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The Extra Strategist’s Royal Road Chapter 162

The Extra Strategist’s Royal Road Chapter 162

Suddenly receiving an academy scouting offer.

That old man, perhaps sensing my potential for greatness, persistently insisted that I accept his recommendation.

Honestly, I thought I would naturally have talent.

After all, Ars is the protagonist. It would be strange if he didn’t have talent.

‘The Royal Academy, huh…’

The time for accepting transfer students at the academy was in two weeks.

After that, the next opportunity to accept transfer students would be a year later. The old man said I could decide then and to take my time, but from my perspective of being pressed for time, now was essentially the only chance to enter the Royal Academy.

Baien, where the academy was located, was also the city we had decided to make our base, and I could learn magic there too, so it was killing two birds with one stone. However, I didn’t want to leave the Northern Continent too early.

‘It would be good if I could at least set up some kind of contact.’

This world has frustratingly poor communication networks.

The continent I was in before had better information networks, even without magic. All kingdoms were on one landmass, and since there was once a unified empire called the Fensillon Empire, communication networks were well-established.

In contrast, this place not only had vast lands but was also in a period of reclaiming territory from monsters, so the communication networks were shoddy.

‘Is there no way?’

Leaving someone in Ramdamen would be the most effective, but I didn’t have the money to employ such a person.

So I was left with two choices.

Either just leave this place, or earn money quickly to set up a contact before leaving.

Having decided on the latter, I headed to the mercenary guild to earn money.

For earning a lot in a short period, this kind of commission work was effective.

As Ramdamen was a big city, there was a high demand for commission work.

“Welcome. What brings you here?”

A man who seemed to be the guild’s guide greeted me with a husky voice.

He narrowed his eyes as he looked at me.

“You… Didn’t you come the day before yesterday too? That’s right, you were looking for people, weren’t you?”

“That’s right. You remember.”

“Of course I remember. The characteristics of the people you’re looking for are unique, and your impression was strong too. So? Are you here today to continue that search?”

“I’m here for something else, but if you’ve found any information, I’d like to hear it.”

“Hmm. There were a few similar pieces of information. I looked into it a bit based on the characteristics you mentioned.”

“Really!”

The characteristics I mentioned were four:

– A female mercenary who uses dual weapons

– A pure-blooded beastkin overflowing with wildness

– A blue-haired woman who uses a spear

The first is Master Ilya, the second is Gaspar, and the third is Eonia.

For the rest, I searched by name as there were no distinct characteristics, but these three were different.

It’s easier to search by characteristics than by name.

Given their outstanding skills, rumors about them should spread quickly.

So for these three, I explained their characteristics along with their names.

It seems some of them were caught.

“Coincidentally, two pieces of information came from the same place. A city called Larmen. There’s a rumor that a beautiful woman who uses a spear has appeared there. I heard she’s looking for an opponent who can defeat her in martial arts.”

“An opponent who can defeat her…? Does she offer something if you win?”

“Well, there must be something, right? Maybe she’s looking to marry a man stronger than her.”

Something seemed off, but it made sense if it was noise marketing. These kinds of rumors tend to spread quickly.

She might have done something provocative to make sure the rumor reached me.

It’s hard to think Eo would come up with such a cunning plan, but it makes sense if Ms. Bisketa came up with the idea.

“What about the other one?”

“Information about a beastkin. There’s a small bandit group appearing near Larmen, and recently this group has split into two due to internal conflict.”

“How is that related?”

“Keep listening. One of these factions is led by a pure-blooded beastkin. Those who have been attacked testify that they have amazing skills.”

“Hmm.”

“That’s about it. If that’s a sufficient answer, give me the information fee.”

“Ah, yes.”

To think he’d ask for the information fee after telling me the information. Well, it’s probably because it’s not very important information to him.

I paid a reasonable information fee and decided to ask about other matters.

“Work to earn money? There’s more than enough of that. But do you have any skills? You look so young.”

“I can protect myself at least.”

“You won’t die?”

“Don’t worry.”

“Well, I wasn’t planning to give you dangerous work anyway. Alright, if you insist…”

Perhaps they were severely short-handed, as the man started the procedures without saying much else.

The job the man arranged was as a porter for the merchant caravan.

This job wasn’t particularly dangerous and didn’t require mercenary qualifications. 

Above all, the fact that this caravan was heading to Larmen was good.

The man from the guild had thoughtfully arranged a suitable job.

“Hurry up, load faster! We need to reach Larmen before sundown!” 

The merchant shouted loudly, urging on the group of porters.

There were twenty wagons setting out for trade, with 30 guards protecting them. Compared to only five porters, the number of guards was very high.

