“Black Wolf Hugo is not some softhearted man who volunteers out of goodwill. Nor is he someone who moves with money alone. The promise I made with Lord Hugo is this—finding him a mate.”

This was something Kahel had already been tipped off about. Puang clutched his throbbing head.

What in the world was this sudden business about finding a bride?

For a monster over two meters thirty tall, with eyes that looked as though they could kill a man on sight—was there truly any woman willing to marry such a being? Puang sighed deeply.

“You already have someone in mind, don’t you?”

“No. I’ll have to look.”

“Lord Yuma, the fact that the Commander of the Black Wolf Corps has no partner yet—there must be a reason. What kind of woman could possibly endure him?”

“The world is vast.”

Puang remembered Hugo sitting with that pen as thick as a child’s arm, drafting a contract.

He had never heard of any human in this world who used such a pen.

Who on earth could live as that man’s spouse?

Even an ordinary woman—no, even an ordinary human—would surely be sent to the afterlife if Hugo so much as patted her head and misjudged his strength.

“And if you fail to find him a bride?”

“Oh, that would be troublesome. In that case, neither you nor I would remain among the living.”

“Lord Yuma… what on earth…”

Yuma patted Puang lightly on the shoulder.

“Between a sixteen-year-old commoner like me and a seasoned merchant like you, who do you think knows more women? This one’s yours to handle. My life depends on you, Puang.”

When they finished descending the Egon Mountains, the attendants rushed to prepare for the return trip.

Just like on the way there, the journey back to the Empire would take a full week.

Kahel spent his time pondering all the research he would begin using mana stones. Meanwhile, Puang endured nightmare after nightmare each night.

Upon arriving in the Empire, Yuma confirmed that the suspicions against him had been safely smoothed over.

A secret letter from House Woods had arrived at Puang’s estate, signed by Haiwan Woods himself.

New armor required. Swordsmanship training ongoing.

Relieved, Yuma sent a brief letter to Haka updating him on recent events.

The task of gathering Miryaks was left to Kahel.

Ordinary citizens of the Empire’s capital rarely, if ever, saw Miryaks.

In the world’s safest city, there was no place for the most unstable of people. Few even knew the word “Miryak.”

But for mages, Miryaks were indispensable research subjects. Within a single day, Kahel had secured about fifty of them.

“Lord Kahel, take care. I’ll visit you often.”

“There’s no need. That place is heaven for me. Come back only when the first mana stone harvest is ready.”

Though Puang insisted several times on sending guards for the ten mana stones loaded onto the carriage, Yuma refused.

“Ten mana stones. Ten! That’s enough to buy several more estates like this one!”

“Come now. You’ll soon be handling mana stones by the hundreds, the thousands. What’s the point of guards? They’ll only attract suspicion—from the Empire, from Matan, even from thieves.”

“What if it gets stolen?”

“Do you really think Lord Kahel, an Arch Mage, would fail to handle a few bandits? He’s an Arch Mage.”

“What if the Miryaks steal them?”

“And then what? Even if they ran off with mana stones, they’d die before they could sell them, and the stones would be taken back. They may live like beasts, but they’re not stupid. If you feed, house, and protect them, they won’t abandon that.”

“Ugh! Fine, but if anything goes wrong, you’ll be responsible!”

“Of course! I’ll take full responsibility. I’ll even be your bodyguard for life if it comes to that. Hahaha!”

Once Kahel departed for Matan, Yuma began to think carefully about the future.

To prepare for the Dragon-Horse War, he needed power.

To gain power, he first needed money.

Thanks to securing Puang as a card to play, that part was mostly resolved. Just selling the mana stones from the first harvest would make Puang a great merchant overnight.

But power also required social status. And that was the real problem.

Unless one became a knight or a mage, a commoner was forever a commoner.

The rigid walls of the Empire’s class system loomed all the higher when compared to Divine Sword Malon Zak and Arch Mage Kahel Fobian.

Not once in the Empire’s history had a commoner ever seized central power.

