Chapter 3: Mercenary Contract

“…Is… it warm?”

It was a short, crude sentence that looked like it had been written by a young child.

In a way, it was a requirement that encapsulated the stereotypical characteristics of a Barbarian, to the point of being simple-minded.

Seeing the items occasionally discovered in Ruins-type Rifts, humanity was already in an atmosphere of being certain that different races from another world existed.

“But to think I’d be the first person on Earth to confirm the existence of another race.”

Besides, providing something like winter gear wasn’t difficult compared to the other requests.

[Regular purchase of Red Fang of the Red Wolf] – by Lamia

[Small purchase of Glow Mushrooms growing wild in The Tower] – by Halfling

[Urgent request for 100 9th-grade mana stones] – by Dwarf

Even without checking the details, just looking at the titles showed that the other requests were for materials that could only be obtained by climbing The Tower.

That meant they weren’t items I could get my hands on right now.

However, the Barbarian’s request was different.

If I used Rocket Delivery just like I did with the ramen earlier, weren’t they items I could easily get in the real world?

“The payment part is a bit concerning, but if a mercenary is what I think a mercenary is, it’s worth the investment.”

I decided to try and solve this quest as a test.

I immediately logged on to an online shopping mall.

Since a Barbarian would have a large height and build, I added an appropriately priced XXL padding jacket and a bundle of 20 hot packs to my cart and paid for them.

Once the payment was complete, a delivery package with a parachute descended from the living room ceiling just like before.

I opened the box, checked the contents, and immediately used my Rocket Delivery ability.

[Trade Proposal: Winter Goods]

A moment later, a new system message appeared.

[Notification: The Barbarian Kargar has accepted the trade.]

[Your affinity with the Barbarian race has increased slightly.]

“Oh! The trade went through! Huh?”

Immediately after, a new alert was updated.

[A new review has been registered in the Rocket Store.]

Purchaser: Barbarian ‘Kargar’
Rating: ★★★★★
Review: It warm. Thanks.

“It really has everything. Even reviews are being posted?”

Though short and concise, the review contained the characteristic sincerity of a Barbarian, causing the corners of my mouth to naturally turn up.

[Notification: A mercenary category has been newly established in the Rocket Store.]

[The mercenary ‘Kargar’ has been temporarily registered.]

It was just as I expected.

Since he said he’d pay with his body instead of cash, Kargar had become a mercenary in the Rocket Store.

The price was a whopping 10,000 coins for one hire!

It was a contract where I received half of that as my share.

“Do I just wait for a customer now?”

In the meantime, I decided to look into the other problems.

[Purchase of Red Fang of the Red Wolf]

Requester: Lamia Apothecary Narcia

Content: Please defeat the Red Wolves and bring 10 rare materials, the Red Fangs. I want a regular trade relationship.

Reward: 5,000 coins and a pass to use Narcia’s Magic Shop.

[Small purchase of Glow Mushrooms]

Requester: Halfling Survival Chef O’Donnell

Content: Ho ho, I need some Glow Mushrooms that grow wild in the caves. Without these, the food just doesn’t have any flavor. If you help me, I’ll specially hand over my secret recipe.

Reward: Halfling’s special candied sweet potato pie and recipe.

[Urgent request for 100 9th-grade mana stones]

Requester: Dwarf Lower-rank Blacksmith Grund

Content: My stock of mana stones has run out, so I need 100 9th-grade mana stones. if you find these mana stones for me, I’ll forge the best sword I can currently make.

Reward: Rare-grade iron sword.

As expected, unlike Kargar’s request, these were from fairies that I couldn’t help.

Red Fangs of the Red Wolf, Glow Mushrooms, and 9th-grade mana stones.

Because they were all items that could only be found in The Tower.

I stared intently at the hologram screen.

“Would the system give me tasks that I can’t even attempt?”

If dimensional exchange meant I had to provide the items personally, this ability was effectively only half-complete.

