Limit Breaking Genius Mage Chapter 36

Episode 36 New Request (1)

After finishing the expedition, Verden spent his time leisurely training as he always did.

I haven't received any payment yet because I haven't heard from Pale yet. I wasn't particularly anxious or worried. I thought I had taken down the lower wolf very cleanly.

I'm sure the proof Pale gave would have been sufficient.

So six days have passed since I came to Cohen.

Verden headed to the blacksmith, his heart pounding with excitement at the thought of Mahbat's leather gear that would soon be in his hands. New and valuable equipment was always welcome to a wizard.

As I entered the blacksmith shop, I saw the blacksmith munching on food.

He wiped his mouth with his apron after seeing Verden.

“You came at a perfect time. I just finished eating. Come this way.”

I followed the blacksmith inside.

It was a space where armor, including full plates that a knight would wear, were on display. The blacksmith pointed to one of the displays.

A double-breasted blue vest and leather trousers. Just as Verden had requested.

“It’s been a while, so I’ve worn it out. Although it’s leather, it has quite a bit of elasticity, so you won’t have any trouble moving around. The only drawback is that it’s a bit thin…….”

The blacksmith picked up a sword nearby.

Then he thrust with all his might at the vest, but it did not penetrate it, let alone make a scratch.

“You can easily block this much. It also acts as a buffer. Unless it’s magic, it won’t get damaged easily. If you just dry it well when it gets wet, you can pass it down to your children or grandchildren. That says it all, right?”

It is certainly a result that the blacksmith himself can be proud of.

The material is good, but the expert's skills made the advantages even stronger. I didn't regret spending money on this at all.

Verden nodded with satisfaction.

“I like it. Fortunately, I guess I chose the right person.”

“Ahaha, that’s embarrassing. Oh, but there’s a problem with the ring.”

problem?

“Here. See that little groove? There’s a lot of rust on the inside, so I’m peeling it off, but upon closer inspection, I see an elaborate pattern carved into it. Well, it could just be the design, but from my experience, I think it might be some kind of magical item. I’m waiting to ask the customer.”

Verden received the ring.

When I looked closely, I saw a star-shaped pattern with some parts missing.

<Emotions>

The structure of the ring was read.

It was clearly a magical item, as the familiar pattern was clearly visible, but it was unclear what effect it had. There was too much damage.

'I'm starting to get interested.'

I thought it was just an old ring, but it's actually a magical item.

“Can you repair this ring?”

“Well, I don’t know much about magical items… but I think I can restore the pattern and the appearance somehow. It’s so small, though, so it’ll take a lot of work.”

“Then please do so. I will pay all the costs.”

Magical items retain traces unless they are completely destroyed.

If you piece together the fragmented traces, you can see what effect it had. And in rare cases, it can even restore its original appearance.

Of course, there was a very high chance of failure, but it was worth a try.

“Okay. I don’t know how long it’ll take… but I’d recommend stopping by in about two weeks at the most. I might not be able to finish it, so don’t expect too much.”

"All right."

After handing over the ring again, Verden paid the price and took Mahbat's leather clothes.

When I tried it on, it didn't feel that heavy and it felt comfortable in many ways. When I looked in the mirror, it went quite well with the dark blue robe.

It was comfortable enough to wear on a daily basis.

“It’s okay.”

I returned to the inn with a satisfied heart.

Since I had no more business outside, I planned to spend the rest of my time training to expand my magical circuits. It goes without saying that constant effort is absolutely necessary for a wizard.

The moment I opened the door and took a step forward with that thought in mind.

"oh!"

Suddenly, a young girl came out from inside and bumped into Verden. The ice cream she was holding fell onto Mahbat's leather outfit that he had just put on.

Verden quickly activated the magic circuit.

He used his telekinesis to levitate the ice cream and catch the girl who was about to fall. It was a very quick and simple move.

The ice cream floating in the air slowly descended and landed back in the girl’s hand. An old man standing next to her bowed his head slightly to Berden.

