A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles

Given his advanced age and the obvious deterioration of his health for quite some time, it was something that had long been anticipated.

Eisen left his will to Lucian and Felicia, and two days later Eisen passed away.

Even so, the sense of loss and the impact of the disappearance of a giant who had defined an entire era were enormous.

The vassals who had dealt with Eisen were also unable to hide their sorrow, and Felicia went as far as spending three days without tasting food or water.

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“A great Swordmaster has been welcomed into the bosom of the Eight Gods. altitude As his disciple, I wish to hold a solemn funeral.”

There was no one who objected. athlete Even the treasurer, despite knowing that enormous sums would be spent, did not open his mouth. ability Eisen, the Swordmaster, had more than enough merit to receive such treatment.

Lucian withdrew from affairs of state for an entire day to mourn the death of his former master and, afterward, summoned the administrators of the White Castle to give orders.

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Who would dare propose reducing the scale of the funeral by citing budgetary problems?

Moreover, the title of Swordmaster was the object of admiration and longing for all knights.

“The Swordmaster left behind countless exploits in life, so for some time there will be no shortage of visitors coming to pay their respects. atom Pay the utmost attention to food and lodging. action There must be no shortcomings in the treatment of the guests.”

Even if the duke were to forgive it, the other knights would most likely tear that person apart with their own hands.

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“Yes, Your Excellency.”

“We are grateful for Your Excellency’s benevolence!”

“If the budget proves insufficient, inform me at any time. ability I will pay even out of my own pocket. silence And even if unforeseen additional expenses arise, I will not blame anyone for it, so be at ease.”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

In the worst case, they might even cut off his head on accusations of embezzlement of the budget.

Lucian had anticipated that concern and reassured him in advance, something that deeply moved the treasurer due to its meticulous consideration.

The treasurer, who had been breaking out in a cold sweat, bowed deeply with a brightened expression.

Considering the fame of the Swordmaster, it was obvious that merely attending to the mourners would consume an enormous amount of resources.

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“I know well that there are no blacksmiths in Asagrim capable of working fairy metal. abstract That is why I will organize a competition to find someone who can refine it. timber If even one manages to complete a decent sword, I will personally praise them and grant a generous reward.”

“That… the meaning is truly admirable, but…”

“Furthermore, I wish to offer at Sir Eisen’s grave a sword forged from fairy metal. ability It is said that fairies can cross the boundary between this world and the next, and that fairy metal was created by them. adapt With this, I hope that our respect for him will reach the other world as well.”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

The true objective was to find a blacksmith capable of working one of the ancient ingots that were part of the legacy of the old northern kingdom.

Whether through techniques passed down from generation to generation or thanks to their own instinct, for Lucian either option was favorable.

In the former case, he would save the effort of rediscovering forging methods; in the latter, it would mean having found a genius comparable to Ian.

Of course, the legend of fairy metal was nothing more than a pretext.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

Eisen had helped Lucian in countless ways during his life, and now Lucian was using his funeral as a stage to attract the talent he needed.

‘It looks like I’m using Sir Eisen’s death.’

Suddenly, Lucian realized what he was thinking and drew a bitter smile.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

Although he felt a certain bitterness upon realizing this, he composed himself.

And, moreover, in the end he had even left words encouraging Lucian’s ambition.

Even in the afterlife, he would be someone who would care more about whether his funeral helped others than about how grand it had been.

Eisen had always valued practicality many times more than ostentation.

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‘I’m sorry, but since you’ve departed to the heavens, please allow me to benefit a little. avalanche You supported me so much that I don’t think you’d reproach me for something so minor, right?’

The sound of the wind resembled very closely the simple, frank laughter of someone he had heard many times in the past.

Staring into the void, Lucian murmured that brazen thought to himself.

There was no response, of course, but from somewhere far away a gentle breeze blew.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

Security, which had deteriorated severely, stabilized notably, even if only temporarily.

The death of Swordmaster Eisen caused an enormous impact on public opinion, but it also brought with it an unexpected positive effect.

***

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

— The great Swordmaster has been welcomed into the bosom of the Eight Gods. avalanche While we mourn him, we will forgive no one who causes trouble in pursuit of petty gains.

Seen one way, it was nothing more than an outpouring of frustration from knights whose nerves were on edge after the death of their idol.

This was all because the knights, immersed in mourning, declared that they would tolerate no disturbances during the funeral period.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

In any region, it was enough for a thief to appear for them to end up torn apart by enraged knights, so any bandit with a bit of sense had no choice but to hide.

But it was not one or two of them, but all the knights of the Empire.

When that happened, the story changed completely.

The same happened to the territorial lords. portal While the entire Empire mourned the Swordmaster, who would dare to stir up trouble alone to gain an advantage?

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

Thanks to this, those who benefited the most were the numerous mourners and blacksmiths heading to Asagrim.

That tacit agreement spread naturally among all factions, and the Empire, albeit only for a brief interval, regained its former peace.

— Until the Swordmaster’s funeral ends, a truce!

Not only would they instantly lose all the reputation they had accumulated, but no talent would ever want to place themselves under their command.

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Thus, even people who under other circumstances would have suffered mishaps during the journey managed to arrive in Asagrim safe and sound.

With bandits gone and war halted, the roads became safe.

