Demon-Hunting Genius Mage

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]

Chapter 43

"You're late."

As I entered the blacksmith's workshop, the dwarf owner stood up as if she had been waiting.

Dusting off her hands, she brought a wooden box from the top of the large anvil.

"Is this it? Did it work?"

"Yes. Check it out."

Thump, thump, thump!

What would it look like?

With anticipation, I slowly opened the lid of the box.

Click.

"Wow..."

Inside, a pair of black gloves, clearly made of high-quality leather, were neatly placed.

A gold band ran along the lines, and the wrist part was designed with a strap so that it wouldn't easily come off.

It was reasonably standard and seemed to go well with the robe I had just purchased, so I liked the appearance for now.

But what matters in a weapon is not design, but performance.

"Can I try them on?"

Perhaps sensing my excitement, the dwarf owner chuckled and nodded.

"They're yours."

"...Then."

Slide.

I immediately put on the gloves.

I simultaneously felt the change in mana.

'1 Circle increase.'

It was the same feeling of fullness I got when I held the [Holy Staff].

It seemed that the unique effect of the [Holy Staff], which increased the Circle, had been successfully inherited.

But if I was satisfied with just that, there would be no point in getting a new weapon.

"Well..."

Whoosh!

I immediately channeled mana over my gloved hand.

Swoosh!

The mana carrying my will flowed up my arm without any sense of incongruity and formed a sphere on my palm.

The process was much smoother than when I handled mana with the [Holy Staff].

Furthermore, although subtle, I could notice it.

The time it took for the mana to reach my hand had also been shortened.

'She said it had good mana conductivity...'

I could certainly understand why good leather was used.

It wasn't a huge difference that I could clearly feel, but it was a significant change that would have a big impact in battle.

'Good.'

Swish!

I immediately moved on to the next step.

Imbuing the sphere with the light attribute and transforming its shape.

The transformed shape was that of a sword, which I had practiced at the academy.

A much more stable sword of light was created than when I made it with my bare hands.

"Hup!"

Slash!

With a shout, the sword of light that I swung in the air drew a smooth arc.

Just as I had hoped.

To be honest, I thought it would be a bit uncomfortable...

"Whew..."

This completely exceeded my expectations.

It felt like I was handling magic with my bare hands.

The usability was so excellent that if I closed my eyes, I would forget I was even wearing gloves.

And yet, I could fully benefit from the effects of the equipment, so it was a very satisfying finished product.

"You wield magic in a peculiar way."

"Haha... I guess I do."

"So, do you like it?"

"Yes, it feels good to use. The magic conduction is definitely fast."

"That's good to hear. I was worried because this was my first time inheriting into gloves. It gave me a bit of trouble."

"Wait, it's your first time?"

"Yes."

The dwarf owner nodded nonchalantly.

"Huh..."

They say the god of equipment is a distant ancestor of the dwarves... It seems like that's not just an empty saying.

How could this be the work of someone making it for the first time?

She had the skill of someone who had made it at least a hundred times.

"...That's amazing."

"Well, I've made a living doing this all my life. Anyway... it's time to pay up, isn't it?"

"Ah."

That's right, I had forgotten about that, engrossed in the equipment.

This wasn't free.

Thump, thump, thump!

My body stiffened and my heart pounded at the mention of payment.

In a negative sense, of course.

"How much... is it?"

Stiff with tension, I carefully opened my mouth.

I hadn't received any prior notice about the cost, so I had no idea how much it would be.

Moreover, since the quality of the item was also good, it was only natural to be apprehensive...

"Just give me 200 gold coins."

200 gold coins.

It was a large sum, but fortunately, it was an amount I could afford with the money I had.

Of course, I would have to empty out my entire current fortune.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, the money I had left after buying the other equipment was exactly around 200 gold coins.

'...Oh dear.'

To be honest, I thought I would have money left over.

Usually, in games, the crafting cost wasn't as high as the cost of materials.

I was going to use the remaining money to buy various consumables like potions and scrolls...

'I guess I'll have to give up.'

It seemed like I wouldn't have the luxury to do that.

Well, I should be thankful that I didn't have to work off the cost with manual labor here.

"...Here you go."

"Good."

Clink, clink.

The owner received the gold coins with a bright face and rummaged through her coin pouch.

It seemed like she was meticulous when it came to these kinds of calculations.

"Hmm, it's exactly right. You can go now."

Having finished counting, the owner dusted off her hands with a satisfied look.

Seeing that, I got a rough sense of what kind of person this dwarf was.

A bit prickly, but highly skilled, and well aware of her own abilities... Kind of like a workaholic?

Overall, she was the type who got along well with me.

'Maybe I'll see her often.'

I was willing to revisit a blacksmith who could craft this level of equipment.

Well, the high price was a drawback... but it was better than having poor skills.

"I'll come again."

