Please give the novel a rating or a review on NovelUpdates
———-

Chapter 122: Time to Take the Initiative

The next morning.

After finishing breakfast, Reiner led a group of beast-eared girls to the smithy to pick out weapons.

They formed a long line, following closely behind Reiner.

Many passers-by who saw the scene even stepped up to greet Reiner.

News that he had slain a red dragon seemed to have spread through the city.

Junice turned to Reiner at her side and muttered softly, “I’m so jealous of you; I’ve been fooling around in Melod for months and I’m still an unknown mage.”

Reiner answered in a low voice, “You’re stronger than I am; you just haven’t found your chance yet.”

“That comfort is way too obvious.” Junice gave a wry smile and patted Reiner’s shoulder twice.

They arrived at the smithy.

The old blacksmith saw that Reiner had brought a group of demi-humans; although displeased, he said nothing for Reiner’s sake.

Reiner had them go in groups of three to choose their weapons.

First up were Epic Wolf, Epic Cow, and Epic Fish.

The three of them selected a one-handed sword, a double-headed hammer, and a dagger respectively.

Epic Cow swung the iron hammer happily, clcounty satisfied with her weapon.

Her name was Eudora, and she had much in common with Martina… vegetarian, strong, not bright, and overwhelmingly busty.

Because of that, Martina seemed to enjoy playing with her and handed over her greatsword. “What’s good about a hammer? It’s too short and useless in real combat. Use a greatsword like mine; most enemies beg for mercy the moment they meet me.”

Eudora tried a few swings with the greatsword, shook her head, and returned it. “The hammer feels better; I don’t like this at all.”

“Hammers are things women use. A real female, like me, prefers a greatsword that cuts iron like mud…”

The cow-horse duo argued endlessly, each trying to persuade the other.

Reiner sighed and shook his head helplessly.

Epic Fish, standing to the side, stared blankly at the dagger.

“You don’t like it?”

“Master, I actually know a little magic, so I rarely need a weapon like this.”

Reiner shrugged indifferently. “That’s easy; a staff will arrive in a while. Just keep the dagger for self-defense.”

Epic Fish nodded and whispered her thanks. “Thank you, Master…”

Wanting to understand his slaves’ specialties so he could assign future teams, Reiner had been observing them for the past few days.

Epic Fish’s name was Pasha; she was rather withdrawn, making her a good match for the carefree Eudora.

Adding the balanced and steady Epic Wolf completed the three-person squad.

The beast-eared girls continued choosing weapons.

When the weapons were bought, Reiner took them to pick out armor.

Because funds were limited, slaves of Epic rank or higher could get half-plate like Nora’s and Martina’s.

Rare-rank slaves could only afford a set of chain mail and a simple helmet.

The shop apprentice, frowning, measured the demi-humans’ sizes. Unable to communicate with them, he had to ask Junice to interpret and help.

Elyanna standing nearby looked even more distressed than he did.

Staring at the blades, spears, and staves the demi-humans pointed to, she pursed her lips and complained, “Reiner, don’t tell me you want me to enchant every single piece of gear?”

Reiner gave a thumbs-up in praise. “As expected of our lovely elf lady; plain chain mail offers too little defense, but with your enchantments its protection will improve dramatically.”

Elyanna pulled a face, poked Reiner’s kidney a few times with her staff, and said sadly, “I feel like I’m being horribly exploited.”

“That’s because our Elyanna is so outstanding. Only you can enchant equipment, which is amazing! Just enchant it when you have spare time; if you get tired, I can massage your shoulders for you.”

Elyanna knocked Reiner on the head, then squatted angrily at the armor-shop entrance.

Just then Peggy walked over, staring at Reiner expressionlessly without saying a word.

(He’s getting more and more interesting; I’ll watch him a little longer.)

Reiner asked in puzzlement, “Why are you staring at me?”

“Buying all this must have cost a lot, right?”

“Not too bad; arming all of you took just over 100 gold coins, well within budget.”

He still had 70 Barnite gold coins on hand and needed to find time to exchange them.

“That’s not a small amount, is it? I’m more and more confused about why you’d do this. These pieces of equipment should be worth more than we are.”

Reiner thought for a moment and found that was true.

Purchasing them had only cost 70 Dyast gold coins altogether, definitely cheaper than the gear.

He certainly couldn’t make the money back right away, but judging by Cannon’s number of commissions, three demi-human merc squads plus the sale of spoils should net half a gold coin per day.

Adding daily expenses, they would barely break even in a year if nothing went wrong.

After breaking even, everything would be pure profit.

The scale was still small; this was just a trial run.

If it made money, he would expand later.

If it didn’t, he would abandon the idea decisively.

“Can’t be helped; being a mercenary is dangerous. Without armor, one slip and bandits, monsters, or beasts will take your life. My mom taught me from childhood to cherish small animals, so everything that’s needed has to be provided,” Reiner said with a straight face.

Peggy was speechless.

(This human is scary yet cute; he’s getting more interesting. Let’s tease him a bit…)

Peggy shot Reiner a glance, put her hands behind her back, and nimbly slipped past him.

Her fluffy fox tail brushed lightly across the back of his hand.

A sly fox.

In the past Reiner would definitely have been flustered by such flirting.

Unfortunately, after being tempered by Nora and Martina, he had become a steady man and would absolutely not be…

Junice strode over. “Phew! Finally done! Measuring really is a pain, especially that snake-type demi-human named Roxanne. Her tail keeps wriggling, making it impossible to measure!”

A group of beast-eared girls followed behind her; it looked as though all their sizes were taken.

“Thanks for the hard work. Let’s head home,” Reiner said, naturally wrapping an arm around Junice’s waist.

Her body trembled suddenly and then froze.

Their eyes met, staring at each other.

Reiner’s action was pure reflex.

He was used to holding Nora, and with Junice beside him he reached out without thinking.

Junice tucked her hair behind her ear and said softly, “Go ahead and hold me. You’ve been ignoring me these past few days; I ncounty forgot…”

???

He had just been a bit busy these days.

Now that the urgent matters were mostly handled, he was quite free on the way back to Cannon.

The time had come to go on the offensive.

———-
Support the Translation! 🌐✨

Your donations not only show appreciation but also keep the translator motivated! Every contribution helps continue bringing you more of what you love. Thank you for being a part of this journey! 💖

https://www.ko-fi.com/maxoofie