‘I need a proper noble ally. All I have to offer is money. The money I’ll make selling mana stones. A noble who will move for money alone… who could that be…?’

No one came to mind.

If he approached real nobles the way he had with Puang or Kahel, he’d be lucky to avoid a dog’s death.

And if he attempted to bribe them outright with money, they’d only bleed him dry.

“Damn it all!”

From the rooftop of his estate, Puang shouted curses at Yuma.

He wasn’t even sure the mana stones would really be harvested in a year.

The whole thing had started on a whim, and now Arch Mage Kahel Fobian and the Black Wolf Corps were both tangled up in it.

Yes, they’d signed a magical contract—but that didn’t mean mages would repay his losses. They would only brand him and use him as an experiment if he failed.

Why had he agreed to this in the first place? Puang swore and swore again.

That brat Yuma—or was he the devil himself?—was impossible to read.

With a sigh heavy enough to sink the earth, Puang drafted a notice and called his servants.

“Make copies of this and post them on the bulletin boards in Kail Square.”

“Yes, sir.”

The notice read:

[We are seeking a suitable bride for Commander Hugo, leader of the Black Wolf Corps. Ogre Slayer, Strongest Man in the World, the Invincible Macho! If you are interested, please come to Puang’s Merchant Guild. Only those confident they won’t faint before his overwhelming presence need apply.]

“Lord Yuma, I’ve posted the notice.”

Puang handed it to Yuma, who immediately burst out laughing.

“This was the only way! Don’t laugh!”

“My apologies. But it’s a clever move. Word will spread even before the mana stones are harvested—that you’re a merchant backed by Hugo.”

It was crude, but it was also the best option.

And because it was Hugo specifically seeking a bride through a merchant guild, it instantly became a hot topic.

The grand houses—Zak, Rolmandy, Fobian—wouldn’t care. But small and mid-level nobles, especially those with little influence in the capital, certainly would.

Marrying Hugo into their family meant gaining a counterbalance against higher-ranking nobles.

“As expected of you, Puang! A brilliant move. I knew working with you would be worth it. Well done.”

Just as Yuma predicted, no one came forward in the first few days.

Most people assumed it was just a merchant’s reckless prank and laughed it off.

But whenever Puang met with trading nobles, the bizarre bride search became a topic of conversation.

“Are you truly looking for Hugo’s bride?”

“Yes, I am.”

“How did you meet Hugo? Is he really that strong?”

“He’s a business partner.”

“Hugo doesn’t usually deal with the merchant guilds. Do you know how many merchants bring me money?”

“It’s an exclusive contract.”

When Puang presented the contract stamped with Hugo’s seal, the nobles’ attitudes shifted immediately.

Where once they had addressed him with total disdain, now they treated him with a degree of courtesy.

For example—

You dare press me for payment? Guards, drag him out and salt the ground beneath him!

Became—

I sincerely apologize for the arrears. I’ll have the money prepared as soon as possible. Won’t you stay for a cup of tea before you go?

For the first time in his life as a merchant, Puang experienced nobles showing him such courtesy.

The contract was no longer just a contract—it was proof that he was under the Black Wolf Corps’ protection.

Puang began to believe they might truly find Hugo a bride.

And for the first time in a long while, while handling his piled-up guild work, he felt his pride slowly return—something that Yuma had worn down bit by bit.

Puang’s fears about bandits attacking Kahel’s carriage proved correct.

Before reaching the Egon Mountains, Kahel was ambushed by a group of about ten bandits.

They were the first in history to dare attack an Arch Mage of the Empire.

But of course, they had no way of knowing who he was.

Kahel wasn’t wearing a mage’s hat or robes, and he wandered without attendants, so they mistook him for an ordinary traveler.

“You idiots…”

With a few simple lightning spells woven into his chant, Kahel struck them down. The bandits collapsed without swinging their swords, convulsing and foaming at the mouth.

Kahel had the Miryaks tie them up and dragged them along to Matan, intending to use them as laborers.

Thus, the mana stone farm began smoothly.