The Heavenly Demon Can’t Live A Normal Life [EN]: Chapter 28

The morning after his decision, Roman waited. He knew Hans would bring the information soon, and he was eager to see it.

Hans came in and gave Roman the information he asked for.

Hans said, “The information group says the Barco family is doing strange things lately.”

Just a few days before, Roman had started to think about the Barco family.

He knew a little about the Barco family already, but he needed to know more for his plans.

So, he contacted the Black Moon information group that worked in the northeastern area.

He asked them to find out what the Barco family was doing and how strong they were.

Hans stepped back as Roman checked the information.

The paper made a soft *scritch* sound.

“The Barco family,” Roman thought. “They’ve been in this area for over a hundred years. They only became powerful when one of them got a job in the king’s government. They don’t have the biggest army, but they are very important in the Cairo Kingdom because of their government connections.”

The Cairo Kingdom was not a very strong country. It was one of the two empires and six kingdoms on the Salamander Continent.

Because it shared borders with other countries (except for the mountains in the northeast), it had been invaded many times.

Because the country was often attacked, the king in the capital was powerful. To stay safe, everyone had to listen to the king.

The nobles in different areas could have their own soldiers, but they had to support the king to survive since there were enemies all around.

The king had the power to force people to join the army. If they didn’t, they were seen as enemies, and the king would send troops to take back their land.

The lords who helped the king would get some land, and new nobles who listened to the king would be put in charge.

This system made the nobles in the capital very powerful.

The Barco family was connected to this powerful central government, which gave them power that you can’t see, like connections and influence.

“The Barco family has used its government connections to get a big loan from the Golden Bank. Normally, they wouldn’t be able to get so much money, but they got it without any special guarantee because of their connections. They used that money for the Berge Mercenary Corps. The Berge Mercenary Corps is led by Berge, an A-class mercenary, and has about 100 mercenaries. They mainly get involved in fights between territories and get paid for it.”

The information explained how the Barco family got the money and what they planned to do with it.

“They are planning to attack Lawrence within two weeks because they have started forcing people in their territory to join the army.”

The Barco family had finished getting ready. From the moment they announced that Dimitri had broken off the engagement, they started to move. Lawrence had to defend against Barco’s attack alone because of a mistake.

With war coming, people said that Count Lawrence was trying to get help from other nobles.

“The Barco family is powerful because of its connections to the government. They are much stronger than Lawrence, and no family except Dimitri will risk helping Lawrence. If we just watch, Lawrence won’t last more than a month, even if they try to defend their territory.”

The result was clear.

So, Roman thought about what would happen if Barco and Dimitri fought.

He imagined the opponent being even stronger than they were. He thought about all the possibilities and the worst-case scenario, but the result was always the same.

“Even if they fight 100 times, Dimitri will win all 100 times.”

Dimitri was much stronger.

People didn’t understand something.

They thought that wealth and military strength were separate, but that wasn’t true for a rich family like Dimitri.

Most nobles had about 200 soldiers. It cost too much to have more, so they ruled their land with that many soldiers and hired regular people to help during wars.

The Barco family was the same. Hiring the Berge Mercenary Corps would have a big impact on the fight.

But the Dimitri family was different.

They always had more than 300 soldiers and a special military group called the Dimitri Knights.

Also, the soldiers who were forced to join the army usually didn’t have good weapons and armor. But Dimitri was known as a family of blacksmiths, so even the conscripts had good equipment.

Instead of just giving them a bamboo spear, they gave them leather armor and strong iron bars for fighting so they could protect themselves.

So, even if they were just regular people forced to fight, Dimitri’s soldiers were stronger.

Dimitri started as a trading company. To do business, they needed to protect themselves, so they had worked with the Benjamin Mercenary Corps for many years.

In the beginning, the Benjamin Mercenary Corps wasn’t very big, but with Dimitri’s support, they grew to have more than 500 mercenaries.

So, fighting with Dimitri meant that the Benjamin Mercenary Corps might get involved.

There was a big difference between Barco and Dimitri.

The Barco family couldn’t beat Dimitri in the northeast, even with the government’s help.

“Dimitri is not lacking wealth or military power. But Romero Dimitri came from a common family. Because they haven’t been nobles for long, the nobles in Cairo don’t see them as equals. But even if they don’t like it, Dimitri is still the most powerful family in the northeast.”

