Game of the World Tree

The second month of the year arrived with the sun’s radiant beams illuminating the frigid landscape.

The gradual departure of winter gradually unfolded, marked by the lessening bite of the cold breeze. Yet, amidst the persistent chill, scattered evidence of nature’s reawakening are slowly emerging ever so subtly…

Green patches of leaf buds timidly unfurled on many tree branches, signaling the passing of the coldest days of the season.

Spring is coming.

Borderlands, Maple Leaf City.

The reconstruction work in the aftermath of the Eternal Lord’s wrath continued on, as residents banded together to rebuild their shattered homes and lives.

It stands to reason that due to the various incidents that occurred and the planned auction event being canceled, one would assume that Maple Leaf City’s influx of visitors would decline for a while.

Yet, the reality was entirely different.

On the contrary, the whole city seemed livelier instead.

If you were to look around, you would see numerous taverns and street alleyways filled with burly, scary-looking mercenaries, while beyond the city walls, a sprawl of makeshift tents dotted the outer landscape, each one a temporary shelter for these bands of sellswords.

Each and every one of them hurriedly came to the city after hearing about the black dragon hunting commission issued by the Borderlord and rushed towards Maple Leaf City after learning about the bounty amount.

Three hundred thousand gold coins!

For any individual or even a large mercenary group, this was not a small sum.

Such huge rewards was enticing enough that it could even attract any expert with high-ranking strength to join the hunt.

The allure became palpable if one would stood upon the outer perimeter walls of Maple Leaf City. While looking out into the expanse, a vast open space would unfold before one’s eyes, dotted with clustered tents numbering in the thousands.

Rough estimates suggested that the number of mercenaries participating in this dragon hunting operation would exceed five thousand.

It could be said that almost all active mercenaries operating within Maple Leaf Territory and its surrounding fiefdoms had rushed there for the time being.

And it was precisely due to the influx of these mercenaries that allowed the caravans, which were initially poised to depart after the auction’s cancellation, to encounter fresh business prospects, prompting them to remain in place.

After all, mercenaries such as these were very active all throughout the continent and most of them have a very loose pockets.

They may be organized into small groups of dozens up to a large organization with thousands of members, and the majority rely on doing commissioned work during peacetime or hunting monsters for a living.

However, during wartime, they would transform into hired military forces under the employment of noble lords.

Of course, some of these mercenaries may sometimes also dabble in banditry, lurking in the mountains and preying on unsuspecting travelers unlucky enough to cross their path.

It could be said that this was a high-risk, high-reward profession teetering on the edge of legality in the world of Seigües.

Many of them are experts or, at the very least, reach the rudimentary rank of apprentices. Although their income may be somewhat unstable most of the time, once they completed a job, they receive a considerable payment.

Alas, the majority of them would immediately choose to spend it upon receiving their due payments.

After all…this was a profession with a significant risk of death. In the world of Seigües, wherein those with extraordinary power reigns supreme, the mortality rate among these mercenaries even surpasses that of human armies filled with experts.

Hence, in their line of work, it was almost common knowledge to spend their payments as soon as possible after receiving them.

Unless they were old and unable to work anymore, most mercenaries would hardly save money for themselves, and would only begin to do so in their waning latter years to accumulate enough to support themselves in retirement.

Therefore, for merchants with keen business acumen, the presence of these mercenaries also meant endless business opportunities wherever they congregated.

At this time, many merchants that had come to Maple Leaf City even felt grateful to this rumored evil black dragon for giving them this opportunity, as their visit won’t go to waste.

As a result, one could see many merchants being active within the mercenaries’ makeshift camp, selling their goods and making a good profit for themselves.

Of course, the newly established Amway Trade Company also joined this festivity. They sold some cheap yet exquisite second-hand equipment, which was well-received by many mercenaries.

Moreover, the workers of this new trade group were kind and eloquent, and their goods were quite cheap as well.

So it’s no wonder they quickly bonded with the mercenaries, and the latter talked about practically everything whenever any Amway personnel asked about anything.

At this moment, at the gate of Maple Leaf City, several figures, some in armor and some in steward uniforms, were gathered, discussing something.

“Sir Keynes, Madam Cynthia, we entrust you with the task of hunting the black dragon this time. If it weren’t for the fact that the Count is currently busy dealing with the cultists who have been active in the territory recently, he would definitely take the White Maple Knights with him to join you.”

The speaker was an old steward dressed as a butler, the chief steward of the Borderlord. At this moment, he looked at the man and woman in front of him with sincerity.

