The Drake rcenary Corps is the largest rcenary group in the West.
It boasts a force of over 500 rcenaries, with dozens of affiliated rcenary groups under its flag.
Altogether, they amass a strength of nearly 3,000 soldiers. Truly, it could be called the kingdom's largest rcenary organization.
In the North, the so-called rcenaries were mostly amateurs, and though there were a few decent groups in the East, they couldn't compare to the West.
The West, teeming with nurous rchant guilds and noble houses, offered an abundance of work and a significant flow of money. Naturally, this ant a proportional increase in the number of rcenaries.
And the one who wielded the largest rcenary corps in the West like his personal appendage was none other than Martin, the young lord of the Rodrick Marquisate.
The Drake rcenary Corps handled ordinary rcenary tasks in abundance, but just as often engaged in the dirty work of the Rodrick family.
As a result, their fa was rivaled by their infamy.
"Haa..."
Dominic, the leader of the Drake rcenary Corps, drank heavily with an expression of constant anger.
The faint bloodlust in his eyes made his already sharp features appear even fiercer.
Though he had grown the Drake rcenary Corps into what it was today, he now felt an overwhelming urge to abandon it all and flee.
"That bastard..."
The subject of his curses was Martin.
Dominic had carried out countless vile tasks under Martin's orders. He could tolerate interfering in power struggles, but the abductions and murders of innocent villagers were too despicable.
The reason Dominic had no choice but to obey Martin's commands was that his family had been falsely accused and held hostage.
"To think I must obey my enemy..."
Martin had already killed one of Dominic's family mbers as an example. Despite being an enemy he could not share the sa sky with, Dominic couldn't resist Martin, as the lives of his remaining family mbers hung in the balance.
That wasn't all. Martin, preparing for the possibility of Dominic's rebellion, had taken other key mbers' families hostage as well, a move as vile as it was effective.
"There's no way out of this..."
The key figures of the rcenary corps were all held hostage by Martin's sches, making escape impossible.
Dominic had tried to seek connections with other nobles or ask for their help. But the mont Martin detected any suspicious behavior, he would ruthlessly kill a hostage.
Other executives had also lost family mbers in such instances, leaving them no choice but to submit to Martin.
Thus, the Drake rcenary Corps had no option but to obey Martin's every command.
"That devil wields power and influence as well. This world is truly ssed up."
Martin's father was none other than Marquis Rodrick, the Commander-in-chief of the Western Army and the hegemon of the West.
No matter how powerful the Drake rcenary Corps was, it couldn't stand against the Marquis Rodrick.
So, all Dominic could do was drink endlessly to soothe his rotting soul.
As Dominic drowned himself in alcohol, one of his subordinates entered and spoke.
"Captain, new orders have arrived."
"Who do we have to kill this ti?"
"...We're to disguise ourselves as bandits and attack the Campbell rchant Guild." "Crazy bastard."
The Campbell rchant Guild was a competitor to the rchant guilds controlled by Martin. It was wealthy and rumored to have the backing of a noble family. And yet, Martin casually ordered its assault and destruction. If caught, they wouldn't survive.
But Martin treated them with no regard for their lives.
"Does he trust his father, the Marquis, that much? No matter how you look at it, ordering us to obliterate another noble's rchant guild... He must be feeling desperate."
Martin, too, was ambitious and aid to seize the successor's position by surpassing his older brother.
To expand his power and influence, he would not hesitate to take such extre asures.
Dominic set down his glass and sighed deeply.
"At this rate, we'll die first."
Martin's demands were growing increasingly reckless. No matter how strong they were, even the Drake rcenary Corps had its limits.
If they made a wrong move, they could end up facing a coalition of noble forces and be annihilated.
If that happened, the hostages would die as well.
The Marquis and Martin would simply turn a blind eye. No, they wouldn't let them die easily; they'd likely throw them into a struggle with their rivals to ensure mutual destruction.
That was the kind of brutal and rciless n they were.
