#066. The Old Man and Rockdeer (4)
—
The person who entered, guided by the bodyguards, was Skyle.
“Sir, I have something to discuss—”
Skyle, who was about to greet John Grid, suddenly shut his mouth when he spotted Ray and his group.
His expression gradually stiffened.
“You… already have guests.”
Immediately after parting ways with Ray’s group, Skyle had fallen into deep conflict.
.
.
.
*”Judging by the situation, they must be on their way to meet John, the client.”*
*”What if they let something slip? What if they mention that the mercenary group was hunting instead of carrying out the request?”*
*”Revealing the details of the request itself could be a problem.”*
Most importantly, if things went wrong, his *grand plan* could be ruined.
After some deliberation, he turned the car around and, along with a few subordinates, sped toward Sector 48.
**Vrooooom!**
He pushed the speed to the limit, but since he had already started late, he couldn’t catch up to Ray’s group.
Arriving at the sector too late, he rushed straight to the hotel, praying that the ruthless wizard and his gang of con artists hadn’t yet met the client.
***
“You’ve met before, haven’t you? They came after hearing about you.”
It seemed his prayer had gone unanswered.
Skyle lowered his head deeply, his expression filled with genuine regret.
“I apologize. I inadvertently revealed details about the request. If I may explain the situation—”
“No need. If someone like you had reasons to do so, I’m sure they were justified.”
John waved his hand dismissively with a hearty laugh, signaling that it was fine.
Seeing that, Skyle felt a wave of relief.
*As expected, this foolish and naïve old man…*
A smile curled at the corner of his lips.
His effort in earning John’s trust through careful politeness from their very first meeting had paid off.
John not only entrusted him with the entire operation but also remained indifferent to any mistakes.
If John had protested, citing a breach of contract, things could have become quite troublesome.
Still, Skyle couldn’t relax just yet.
He had yet to determine what exactly this wizard and his group were after.
***
“It was a short time, but I enjoyed having someone to chat with. But I must admit, I’m curious about who these young gentlemen and ladies are…”
John glanced at Ray.
At that moment, everyone in the room turned to look at him.
A strange tension filled the air.
“…Mercenaries.”
“Hm.”
This time, John didn’t burst into laughter.
Instead, he narrowed his eyes, a cryptic smile forming on his face.
Skyle’s eyes widened.
*”Mercenaries?”*
He could accept the idea in itself—there were plenty of young people who started as mercenaries.
But the problem was that this particular mercenary was a *wizard.*
He had heard of a few mercenary groups that included wizards.
Like the *Hella Mercenary Corps.*
Or the *McCater Mercenary Corps.*
Both were several ranks above Skyle’s own group.
But he had never heard of a mercenary this young possessing such formidable magic.
*”If he belonged to a mercenary group I don’t know about, his skills should have already made him famous.”*
He recalled the image of a dozen fireballs the size of human heads forming in the air.
That level of magic was not inferior to any wizard he had seen.
If he had been active in the mercenary world, it was impossible for his name to remain unknown.
Only two possibilities remained.
Either he was lying about being a mercenary.
Or he was from a high-ranking sector Skyle wasn’t familiar with.
“Lying is a bad habit, you know.”
John stroked his chin as he spoke.
“It’s hard to believe that refined young gentlemen and ladies like yourselves could thrive in the mercenary world, don’t you think, Skyle?”
Skyle did not answer.
He simply sneered inwardly.
*Foolish old man. The person in front of you is a wizard.*
Meanwhile, Ray found himself intrigued by the situation.
*”When I walked through the streets and entered the hotel earlier, dressing well was to my advantage.”*
Now, the opposite was true.
If he had worn the same dusty clothes as Skyle, perhaps they wouldn’t have doubted him.
Of course, he wasn’t actually a mercenary.
He had simply anticipated encountering many people on his journey and had chosen “mercenary” as a convenient identity.
“Are you saying that someone dressed like this *can’t* be a mercenary?”
“It’s not impossible… But typically, mercenaries are armed and experienced—”
John abruptly stopped talking, his body flinching.
**Crackle!**
Sparks flickered throughout the room.
“…If you mean *weapons*, are you referring to something like this?”
“……!”
Everyone was stunned.
Their bodies froze.
Eerie blue electricity crackled in a tight formation, leaving no room for movement without risk of electrocution.
“A wizard? But I didn’t even sense mana moving—how is this possible?”
One of the younger bodyguards muttered, his gaze fixed on Ray.
A glowing circle hovered on his chest.
He, too, was a wizard.
His *circle*, had sharpened into focus as he gathered mana in response to the situation.
Yet, faced with the current display, he could do nothing but stare.
“But… but I can’t sense a circle… Just *who* are you?”
Ray could sense the young bodyguard’s circle.
But the reverse was not true.
Because Ray hadn’t used a *single drop* of his own circle’s mana.
Instead, he had subtly manipulated the ambient mana in the air, precisely adjusting its alignment.
That was the result they were seeing now.
*A wizard…*
An *monocled-wearing* wizard.
Veronica, Graham, Walter.
He had now encountered a fifth wizard.
*”I should talk to him later if I get the chance.”*
There was always the possibility of gathering information about the *Rainbow* or the *City of Wizards.*
For now, Ray turned back to John to settle the situation.
“This should be proof enough that I have a weapon fit for a mercenary, right?”
***
As the sparks faded,
“Phew…”
“Sigh…”
Everyone wiped cold sweat from their brows, exhaling in relief.
