"I... what did I steal and run away with?"

Basto’s voice trembled low.

His face was completely distorted.

The holy knight replied to him,

"I don’t know the details myself. I am merely carrying out orders from above. According to my superiors, you committed actions unbefitting of a mercenary..."

"The one who committed unbefitting actions was that bastard Kal!"

Basto slammed his hand down on the table with a crash, and dust fell from the ceiling.

Fierce rage burned in his eyes—this time even Bale looked at him in surprise.

Basto continued, as if spilling out everything that had been festering inside him.

"Tell me honestly! Did that bastard Karl Worven grease your superiors? So that I can never work as a mercenary again?!"

The holy knight flinched.

His darting pupils and furrowed brow clearly showed—he had been struck right at the mark.

"Behind whose back is that bastard Karl Worven hiding, that the rot has spread all the way down here? Speak immediately!"

"Basto Paerix. This..."

"How long has it been since I left his squad! He was the one tailing me, snatching my achievements...!"

Basto was breathing heavily.

It seemed his rage made it difficult for him to speak.

Tie stared at him ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) in astonishment.

"Uncle Basto... his eyes are red."

Basto’s eyes were bloodshot.

His clenched fists trembled faintly, his Adam’s apple rising and falling slowly.

Tie’s brows gradually lowered.

"He’s thinking about his family."

Uncle Basto’s family had died because of bad Kal.

Tie looked at the holy knight again.

He was watching the raging Basto with a complicated expression.

"He doesn’t look like a bad person..."

Tie also knew what a bribe was.

When they watched television together, Grandma 107 and Lady 203 talked about things like that every day.

"Look! That jerk definitely swallowed money! Without money, is that even possible?!"

"Sister, these days they say bribes are given in a special way."

"A special way? What kind of special way is that?"

"Not in apple boxes, but right inside brand-name bags."

"Oh my..."

Yes, a bribe was when you fed someone money.

Not in an apple box, but in an expensive bag, and asked them to act in your favor.

You weren’t allowed to do that, but there were many bad people in the world...

"How can I restore my identification number?"

Basto growled the question low at the holy knight.

The knight pressed his lips together tightly, then spoke quietly.

"...I know your situation. And I know that Karl Worven is not a good man."

"Then why!"

"By the rules I should not say this, but..."

The holy knight made sure the tent flap was closed before continuing.

"The one Karl Worven bribed is not someone easy."

Silence fell.

Bale frowned, Nordix remained silent.

Tie also vaguely understood and tilted her head.

The holy knight continued,

"Recently, a new commander was assigned to the first threshold. Have you heard?"

Bale, who was well informed about news from the thresholds, knitted his brows.

"We’ve heard. The whole district is buzzing. They say the Emperor himself appointed him?"

The holy knight hissed, "Lower your voice," and glanced toward the entrance again.

He leaned closer over the table and continued.

"Even among the knights there is much talk about him. If it were within reasonable bounds, we could close our eyes, but this one goes too far. He interferes openly, so there is dissatisfaction even within the order."

Bale frowned in frustration.

"So what if there’s dissatisfaction? They won’t remove him even if he dies."

"...Yes. That is the problem."

The holy knight looked at Basto with regret.

"I do not know for certain, but if even after passing the new mercenary exam you are treated this way, it seems the commander received a rather large sum from Karl Worven."

Basto lost his words and fell silent.

There was too much injustice and resentment, but in the end only one path remained.

"So in the end, it’s money that’s needed?"

And very large money at that.

The holy knight nodded.

Bale let out a dry laugh, Nordix clicked his tongue.

Basto stood frozen, stunned, staring blankly at the holy knight.

Money.

Did he have anything left now?

Even the reward for suppressing the Magic Stone—that bastard Kal had taken it for himself.

A bad premonition spread through his head.

Perhaps he would never become a mercenary again.

The work of hunting monsters was the only thread tying him to life and to himself.

"The thing I was doing while thinking of revenge for Eve and Lilia..."

His nose stung, his breathing grew heavy.

Basto slowly lowered his head.

But soon he pulled himself together and covered his eyes with his thick hand.

"...Bale."

He could feel Bale looking at him.

"There isn’t much time. You escort the lord and enter the Capital first. I will stay here, find a way, and then..."

"How much did that Kal eat?"

At that moment a cold voice rang out.

Everyone flinched and lifted their heads.

Sitting back carelessly in her chair and staring at the holy knight was Astie.

Her face was rarely this angry.

"How much did that Kal, worse than a stray dog, give your commander, I asked!"

The holy knight was taken aback, but after hesitating, he answered.

"I-it... I do not know exactly, but they say he received a chest stuffed with banknotes..."

And at that very moment, Tie sprang up onto the chair.

The child reached her hands behind her and removed her pink backpack.

Without saying a word, she unzipped it with a rustling sound and flipped it over the table.

Dozens of objects fell onto the table with dull thuds.

Bracelets of pure gold with ancient patterns.

A sapphire necklace the size of a fist, head ornaments inlaid with gemstones she had never seen before.

Pearls, diamonds, garnets, emeralds, rubies, spinels, amethysts, topazes...

What the bone friends had lifted from the ground on the day of the Magic Stone suppression and brought to Tie one by one.

"Deliver this. I, the great archmage King of the Dead, will give more."

Everyone stared at Tie with wide eyes.

Only she tilted her head to the side.

"Sell your conscience for a pathetic pile of banknotes from an apple box?"

And she added,

"I’m not that small! Say that I give openly, in a brand-name bag!"

Holy Knight Kaut, who had left the tent, returned exactly an hour later.

"...Basto Paerix. Here is your new identification number."

He held in his hands the approval documents for Basto’s new number.

Naturally, on the registration form only the line for the squad name remained blank.

"Agavert."

Tie readily answered the holy knight’s question about the mercenary squad’s name.

"Wow, that name’s better than I expected?"

Bale widened his eyes in surprise.

"O-oh, Agavert. How did you come up with that?"

Basto and Nordix also looked at Tie with unexpected interest.

Tie casually lifted her chin.

"I just thought of it."

But that was a lie.

"...Mercenary ranking."

Tie’s gaze slid to the enormous sheet of paper attached to the wall of the tent.

While the holy knight had been absent, Tie had carefully read everything written on the sheet.

"The small letters are too small, I can’t see them, but the big ones I can."

Written in large letters were the names of mercenary squads.

Those that were in the continental ranking.

And what drew Tie’s eyes most was the name of the squad occupying first place.

Looking at the clearly written name, Tie simply thought,

"O-oh, if you flip it backward, it’ll work!"