Demon-Hunting Genius Mage

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]

Chapter 85

The morning arrived after spending a night at Barundel's house following the training session.

Today's schedule was simple.

To go to the black market with Barundel and officially sign the rental contract for [Anatak's Great Axe].

Barundel had already made his decision the night before.

"I think we can go now."

"Are you all prepared?"

"Of course."

Barundel patted the pouch of gold coins I had brought and the bag containing other necessary items.

Seeing the weight of the bag, it seemed like he hadn't forgotten anything.

"Then let's go."

We left the house and headed towards the black market.

The distance from Barundel's house to the black market wasn't that far.

It was close enough to reach within an hour if we walked without stopping.

As expected, after about an hour, we arrived at the pub in the alley we had visited before.

The guide still looked at me with his dry eyes.

"There are more of you now?"

"Well, as you can see."

He was a bit grumpy, but when I gave him 100 gold coins and purchased an entrance ticket for Barundel as well, he opened the door leading underground without a word.

"Oh... this is the black market."

"Is this your first time?"

"It's my first time coming here directly. In the past, my colleagues used to go instead..."

Barundel didn't say anything further.

'Former colleagues...'

I didn't know who they were, but judging from his expression, he didn't seem to want to talk about it.

I wisely didn't ask any more questions and moved on, soon stopping in front of the shop with the gold sign.

"Ahem!"

Barundel cleared his throat with a cough.

It seemed like he was nervous since this was his first time making a deal like this.

"Come on in."

I took the lead and entered the shop, and as if waiting, the employee greeted us.

"Ah, you've arrived."

The employee, who bowed in greeting, fixed his gaze on Barundel who followed behind.

"This is...?"

"Yes, the dwarf I mentioned yesterday."

"My name is Barundel."

"Ah, yes, nice to meet you. The manager is waiting for you on the second floor, so please come this way."

The employee immediately guided us to the manager's office on the second floor.

After knocking and entering, a man with a shiny bald head greeted us with a smile.

This bald man was the one who would be discussing the details of the contract with us today.

"Ohoho, you're the..."

"I'm Yuhan."

"Aha, Mage Yuhan. Nice to meet you! I'm Edward Gallon, the owner of this shop."

No wonder there were only expensive items in the shop.

It turned out to be a shop run by a noble.

He was dressed from head to toe in luxury brands, as if he were rolling in money.

After exchanging greetings with Barundel while emanating a strong perfume scent, he gestured for us to sit at the table.

"So, I hear you want to borrow [Anatak's Great Axe]?"

"Ah, yes, if it's not too much trouble, I'd really like to rent it."

"It's no trouble at all. Our employee said it was quite a good offer, didn't he?"

"Yes, that's right. Barundel, give it to him."

"...Here you go."

Barundel handed the document to Edward, his hands trembling slightly.

It was the document regarding the ownership of the training hall.

Seeing how reluctant he was to give it up, it seemed like the training hall was truly precious to him.

But what could he do?

Unless he was rolling in money, he had to give up what he had to get what he wanted.

"Hmm..."

Edward stroked his curled beard and examined the document.

As expected of a noble running a business of this scale, he was quick with calculations.

"It's a bit out of the way from the main commercial area, but it's not a bad location. A building of this size in this location... it's worth 20,000 gold coins."

It was an accurate assessment.

I had inquired beforehand, and the market value of Barundel's training hall building was indeed around 20,000 gold coins.

Edward seemed to have a keen eye for these things.

This would speed things up.

"That's correct. So, our offer is to provide you with ownership of this training hall and a deposit of 5,000 gold coins. Of course, the ownership of the training hall will only transfer to you if we fail to fulfill the contract."

"In exchange, we lend you [Anatak's Great Axe]? For 5 years."

"Yes, the contract stipulates that when we return it, it will be leveled up to mythic grade."

"Ohoho..."

Edward stroked his curled beard once again.

After a brief silence, he said with a smile,

"Alright. It seems like a profitable deal for us."

As soon as he said that, I naturally looked at Barundel.

Barundel's eyes wavered, reflecting his emotional turmoil.

Of course, that change in emotion must be a positive one.

He was truly in a situation where he might get his hands on a mythic-grade (in the making) weapon.

"Really? You're going to sign the contract?"

When I asked again to confirm, Edward nodded with a benevolent look.

"Ohoho, of course. But there's one thing that bothers me."

"Ah, yes. Please speak freely."

"This."

Thump. Edward pointed at the contract on the table.

More precisely, the last clause of the contract.

'Party B shall return [Anatak's Great Axe] to Party A in perfect condition at the end of the 5-year rental period. Here, perfect condition refers to [Anatak's Great Axe] having grown and reached 'mythic-grade artifact' status.'

"Is there a problem with this...?"

"About the growth, which is the core of this contract. How exactly do you plan to achieve that? Ohoho."

"Ah..."

Indeed, it was understandable for Edward to be doubtful.

From an ordinary person's perspective, killing 10,000 demons was practically impossible.

