CHAPTER 212: CHAPTER 210: CONFLICT OF THE MERCENARY GROUP_1

The last time Grey Mouse received five Gold Coins from Yan Xing, it had allowed him to live very comfortably for the past few days.

This time, Yan Xing paid the remaining Gold Coins without hesitation, so Grey Mouse let go of his excessive caution and no longer felt so intimidated and deferential before the thief who had suddenly appeared.

Now that he knew many of the rumors about the thief Terence were true, Grey Mouse felt rather pleased with himself for managing to befriend such a legendary figure. Especially in front of Li Jiya, this was definitely a plus for him.

Thinking of Li Jiya, Grey Mouse couldn’t help but glance at the bar.

The tavern was as deserted as ever. With nothing to do, Li Jiya sat behind the bar, continuing to read her book.

These past few days, Li Jiya seemed to have spoken to him more. Grey Mouse mused happily, feeling his luck was genuinely improving.

To pursue Li Jiya, he would need even more money. Grey Mouse had forgotten his initial talk about leaving Nuta City as soon as possible. A woman on one side, wealth on the other—why leave? As for risks... which place in this world wasn’t dangerous? Moving elsewhere might not be any better than here. Since he’d befriended a legendary thief and Terence was so generous, there was no reason not to keep benefiting from him.

Therefore, Grey Mouse eagerly said to Yan Xing, "Mr. Terence, what brings you to me this time? It’s my honor to help you."

Grey Mouse took out his purse and began putting the Gold Coins into it, one by one. The sound of coins clinking was pleasant to the ear.

Yan Xing then placed another Gold Coin on the table and asked Grey Mouse, "These days, the Farsight Mercenary Corps has been looking everywhere for me, and I know it definitely has nothing to do with any treasure map. Do you know what Captain Donald wants with me?"

Grey Mouse looked at the Gold Coin in front of Yan Xing and replied straightforwardly, "I don’t know what Captain Donald wants with you, but I do know that the Farsight Mercenary Corps and the Jufeng Mercenary Group have had a major conflict recently. Many mercenaries have been drawn into it, and quite a few have died. I figure Captain Donald is looking for you because he wants you to join his mercenary corps. If a legendary thief like you joined, they’d definitely make the Jufeng Mercenary Group suffer."

Unlike the Farsight Mercenary Corps, a recently established force, the Jufeng Mercenary Group was an old, established organization with a long history. They had clawed their way to their current size on the Wildwind Highlands during the early years of the three-way war between the races.

Now, the Farsight Mercenary Corps’ rapid expansion not only challenged the Jufeng Mercenary Group’s standing on the Wildwind Highlands but also encroached upon many missions that originally belonged to the Jufeng group. Conflicting interests had caused a huge rift between the Jufeng Mercenary Group and the Farsight Mercenary Corps.

A great war had now erupted on the Wildwind Highlands, and a large number of mercenaries had gathered in Nuta City. The Jufeng Mercenary Group and the Farsight Mercenary Corps were now constantly running into each other. Since the mercenaries on both sides were mostly brutes, a disagreement naturally led to drawn swords. Mercenaries were known for their ruthlessness. Open brawls and covert assassinations meant deaths were all too common.

Yan Xing asked for more details about the conflict between the Jufeng Mercenary Group and the Farsight Mercenary Corps.

Grey Mouse had an extensive information network in Nuta City. For the Gold Coin in Yan Xing’s hand, he spilled everything he knew.

To summarize, initially, the Farsight Mercenary Corps knew they were slightly less powerful than the established Jufeng Mercenary Group, so they took the opportunity of mercenaries gathering in Nuta City to recruit aggressively. They even offered substantial sums to entice powerful mercenaries to join.

At the same time, Captain Donald personally lobbied nobles and wealthy merchants, securing more contracts from them. During negotiations, he didn’t hesitate to badmouth his competitors.

The Farsight Mercenary Corps had a strong military bearing, uniform attire, and strict discipline. These aspects appealed to the nobles and wealthy merchants. Coupled with Donald’s noble background, it made it easy for the Farsight Mercenary Corps to secure more contracts.

While the Jufeng Mercenary Group, as an established entity, certainly possessed great strength, the unsavory habits of some of its mercenaries had always been a point of contention for clients. Hiring the Farsight Mercenary Corps was like hiring a regular army—it looked prestigious. Hiring the Jufeng Mercenary Group, however, was like employing a band of undisciplined irregulars. Strength aside, in terms of presentation alone... the difference between the two mercenary corps was stark.

It was fair to say the Jufeng Mercenary Group felt mounting pressure from Farsight’s challenge. They’d lost considerable business, and their shrinking revenue made it increasingly difficult to sustain such a large mercenary group.

However, thanks to its solid foundation, the Jufeng Mercenary Group often came out ahead in its skirmishes with the Farsight Mercenary Corps. This served as excellent advertising among Nuta City’s affluent nobles and merchants, and it helped the Jufeng Mercenary Group reclaim a fair number of contracts.

Having tasted victory in the past few days, the Jufeng Mercenary Group had been actively provoking the Farsight Mercenary Corps.

Grey Mouse finally said to Yan Xing, "At night, the lights from the Thunderous Swamp embassy in Nuta City draw the entire city’s attention, and the City Defense Force is concentrated there too. The Jufeng Mercenary Group seized this opportunity to attack many high-ranking Farsight Mercenary Corps mercenaries, and it’s rumored that two captain-level mercenaries were killed by Jufeng.

"Captain Donald was furious and vowed to retaliate against the Jufeng Mercenary Group.

"Their conflict will only escalate from here. If you were to express willingness to join the Farsight Mercenary Corps now, Captain Donald would undoubtedly offer you a very high salary.

"Of course, you could also independently take on reconnaissance and assassination missions from the Assassin’s Guild. There are many bounties targeting key figures in both the Jufeng Mercenary Group and the Farsight Mercenary Corps.

"The rewards are all very high."

Yan Xing hadn’t expected that his ’swamp highlight’ design would also inadvertently create a battlefield for the conflict between the two large mercenary corps.

Indeed... with so many Nuta City residents flocking to the embassy for the light show, the City Defense Force’s attention was entirely consumed with preventing disturbances there. Naturally, other areas were beyond the City Defense Force’s already stretched capacity.

At this point, Yan Xing had no intention of intervening in the conflict between the Jufeng Mercenary Group and the Farsight Mercenary Corps.

As the saying goes, ’When dogs fight, they only get a mouthful of fur.’ And another: ’Let underworld matters stay in the underworld.’ As long as the two mercenary corps didn’t escalate to a full-blown conflict within Nuta City, Yan Xing, in his capacity as a Peace Officer serving the authorities, had no desire to get involved in their feuds.

Since the topic had shifted to the Assassin’s Guild and assassination bounties, Yan Xing followed up, "I’ve only recently arrived in Nuta City and am not very familiar with things here. I also don’t want to join any mercenary groups.

"I’m an independent thief.

"Tell me about the Assassin’s Guild in Nuta City. Are there any good missions available?

"I need to make some money."