Demon Hunter: I have a red gourd

Chapter 11 Bloody Baron?
"So, Master, do you understand our difficulties?" The young man held Ivan's hand and spoke sincerely.

"The lord has issued a death order. If we don't kill that beast, I and all of my brothers will die." He looked at the soldiers behind him, each of whom had helplessness and fear in their eyes. "We know the lord's temper too well. He's definitely not joking."

"That Scissortail Dragon..." The young man paused. "We've tried it, but we lost seven of our men and nothing. Master, only a professional like you can handle it!"

"My fiancée said that as long as I can survive this disaster, we will get married when I get back. I don't want to die here!"

"Alright, alright, stop saying that." Ivan patted him on the back. "Don't put a flag on yourself, bastard. It's unlucky."

"By the way, we've been talking for so long, and I still don't know your name."

After this conversation, Ivan found that this young man was a very rare person he had seen since he came to this world. He had clear logic and fluent speech.

Probably well educated.

"Master, my name is Philip Strenger, and I am currently the captain of the guards under Baron Velerard of Crow's Nest."

"Philip Strenger? Why does this name sound so familiar?" Ivan touched his chin and thought for a while.

Wait, Philip Strenger, isn't that the name of the Bloody Baron? The local tyrant of Velen in The Witcher 3?

Wasn't he a fat, slovenly old man? Looking at this rather handsome and thin young man in front of him, Ivan couldn't really connect him with the image in the game.

"What's your fiancée's name?"

"Master, her name is Anna, and I love her very much."

It seems that it is him, the Bloody Baron.

However, if he knew that his fiancée Anna later betrayed him when he was away at war, and that he killed her lover in anger, she began to deliberately provoke him every time he was drunk, tempting him to hit her, and secretly instigated her daughter to be hostile to her father, eventually tearing his family apart... would he still love her so much?
Well, I think he will, judging by his subsequent performance.

"Master, do you know my fiancée?" Feeling that Ivan was looking at him with a strange look, the young man couldn't help but ask.

"I don't know him, I just thought the name sounded familiar." Ivan smiled and chose not to remind him.

After all, no one believes that they have the ability to predict the future, and speaking rashly will only make people feel like they are trying to sow discord.

Looking at Philip's uneasy eyes, Ivan felt a little evil and decided to make one last test of his identity.

"Oh, I just remembered something else. Philip Strenger, want to play Gwent?"

"Great! No one in the entire guard can beat me!" His previous sadness instantly vanished, and a smile spread across the young man's face, brimming with confidence. "Master, I didn't expect you to play this latest dwarf card game!"

It tastes right, it’s definitely this one!
He held down the young man's hand as he pulled out a card from his waist. "I'm kidding. Didn't you come to me to hunt the Scissortail Dragon? Let's talk about the commission."

"Oh, yes." A flash of disappointment flashed across Philip's face. "So, Master, have you accepted our commission? Just ask for the reward. We'll pool our money and we won't let you down!"

"We witchers have our professional ethics. We won't ask for exorbitant prices just because your situation is urgent." Ivan smiled. "Philip, I'll give you two choices."

"The first one is nine hundred Oren. This is the guide price my mentors told me, and there is absolutely no exaggeration." Oren is the currency of Temeria. Although it is not as liquid as the Novigrad crown, Temeria earns money and Temeria spends it, and they can't come up with other currencies here.

Now one Novigrad crown can be exchanged for about six and a half Temeria orens. Nine hundred orens is about one hundred and forty crowns, which is a very fair price for a medium-sized monster.

Philip looked at the soldier behind him and nodded.

They could still afford the nine hundred orens if they pooled their money, but they didn't get any reward for helping the lord eliminate the monsters, and they still had to pay for it out of their own pockets. It was really frustrating!
"Master, what about the second type?"

"The second option is: I won't charge a single gold coin, but you must help me find a skilled blacksmith to repair my equipment." Ivan showed them the chipped plate armor. "My armor and silver sword were severely damaged in a fierce battle. This damage is enough to fight against water ghosts, but if you want to hunt monsters like the Scissortail Dragon, they must be completely repaired before you can set out."

According to Ivan's estimation, it would cost about 1,100 orens to repair his equipment, and he would have to go through the trouble of finding a blacksmith who could repair witcher equipment, so he hoped that the people in front of him would choose the second one.

"I choose the second one, Master!" Philip's answer was so decisive that it surprised Ivan.

"Would you not reconsider? Repairing my equipment might cost more than nine hundred orens."

"No need," Philip said with a smile on his face. "There's a master blacksmith in Crow's Nest hired by the lord. We guards can ask him to make equipment for us. We have a fixed quota every year and he doesn't charge us!"

"If you need him to repair other equipment, you can also use the Baron's name and put it on his account!"

"But if the lord finds large expenditures when checking the accounts, you won't be in an easy situation, right?" Ivan was stunned.

"I don't care!" Philip spat on the ground. "The lord only checks the accounts at the end of each year. By then I'd have already slipped away!"

"What happened this time has made me fully realize his true nature. My brothers and I have already made an agreement. As long as we can get through this, we will collectively resign and join the army in Vizima!"

"Fighting for Temeria is both an honor and will make Anna and I's future lives better. If I work for that stingy Viserad, I'll die at his hands sooner or later!"

"It seems like we both win." Ivan smiled. "Would you like to have a happy cooperation?"

"It's a pleasure to work with you!" Philip shook Ivan's hand.

[The copy challenge function has been unlocked. Please draw a copy to challenge it. ]

The sudden appearance of the golden light screen in front of him made Ivan's face change. The new system function he had been waiting for a day was finally unlocked.

"I still have to pack my bags today. Come find me here tomorrow and we'll go to the blacksmith together. Once we've fixed our equipment, I'll help you hunt that Scissortail Dragon. How about that?"

"no problem."

(End of this chapter)