“Oh, I’m sorry. My granddaughter has been rude. Aisha, hurry and apologize to the wizard.”

“Yes, Grandma. Thank you for saving the ice cream, Wizard!”

“Oh, I should apologize for bumping into you first.”

An innocent girl and an old man in a worn-out robe. It was quite an unusual combination, not fitting for Cohen's bleak atmosphere.

He was probably an outsider from outside the city, but it was not something that would interest Verden.

"it's okay."

Verden gave a short answer and took the elevator to his accommodation.

* * *

After receiving word from Pale that the payment had arrived, I headed to the underground tavern beneath the slums.

“Here is your reward for subduing the lower wolves.”

A space surrounded by iron bars and glass.

On the other side of the glass, Pale handed over a large sum of cash to Verden.

After deducting the commission fee and other miscellaneous expenses, it came to approximately 22.78 million elk. This was three times the original subjugation reward of 7.8 million elk, and it was because all the materials that could be obtained from the lower wolf were of good quality.

“Count Ladran was very pleased. Well done, Lord Asher.”

Pale gave it rave reviews.

In other words, he was qualified to cooperate with Gray, which he was running. Verden immediately continued the request.

“If I had to choose something appropriate from Asher’s rank… this would be good.”

What Pale showed me was a wanted poster.

“Is the bounty also handled here?”

“It’s the flow of the times. As the city grows, the population naturally increases, and with it, the number of criminals. There are too many for the state to track, and there are many dangers outside the city, so Gray takes care of them through requests. It’s a matter that the principality has permission to do.”

It's difficult to track down a criminal who has escaped outside the city, especially when you have no information.

That's why the role of information is important. Each of them had their own information network. It was much more efficient to delegate the work like this than to have the state track them.

In particular, Pale's information network is unrivaled.

Spread like a spider web throughout the duchy, it operates day and night. The speed of information transmitted through it is faster than that of a warhorse or a third-tier magician.

There is no information in the duchy that can follow Pale in this regard.

Then, Verden asked.

“Does life and death matter?”

“I would appreciate it if you could capture him alive if possible. The nobles prefer that. Instead, I will send someone to you so that you don’t have to bother dragging him in. Of course, I will also provide you with information on the location of the wanted criminal.”

So, all Verden had to do was go and catch him. Of course, it would take some tracking, but it wasn't a problem for Verden. He could usually detect even the smallest traces with his magic detection.

This has been done several times already.

When I accepted the request, Pale bowed his head slightly.

“Then I will ask for your help.”

* * *

So after the subjugation of the Lower Wolf, I finished three tasks.

Pale also gave me accurate location information, and since they weren't particularly skilled, it was an easy job. The pay wasn't great, but it was a decent job for building up credit.

Then one day.

“New request?”

Pale nodded to Verden's question.

“After reviewing Asher’s handling of the matter, I have decided that you should be promoted by one level. To be exact, you have been promoted from the lowest level 5 to level 4. Congratulations.”

“I’m fine with it… but isn’t it too early?”

I've only just completed four quests.

Then Pale shook his head.

“The number of requests is a consideration, but more important is the way you handle things. That much means that I like Asher’s handling of things. The Low Wolf case was particularly big. And it would be a waste to entrust another 5th-grade request to a wizard like Asher. Isn’t there a saying, “right person, right place, right time?”

Ultimately, it's a good thing for Verden.

There was no reason to bother asking any more questions. Verden asked.

“So what about that new request?”

“Before I say anything, this is a confidential matter. Once you hear it, it cannot be undone. Would you like to receive it?”

Does that mean I have to take responsibility if I touch it?

When asked how much the compensation was, Pale wrote down the amount and showed it to Verden.

“……!”

It was a much larger amount than expected.

“What kind of request is it?”

“Okay. Let’s take a look at this material.”

I floated the data that Pale had handed me in the air and arranged them in a way that was easy to read.

I looked closely at the contents, and most of it was about 'cohort meetings'.

