Chapter Four: Joining the Spark Mercenary Corps

Chapter Four: Joining the Spark Mercenary Corps

Upon entering the town, the bustling streets and frequent bursts of laughter spoke of its peace and tranquility. Ahead stood a tavern, roughly the size of the Second Squad's old headquarters, from which the scent of alcohol and laughter drifted out. This was the principal gathering place for mercenaries who lived each day on the edge of a blade—the Mercenary Guild. Here, one could hear all manner of rumors, uncover secrets even the royal family knew nothing of, and, after a hard-fought battle, enjoy a glass of honey wine and a restful sleep, easing one's tense nerves.

Footsteps echoed outside, then the door creaked open. Catherine led the way inside, followed by the young mage Somia, the elven archer Amiru, and then Copper Hammer and Carvin. The regulars, accustomed to the arrival of the Spark Mercenary Corps, barely glanced at them before returning to their own affairs. Another tall figure entered, prompting the crowd to look up once more.

Silence settled over the hall, only to be broken as the atmosphere grew lively again. Gazes fell on the newcomer—some mercenaries looked lecherously, others with pity, while a few rushed upstairs, seemingly to report something.

Receiving feedback from the group through the system, Shuster learned that none of them were above Tier Five and quickly lost interest.

Following Catherine to the counter, Shuster tossed a cloth bag onto the counter and called out to submit the mission.

The receptionist, startled from her reverie by Shuster’s voice, scrambled to produce the mission ledger and announced, “Spark Mercenary Corps, accepted a Grade C mission to collect twenty Iron-armored Bear fangs. Reward is gold coins.” After inspecting the contents of the bag, she brought out what looked suspiciously like a card reader.

Each of Catherine’s group swiped a card. “I’d like to apply as a mercenary,” Shuster stepped forward.

“Oh!” The receptionist blushed, then took out a form and a crystal. “Deposit ten gold coins, fill out the form, and use the crystal to test your strength.”

After completing the form, Shuster took the crystal. It glowed softly, and moments later, a voice inside the crystal boomed, as if casting an eighth-level spell of Arctic Freeze.

“Tier Six, Intermediate!” Silence fell once more, the tavern frozen by that single pronouncement.

“My god! I’ve trained for thirty years and only reached Tier Four, Senior. She looks just twenty and already has Tier Six, Intermediate. Have I wasted thirty years of my life?”

“Pinch me, am I dreaming? Ow—heavens, it’s real!”

Similar exclamations echoed among the mercenaries. Shuster merely snorted disdainfully and asked the receptionist, “Are we done?”

“Ah—oh, sorry, miss. Here is your badge. You are now an E-grade mercenary. Complete one hundred E-grade missions to level up. The subsequent grades follow the same pattern.” She handed Shuster a card with both hands.

“Is there a way to quickly advance?” Shuster asked.

“You can accept unrestricted missions. One D-grade mission counts as ten E-grade missions, and so forth.”

“Bring me the list of unrestricted missions, preferably those requiring collection of items.”

D-grade missions: Collect twenty pelts from Gale Silverwolves.
Collect twenty horns from Sharp-horned Wild Boars.
...

C-grade missions: Collect one heart from the Sharp-horned Wild Boar King.
Collect one magic core from the Gale Silverwolf King.
...

B-grade missions: Collect one horn from a Unicorn.
Collect one venomous fang from an Ice Giant Python.

Looking over the missions, Shuster sneered, “So simple. Prepare for my upgrade.” With that, she tossed out a mountain of sorted, premium materials from her infinite-space equipment, which automatically decomposed, categorized, and organized the items.

The receptionist stared, mouth agape, at the neatly sorted piles. She hurriedly took out a crystal communicator, spoke a few words, then began tallying the materials.

Soon, three more staff joined in the calculations.

Watching the busy staff and the stunned crowd in the hall, Shuster’s disdain grew even more apparent.

“Wow! Am I seeing right? That’s blood from a Tier Five Blood-marked Giant Python. And that’s hide from a Tier Five Earth Giant Bear...”

“Spatial equipment! She has spatial equipment!” The hall erupted into chaos again.

Catherine gazed at the youth, whose beauty surpassed even the elves, lost in thought. Who was he, really? Such formidable power, looks more enchanting than an elf, massive spatial gear...

After a while, the staff finished tallying and respectfully addressed Shuster, “Miss Shuster, you have completed 1,542 D-grade missions, 514 C-grade missions, and 118 B-grade missions, earning 1.5 million gold coins. You are now promoted to B-grade mercenary, and the Spark Mercenary Corps advances to B-grade as well.” The receptionist’s eyes widened as she spoke.

“Let’s go, Catherine. Time to split the reward,” Shuster smiled, taking the two cards handed to her. After hearing an explanation about the gold card’s use, she turned to Catherine.

“Ah? Oh—let’s head to our base,” Catherine said, giving Shuster an apologetic look, then addressing the still-dazed crowd.

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Though it was called a base, with only five members, the mercenary corps simply rented a large house.

“Fortunately, there are enough rooms, otherwise you’d have nowhere to stay, Shuster,” Catherine said after she and Shuster finished tidying up a room.

“No worries. If there aren’t enough rooms, I can just squeeze in with Carvin and Copper Hammer,” Shuster replied, pushing his short hair behind his ears.

Catherine nearly commented that, should he move in, the two men’s orientations might become questionable within three days. But seeing the house, she held her tongue.

“By the way, don’t you need to buy some spare clothes?” Catherine suddenly asked.

“No need. I can conjure clothes with magic.” As he spoke, Shuster transformed his leather armor into casual wear—a white, stand-collar short-sleeved shirt and loose black trousers. Raising his hand, a black ribbon appeared, which he used to tie his silvery hair into a ponytail. Instantly, his appearance and aura changed; a gentle smile lit his face, giving him an aura of sunshine and charm.

“Uh—you look surprisingly handsome like this!” Catherine stammered, her cheeks flush as she left the room.

“Hey, Catherine, why is your face so red? Did something indecent happen in there?” Somia teased, seeing Catherine emerge blushing.

“Wait until he comes out—you’ll be the same.” Catherine’s face reddened further, as though recalling something.

“Sorry to keep everyone waiting~” Shuster’s gentle voice drew all eyes his way, marking the grand transformation.

“Wow! Are you really Shuster?” Somia blushed, gazing at him as if his presence made the room brighter.

“Well, Catherine just asked if I needed clothes, so I changed into casual wear after tidying up. Now, let’s eat,” Shuster said calmly.

“Dinner’s ready!” Amiru emerged with a tray of dishes, blushing as she set it down. “Are you Shuster? You look really handsome like this!”

“Thank you for the compliment. Let me help you.” Shuster followed her into the kitchen.

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PS: Sorry, everyone! I accidentally skipped a chapter—my apologies. But why didn’t anyone tell me? Boohoo!