However, I had a belief in the system that if it were impossible, it wouldn’t have appeared on the list in the first place.

This wasn’t just my blind faith.

It was close to the trust that all Hunters had learned through experience since monsters appeared without warning.

Then, as if reading my thoughts, a message popped up.

[Notification: A new payment method has been added to the Rocket Store]

New Payment Method (Proxy Item Payment established)
: From now on, Rocket Store users can pay for goods using specific items instead of coins. (Necessary items for accepted requests are automatically registered collectively.)

Note: The list of items that can be used for proxy payment can be checked through dimensional exchange.

After reading the message about the addition of the new payment method in detail, I was able to understand it immediately.

“Isn’t this a kind of intermediary trade?”

I got goosebumps for a moment.

The Rocket Store basically earned coins by selling items to Hunters climbing The Tower, and used those coins to buy necessary items from the System Store.

But now, if the Hunters had the items that the other races wanted, they could pay with those items instead of coins to buy my goods.

“I’m trapped at home so I can’t get the items, but Hunters can certainly get them.”

Literally, I had come to serve as the sole intermediary connecting reality with the different races of other worlds.

Ding!

Just then, the system message I had been waiting for appeared, and I touched it.

[Notification: The mercenary ‘Kargar’ has been hired.]

Employer: Hunter Park Jeong-hyeon (F+ Rank)
Mission: Secure the entrance to the 10th floor of The Tower.
Status: Currently in progress in real-time.

Unable to contain my curiosity, I even opened the hologram screen to focus.

I wondered, what kind of performance would the mercenary Kargar show?

***

The F+ rank magician Park Jeong-hyeon, who had cleared about half of the 9th floor of The Tower, stood at a crossroads.

“Sigh… just how many of these damn Kobolds are there?”

Park Jeong-hyeon squeezed out his mana without rest to fire off fireballs.

There were still plenty of mana potions left in his inventory.

However, because he kept gulping down potions, his stomach felt bloated.

While waiting for his bloated stomach to digest, he was in a situation where he was contemplating whether to continue the raid.

“I have to be careful because I might get status ailment potion poisoning if I go any further. But I can’t just give up easily after spending a whole day raiding and taking such a loss.”

Since the amount spent on mana potions alone was considerable, it would be a huge loss to give up and turn back now.

Park Jeong-hyeon bit his lip.

He had already invested too much to give up.

At the moment he fell into despair, a blue hologram window appeared before his eyes.

[A trade proposal has arrived from the Rocket Store.]

[Right now, there is a product you absolutely need for your situation.]

Mercenary: Kargar (Barbarian)

Description: A Barbarian that can be hired temporarily. A reliable mercenary will join your challenge during the 9th floor raid.

Price: 10,000 coins

Contract Period: Joining the employer’s party during the challenge of the corresponding floor.

“What is this Rocket Store?”

Park Jeong-hyeon rubbed his eyes several times.

Furthermore, they were selling a Barbarian mercenary.

His doubt about the existence of Barbarians lasted only a moment.

It was a proposal he would have ignored as a scam if it weren’t for the system message.

“But there’s no way the system would lie.”

The problem was the large sum of 10,000 coins.

Park Jeong-hyeon calculated the abacus in his head.

If he hired the mercenary right now, it was true that he would take a big hit.

However, if he could gain the opportunity to challenge the 10th-floor boss in the long run, it wouldn’t be that much of a loss.

“A magician can play a big role in boss battles, and if I challenge it repeatedly, I can definitely earn back about 10,000 coins.”

He concluded that this choice was better than losing all the money and time he had invested and giving up on the challenge.

Park Jeong-hyeon completed the payment without hesitation.

▶ Thank you for using the Rocket Store!

– The Barbarian mercenary Kargar temporarily joins Park Jeong-hyeon’s party.

Before Park Jeong-hyeon even had time to regret it, a flash of light exploded before his eyes.

Soon, as the light faded, a man with a massive frame of over 207 centimeters revealed himself.

