MSDH CH 05

Chapter – 05

The moment I threw in my resignation letter, I went home and rested for a few days. After that, I came out and wandered around the bustling district.

While resting at home, I squeezed out several ideas for possible business ventures, but I couldn’t find anything that truly felt right. So I decided to come out and look for myself.

Since I left early, I hadn’t eaten breakfast. I bought a cheap brown bread for one copper coin from a bakery near my house and walked around nibbling on it.

The streets of Elcard’s commercial district had no dirt roads anywhere. Wide, flat stone slabs were laid down so shoes wouldn’t get dirty.

So this really was the wealthiest country on the continent.

While thinking that, I walked for a while before suddenly stopping in front of a building. It was a large three-story structure with many windows, and an arched sign stood out.

“Mercenary… Guild?”

“Please step aside for a moment.”

“Oh, sorry.”

“No need to apologize. Thank you!”

As I stared at the sign blankly, a rough-looking man spoke to me.

I quickly stepped back, and he, with weapons strapped to his back, nodded politely before entering the mercenary guild.

Through the opening door, loud noises spilled out.

It looked packed inside.

“A mercenary guild…”

This was something I hadn’t considered before.

Even though I was in Hazel Love’s body, I still had her memories and could use some of her abilities.

Which meant I could technically hunt monsters and take on missions. I’d just have to be careful with my body.

Unable to contain my curiosity, I opened the door and went inside.

The moment I entered, loud chatter flooded my ears.

Looking around, I saw men and women dressed lightly, each carrying weapons, filling tables and chairs.

There were elderly men with white hair and beards, and also people who looked quite young.

The streets outside were quiet, but it felt like everyone who should’ve been outside had gathered here instead.

I went to a corner and observed the atmosphere.

At the center, a round desk seemed to be the staff counter.

People were exchanging requests or speaking through that desk. Once they got what they needed, they filled out documents and left with bright faces.

I nervously approached the counter.

“For new mercenary registration, go right. For accepting requests, go left. For rewards from completed missions, come to me. Other consultations are also available.”

A woman spoke in a mechanical tone like a bank clerk, then smiled at me.

She said consultations were possible too.

I waited a bit, then asked several questions when she was free.

How mercenary registration worked, how requests were assigned, and other details about the guild.

Since Hazel Love in the original story and the main characters had almost no connection with mercenary guilds, I had no choice but to ask.

After a few questions, I heard something interesting.

“Th-the commission is how much?”

“We charge 20% depending on rank. If you register as a contracted mercenary, we add an additional 5% bonus to your request payment. Other guilds usually take 25% to 30%, so please make your decision wisely.”

My jaw dropped.

I thought getting even 5% would be good—but 20%? Some places even take 30%?

So if a request is worth 100 gold… the mercenary gets 80, and the guild gets 20?

And they just sit at a fancy desk like that?

Even drinking tea elegantly like that lady?

And if I registered as a mercenary with my illusion skills and Imperial Knight experience, I could take missions alone.

That would mean I keep all the reward money myself.

Apparently, I could even be ranked as S-rank from the beginning as a solo elite.

Which meant I could take the highest-level S-rank missions immediately.

“…Not bad.”

Rather than working overtime for a knight’s salary, I could occasionally take field missions when I felt restless, and otherwise just handle mercenary contracts!

With monster appearances increasing every year, mercenaries were also rapidly increasing. One more guild wouldn’t be a problem.

There were only a handful of major guilds in the empire right now, so it might be good to establish one early before they spread everywhere.

“Then let’s gather funds first.”

I headed straight to the bank.

“…Damn it.”

I walked out of the bank, dragging my feet.

Hazel Love had supposedly been diligent about saving money.

And extremely frugal.

“So why is there only this much in the bank?”

I lifted a small, precious money pouch. It barely filled one hand.

Of course, it was enough to live on bread for a few years without starving.

But still—she was a top-ranked knight! She even graduated as the top recruit! She worked overtime constantly, so why wasn’t there enough to start a mercenary guild?!

It was said that at least 1 million gold was needed just to build a small office.

For a proper guild, 3 million gold.

And if I wanted to get a franchise from an existing large guild with initial client support, at least 5 million gold.

The last option would let me recover the 5 million within a year.

But Hazel Love’s entire savings combined barely exceeded 400,000 gold.

Since I had resigned from the knights, I couldn’t even get a bank loan anymore.

In other words, I only had 400,000 gold available.

Far too little.

With this, I couldn’t even dream of starting a guild.

“…This isn’t enough.”

So the dream of becoming a boss was already over?

I could maybe open a small flower shop or bakery—but I had a negative talent for gardening (plants died the moment I touched them), and baking was even worse. I had once failed at making pancakes.

“A mercenary guild would be perfect…”

If only someone would lend me 1 million gold…

I even briefly considered asking my former superior and male lead, Jed Terry Elkium, but immediately gave up.

If he laughed at me, I’d be so embarrassed I might jump into a river.

And asking Dylan Banker, my colleague who tried to stop me from resigning, would be even more ridiculous.

“Haah…”

I entered a random restaurant, ordered the cheapest meal and a drink, and sat down.

I slumped over the table, tapping it while staring at my money pouch.

Money, money, money… I need money.

If I had known this would happen, I should’ve taken a loan from the knight order before quitting. Their interest rates were actually good.

Why didn’t I think of that?

Within a minute, a drink with ice and a steaming bowl of soup arrived.

“They even give ice.”

Perfect—I was overheated.

I quickly drank the whole thing and picked up my spoon.

Even though I ordered the cheapest dish, there were huge chunks of meat inside. Every scoop brought up cabbage and meat in generous amounts.

It felt like they had made a mistake with the price.

“Maybe I should look for something else instead of a mercenary guild…”

Or just slowly work as a mercenary for now.

I couldn’t risk dying in a worse way while trying to avoid overwork death.

At least I had a home. Without one, I’d be completely hopeless.

While chewing on tender meat, I looked around—and two men dressed in black entered the restaurant.

The noisy atmosphere quieted instantly.

Something felt off. They didn’t look particularly scary, but they gave off a dangerous aura.

And of all places, they sat right next to me.

I pretended to eat soup while watching them sideways.

People like them were usually important figures in the original story.

“…Haven’t slept for days. I’m exhausted.”

The man on the right, speaking in a deep voice while rubbing his face, had a tattoo-like mark on his arm.

Upon closer look, it looked like neither a snake nor a dragon—it was coiling around his wrist.

“…Ah, that…”

I muttered without thinking, and the man suddenly looked at me.

I quickly turned away and stirred my soup.

When I glanced again, they were deep in conversation.

“As soon as it’s sold, deposit it under the name Purple at Tony’s place. Pick it up Sunday night.”

“One piece the size of a finger for 3 million gold? I should’ve stolen more.”

“Shut it. If we get caught, we’re dead.”

If I remembered correctly, these were definitely subordinates of the villain Kailus Hadid.

Wait—Purple? 3 million gold?

Purple was one of their operation sites, also the largest tavern in the capital.

It was also the place where the protagonists first directly encountered the villain Kailus Hadid in the original story.

Then…

At that moment, fragments of the original story began to rise in my mind.