The Return of the Genius Ranker’s Myth Warehouse - Chapter 119

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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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Chapter 119
Chapter 119
The moment the mercenary captain suddenly draped his arm across my shoulder with a hearty laugh.
Clang!
“Ugh!”
A mercenary who had rushed from behind struck the captain’s head with a frying pan from who knows where.
And that wasn’t all.
The rushing mercenaries grabbed the captain’s arms, legs, neck, and waist one by one, hanging from his body.
And then.
“Captain! Come to your senses!”
“Not people! If we commit murder here, this contract is finished, and our entire mercenary band is done!”
“Grrrraaahhh!”
“Squeeze harder! Knock him out completely!”
They pleaded with the mercenary captain while squeezing him with greater force.
The flustered captain gasped for breath, then stood up and hurled all the mercenaries clinging to him onto the ground.
The fallen mercenaries desperately tried to grab the captain again.
“You stupid fools! I’ve come to my senses! I only get like that when hunting monsters—do you think I’d do something to a person?”
“Uh…?”
“Captain, you really have come to your senses?”
“This doesn’t make sense…”
“Captain, when you enter berserk mode, you lose sight of everything, don’t you?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying—that only happens when hunting monsters, you idiots!”
Thud!
“Argh!”
The mercenary captain swiftly persuaded his men through physical force.
Then he turned to speak to me again.
“Now that the initiation is over, let me introduce myself properly. I’m Jackal, leader of the Steel Claw Mercenary Band.”
“M… Mirain. I’m Mirain.”
“These guys here are all my subordinates.”
“Captain! Subordinates?”
“All of you, shut it. The ones who got beaten should understand, but what’s with all this talk from those who ran away in fear of fighting?”
“Ha ha…”
“Anyway, Mirain. Let me be direct.”
The mercenary captain.
Jackal fixed me with an suddenly serious gaze.
But this feeling.
It felt strangely familiar.
The same sensation I’d felt in the Imperial Palace.
I could almost predict what Jackal would say next.
And sure enough.
“Join the Steel Claw Mercenary Band!”
“Captain!”
“You’re saying you’ll accept an adventurer into the mercenary band?”
“Even so, they’re just an adventurer….”
“All of you, shut it! Why do you lot have so much to say after getting thoroughly beaten by that adventurer?”
“Ugh….”
Jackal had extended a recruitment offer to me.
It felt like a lie that the Empire’s Knight Orders and NPCs typically refused to accept players as allies.
“As for our Steel Claw Mercenary Band… ahem, it’s embarrassing to say it myself. Hey, John! Explain it for me instead!”
“Yes sir! Listen well, adventurer! As for our mercenary band….”
Smack!
“With respect!”
“Yes…. Our Steel Claw Mercenary Band, thanks to Captain Jackal’s strength! His fame! And his charisma, was recognized as a promising B-rank mercenary band just one year after its founding!”
“Ahem, good.”
“A 99.9% mission success rate! Captain Jackal is generous with funds, so the pay is quite lucrative!”
“Furthermore, if we just get through this next mission, I’m planning to request our promotion to A-rank immediately. And.”
Thump.
Jackal draped his arm across my shoulder once more as he spoke.
“If you join us, we could surpass even SSS-rank and become the strongest mercenary band in history! Wahahahaha!”
It wasn’t a bad offer.
Based on our direct confrontation, Jackal was far beyond the level of a B-rank mercenary band.
It was only a matter of time before he climbed past A-rank, and I was confident I could accelerate that mercenary band’s growth even further, just as he’d said.
But, naturally.
“I must decline.”
“Hmm.”
It was a refusal.
I had also refused to join the Empire’s Knight Order.
I’d considered joining the Blue Moon Knight Order, weighing the benefits I’d gain, but.
There was no reason to join a mercenary band.
I’d expected Jackal to be taken aback by my sharp rejection.
“Don’t refuse so coldly! We’re going to be traveling together anyway, so let’s get to know each other slowly. Wahaha!”
“Captain, so is this guy our newest member?”
“I said I’d think about it! And even if he did join, he’d rank above you!”
“Huh? Shouldn’t the newest member start from the bottom!”
“That’s only for guys like you with mediocre skills.”
Surprisingly, he didn’t seem to mind much.
And then.
“Everyone, get ready! We’re departing now!”
“My, it’s almost work time. Come on, everyone, get moving! Prepare yourselves! Wake up those lying around over there too!”
“Splash some cold water on them!”
It was time for the carriages to depart.
“Hyeeah!”
The true journey toward the Red Beast Fortress was beginning.
* * *
Ten carriages had been assigned this time.
However, even with so many carriages, there were no dedicated rest compartments for mercenaries.
The Simmons Trading Company hadn’t hired mercenaries to rest comfortably inside the carriages—they’d hired us to prevent any unforeseen dangers.
So the mercenaries.
“Ugh, so cramped.”
“Hey, John! Switch spots with me!”
“Just a bit longer.”
“A bit longer? You’ve been lying down forever!”
Some sat perched on the carriage railings, others rode alongside on provided horses, and some climbed atop the carriages to keep watch.
There were even those who ran alongside the convoy.
Though some grumbled, this was simply the natural life of an escort mercenary, so nobody gave it much thought.
Given the situation, rather than compete for a spot on the carriage railing with the other mercenaries, I.
