"Regardless, it was thanks to your intervention that Cloud Mist City survived this tide," Qin Ming began, his voice carrying the weight of a City Lord.

  "Therefore, I will allocate thirty percent of the monster cores harvested from the battlefield as an additional reward for the three of you."

  Qin Ming was a pragmatist. He knew that without Blood Wolf and Tiger-Hunt, the City Guard would have been powerless against the Iron-Mountain Behemoth. Offering a thirty percent cut was a calculated move to secure the loyalty of such formidable fighters.

  As for Berserk Bear, he was merely a beneficiary of circumstance.

  Qin Ming’s disdain for the man had reached its peak. When the Behemoth appeared, Berserk Bear had been the very first to turn tail and run. For a mercenary captain to abandon his own men in the face of death was an act of cowardice that Qin Ming found loathsome. Such a man was not to be trusted. It was no wonder Tiger-Hunt held him in such contempt.

  "Then I shall accept on behalf of my men. They’ve been looking to upgrade their kit anyway," Blood Wolf said with a nod, accepting the offer without pretense.

  "City Lord Qin, you are far too generous! Since you insist, then I—" Berserk Bear’s eyes gleamed with greed the moment he heard about the extra pay.

  Tiger-Hunt shot him a look of pure revulsion. "He wasn't talking to you. What are you getting so excited about?"

  "You!" Berserk Bear’s face flushed a deep crimson, his eyes wide with suppressed rage.

  "Oh? You’re actually daring to glare at me? Growing a spine all of a sudden?" Tiger-Hunt let out a cold snort, his hand drifting toward the massive handle of the Dragon-Rune Greataxe on his back.

  Berserk Bear instantly recoiled, stumbling several steps away. He had seen what that axe did to the Behemoth; he had no intention of finding out if his own skull was harder than dragon-blood armor.

  "Vice-Guild Master, I assume we’re done here?" Tiger-Hunt called out to Mu Qianqiu after finishing with Berserk Bear.

  "Yes, of course. You may leave whenever you wish," Mu Qianqiu replied. He still felt a lingering chill from the sheer destructive power Tiger-Hunt had unleashed earlier.

  "Then I’m taking my leave. Don’t forget to log my Mercenary Points," Tiger-Hunt said. He was genuinely exhausted. After a quick nod to Blood Wolf, he turned and headed down the ramparts.

  Blood Wolf followed shortly after. The immediate threat had passed, and there was no sense in keeping his squad standing in the cold. Berserk Bear, realizing he was the odd man out, scurried away as well, not even bothering to regroup his scattered mercenaries.

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  "In that case, I won't overstay my welcome either. City Lord Qin, I’ll leave the Guild’s payout in your hands," Mu Qianqiu said, offering his farewell.

  "Safe travels. I have matters to attend to here," Qin Ming replied.

  At the end of the day, their relationship was a business transaction. If the city fell, the Guild fell with it. Monsters didn't care for human contracts; they sought territory, resources, and vengeance for their hunted kin. The "extra" thirty percent was a reward Qin Ming had already planned with Mu Qianqiu, but framing it as a personal gift was a masterclass in diplomacy.

  Once the mercenaries had departed, the field belonged to the City Guard and the thousands of monster carcasses—or rather, thousands of monster cores.

  Qin Ming ordered the recovery of the fallen Guards for an honorable burial. After a moment of silence, he instructed his men to bury the fallen mercenaries alongside them. Regardless of their reasons for fighting, they had bled on the same ground. They were brothers-in-arms.

  As for the monster remains, once the valuable materials were stripped, they were piled high and incinerated with magic.

  "I wonder... who is pulling the strings in that forest?"

  Qin Ming stared into the dark depths of the Cloud Mist Forest. An Iron-Mountain Behemoth appearing here was no accident, and the scale of the tide was unprecedented. Without Kael’s gear and pills, the city would be a smoking ruin by now.

  "No matter. I’ll pay Manager Kael a visit tonight," Qin Ming decided. He couldn't identify the mastermind yet, but as long as he continued to grow stronger, he would eventually face them without fear.

  Kael’s shop didn't close its doors just because the sun went down.

  In this world, magic lamps were ubiquitous, even if the cheaper models provided little more than a dim, flickering glow. Kael usually kept the shop running until around nine in the evening. Since he didn't run a tavern or a restaurant, he didn't need to worry about the dinner rush.

  However, since the Combat Simulation Room had opened, Kael felt less like a shopkeeper and more like an internet cafe owner. Blood Wolf and his crew were the quintessential "addicted regulars," spending every waking hour "grinding" their skills.

  Speaking of Blood Wolf, Shier—who was stationed behind the counter—spotted him leading his squad toward the shop entrance.

  "Hello, Brother Blood Wolf," Shier called out with a welcoming smile.

  "Hey there, Shier. Where’s the Boss?" Blood Wolf asked. Frequent visits had made him quite familiar with the young clerk.

  "The Manager is in the next room. Do you need something?" Shier pointed toward the small side door.

  "What else? I can't exactly afford the high-end stuff yet," Blood Wolf joked with a wry smile. He gestured for his squad to file in and start restocking their pills and repairing their gear.

  "Brother Blood Wolf, you don't look much like a Captain today," Shier teased from behind the counter.

  "Oh? What do I look like then?"

  "More like a butler," Shier said playfully.

  "Hahaha! Shier, you’ve been spending too much time with the Boss. You’re starting to pick up his sharp tongue," Blood Wolf laughed, not bothering to defend himself, choosing instead to join in on poking fun at Kael.

  "Careful how you talk about the Boss, Blood Wolf. Aren't you afraid he'll hike up your prices?" Tiger-Hunt said as he stepped into the shop.

  Blood Wolf leaned against the counter, looking completely unconcerned. "Say what you want about the Boss, but he has principles. He might be a black-hearted profiteer with those prices, but he never changes them on a whim."

  "I’ll give you that," Tiger-Hunt agreed. "Mainly because he’s never offered a discount in his life."

  "Rest assured, there won't be any discounts in the future, either."

  Kael’s voice drifted in as he emerged from the Combat Simulation Room. He looked at Tiger-Hunt and gave a very serious, very deliberate nod.