Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Everything had pros and cons. After the challenge match, there were no mercenary groups in the Paphield region who dared to question whether Starlight had the qualifications to represent them, which was a good thing. However, Rhode was worried that such a huge victory would make them felt complacent and think that the Midsummer Festival competition was this friendly and that they would automatically win once the opponent forfeited. After the confrontation, it also proved his worry to be right. Even a careful person like Lize also began to think that she wanted to fight perfectly. Fight perfectly? She didn’t even know whether she could win or not, but she was already aiming for perfection?
That’s why when they won, Rhode didn’t praise them. Instead, he poured cold water on them in order to prevent them from losing their head. He gave Old Walker a very special mission, which was to send some reliable people into the crowd to incite a chaos and belittle his subordinates.
In fact, a large part of the boos and insults in the crowds were the result of their incitement.
“I say, kid… Is it really okay to do this?”
Sitting at the table, Old Walker rubbed his beard and asked uneasily. When Rhode assigned him this mission, he understood the reason behind this action. After all, as a former genius, he was also very familiar with the atmosphere of the Midsummer Festival. Because of this, Old Walker also understood that, compared with the Midsummer Festival, this warm-up match, regardless of the atmosphere, was completely different. It was only appropriate to cool them down. Old Walker was also worried as he had seen many talented mercenaries unable to withstand such blows. Not to mention, the five of them had fought magnificently. Old Walker hoped that they could continue to fight that way and not fall into these obstacles.
Naturally, he understood what Rhode was saying, but people were just like this. When they got older, their heart would also soften. If Old Walker were 10 years younger, most likely he would be here laughing from and pondering what to do to speed up their improvement. However, since he was old already, he lacked the mindset he used to have. Instead, he was worried that doing so would make them felt bad…
“Of course they will feel bad about it. It’s natural for them to think so, old man.”
Rhode sat behind the desk while staring at the paper in his hand. He didn’t even lift his head to reply. Unlike Old Walker, he was able to grasp their mentality and character precisely. Marlene had good self-control, and it was certainly not her first time facing such situation, so Rhode didn’t need to worry about her. Although Lize was a little complacent earlier, she was very good at introspection and was now aware of her own mistakes. As long as she had the intention to correct them, then it wouldn’t be a problem. As for Anne, he even doubted whether booing even had any effect on her. From a certain point of view, this kind of character was enviable…
Joey and Randolf might have some problems, but it wasn’t a big problem because Joey and Randolf were both rookies, and one of the good things about being a rookie was that their self-assessment was particularly accurate, or sometimes even lower than they actually were. Of course, if their self-assessment was too low, it might bind their true strength and make them unable to unleash 100% or even 200% of their strength. But the advantage was that with this kind of mentality, they wouldn’t be furious if they were underestimated because they could accept their weaknesses and deficiencies very well.
That’s why even though Randolf was ridiculed for winning by relying on expensive, powerful magic props, he still didn’t try to prove anything because he knew that it would not be easy to win without using the alchemy and weapons provided by Lapis.
“But don’t worry, we still need your help in this fight.”
“What?”
Hearing Rhode’s answer, Old Walker was surprised. He widened his eyes and even his ears to make sure he didn’t hear wrong. Did he hear it wrong? But… it shouldn’t be. Then what did he mean? What was he trying to say? Rhode didn’t wait until Old Walker asked for an explanation and continued.
“I think you know very well just how strong the four top mercenaries guilds in the Midsummer Festival are.”
Hearing Rhode’s words, Old Walker’s expression turned serious. Of course, he knew just how strong they were. They had been maintaining their position for more than ten years already. They were both powerful and influential in the four regions. Not to mention, as a guild, they had political and economic support that mercenary groups would never have. Although the Mercenary Association had rules for the demotion of a mercenary guild, it was a pity that no mercenary guild really ‘enjoyed’ this treatment except for Hiller’s Burning Blade. A mercenary guild’s fighting standards completely exceeded the standard of a common mercenary group.
Although they were under the provisions of the Mercenary Association, there were countermeasures. Mercenary guilds were not a fools; there was no way for them to directly eradicate mercenary groups that might turn into their obstacles. But it didn’t prevent them from doing things secretly. In fact, each mercenary guild would sent one or two spies into a mercenary group. Their mission was very simple: to attack those who might threaten their seat and firmly pin them down. Not only that, they also had to prevent a hostile guild who might want to hinder them. From this point, it could be seen that the four major mercenary guilds were familiar with how to deal with mercenary groups. In their eyes, the newcomer Starlight was no different than a little chick.
Not to mention, Rhode was also very clear that the four major mercenaries guilds were competing for the guild quota in Paphield in order to strengthen themselves and the political forces behind them. Based on their experiences, even if Rhode proved it, they still wouldn’t believe that Rhode was actually on their side. That’s why they would definitely try to destroy Starlight and make them lose early matches. No matter who won, at least they could use people they trusted to take over the situation.
That’s why Rhode was very clear that in this Midsummer Festival, they would encounter many problems.
The Reformist Party naturally was eyeing on them, but the King Party also would not necessarily support them because he didn’t have any strength or influence yet and his reputation was still considered low. So even if the King Party knew what he had done, they still wouldn’t be so lenient. At most, they wouldn’t stab him with a knife and laugh at him, but rather stab him and ask whether he wanted to die directly. Wasn’t the result the same?!
