Wizard Immortal

Chapter 100 Ancient Armor City

"First and foremost is reputation. It's okay if your abilities are mediocre, but your reputation must be excellent."

Standing still, after thinking for a moment, Adir looked at Karu and said, "Also, I'm planning to go to the Ancient Armor City in the north this time. I need you to find me a few guides who are familiar with the area. Any problems?"

"No problem, there are many people who meet these criteria." Karu nodded, then continued, "So, besides a good reputation, what requirements do you have regarding the number of people?"

"I need about fifty guards, plus about three guides. As payment for hiring them, I'm willing to pay them one gold coin per month. What do you say?"

"This price is fair." Karu nodded in agreement upon hearing Adir's words.

"However, let me remind you that although Ancient Armor City is a big city, it is very backward. The wilderness is full of savages and orcs, and war may break out at any time. It is not suitable for settling down."

Seeing Adir's appearance, Karu couldn't help but offer a reminder.

"It's alright, I have some connections there, it should be fine."

Adir smiled at the reminder and slowly explained.

Hearing this, Karu stopped talking and said directly, "Alright, if you don't mind, you can come again tomorrow at noon. I need some time to inform the mercenaries."

"Okay." Adir nodded, then took out two gold coins from his pocket: "This is your referral fee. If the person you find tomorrow satisfies me, I don't mind giving you more."

"Haha, thank you so much!" Karu's eyes lit up as he took the gold coins. "With these, I can buy even more ore!"

After doing all this, Adir turned around and left.

the next day.

At noon, when Adir arrived at the weapons shop, he found that there were already quite a few people standing outside.

These people were dressed in different ways; some wore tattered leather armor, some wore leather, and others wore only dirty hunting clothes, looking rather miserable.

Despite this, these people were all in good physical condition and looked very strong.

"These are the guards you found for me?"

Entering the weapon shop, looking at the people standing outside, Adir frowned and said, "The equipment is far too poor."

"Haha, don't let their poor equipment fool you, their strength isn't necessarily weak." Standing still, Karu pointed to the people standing outside and said, "These people are basically retired veterans who have fought against orcs before, and each of them is quite capable in combat."

"Moreover, these people were all specially selected for you by me. They all have a pretty good reputation, so you can use them with more peace of mind."

Hearing this, Adir nodded.

"Let them send in a few representatives," he said, glancing at the people standing outside.

Karu readily nodded and strode out.

Not long after, he came in again, followed by three people.

A tall, blond man, a robust middle-aged man with a ruddy complexion, and another ordinary-looking middle-aged man wearing thick leather armor.

The moment these three walked in, they exuded an aura of veterans that set them apart from ordinary people, causing Adir to nod in approval.

"What are your names?" he couldn't help but ask.

"My name is Gru," the blond man said first, his eyes bright.

"You can call me Ax, sir," the burly middle-aged man with a ruddy complexion said, pounding his chest in a loud voice.

"Elder," the last person spoke, sounding rather taciturn.

Listening to their words, Adir stood still, glancing at them as if casually.

"Name: Gru. Strength: 1.4. Agility: 1.2. Constitution: 1.4."

"Name: Ax. Strength: 1.3. Agility: 1.3. Constitution: 1.5."

The physical data of the two people flashed before my eyes.

Looking at the physical data, Adir nodded to himself, then looked at the last person.

"Name: Eld. Strength: 1.8. Agility: 1.7. Constitution: 2."

"Huh..." Looking at this data, Adir couldn't help but turn his gaze to the seemingly silent Eld: "You're a knight apprentice?"

Hearing Adir's words, Eld was taken aback and subconsciously asked, "How did you know...?"

After saying this, he realized what he was saying and, seeing the way the people around him were looking at him, he shut his mouth and returned to his previous taciturn demeanor.

Seeing his expression, Adir seemed to understand something, then smiled and said, "Very good."

"I'll take you all," he said with a smile, then pointed to the three of them: "You three are the representatives, so you'll be squad leaders, five gold coins each month. Any problems?"

Upon hearing this, the three were initially stunned by the generous terms, and then quickly nodded in agreement.

The three of them were selected from among the mercenaries outside, and they already had a certain prestige among that group, so becoming a squad leader would not be a problem.

