Two hours later.
After freshening up, the four individuals met in the first-floor hall, feeling refreshed, and enjoyed a rather sumptuous lunch.
Originally, Leon had planned to disband on the spot and allow everyone some free time. He personally wanted to visit the Adventurer's Guild or the Mages' Guild to see if there were any ways to make some money.
After all, thinking it over, the only way to quickly earn a large amount of gold coins without long-term consequences and with minimal effort was this kind of high-risk, high-reward "life-risking work."
But...
Leon looked at his dusty 【bronze】 badge and sighed.
His rank was too low.
He couldn't even accept high-level commissions.
"Maybe I should go to the Mages' Guild to get certified?"
This was also one of the main reasons Leon had come to Worcester City.
Only "first-tier" cities like this would have branches of the major professional associations.
Vespa didn't understand why the "Lord" before her was so fixated on being an adventurer. Wasn't it better to just enjoy a stable government paycheck? Was there some other mission?
"That’s a way, Lord."
Vespa said, her voice muffled as she gnawed on a chicken leg.
"However, even if you go for certification, even if you are a 【Crowned】 rank mage, according to the guild's regulations, they will only give you a corresponding 【Golden】 rank adventurer status at most."
"Furthermore, it's not given directly. You would first need to complete a series of 'ranking missions' designated by the Adventurer's Guild."
"This is also to protect fledgling adventurers, preventing academic types with no real-world experience from underestimating the enemy and taking on missions that seem to match their rank, only to end up dead."
After hearing this, Leon couldn't help but sigh.
As expected, things were always easier with a "strategy guide."
However...
Leon glanced at Lucrezia, who was elegantly wiping her mouth nearby.
'Although I currently only have mana close to the 【Crowned】 rank, don't I have a portable nuclear power bank with me?'
'I'll see if there's an angle to cheat a bit when the time comes... oh no, that’s not cheating, that’s just part of my strength. I'll go straight for the 【Glorious】 rank!'
Just as Leon was calculating how to exploit the system...
"Lord, come with us!"
Vespa suddenly leaned in, her face full of anticipation.
"A-Ling and I are going to turn in a mission. Why don't you come along to back us up?"
"I'm going too!" Lucrezia immediately became alert, jumping out like a kitten guarding its food. "Don't even think about being alone with the small fry behind my back!"
Leon was somewhat puzzled.
'Why do they need to drag me along just to turn in a mission at the Thieves' Guild?'
'I'm not one of those "shady types" who hides in the shadows all day.'
'Are they trying to trap me?'
But on second thought, it shouldn't be the case. If they wanted to make a move, they would have done it long ago on the road.
He had even intentionally left several openings, but these two sisters hadn't shown the slightest intention of attacking.
Out of a lack of understanding but a desire to be respectful, Leon agreed.
...
In the slums of Worcester City, in front of an unremarkable, dilapidated shack.
Vespa followed the secret signs all the way until she finally found the meeting point for the "old geezer" she had mentioned.
"What was that phrase again? Surprise?"
Vespa straightened her collar and arrogantly mimicked Leon’s strange slang.
"Oh! Right! Surprise, motherfucker! Your Grandpa Vespa is back! Why aren't you out here welcoming me!"
Bang!
She kicked the door open, intending to give the old geezer a big surprise.
However.
The room was empty.
In an inconspicuous hidden compartment, there was only a note weighed down by a solitary gold coin.
【Out on business, back in three days. If you arrive early, you may stay here temporarily. This is seventy percent of the advance payment; the remainder will be settled upon my return.】
"..."
Vespa held the note and the gold coin, her hands trembling.
Slap!
She slammed the note onto the floor and roared in grief and indignation.
"I've been toiling away for over half a month! I nearly died in that swamp! I even had to go kill someone in a Baron's manor!"
"That was a 【Glorious】 rank Baron (special case)! And it involved Fel demons!"
"And the result?! For two people, you only give one gold coin?!"
"And this is seventy percent?! Meaning the full payment is only 1.4 gold coins?!"
Vespa was so angry her fur bristled.
"Don't think I don't know! The reward for this mission is at least five gold coins per person! Plus travel allowances, lodging subsidies, and transportation reimbursements!"
