Chapter 36: Thunder Whip Mercenary Group

Though I’m constantly worried about the city, fearing news of other races breaching the front lines and surrounding Black Obsidian City, the next few days are surprisingly calm.

Thinking about it, this is a border city, but it’s still part of the human empire. The nearby military forces aren’t pushovers.

The city went on alert for a few days due to possible infiltrators, but within a week, the lockdown lifted, claiming the threat was neutralized. I take the city guard’s words with a grain of salt, trusting my own observations and judgment more.

But… it seems fine?

On the street, backpack with my egg babies slung over my shoulder, I carried freshly bought bread, vegetables, and meat.

The residents of Black Obsidian City seemed unconcerned, with no new reports of disappearances. Everyone appeared relaxed, as if the guard had truly dealt with the infiltrators.

The city hasn’t been attacked in over a decade. Human legions have kept vampire clans and dark elf ritual groups hundreds of kilometers away, making Black Obsidian a forward base for many mercenary groups.

This makes the city a chaotic, dangerous place, but its combat strength is undeniably reliable.

“Hm… maybe it’s really fine.”

Observing the street, I thought to myself and headed home to work—gotta keep earning to feed my egg babies.

Honestly, I’m not thrilled about moving to a safer city right now—one big reason is I can’t afford the time loss.

Traveling to a better city takes days, and settling in would take one or two weeks.

That’s time I can’t spare.

Why? No money to feed my egg babies…

I seem well-off, but I’m stretched thin.

Earning thirty gold coins a month, ten go to crystals for the kids, leaving twenty for martial techniques, training potions, and more…

I have a lot I want to do, and moving cities wastes one to two weeks.

The egg babies, born two months ago, survived the first month on their shell’s nutrients. Now, they need to “eat.”

They used to absorb a crystal in half a day; now, it’s gone in under three hours.

Normally, they’d need an expensive crystal every two or three days, but I’m at my earning limit. I can only feed them once a week, leaving them hungry. Their eagerness to absorb Gu Xuanyun’s crystal showed it.

I can’t keep starving them… their growth phase is critical, and the crystal costs will only rise.

So, after much thought, I’m reluctant to leave… the time loss is too much.

“Sigh… what a headache.”

Musing, I heard a commotion ahead—people’s faces changed, hurrying to scatter.

“?”

Curious, I paused to see what was happening.

Then, I saw a group of menacing, battle-ready mercenaries.

“!”

Instantly, I knew they were trouble and stepped aside to let them pass.

As they neared, I saw their emblem—a whip with two or three lightning arcs.

“…Thunder Whip Mercenary Corps?”

Recognizing it, I realized they were the group those six mercenaries I killed belonged to.

I’d looked into them. Thunder Whip is Black Obsidian’s largest, strongest mercenary corps, with many beast kills and war merits. But their strength makes them arrogant. Many members are hot-tempered, harassing civilians and girls, so residents avoid them.

The leaders looked like Gold-rank warriors, equivalent to army centurions.

They headed toward the city gate, likely for hunting or combat, moving fast. Over a hundred mercenaries passed my spot and left.

Hiding, I waited until they were gone before hurrying home.

…I killed six of their men. Who knows if they’re onto me? Guilty, I avoided showing my face.

I can’t afford to mess with them…