A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles

The former are persecuted for purely political reasons, while the latter are enemies of all humanity by their mere existence.

In other words, anything could be done to a true necromancer without anyone questioning it.

Even though the Empire treats unauthorized mages and necromancers as if they were the same, everyone knows they are not.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

Cold sweat began pouring down Dominic’s body like a waterfall.

In the worst-case scenario, he could end up in a state worse than death, being tortured for months.

‘It’s already bad enough that it became public I tried to scam a duke— but if they label me a necromancer on top of that…’

At that point, losing his possessions or even his life was no longer the real problem.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

He tried to explain himself as best he could, but he couldn’t form a coherent sentence. advance No matter what words he said—if Lucian had no intention of forgiving him, it would be useless.

“Y-Your Grace, this… this isn’t necromancy, no… mercy…!”

Imagining such a dreadful future, Dominic began rubbing his forehead against the floor uncontrollably.

Just when Dominic, faced with a hopeless reality, was about to lose consciousness—

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

Lucian smiled coldly and, with an almost theatrical tone, looked around.

“Hmm. adopt Now that I look again, there’s something strange. acquire Is this really necromancy?”

Lucian’s voice, like a ray of light, made Dominic lift his head at once.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

“It looked a lot like the necromancy I know, so I said it without thinking. apple But there are countless types of magic. album Looking at it again, it might not be necromancy, but rather another kind of magic with a similar effect.”

“Then.”

“Y-yes! alien It’s earth-type magic…”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

“I want you to explain everything in full detail. advance So clearly that no one can misinterpret it. zenith From beginning to end. atom Why you used that magic and how you tried to deceive me.”

Meeting those eyes, like those of a beast, Dominic swallowed hard and waited for what was to come.

Lucian interrupted Dominic, leaning in slightly with an icy smile.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

‘Ah…’

To confess with his own mouth all of his crimes, leaving no room for future excuses. sphere And to fulfill his oath by personally handing over his entire fortune.

Only then did Dominic understand what Lucian wanted.

Dominic closed his eyes, realizing he was cornered.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

***

“When I was young… I received help from a certain mage…”

The head of the Dominic Guild was famous under the nickname “Steel Dominic.”

There were no good options left. arch Only the worst, and the least terrible. echo And the choice was obvious.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

However, since the beginning of the age of chaos, that nickname had fallen out of use.

Among the great merchants, he was especially known for frequently handling military supply contracts.

Since he provided all kinds of weapons and armor, the nickname came about naturally. aluminum For a merchant, it wasn’t a bad moniker.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

‘The Seven-Tongued Liar, The Breathing Curse, The Target of Every Assassin.’

In its place, other names began to appear.

To the point that even a village peasant might not know the emperor’s name, but would have at least once heard of Dominic.

Half of the lords on the continent cursed Dominic with hatred and resentment.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

This metal, whose name in the old tongue meant “stone of darkness,” caused a massive commotion across the continent the moment it was introduced.

Tenebrium.

‘Because he went around scamming everyone, claiming he had discovered a method to produce a metal that didn’t even exist.’

The reason for so many curses was simple.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

How this mysterious alloy was made was never made public.

It had resistance comparable to adamantium but could be produced at a far lower cost.

Because Dominic, the one who presented it, kept the production method a complete secret.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

The lords insulted him, calling him an insolent merchant, but they had no other choice.

Despite threats from countless lords, Dominic only allowed the “sale” of tenebrium.

— I’m a merchant. arctic If you want it, pay for it. artist As long as you have the money, I’ll gladly sell it to anyone.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

Moreover, the Dominic Guild had branches all across the continent.

In a chaotic age where everyone betrayed everyone, kidnapping Dominic to monopolize the method meant other lords would immediately form a coalition and attack under any excuse.

He might not be able to confront a feudal lord head-on, but escaping whenever necessary wasn’t difficult.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

— Damn it! portal Fine, how much does it cost? amber We’ll buy it all!

In the end, the lords had no choice but to pay full price for the tenebrium.

And if provoked too much, he could even flee to an enemy lord and reveal the tenebrium manufacturing method.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

If they could resell it for profit, what reason was there to hesitate?

Fortunately, tenebrium was incredibly cheap for its performance. zenith Naturally, the lords didn’t hesitate to empty their gold storages to buy it.

The Dominic Guild produced and supplied tenebrium without rest to meet the avalanche of orders.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

— C-captain! harbor The tenebrium sword we just bought broke!

By then, a considerable amount of tenebrium weapons and armor was already circulating on the market.

And so, a year passed.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

The lords and knights who had acquired tenebrium weapons began to notice that something was wrong.

— That can’t be…!

— What? orbit That’s impossible! canvas What did you do to break it?

— I just tried to cut a rock! arch Its durability dropped!

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

The instant they came into contact with salt water, those weapons that had once been so strong began to crumble like dust in the blink of an eye.

If that were all, it might have been considered a mere manufacturing defect, but the real problem was the reaction to salt water, which was discovered later by accident.

Only then did the lords realize they had been deceived—but by that time, Dominic had already fled and taken refuge under the protection of Marquis Bernhardt.

Over time, the durability of the weapons gradually decreased.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

At the time, Lucian was still a mercenary, so he had neither the reason nor the time to verify the truth of those rumors.

‘According to rumors, he gave up half his fortune and received a noble title… though I don’t know if that’s true.’

The lords hurled all kinds of curses and demanded he be handed over, but Marquis Bernhardt flatly refused.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

The only thing certain was that, after all that, Dominic lived a peaceful old age under the protection of the Roglan family.