Well, it was the same even if you weren't an ordinary person.

How many people in this world could actually achieve this?

Since it had to be leveled up within 5 years, that meant hunting 2,000 demons every year.

It was a feat that could only be achieved by participating in everything, from wars to hunts, without missing a single opportunity.

Of course, that was our party's plan, so it wouldn't be a problem...

'But how do I convince him?'

The real problem was convincing Edward.

"Uh... um..."

Even Barundel seemed to be at a loss for words.

In the end, I just blurted out whatever came to mind.

"Well, this man is a very famous demon hunter."

"Oh, is that so? I know quite a bit about famous demon hunters."

"Ah... is that so?"

Damn, it seemed like I misspoke.

I didn't think a noble would know about demon hunters.

'He's a businessman, but he's also interested in that kind of thing?'

This guy sure had a lot going on.

If this kept up, my exaggeration might be exposed.

"Wait, what was your name again?"

"...Barundel."

"Hmm, Barundel? I'm sorry, but I've never heard of..."

But then.

"Ah! Barundel, isn't that the dwarf demon hunter who made quite a name for himself? About 10 years ago?"

Unexpectedly, Edward said he knew Barundel.

And that he made a name for himself?

I looked at Barundel, wondering what this was about, but he just scratched his beard with an embarrassed look.

"Ah... yes. It's an honor that you remember me."

"Ohoho! How could I forget such a great dwarf?"

"Ha, haha..."

"Hmm, alright. If it's someone like you, I can trust you with [Anatak's Great Axe]. Let's sign the contract right away!"

As soon as Barundel's identity as a demon hunter was revealed, the contract proceeded at lightning speed.

Thump!

Edward stamped his seal without hesitation, as if there was no need for further review.

He even said,

"Let's forget about the deposit."

"Excuse me? What do you mean...?"

"I can't take such a large sum of money as a deposit from people who do such good deeds."

"...Are you serious?"

"Of course. Ohoho."

Edward even waived the 5,000 gold coins we had promised as a deposit.

While 5,000 gold coins might not be a big deal to Edward, who seemed to have money to burn, it was a huge amount to us.

This was an unexpected gain that I hadn't anticipated at all.

"Take care."

Having successfully signed the contract, we received [Anatak's Great Axe] under the guidance of the employee and exited the building.

"..."

"..."

An awkward silence fell.

Honestly, I was still dumbfounded.

What just happened?

"...Well? Explain yourself."

"...About what?"

"You already know everything."

"Ahem...!"

Barundel cleared his throat awkwardly and, after a moment of contemplation, spoke.

"This doesn't seem like the place to talk about this."

"Then?"

"Do you remember that we promised to have a drink together? I was wondering if we could keep that promise today."

"Ah."

Come to think of it, we did make that promise.

I had completely forgotten about it while focusing on other matters.

Since I had some free time now, it was the perfect timing.

Well, it was still broad daylight...

"Sure, let's do that."

Day or night, it didn't matter when it came to having a serious conversation.

We headed straight to the pub.

***

"Oh, young man, it's been a while!"

"Hello."

This was the pub I frequented when I first set foot in District 6, and it was located above the former Artis Guild office.

There were many other good places, but I came here because it was the most familiar.

The prices were also relatively cheaper compared to other places.

"Did you move or something?"

"Ah, yes, something like that. Two beers, please. And the usual for snacks."

"You mean the grilled phoenix? I'll bring it right out."

Just as the owner said, the drinks and snacks were served quickly, and unable to hold back any longer, I spoke first.

"Now tell me. What was that all about?"

"...My, you're impatient."

Gulp, gulp.

Barundel took a long swig of beer and continued.

"When I was working as a demon hunter, I was actually quite famous."

"What were you famous for?"

"What else would it be? Of course, I was famous for killing demons."

"Hmm."

Now that I thought about it, it wasn't strange.

With Barundel's level of skill, it would be stranger if he wasn't noticed.

It was just that I hadn't bothered to look into Barundel's background.

Of course, he hadn't told me either.

"Were you hiding it on purpose?"

"Well, it's not that I was hiding it, but... honestly, I was a bit hesitant to talk about it."

Barundel's expression darkened noticeably.

It seemed that this was closely related to the reason why he quit being a hunter.

"Ah... then you don't have to talk about it."

I tried to say it in a way that wouldn't make Barundel uncomfortable, but he took another gulp of beer and shook his head.

"No. If that was the case, I wouldn't have come to the pub."

It seemed like he had made up his mind to talk about it this time.

"...Are you sure?"

"...It's time I talked about it."

Was he reminiscing about the past?

Barundel's expression grew darker and darker.

"Ugh."

I also took a gulp of beer and assumed a listening posture.

"Then tell me."

"...Alright."

I could sense it intuitively.

The story that was about to unfold would be very serious, and also cruel... a story that would reveal what kind of person Barundel truly was.

At the same time...

This was also necessary for us to become true comrades.

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]