A man with a rugged, muscular body holding a giant two-handed axe.

He was wearing a padding jacket that didn’t suit his body at all.

“He even has hot packs in his pockets? Is this really a Barbarian?”

While Park Jeong-hyeon was doubting if it was a scam.

Kargar scanned Park Jeong-hyeon, then said in a heavy voice with his giant axe resting on his shoulder.

“It is warm here. Taking off padding. Kargar, hired. What do I do?”

Still, Park Jeong-hyeon felt deeply moved seeing Kargar’s massive build.

With this kind of size, he should be able to sufficiently block the Kobold swarm in the front.

“Ah? Yes! If Sir Barbarian holds the front line, I’ll use magic from the back to…”

“Killing Kobolds!”

Before Park Jeong-hyeon could even finish his sentence, Kargar ignored his words and dashed forward.

“What?”

Kargar swung his massive axe and leaped into the middle of the Kobold swarm.

“Kee-ack!”

With the screams of the Kobolds, blood began to splatter.

Unstoppable, Kargar ruthlessly swept them away.

“No, I mean, you’re amazing, but if you make such a loud noise, the Kobolds will call all their comrades here!”

It wasn’t that Park Jeong-hyeon spent a whole day and time on the Kobold raid for no reason.

Kobolds were monsters with a stronger sense of camaraderie than anyone.

“Awoo-oo-oo!”

Indeed, feeling the crisis, all the remaining Kobolds on the 9th floor flocked over at the unique howling of the Kobolds.

However, Park Jeong-hyeon’s worries were groundless.

“What is that? Is it a monster?”

No matter how many Kobolds flocked, they were no match for the Barbarian.

Park Jeong-hyeon was aghast.

Kargar’s combat was savage and rough, but it was the epitome of exhilaration.

Every time he swung the giant axe, the Kobolds were torn like sheets of paper, and he swept through the Kobold swarm as if he were playing a game.

The Kobold swarm that Park Jeong-hyeon, an F+ rank Hunter, had spent an entire day struggling against was annihilated in just a few minutes under Kargar’s axe.

“Combat finished.”

After wiping out the Kobold swarm, Kargar approached a giant rock wall.

He raised his two-handed axe high and struck down with the strength of his entire body.

Kwang!

With a thundering sound, cracks spread like a spiderweb across the hard rock, and it soon crumbled down.

Kargar hugged the largest chunk of the shattered rock.

“Kargar needed rock. Taking some.”

“…Yes? Do as you please.”

Park Jeong-hyeon stared blankly at the place where he had disappeared.

Kargar had smashed a giant boulder, which Park Jeong-hyeon couldn’t even be sure of breaking with all his mana, in a single strike.

A hologram window suddenly appeared before the dazed Park Jeong-hyeon’s eyes, proving that the current situation wasn’t a dream.

[Mercenary Contract Terminated: Kargar (Barbarian)]

Mission Completion Time: 5 minutes 30 seconds

At the news of clearing the 9th floor, Park Jeong-hyeon suddenly snapped back to his senses.

“It’s a clear! It’s a clear! Now I can challenge the 10th floor too!”

Even though he had paid a high price to hire a mercenary, the 10,000 coins weren’t a waste at all.

***

By the time Park Jeong-hyeon’s excitement subsided, a system message appeared before my eyes.

[Mercenary hiring has been successfully completed.]

Profit: 5,000 coins

The profit, which would have taken selling dozens of potions to obtain, had come in just 5 minutes and 30 seconds.

“I’ve hit the jackpot.”

When the mercenary system was created, I was curious about Kargar’s skills, but I didn’t think much about the profit.

Just that one more way to make money had been added.

“But I was wrong. To earn such high profits in such a short time!”

Kargar was the goose that laid the golden eggs.

Naturally, my gaze turned toward the other dimensional exchanges.

I activated the hologram screen with trembling hands.

Now, nothing else caught my eye.

“The rewards! Let’s see the rewards.”