Forced Recruitment

The knight's squire, who had led the caravan into the city, somehow found himself standing in front of Jinn. Though he looked young, his tone was seasoned.

"Are you mercenaries?" he asked.

Without a second thought, Jinn nodded.

"You war hounds have found yourselves a new job," the squire sneered with a contemptuous smile. "The baron wants to hire you."

"What?" Jinn was taken aback.

"Esteemed sir!" the caravan boss quickly interjected, "These two are still under contract with the caravan. We can't possibly accept..."

"Merchant! This is a notice, not a negotiation!" the squire cut him off sharply, his face turning sour.

"You have twenty minutes to pack your things and then follow me," he declared.

Norn, noticing the squire's hand already on his sword hilt, tugged at Jinn, who still wanted to say something.

After settling accounts with the boss and grabbing their meager belongings, Norn, Anna, and Jinn, along with the five mercenaries previously hired by the caravan, followed the squire step by step along the jagged road.

Back outside the city, the squire stood outside a large tent, surrounded by a motley crew of mercenaries. He wiped his hands discreetly, suppressing his irritation, and shouted, "Wolf! The men you wanted are here!"

After a long while, a middle-aged man, reeking of alcohol, stumbled out of the tent. With his disheveled sandy hair, dirty olive-green vest, and brown breeches, his hairy but muscular body was hard to miss.

Wolf belched, then casually scanned the group, finally settling his gaze on Jinn, Norn, and Anna.

Looking at the scrawny Jinn, the youthful Norn, and the darkened Anna, Wolf shook his head.

"This is a mercenary band, not a shelter. Don't send kids my way."

"We lost so many in the last battle! Take 'em or leave 'em!"

With that, the squire turned and left, leaving Norn and the others to stand there awkwardly.

Wolf sighed and ordered his men to take the other mercenaries, but singled out Norn and the others. He stepped forward, took a big swig of beer, and mumbled, "Any combat experience?"

"Yep!" Jinn nodded and briefly recounted his previous battles.

"Oh?" Wolf was surprised. He had thought Jinn was just a greenhorn who had stolen his family's gear, but it turned out he had seen real action.

"Bill! Give 'em a try!"

A burly man silently stepped forward, tossed a training spear wrapped in cloth, and grabbed a wooden sword and shield for himself.

At that moment, dozens of mercenaries, seeing the commotion, quickly formed a circle around them, watching with keen interest.

Bill casually stood in the middle of the open space, nodding his head to signal Jinn to attack.

"Go for it, Jinn! Our treatment depends on you," Norn shouted, pushing Jinn forward.

Jinn, gripping the heavy training spear, cautiously raised it. Despite Bill's seemingly nonchalant stance, Jinn's instincts told him his opponent was no pushover.

Following Norn's teachings, Jinn slightly bent his knees, rested the spear's tail on his waist, and circled the spearhead irregularly in the air. Seeing this, Bill became a bit more serious, raising his shield horizontally.

Bored by the two men's cautious probing, the mercenaries around them started to jeer.

"Bill, are you even trying? It's just a kid!"

Hearing the taunts, Bill seemed to grow impatient, his shield shaking more and more.

"Perfect chance!"

Jinn spotted an opening, stepped forward, and thrust the spear toward the gap in Bill's chest. But it was all part of Bill's plan, the seasoned mercenary.

Bill's right foot swiftly retreated, and his shield swung to the right, knocking the spear aside.

"Wait, something's off!"

Feeling the lightness in his hands, Bill frowned slightly, but he quickly closed the distance, aiming to get within the spear's ineffective range.

"Trap!" Ever since dealing with the bandit leader, Jinn had this uncanny sense.

Seeing Bill's rapid advance, Jinn quickly retracted the probing spear and took a big step back. The distance between them had shortened, but the spear was still within striking range.

Though Bill's shield covered most of his body, his head and feet were inevitably exposed.

Jinn swiftly raised his right hand, lifting the rear of the spear high. Seeing this, Bill instinctively raised his shield to protect his face.

As Bill's vision was blocked by the shield, Jinn quickly pressed down with his left hand, shifting the spearhead from targeting the head to aiming for Bill's foot.

"Snap!"

At the last possible moment, Bill's experience saved him. While raising his shield, his wooden sword swung in a downward arc, successfully deflecting Jinn's spear.

Having blocked the perilous attack, Bill closed in on Jinn, raising his wooden sword.

A not-so-hard tap ended the brief duel. After securing his victory, Bill nodded at Wolf.

"Not bad, kid," Wolf's lips curled into an unappealing smile. Though Jinn was young, with some training, he could be a valuable asset.

As for the other two, Wolf's gaze lingered briefly on Anna, who was hiding behind Norn, looking frail. Despite her deliberately dirtied face, Wolf made his judgment—she was a girl who couldn't hurt a fly, not worth paying attention to.

It was Norn who gave Wolf pause.

Recalling the scene, Wolf's doubts grew. This kid was just too calm.

During the sparring, while the other mercenaries were shouting, Norn watched the whole thing calmly. When it ended, Jinn glanced at Norn, who had a slightly disdainful look. Jinn just sighed and smiled helplessly.

Moreover, though Norn's face was youthful, his build was far beyond his age. In this malnourished era, that said a lot.

Just as Bill was about to hand Norn the spear, Wolf stopped him.

"Wait!" Wolf stepped in front of Norn, his tall frame blocking the sunlight.

Though Norn put on a startled act, Wolf wasn't buying it.

"Kid! I don't care about your past. But now you're here, and you're going to war with me."

A pair of big, dirty hands clapped down on Norn's shoulders.

"So, welcome aboard!"