Chapter 56: How a Mercenary Brings Her Husband Home (5)
“Aigoo, everyone’s getting way too excited now.”
Shanro, already done with a whole bottle of whiskey, came running with a large glass in hand. He handed it to Regina, eyeing Valentin up and down.
Shanro, the guild member who had traveled through the most countries and met the most people, could instantly recognize the kind of pressure this man gave off. Even now, he seemed to be trying to keep it under control.
‘If Clarte sees this guy, that’ll be something.’
The two would probably clash hard—he could already picture the headache that would come from it. Shanro took a long drink straight from the bottle, then tried striking up a friendly tone with the stiff-looking man.
“Duke, do you drink? Shall we share a glass? Ah, was that rude of me?”
He said that while already popping open a bottle Gyle had in hand, as if he’d planned to offer it all along.
Before Regina could stop him, Valentin reached out and took the glass.
“I’ll drink.”
Shanro let out a surprised whistle, finding this unexpectedly bold side of Valentin quite amusing.
“Valentin, mercenaries are heavy drinkers. No need to push yourself.”
“I can handle my drink.”
To prove it, Valentin tilted the bottle straight to his lips.
Shanro laughed loudly and grabbed another bottle, also drinking straight from it. In this crowd, tiny glasses were a joke.
“I want to drink with the Duke too!”
“When would we ever get to toast with royalty again? Kekeke.”
“You guys, please watch your words…”
From then on, it was chaos. Before Regina could stop them, the mercenaries poured in with more alcohol. The massive stash of booze stacked against the wall started vanishing at an alarming rate.
‘Still, he doesn’t seem to mind… I guess I can just keep an eye on things.’
Fortunately, Valentin was handling the rowdy atmosphere quite well. He wasn’t leading conversations, but he responded calmly to what the others said.
‘And I… missed this too.’
The dining hall was loud enough to make ears ring. Some were dancing, others brawling drunkenly and earning a smack from Regina.
Even when weapons were drawn, no one made a big deal of it. Regina naturally raised her fist as needed.
Amid the growing chaos, Gyle tapped her on the shoulder.
“Regina, I need to talk to you.”
“Hm?”
“It’s about the Night Mission.”
Regina, whose strength had been melting under the effects of the strong liquor, snapped back to full alert. She glanced at Valentin, who seemed well settled among the mercenaries, and motioned Gyle toward a quieter corner table.
It was a table tucked into a corner with only cups and utensils—not food or drink—so no one was paying it any attention.
As she habitually picked up a knife and checked its edge, she asked,
“So?”
“You were right. That girl—the rescue target—and her family didn’t just fall. They were wiped out. There were professional assassins chasing them even in Garber.”
“Why?”
“Apparently, their father, Baron Ganbor, wrote a poem criticizing the Empress Dowager’s regency and circulated it among the noble families. It all makes sense now, doesn’t it? Why the young lady was kidnapped?”
Regina let out a dry chuckle. Yeah, Night Missions were always a pain like this.
“So she was meant to be the scapegoat on the royals’ execution stage. The siblings did make it out of the Empire safely, right?”
“Yeah, Shanro and I personally took them to a broker. One from a guild we’ve dealt with before.”
Regina nodded. The Imperial family had already labeled Baron Ganbor a traitor. If they found out Persona was the one who helped his children escape…
‘We’d all have to run with the broker.’
“Keep checking if the guild name is getting mentioned in connection with this.”
“Of course. I’ll keep my ears open constantly.”
As Regina picked up another knife, she noticed Gyle watching her with a soft expression.
He had been wanting to hug her in relief the moment he saw her safe, but thanks to the surprise guest in her room, he missed his chance.
“What? You got something to say?”
“…You don’t know how worried I was. Don’t ever tell me to run and leave you again.”
Regina expected a scolding, but just smiled instead. She didn’t answer, though—because if it happened again, she’d still put the mission first.
Gyle could see the meaning in that smile. He bit down on his lip. Whenever she was this stubborn, it made his chest tighten painfully.