Most of them were mercenaries, but there were also some civilians like hunters or lumberjacks who were known for their strength.

They were chatting idly with an air of arrogance.

The merchant, seemingly annoyed by their behavior, shouted, “If you have time to do that, help carry some luggage!”

“Why should we? Our job is to protect you, not move luggage.”

And they all burst out laughing together.

From their perspective, there was no rush. If the schedule was delayed, they could even receive additional compensation.

Reading their intentions, the merchant let out an exasperated sigh.

“Haven’t you heard that bandits have been rampant near Larmen recently? If night falls while we’re on the road, they might attack us!”

“We don’t care if bandits come at us. Isn’t that why you hired this many people?”

“Well, that’s…”

“Instead of nagging us, why don’t you push those porters to load faster?”

“Tch.”

The merchant shook his head and turned his gaze towards us.

I thought we might get scolded, but that wasn’t the case.

“Everyone, take it slow and be careful not to get hurt. There’s no point in rushing if they won’t help.”

With that, the merchant began to help move the luggage himself.

I found myself intrigued by this. He seemed like a good person, and above all, being a merchant, I thought he might know information about various places.

When I approached him, he gave a slight smile.

“Stories from other places? Well, I’m a native of Ramdamen. I’ve only been working with this caravan for a year.”

The man, who introduced himself as Morik, seemed eager for conversation and started sharing his life story as I nodded along.

“When I was young, I admired adventurers and tried to learn magic and martial arts… But if you don’t have talent, it’s all useless. I gave up martial arts because I was scared of fighting, and I abandoned magic because I just couldn’t improve. By then, I was getting older… This was the only job I could do.”

Apparently, there were countless people like him.

“Well, working as a merchant isn’t bad, but you do tend to get looked down upon.”

In this world, where monsters prevail, there was a unique prejudice that individual strength was the top priority.

‘It’s the opposite of our world.’

In our world, centered around the military, individual strength wasn’t such an important indicator. There wasn’t much one could do alone, no matter how strong.

Generals were more respected than armed individuals, and merchants who supported the state and military also had considerable influence.

In contrast, in this world, if you’re strong, you can gain a lot.

This is because if you subdue land occupied by monsters, you can claim that land as your own.

As a result, other strong individuals gather around the strong, naturally forming factions. The prime examples are the factions of the Salvation Alliance.

“Ah, if only I had talent in magic.”

“No need to be so pessimistic. In the end, money is what’s important. In that sense, being a merchant isn’t bad, right?”

“Well, I suppose that’s true.”

Morik looked at the darkening sky and scratched the back of his head.

“It’s already this late. Alright, everyone, let’s start preparing for camp!”

The guards began setting up tents. There was no sign of concern on their faces.

They didn’t think bandits would attack, and even if they did, they were confident they could fend them off.

***

Meanwhile, a group was watching the caravan intently.

There were only six of them, but about thirty more followers were keeping their distance.

“There are quite a few guards… Has their vigilance increased because of that beastman’s raid last time?”

“What should we do?”

“What do you mean ‘what should we do’? We have no choice but to do it. If we don’t act now, we’re finished!”

“Damn that beastman…!”

They were originally the leaders of the bandits operating in this area.

Boss Peller and Deputy Boss Talon.

They used to extort toll fees from merchants, scam villagers, and lend money at high interest rates.

They had been living as bandits while staying just below the threshold that would trigger a government crackdown.

However, the situation changed when a beastman recently joined their bandit group.

The beastman criticized their methods as lukewarm and started implementing more aggressive tactics. Many members were drawn to this boldness and sided with him, causing the bandit group to split into two factions.

In this situation, Boss Peller couldn’t just sit back. He needed to somehow achieve better results than his rival to win the power struggle.

This operation was part of that effort.

As the sun completely set, he gave the signal.

“Let’s go!”

The bandits rushed to attack the camping tents.

“W-What’s going on!?”

“It’s bandits! Everyone, prepare for battle!”

The guards hurriedly prepared for battle. However, they were clumsy.

Most of them were low-level mercenaries, and even those with combat experience had only hunted monsters, not killed people.

That’s why they couldn’t help but hesitate when the bandits attacked.

In contrast, the bandits moved without hesitation.

Moreover, Boss Peller’s skills were far superior to the mercenaries.

“Die!”

Crack! As Peller’s blunt weapon shattered the head of a mercenary at the front, the guards became agitated.

The civilians like hunters and lumberjacks who had joined for some extra money quickly lost their will to fight. Some mercenaries even fled, taking advantage of the darkness of night.

“Hahaha! Surrender if you don’t want to die! Then I’ll at least spare your lives!”