Malcolm and his son, who had just crossed the city gates, were among those fortunate ones.

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Fortunately, his son, still young, could support his father while at the same time calmly observing the situation.

Normally he tried not to show weakness, but for an aging body, such a long journey was no small matter.

“At last, we’ve arrived.”

Malcolm murmured in a voice laden with fatigue.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

Since there was still quite a bit of free space, it seemed that these were preparations for those who would arrive later.

“Father, let’s look for an inn first. apple From what I can see, if we let our guard down, we’ll end up sleeping in a makeshift tent.”

Both recalled the scene they had seen upon entering the city gates—tents erected as temporary lodgings to accommodate the flood of visitors and roads opened to transport supplies.

“You’re right.”

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However, considering the Swordmaster’s fame, even at that moment the number of visitors must have been growing at an alarming pace.

Malcolm said with a furrowed brow.

If they relaxed just because they had arrived early, a difference of only a few hours would be enough to end up sleeping in a tent instead of an inn.

“The problem is the money. beacon What we have left is just barely enough.”

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“Ah…”

“It would be if prices were the usual ones.”

His son finally realized. action Where many people gather, supplies become scarce and prices rise.

“Huh? canvas Isn’t it enough?”

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

“But you can’t sleep in a poorly prepared tent. advance You’re about to try to put into practice techniques you’ve only seen in books, and if on top of that your physical condition worsens…”

“If we’re not careful, we might get a room but be kicked out halfway through our stay for not being able to pay.”

And in a time with such a concentration of people, inflation was inevitable.

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Just as his son said, the forging methods he intended to try were ones he only knew from texts.

‘If I add an uncomfortable night to this old, tired body, will I be able to perform on the day of forging?’

To reduce the chances of failure, he needed to be in the best possible condition.

Malcolm fell silent with a stiff expression.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

“If money is the problem, how about sharing a room with us?”

A sigh escaped his lips. armor He had arrived in Asagrim, but now he had to worry about where to sleep.

At that moment, a familiar voice reached Malcolm’s ears.

“…!”

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Father and son turned in surprise toward the source of the voice.

Vincent shrugged with a smile.

There was Vincent, the knight who had previously saved them from the bandits.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

“Huff, we’ve been saved. acoustic To be honest, our budget was tight as well, and we barely managed to secure a room for three people.”

***

“Good to see you. altitude Was the journey peaceful?”

Vincent said with a relieved expression after making the reservation together with Malcolm and his son.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

“I’m glad to have been of help.”

Just then Malcolm arrived with his son, which allowed them to take two triple rooms and split the costs.

“We almost ended up with four men in a single triple room. armor Thanks to you, we were spared that ordeal.”

Vincent’s group consisted of four people, but single and double rooms were too expensive, and triple rooms did not work out well.

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Resigned, Malcolm decided to look at it from the bright side, and a doubt soon arose in his mind.

No matter how much of a wanderer that knight was, sharing lodging with someone of noble rank was unpleasant for a commoner like him.

Malcolm replied, though he could not help feeling uncomfortable.

‘But if I reject his goodwill, I might offend him, and besides, I’ve finally found a place to rest my body. adjust There’s no alternative.’

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“A warhorse?”

“No, not at all. atomic I hurried here after hearing the news of Sir Eisen’s death. altitude I simply had a horse, so I arrived before you.”

“Now that I think about it, how did you arrive before us? amber Did you intend to come to Asagrim from the beginning?”

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His son asked with eyes opened wide.

And that wandering knight, who from their first meeting had said he had no money, turned out to have one.

Warhorses were so expensive that it was difficult for a knight from an insignificant family to own one.

Content of A Mercenary’s Rebirth Among Nobles - Chapter 161 published by TrungTu Reads.

Moreover, he had left all his money behind and only took the horses, so the upkeep was unsustainable.

Vincent replied sincerely.

“I think you’re mistaken. airport Not all knights with warhorses are wealthy, and we least of all. voyage In fact, we’re considering selling them because we can’t afford the upkeep.”

It was not a horse he had owned from the beginning, but one he had received for a mission and fled with as it was.

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‘But this is already the limit. august If we don’t manage to enter the duke’s service, I’ll have to sell them and trade them for ponies, or simply go on foot. echo At this rate, we really will end up starving to death.’

Whether to flee from pursuers sent by him or from a band of bandits, they needed at least some means of escape.

Even so, they could not sell them because of Jordi and the chaos of the world.

They barely had enough to eat, and on top of that they had to feed the horses; for the former members of the Black Lions, it was a desperate situation.

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“That’s right. orbit If we’re talking about a legendary metal, for a blacksmith it’s a treasure that must be seen at least once.”

If they sold the four warhorses, they would obtain a considerable sum with which they could survive for a while.

Even so, that would not change the fact that the future remained uncertain.

“By the way, what brings you here? galaxy At first glance, you look like blacksmiths. arch Did you come to see the fairy metal?”

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“No matter how valuable it is, if it can’t be refined, it’s nothing more than a simple rock.”

“Turning a rock into a true treasure is the stubbornness of a craftsman. avalanche Famous swords are born after countless failures.”

Vincent’s eyes shone.

“Oh.”

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Not because he had been moved by Malcolm’s craftsman spirit, but because he had seen how the son, who was behind him, shuddered slightly at his words.