With those words, I left the blacksmith's workshop.

The sun had completely set.

"It's time to go."

Checking the time, I quickly headed to another location.

There was a place I had to stop by before meeting my companions.

The place I arrived at was the Artis Request Office.

It was time to receive the requests I had asked Lena for.

Knock, knock, knock.

"...Come in."

After a light knock, Lena's voice came from inside.

For some reason, it sounded like she was on the verge of death.

Well, she had been up for two nights, so she must be exhausted.

With a slightly worried heart, I opened the door to the request office.

And.

"...You're here."

I saw Lena in a much worse state than I had expected.

She was completely drained, like a seaweed soaked in water, her face buried in the table...

Unable to even lift her head, Lena continued speaking in that state.

"There really aren't many requests in this area. But I gathered as many as I could... Here."

Slide.

Lena, still face down, pushed the organized request forms on the table.

"Most of them are subjugation requests. Not many have decent rewards, so keep that in mind."

Judging by the thickness... about twenty sheets?

It was more than I had expected.

"Oh, and this."

Lena then held out a box that was on the other side of the table.

"A pendant."

"Pendant?"

"Yes, the reward you were supposed to receive before."

"Ah."

It seemed like she was talking about the [Pendant of the Holy Oil] that was offered as a reward for the Aldeon request.

'Good timing. It will be helpful for the hunt.'

With that thought, I took the request forms and the box, and then carefully asked Lena,

"...But are you okay?"

"..."

Silence followed.

Lena didn't answer.

Suddenly, a chilling feeling ran down my spine, and I quickly reached out to check Lena's nose.

Whew, whew.

Fortunately, she was breathing.

It seemed she hadn't died from overwork.

"...That was a surprise."

As I was feeling relieved, her breathing soon turned into light snoring.

Zzz-

She had fallen into a deep sleep in that short time.

"Huh..."

Rather than finding the situation funny, I felt it was amazing.

Even when pushed to the brink of collapse, she fulfilled her role to the end and fell asleep.

"A pro. She's a pro."

Indeed, her mental strength was commendable.

It also meant that her desire to grow the request office was that strong.

Well, it didn't matter either way.

In the end, the more I grew, the more this request office would grow with me.

Anyway,

"Shall we go?"

There was really not much time left until the appointed time.

I started walking, anticipating what my newly equipped companions would look like.

***

Meanwhile, at the clock tower in Dmitri Square, the meeting place.

"Hehe, hahaha."

Thompson, who was sitting there, chuckled while fiddling with something.

The reason he was laughing wasn't because he had gotten new equipment, nor because he was the first to arrive at the meeting place.

It was because he had purchased a gift for Yuhan.

"This, this, I'm looking forward to seeing his reaction!"

Just imagining Yuhan's reaction when he gave him this made him laugh.

Of course, based on what he had observed so far, Yuhan was someone who rarely showed changes in expression or revealed his emotions...

But even he would be different this time.

-Level up.

He was definitely someone who knew about the existence of 'soul power'.

"Well, it seems like it's called by a slightly different name here... but the name doesn't matter. He'll definitely love it! Hahaha!"

Thompson was sure Yuhan would be happy with the gift.

To those who didn't believe, it was worse than dog food, but to those who did, a soul power artifact was more precious than anything.

Moreover, this artifact had a very convenient activation method; its effect was activated just by carrying it without any special usage.

He would definitely be satisfied, and this would further increase his chances of becoming a hero.

At the same time, it would further increase the chances of Thompson's dream coming true.

Thompson only wished for one thing.

To make Yuhan a 'hero'.

And to become a hero's companion himself.

"Khehehe, what luck. To get this at a time like this!"

Thompson admired his luck as he indulged in happy fantasies.

Indeed, it was luck worth admiring.

How could he meet a peddler selling this right after he thought about getting a soul power artifact?

This was definitely a revelation from God.

A revelation from God to raise Yuhan!

"Well, thanks to this, my body is a bit lighter... but Mr. First Place will understand."

Although he had spent most of his money buying this artifact, it was a minor issue.

It was difficult to find equipment that suited him anyway.

This was because Thompson's fighting style was a bit different from other mages.

To find equipment that would help with his fighting style of hitting and getting hit while covered in magic, he would probably have to have it custom-made.

Above all, the size problem was the most serious.

Weapons were fine since he could just about wield them, but armor and accessories were impossible to wear.

Robes tailored for other frail mages couldn't contain the vessel that was Thompson.

That's why he decided to buy this artifact.

It was a wise choice.

They were about to go hunting, and it was better to buy something than to let his money just sit there, wasn't it?

"As I thought, I'm smarter than I look!"

Just as he was admiring his extraordinary luck and intelligence.

Thud, thud.

"Oh? Mister, you're early."

Finally, the voice he had been waiting for rang out.

It was Yuhan.

[Translator - Prøks]

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