The remainder of the week Avery was contracted as security for Dirluc Mining went by without incident.
There was not a single pirate that came within the vicinity of the large cluster of mining and mercenary vessels after the first attack.
This could have been for many reasons, but the greatest was probably the impossibility of striking at the mining vessels now that they were all grouped up and surrounded by a force of over a hundred two and three star mercenaries.
After two large scale raids against them, Dirluc Mining was not taking any chances. If the space pirates in the sector wanted at their workers and ores, they would have to bring several hundreds, if not over a thousand fighters to break through the experienced mercenaries protecting the mining ships.
Of course, any such massive assault would only end up with the Alliance Police in the area intervening and assisting with taking out all the outlaws. There were simply no opportunities left for the pirates.
"Well, that's the end of my contract. I'm heading back to Yuson II to officially finish the job with the Association and sell off the loot I grabbed." Avery said over comms to some of the other mercenaries he had gotten acquainted with.
He had become a bit friendly with the first two he had been stationed with, and they had been introducing him to some of their acquaintances that were among the security forces.
Naturally, he also crossed paths with the four veterans that had greeted him back at the association branch on Yuson II and tipped him off to this job.
It turned out they were all three star mercenaries and one of the top teams in the sector.
"We've all got another week, but once we're done, let's meet up for some drinks. I want to hear more about what old Urs put you through." The leader of the four veterans said.
The other associates he had been talking with likewise asked him to meet up with him later and they could all trade stories. With some of them completing their contracts today as well, it was likely that later would not be too far away.
Having finished up his assignment, Avery set the coordinates to Yuson II into his ship's computer and let it do the rest.
Soon the lightspeed drive started to hum, and only a moment later he was zipping through space towards his home.
"Now for my time as a salvager to pay off." Avery said, a smile on his face as he dropped out of lightspeed a couple thousand kilometers away from Yuson II.
Normally new mercenaries lacked the necessary knowledge and connections to sell the items they procured from defeated pirates.
Avery though, had built this foundation while still hawking whatever he could find floating abandoned in space.
Certainly, the Mercenary Association would buy some types of items. Mostly weapons and shield generators. However, the price was always below the market so that they could turn a profit. They were not a charity after all.
"Okay, that ought to do it."
While he was waiting for permission to dock, Avery contacted the business and people he normally sold specific goods to and struck a deal with them. It was his first time dealing with so much at once, but the transactions had still mostly been routine.
Selling all of this loot had netted him another twenty-four thousand Krenin. That, along with the six thousand a day he was being paid for his security work, and the combined total of the pirates' bounties reaching two hundred two thousand, Avery had made himself quite a bit of cash.
Truthfully, it was such a large amount he was honestly awestruck just thinking about it.
Nevertheless, it was still far from enough.
Not only would he need over a million to pay for his father's restorative procedure, Urs had given him a list of expensive gear and augmentations he should prioritize obtaining.
Then he also needed to save up some money in case his ship got damaged, and to pay for resupplying ammo and energy. The anti-force rounds his auto turret fired off were not cheap.
"Well, it's the first step towards my goals and proof that I can do it." Avery murmured; the determination that had filled his eyes still as strong as ever.
When he received permission to land, Avery entered the information and let the ship's auto docker do its thing.
Just a couple minutes later, his landing gear set down on solid ground and he had returned to Yuson II.
The first thing that Avery did was head straight to the Mercenary Association. It was time to collect all of the Krenin he had earned.
With a bit of pep in his step, he walked into the sleek Association building and found that it was bustling. A lot of other mercenaries that had only signed up for a single week with Dirluc mining had just returned.
Among them were the two that Avery had first worked with, and recognizing him, they came over to give their greetings.
"Hey, what's up. First time we finally get to meet face to face."
"I bet you're here to collect your reward as well. Once your done, how about going out to get some celebratory drinks with us."
Avery smiled at the two of them and gave a positive response. He had been enjoying going to bars and listening to the stories of mercenaries and traveling merchants for a while now. It had been something to take his mind off his family's situation from time to time.
Now though, he would not just be a young salvager sitting off to the side and hardly being a part of the conversation, but another mercenary with his own tales to tell. Albeit only a couple considering his short career so far.
Eventually he made it to the front of the line where the same receptionist that registered him was waiting.
"Ah, good to see you again. Looks like your first job went off without a hitch. The man said as he processed Avery's data. "Whoa! You took out nineteen pirates on your own. That's almost double what the previous best that came through today did. Guess all that training you did with Urs wasn't for nothing."
The man was visibly impressed by Avery's feat. It was not often that a two star mercenary took down so many hostiles in one go.
With a bit of exuberance, he completed the paperwork necessary for Avery's job to be considered complete and deposited all the money he had earned into his account.
With that, Avery's stores of Krenin had ballooned hirer than it ever had before. He was sitting just a shade under three hundred thousand. A tidy sum considering he had only been working as a mercenary for a week.