"But when it comes to us outsourced labor, it's subcontracted and embezzled at every level! In the end, they just give us this bit of cat food money?!"
"Those blood-sucking parasites in the middle! Their hearts are pitch black!!"
Although A-Ling didn't speak, the veins on the back of her hand holding her sword hilt bulged.
They had experienced this kind of thing far too many times.
That old geezer threatened them every time: "Do it or leave! There are plenty of people who will! For outsourced temps like you with no official post or benefits, you're lucky to even get a meal!"
This only made Vespa crave an official post and a permanent position even more.
She turned her head, her gaze toward Leon becoming increasingly fervent, almost as if she were looking at a living savior.
Leon looked at this familiar scene, a mocking curve appearing at the corner of his mouth.
"Tsk tsk tsk, there truly is nothing new under the sun."
This scene couldn't help but remind him of an "old friend" from his previous life in the Divine Realm Era.
That guy was the leader of a rival guild and a super-rich tycoon in reality, nicknamed "Brother 80."
"Lord, what are you laughing at?" Vespa asked aggrievedly.
"Nothing, I just thought of an interesting story."
Leon pulled up a chair and sat down, comforting the fuming cat-girl.
"Do you want to hear it? It’s about a tycoon with a billion-dollar fortune who managed to ruin himself over eighty bucks."
"Eighty bucks?" Vespa was stunned. "How many gold coins is that?"
"Roughly... about one-hundredth of that gold coin in your hand."
Leon’s gaze turned deep as he began his narration (the adapted version):
"Once, there was a large guild that owned countless cities. The leader was a wealthy man who spent money like water."
"War is a money-burning business. To compete for territory, the wealthy leader would allocate a massive military budget every time. For example, a hundred thousand gold coins."
"Then, that money would begin its 'fantastic voyage.'"
"The vice-leader would take a cut, the elders would take a cut, the captains would take a cut... Finally, by the time it reached the bottom-tier players who were responsible for 'paving the way' and doing the dirtiest, most exhausting work, the promised 1,000 gold coins per person had turned into... three copper coins."
"Pfft!" Lucrezia, who was drinking water, spat it out. "Three copper coins? That’s way too dark!"
"It gets darker."
Leon let out a cold laugh.
"One of those laborers didn't even get those three copper coins. He was owed a final payment of eighty copper coins."
"This guy was a tough character. For those eighty copper coins, he spent three days and nights cursing that wealthy leader on the world channel!"
"The wealthy leader was baffled and came to ask personally: 'How much do I owe you? Eight hundred thousand gold coins?'"
"The laborer said: 'No, it’s eighty copper coins.'"
"The tycoon was shocked on the spot. He felt it was too humiliating to be cursed for three days over eighty copper coins. So, he immediately ordered a captain to give the laborer 1,000 copper coins to shut him up."
"And then?" Vespa was enthralled.
"And then," Leon shrugged, "that captain only gave the laborer 100 copper coins and pocketed the other 900 for himself."
"And the craziest part is, that laborer was an honest man. He returned twenty copper coins, saying: 'We agreed on eighty, so eighty it is. I won't take more.' Then he specifically went to tell the wealthy leader about it."
"At that moment, the wealthy leader's mental state completely collapsed."
"He audited the accounts and discovered that of the hundred thousand gold coins he had allocated, the embezzlement rate was as high as ninety-nine percent! The bonuses that finally reached the heroes who actually captured the flags weren't even enough to buy a bottle of red potion!"
"What happened in the end?" Lucrezia pressed.
"In the end..."
A glimmer of nostalgia flashed in Leon’s eyes.
"Brother 80's spirit shattered, and he deleted his account and quit the game. That once invincible guild disbanded overnight."
After Leon finished, he looked at the three stunned women and pointed at the gold coin in Vespa’s hand.
"It seems that no matter where you are, the hearts of these middlemen are exceptionally black."
"The bold truly feast, while the timid starve."
Vespa clutched that gold coin, her eyes welling with tears.
It was too real! It hit too close to home!
This wasn't just a story she was hearing; it was clearly her own history of blood and tears!
Rate on N.U.
