to Frecce and first learn of Ian’s whereabouts.
Simultaneously, I had to secure funds for establishing the Allied Forces, procure medicinal materials to improve Seraphia’s condition, and raise the remaining affinity of the territory’s people.
My tasks were already piling up like mountains.
“That’s the steward’s duty, isn’t it.”
The chief steward gains the authority of a lord’s proxy in times of emergency.
With my father’s passing and Seraphia’s current condition, the present circumstances certainly qualified as an ’emergency.’
Bernard was currently a lord’s proxy with greater authority than mine, and that was precisely why he hadn’t dismissed my request for the Merchant Guild’s founding capital.
But what was this now?
“…I understand.”
Bernard stepped back one pace.
Yet he didn’t leave immediately, lingering still.
But as I said nothing, Bernard eventually turned and departed in silence.
* * *
Frecce—a free city and commercial hub that bustled daily with countless merchants and visitors.
Yet recently, Frecce had been shrouded in an unusually gloomy atmosphere.
Ordinarily, the ceaseless calls of street vendors hawking their wares should have filled the air, and the streets should have overflowed with people and vitality.
But the vendor stalls now gathered only dust, and the faces of those wandering the streets bore expressions of disappointment and anxiety.
“I just can’t find the energy lately…”
“You too? I’ve lost all motivation—work just doesn’t feel worthwhile anymore.”
People gazing upward at the sky.
Others staring down distant roads.
Crowds gathering in the Town Square, wondering if perhaps today was the day.
But soon, all of them lowered their heads in disappointment.
“What good is working hard and earning money?”
“The Predator Merchant Company shows no sign of returning.”
The Predator Merchant Company’s monster meat.
Ever since tasting that flesh, people had been languishing like those afflicted with lovesickness.
“I can’t live without monster meat anymore.”
“Just once more. I really just want to eat it one more time…”
Days upon days of listlessness, with work slipping through my fingers.
Craftsmen no longer hammered away at weapons and armor.
The ringing of hammers and the haggling of merchants no longer filled the air with their bustling noise.
This was why one shouldn’t dabble in narcotics.
There were those who’d never tried it, but none who’d tried it only once—and by the time one realized it, it was already too late.
And this affliction wasn’t limited to consumers alone.
The merchants who’d collaborated directly with the Predator Merchant Company, selling products to pair with monster meat, suffered equally.
“Without the Predator Merchant Company, our sales have been cut in half…”
“Half is a blessing. We’ve dropped to one-tenth.”
“Same here.”
The surging sales had plummeted the moment monster meat was discontinued.
Once one had tasted that intoxicating rush, ordinary profits could no longer satisfy.
Even the nobles from various kingdoms who’d heard the rumors and traveled here could only sigh.
“I came all this way because I heard the monster meat was so delicious…”
“This won’t do! I promised the Marquis I’d procure some for him…!!”
The lively chatter that had filled the streets gradually faded, and the bustling noise of the market diminished in kind.
“Sigh….”
“Ugh….”
Gathered in one corner of the Town Square, people stared endlessly down the empty streets.
Whenever horses and carts passed by, their eyes would light with hope for a moment, but the absence of the Predator Merchant Company’s white wolf seal sent them drooping their heads in disappointment.
“Could something have happened in Whitewolf Territory?”
Someone finally voiced the concern that had been building.
“No, that’s not it. It’s been days now, and there’s been no sign of them at all.”
“Huh…?”
“N-now that you mention it, that’s true?”
“Y-you’re right! No matter what, they shouldn’t be this late!”
“Could they have met with disaster while hunting monsters…?”
Such anxiety spread rapidly through the crowd.
The sky above Frecce grew increasingly overcast, and dark shadows blanketed the entire city.
“N-no, it can’t be! It’s probably just that heavy snow has b-blocked the roads!”
“Isn’t that even worse? They could come but can’t?”
“Shouldn’t we go out and help them?”
“Agreed. Rather than wait here idly, let’s send people to Whitewolf Territory to assist them!”
“I’ll dispatch the territorial militia right now!!”
It was at that very moment—just as commoners, merchants, and nobles alike were steeling their resolve.
