Chapter 7

Chapter 7

The list of successful candidates at the Third Training Center had been announced.

The names were posted on a large sheet of paper at the entrance to the training center, and as a result, the entrance was crowded with candidates early in the morning.

“...There are so many people.”

Damian muttered as he began searching the list for his name.

“Oh no! No way!”

“Damn it! This is impossible! Why did I fail?”

The first sounds of despair came from those who didn’t see their names on the list and were frantically checking it multiple times, unable to accept reality.

Of course, accepting the harsh truth was difficult for them.

“Woohoo! I passed!”

“Mother! I did it! I passed!”

On the other hand, those who succeeded were shouting in joy, thanking the gods with voices full of emotion.

Damian watched with a slightly bewildered expression.

‘...Is it really something to be so happy about?’

In the time of war, soldiers were so scarce that people were conscripted by force.

Everyone tried to come up with excuses to avoid being drafted, and some even went as far as breaking their own limbs to escape conscription.

‘But now...’

People were clamoring to be first in line.

It was so different from what he had imagined that he found it hard to believe.

But just then...

“Hey, Damian!”

“...Apel?”

Damian turned to see Apel approaching him with a wide grin.

“Congratulations, we’re comrades now!”

“Oh, did you pass?”

“Yeah, I saw your name too. It’s right at the top.”

“At the top?”

At Apel’s words, Damian looked up.

[Damian, 13 years old]

“Oh, there it is.”

As Damian smiled, Apel continued.

“Looking forward to it. Of course, we might not end up in the same unit, haha.”

“Yeah, same here. It’s reassuring to know there’s someone my age.”

“Isn’t it?”

Damian smiled back at Apel’s words. Then Apel asked,

“There’s still a week before we have to report. What are you going to do until then?”

“A week... I’ll probably be pretty busy. I have some things to take care of.”

“What kind of things? Another secret?”

“Haha, it’s nothing special. Just getting the necessary supplies before we start.”

“Hmm, I see. Well, if you do anything, make sure you get some patches for your heels and the balls of your feet. The boots they issue are stiff, and every recruit ends up with blisters.”

“Oh, really?”

Damian asked with a feigned ignorance, though he couldn’t help but smile inwardly. He had experienced those very blisters in his past life.

“Yeah, there’s a military goods store called Lion Eagle in the East Gate Market. Their patches are supposed to be good.”

“Thanks for the tip, I’ll keep that in mind.”

“It’s nothing.”

As Apel shrugged, Damian asked,

“What about you? What will you do for the week?”

“Me? I have a few things to take care of too.”

“...You seem to have quite a few secrets yourself.”

Damian’s remark made Apel chuckle.

“Haha, I’m a man of mystery, you know.”

“Ha, alright. See you in a week, then.”

Damian shook hands with Apel and turned to leave.

As Damian walked away, an elderly man approached Apel.

“Young master, everything is ready.”

“...Allen, I told you not to call me ‘young master’ in places like this.”

“Oh, my apologies.”

“Let’s go.”

With that, Apel turned and began walking in the opposite direction from where Damian had gone.

As he walked away, he glanced back at Damian’s retreating figure.

Allen asked,

“Who was that?”

“...Just someone I feel like I’ll be seeing for a long time.”

“...Pardon?”

“Nothing. Let’s go.”

With that, Apel and the old man walked away.

* * *

The capital held many different meanings for Damian.

‘I used to come here often... back then.’

When the outlying cities were falling and becoming more isolated, there were times when he would come to the capital for supplies after battles broke out outside the city.

‘It wasn’t as beautiful back then.’

It wasn’t exactly a famine, but after years of war, there was no room for leisure on people’s faces.

Even in the capital, not everyone had enough to eat.

In fact, the back alleys were filled with beggars who had fled from ruined cities.

“...I can hardly believe it.”

The capital seemed to be shining, almost sparkling.

It was hard to grasp how drastically the atmosphere had changed.

But what Damian had experienced was all true.

Five years from now, when the era of war arrived, the changes that would come were beyond what common sense could explain.

‘I should start preparing a bit earlier.’

The only regret Damian had was that the information he possessed was mostly about the big picture.

He had very little detailed information.

‘But...’

Even the small bits of information he had were incredibly important and should be used to their fullest.

That’s why Damian decided to find the Yurek Merchant Guild.

The Yurek Merchant Guild would become a major force during the war, foreseeing the skyrocketing prices of food and weapons and growing rapidly as a result.

Damian had only heard of their name and achievements later on, but what surprised him was that Yurek, the head of the guild, was not much older than him.

‘Five years from now... when the era of war comes, the first thing to change will be food.’

Luxury items would become meaningless.

Only practical artifacts, weapons, and food for survival on the battlefield would matter.

“Hmm...”

Of course, there were many other things to do, but time was too short.

‘First...’

Find the Yurek Merchant Guild.

Damian set out into the bustling city to gather information about the guild.

‘So there are about forty merchant guilds in the capital...?’

Damn it! There were far more than he expected.

And the problem was, there was no guild called Yurek among them.

