To Be a Power in the Shadows!

Proofreader: Nevermind

(In chapter 168 I used “passerby” instead of “mob character”. But Nevermind pointed out the mistake and after some consideration, I decided to use the latter for it is closer to the original meaning.)

I enjoyed the refreshing morning air as I walked out of the tent.

There still were some traces left over from the last night’s banquet.

I really didn’t expect a banquet for the newcomers. Various meats, wine and desserts were prepared for us, and we ate as much as we liked. Everyone was in high spirits. I also did secretly flatter Quinton as well.

“You’ve woken up, young boy?”

“Ah, hello.”

The ojisan (a word used to address a middle-aged man in Japan) who came from countryside approached me. I nodded to greet him.

“Today the mission will begin. Check your equipment carefully.”

“Ah, that’s true.”

The way of starting sentences with ‘ah’ was my way of acting like a mob character.

In fact I was lent a second handed leather armor and a spear, because I didn’t have any. Well there was no other choice for me than to accept.

The leather armor was light and thin, so it shouldn’t obstruct my movements. It’s fine for me as long as it doesn’t do that, but if someone really asked me if it could protect me, I’m not really sure.

The spear I’ve got was a very common one. And the sword can be wielded by anyone, you don’t need any real abilities to stab the enemy in the chest. It matched my mob character’s status so I was quite satisfied.

When I equipped the whole set, I looked like a perfect mob character.

“This armor suits you well, doesn’t it?”

“Ah, no.”

“Come on, boy.”

“Ah, thank you very much.”

The ojisan from countryside and the other guy who mortgaged his wife struck up a conversation with me. Although they were armed with almost the same weapons as I was, they looked more like brigands than soldiers. But it was said that they were decent people, which surprised me.

“Well, if we are in danger, we will protect you, just rest assured.”

“If you are tired, I can carry the luggage for you. I may not look like a strong man, but I’m actually the strongest person in my village!”

“If you get in trouble, just tell me. I once punched a boar so hard that I sent it flying.”

These ojisans showed off their muscles they felt proud of. They were somewhat strict while kind and gentle. It seemed that yesterday, all three of them decided to group up with me. We would act together as a four-member team from now on.

“Ah, thank you very much! Let me massage your shoulders to repay you!”

“Oh, really? Actually, I really get stiff shoulders.”

Great! Now I can become the mob character who flatters people and massage their shoulders.

In fact, I’d noticed that they had somewhat stiff shoulders at a glance. I was quite good at massage. I thought highly of my knowledge of the human body. Since I knew how to destroy a man, then naturally I should know how to treat him.

I touched the shoulder of ojisan sitting there, and checked his bones and muscles. The reason for this seemed to be that the muscles around his shoulder blades were too stiff and his spine was somewhat distorted.

I used my wrists strength to massage his shoulders and relax his muscles. My wrists strength was limited, so I secretly injected magic to further relax his tendons and adjust his spine and shoulder blades.

Well done. Perfect.

“That’s awesome! My shoulders are as light as feathers! Oh, what’s going on?”

Ojisan smiled and shook his shoulders.

Well, I didn’t waste my efforts to practice massage skills on my sister and Alpha.

“Oh, really? Actually, my neck is also hurting.”

“I feel pain in my waist recently. Could you help me with that?”

“Just, just leave it to me.”

I also massaged the remaining two ojisans. Maybe being a plastic surgeon or a masseur was a better choice for me. Powers in the shadows were also very proficient in medical care.

“Wow! It seems like I’m flying in the sky!!”

“Now even if a hundred people will fight against me together, they won’t be my match!!”

Their happiness was the most important thing.

It was said that humans were such creatures – when one made others feel happy, that person would also feel happy. Happiness was contagious.

It turned out that indirect happiness seemed to be better for me.

“We are setting out! Now gather in four rows!”

Quinton issued the order. Then, our march began.

We had only one one hour break at noon, and then we kept on walking until the sun set.

Although everyone had more physical strength than modern Japanese, it was still too hard. Because of the luxurious banquet, I had thought that the work was easy. But actually the work had been laborious from the first day... No, a mob character just needed to follow the orders.

Don’t defy orders and comply with them – this was the rule every mob character should follow.

But I also saw fatigue from the faces of people around me.

Night was falling. We seemed to have entered the forest. I wouldn’t really be surprised if we left someone behind. Did we just walk 50 km today?

But it turns out, that no one fell behind today, after that arduous march. I guess it’s because the morale is really high in the troop. We talked a lot about high-stake gambling at the banquet yesterday.

Goldoh gathered up the people who hadn’t received any professional training to form this troop. Our only advantage was high morale.

However, even if our morale was high, it had a limit. Although it was important to have a drive to do anything, you wouldn’t get anything done if you only had a drive.

Just as I was considering, the march stopped.

“Smother the flames from now on. Don’t make too much noise.”

Goldoh stepped forward after giving instructions.

The bright moon tonight was a big help. The moonlight streamed in through leaves.

With the help of the faint light, we kept marching forward in the forest for a while.

“We will take a short break here.”

Everyone sighed wearily out of relaxation, nearly falling onto the ground.

“However, don’t make any noise. Don’t whisper. Don’t light a fire.”

“But Mr. Goldoh, if we don’t light a fire, we can’t cook...”

“Don’t eat tonight.”

“Eh?”

“We are now in the neighborhood of the Rajta Count’s territory. We will raid the city at night when the dwellers have fallen asleep.”

Although everyone kept silent, a tense atmosphere spread.

“Don’t worry, I can understand your uneasiness, but we will win this battle anyway.”

In order to reassure us, Goldoh told us the details of his battle plan with a smile on his face.