The income of five gold coins was something they couldn't refuse. Even if they took on escort missions like this, their monthly income wouldn't even reach one gold coin. Five gold coins was enough for their whole family to live on for a year.

Seeing their reactions, Adir nodded and pointed to Eld standing to the side: "You will be the captain of this escort team, and you will receive ten gold coins every month."

Immediately, a look of joy appeared in the other person's eyes, indicating that they were extremely satisfied with the income.

Seeing the joy in the other person's eyes, Adir was speechless.

Normal knight apprentices are all from noble families, and even if their families have fallen on hard times, they would not be so happy about the price of a mere ten gold coins.

"It seems to be a commoner who somehow learned the Knight's Breathing Technique."

Seeing the other party like this, Adir shook his head inwardly, thinking to himself.

After selecting your bodyguards, you have much more freedom in choosing your guide.

Among the seven or eight candidates, Adir randomly selected three who seemed relatively calm and experienced to be his mentors this time.

A few days later, the team set off.

Adir sat quietly in the carriage, while Eld and his two companions each led a group of people to guard them from different parts of the procession, moving forward silently with the group.

However, by now, the three of them had changed their equipment; they were not only riding horses, but also wearing brand-new leather armor.

These were all provided by Adir. Although he didn't care about the team's combat strength, he still changed the equipment for the three captains to make the team look better.

Of course, these equipment were only temporarily lent to them. Although Adir did not lack these gold coins, the wizard believed in equal exchange, and it was not right to give them away for no reason.

Of course, if they perform well during this period, it wouldn't hurt to give them this equipment.

The procession moved forward slowly.

The Kingdom of Gumodo is not peaceful. Apart from the area around the city, other parts of the country are often filled with thieves and bandits, and even occasionally some orcs will come out to plunder.

Adir's group encountered many enemies along the way, most of whom were not very strong and were easily defeated by Eld and his two companions.

After a period of time, Adir had a general idea of ​​the origins of Eld and the other two.

Gru and Ax were both veterans. Because of their poor family background, they were drafted as soon as they came of age and fought against the orcs. In the end, they retired from the army and made a living by farming and working as mercenaries.

As for Eld, just as Adir had suspected, he was not a member of the nobility, but merely the child of an ordinary farmer. In his youth, he had unintentionally saved a severely wounded nobleman, and in return, the nobleman taught him the basics of knightly breathing techniques. After serving in the army and retiring, he worked part-time as a mercenary.

All three are relatively honest and have families, making them relatively easy to manage.

·············

A month later, a long line was walking on the wide road.

Ahead of the procession, the silhouette of a city loomed in the distance, seemingly not far off.

"Lord Adir, we'll be at Ancient Armor City in a few hours!"

Sitting quietly in the carriage, Adir heard Eld's steady voice in his ear.

Hearing the sound, he quietly put down the book he was holding and then said, "Let the line stop for now."

"Eld, Gru, Ax, the three of you come in."

As the order was given, the surrounding troops slowly came to a stop, and then three tall figures walked in from outside.

"Sir, may I ask what brings you here?"

Looking at Adir, Eld was the first of the three to speak.

"We'll be arriving at Ancient Armor City soon, and then our employment will end."

Looking at the three of them, Adir smiled and said, "I'm planning to set up some businesses here and need some manpower. Would you like to come?"

"In return, I can settle your families and give you some land and positions, which is far better than you becoming mercenaries."

"This..." Upon hearing Adir's words, the three of them exchanged glances, each seeing hesitation and interest in the other's eyes.

The life of a mercenary sounds exciting. But only those who have truly experienced it know how difficult it is. It's not only arduous, dangerous, and unstable, but also pays very little. It's nothing like the glamorous life others imagine, and you might die out there at any time, your body even eaten by wild animals.

Through their time together, they could sense that Adir's personality was not like that of some nobles; on the contrary, he was easy to get along with and treated very well.

If Ancient Armor City weren't located on the border, surrounded by a large number of orcs, and where war could break out at any moment, they would never have hesitated and would have agreed on the spot.

After hesitating for a moment, they nodded in agreement.

"Very good." Seeing them nod, Adir smiled. "As a reward for your loyalty to me, your weapons and equipment, as well as the horses you have been using, belong to you from now on."

Upon hearing this, joy immediately appeared in the eyes of the three of them.

(End of this chapter)