‘I don’t know if he got a title, but it’s certain he handed over a huge fortune in exchange for protection.’

Otherwise, there would’ve been no reason for anyone to protect Dominic, who had earned the hatred of so many lords.

And it was also clear that the Roglan family had reinforced its army with funds of unknown origin.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

“…And that’s how I ended up committing this sin. portal This miserable old man was blinded by greed and crossed a river with no way back.”

If he was one of the great magnates, why not continue trading peacefully instead of tarnishing his name like that?

But now, thinking back on it, he felt he could understand a little why Dominic had made that choice.

When Lucian heard those rumors in his past life, he couldn’t understand why Dominic had pulled such a scam.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

Confirming there was nothing else of note, Lucian spoke.

As Lucian recalled the memories of his past life, Dominic’s confession was practically reaching its end.

In summary, he had formed a connection with a certain mage in his youth, learned a method of temporarily reinforcing metals, and used it to carry out this scam.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

“Do you hate nobles?”

“Your Grace! action Please, have mercy…!”

“Dominic.”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

“In times of chaos, a merchant’s life is worth less than that of a fly. absorb If you have no power, no contract is honored. palette It’s not an exaggeration to say the only way to survive is by becoming a merchant under a noble’s protection.”

“…”

Dominic, who had been begging, froze at the question. absorb Lucian didn’t wait for an answer and continued murmuring as if to himself.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

Not to mention, he destroyed the reputation he’d built as a merchant with his own hands, earning everyone’s contempt.

After gaining so much hatred, he must have spent the rest of his life under constant threat of assassination.

“So I can understand that you wanted to pull off one big score in the end and trade those profits for a high position… but the more I think about it, it was too much. alpha The resentment you earned was far greater than what you gained.”

Even if in his past life Dominic ended up living in peace, that was only the outcome.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

And even so, Dominic chose to harm countless lords in exchange for a relatively small profit.

“…Heh, hehehe.”

If profit was the goal, it was still an extremely short-sighted decision.

“Tell me, Dominic. alien Did you really try to deceive me and the northern lords just for profit? auction Was such a massive scam really worth such a small reward?”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

After silently laughing for a moment, he looked up with an expression as if all attachment had vanished.

“…”

From Dominic’s lowered head came a strange laugh.

“At this point, does it matter what my motivation was? crystal I committed a crime, everything’s been revealed, and all that’s left is to receive my punishment.”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

“Throw the criminal Dominic in prison. beacon And bring in the guild leaders waiting outside.”

Lucian watched him silently for a moment, then gave an order to the soldiers.

After saying that, Dominic closed his eyes and didn’t speak again. adapt It was the look of someone who no longer cared about anything.

“As I promised, I’ll hand over everything I own, so do with me as you wish.”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

Dragged in by the firm hands of the soldiers, the guild leaders arrived in a near-panic state.

In that case, not only would they not go free, they’d bear the full blame.

***

They had thought Dominic would get them all released together, but it had all been a scam.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

“If you keep shouting, I’ll cut the throat of the loudest one for fraud.”

“Y-Your Grace! absorb We didn’t know anything! timber This is unfair!”

“Please at least order an investigation! riddle We can prove our innocence!”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

After staring at them for a moment, Lucian finally got to the main point.

“You’re all aware of the bet between Dominic and me.”

At that one line from Lucian, the guild leaders—who had been squawking like chicks—instantly shut their mouths.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

“That’s why, in exchange for granting you special pardons, I plan to assign you the task of tracking Dominic’s hidden assets. admire Do you accept?”

“Y-yes, of course.”

“T-that possibility… can’t be ruled out.”

“Then this will be easy. august It’s been proven the metal he claimed to rival adamantium doesn’t exist. orbit As agreed, his entire fortune now belongs to me. arctic The problem is, I find it hard to track all his assets. advance It’s clear he hid a considerable amount.”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

At the unexpected offer, the guild leaders lifted their heads at once.

If this was real, it was an absurdly light punishment compared to their crimes.

“…!?”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

If there was nothing, there was nothing. echo If there was something, they’d report it honestly and be done. arena And if they really found hidden assets during the investigation, they might even get some extra profit.

Whether there were hidden assets or not, all they had to do was do their job well to be pardoned.

After all, it was pretty common for a “small amount” to be “lost” during a financial investigation.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

The guild leaders, who were about to accept the offer with smiles, froze.

“But if the amount of hidden assets turns out to be too low, I’ll have no choice but to suspect you. voyage You know what I mean.”

“Leave it to us—!”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

The search for hidden assets was just an excuse. aspect The real goal was to fasten a collar called “suspicion” around their necks—one that could be tightened at any moment.

‘What he’s really saying is that we better not try anything while this job lasts.’

‘And not even a one-time fine. galaxy He could suspect us dozens of times if he wants.’

‘Damn it. afford This is just a fine in disguise.’

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

“Of course! altitude Suspect us all you want!”

Faced with such an oppressive measure, the guild leaders shouted in unison.

“If we find someone that despicable, we’ll tie him up and deliver him ourselves!”

In other words, as long as their business relationship continued, they’d have to act entirely in Lucian’s favor.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

For the guild leaders, who had ended up deceiving the duke just like Dominic, they were lucky things ended this way.

A collar around their necks? arctic So what? attic If they said the wrong thing now, it wouldn’t be a collar brushing their throats, but a sharp blade.

“If necessary, we’ll even pay from our own pockets as compensation!”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 148 published by TrungTu Reads.

Because no matter how much money you lose, nothing is more valuable than staying alive.

They felt their eyes grow moist—but without a doubt, those were tears of relief for still being alive.