Chapter 106

In the Empire and surrounding nations, the authority of warriors who reached the level of Sword Seeker was well respected. Regardless of their humble backgrounds or origins, those who ascended to the realm of Sword Seeker were given the authority equivalent to at least that of a knight.

In other words, they need not kneel before nobles or bow to show respect.

‘That means…’

Najin looked ahead.

There stood representatives dressed in uniforms from various groups. Normally, Najin would have had to bow to them, but not anymore. He held his head high as he faced them.

They, too, treated Najin with minimum courtesy as they spoke to him. Though the reception room bore the scars of battle and was in a mess, the room still sufficed for conversation.

“The Schulet Mercenary Corps promises Sir Najin the position of Deputy Commander. For a one-year contract, we offer three hundred platinum coins and an additional thirty for upkeep. In addition, mission rewards will be calculated separately.”

The first to offer Najin their card was the Schulet Mercenary Corps. Schulet was one of the top three mercenary corps in the Empire, known for their guarantee of successful commissions.

Offering Najin the Deputy Commander position in such a corps was astonishing to the others watching. And three hundred platinum coins? An unparalleled offer.

Since the door of the reception room had been destroyed during Najin’s duel with Gerd, the conversation inside was heard clearly outside. Those waiting outside swallowed nervously upon hearing Schulet’s offer, while Najin opened his mouth.

“I refuse.”

An outright rejection without hesitation.

Was this offer insufficient? What kind of proposition would be enough? The Schulet Mercenary Corps member left their business card behind and left the reception room, dejected.

Next to step up was a knight of House Blancia. Blancia was a renowned warrior family that had produced countless knights. Even six Sword Seekers belonged to this household.

“The Duke of Blancia…”

The knight read out the duke’s letter and relayed the terms of the contract. He had been given permission to modify the conditions at his discretion to recruit Najin at any cost. Thus, he offered better terms than the Schulet Mercenary Corps.

Four hundred platinum coins, plus a title.

But Najin’s response was no different this time. Before the knight could finish speaking, Najin curtly said, “I refuse.”

“I refuse.”

He also rejected the Rempon Knights.

“I refuse.”

And the offer from Rocktide Trading’s exclusive adventurers, one of the most prestigious merchant associations in the Empire.

“I refuse.”

The Tower, adventuring groups, knight orders under noble houses, influential military forces in the Empire, guilds from the city-states, the Holy Fortress Sect…

“I refuse.”

Najin rejected every proposal. No matter how lucrative the offer, his answer never changed. He shook his head, seemingly uninterested in such things.

Najin then left the reception room.

No one could stop him.

When the scouts returned to their groups to report this news, their leaders were left with a lingering question. He hadn’t accepted any offer? Then who could have managed to secure him?

The first suspicion fell on the knight orders under the imperial household. However, Najin returned to Cambria, and there was no movement from the imperial family. There were no rumors of him joining the Royal Guard or the Imperial Knights.

Next on the list were the Order of the Sword, the Starblood Sect, and the knights under Gerd’s command.

When the scouts arrived at the reception room, Najin had already been conversing with two Sword Masters, and Gerd had later joined them. So, could it be that one of the three Sword Masters had recruited him?

But this, too, proved false.

Najin did not approach the Starblood Sect, the First Sword’s group, or the Order of the Sword. He simply returned to Cambria, and there were no further exchanges.

『Then who is it?』

The boy who ascended to the realm of Sword Seeker at 18. While his current value was high enough, a few more years would see his worth increase further. And if he reached the level of a Sword Master? His worth would be impossible to measure.

So they needed to secure him now.

Who could have taken him?

After a few days, they obtained some information. Najin was still unaffiliated but had two groups supporting him. The leaders of these groups had been interacting with and supporting Najin since before he became a Sword Seeker.

Dieta, Head of the Dieta Trading Company.

Now Marquis, Edelmar, Master of the Cambria Foundation.

Among them, attention centered on the head of the Dieta Trading Company. Her name was familiar. Many remembered the incident involving her and House Arbena a few months ago. It was a rare incident in these times, ending in a romantic fashion.

The story of a girl abandoned by her family and the mercenary who was willing to risk his life to confront the family’s knight captain for her. Some who recalled that story widened their eyes. While they hadn’t paid much attention to that mercenary back then, now the story was different.

『Send someone to investigate Cambria.』

『His alias back then was Ivan.』

『Focus on the relationship between Head Dieta and this individual.』

When they sent someone to Cambria, they discovered that the young man known as Ivan was the mercenary involved in that incident. And that he was personally close to Head Dieta.

When the leaders realized this fact…

As if waiting for this moment, a play opened at the Trebache territory governed by Marquis Edelmar. A play centered on Najin, the youngest Sword Seeker. The Marquis began attracting audiences from all over the Empire, and the leaders of various groups chuckled.

They realized that some had foreseen the star’s light and secured their positions before it shone.

