Chapter 28: The Butcher’s Summons

Our break came to an end as a visitor arrived after just two days.

It was late at night, and Jenny and I were drinking noisily as usual.

“Ah… I want some hearty hangover soup.”

Whenever there was a company dinner, I’d inevitably crave the Old Lady’s Radish Green Hangover Soup near the office.

That place, filled to the brim with rich broth, meat, and radish greens, had become my go-to spot.

The shop owner treated me like a regular customer, and I was like family to them.

“Has…”

But reality offered nothing more than the Food Bundle and hard Bread.

Of course, since we were at the Inn, ordering other dishes was possible, but no menu could replace that refreshing feeling.

My aching stomach remained unsatisfied.

That was when it happened.

There was a sudden commotion outside the Inn, a rising clamor.

“What’s going on?”

The Innkeeper appeared, looking cheerful, his burly muscles rippling as he headed out.

Without paying it much mind, I continued to shovel the soup into my mouth for survival.

But after just two spoonfuls, I had to stop eating.

“Hey Solo, your visitor’s here.”

The door opened, and a man followed behind the Innkeeper.

At the sight of him, I couldn’t help but tense up.

Clank, clank.

The unmistakable sound of armor approached.

He looked middle-aged, with a stylishly groomed beard.

His helmet was tucked under his left arm, and though his sword wasn’t drawn, its sharp edge glistened by his side.

The most important detail was the emblem on his armor.

I knew that emblem.

Why?

Because I had already inputted information on the nobles of the Londinium Empire into my mind, allowing me to instantly recognize which house it belonged to.

“You’re a knight from the Count Lakajet family.”

As I spoke first, the approaching knight showed a slightly surprised expression.

“You’re Solo, the Battlefield Butcher?”

This time, I was the one taken aback.

From all my encounters with knights, they tended to ignore others except fellow knights.

Especially mercenaries—they often treated us like dirt, and even their own soldiers were no better than servants in their eyes.

Knights rarely traveled alone.

Most brought along Retainers who handled everything from putting on and taking off armor to maintaining weapons.

They controlled their servants like puppets.

So naturally, my impression wasn’t good.

Contrary to my expectation that he’d speak down to me or be rude, this knight showed a somewhat kinder attitude.

“That’s correct.”

“I’m here to request your help, a 3rd Circle Mage like yourself.”

I stiffened.

I had only demonstrated 3rd Circle Magic a handful of times, and only once in battle.

Yet not only did he know, but he was confident enough to treat me this way.

‘He must have excellent intelligence.’

There must have been plenty of rumors about me, too.

Some thought I surrendered too easily in the previous war.

“War?”

“Yes. It’s a war between our Count Lakajet family and the Tristan Marquisate.”

I recalled the information I had on the two noble houses.

Objectively speaking, the Marquisate held the advantage.

Nobles differed in the number of troops they could mobilize, depending on their rank.

The higher the rank, the more funds and knights they commanded.

Without extraordinary reasons, the Marquisate was bound to win.

Perhaps reading my uneasy expression, the knight quickly added:

“The Count has promised the Barony’s title as payment for this commission.”

Jenny and the Innkeeper beside me were far more surprised than I was.

Becoming a noble was a huge deal.

“Solo!”

Jenny’s eyes shone brightly.

The Innkeeper signaled me to accept quickly.

Becoming a noble was an incredible honor.

I stayed silent, lost in thought.

Counts, Marquesses, and Dukes can grant noble titles to commoners.

At least, as long as I lived, I’d be treated as a noble.

‘Though it’s not much of a benefit.’

In my case, I was already a 3rd Circle Mage.

I could receive the title of Quasi-Noble.

With more effort, I could reach 4th Circle and officially become a noble, so did I really need to become a Baron?

“Please tell me the current situation honestly.”

So I asked.

I wanted to know how severe it really was.

If they were offering noble status to a mercenary mage like me, it meant they must be in deep trouble.

“The power gap is about double. It’s a crisis, so that’s why this opportunity has come to you.”

“Wow…”

Double the difference.

That much meant certain defeat.

The knight added that if they lost this war, the Count’s family would be wiped out.

This was their last stronghold, their final line of defense — the last troops mustered.

Perhaps that was why Jenny and the Innkeeper, who had been encouraging me, now wore expressions of concern.

I hesitated.

Honestly, I wanted to take on the mission.

The huge amount of experience points was tempting.

But the danger was serious.

High risk, high reward.

The phrase echoed perfectly in my mind.

“All right. I accept the commission.”

When I agreed, the knight relaxed from his tense posture and sat comfortably in a chair.

“We’re about to depart now. The situation is urgent.”

“You heard that, Jenny. Go prepare.”

“Yes, Solo.”

Jenny got up and went to get our gear.

Since we always kept our belongings ready for travel, we could move out immediately.

The knight wouldn’t wait long.

It took Jenny less than ten minutes to come back carrying our packs.