No one in the room was unaware that, moments ago, their very lives had been in the hands of a single boy.
Particularly the young bodyguard—his expression was filled with helplessness and defeat.
“…So, you want to assist with the request?”
“That’s right.”
Ray kept his explanation simple.
He couldn’t go into details, but the blue Rockdeer might be connected to something he was searching for.
So, if possible, he wanted to join the mercenaries in their search efforts.
“…Hmm.”
John’s gaze toward Ray had completely changed.
He understood how powerful a wizard could be.
*”And he seems to have far surpassed Michael’s level.”*
He wasn’t sure if Ray was *really* a mercenary, but it was clear they had a shared goal.
John turned to Skyle.
Since Skyle was in charge of the search operation,
“You want to join the mission?”
Skyle twitched his lips.
Outwardly, he wore a smile.
But inside, he was rapidly calculating, uncomfortable with the situation.
He couldn’t say he held any goodwill toward Ray’s group.
After all, two of his men had been injured, and he had lost a significant amount of money to vehicle repair costs.
For someone as greedy as Skyle, that was no different from having his flesh torn away.
But if his opponent was a mage affiliated with a mercenary group from an upper sector—
‘I could gain something from building a connection. Enough that 250,000 shillings would seem like nothing.’
Skyle’s mercenary group had been unable to expand beyond Sector 40 due to territorial disputes.
But with the backing of an established mercenary group, breaking through wouldn’t be difficult.
First, he had to secure them.
Once he confirmed their identity, he could find a way to use them to his advantage.
Hiding his excitement, Skyle put on a respectful expression and said,
“Of course, you’re welcome to join. In fact, we were struggling to track the Rockdeers because of the many dangerous beasts along their migration route. If you could assist us, Mage, it would be a tremendous help.”
—
On their way out of the hotel,
Philip asked worriedly,
“Are you sure about this? Isn’t it dangerous?”
He was asking if it was really wise to cooperate with someone who clearly held a grudge.
Veronica also looked at Ray with concern, agreeing with Philip’s unease.
“It’s fine. This way, we’ll save much more time than if I went into the wilderness alone.”
Ray’s answer was firm, without hesitation.
To him, the world was divided into two kinds of people: predators and prey.
The hunters.
The hunted.
‘Skyle isn’t a hunter.’
Ray recalled the countless flickers of emotion Skyle had shown when they confronted each other.
Fear. Terror. Shock.
Perhaps even emotions Skyle himself hadn’t fully realized.
Ray knew exactly how to exploit those vulnerabilities, how to sink his teeth into both body and mind.
That was how he had lived his whole life.
Preying on those who merely pretended to be predators.
‘He did show hostility toward me.’
That was natural, given how unpleasant their previous encounter had been.
But Skyle was small enough to be silenced by force, so it wasn’t a real concern.
…If anything, his real hostility was directed toward their client, John.
‘It was intense, almost murderous.’
The stranger part was that John seemed to harbor a similar level of animosity toward Skyle.
“Philip, what do you think of the relationship between Skyle and John?”
“Huh? Hmm… Well, John seemed to trust Skyle a lot.”
“Veronica, what about you?”
“I got the same impression. That man, John… He didn’t even seem to know his employee was abandoning the mission to go hunting instead.”
There was only one conclusion.
Despite appearances, both of them were hiding completely different thoughts beneath the surface.
“But John seemed like such a good person. He’s spent his whole life trying to make the world a better place.”
Veronica had a similar goal—finding a cure for Magia Sickness to create a better world.
So she was deeply moved by the old man’s story.
Watching the emotions swirling within her, Ray answered inwardly.
*We’ll see.*
As they passed the hotel entrance, heading back to their lodging—
“Hold it right there.”
A group blocked their way.
It was the leaders of the five gangs who had gathered after Ray provoked them earlier.
“T-That’s him! He’s the one who took the money pouch… Hiiik!”
The underlings Ray had beaten up were clinging to their bosses, but the moment they met Ray’s eyes, they quickly shrank back behind them.
The gang leaders glared at Ray with hostile expressions.
“You expect me to believe this crap? That a little brat like him took down that many people?”
“And not just one group, but several?”
“Whatever. Just show us the money. That’s what I came for.”
Their emotions were thick with suspicion and wariness.
Ray immediately pulled out the pouch.
*Jingle—!*
He flicked a high-value coin into the air.
The conversation halted as the boys’ eyes followed the coin’s rise and fall.
*Snap!*
Ray caught the coin and put it back into the pouch.
Then, he deliberately shook the pouch to make more noise.
*Clink! Clink!*
Their previous emotions vanished.
In their place, golden greed surged.
“Do you know how much is in here?”
“W-What? How much?”
“You want to know?”
“Of course we do!”
“That sound—just how much money is in there?”
The boys gulped hard.
“One million shillings.”
“O-One… One million… What?!”
“I-I didn’t hear that wrong, did I?”
Their golden greed swelled to its limit.
Ray suddenly found himself curious.
What was money, really?
What was it about money that made people reveal such naked desires?
‘…In the end, isn’t it just a means to an end?’
He had been using money to manipulate people’s actions for some time, yet he had never truly analyzed the mechanics of desire itself.
“……”
It wasn’t a question he could answer with a quick thought.
Ray opened his mouth.
Facing the boys who looked like they might leap at him any second—
“Follow me. If you want this.”