『The victor of the competition is the head of the Dieta Trading Company.』

『The one who secured the youngest Sword Seeker is Cambria’s great merchant. Be wary of her.』

Along with Najin’s name, Dieta’s name also began spreading among the Empire’s power holders.

“Call me Dieta, the investment genius who earned the favor of the youngest Sword Seeker over a meal.”

“What kind of nonsense is that?”

Najin tilted his head as he looked at Dieta, who smiled brightly before him. Recently, she hadn’t stopped smiling, looking like she couldn’t contain her joy.

“I found a coin on the ground, but it turned out to be platinum… no, diamond… no, not even diamond! What should I call this? A star?”

Najin smiled as he glanced at the cheerful Dieta. He could guess why she was so happy these days. From what he heard, her guild’s stocks were reaching new highs day by day.

The title ‘one of the top three merchant guilds in Cambria’ had long since been replaced with ‘the leading merchant guild in Cambria,’ and their advance into the Empire’s capital was steadily progressing.

‘In one or two months.’

He heard they would expand their scale in earnest after moving to the capital. Even while she juggled a hectic schedule in preparation for that, Dieta smiled like she was having fun.

“Well, anyway…”

Dieta wiped the smile from her face.

She took a deep breath and half-closed her eyes.

“Najin, you.”

“Yes?”

“You’re not twenty-eight or in your early twenties. What is this?”

She pointed at the frame hanging on her office wall.

It was a frame holding a cutout of a newspaper, which contained a large photograph of Najin with the headline, ‘Najin, the youngest Sword Seeker to reach the realm at 18.’

“Unless my eyes are wrong, it says eighteen here, doesn’t it?”

“……”

“You’re avoiding eye contact again…!”

When Najin glanced away, Dieta slammed the table and pointed her finger at him.

“You said we were the same age!”

“I never said that.”

“You said we weren’t far apart…!”

“Two years isn’t much of a difference, is it?”

“That’s… well… jeez.”

Dieta brushed back her bangs.

“You’re two years younger than me…”

“That’s how it turned out.”

“I thought you were older.”

Much later, much, much later…

When their relationship blossomed, she had imagined he’d call her ‘oppa.’ Dieta had smiled smugly to herself, lying in bed before sleep. Remembering this, her face turned bright red.

‘Not ‘oppa,’ but he’d call me ‘noona’… Oh?’

That doesn’t sound too bad either?

Dieta covered her mouth with her hand. Imagining it for a moment, she decided it didn’t sound too bad.

“Dieta?”

“Y-Yes?”

Dieta’s shoulders flinched at Najin’s call.

“Sorry for hiding my age. I felt like I’d missed the moment to reveal it…”

“It’s nothing to apologize for. I was just surprised.”

Dieta smiled softly.

“Anyway, congratulations, Najin.”

She handed Najin a letter.

These were letters that had arrived for him while he was away in the imperial capital. She pointed at the two letters on top of the pile.

“One’s a congratulatory letter from the Emperor of the Empire.”

A letter bearing the imperial emblem.

“And the other’s from the Knights of Atanga.”

A letter bearing the Atanga emblem.

Both were congratulating Najin for reaching the realm of Sword Seeker. Najin accepted the letters and remained silent for a moment. He now felt the weight of the fact that he had truly ascended.

He was born in the starless underground city.

A place where his name was unknown.

Where his existence wasn’t even recorded. Najin had been no different from someone who didn’t exist.

But not anymore.

Not anymore.

His name had spread throughout the Empire. The name Najin would be recorded in imperial history along with the title of the youngest Sword Seeker. He had left his mark on the Empire’s history as proof of his existence.

‘But this is just the beginning.’

He would leave many more records from now on.

He didn’t intend to be satisfied with just a few lines in history. He would rewrite entire pages. And not just history books. Even the myths of King Arthur would have to be rewritten.

He would make it so.

With his own sword.

Najin smiled as he looked at the letters.

The vast underground city.

Within his now much-expanded mindscape, Najin sat atop a wall. Looking down below, he could see a lake that didn’t quite belong.

A lake Merlin had begged for.

Having finally recreated it upon reaching the level of a Sword Seeker, Merlin splashed around with her feet in the lake. Najin glanced at her and spoke.

“Merlin.”

“Hmm? What?”

“The dragon you and Arthur fought.”

The two dragons sealed beneath Stonehenge.

“Can you tell me more about them?”

“I was planning to, even if you didn’t ask.”

Merlin twisted her lips up into a smile.

“You’ve reached the level of a Sword Seeker and established your foundation. Now it’s time to stand at the starting point, right?”

“Aren’t I already at the starting point?”

“No, no. You need at least one star before it really starts, don’t you think?”

She waved her finger in the air. Droplets of water trickled off her fingertip.

“One is a White Dragon, and the other is a Red Dragon.”

Droplets dyed red and white.

“They were the dragons Arthur and I once struck down.”

The two dragons that had once terrorized Cambria. Merlin reached out as she began explaining the dragons. Her white finger pointed at Najin.

“The dragons you will have to strike down once again.”