Journey of Vampire Lord
Copyright© 2025 by Vamp
Chapter 24
“Are you requesting an escort?” Eugene questioned.
Delduan cupped his hands together and gave a deep bow.
“Yes. There are a total of five people, including my group and the three carriages. If you accompany us over this mountain, I will provide you with 20 silver coins. Please, sir.”
“Hmm.”
Eugene wasn’t lacking in money anymore. But since he would cross Mount Marcus anyway, it wasn’t bad to earn some pocket money on the way.
“I will allow it if it’s just crossing the mountain together.”
“Yes! Sir Knight. You are truly gracious. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
Delduan quickly retrieved 20 silver coins with great joy.
“Partec.”
“Yes.”
While the two men settled the account, people who had been watching from the side suddenly started flocking.
“Sir, Sir Knight! Can we join in as well?”
“Sir Knight, we would like to accompany you as well.”
“Sir Knight!”
Almost all of them were merchants carrying loads on their backs. Eugene felt a little puzzled by their earnest pleas.
“All of you. Why did you not recruit mercenaries?”
Whether they carried their goods on their backs or on wagons and carriages, almost all merchants hired mercenaries. Even settled merchants such as those that belonged to the Palin Association hired mercenaries when they traveled. It was only natural.
However, none of the merchants gathered in the village had recruited any mercenaries. Something like this would not happen unless all of them were out of their minds.
“Well ... That’s because the Bommel Barony and the Fairchild Viscounty have been hiring all the active mercenaries from around this area.”
“People like us usually hire mercenaries after arriving in these villages, but all the mercenaries must have been swept up by the lords already. As you can see, there’s not even a single one left.”
“Hmm?” Eugene expressed his curiosity.
Partec quickly stuck to his side and answered, “Baron Bommel is the lord of this area. I heard that the relationship between the Bommel Barony and the Fairchild Viscounty has been worsening due to their shared territorial border. I think they must be preparing for a territorial battle.”
“I see.”
Unless it was a noble family that everyone knew by name, it was quite difficult to find a lord with a large, proper, standing army.
The reason was, naturally, capital. It was much cheaper to hire mercenaries when needed rather than to organize and maintain an army of more than a hundred soldiers.
In the end, it would have been the same with the lords named Bommel and Fairchild. With their status, they would be in better positions than the Tywin family, but they could not fight a territorial war with only dozens of troops. As such, both sides would have to resort to recruiting as many mercenaries as possible.
As a result, the merchants were stuck in this village.
“Hmm. What should I do?”
His plan was to cross the mountain anyway. He allowed Delduan’s group to accompany him, so he could earn some cheap change. But after witnessing the merchants’ clamor, Eugene noticed that things were about to go out of control. He couldn’t help but worry.
Partec inched closer and whispered, “Why don’t you allow them to come with us? One silver coin per head, and two silver coins for every horse. It will be difficult to take all of them with us, so I think we could take about five on a first-come, first-served basis. We can escort a group of that size easily enough, including that merchant’s group.”
“That’s what we’ll do then.” Eugene gave his permission.
Partec shouted to the surrounding merchants. They appeared quite nervous.
“Everyone, listen carefully! This esteemed figure is Sir Jan Eugene! He successfully subjugated a dungeon in the Tywin family’s territory, and he defeated a group of goblins and orcs in Maren City!”
“Ohhh! That sir is truly...!”
“Sir Eugene!? He’s said to have gutted two orcs with a single strike of his spear!”
“I heard he ripped apart a troll alive!”
Although the stories were exaggerated compared to the truth, Partec felt pleased with their reactions. He raised his voice once again.
“That is correct! The Troll Slayer of the Tywin territory! The Orc Slayer of Maren City! Our! Sir Eugene feels sympathy for your situation and will take you with us on a first-come, first-served basis...”
“Me!”
“We were the first ones to ask!”
“Two! I will pay two silver coins!”
“Sir! Sir Eugene!”
Chaos ensued even before Partec finished speaking.
In the end, Eugene’s group decided to escort 13 merchants in addition to Delduan’s group. Originally, at least seven or eight mercenaries were required to safely escort such a large group, but with the presence of a knight, the number of mercenaries did not matter.
Bandits, robbers, and even monsters shied away from groups with a heavily armed knight. They could not risk dozens of lives just to kill a single knight.
“How much did you earn?”
“44 silver coins.”
“Wow...”
Lavan stuck out his tongue in surprise. He never would have imagined earning so much money by simply crossing a mountain until today.
“If we follow Sir Eugene, we won’t have to worry about money for the rest of our lives.”
“I told you, didn’t I? Sir Eugene is a very special person, even amongst the knights. But you shouldn’t rely too much on Sir Eugene. You ... Are you even keeping up with your regular training?”
“Ah, of course! You saw me dueling against Glade last night, didn’t you?”
“This little bastard, he’s finally worthy as a man now. After surviving the dungeon, he must have come to his senses.”
“Hehe.”
“Is that so? Keep working hard.” Partec patted Lavan’s shoulders reassuringly as the latter flashed an awkward smile.
“Partec” Eugene suddenly called out.
“Yes! Sir Eugene!” The rest of the group hurried forward.
“Those people.”
“Hmm?”
Partec moved his gaze to where Eugene was pointing towards. He flinched. There was a group of about 10 people sitting on a wide, flat area located in the middle of the mountain. Their gazes were fixed in the direction of Eugene’s group.
“Probably mercenaries, right?”
“Yes. From their numbers, they seem to be employed by the lord here.”
Meanwhile, the merchants whispered worriedly with pale expressions after discovering the presence of mercenaries.
“W-what if something bad happens?”
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