“The Cohort Company is a trading company that mainly deals with spices. They seek profit by traveling back and forth between the Duchy of Liviant and the Kingdom of Esteria. Their business is not very large in scale, nor is their competitiveness particularly high. In my opinion, they are a medium-sized company that you can find anywhere.”

however.

“Circumstances have been discovered that the Cohort Company was involved in slave trafficking.”

At one time, slavery was a universally accepted institution.

However, as times changed and Luathism, which believed in the god of light, became a world religion, slavery was abolished in most countries. This was because it was an insult to human dignity and rights.

The Kingdom of Estyria tried to maintain slavery, but eventually abolished it due to diplomatic issues. However, that was only eight years ago, and illegal slave trade is still rampant in the Kingdom of Estyria.

Meanwhile, Cohort Trading Company was selling humans they had acquired from various places to the kingdom as slaves.

Verden said.

“A single company owns slaves? If the Luas Church finds out, they won’t stay still.”

“Besides, the Prince of Liviant also hates slavery very much. There is even a saying that one of the reasons he became independent from the Kingdom of Estyria was because of slavery. Whatever it is, if this gets to the ears of the higher-ups, it won’t end there. And the Lord will be held accountable for not managing his territory properly.”

“Then…… the person requesting the favor must be the lord himself.”

“That’s right. The client is Count Rodenmeyer. The request is to capture ‘Luton Cohort,’ the owner of Cohort Trading Company.”

The situation has been confirmed up to the route by which slaves were transported.

The Count has secretly set out to arrest those who took bribes from the Cohort Company, and is tightening the net to capture the slave wagons by setting up trails and traps along the border.

The key is to maintain security at all costs.

It is important to grab that leash and cut it off before the Luton cohort even gets a whiff.

However, there are more than one or two carriages carrying slaves, and they move separately from each other.

Rather than forcibly deploying his forces and solving the problem alone, Count Rodenmeyer decided to hire other mercenaries. This was to avoid killing two birds with one stone.

“This time, you will not be working alone, Asher, but with the ‘Rowin Mercenaries’. And nearby, soldiers led by the Count’s knights will be waiting.”

“Even a knight? Even if it’s just to catch slave traders, it seems like too much force.”

“There are two reasons behind this. The first is topicality.”

As soon as the information starts to spread, it will soon reach the ears of the King.

So the Count probably intends to make a bigger fuss about dealing with them and show the King that he is setting an example and completely eradicating the slave trade.

Count Rodenmeyer. Free the slaves and punish the slave traders.

The Count's intention was to make that sentence appear in the newspaper as a large front page. The political value that can be gained cannot be converted into money.

“And the second is a mercenary group that the Luton Cohort brought in from another country many years ago. In particular, the leader of the mercenary group, named ‘Swindle’, is a high-ranking mercenary with a history of annihilating several opposing mercenary groups. And other high-ranking mercenaries. If they weren’t involved in transporting slaves, they would be guarding the area near the trading post.”

Pale took a sip of water and continued speaking.

“Count Rodenmeyer is a pragmatist. He has requested the capture of the Luton Cohort, but his real goal is to disperse the enemy’s forces and then use the confusion to subdue them with his own soldiers.”

Because it will cause less damage and will be cheaper.

If things go as Pale says, there is a possibility that you may not receive the compensation stated in the request.

“That’s right. What the Count demands is that Asher capture the Luton Cohort, so if he finds anything to complain about, he’ll try to lower the reward. What a sly noble.”

In the end, the Count intends to hire Verden as a cheap shield.

'I guess the compensation offered was high.'

But that only applies if the situation has developed that way.

Verden asked Pale.

“Isn’t it okay if I capture him myself?”

“Yes. I guarantee that as long as you follow the terms of the request, there will be no problems or pressure. Of course, if possible.”

The opponent is an experienced, high-level mercenary.

Even if he was a third-tier wizard recommended by the Butcher, it was clear that he would not be an easy opponent. That was Pale's judgment.

But, of course, Verden thought differently.

“Where is it?”