Dimitri had power. If Roman used his family’s power, it would be easy to punish Barco, who caused Roman’s death.

But Roman didn’t want to do that.

He was at an important moment and knew he needed to become stronger.

“The nobles in the northeast don’t think Roman Dimitri is a threat, even though he has the Barco family’s knights. Roman lived his life in a way that made them think that way, but I, Baek Jung-hyuk, am different. Antoni Barco touched me. So, he will pay the price. Using my family’s power is not the right way to prove myself.”

In the 12th Cave, Baek Jung-hyuk smashed the leader’s head.

That was when he changed his reputation from being weak. Now, he needed another chance to make a big step.

Roman thought hard.

How can I achieve a lot without getting too tired?

He knew that he needed people to support him to build something of his own.

So…

Jingle jingle.

“Hans.”

Roman called Hans.

For the next two weeks, he had something to take care of first.

Around the time when war was coming to the northeast, a man arrived in Dimitri.

“Dimitri is the same as ever,” Lucas said.

Lucas was a B-class mercenary.

He had been through a lot as a mercenary. He had a tough time in the recent battle at the border.

He thought he was going to die. Luckily, he survived by stepping on his comrades’ bodies. He left the battlefield without renewing his contract because he needed a rest.

Now, Lucas came to Dimitri to get new equipment.

He wasn’t from Dimitri, but Dimitri’s smithy was known for its good quality.

“Damn it, I’m not going near the border again. Those idiots were running around without thinking, and my ten years as a mercenary almost ended that day. Those dog-like bastards!”

He sighed and looked at his damaged chain armor. It was ripped open, showing the red wound underneath. His sword was dull and chipped, like an old, worn-out tool.

He cursed because he had bought his equipment from a new place for no reason.

He knew that Dimitri made the best ironware.

So, he went straight to Dimitri. As soon as he arrived, he ordered new equipment from the smithy.

“I’m going to stay in Dimitri for a while and rest,” he thought.

He was tired of the battlefield. He felt chills when he thought about being covered in blood.

Lucas walked on. He was going to a restaurant, but he saw a crowd of people in the city square.

Buzz buzz.

“What’s going on?”

He was curious. He had been a mercenary for ten years and had almost died because of his curiosity. He pushed through the crowd and went inside.

There was a bulletin board. It was used for the lord’s orders or for people to share information. One notice caught his attention.

[Recruiting Soldiers]

-Eligibility: Healthy body, desire to become stronger.

-Number of recruits: 30 people

-Salary: 8 silver per month

-Special note: This position is only for Roman Dimitri, not the Dimitri family. Only those who are willing to give their lives for Roman Dimitri should apply.

It was a recruitment notice. The conditions were good. The average family of four spent about 5 silver per month, so 8 silver was a good salary, considering the risks.

Also, there were no special requirements. Regular people would be tempted, but Lucas, a B-class mercenary, wasn’t interested.

“This has nothing to do with me,” he thought.

A B-class mercenary wouldn’t join as a regular soldier. If he was going to work for a noble, he would need at least 50 silver per month.

Then, an old man next to him said, “Don’t even think about applying. Hundreds of people want to be soldiers now.”

The old man thought Lucas was interested.

Lucas wouldn’t have cared, but he was curious about what the old man said.

“Hundreds of people want to be Roman Dimitri’s soldiers? Is it worth it?”

Roman Dimitri was famous in the area. Lucas had visited Dimitri often and knew how pathetic Roman Dimitri was.

About two years ago, Lucas saw Roman Dimitri losing money and causing trouble at the gambling house. He thought that Romero Dimitri had failed as a father.

But now, hundreds of people were applying to be his soldiers. Even if money was important, it was obvious that they would suffer under Roman Dimitri.

So, Lucas asked, “Is it worth it? Even if you get 8 silver per month, isn’t Roman Dimitri known as the idiot of Dimitri? You’ll suffer if you become his soldier.”

The old man’s eyes widened. He looked at Lucas in surprise and said, “You’re a foreigner, so you don’t know the situation. Roman Dimitri is not the same as before. He defeated Blood Fang and values his people!”

Recently, a rumor had spread in Dimitri. The excitement about the soldier recruitment notice came from that rumor.