A hunter. [ Claude repeats that and considers the clarification. Which feels like an important one even if he has yet to know the whole context, but it's enough for that difference to be noted. ] I suppose you don't mean a hunter of the variety that goes looking for game alone, then.

[ It's difficult to not think of Leonie then as she fits into both of those categories he'd mentioned - just one more memory of home scattered in there with all the rest. Though it wouldn't be something he necessarily has in common with Geralt if that's the case, it could be a connection all the same. He joins Geralt in observing the pool festivities, still searching for a comparison all the while. ]

Both are common where I'm from, though hunting for food is probably more so when it comes to the term hunter. Mercenaries certainly exist too as my professor was one before joining the academy. But the ones I know of mercenaries also tend to handle more than just bands of bandits, what with various beasts and monsters roaming the land. They also tend to favor swords, which is what yours reminded me of when I saw it.

[ It's far from his most subtle floating of something out there to see if it'll bring back any more information, but. Worth a shot. ]