Nickname.
Suddenly, a scene from a marine documentary I had watched as a child came to mind. After a massive whale died, underwater cameras captured the animals that swarmed in to tear apart its enormous carcass.
The reason this memory surfaced was simple. The wealth left behind by the dead Golden Maggot was staggering at a glance.
Chests filled with gold coins, various works of art, polished wooden furniture… all manner of valuable goods were being carefully loaded onto the backs of the Tarasks.
In total, ten Tarasks were burdened heavily with cargo. Six of them carried valuables, while three were assigned to transport food and other supplies.
On the back of the last one, a large canopy had been erected. Judging by its appearance, it seemed to serve as a carriage substitute for the two sons of the Golden Maggot.
'They'll be departing soon.'
The laborers draped waterproof covers over the cargo strapped to the Tarasks' backs. It appeared they had finished loading and were moving on to final preparations.
Just as Woojin had guessed, the Tarasks soon rose to their feet. The lizard-like beasts began walking forward in a group. With several massive magical creatures moving at once, the sense of intimidation was considerable.
Jonathan gestured toward the members.
"Alright. Let's start heading over as well."
The Black Sailfish Mercenary Corps joined the cargo transport. The mercenaries who had arrived earlier looked their way. Most of their gazes were drawn to the red-furred wolf.
"Grrr…"
Rex let out a low growl. Being the focus of so many unfamiliar stares clearly made him uneasy. Woojin stroked the back of his neck to calm him down.
Originally, Woojin had not intended to bring Rex along. Having a wolf-type magical beast among their party might make other mercenary groups uncomfortable. But Jonathan had quickly taken care of that issue.
'He said he reported it to the Mercenary Guild in advance.'
After informing the guild of the wolf beast's presence, he had spoken separately with the other mercenary captains to obtain their consent. Thanks to that effort, Woojin was able to bring Rex without much concern.
Two mercenaries approached. At a glance, they appeared seasoned. Jonathan personally greeted them and brought them over.
"Here, these two are the captains of the mercenary groups allied with us. Memorize their faces well. Unless you want to get beaten later for a slip of the tongue."
Woojin examined the two men.
The one on the left was Marcus.
Captain of the Red Horn Mercenary Corps. A large two-handed axe rested across his back. Though slightly short, his shoulders were broad and solid as stone.
The one on the right was Dylan.
Captain of the Iron Shield Mercenary Corps. Perhaps he preferred growing a beard instead of hair—his head was completely bald and smooth, while his lower face was covered in a long gray beard.
The large shield he carried stood out.
'Did they name their corps after that shield?'
It was quite an interesting shield. It resembled an elongated isosceles triangle. Its edges had been sharpened carefully, almost like a blade. Depending on how one gripped the handle, it seemed usable as either a shield or a weapon to swing like a sword.
'Having a shield like that would be nice.'
A shield was a versatile item.
Woojin himself had once favored a shield. He had used it well for quite some time, but it had been destroyed in his previous fight with a werewolf.
Since then, he had been debating whether to get another one. Without it, something felt lacking—but buying one might simply turn into an annoying extra burden…
"…So you're the rumored Skull Crusher."
Dylan suddenly muttered those words. Woojin, lost in thought, lifted his head. The people around them were looking his way.
'Was he calling me?'
The unfamiliar term made him uncertain, so Woojin asked for confirmation.
"Were you speaking to me?"
"I was. Did my pronunciation sound unclear?"
"I was confused by the unfamiliar word."
At that, Jonathan, standing nearby, chuckled and added,
"Jin. Don't tell me you don't even know your own nickname?"
…My nickname?
Woojin blinked. Since when had he gained a nickname he himself didn't know about?
Dylan continued.
"I heard from mercenaries in your company… There's a man who commands a wolf beast like a hunting dog, and when Mad Skull locked eyes with him, he fled like a frightened lamb. That's how you got the nickname Skull Crusher."
Skull Crusher.
The meaning was straightforward—one who crushes skulls. It seemed the name came from driving off Mad Skull.
Woojin found the new nickname rather silly.
"Just call me Jin. It's a bit childish for a substitute for my name."
"That's just how men are. In any case, it seems you really are the man of the rumors. I'll be looking forward to your performance on this request."
After saying that, Dylan and Marcus returned to their respective corps. It seemed they had come over simply to see Woojin's face for themselves.
Apparently, while staying in the city, members of the Black Sailfish had recounted the previous incident over drinks.
"…Looks like I've become famous overnight."
"If someone shows a bit of strength, word spreads quickly in this business. In that sense, it's stranger that you've gone unnoticed until now."
Claire whispered that to him. She hadn't known such rumors were circulating, since she had been sticking close to Woojin lately, but she didn't seem particularly surprised that this had happened.
"For a while, things might get a bit troublesome."
"Why?"
"You may not care about fame, but there are plenty of fools in this line of work who are desperate to become famous. They do it to raise their value… You can guess the rest, right?"
If you knock down someone whose name is widely known, you can take that fame for yourself.
After hearing Claire's words, Woojin glanced at the mercenaries over there. Sure enough, even from their eyes alone, a few of them clearly harbored impure intentions. Men staring at him as if waiting to test him.
