Chapter 3: Master of the Dark Sword I (2)
To be honest, it was strange to see such an old man trembling in excitement like that.
As he was a competent person who would become one of his limbs in the future, Bahamut decided to put a little more work into his words.
“But don’t worry. In the future, I, Bahamut, inheriting my father’s wishes, will surely grow this Beden Merchant Company into a large group that commands the continent. For this, I hope you will support me well in
the future as you have always done.”
“I’ll keep that in mind, Master. This Ashbel Custer, will give my life for you.”
‘Ashbel Custer.. So that was his name..’
While keeping the butler’s real name that he heard for the first time in his head, Bahamut stood up with a benevolent smile on his face.
“Well then, for that reason I have to go to a place right now, so please make the necessary preparations, Ashbel.”
“Yes, Master. Where do you plan to go?”
In response to Ashbel’s question, Bahamut began to show an expression of both seriousness and anticipation.
“There is an investment destination that I have been eyeing all this time. I’m going to go and check the situation myself. Would you like to accompany me too?”
“Ah yes! I will, Master!”
A smile filled with joy bloomed on Ashbel’s face, indicating that Bahamut's words from earlier had worked quite well.
*****
A medieval fantasy world where the concept of magic existed.
To talk about the exact time period, it would be the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of the modern era, as weapons such as firearms and cannons were gradually being commercialized, and trade with the East began in earnest due to the development of navigation.
It was also a time where most of the figures who were at the pinnacle of power appeared alongside with the nobles and merchants. That was the setting of the novel called the ‘Fallen Warriors’.
Similarly, Isaac, the main character of the novel, also often appeared in scenes that caused incidents that were intertwined with ‘major merchants’.
In such a world, Kim Jin possessed the body of Bahamut Fernandez, a merchant that dominated the commercially developed Schwyz region. Although it was a small country, that obviously made him a very rich man, but that didn’t put him in a position where he could just enjoy it.
‘The first death flag is gone. But the world of this novel is not so peaceful that I can just spend time in leisure…’
In the first place, the original novel, [Fallen Warrior], was a dark fantasy.
A novel in which the protagonist who had lost his humanity got involved in a series of disasters.
Most of the characters in it met terrible ends regardless of good or evil, and Bahamut, too, had a good chance of being swept away by the coming storm of disasters and falling to hell along with them if he let down his guard.
It was the same in his previous life, and especially in the current situation when he had became a rich man, he absolutely wouldn’t accept such a futile death.
‘Especially, the biggest crisis in the future will come in five years. As an extra, who has no main character buffs at all, I have to prepare thoroughly to survive in that hell. I need to gather such a great amount of funds and connections that no one would be able to ignore me, and above all, I need a military force that I can use directly.’
In this world, a fantasy world where magic existed, it was not impossible to have a nuclear bomb-level power when it came to individual capabilities.
In order to survive in such a chaotic world, having a practical power was an essential part.
However, even so, Bahamut had no intention of directly developing his own martial power like Isaac, the main character.
As he was Kim Jin, who had never stepped into the gym, he wanted to refrain from doing that kind of thing. And even if he trained, it was questionable how strong he could become even if he became stronger with the body of an extra character.
‘Because being strong is greatly influenced by talent. There is no need to waste time on things that may or may not be effective.’
With such thoughts, Bahamut was, at the moment, heading somewhere in a carriage.
In order to execute the best way to obtain the ‘power’ he wanted.
‘I don’t need something grand like an army right now. Wasn’t there a more cheap and efficient way here?’
Even if he had no military strength, there was a way to match that power.
In this world, there were no means of transportation such as trains or airplanes yet, and navigation skills were not even worth mentioning compared to modern times, which made large container ships quite unusable.
What’s more, there was no way to move funds with just your fingers, as he used to do with stocks using a mobile phone.
In order to trade and invest in such a world, the merchants had no choice but to use horses and wagons, or to move on foot, which naturally entailed great risks. If they met bandits or were attacked by beasts on the way, the trade and everything could go down the drain in an instant.
In that respect, merchants needed a small force to protect themselves, not a large scale force like the army. And, there was a profession in this world that could satisfy such a criteria.
It was the so-called ‘adventurer’, a type of combat mercenary profession.
They were small armed groups that made a living from fighting for money.
Although the cost of employment was a little high, it was quite natural for merchants to hire adventurers for safe trade.
In addition, unlike the real world where individual strength was limited, this was a fantasy world where one strong adventurer could wipe out thousands of bandits.
In other words, it could be said that hiring strong adventurer could be directly related to the success of a trade.
Various merchants sign contracts with competent adventurers, and use them to conduct stable trade to generate profits.
However, the cost of hiring famous adventurers belonging to the so-called high ranks could be quite expensive, so it was necessary to pay attention to the balance between the cost of hiring adventurers and the benefits of the trade.
In that respect, the best way was to find an adventurer whose name was not yet known but had great potential and bind them with a contract.
It was a good way to get a competent adventurer at a low price by signing an exclusive contract with investment as a premise. As a bonus, the adventurers’ loyalty to their employer would be different from that of those who hired them on a temporary basis.
Of course, as it was an investment based on possibility, it was easy to suffer losses, considering the probability of failure was also quite large. If the adventurer’s potential was at the level of a mediocre soldier, from the investor’s point of view, it would of course be a loss.
However, it was worth the risk, as it would be enough to easily lead the entire merchant company even if only one talented adventurer was discovered. And because of that, there were many young adventurers who persevered to showcase their qualities even in the face of failure.
Bahamut wanted to invest in that.
In fact, it was quite common for many powerful factions on the continent to have a few talents who had been nurtured in such a way.
And now, Bahamut, the owner of the Baden Merchant, was interested in investing in such adventurer.
‘Looking at it like this, it feels a bit like owning a soccer or baseball club…’
Invest in talented prospects and generate profits. In addition, if necessary, recruit outstanding talent even at a high price.
The only difference was that the method of generating revenue here was trade and the other was sports, but the process was actually not much different.
‘A strong adventurer could soon become a practical force. I need a sword. A strong and faithful sword that can protect me in this harsh world…’
With such thoughts in mind, Bahamut slowly got off the carriage.
In front of him was the head of the association who managed the adventurers.
‘From the story, she must be in here, right? That person…’
Even though Beden Merchant was a top tier company that dominated a region, it had never showed much interest in the adventurer investment side.
In addition, due to Isolda’s policies, even the least useful adventurers were kicked out.
But now, Bahamut wanted to reverse Beden Merchants’s policies against hiring adventurers.
In order to obtain the strongest sword that was hidden here before anyone else, Bahamut entered the guild while following the guide.
Goblin: From now onwards, prepare for adequate world building and lots of character development.
Please consider becoming a Patron at Patreon to support me. There’s even a $1 monthly support option, which won’t affect yout wallet. You can also motivate me by buying me coffee at BuymeaCoffee! A little support can do wonders!
Please whitelist this site in your a*blocker to support the translation.
If you enjoy this novel, please take some time to rate it on NU