Chapter 283: Not Just a Reckless Fighter

After hearing Fred’s story, everyone clicks their tongues in amazement.

Henwell puts away his smile and grows serious. “Fred isn’t a reckless fighter. Don’t get that wrong. He’s not as foolish as he seems on the surface, nor is he a blunt, rough man. On the contrary, he’s quite cunning. Over the past fifteen years, his personal strength has improved tremendously.”

”Give him another ten years, and he might break through to become an Iron Knight. When he says he was a rising star of the previous generation, that’s no lie. A sixty-year-old Iron Knight isn’t just an average sixty-year-old—physically and mentally, he’s still at his peak.”

“Fifteen years ago, Tusyat City was a mess. Officially, the kingdom assigned a lord to govern, but in reality, many affairs had to be negotiated with those super mercenary captains who commanded thousands of soldiers. Since Fred arrived, not only did he keep those mercenary captains in check, but he personally wiped out two of their groups.”

Everyone nods seriously, taking mental notes. Anyone who’s survived so much clearly isn’t a simple character.

If Fred were just a reckless fool, he would have died long ago in the chaos of the Lumir Duchy.

Henwell continues, “Fred is a fierce warrior forged on the battlefield. His military skills aren’t just theoretical. Right now, he commands thousands of elite troops. Those are his personal guard, not the city’s defense forces. The army he can directly control exceeds thirteen thousand soldiers, comparable to any regular regiment stationed nearby.”

“Besides, the six super mercenary groups here, along with other smaller mercenary bands, are all somewhat under his influence. If he wanted to, mobilizing tens of thousands of troops for battle wouldn’t be difficult.”

“Tusyat City is unique. Within a two-hundred-kilometer radius, four regular Ika kingdom regiments are stationed, along with two cavalry regiments each exceeding five thousand troops. Add in Tusyat City’s forces and those of surrounding lords, and the military presence here is dense, almost rivaling the troop concentration near the capital.”

“So everyone needs to be cautious. As long as Fred doesn’t cause trouble for us, we just focus on our own affairs.”

Hearing this, everyone finally realizes that the fierce-looking lord is actually a powerful figure commanding heavy forces.

Henwell points outside and says, “Also, don’t be fooled by his act of playing poor. Although he’s not as good at making money as I am, he’s definitely not broke.”

”This guy launched a very forward-thinking policy—he set up a Mercenary Task Center. Every mercenary group wanting to take on contracts here has to get a credibility license issued by Tusyat City.”

“To get that license, each mercenary group has to put up a large sum of gold as collateral at the Task Center. The amount depends on the size of the group. The more you stake, the higher your credibility rating on the license.”

“Those six super mercenary groups each pledge a hefty amount, ranging from hundreds of thousands to over a million gold coins.”

When Henwell first heard about this, he thought, “Is this guy some kind of ‘earth’ man or what? Setting up something like this is a clever way to make money.”

Henwell also strongly approves of what Fred does next.

At first, people just thought Fred was running a disguised protection racket. But then, when a mercenary group botched a job and the client came to demand compensation without success, he decided to give the Task Center a try and asked the lord to mediate.

After hearing both sides, Fred ruled the mercenary group was at fault and directly refunded the client’s entire commission from the group’s pledged deposit—plus a little extra compensation.

As more incidents like this happened, everyone realized Fred genuinely wanted to build a credibility system for mercenaries.

With a good reputation, more and more people began to seek out licensed mercenary groups through the Task Center.

Over the years, these offices spread across cities throughout the Ika Kingdom, providing a safety net for registered mercenary groups.

The kingdom’s top officials also strongly support this plan to stabilize public order and rein in these hot-headed mercenaries.

Now, after every mercenary group receives a contract, Fred takes a 20% commission.

But he doesn’t just take it for nothing, the licenses he issues help mercenaries avoid trouble with the kingdom’s authorities.

Plus, half of the commission he collects goes into a fund to cover mercenary personnel losses.

If a mercenary group suffers major losses due to uncontrollable circumstances, they can claim from this fund as compensation.

Though the amount isn’t huge, it shows a real commitment.

As for the Mercenary Task Center itself, Fred doesn’t hold all the power.

From staff to the task evaluation committee, representatives from the major mercenary groups participate.

This ensures the mercenary groups’ interests are protected and decisions aren’t just based on the clients’ side.

This system has earned Fred considerable prestige within the mercenary industry.

Besides that, Fred is also the biggest moneylender in the entire Western Regions of the Ika Kingdom.

All those deposits? Fred doesn’t let them sit idle. He loans them out at an annual interest rate of no more than 20%. Considering this is a feudal era, that rate isn’t high at all.

And Fred never worries about anyone daring to default on their debts.

Tusyat City isn’t just a hub for mercenary business; it’s also the center of the slave trade in the Western Regions of the Ika Kingdom.

Over more than a decade of operation, Fred has amassed a vast fortune, which is one of the reasons he’s called the Mercenary Lord.

Thanks to the battle before entering the city and Fred’s presence afterward, Henwell and his group manage to rest peacefully here for three days.

On the night before they leave, Fred finds Henwell.

Seeing Fred scaling the wall late at night, Henwell waves his men off, signaling them to go back to sleep.

The two meet on the rooftop, and Fred sizes Henwell up. “Famous names often hide secrets, huh?”

“Oh? The lord thinks my reputation doesn’t match my strength?”

Fred shakes his head. “Not at all! I’m curious. Has no one realized you’re already an Iron Knight?”

Henwell raises an eyebrow. “Oh? The lord is so sure?”

Fred, casually draped in a coat, points to the scars on his body. “You and I both have fought through mountains of corpses and seas of blood. We have a special sense for enemies. During our earlier standoff, I kept wondering: if you were a Grand Knight, I’d feel a serious threat. But no matter how much I provoked you, I never sensed that threat.”

“Either you’re not a Grand Knight but just a Battle Knight, or you simply weren’t angered by me. But I really wanted to kill you then. I think you sensed that too. After all, killing you would’ve meant I could return home to my family.”

“So, I thought about it for a long time after returning, and I came to one conclusion: for so many people to fear you and want you dead, you have to be above a Battle Knight.”

“There’s only one possibility—you’re neither a Battle Knight nor a Grand Knight, but an Iron Knight!”