LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 5
“Ahhhh! What a bummer.”
It was a transportation request, but to find nothing but garbage in the box meant that the request was merely a cover for moving a griffin’s egg.
Anyway, all the associates and partners were dead now, so I really should shake it off and move on, but it seemed Gordon couldn’t stop thinking about the trash heap from that wooden box.
It didn’t matter whether it was a smuggling operation or a secret request; I thought I’d be able to pocket something substantial.
“Gordon, it was just a few days ago, why are you still sulking about it?”
“Hey, kid. No matter how much money you have, it’s never enough.”
“Well, that’s definitely true unless we’re talking about extraordinary circumstances.”
Catherine empathized deeply with Gordon as she imagined money pouring out like seawater when someone set their mind to it.
Especially for a magician, who easily becomes a target of misunderstandings, grudges, and false accusations, one could end up rolling in the dirt on the street out of the blue, so having plenty of money was wise thinking for emergencies, relocation, and settling costs.
“Still, it’s not like there’s absolutely no income, right?”
Karem found it hard to relate because, while his past life had its struggles, in this life, he hadn’t even had his own belongings.
Wearing torn clothing made from pieces of cloth and leather, he looked no different from a commoner or a peasant’s child.
Plus, with the ingredients and the hefty bag of silver coins and copper coins he had been allocated, the cooking utensils hanging from his big backpack—
At least in this life, Karem had never been so wealthy.
On the other hand, Gordon lamented over the items he left back in the merchant ruins.
“By the way, what a pity. Just thinking about the weapons and armor I left behind for transport is heartbreaking.”
Even if all the boxes loaded on the merchant’s cart were garbage, some valuables still remained.
The various shields and weapons left behind by mercenaries who couldn’t even use them on their assignments were each worth something.
With dozens of swords and spears, and various pieces of armor, they could easily fill some golden bags.
Of course, there were ways to take all of those back.
“Sir Mage, do you happen to have something like a spatial expansion pouch?”
“I do have one.”
Although I just asked in case, it was indeed the response that Gordon was hoping for. Karem, too, looked at Catherine with a shocked expression, as if thinking of unimaginable things.
After all, status windows and inventory screens were dreams come true.
“So then—”
“Not here, though. It’s tucked away in the pile of goods I had transported ahead.”
And with that, Catherine swiftly dashed the hopes of both men.
There was no way around being disappointed; if only she had known it would come to this, she would have packed it herself much earlier.
“Tch. Should I have brought back a little more? That’s all money…”
“Hey, mercenary. Remember we are a party of three, and one of us is still just a kid?”
“Sir Mage, that’s why I promptly snagged the money and valuables, right?”
“Then what are you sulking about now?”
“That doesn’t mean my disappointment just vanishes. Oh, wait.”
As they discussed money, Gordon suddenly turned to Karem as if remembering something.
“By the way, is just taking some silvers and coppers really enough? I can’t shake the feeling that’s too little. Shouldn’t we grab some crowns or jewels or something?”
“Mercenary, at my age, just silvers are already a stretch.”
“That’s true, but what kid lacks ambition?”
“No, rather, it’s wise.”
Catherine rebutted.
Hoping the police would rush to help like they do in any standard country today is a futile wish. It’s more efficient to slice the water with a sword than be this naive.
In the Kingdom of Seophone, currency ranked from peak throne gold coins, down to crown gold coins, silver shillings, and copper pence in decreasing value.
Throne coins were so valuable that not many used them, so crowns, shillings, and pence were the practical currencies.
However, what if an orphan, especially one from fleeing serf origins, had crowns or other valuables?
Given that there are scarcely any everlasting secrets in this world, it’s natural they’d be robbed. If unlucky, they might even face another robbery from the guards who respond to their report.
Gordon had momentarily forgotten that thought, which led him to drop the subject.
“Ah, that makes sense. It’s dangerous to have valuables without any backing or connections.”
“Before silvers, aren’t these cooking utensils a bit risky too?”
“Hmm, fair point.”
Karem tapped the pot hanging on his bag.
Some might underestimate cooking tools, but pots, pans, and kitchen knives were all made from metal, and even the wooden turner and ladle didn’t count as any real exception.
While they might not be pricier than weapons, metal cooking tools weren’t something to gloss over in medieval times.
Hence, Karem devised a plan.
“In that case, I’ll count on you from now on.”
“Huh?”
“What?”
As Karem paused mid-stride to bow courteously, Gordon blinked in surprise while Catherine chuckled softly.
“What are you, a brazen little one? Are you saying you’re going to follow us until we find a safe place?”
