I Resign From the Coin Mercenary Knights

The day after leaving the knightly order, I was sitting across from Bingo. This guy had also left the order at the same time as me.

“Sorry you got dragged into unemployment because of me.”

“It couldn’t be helped. It was a foregone conclusion I’d be targeted if you left. I didn’t want to get harassed by the knights, even if those corrupt administrators didn’t care.”

In reality, it wouldn’t have ended with just harassment.

No one was unaware of my close friendship with Bingo. With me abruptly departing the knightly order, Bingo was bound to face interrogation first.

While not to the same extent as me, Bingo was also a considerable Codana tycoon. Just selling his current Codana holdings would easily net over 3 billion rir after fees.

An astronomical sum – 1 million rir was enough for a family of four to get by for a month, albeit frugally, in the expensive Imperial City. This showed Bingo was no longer constrained by an administrator’s modest salary either.

“Now that I think about it, I’m glad you’re around. If I were all alone, I might have ended up dead in a ditch in the middle of the night.”

It was an undeniable reality.

While I at least had some renown and the martial ability to defend myself, Bingo was a commoner without a single backer. He might have had to make a desperate escape to an unconnected region with his money in tow.

“It’s safer sticking by your side. I’ll lend a hand with the odd jobs, so in return…”

“You want me to ensure your safety. Got it.”

I drew my weapon with a flourish – a sword I had acquired immediately after leaving the knightly order.

Was it because I couldn’t let go of my attachment to the blade?

That was part of it. I had devoted myself to swordsmanship since around the age of nine. Not because I aspired to build a legacy with the sword, but because endless training was my only means to escape abject poverty.

Fortunately, I possessed exceptional talents – innate physical abilities and a keen affinity for aura manipulation that allowed me to reach the expert realm more easily than most. Thanks to that, I had become an Imperial Knight.

‘Now, I no longer need to wield a sword to escape poverty.’

What I needed martial prowess for now was safeguarding my assets.

But a sword was not the only preparation I had made.

High-grade potions capable of instantly healing most injuries.

Magic scrolls to handle various situations.

Just acquiring those had already cost an outrageous sum.

Originally, premium potions and magic scrolls were not items meant for self-defense – only bold adventurers attempting extremely hazardous dungeons would procure them. In life-or-death situations, a single potion vial could mean the difference between life and death.

Of course, the expenditure was a trivial matter for me.

No, it was costly, but affordable for the sake of protecting my life – my money, as precious as my own blood, from those who might covet it.

With such preparations in place, safeguarding Bingo was well within my capabilities. It also saved me the trouble of separately hiring an administrator to handle miscellaneous tasks, making it mutually beneficial.

“That’ll do, then.”

After responding curtly, Bingo began advising me on asset management.

“First, you should relocate to a safer residence. This place is too close to the Imperial Knights’ quarters. You don’t want to live next door to potential troublemakers, do you?”

“Where would be better?”

Bingo recommended the 3rd district of the Imperial City, where high-ranking officials and officers working in the capital tended to reside. As an area populated by civil servants, security was impeccable, and the heavy surveillance made it difficult for the Imperial Knights to cause any mischief.

“The 3rd district. Definitely the 3rd.”

“Of course, if you want to live large in a sprawling mansion with scores of servants, the 1st district would be better than the 3rd. But that area is strictly for high nobles and cadet imperial princes. Do you want to rub shoulders with those highborn snobs?”

“No, the 3rd district is fine.”

“Actually, I’ve already scouted a residence there with a garden. Prime location. We’ll need to hire some servants too.”

Next, Bingo advised diversifying my asset investments.

Currently, I only had cash assets – half deposited in the Imperial Bank and the other half in the merchant guild’s credit vaults, as recommended by the exchange. The only liquid funds I carried were about 500 million rir in gold and promissory notes.

An immense sum, but…

“Cash is king. But you need to diversify your holdings to a reasonable degree, just in case the Codanas take an unexpected turn after the Demon King’s defeat.”

“What should I invest in?”

Bingo promptly introduced a few options.

First, there was a vast forest a two-day journey from the Imperial City that supplied 40% of the capital’s firewood consumption. Not an extremely lucrative investment, but excellent for preserving asset value, he said.

“A forest, huh. Not bad.”