[ Horse Whistle – Lispe ]
( Non-tradeable )
Type : Mount
Grade : Unique
Restriction : Level 200 or higher
Description : The steed of Haime, one of the Twelve Knights of the legendary hero Dietrich von Bern. Known as one of the finest horses descended from the blood of Odin’s steed, Sleipnir.
I blew the horse whistle and summoned my mount.
Lispe—a level 200 mount.
Among all mounts suited to my level, and among those in equine form, she was the finest steed of the highest grade.
True to her Sleipnir bloodline, she had swift hooves and tremendous strength.
“Impressive! Such a magnificent horse—you’ve been carrying one all along?”
The captain of the Steel Claw Mercenary Band.
Jackal was also riding a horse.
Given Jackal’s massive frame and the weight of his crescent blade, his mount was proportionally large, though it didn’t appear to be a war horse.
“Your horsemanship looks excellent. Would you mind doing some scouting for us?”
Jackal made the request of me.
Well, I did seem to have the best riding skills among this group.
Even that overseer over there appeared to be grumbling that the mercenaries were being too idle.
More than anything.
‘I’m bored too.’
Time was too precious to spend moving leisurely like this.
Even while traveling toward the Red Beast Fortress, I wanted to use every moment as efficiently as possible.
So I figured I might as well scout ahead, raise my Riding skill, and if any monsters appeared, hunt them down.
“Understood.”
“Wahaha! Much obliged!”
I received the map from Jackal.
The route for the Simmons Trading Company’s caravan to travel.
Though it was a major operation, it was a path with sparse foot traffic and minimal risk of detection by other merchant caravans.
Because of this, our arrival at the Red Beast Fortress was slightly delayed, but Simons judged it was worth the precaution.
If someone discovered that the Simmons Trading Company was heading to the Red Beast Fortress, it could prove dangerous.
The other two of the Empire’s three great merchant caravans, for instance.
Or bandits who might be eyeing the goods the Simmons Trading Company was transporting.
“Hyah!”
I galloped ahead toward that path on Lisper.
“Is this why they hired the entire Steel Claw Mercenary Band?”
The caravan’s travel route.
Ordinarily, caravans stick to safe, well-traveled roads as standard practice.
But the path this caravan was taking consisted of cliff edges and narrow trails barely wide enough for a caravan to squeeze through.
Not only was caravan movement difficult, but monsters openly inhabited these areas.
No wonder so many mercenaries were needed.
Thus, the moment I arrived as a scout near the cliff edge.
“Screeeee!”
Massive eagles came diving up from below the cliff.
Of course, these were no ordinary eagles.
Eagles that wielded wind magic.
Monsters that flapped their wings to generate sharp winds they could slash enemies with, or conversely, blast enemies backward with wind to send them plummeting down the cliff.
If those eagles knocked the caravan off the cliff when it arrived, it would be catastrophic.
By protocol, I should return to the caravan, alert them to the monsters’ presence, and deal with the eagles alongside the Steel Claw Mercenary Band.
“Why not put my Riding Skill to use?”
Instead, I decided to eliminate all the eagles here by myself.
Once the monsters disappeared, there would be nothing to report anyway.
[ Wrath of the Heavens ]
( Non-Tradeable )
Form: Bow
Grade: Unique
Restrictions: Level 300+, Agility 1,000+, Bow Mastery Lv 30+
Description: A celestial bow said to contain the complete wrath of the heavens, releasing brilliant flashes and lightning with each release of the bowstring.
I drew the bow while still mounted.
There was no need to nock an arrow.
Simply drawing the bowstring caused a lightning-shaped arrow to materialize and lock onto the string.
I aimed at the incoming eagle and released the bowstring.
Crack!
With a thunderous roar as described in the item description, the arrow flew forth like lightning itself.
A Unique-grade bow with a 300-level restriction.
One of the eagles that had been diving down lost consciousness and fell straight down, struck by an electric attribute attack—the very weakness of flying-type monsters.
The startled eagles unleashed gusts of wind at me.
“Neigh!”
Lisper, my unique-grade mount, remained perfectly steady even under the pressure of that wind.
– Using skill ‘Silver Shot’.
Crack!
The arrow I fired with the skill pierced through the wind and shot upward, dropping the eagles one after another.
With rapid successive shots, I managed to drop all the eagles before the ‘Wrath of the Heavens’ bow deactivated.
Some of them fell over the Cliff.
– I shall partake gratefully, Master.
Gulp!
[ Luke has consumed ‘Gale Eagle’. ]
[ Luke’s stats have increased by 2. ]
Luke devoured every monster I’d brought down, regardless of distance, and brought me their items.
The same pattern continued once we entered the forest.
“Roooar!”
Monsters positioned along the caravan’s route.
Wild bears, corrupted mushroom spirits, and massive carnivorous flowers—all the same.
[ Vicious Crimson Moon Blade ]
( Non-Tradeable )
Type: Sword
Grade: Unique
Restriction: Level 320 or higher, Sword Mastery Lv 25 or higher, Riding Lv 25 or higher
Description: A cursed cavalry weapon forged from countless lives taken on the battlefield, its red blade formed from the crystallized blood and resentment of all those slain.
I cleared not only the monsters along the caravan’s path but also those lurking in the surrounding areas.
Though not enough to raise my level.
[ Skill ‘Riding’ level has increased. ]
[ Skill ‘All Mastery’ level has increased. ]
….
I was satisfied with my steadily rising skill levels.
– Using skill ‘Power Strike’.
“Shriek!”
As a scout, I began systematically slaughtering every monster that existed along the caravan’s route.

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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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