Step. Step.
A soldier guided him, and Rowan followed behind. The sounds from the jubilant drinking party reached faintly to the back of his head. Even before leaving there, Rowan, already sober, followed behind the soldier with a stiff face.
'What is it?'
He thought all kinds of thoughts. But those thoughts disappeared when the tent cloth was lifted by the soldier's arm. It wasn't that he cut off his thoughts to avoid showing a thoughtful expression. His mind just hardened stiffly.
"I heard you called for ."
"Ah. You're finally here. Have a seat."
Rowan sat down. Commander Gesilian placed a cup in the center of the table. And when he slowly poured liquor, Rowan grabbed the cup with his hand.
Trickle.
Rowan tensed at the sight of him pouring strangely little liquor. He thought there was so intention. But unexpected words popped out of Commander Gesilian's mouth.
"What family are you from?"
Rowan's shoulders jumped. The suddenly popped-out words stabbed his conscience in his heart like an arrow. He couldn't help but be greatly shocked, feeling like all the lies about how he'd learned knight's secret techniques had been exposed.
But conversely, that shoulder jump gave Commander Gesilian certainty. rcenaries with no connection to knights normally just made puzzled expressions. Rowan was making an expression like he'd been hit right in the mark.
"What do you an?"
When he tried to dodge, Commander Gesilian grabbed Rowan's hand and showed Rowan the calluses between his thumb and index finger, precisely on the side part of the index finger.
"Are you saying the calluses are knight-like calluses?"
Unlike Rowan making an absurd expression, Commander Gesilian couldn't hold back giggles of laughter. It was no different from Rowan saying the correct answer himself.
"Knight's secret techniques have amazing skills. But at the sa ti, they require an overwhelming amount of training. Even those with outstanding talent inevitably develop them while honing secret techniques as they age."
"...!"
"That's called characteristic calluses. Most knight families know about them, but seeing you don't know, there seems to be circumstances."
'Good Lord.'
Rowan faced a terrible fact. How many people knew he'd trained in knight's secret techniques? Worry ca first. When Rowan's face turned ashen, Commander Gesilian nodded.
'Quite a story.'
A fallen family, living quietly then learning about secret techniques, training them, and jumping out into the world as a young knight. Free knights with power but no protecting force, just used and then dying vomiting blood in foreign lands.
Stories about free knights who create nurous heartwarming tales could be encountered variously everywhere, but their endings weren't told through anyone's mouth.
Commander Gesilian was also soone who used such knights. No, honestly speaking, there was no one who didn't use them. Free knights were that good to exploit.
'If one more knight stands at the subjugation...'
And an ambitious knight at that. Not a knight wrapped in all kinds of magic items through dozens of gold coins, but still could do the work of a hundred.
"I'll ask again. What family?"
What Rowan would say was decided.
"...A ruined family."
At those words, Commander Gesilian nodded. Knowing it's not sothing to boast about for his own family, how sharp—it actually created favorable feelings instead. Also, Rowan coming after capturing thirty-one robbers backed up that trust.
Nothing was easier to use than already verified military power.
Like how more people think of franchises rather than so unheard-of neighborhood bakery, Rowan Robbers 31 was no different from Baskin Robbins 31. It inspired trust.
"Why exactly did you call ?"
Not wanting to stay here long, Rowan asked the main point directly.
"If you ca out for advancent, how about working with ?"
Commander Gesilian brought out the main point. Very attractive words. In the Southern Kingdom, this was one of those few places where you could create achievents just by staying still. Though he hadn't brought even one knight, House Faerun was a fairly distinguished family.
'A chance to beco a noble's vassal!'
Rowan wavered. He had to, because while lower-class people play with copper coins and dream of silver coins, nobles roll gold coins. Assuming the market price was constant, one hundred thousand copper coins equaled one gold coin. Of course, even if you brought one hundred thousand copper coins, there was no rchant in this world who would exchange them for gold coins.
That's how powerful nobles were. And stronger than nobles were noble families. The opportunity to jump into that fence in one leap had co to Rowan.
'Regrettable. I can't head there.'
This family, that family. Because he had mixed secret techniques, the more he stayed with knights and nobles, the more his capital would be exposed and suspicion would bloom. It wouldn't be small suspicion either, so his advancent path could be blocked or he could suffer great disaster instead.
Rowan's subtle expressions changing mont by mont were sothing ordinary people couldn't read, but Commander Gesilian, who was a noble with ambition, read it.
This was Gesilian Faerun who'd also made efforts to handle people. Soone who'd beco commander at only twenty-seven.
'The circumstances seem quite deep. Regrettable.'
