Chapter 46

As I neared the estate, I pulled back my qi and slowed down. A few people’s eyes lingered on me, but I ignored them and walked on.

Ahead, clustered around the estate’s walls, were hundreds of people. Most didn’t even give off a flicker of mana. Fifty gold was enough to draw in anyone, no matter if it meant their death against ten minotaurs.

The sun was already sinking, painting the sky in orange hues. I lifted my head to take it in once, then turned to the short man pushing against the crowd beside me.

“Where’s registration?”

“At… the front gate. Inside the estate,” he grunted, not even looking my way. He just shoved forward, desperate to inch closer.

Behind me, it was almost empty. I must have been late, since most had already pressed into the crowd. With my height, I only needed to lift my chin to see over the throng. Dozens of guards had formed a solid line to hold people back.

The man beside me strained to move up. His body, though, had no mana at all. The notice had been clear: only those of Paladin level or higher could apply. He either hadn’t read it or didn’t care. When he found out, he’d either rage or collapse in despair.

I sighed inwardly. How would they manage all this chaos? Ahead, four long tables were set up, each staffed with one seated scribe and four guards. Five per table. Almost all of the recruits would end up being mercenaries.

“Those at Paladin level, move to the left! Those at Sword Expert level, move to the right! Anyone else, leave immediately. Refuse, and you’ll be treated as defying the mayor’s orders—and dealt with accordingly!”

The booming voice carried cleanly across the crowd, likely amplified by magic. They hadn’t even bothered to mention Sword Masters—clearly they didn’t expect any to show.

I started toward the right when another voice followed.

“Any mages may enter directly through the gate with magic and will be registered immediately!”

Mages too? The notice hadn’t mentioned that. In a crowd this dense, the only possible way was teleportation magic. Even the simplest—Blink—required a 4th-class mage. Would there really be one here?

I considered casting Search Mana to check, but before I could, a sudden ripple of power spread through the air. That was no doubt the surge from a 4th-class spell. So there was at least one present.

No more ripples followed. Just one, then. It was interesting, but little more.

If the lines didn’t move fast enough, I could always use magic myself to enter. For now, I moved into the Sword Expert line on the right. Around me, some people hesitated, clearly debating whether to stay or flee.

“Anyone not at Paladin level or higher, leave now! If you remain, you will be treated as disobeying the mayor’s orders!”

The voice came again, harsher. This time, the hesitant ones broke. People shuffled out quickly, fear etched on their faces.

When the crowd thinned, fewer than a hundred remained.

“Form lines for inspection!”

Inspection? So they planned to test us directly.

I glanced to the left. Their line had swelled far larger than mine—maybe seventy people. But as I examined their auras, more than fifty weren’t even Paladins.

What desperation drove them to this? Was money really that vital to survival?

I turned back forward, lost in thought, when someone’s voice suddenly rang out.

“P-please spare me! I was wrong!”

The scream drew every eye. A man had collapsed to his knees, bowing frantically. He must have been caught during the inspection.

The examiner seated at the table raised his hand, and at once, a guard stepped forward, club in hand.

Thud!

“Gaaaahhh!”

The strike landed so hard the sound cracked even where I stood. The man’s scream followed almost at the same instant, raw with pain.

I shifted my gaze to the line meant for Paladins. Several of those waiting there had their auras shaking violently. Their composure was cracking.

Then one man broke and bolted. The sight set off others—around ten dashed away together. Still, the line hardly thinned at all.

“If you don’t leave now, this is what happens.”

The examiner spoke again, and raised his hand once more. Another guard struck, this time a man who had been fumbling at his back as if trying to hide.

Thud!

“Ghhhaaahh!!”

I turned my head left. So many of them radiated unease, yet none moved. Why? They’d all be found out anyway.

Thud!

“Gaaaahhh!!!”

Another blow. A few finally slipped away into the crowd. One man trudged off with slumped shoulders, looking as if the life had already gone out of him.

Thud!

“Uuugh…”

The fourth strike left the victim sprawled, his cries barely audible now. Four times was all it took. More than half the so-called Paladins had fled, and even in my own line, over half were gone.

By now, twilight had fallen. The air grew dim, shadows crawling over the crowd.

Yet still too many clung on. Money could do that—fifty gold was enough to smother reason, enough to drive people past sanity.

My thoughts broke when I realized how much the line ahead of me had cleared. I stepped forward into the space.

But why drag this out like this? Wouldn’t it be faster to test each one cleanly? It seemed they hoped a few bloody examples would drive the rest off. From where I stood, though, fifty gold was proving stronger than fear.

This whole method only wasted time. Even a Sword Expert who had been ahead of me muttered bitterly and gave up, walking away in frustration. Whoever had planned this process lacked efficiency.

The man lying on the ground was already bleeding, dark stains spreading across his back.

…And then, a familiar sound sliced through the air.

The cold scrape of steel leaving a scabbard. Anyone with ears would feel the chill. For the man face-down before them, it must have been pure terror.

A guard drew his sword. Not to kill, most likely—just to frighten the rest into leaving.

“P-please… please, spare me!”

The man sprawled on the ground must have heard the hiss of steel leaving its sheath, because he screamed for his life. He barely had the strength to speak—yet before death, people always found some hidden reserve.

“L-let’s get out of here!”

Someone shouted, and panic rippled through the crowd. All at once, people surged back the way they’d come, scrambling over each other to escape. Before death—or even the hint of it—they were powerless.

No matter how I looked at it, this method of filtering people was far from efficient. In my line, most had already fled; only five of us remained, myself included.

I turned my head toward the Paladin line. Only around thirty were left.

So then… the quota was thirty mercenaries, with one mage already taken in. Did that mean five fewer spots on the Paladin side? Or six?

“Please prove that you are Sword Expert level.”

The thought broke off at the sound of a clipped, disinterested voice. The examiner sat at the table ahead, his massive nose jutting out like a fist. It looked as though it would be a nuisance to carry around.

That was when I realized I hadn’t drawn my sword from subspace. Should I? No—there were other ways to prove myself. The examiner’s eyes pressed me for an answer. I was young, after all. To him, probably untested.

Relax, and watch. I’ll show you something you won’t forget.

I raised my right hand, curling it into a fist, then extended only my forefinger. The examiner’s expression said, What’s this kid doing?

I focused my qi into the finger. Then, meeting his eyes, I drove it straight down into the wooden table.

His doubtful look shattered into shock.

The guards flanking him reacted the same, eyes wide, throats bobbing.

See? I told you it would be impressive.

When I looked down, my finger was sunk clean through the table. I pulled it free smoothly and leveled my gaze back at the examiner.

“H-how did you do that? Was it magic?”

Magic? He had no idea.

“Just a simple technique. Is that proof enough?”

The man fumbled with his paperwork, scrawling furiously before answering in an excited voice. “O-of course! You may enter at once. What are you standing around for? Show him in!”

One of the guards blinked rapidly, startled out of staring at the hole I’d left. Called back to himself by the examiner’s words, he stepped forward stiffly.

“Ah, yes! Please, follow me.”

I was the last in line—no one stood behind me. That meant the Sword Expert examination was over. So there were five of us in total?

As I followed the guard, he glanced back. Our eyes met, and he flinched, snapping his head forward again.

Did I frighten him? Or was it something else?

I tilted my head back, curious. Above, a green half-moon hung in the sky, casting the world in a pale emerald glow.

Full moon, half-moon—it didn’t matter. The green light never changed.

Unchanging, no matter the circumstance?

What was that supposed to mean? Something stirred in me, like the brush of insight. Was this tied to enlightenment? Or was it… nothing at all?