Brian Carter would often go to watch Henry Foster practice swordsmanship along the way, and of course Evan Brooks, the tagalong, would follow behind him. However, since Brian Carter had already taught everything he needed to, now Henry Foster only needed to slowly comprehend and practice on his own, so there was no worry about Evan Brooks the mage watching.

Mages couldn’t see any mystery in Henry Foster’s sword techniques. Magic and battle aura are two separate systems; no mage would practice martial skills, and no warrior would practice magic—except for magic swordsmen. It’s not that the two systems conflict, but rather that a person’s energy is limited. If you try to practice both, you’ll never have the chance to break through to the level of Sword God or Archmage; some might not even reach Sword Saint or Master Mage in their lifetime. So, no one practices both magic and battle aura at the same time. Magic swordsmen only learn basic magic, just enough to imbue their swords with magical attacks, but mainly focus on cultivating battle aura.

Evan Brooks couldn’t see anything special in Henry Foster’s sword practice; now he was simply following Brian Carter around, feeling that Brian Carter had a certain charisma. There was also another reason: the things Brian Carter made.

Once, while Henry Foster was practicing swordsmanship, Brian Carter, feeling bored, made beggar’s chicken and a pot of fish soup. The fish was, of course, for the kitten, and the remaining beggar’s chicken was split among the three of them. After the two finished wolfing down the beggar’s chicken, they stared at Brian Carter for a long time, their eyes full of admiration and satisfaction—or so Brian Carter thought.

When Brian Carter took out seasonings from his spatial pouch, the other two were both shocked. Although they didn’t have spatial pouches themselves, they knew that such an item wasn’t something ordinary people could afford. A single spatial pouch cost at least ten thousand gold coins. They wondered why a nobleman like Brian Carter would become a mercenary, and how a nobleman could have such good cooking skills.

Brian Carter only had a basic understanding of magic, so he didn’t teach Evan Brooks. Since a mage’s practice isn’t visible, Brian Carter had no idea how special his magic was—it could be said to be one of a kind.

Along the way, aside from a few petty thieves, there was no trouble at all, and even those thieves were quickly dealt with. Brian Carter had expected something exciting to happen—usually in novels, unexpected enemies would appear in such situations, and he’d get to play the hero. But nothing happened at all. Novels really can’t be trusted.

Just like that, Brian Carter completed his first mercenary mission and arrived safely at the Tianxiang Imperial City.

After handing in the mission and receiving his reward, Brian Carter’s mercenary rank was promoted, jumping straight to D-rank, an increase of three levels. This was rare; normally, a G-rank mercenary couldn’t take on a B-rank mission and could only accept missions one level above their own. This time, the caravan didn’t want to attract attention, so they posted an escort mission with no rank restriction. Sometimes, being escorted by mercenaries is the best cover, as long as the mission isn’t too obvious.

The woman in the carriage was a well-known figure welcomed by many nations, and this was her most discreet way of entering Tianxiang Imperial City.

After saying goodbye to Mr. Foster, Henry Foster, and Evan Brooks, Brian Carter planned to return to the Longtian family for a visit. Of course, he also bid farewell to the woman in the carriage. They’d chatted a few times along the way; although he still didn’t know her face, they were at least acquainted, so a polite farewell was necessary.

“Brian Carter, where will you be staying, and how can I contact you?” To everyone’s surprise, before Brian Carter left, the woman asked this question. Everyone looked at her and Brian Carter in astonishment, hardly believing she was the one who asked.

Brian Carter was surprised too, but quickly replied, “I’ll be at the Long... Xiang Inn.” He thought it wouldn’t be good to mention the Long family, so he changed it to the Longxiang Inn in the imperial city, an old and reputable inn where, according to Ethan Harris’s memories, he’d stayed a few times—usually with some women.

“Miss, if you need any help, you can come to me. In this imperial city, there’s nothing I can’t handle. If I say the word, even the emperor can be seen.”

The woman smiled and replied, “Oh, I see.” Luckily, she wore a veiled hat, so no one could see her smile. Otherwise, Mr. Foster would have been even more shocked—he’d never seen her smile at anyone before.

The woman also wondered to herself what was going on, but thought, Brian Carter, we’ll meet again soon. When you see who I am, will you be shocked? Hehe, you definitely will. Through their conversations, she had developed a strong interest in Brian Carter.

Brian Carter had no idea that these few conversations would bring him trouble; otherwise, he wouldn’t have talked to her even if his life depended on it.

On his way to the Long family, Henry Foster and Evan Brooks caught up with him. Evan Brooks immediately asked, “Brian Carter, is the Longxiang Inn this way? I’ve been there before, and we should be heading toward the west side of the city. Why are you going east?” Henry Foster didn’t say anything, but his eyes showed his doubt.

Brian Carter didn’t want them to know his true identity yet. He wanted to check in with the Ethan Harris family for safety, then continue his mercenary life and travel the continent. He might travel with these two, so he didn’t want them to have any special opinions about him. What Brian Carter didn’t know was that the two already had a very special impression of him.