“Don’t worry, I guarantee with the reputation of our Breta Mercenary Group that we will successfully complete the Borderlord’s commission and capture that evil black dragon alive.”

The male warrior in armor standing opposite the old steward replied assuredly.

His towering figure exuded strength, his stubbled jawline framing a determined expression. Whilst carrying a large shield with conviction, his eyes shone with a blend of pride and ferocity.

Keynes Breta, he was the captain of the Breta Mercenary Group, a silver-ranked shield warrior.

Due to the Borderlands being plagued with monster invasion, many mercenary groups operates in and around Maple Leaf Territory, and Breta Mercenary Group was the largest one amongst them, boasting about over three thousand active members.

They even had seven experts who have reached silver rank!

Not to mention, their captain Keynes Breta himself possessed the strength of a Peak Silver-ranker!

It could be said that this massive group accounts for three-fifths of the mercenaries gathered within the city, and its overwhelming high-end combat power makes it difficult for other mercenary groups to compete against them.

As Keynes finished speaking, a charming female voice came from beside him.

“Hehe, our Owl Mercenary Group will also cooperate with Sir Keynes.”

She was a female warrior who looked just about thirty years old and was dressed in a coquettish fashion, donning a revealing light armor with a curved bow slung across her back.

She positioned herself next to Keynes, whilst consistently casting flirtatious glances in his direction.

Cynthia Ballin.

She was the captain of the Owl Mercenary Group, the second largest mercenary group in the surrounding area after Breta Mercenary Group.

With members exceeding fifteen hundred, including three silver-ranked experts, they outpaced the third-ranked Crocodile Mercenary Group in Maple Leaf Territory.

Furthermore, Cynthia herself was a Silver-ranked Hunter.

The task of hunting the black dragon this time had attracted the attention of the two largest mercenary groups active around the Borderlands.

This time, they are the main force tasked in hunting down the black dragon!

They gathered all their available forces due to the widespread understanding that tackling any dragon’s lair, even if the dragon was a juvenile, was far from a straightforward endeavor.

Since Dragons were known to cultivate subordinates or vassal races to protect their lairs or serve them as servants.

Moreover, when hunting dragons, they would not only face the dragon itself but also its subjugated subordinates.

So…a certain number of people were necessary.

Dragons, in general, symbolize wealth, but the same could also be said about their subordinates.

If they could successfully hunt the black dragon, not only would they gain a huge amount of profit, but it would also greatly elevate the reputation of all the mercenary groups involved.

Of course… the Count’s statement that he didn’t want the dragon’s treasures also laid the foundation for the cooperation between the two usually competing mercenary groups.

For any one of these mercenary groups, it would be a tough endeavor to confront a black dragon with the strength of an upper silver-ranker just by themselves.

However, if the two largest mercenary groups in the region combined their forces together, there was a good chance that they could really hunt their target.

Moreover, in addition to the two largest mercenary groups, there were also some smaller mercenary groups and bounty hunters joining in, intending to get a piece of the pie during the black dragon hunt.

These people didn’t care about the rewards for hunting the black dragon per se, but rather, as long as they made a profit while attacking the dragon’s subordinates, they would be satisfied as well.

Hearing the statements of the two mercenary group captains, the old steward felt very satisfied. He waved his hand, and dozens of hooded figures, presumably mages, suddenly appeared behind him one after another.

“Hehe, while the Count won’t be joining this operation himself, he instructed me to dispatch some mages from the City’s Mage Guild to support you. They are all skilled in magic and particularly adept at healing. Maybe they could be of assistance to you in your operation.”

The old steward said with a smile.

The two mercenary group captains’ eyes lit up upon hearing this.

Mages skilled in healing are quite rare!

Not to mention, mercenary groups like them were often lacking in not just healers but spellcasters in general.

With dozens of skilled healers at their disposal, casualties during their operation would undoubtedly have been further reduced compared to their original estimates.

Hearing about the Borderlord’s support made the two mercenary captains feel really satisfied.

“Please extend our thanks to the Count,” the two said in unison, offering slight bows.

“This is our duty. We wish you both success in your hunt!” the old steward replied warmly, a smile gracing his lips.

After a brief exchange, the two groups finally parted ways separately.

Nearly all preparations had been finalized.

They had spent three full days resting in Maple Leaf City in anticipation of this hunt.

—Now, it was time to begin their operation.

— 315 —

【 MERCENARY GROUP 】

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