Chapter 50
Startled, he grabbed Nibelia and demanded to know where she had heard such a terrible word, even ignoring his younger sister who had returned after two years.
“W-where did you hear the word mating?”
“Long, long ago.”
“Long ago—when? From who?!”
“When Nini was a cat!”
While the fruitless interrogation continued—
“Hmm, shall we go into the mansion?”
“I have to go with the young lady.”
“You’re a true knight to the bone, huh. Then want to hear a bit from this Mercenary King?”
“Yes!”
Armifera began telling Aref about her adventures.
Starting from the hardships she faced when she first joined a mercenary group, to exploring the nest of the last dragon, to the internal faction fights among the members, and even the story of how she almost lost one of her eyes.
The shock on Aref’s face gradually grew as he listened with excitement.
The raw tales of adventure were far too cruel and horrifying.
Aref, who had secretly expected heroic stories like those in fairy tales, was deeply shaken.
Especially when she talked about injuring her eye, he instinctively covered one of his own eyes as if it had happened to him.
“D-didn’t it hurt…?”
“It hurt like hell.”
Armifera proudly pointed at her scarred left eye.
“But I only got scratched, while the traitor who attacked me lost his eyeball—”
“Armifera!”
A sharp shout burst out from the second-floor window.
Startled, Aref looked up.
Through the wide-open window, Muniel could be seen.
She was glaring fiercely at Armifera, as if she couldn’t even see Nibelia or Aref.
“Lady Muniel…?”
“Ah….”
Meanwhile, Armifera grimaced as if she was doomed.
“I forgot about Mom.”
Even the mighty Mercenary King was nothing but a child in front of her mother.
“Have you lost your mind? Not a single message for two years? Do you feel better making your mother worry sick?! Huh?!”
“Ow! Mom, that hurts!”
Smack, smack!
The sharp sounds of hitting showed no sign of stopping.
Aref couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
“L-Lady Muniel…!”
The person who always wore a gentle smile and took care of him kindly in any situation…!
Muniel, her eyes practically blazing with rage, relentlessly smacked the back of her daughter who had returned after two years.
Her wrist movements were so powerful that one could imagine how she must have fought in the war 40 years ago.
“Mom! It hurts!”
Unable to endure it any longer, Armifera fled and lifted Aref nearby, using him as a shield.
Aref’s eyes widened in shock.
“Lucky you! Nini, you want this too?”
Nibelia clung to Armifera’s leg, whining for the same treatment.
Given the situation, Celetina pulled her daughter away to create some distance.
“Mom, calm down a bit!”
Armifera had something to say too.
“They say no news is good news! I came back with all my limbs intact—that’s what matters!”
“And you think that’s something you should be saying? What happened to your eye?!”
“Cool, right? This was during the semifinals of the Mercenary King selection—”
“Hey!”
Muniel was furious beyond measure.
She had gone through the pain of giving birth and raising her carefully, only for her daughter to act so carelessly with her own body.
“Pera.”
Ardoles, who had been watching silently, spoke.
“Muniel worried about you a lot.”
His stern voice was heavier than usual.
Naturally so—he, too, had been worried about his daughter who had gone without news.
Of course, he knew she wasn’t someone who could be easily defeated anywhere.
Still, a parent’s heart worries when their child is out of sight, no matter how strong or grown they are.
“……”
Only then did a look of reflection and regret appear on Armifera’s face.
“Maybe I shouldn’t have come back…?”
It was regret—but not quite the kind her parents had hoped for.
Still, soon after, Armifera made up her mind and set Aref, whom she had been holding as a shield, back on the ground.
Aref, who had barely regained his senses, gently tugged at her hand.
“I-if you did something wrong, you should apologize.”
He shared something important he had learned at kindergarten and here at the Dei Amor mansion.
“If you did something wrong, Lady Armifera, it’s right to apologize.”
“Sigh, you’re better than me.”
Kids these days sure are smart.
Her rough hand gently patted the child’s soft golden hair.
After lightly pressing down his ruffled hair, Aref quickly ran back to where Nibelia was.
“Mom.”
Having steeled herself, Armifera stood before Muniel.
“I-I’m sorry.”
“What are you sorry for?”
“For not keeping in touch. I should have at least sent messages regularly. And… for not taking care of my body.”
“……”
A few words of apology weren’t enough to extinguish the anger immediately.