“What?”
“How did you guess that right away?”
With the situation as it was, Karem decided to boldly push forward.
Didn’t they say that audacity could fabricate even nonexistent truths?
Although it was an inappropriate usage of the phrase, Karem suppressed the tiny spark of anxiety and spoke earnestly.
“I’ll take responsibility for your meals from now on—”
“Snort—”
“Wow, how can you make such a ridiculous statement?”
Seeing this ten-year-old child with an incredibly serious expression only made it more amusing.
“Ah, I’m really serious! Anyway, I have to cover the protection fee, right?!”
“Pff, Karem. Our serf, no, not anymore, whatever. You do know how much it costs to hire a mercenary of my caliber, right?”
“Uh… well…”
Gordon grinned and casually stated his pay, causing Katherine’s eyes to widen in surprise rather than Karem’s.
“Mercenary. You receive as much as a seasoned knight?!”
“Is that so surprising, Sir Mage?”
“Sir Atanitas, how much money do you make exactly?”
Catherine suddenly felt a twinge of regret with this question.
Recalling Karem’s claimed past life, she briefly scowled.
“Sir Atanitas?”
“No, I was just thinking of a suitable analogy. Okay, an author’s twenty days of work equals your parents’ yearly income.”
“….Huh.”
While that amount didn’t compare to what Karem earned in his past life, which wasn’t from a wealthy background, someone working a whole year at one end could earn what another person didn’t even have to work a full month to make?
Karem stared at this target with newfound perspective.
“Wait, mercenary. I doubt your worth as a wandering knight. You’re a mercenary!”
“You missed adding a key descriptor there.”
Gordon fulfilled the contrasting emotions in both their gazes, while he grinned with satisfaction, genuinely confident in his skills.
“‘Exceptional Skill’ mercenary, that’s who I am.”
“Ha.”
Catherine recalled the various facts she’d dismissed along the way, staring at his consistently light-hearted and money-driven demeanor.
There was no way an ordinary mercenary could dodge her spells aimed directly at him.
Hadn’t he even managed to evade her ice magic fired from an unseen angle?
He clearly discerned directions just from the sounds and evaded accordingly.
As Catherine accepted this with a look of incredulity, Gordon teased playfully.
“Still, it’s too cheap to settle just with that.”
“Uggghh. Fine. How about I take care of your laundry, fire, and cleaning as well—”
“Wait, you’re doing laundry? For real? My clothes?”
Karem tilted his head, pondering what the issue was, before his eyes widened in realization.
Gordon whistled lightly, grinning mischievously.
“Wheeew, young man. You were aiming for this, weren’t you? You truly are a boy.”
“I-I take it back, take it back, take it back! No, that—”
“You cheeky little rascal. Just so you know—”
Catherine wasn’t an adult who would scold a child for something so trivial, even though she didn’t look like one.
Still, she pointed at her clothing and cloak, pricing them with careful deliberation.
Garments, although they might look similar, differ vastly in price depending on materials and brands.
Especially garments worn by sorcerers like her were incredibly overpriced, even compared to Karem’s earlier life.
As she explained the cost of her cloak, upper robe, lower robe, and shoes, Karem trembled in fear, while Gordon stared vacantly, lost in his thoughts.
“Goodness. A knight’s full plate armor costs—”
“So you see, little one. Your labor cost is simply not adequate, so you should be content with the goodwill of adults.”
With that, Catherine cast a disdainful gaze at the two men instilled with fear and horror toward her.
Surely she had released her curse after pondering deeply to avoid misunderstandings during their journey.
Her curse of drought, which caused everything she directly or indirectly contacted to wither and die on contact.
Through her exceptional magic and talent for fire, she aimed to bestow curses for hundreds of years.
However, her efforts only succeeded halfway, managing to narrow the scope and target to food alone, but that remained the extent.
Whether she picked it up with her hands or used tools, the curse itself remained intact.
Because of this, many misunderstandings arose, yet here stood a mercenary and a peasant boy who feared more damaging her clothes or breaking them than the curse itself.
Why did the mercenary fear the debt more than monsters or magic curses, and why wasn’t the boy afraid at all?
No, it wasn’t that she was dissatisfied with that fact.
Though she was indeed a master of fire magic, her values weren’t twisted.
Merely puzzled by reactions that someone with an ordinary life would never have experienced, she pricked up her ears upon the sudden exclamation.
“Oh my! I think there might have been some food splatter during meal times—!!!”
“….Hey! Who said anyone would take the kid’s snot-covered money?! What slander!”