“...This is giving me a headache.”

How should he narrow it down?

The only information Damian had was that Yurek, the head of the Yurek Merchant Guild, was the son of the previous guild leader, and that Yurek himself would be in his early thirties fifteen years from now.

‘Actually, there’s one more thing.’

Yurek’s Merchant Guild had been involved in charitable activities, helping those in need.

Because of this, even though they made a fortune during the war, they still had the support of the people.

‘Normally, war profiteers would be despised, but...’

It seemed that this guild had a unique business philosophy that set them apart.

‘If I narrow it down to guilds that are involved in charity work...’

The number of possibilities should decrease significantly.

Damian quickly began sorting through the list of guilds in the capital, focusing on those that were either currently engaged in charity work or had plans to do so.

And after some time...

“My head is about to explode...!”

He had gathered information from quite a few places, but doing it all alone had taken up a lot of time.

“At least I managed to narrow it down.”

Even after narrowing it down, the list of more than forty guilds had been reduced to seven.

But it had already taken him three days to gather this information.

‘I should have used an information guild...’

No, no.

Damian shook his head.

There was a reason he wasn’t using an information guild and was instead searching for the guild himself.

‘Never give away even a speck of information.’

Information guilds are extremely sensitive to the circumstances and background of the client.

They don’t just take on a request without digging into why it was made in the first place.

Only a handful of people would be aware of the events that would happen five years from now during the era of war.

If anyone else got wind of it, things could go wrong.

‘I can’t leave any possibility open.’

That’s why he was going through all this trouble.

“...I’ll have to give it a shot.”

There were still four days left.

That was enough time to visit all seven guilds.

Damian began visiting the seven guilds he had identified.

“Excuse me.”

“Welcome.”

First, Damian visited the largest of the seven guilds.

He figured that a guild that had grown into a major merchant company was more likely to be the right one.

“May I speak with the head of the guild?”

“What is your business with the guild leader?”

The staff member in charge of the reception asked Damian. Damian smiled politely and replied,

“I’ve heard that your guild is involved in charity work, and I’d like to invest in something good.”

“...Please wait a moment.”

Although the staff seemed a bit skeptical of Damian’s youthful appearance, the mention of an investment seemed to prompt them to relay the message to the guild leader.

Soon, a man who appeared to be the guild leader approached Damian.

“Are you the one who asked to see me?”

“I’m Damian.”

Damian took a good look at the guild leader.

He appeared to be in his early fifties, with noticeable wrinkles on his face.

‘Yurek is supposed to be in his late teens now, so this isn’t him.’

Which means...

‘There must be a direct heir.’

According to what Damian knew, Yurek was the son of the previous guild leader, so he just needed to confirm that.

“You mentioned that you wanted to invest in our charity work?”

“Yes, it’s not a large sum, but my parents left me some money, and I want to use it for a good cause.”

“Haha, what a commendable thought for someone so young.”

The guild leader smiled warmly and ordered tea to be brought.

As they discussed the investment, Damian cautiously asked,

“By the way, may I ask if you have a son?”

“Yes, I do. I’m getting on in years, so I’ve started thinking about my successor.”

The topic of his successor came up so easily.

Damian’s eyes gleamed as the guild leader introduced his son, who would be the next in line. However...

“...”

The son he introduced as the next guild leader looked to be close to thirty.

‘Damn... a miss.’

Well, nothing in life comes easy.

Damian politely wrapped up the conversation and quickly left the guild.

One down, two down, three...

He continued to visit guilds, gathering information while discussing investments.

Finally...

“...Is this the last one?”

Had he made a mistake by focusing on larger guilds?

Damian now stood in front of a smaller guild that had been involved in charity work for three years.

‘...The Hamel Guild.’

The scale seemed quite small. How were they funding their charity work?

‘Still... I should check it out.’

After all, he was already here.

There was nothing to lose by visiting one more place.

Damian entered the Hamel Guild and politely called out.

“Excuse me, is anyone here?”

“What can I do for you?”

A middle-aged man greeted Damian as he entered.

Damian bowed politely and explained,

“I’ve heard that the Hamel Guild is involved in charity work, and I’d like to contribute by investing.”

“Invest? Haha, what a noble-minded young person you are.”

He offered Damian a seat and brought out a warm cup of tea.

“I’m Yurek, the head of the Hamel Guild. Thank you for your generosity.”

He handed Damian a business card as he spoke. For a moment, Damian’s eyes flickered with surprise.

‘Yurek...?’

Was this man’s name really Yurek?

Damian hadn’t expected the current guild leader’s name to be Yurek.

He had been searching for the Yurek Guild, not a guild with a leader named Yurek.

Damian swallowed and asked,

“Forgive me if this is an intrusive question, but do you have a son?”

“Yes, haha. No son, just a mischievous daughter.”

“...A daughter?”

What? Another miss?

For a moment, Damian had thought this might be the place, especially when he heard the name Yurek.

But a daughter...

However, just then...

“I’m back!”

As a woman entered the guild, dusting off her clothes, Damian’s head turned toward her.

“...Huh?”