While Peller shouted confidently, he was inwardly anxious. He felt that if this dragged on, that beastman might show up.

‘I need to capture the merchant quickly and end this situation.’

Morik, who was urging on the mercenaries, seemed like a good target to him.

“Talon! Grab that guy!”

“Got it!”

Deputy Boss Talon rushed towards Morik.

He intended to knock Morik unconscious to end the situation, but that was the last thought he was able to have.

Thunk! A spear tip pierced through Talon’s head.

Ars looked down coldly at the collapsing man, then charged at the remaining bandits.

Swish! Thunk! With each swing of his weapon, one by one, the bandits’ lives were extinguished.

“W-What is he?!”

Peller couldn’t help but be shocked. Not just because of Ars’ skill, but because the level of ruthlessness was on a different scale.

Unlike the mercenaries who felt reluctant to kill people, Ars was slaughtering the bandits as if they were monsters.

Peller was certain. This guy must have killed countless people before.

Just like that beastman.

“Wait… Gah?!”

Ars, who had stabbed Peller’s knee, asked with cold eyes. “You’re the bandits operating in this area, right?”

“Ugh…!”

“So. Where is that notorious beastman?”

When Peller groaned without answering, Ars stabbed his other knee with the spear.

“Argh! I-I don’t know! He’s acting separately now!”

“What’s that beastman’s name?”

“That’s…”

Ars’ eyes grew colder, as if saying he’d kill Peller if he stalled any longer. Peller screamed out:

“Gaspar! He said his name was Gaspar!”

Another vassal discovered after Gunther.

Ars smiled, his lips curling up slightly.

Misunderstanding this as Ars enjoying the killing, Peller wet himself and passed out.

* * *

Finding Gaspar was a significant achievement.

Gaspar, being capable of independent action and skilled in scouting and information gathering, would surely be helpful in searching for the missing people.

I was about to go meet Gaspar right away, but Morik stopped me.

“Wait a moment!” He spoke, dumbfounded. “Who exactly are you?!”

“I’m a porter, aren’t I?”

“Does that make any sense?!”

I could guess what he wanted to say.

He was asking why I came as a porter instead of a guard.

On that point, I could only say it was because I found it troublesome. To join as a guard, I would have to prove my skills over several days.

It wasn’t so difficult that hunters or lumberjacks couldn’t pass, but it took time.

Even if I got the qualification that way, the difference in pay wasn’t significant, so I just worked as a porter.

“More importantly, Morik. I have other business to attend to. Would it be alright if I step away for a bit? I’ll be back by dawn.”

“No way!” Morik shouted angrily.

“What if others attack while you’re gone?”

“There are still other people here, aren’t there?”

“Those useless guys won’t be of any help at all!”

The mercenaries turned their gaze away with embarrassed expressions.

Morik spoke with an air of authority. “I’ll give you all the shares of the mercenaries who ran away. So stay with us until we reach Larmen.”

“Ah…”

If that’s the case, it’s a different story.

Now that I knew Gaspar was here, there was no need to rush. Or Gaspar’s group might come here.

I thought the latter possibility was higher.

According to the information, these bandits and Gaspar’s group were originally one gang.

If one side was severely beaten, they would take some kind of action.

This prediction turned out to be spot on.

While scouting the surroundings, I caught a bandit who came to spy.

“Ugh! Let me go!”

“Shh, be quiet if you don’t want to die.”

“Urk…!”

I decided to use this guy to contact Gaspar.

“Tell your boss this… Wade is waiting in Larmen.”

Reluctant to give my real name to this bandit, I decided to use Wade’s name.

After releasing him, the guy started running away frantically.

With this, the measures regarding Gaspar were complete.

‘Is luck on my side? No, this might not be just simple luck.’

I thought this couldn’t be a coincidence.

I suspected that Gaspar might have intentionally committed thefts to draw attention.

‘It’s entirely possible for Gaspar.’

He was using the bandit group to gather information while making himself notorious. So that others would come looking for him after hearing about his infamy.

Although the method was vicious, it was undeniably effective.

In that sense, I thought that the spear-wielding woman looking for a worthy opponent in Larmen might really be Eonia.

The thought of reuniting with Eo made me feel light-headed.

I tried to suppress that excitement as I prepared to sleep.


Hi guys, please check out the new novel I picked “I killed the Demon King. It was a mistake.


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The Extra Strategist’s Royal Road

The Extra Strategist’s Royal Road

Score 9.2
Status: Completed Type: Author: Released: 2022 Native Language: Korean
I ended up possessing Ars Elaine, a supporting character in the game. Struggling to prevent my death, I pave my way.

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