Chapter 64.2

“Alright, boys, pack it up! We’re leaving.”

She didn’t have time to waste on an overgrown brat playing knight.

Carpe had a feeling after just a short conversation with the newly appointed senior knight.

This guy… had no real combat experience.

‘This guy’s a parachute recruit, isn’t he?’

One of those guys who rise straight to senior knight thanks to family connections, not ability.

His only “combat experience” probably involved chasing down bandits or hunting goblin packs near his family’s estate.

These types were essentially pampered ornaments raised on elixirs and sparring matches.

‘I should’ve just stayed in the West.’

Spoiled by pride and arrogance, these men only saw what they wanted to see.

And naturally, they looked down on Carpe even more because she was a Northerner, a woman, and a mercenary.

Some didn’t even acknowledge that she was the Mercenary Queen.

“Tch. What a mood killer.”

“Forget it, let’s go.”

“So dirty, so petty. I’m over it.”

The Red Wolf Mercenary Corps grumbled as they stood up, making sure to collect their loot as they prepared to leave.

“Hey, mercenary scum. Who said you could leave?”

But the senior knight wasn’t about to let them go so easily.

“Leave the loot.”

His eyes fixed on the pile of orc loot that the Red Wolves had set aside.

“Hehehehe…”

“Kikikikiki…”

The knights and cavalry accompanying the senior knight also cast greedy gazes toward the loot.

“These bastards…”

Carpe’s lips twisted into a snarl.

“I thought something was off. So this was their plan from the start, huh?”

It was clear now.

The knights weren’t planning to handle Carpe or the Red Wolves themselves.

Instead, they’d hidden behind their new senior knight — the “backed-by-his-family” noble brat — and were using his authority as a shield to snatch the loot for themselves.

“The loot is ours. It’s the price we paid with our lives.”

“Think of it as compensation for overlooking your breach of contract and treason.”

“Hmph. A greedy Northern wench. Filthy and shameless.”

Crack.

The sound of Carpe grinding her teeth was so sharp it could be heard by everyone.

Being called a Northerner, a woman, and a mercenary at the same time was a triple insult she could never get used to.

She had tanned her skin bronze to hide her Northern origins, but apparently, that wasn’t enough.

“Damn it… I should’ve just stayed in the West.”

“Back there, we didn’t have to deal with bastards like this. But in the East… these kinds of “events” always pop up just when I think things are going smoothly.”

Ironically, this kind of contempt had only been resolved in one way: raw power.

The moment Carpe became a near-Swordmaster and earned the title of Mercenary Queen in the Western Empire, these issues disappeared.

But here, in the Eastern Wastelands, things were different.

They hadn’t experienced Carpe’s strength firsthand.

To them, a Northerner calling herself a Mercenary Queen was nothing more than a joke.

“Boss, what should we do?”

“Well, it was only a matter of time before these kinds of idiots showed up. We didn’t see many of them in the West, but it’s about time.”

The Red Wolves began to crack their knuckles and loosen their shoulders, ready for action.

“No matter how quiet the boss is in the East, you’d think they’d have learned by now.”

“Northener, woman, mercenary — the trifecta of prejudice. Hell, Dane, didn’t you nearly die to the boss back when you first joined for the same reason?”

“Shut up, Hamel! That was years ago!”

Despite the tension, no one drew their weapons.

This was the Great Ragoit Wall, and here, the first rule was “fists before blades.”

“…Forget it. Leave the loot behind.”

But what Carpe said next was completely unexpected.

“What?!”

“What’s she talking about?”

“Is she sick or something?”

Even the Red Wolves were left dumbfounded.

“What’s going on…?”

“Something’s off.”

“She’s up to something. She’s definitely up to something.”

The Imperial soldiers, who had been jeering moments ago, suddenly grew cautious.

‘This works as a decent excuse.’

Of course, Carpe wasn’t a pushover.

Her heart was already half set on returning to the North.

This moment felt like fate — a chance to tie up loose ends and create an excuse to leave.

“Let’s go.”

Her voice sounded like a tragic heroine in a play.

“Uhh… sure?”

“Y-yeah. Let’s go.”

The Red Wolves exchanged glances, filled with suspicion, as they began to pack up their things.

“Get on the wagons!”

The Red Wolf Mercenary Corps was no ordinary band of mercenaries.

They were the best in the Empire, and they owned monster-taming premium warhorses.

Though they didn’t have one horse for every mercenary, they did have several horses for use as supply wagons.

“Stop.”

Once again, the senior knight Allen blocked them.

The cavalry maintained their encirclement, ensuring the Red Wolves couldn’t escape.

“…….”

At this point, Carpe’s eyes turned sharp and deadly.

“I noticed earlier. You lot are carrying Northern Porcelain. A mercenary with porcelain? Must’ve stolen it, huh?”

“…….”

Silence.

The Red Wolves froze in place.

But they weren’t afraid of Knight Allen.

They were afraid of the woman standing behind them — their own boss.

“And those premium warhorses? How does a gang of mercenaries get their hands on such valuable beasts? Must be so you can haul all that loot, huh?”

“…….”

Even the knights and cavalry following Allen began to grow uneasy.

“We’ll be seizing the horses and porcelain too. As punishment, you’ll walk back on foot. This is a merciful punishment, after all—”

THWACK!

The sound of a stone smashing into Allen’s face echoed through the clearing.

“Guhuek!”

Neighhh!!

He fell off his horse. His elegant landing as a knight? Nonexistent.

He collapsed to the ground, his face in the dirt.

‘How fast was that stone…?’

It had come so quickly, and with such power, that even a senior knight had no time to react.

Carpe’s right hand lowered from its throwing position.

Tap-tap-tap.

Her hand reached behind her, grabbing hold of the giant battle axe strapped to her back.

“I swear, you people only understand one thing…”

She stalked forward, her eyes locked on the knight lying face-down in the dirt.

“PAIN.”

THUD!

Her battle axe came down hard on the knight’s face.

But the sound wasn’t a “chop” or “slash.”

It was a heavy, blunt thud.

THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD!

Carpe wasn’t using the blade.

She was using the flat side of the axe to pummel him senseless.

“You stupid, arrogant, cocky, entitled little brat!!”

The cavalry and knights rushed toward her in a frenzy.

“This crazy Northerner!”

“Haha! That’s more like it! I knew the boss had something planned!”

“Yeah! If you’re gonna hit them, at least make it count!”

The Red Wolves erupted with excitement as they charged the cavalry.