Rhode certainly didn’t want his mercenary group to become chicken stew for the four guilds, but he also understood that things were not going to work out like this.
“I need your help, old man.”
Rhode finally lifted his head.
“Our influence and resources aren’t a match for those mercenary guilds, and they will certainly not let us succeed. That’s why I need you and your men’s help.”
“No problem, kid, but… How should I help you?
Old Walker was puzzled. He was old, and his skills weren’t as good as before. Even his younger self wouldn’t have been an opponent worthy of those mercenary guild members. They had more people than him and more strength. How would he be able to Rhode?
“Very simple.”
Hearing Old Walker’s question, Rhode did not hesitate and answered. It seemed like he had long decided on something.
“It’s something only you can do, Old Man, and I believe if you do exactly as I say, then this time, we’ll definitely win.”
For now, Rhode would be putting all the trouble regarding mercenary guilds aside because he had more important things to deal with.
Even though the warm-up match situation had been under his control from beginning to end, he was still human and couldn’t predict everything that happened. That’s why when the match ended, he realized that he had predicted one thing incorrectly: the opinion of other mercenaries.
In fact, the day after the match had ended, there were a lot of mercenaries who came to the Starlight stronghold to register for a place in their group. Their were only a few dozens of people in the beginning, but the number was gradually increasing. Now. nearly 300 mercenaries expressed the desire to join Starlight. Most of them were idle mercenaries, but there were also marginal figures from other mercenary groups, and even some of the mercenaries who had been defeated by Starlight during the previous match.
It was not hard to understand why they did so. They just wanted to be more successful. Because of this warm-up match, news that Starlight would be representing Paphield in the Midsummer Festival had spread. Moreover, they were going to participate in the mercenary guild competition. This immediately shook everyone’s hearts because they knew that the Midsummer Festival competition couldn’t be entered easily.
If they joined Starlight, they might be able to showcase their strength in the Midsummer Festival.
Of course, there were also a lot of mercenaries who thought about the long-term benefit. Since this matter had spread around and was no longer kept as an absolute secret by the Mercenary Association, naturally, they also had been informed that Starlight would be directly promoted to a mercenary guild if their performance was good enough. This was an equally great benefit for them. The reason many people were willing to join Burning Blade although it had been demoted was because Burning Blade had the chance to become a mercenary guild again. Now, they saw that Starlight had also gotten this chance; of course, all of them immediately came here like a swarm of flies fighting over meat.
But not everyone thought so. In addition to the two reasons above, they also had other goals. They hoped that by joining Starlight, they would be able to get advice from Rhode. Just look at Joey and Randolf. Everyone knew what they were capable of before they joined Starlight. In just a few months, they were actually able to beat five people at once. This was certainly because of Rhode’s help. Since rookies could achieve such a success, then they should also be able to, right?
As the leader of Mark White mercenary group had expected, no one wanted a short-sighted mercenary group leader. Naturally, everyone would flock over a mercenary leader who could polish a rock into a gem. Ever since Rhode came to Deep Stone City, everyone saw what had he done; that’s why no one thought that he relied on luck to win. Everyone knew that he was strong and had a good vision. Those two rookies could even be trained into such a strong elite, which meant that he was also very good in this aspect.
Everyone wanted to meet a boss who had a good eye towards people.
And that’s why Rhode was taken by surprise.
Currently, there were more than 300 people who signed up to join Starlight. The number had almost reached 400 and breaking through 500 would not be a problem. This matter made Starlight members feel nervous and proud because it was a good opportunity for them. Who didn’t wish to have a lot members? Not to mention, if these people really joined them, then their numbers would almost catch up to a mercenary guild’s!
Many people suggested for Rhode to recruit them, but Rhode was still unmoved. He knew what they were thinking about and knew that it was indeed a good opportunity to increase their strength. However, he still didn’t care. Because as a small mercenary group, Starlight couldn’t afford to support so many people. Why did a mercenary guild seek economic and political support? Wasn’t it because they wanted to keep going? There were hundreds of people in a guild; it meant they needed a lot of money. The money that they got just by clearing quests was far from enough. Moreover, being an adventurer was an unstable job, and there might also be accidents. One could earn 300 gold coins in a mission; if the situation didn’t go as planned, they might even lose 500 gold coins. If there was no solid back up, it would be difficult to maintain a mercenary guild. If he really hired 300 people, then he would go bankrupt in a few months!
That’s why Rhode didn’t care at all. He planned to roast all of them outside. They would go away once they lost their patience. That’s why Rhode didn’t really take it seriously. No matter how they surrounded Starlight’s stronghold, he would still not have the slightest reaction.
But after he heard from Gillian that Christie was scared because there were so many people, which made her afraid to go out for a walk, Rhode immediately changed his mind. His method was also very simple. Facing those mercenaries, Rhode gave Marlene, Lize, Old Walker, Shauna, and Kavos a few pieces of paper. There were several locations near the Deep Stone City written in that paper. He ordered Marlene and others to take these guys there, and then conduct a test. The first ten mercenaries who were able to follow the request on the note would be eligible to join Starlight.
After solving this problem, Rhode finally had the free time to start sorting out the loot he collected from the warm-up match.