The Drake rcenary Corps was already headed for destruction.
"I should've gone to the North earlier."
Dominic sighed again.
Recently, the North was said to be thriving, unlike before.
Thanks to Count Fenris, various industries were flourishing, and there was an abundance of
work for rcenaries.
The rumors had spread far and wide.
If they had established themselves in the North, they wouldn't be trapped under the thumb of
the Rodrick family.
"If we'd gone to the North, we could've t the famous Count Fenris too."
"Probably... only in battle during a war."
"True."
Dominic let out a self-deprecating laugh.
The Marquis Rodrick was a great lord of the Duke faction. Count Fenris was a lord opposed to
them.
If war broke out, they would inevitably et as enemies.
"Still, before I die, I'd like to et him at least once. Starting with rcenaries and achieving such feats... It makes my heart race just hearing about it."
Dominic longed to follow soone like that.
Perhaps it was because his own situation, reduced to obeying a vile man, felt so miserable.
Thus, he admired and yearned for Ghislain even more.
He made a point of staying inford about Ghislain, as it was his only solace.
But his subordinate spoke coldly about reality.
"If you secretly et him, Martin won't stand by. He'll start killing the hostages one by one."
"Right, I'm now soone who can't even et a single person properly."
Dominic let out another self-deprecating laugh.
His life was as good as over. He would live as soone else's dog, chained and hated, and die
laden with infamy.
At that mont, a commotion erupted outside.
"Uwaaah! It's an attack!"
"Who the hell are they? How are they so fast?"
"They're heading for the captain's quarters! Stop them! Hurry!"
The loud noise made Dominic frown and look towards the door.
Crash!
The door burst open as a group of intruders stord in.
Who had the audacity to cause such havoc here?
A swarm of subordinates rushed in to encircle the intruders, spilling out into the corridors
outside.
Dominic turned his gaze to the young man leading the group and asked, "Who are you?"
The man smiled slyly at Dominic.
"I heard so rumors on my way here. Apparently, you're a fan of mine? This will speed
things up."
"What?"
"I'm Count Fenris."
The person who suddenly broke in was Ghislain. He pointed to himself with his thumb,
wearing an arrogant expression.
Dominic frowned and looked at Ghislain.
The subordinates, caught off guard by soone suddenly barging in and claiming to be a
noble, were at a loss, unable to act decisively.
"Tsk tsk, they've been so crushed by the Marquis' family that they've lost their spirit. Not that I'm in a
position to say otherwise.'
Dominic clicked his tongue and shook his head.
Count Fenris was soone he admired and respected. Of course, it was true that he had always
wanted to et him.
But he couldn't believe the person standing before him now. How could a great lord from the North suddenly barge in like this? And with only a handful of attendants at that?
No sane person would act like that. If any of the Duke faction nobles found out, they'd be
desperate to assassinate him.
No matter how he thought about it, the situation didn't make sense. And Dominic had another
reason for being confident the man's claim was false.
"You are not Count Fenris."
"What do you an? I am Count Fenris."
"I know what Count Fenris looks like."
"What? My face?" "Not yours. Count Fenris' face. So, I know well enough. You must've heard so rumors and
co to scam us, but such clumsy tricks won't work."
".....?"
This ti, Ghislain looked genuinely baffled.
'He says he knows my face but claims I'm not Count Fenris? Is soone out there impersonating ?'
"I admit I ca here in secret, but I'm telling you, I am Count Fenris," Ghislain said, pulling
out his identification.
It was an ornate noble's ID card with an elegantly engraved emblem.
Dominic glanced at it and sneered.
"If you've got enough money, forging an ID isn't that hard. We even provide such services
ourselves. You can make as many as you like if you have the resources."
"..."
Ghislain felt an inexplicable frustration, as if he'd eaten a lump of sweet potato.
He'd been treated like a rogue countless tis, but this was the first ti soone outright
denied his identity.