“Theeeeey’re heeeere!!!”
A thunderous cry erupted, as if someone had boiled an ogre’s lungs.
“The Predator Merchant Company is heeeere!!!”
Everyone’s minds snapped awake.
As if by agreement, all eyes turned toward the end of the city’s main road.
And there came the procession of carriages.
Emblazoned clearly along their sides: the white wolf seal.
“Theeeeey’re heeeere!!!”
“Theeeeey’ve arriiiiived!!”
“Yoooooowwwww!!!”
The thunderous cries announced the arrival of the Predator Merchant Company with the force of a megaphone.
At those mighty shouts, people leaned their heads out of windows from every building along the city’s commercial district.
And upon confirming the carriage procession bearing the white wolf seal.
“Theeeeey’re heeeere!!!”
“Theeeeey’ve arriiiiived!!”
Everyone roared with the same thunderous cry, as if boiling ogre lungs themselves.
Hearing those cries, children ran through the streets in every direction, spreading the news that the Predator Merchant Company had arrived throughout all of Frecce.
“The Predator Merchant Company is here!”
“The Predator Merchant Company has arrived!!”
The procession of carriages seemed endless.
Even a rough count revealed dozens of carts.
It spoke volumes about the sheer quantity of monster meat they had procured.
It seemed the delay had been inevitable given the massive volume they needed to secure.
Music echoed throughout the Town Square.
The thunderous percussion of drums breathed life into the city’s previously gloomy atmosphere, infusing it with vitality and energy.
Banners welcoming the Predator Merchant Company hung prominently throughout the streets.
[Frecce always welcomes the Predator Merchant Company!]
[This is your true home!]
[How did we survive without you? Now we can truly live!]
Street vendors and shops that had accumulated nothing but dust began opening one by one, and the forges of craftsmen whose fires had long since dimmed now blazed with renewed heat.
The sound of hammers striking metal.
The voices of merchants haggling.
The marketplace that had echoed only with sighs now overflowed with bustling energy and vitality.
“We have fresh vegetables that pair perfectly with monster meat, multiplying the flavor!”
“We’ve just received charcoal that will cook the Predator’s monster meat to absolute perfection!”
“When preparing monster meat, the kitchen knives from our Lebanon Forge are simply unmatched!”
“We stock all manner of seasonings—salt, pepper, butter, and more—to elevate the flavor of monster meat to new heights!”
Frecce had become a city that could no longer survive without the Predator Merchant Company.
* * *
The Dining Hall was relentlessly busy.
“Order up!”
“Yes, coming right away!”
Monster meat continued to be an overwhelming success.
However, unlike my previous days as a street vendor, I could now operate from a fully equipped Dining Hall.
The Freche City Council had specially granted permission for the building, and there was no reason to refuse, so I accepted readily.
This allowed me to serve far more customers than before.
And as expected, word of mouth about Lex meat had spread rapidly.
“I heard the rumors and decided to come see for myself….”
“Can I actually purchase that Lex meat or whatever it is?”
The nobility’s demand for Lex meat had reached a fever pitch.
Consequently, the profit margins on Lex meat were equally astronomical. Generally, premium beef sold for around 5 gold per 200 grams.
But the price I had set for 200 grams of Lex meat was a thousand times that.
In other words, 5,000 gold.
The outrageous price was, frankly, something I thought no one would actually pay for.
Yet remarkably, the nobility did not hesitate to open their purses.
“You there! Why are you only arriving now!”
“Do you know how long our lord has been waiting for you?”
The reason, of course, was the extraordinary taste.
Lex had evolved thick fat deposits suited to cold climates, and to maintain its metabolic rate, it had undergone extreme muscular degeneration.
Without question, nothing surpassed the flavor of Lex meat.
To make Lex meat appear even more special, I assigned it a separate grade called ‘Prime’.
It held no particular significance.
Yet it proved sufficient to capture the eyes of nobles who favored anything exclusive and premium.
“My son comes of age in a few days, so could you package 500 grams of Lex meat for me? In Prime grade, of course!”
“The King’s birthday is approaching soon. I’d like to make an impression on His Majesty with this opportunity, so could you package about 1 kilogram in Prime grade?”