"Is it okay for allies to fight each other?"
"As long as no weapons are used, it's fine. One-on-one barehanded sparring to settle rank is common. Jonathan sometimes beats disobedient subordinates while calling it 'training.'"
"Really?"
So it was acceptable to rough up those who challenged him. At least the journey wouldn't be boring.
Opportunities to raise one's name were rare. In the Red Horn Mercenary Corps, there were several who had set their sights on Woojin.
Robert was one of them.
"Let's go grab that fraud and beat him senseless."
"Uh… do we really have to?"
The reactions of his sworn younger brothers, Matthew and Joseph, were lukewarm after hearing Robert's proposal.
Today was the first day of the contract.
They had been walking nonstop toward the Great Wall and had only just been granted their first rest break. Picking a fight this early was not appealing.
Seeing their attitude, Robert flared up in frustration.
"What's with you two? This is first come, first served! That bastard's obviously a fraud. Driving off a magical beast with just a glare? Does that even make sense?"
"That's true, but… wouldn't there be a reason the rumor spread? I've never seen the Black Sailfish guys make such a fuss before."
Besides, Woojin really was traveling with a wolf-type magical beast, just like the rumor claimed. That meant the Black Sailfish Mercenary Corps' story was at least partially grounded in truth.
When Matthew cautiously pointed this out, Robert regained a bit of composure. But his resolve was not broken.
"If we keep living like this, nothing will change. That bastard's making a fortune off a single rumor, and he's even got a woman hanging off his arm. If we beat him, all of that becomes ours!"
"The woman… you mean the brown-haired one?"
"Yeah, that damn pretty bitch. My heart nearly dropped when I saw her. He's got some skill to have found someone like that."
Matthew's face turned pale.
"Hyung, don't mess with her. She's Jonathan's niece. I heard more than one guy ended up crippled after making a move on her."
"…Shit, really?"
Robert's expression turned grim as well.
In this line of work, Jonathan was infamous for his vicious temper. Touching his niece would surely invite horrifying retaliation.
Robert's plan was full of holes. Perhaps sensing that, Joseph—who had remained silent—stood up.
"Hey! Where are you going?"
"I don't want in on this. No matter how I look at it, this doesn't add up."
"Then I'll…"
As Joseph withdrew, Matthew glanced around nervously before slipping away as well. Left alone, Robert spat on the ground.
"Ha, you cowards… Don't come whining to me later when you regret it!"
Even so, he had no intention of giving up.
Robert headed straight toward the Black Sailfish Mercenary Corps' tent. Before long, he encountered two mercenaries standing guard.
They spoke first.
"Hey. What do you want?"
"I've got business with that hotshot—Skull Crusher, was it?"
"Oh? First customer of the day, huh. Have fun."
The mercenaries snickered openly. It was unmistakable mockery. Robert felt the sting of humiliation but forced himself to swallow it.
Wasting stamina fighting these two here would be idiotic. There was only one person he needed to vent his anger on. Reminding himself of that, Robert kept walking.
Soon, he spotted his target. And of course, Woojin had already noticed him.
"Want to try your luck?"
Woojin asked calmly. Instead of answering, Robert clenched his fists.
"A fight!!"
"Let's see what kind of guts this bastard's got!"
The surrounding mercenaries cheered and rushed closer. Keeping a reasonable distance, they circled the two men. It felt like a small arena had formed.
Robert glared at Woojin with bloodshot eyes. The roaring cheers heated his blood. Swept up in the excitement, he shouted at the top of his lungs and charged forward.
"Waaaargh—?!"
Smack!!
His roar was cut short by the sharp sound of impact. Woojin extended his leg and kicked Robert's left leg out from under him. The top of his foot lashed like a whip, striking the thigh with a crisp crack.
The pain was explosive. Stunned, Robert staggered backward. But the moment he tried to plant his foot, his body tilted.
"Uh… huh…?"
His leg gave out. Robert collapsed to the ground before he even realized it. He immediately tried to stand, but one leg refused to respond.
The atmosphere around them turned cold.
"…What the hell is that idiot doing?"
"That's it? He's done after one hit?"
In barehanded brawls, someone's nose or teeth usually ended up broken.
Fists lacked the lethality of weapons, so blows had to be aimed at the face—and even then, one or two punches rarely ended a fight.
Yet Robert was down after a single kick to the leg. The mercenaries couldn't help but spit out harsh words.
"What corps is that guy from?"
"I thought we were finally getting some entertainment."
"My grandma would last longer than him."
"Hahaha!"
Laughter erupted from all sides. Robert was forced to endure every word of ridicule. He wanted to flee, but his injured leg made it impossible to stand.
"Y-you… damn it…"
Flailing on the dirt like he was swimming on land, Robert only made himself look more pathetic. Just as the laughter was reaching its peak, two men pushed their way through the crowd.
Matthew and Joseph stepped forward, supporting Robert from either side. The three stood shoulder to shoulder.
"Hyung, let's go back."
"Next time, listen to us too."
"…Alright."
The three brothers walked away together.