So he demanded, "Why do you insist I'm not Count Fenris without even verifying it? What gives you such confidence to claim that?"
"I have a portrait of Count Fenris. A very detailed and accurate one."
Ghislain blinked. As far as he could rember, he hadn't had a portrait made since childhood.
But Dominic, wearing a smug expression, walked over to one corner of his office.
There, he carefully retrieved a large box.
Soon, Dominic delicately pulled sothing out of the box. It was a luxurious fra containing a portrait.
"Look. This is the portrait of Count Fenris that I purchased for a hefty sum."
Still slightly drunk from his earlier drinking, Dominic proudly showed the portrait to Ghislain.
Ta-da!
"...Wow."
Ghislain couldn't find words to respond as he stared at the portrait Dominic presented with
such pride.
'Why... does my face look like that?'
It did bear so resemblance to him, but it seed excessively exaggerated.
The nose was absurdly high, making it look hard to breathe. The jawline was so sharp that it
seed capable of stabbing soone to death. The entire face was sculpted with harsh angles, looking more like a statue than a person.
"You... really think that portrait is of the real Count Fenris? You're basing your belief on that
without even knowing the actual face?"
Dominic chuckled arrogantly and replied, "I bought it from soone trustworthy for a fortune. It even ca with verified authentication."
"...Soone trustworthy?"
"I'm very well-inford about Count Fenris. I even own nurous collectibles."
"...Collectibles?"
Ghislain's bewildernt grew, and Dominic, now beaming with pride, continued.
"You don't seem convinced. Let show you sothing special, you impostor. So you'll stop
pretending to be Count Fenris."
Dominic didn't appear to be showing them out of kindness; he seed desperate to boast.
He carefully removed a thick book from the box and caressed it lovingly. "This is the biography of Count Fenris. It covers everything from his infamous days as a rogue
to his battles with Count Desmond. It's a first edition. Future editions are expected, and the
price will only go up."
'Who on earth wrote that trash?'
It certainly wasn't a project run by Fenris' estate. Ghislain had never approved or planned
anything of the sort.
Dominic was completely absorbed in showcasing his treasures, paying no attention to Ghislain's reaction.
From the box, Dominic continued to pull out various items to show off.
"This is a cup Count Fenris used. I bought it at an incredible price."
"?"
"This is a saddle from one of Count Fenris' horses. It was hard to acquire due to the price."
" ??"
"This is an outfit Count Fenris wore on an outing. I had to fight fiercely at the auction to win
it. And these are his undergarnts..."
"...???"
Ghislain stared at the items Dominic was pulling out, utterly speechless.
They truly resembled items he had used in the past. It felt as if soone had robbed his house
and auctioned off everything of value.
As Ghislain was still trying to process the situation, Dominic brought out sothing decisive.
"Here, take a look. This is a sword Count Fenris personally used in battle. It's one of the jewels of my collection."
"That's... definitely my sword.'
Unlike the other items that were harder to confirm, Ghislain imdiately recognized the
sword.
He wasn't soone who clung to weapons, often picking up and discarding them as he
pleased.
But he always rembered his personal weapons, especially as noble swords bore distinct
seals.
This was unmistakably his sword.
How had items he used ended up being leaked like this? Even if he left them on the battlefield,
his soldiers would usually retrieve them.
In a slightly trembling voice, Ghislain asked, "Where... did you get all these items?"
"I told you, from soone trustworthy."
"Who exactly is this trustworthy person?"
Dominic smirked arrogantly and answered, "The head butler of Fenris himself. He personally
provided these with authentication certificates."
".....The head butler?"
"Yes. My subordinate t Fenris' head butler directly and purchased them, even participating
in an expensive auction. I couldn't go myself due to circumstances preventing from leaving this area."
11
Hearing Dominic's words, Ghislain closed his eyes.
He had a sinking feeling, and now it was confird. The culprit was none other than Claude,
that bastard.
[T/L: Please support and read 385 extra chapters: sko-fi/revengerscans ]
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