But in the end, Muniel let out a long, heavy sigh that seemed to sink into the ground—and embraced her.
“As long as you’re safe, that’s enough. From now on, keep in touch properly.”
“Yes, Mom.”
Only then did the mother and daughter tightly embrace each other.
Muniel gently cupped Armifera’s face, now tanned again under the sun.
“It’s really good to see you after so long.”
“Hehe, right?”
“Don’t grin like that. You look stupid.”
“Still, at least keep some dignity in front of your nephews and nieces.”
Armifera then greeted Ardoles as well.
He lifted his fully grown daughter and spun her around.
Even if she was a troublemaker who ran away on her own to become the Mercenary King, she was still his small and precious youngest daughter.
“But, Pera.”
“Yes, Dad.”
“What happened to my greatsword?”
“Isn’t it better than losing my arm?”
With a bright smile, Armifera indirectly revealed the fate of the sword.
Hearing that it had crossed a river of no return, Ardoles felt his heart break.
Fortunately, the broken greatsword was currently being repaired.
“There’s a skilled blacksmith in the Latro district. His name’s Maleus—he knew your name, Dad.”
“Ah, that guy must’ve gone to the mercenary zone.”
“When I said it was your sword, he offered to fix it for free. But that didn’t feel right, so I stuffed his pockets with money.”
After greeting her parents, Armifera caught up with her older brother and his wife.
“Wow, brother—you look like you haven’t changed, but somehow aged?”
“Do you even think that sentence makes sense?”
“Doesn’t matter! Eeeek, Sister Celi! Long time no see! You really haven’t changed at all.”
“I’m glad you returned safely, Miss. You look even stronger than before. Did you really become the Mercenary King?”
Celetina congratulated her sincerely, as if it were her own achievement.
Armifera beamed.
“Of course! It took six years, but I finally achieved my dream!”
The only one capable of commanding uncontrollable mercenaries.
All mercenaries in the world must obey her commands, and those who defy them are executed on the spot in the name of the Mercenary King.
Her power rivaled that of a nation.
“So I’m planning to rest for a while. I’ve been running nonstop for six years—my whole body aches.”
“You’re staying for good, right?”
“I’ll stay a bit and then leave. Even if I’m the Mercenary King, I still have work to do. I’ve got my own plans…”
“Alright, alright.”
Kaleo suddenly interrupted.
He carefully looked her up and down.
“First, go wash yourself.”
Only then did everyone notice how filthy Armifera looked.
After washing up, Armifera came out feeling refreshed, wearing a loose shirt and cotton pants.
She had also changed into sandals that exposed all her toes.
“Nini has those too!”
Nibelia pointed at her shoes, chattering.
“I have shoes where your toes show. But when you run, dirt and grass sometimes get in.”
“Do you like sandals, Nini?”
“Sandals?”
“Shoes that show your toes like this are called sandals.”
“Hmm, they’re okay, I guess?”
Nibelia, Aref, and Soles stayed close to Armifera.
She was their aunt who had returned after two whole years.
And she had come back as the Mercenary King.
Everything she brought was fascinating, and although her stories were a bit brutal, they were incredibly interesting.
“Wow, Soles, you’ve grown a lot!”
Of course, Armifera also found her nieces and nephews fascinating after so long.
“You’ve grown way bigger than before. Wow, looking at your hands and feet, you might grow as big as your dad and grandfather.”
“R-really?”
Soles’ eyes sparkled.
“Especially your feet. If they’re big, you grow taller quickly. Look at beasts—wolves and tigers with big paws tend to be large.”
“Wow…!”
Soles imagined herself growing big and becoming an adult.
She sincerely hoped to grow tall just like that.
“Come to think of it, Aref, your hands are big too. You’ve got a solid frame.”
“The Duke said that to me before.”
Aref had heard those words once before.
So he became even more convinced that he would grow tall.
Hearing the same thing twice meant it had to be true.
“The Duke? Brother Ralph?”
“Ralph?”
Nibelia muttered while fiddling with her hands.
“Kalalov. Ralph. Duke Deigradis.”
Recalling the neighbor uncle, Nibelia nodded.
“Oh, that thigh guy?”
“Where does Nini learn these words? She’s really funny.”
“I learn them from here and there.”
Chuckling briefly, Armifera emptied the contents of her bag onto the floor.
“You were curious about my stuff, right?”
“I saw your eyes sparkling earlier.”