He also felt regret. The deeper the well, the clearer and cooler the water. Rowan's capital looked even deeper. Rowan hesitated. It was awkward to refuse a noble's words, but accepting the opinion would expose his true face.
"Haha. The more I see, the more impressive. I'll forget that I proposed to you."
"Thank you."
When Rowan bowed, Gesilian's mood improved. Soone who knew loyalty quite well. Rowan inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. If it weren't for the experience in the dog-like military where you'd get screwed saying this or screwed saying that, he would've misspoken.
Sotis just keeping your mouth shut with a troubled expression could earn you points and get you out of situations.
To release a senior's anger, jokes, and venting—going along with it and quickly resolving that mood was also one survival thod.
The harsh life of modern society where he'd always been the weaker party was great experience here.
"But I hope you'll participate just once in the subjugation campaign I'm planning."
It was a request tone, but in reality it was no different from compromise. If refused, Commander Gesilian was planning to get angry forcefully. Though irrational, Gesilian had stepped back once. Now it was ti for Rowan to step back.
"Of course I'll help."
He accepted readily. Enough to wag his tail like a dog. Rowan considered having an appropriate connection with Commander Gesilian along with his safety to be everything he could gain.
'Go closer and I'll get burned.'
"Good. Very good."
He spoke solemnly and explained the subjugation campaign in detail. Rowan already knew, but he accepted the story very carefully.
"If it's work I can do, of course I should help."
"You'll be mobilized for this subjugation campaign under the na of the Tracking rcenary Group."
Rowan nodded faintly. It was contrasting body language from earlier when he'd nodded greatly. At that sight, Commander Gesilian was amazed at Rowan's level for reading his intentions at once.
'Pretty good.'
He'd instantly understood the roundabout statent that even if he achieved great rit, it would be considered under the rcenary group's na and lowered, becoming Commander Gesilian's achievent. If there was anything regrettable, it was that he was weak at body language.
'Considering he's fifteen, he seems like amazing talent.'
"Are you married?"
"Pardon? Marriage... you an?"
"Though she's the family's fifth daughter, I have a fairly bright younger sister. She's studying in the capital."
Rowan waved his hands very strongly. That appearance made him look exactly like soone who hadn't experienced won, and Commander Gesilian's cheekbones stuck out big as he grinned.
"At fifteen, you're old enough to marry. Still..."
"I have aspirations, so I decided not to pay attention to other matters until then."
"Then can't be helped."
He gave up quickly. Already a bird he'd let go, and just words he'd said.
"Soday if you have nowhere to go, co to our family."
"Thank you just for the words."
At Rowan's words, Gesilian said once more.
"It's not empty words. Anyway, I hope you'll do great work in this subjugation campaign too."
"I'll do my best."
Rowan already acted like Gesilian's vassal.
"The subjugation campaign commission fee will be one silver coin."
A typical commission fee. With that, the conversation with Commander Gesilian ended.
'You could say shackles were put on, but it's fortunate anyway.'
As soon as Rowan ca out, he took out leather gloves to cover his hands. He was planning not to carelessly show his hands outside from now on.
'Damn it. Characteristic calluses? Distinguishing knights by calluses makes sense?'
It was absurd too. That thod of distinction couldn't be done by just anyone, and that's why it had been hard to notice. Realizing it only now—it was enough to drive him crazy and make him jump.
Rowan didn't say a single word to the rcenary mbers about the matter with War rchant Panfanel. When jumping into the subjugation campaign, he'd planned to appropriately mix in other words, but receiving Commander Gesilian's summons like this was excuse enough.
The next day, waking up in the military tent, Espin and Doren frowned deeply. The two shared the cold water Rowan had scooped out to drink.
"Ugh..."
The hangover was terrible. Unable to even eat breakfast, they could only barely fill their stomachs by eating fruit. Doren couldn't even do that and vomited what was inside.
Only past lunchti could the Tracking rcenary Group hold a strategy eting.
"Yesterday Commander Gesilian gave a commission. It's a fairly dangerous mission, but since the other party is nobility, I couldn't refuse."
Bringing up nobility made everything okay. Espin and Doren frowned but didn't dare badmouth nobility! They just drank water for no reason.
"It's a fairly large subjugation campaign. It's not subjugating a mountain stronghold, but subjugating so kind of rchant group at the chokepoint to the Southern Golden Plains where we went."
"A rchant group?"
At Doren's question, Rowan nodded.
"They say there are guys buying the robbers' loot. I can't tell you details."
"What's our mission?"
At that, Rowan smiled confidently.
"Finding those guys. The soldiers will do the fighting."
These were rcenary mbers who'd gotten fairly used to tracking and ambushing. Though only two, they were reliable.
The subjugation campaign's start was three days away. In between, Rowan spent each day training the two.
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