I realized I was still in casual clothes and quickly changed before departure.

Riding a single horse, the knight and we immediately set off toward the Count Lakajet County.

***

We alternated between rest and riding as we made our way toward the Count Lakajet County.

The location was west by the standards of the Londinium Empire.

It was a forced march, so we were exhausted from day one.

But discomfort no longer bothered me.

Five months of constant travel had made fatigue and sleeplessness normal.

I nodded off every now and then, but with Jenny taking turns to keep watch, it was bearable.

Because we were traveling on horseback, we had to watch over both our stamina and the horses.

Still, compared to when we first arrived here, Jenny’s horse had improved a lot.

When I fought a knight head-on during the 7th war, it wasn’t by choice — the knight charged at me, and after defeating him, one of the spoils was his horse.

It was a common horse on the Creseria Continent, but one prized by knights.

I accepted it as a reward, and now Jenny rode that horse.

“Eat up, Sundungi.”

Even now, Jenny showed affection, feeding and grooming the horse.

“Your naming sense though…

Sundungi? What kind of name is that?

Anyone could tell it was a hot-tempered horse.

It had once kicked Toma in the back after messing with him.

But the horse usually bullied others until Jenny appeared, then it would immediately calm down.

Three days had passed since leaving the Inn.

If we pushed hard today and tomorrow, we’d reach the county.

Covered in dust and eager to rest, I wanted to speed up the schedule.

But I couldn’t help but sigh deeply.

“Sigh…”

Jenny was the first to respond to my sigh.

Clang.

She drew her weapon and began tying my Toma and Sundungi to a tree.

“What’s wrong?”

The knight, or rather Berrki, asked me.

“Enemies. There’s quite a few of them.”

I stood and looked straight ahead.

Berrki drew his weapon, too.

I detected a few enemies thanks to my detection magic.

I always used detection magic wherever I went, so spotting these enemies was easy.

“Four, six, seven, nine.”

That was the number caught in my detection line.

As their figures began to emerge in the distance, Berrki quickly recognized them.

“They’re knights from the Tristan Marquisate.”

Seeing the invaders’ cloaks emblazoned with the Marquisate’s emblem, Berrki was certain.

I immediately prepared my magic.

There was a spell perfect for dealing with enemies charging headlong on horseback like this.

Gathering mana, I shouted:

“Stone Edge, Dig.”

A stone pillar suddenly formed in the middle of the charging enemy.

Bang! Rumble!

One horse failed to slow down and crashed headlong into the pillar with a loud sound, shattering it.

Of course, the horse’s head was smashed on the spot, killing it instantly.

The knight fell off and was trampled to death by the hooves of his comrades.

A magical pit had also appeared a little away from the stone pillar.

“Ha!”

Of the seven charging horses, three leapt over the pit.

But out of the remaining four, two fell into the pit along with their horses.

Clack.

Five enemies remained.

I hurried to prepare the next spell.

Their armor was probably inscribed with spells that could block 3rd Circle Magic.

That meant I had to use at least 4th Circle magic.

“Protect me.”

I said to Jenny, then quickly prepared my skill.

Although 4th Circle magic required 10 seconds to cast, there was nothing I could do in the meantime except move mana and get ready.

It looked like the three remaining horses charging at us would arrive at about the same time as my spell finished.

I was a little nervous but trusted Jenny and myself.

Thud thud thud.

The three knights charged at me with eyes full of malice.

I shouted at them.

“Inferno!”

Flames erupted from my right hand as I stepped forward.

Blazing, crackling!

A massive fire stream engulfed the knight and his horse charging at me, burning them to ash.

It quickly consumed the other two following behind.

“Ughh…”

The horses couldn’t withstand the heat and collapsed with miserable cries.

But the knights were different.

They protected themselves with Aura, shielding their bodies from the flames.

Even falling off their horses, they maintained the aura—no ordinary warrior could do that.

Jenny rushed forward toward the knights advancing step by step, protected by aura.

Dodging my fire stream, she slashed at one knight from the side.

Thrust.

Jenny’s sword pierced the knight’s body.

“Guh…”

One knight died.

The remaining knights broke away from Jenny’s attack range and nearly reached me.

“Hah!”

In a last desperate move, the knight concentrated his aura into his sword and swung fiercely at me.

Clang!

His attack was blocked by my shield.

“Farewell.”

I said, casting a skill at his face.

“Fireball.”

Bang!

The fireball exploded near the knight and quickly devoured him.

It was no surprise the shield kept me safe.

-Level up.

-Five additional skill points awarded.

The battle was over.

Berrki stared at us dumbfounded, mouth agape.

He was so shocked his tongue was visible.

“Shall we loot them?”

Jenny and I searched the knights’ bodies.

We took the expensive items first, then waited for their armor to cool before gathering everything.

I packed it all into my Magic Bag, then gave Jenny a high five.

“Good work.”

“Solo, you worked harder.”

Our expressions were a little awkward but satisfied.