“Yeah, steady returns. While nobles use magic appliances for cooking and heating, most people still rely on firewood and coal like always. You could likely resell the ownership rights at a fair price even 30 years from now.”

“And if I don’t like that option?”

“The Clodaine Viscount’s vacation villa recently went on the market. A day’s carriage ride from the capital. Honestly, the villa itself isn’t that valuable. But the land… what was it called? Anyway, it’s apparently ideal for growing some noble-favored fruit the nearby villagers pay to harvest.”

“Probably enough to cover the maintenance costs of the villa at least.”

The real estate options Bingo suggested didn’t seem aimed at generating massive profits, but rather preserving asset value. I decided to acquire one of the properties he had looked into, likely the villa.

“Other than that, gemstones and gold ingots are good options.”

“What about treasures?”

“Oh, those could work too. It’s customary for cadet imperial princes to receive a treasure or two when leaving the palace, right? Discreetly approaching those who left the line of succession decades ago to inquire about potential sales wouldn’t be a bad move. There are quite a few princes who are princes in name only.”

As the conversation progressed, it almost felt disconnected from reality.

A firewood forest, a former viscount’s vacation villa, treasures held by cadet imperial princes – these were assets a knight’s salary could never hope to attain in a lifetime.

Yet here I was, considering purchases for the purpose of diversifying my assets.

‘My world has certainly changed.’

I even gifted Bingo a bottle of wine as payment for his advice.

An exorbitant 600,000 rir vintage that would equal a frontier garrison soldier’s monthly pay. Admittedly, it was a wine I could only have sampled at soirees before. But now I could casually present it as a gift to a friend, without a second thought.

Bingo himself accepted it with remarkable nonchalance, likely because he too was newly wealthy.

“Ah, on that note, when are you going to sell?”

“I told you, we’re still far from the crown of the head, didn’t I? Though I don’t intend to actually wait until the true peak. I plan to sell around the forehead region.”

He spoke with the air of already knowing when the “forehead” would arrive.

It was probably just bluster, but I didn’t feel the need to point it out. The exact timing hardly mattered – the sheer enormity of the sum wouldn’t change.

An amount the members frantically riding off to confront the lizardmen forces could never dream of earning in their entire lives.

‘Yeah, a little bit of hassle is worth enduring for this kind of money.’

Of course, diversifying assets was not the end of it.

“What about the academy?”

“I actually do plan to establish one.”

Within this month, I intended to genuinely open a swordsmanship academy, as I had publicly stated to the commander – for the purpose of instructing refugee children.

Academies were typically opened by retired knights with ambiguous careers as a means of making a living. There was no shortage of parents in the Empire hoping to have their children learn martial arts as an escape from poverty.

Of course, my goal in opening the academy was not to collect tuition fees. It was closer to a smokescreen, a shield to protect myself and my assets.

A former Imperial Knight who had nearly joined the hero’s party, moreover an able-bodied expert rather than someone retiring due to injuries, providing “free” swordsmanship instruction.

Not just refugees, but a considerable number of commoners residing in the Imperial City were likely to take notice.

“From snotty brats to snot-nosed runts, they’ll probably all flock to learn.”

I didn’t even intend to solely teach swordsmanship. I planned to provide meals and basic hygiene as well. It would be an ordeal for me to mingle with those lice-infested kids, so handing them practice swords on empty stomachs was unwise.

Doing this would enhance my reputation to some degree – enough to reach Commander Weinwright’s ears, at least.

‘He’s probably keeping watch over me even now.’

Imagine the commander’s reaction upon hearing that an expert-level swordsman was instructing snot-nosed brats. He would likely agonize over having squandered such talent due to his own blunder.

That guilt would serve as an excellent shield for me.

“Sounds like a perfect plan so far.”

I felt a swell of satisfaction welling up inside. But it was right around then that Bingo pointed out one factor I had overlooked.

“By the way, what are you going to do about your fiancée?”

“Fiancée…? Ah, right.”

Ember Hyde. Come to think of it, there was her.

Ember was still technically my fiancée, at least in name. Her father, the one who had gone after my head, still worked as a high prosecutor. He seemed to have been scurrying about trying to resolve the situation somehow, but to no avail.

“I should settle that loose end while I’m at it. Her too.”

Fun as shopping sprees were, there were still tasks to handle amid it all.