Became an Assistant at the Bank #3(2)
Captain Karl, after a brief eye contest with Rockefeller, reluctantly agreed to accept Rockefeller's proposal.
Concerned about the higher storage fees he'd face if he missed this opportunity, given his lack of knowledge about the store owner, he decided to take the offer.
"Fine. I'm not too keen on it, but let's go ahead. Just make sure you're not lying, right?"
"Lying? How could I lie to someone as tough as you, sir?"
Karl recalled his subordinates he would meet later, his face contorted as if he had tasted something foul.
'To think, I strutted in here, and now I'll become the laughing stock for paying a 6 percent gold storage fee.'
"There's one condition, though."
At that, Rockefeller tilted his head curiously.
"A condition? What is it?"
"Let's keep this deal between us. So, I'll agree to your 6 percent storage fee, but if someone comes asking, we'll say it was a 3 percent deal. I have my pride to consider."
"But you also mustn't go around talking about this, sir."
"Don't worry about that. I'll take this story to my grave. But if some rough-looking guys like me come to check, just tell them the deal was for 3 percent. That'll do."
Upon hearing this, Rockefeller asked with a hint of conjecture.
"Where are you from, if I may ask? Perhaps... from the Hound mercenaries?"
"You know well."
"Ah, so you're one of them. Just yesterday, some guys like you came by. They wanted to exchange some dalant. Do you know them, by any chance?"
"Those guys are my subordinates."
"Your subordinates? So, you mean to say you're their leader?"
"Yes, I'm the leader. Seems like I didn't look the part."
"Yes... it's quite surprising. I didn't expect the leader himself to come by."
"Well, it's not just any matter. It's about depositing the advance payment at the bank. It's a matter of money. There's no one I can trust. That's why I came myself."
As Karl introduced himself, Carter, who had been eavesdropping on their conversation from inside the shop, had a surprised look.
"A mercenary leader, you say? Then it must be the famous Hound Karl."
Hound Karl was a very famous and strong person, representing the Hound Mercenary Group.
Carter momentarily stopped what he was doing and stealthily glanced inside the store to observe the leader of the Hound Mercenaries.
As the rumors suggested, he was a huge man, capable of fisticuffs even with a small orc, and looked more fierce and rough than the subordinates who had visited yesterday.
"To see the man called the Human Ogre like this. Am I lucky?"
However, the renowned mercenary leader couldn't overcome even a young assistant of the bank and was being taken advantage of.
"It's truly astonishing. Even the world-famous Hound Karl is being swindled like this. Seeing this, it seems I really have a remarkably talented assistant."
Returning to his place, Carter once again admired Rockefeller's guts.
The courage to swindle the world-renowned leader of the Hound Mercenaries was indeed a talent not just anyone could possess.
"Having observed for several days, that guy is really destined for great things. He’s just in a different league compared to someone timid like me."
Captain Karl recalled the store owner who had just glanced at him and moved on.
"Damn. It seems I'm becoming the butt of jokes everywhere."
Feeling uneasy in his seat, Karl was eager to quickly deposit his gold coins and leave.
Just as he was hurrying his thoughts, he suddenly became curious about the name of the boy who had overcharged him.
"What's your name, by the way?"
"My name? I'm Rockefeller Rothsmedici. Just call me Rockefeller for short."
"Rothsmedici?"
Hearing his name, Karl easily deduced that he was a commoner.
He had never heard the name Rosmedici in his life.
"A commoner, then. Well, it makes sense. No one but commoners would work here. Anyway, hurry up and write the receipt. I'm in a rush."
Rockefeller, noticing Karl's eagerness to leave, began to slowly bring up a story he had heard from the lord.
"I'll write the receipt right away. But how are things going here? I heard you came because of the orc subjugation."
Receiving a pouch of gold coins from Karl, Rockefeller began to write a receipt, prompting Karl to respond.
"Don't worry. Everything is going well. Compared to the reputation we've built up so far, subduing orcs in such a remote area is really nothing."
Karl slightly lifted the corners of his mouth, exuding confidence.
"I don't know what the people here think, but at least we consider it a minor diversion to take a break. Those orcs are hardly a big deal."
"Oh, is that so?"
Rockefeller, while writing the receipt, suddenly asked about something.
"From the Hound mercenaries' point of view, orcs are really nothing, are they?"
"Killing a few orcs isn't even a task, let alone an orc army."
"So, even if it's a tribal unit, it's not a problem?"
"I'd rather it be a tribal unit. Then it would be less boring than I thought."
Rockefeller, still relaxed, casually slipped in his prepared remark.
"That's good to hear. So, it's no problem even if the orcs have some monstrous war machines or shamans with them? Whew, that's a relief. I was quite worried when the orcs suddenly appeared, but seeing your confidence, it seems there won't be any problem."
In the meantime, Rockefeller, having written the gold deposit certificate, stamped it with the store's seal and handed it over to Karl.
"Here's the gold deposit certificate. In any case, you'll need this certificate to either visit our store or a bank affiliated with the Lyon Guild to retrieve the gold you've deposited. Of course, you know that if you go to a different store, there will be a fee, right? Here it is. Please take it."