“Oh, and Gyle, turns out that crazy guy who attacked me? He’s the same one who set fire to the Bolero merchant caravan.”
“That guy? Was he an enemy of the guild?”
Gyle growled, running a hand through his messy red hair.
“Don’t you think it’s weird? That freak only attacked merchant groups working with Count Renzier. No reports of other caravans being hit.”
“…So maybe he’s not after us, but after Count Renzier?”
“It’s not confirmed, but it seems likely.”
“And that’s why you’re okay? Because we weren’t the target?”
What a sweet guy. Regina’s shoulder twitched at Gyle’s sarcastic tone. Yeah, he was sweet—annoyingly so.
But she didn’t want to admit she had been treated and given a blanket and pillow by that same enemy, so she jammed her knife into the table.
“Let me know if Count Renzier starts doing business with a new merchant group. I need to figure out who that freak is and what he wants. He’ll definitely show up again.”
“Got it.”
Looking at the knife stabbed deep into the table, Gyle could already tell—
If that guy shows up again, Regina will come charging in to settle the score.
‘This time, I’ll be right next to her. I won’t run again.’
No matter how dangerous the mission, he wasn’t going to leave her behind again.
“…I’m just really glad you’re okay.”
“Hey! What are the three of you whispering about over there?”
Maut’s voice made Regina turn her head. Valentin had approached without her noticing, and Gyle’s expression soured.
“Were you eavesdropping?”
“I came over and saw you were in the middle of something serious, so I waited.”
Valentin shrugged, as if to say it was no big deal, and stepped closer to Regina. His red brows twitched slightly.
“Did you hear what we were talking about?”
“What was the topic? It’s so loud in here, I couldn’t catch a word.”
“Ah, nothing important. Let’s go—those monkeys over there are getting loud again.”
Regina pushed Valentin’s back lightly. He usually had a cool, crisp scent like dawn air, but now the smell of alcohol was pretty strong.
It was probably time to start calming the guild down.
“Rosie.”
Just then, Regina noticed Rosie had come downstairs.
Rosie was weak to alcohol. Just one drink would turn her face bright red.
And her face was already beet red—she must’ve had hard liquor as soon as she came in.
“How’s your body?”
“I’m fine.”
Rosie answered vaguely, then looked up at Valentin, standing beside Regina—and froze.
It was the man she saw at the Julius Ducal House, wasn’t it?
Yes, that face in the wind—she recognized it.
But now that she was seeing it up close, fully revealed, he looked so stunning she couldn’t help but stare blankly.
“Rosie, you’re holding strong liquor. Stop drinking.”
Regina was worried. Rosie didn’t usually act wild when drunk, but she had a habit of blurting out strange things.
“I’m fine. Why do you always say I can’t?”
Her voice was full of sadness.
It was just like Maut had said—Rosie felt hurt.
“Let her be, Regina. She’s an adult. She can handle herself.”
A drunk mercenary tried to throw his arm over Regina’s shoulders.
But both Gyle and Valentin moved at once.
Gyle grabbed the back of the guy’s neck, and Valentin pulled Regina subtly closer to his side.
Another silent clash between the two men.
And Rosie saw everything.
“You must’ve really liked life at the duke’s estate. You look so much brighter now.”
“Hm? Really?”
Men who only knew booze and brawls weren’t very observant.
Except for Gyle and Maut, no one really noticed the changes in Regina’s appearance. They simply respected her presence.
So when Rosie said that, most of them tilted their heads in confusion.
Feeling a little awkward, Regina took a sip from her glass.
“Well, I have been trying to act a bit more like a noblewoman.”
“Yes. You always give your all for a mission, Miss.”
Rosie’s drunken mood dampened the lively atmosphere.
Regina handed her glass to Gyle.
“Rosie.”
“I can do a good job too. I can make lots of money too.”
“You’re drunk. Drink some water and sober up.”
“You’re always the one who gets to shine, huh, Miss?”