Special occasions among the nobility, gifts, bribes—you name it.
Lex meat began to be recognized as a luxury brand exclusive to the Predator Merchant Company.
And so Lex meat started flying off the shelves.
Thus, Lex meat solidified its position as the finest culture that only nobles could enjoy—and even then, not easily.
Separately, I priced Alacron and Dermexus meat at around 3 Gold per serving.
By selling at more affordable rates, ordinary people could purchase them if they so desired.
My goal was never merely to run a profitable merchant company.
The greatest merchant company on the Continent.
To achieve that, I needed to permeate both popular culture and the daily lives of the masses.
Revenue from the nobility.
Renown from the common people.
“I’ll have five servings of Alacron belly steak!”
“We’ll take three servings of Dermexus hind leg and four servings of Alacron!”
Thus, the Predator Merchant Company was generating tremendous profits while simultaneously enjoying explosive popularity.
Because of this, I was frantically busy butchering and grilling meat without a moment’s rest.
Fortunately, having raised my Agility to 65 while hunting the Lycanthrope, I could butcher and grill meat with extraordinary dexterity and speed.
Moreover, I was delivering flavors incomparable to anything before—truly exquisite.
“Wow! How can meat possibly taste like this?”
“Could there be some kind of drug in it?”
“I don’t care! Drug or whatever! I can’t live without monster meat anymore!”
Customers streaming in relentlessly.
The patrons were not limited to Frecce’s free citizens alone.
People from other kingdoms visiting Frecce.
When they returned to their respective kingdoms and spread the word, that rumor would take on a life of its own, growing beyond control.
It was only a matter of time before the Predator Merchant Company’s name resounded across the entire Continent.
* * *
A free city where absolute powers like lords and sovereigns do not exist.
Yet as the saying goes, where there are no ogres in the mountains, the troll becomes king.
Frecce, being a commercial free city, saw a handful of wealthy merchants wielding absolute power like lords.
In simple terms, whoever had the most money held absolute power in Frecce.
“How much is all of this in total!”
A broad grin spread across Adlern’s face as he gazed at the towering pile of gold coins.
“Hehehehe…!!”
The sheer quantity was enough to make one laugh just from looking at it.
And this was merely a single day’s earnings.
It was the gold coins he’d earned yesterday.
And all of this had begun the moment the Predator Merchant Company started selling monster meat.
At first, I wondered what kind of merchant company would even do such a thing.
After that, the way they swept away customers didn’t sit right with me.
But once the Predator Merchant Company began revitalizing the surrounding commercial districts, my sales started climbing to new heights day after day.
Adlern primarily dealt in ‘wine’ as his main merchandise.
The nobles who came from all corners of the Continent to purchase monster meat brought him tremendous profits.
And so yesterday’s sales were a staggering twenty times the usual amount.
I was truly sitting on a mountain of gold.
“They’re nothing but a blessing, a real blessing!”
The Predator Merchant Company was more than a blessing—they were a benefactor.
It was in that moment of beaming smiles and unbridled joy.
Ding.
A customer opened the shop door and stepped inside. And my eyebrows twitched.
A thick darkness had settled over the night, the world shrouded in shadow.
With the day’s business concluded, this was precious time meant for rest and recovery.
Yet here someone was, entering the shop despite the [Closed] sign plainly displayed outside.
More than anything, I found this uninvited guest’s intrusion deeply irritating.
So, with annoyance written all over my face, I opened my mouth.
“We’re closed for the-.”
Then I clamped my mouth shut.
The man who had entered through the shop door was far from ordinary.
Hair as dark as midnight, gleaming with a subtle luster.
Bangs that fell slightly across his forehead and sharp, distinct features.
Eyes deep and piercing, as if seeing through everything.
Powerful, taut muscles that no amount of fine clothing could conceal.
Yet his build was never excessive.
Long, cold yet mysterious eyelashes and a sharp jawline.
How could anyone fail to recognize that face—the most handsome, the most masculine, the most manly, yet also beautiful as a youth—shining brilliantly even in this dark night?
“Welcome! Adrian sir!!!”
Automatically, my waist bent ninety degrees in a bow.

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