Chapter 24: Equipment Acquisition
「Gahahaha! Sorry for leaving you alone, miss!」
「Un . 」
『I'm enough in terms of weaponry . I'd like you to make me a sheath instead, is that fine?』
「Ou! I'll make the best sheath you've ever seen!」
『We can't pay you too much, though...... We want other equipment as well, after all . 』
「Is that so~? How much is your budget?」
『Leaving some for lodging and medicine, about 150,000 Gorudo . 』
We'll be buying cheap protective gear, but Gallus is a renowned Magic Blacksmith . 150,000 might be a bit low .
「Really . Alright, because I like you guys, I'll sell you one set of equipment and a sheath for that much . 」
『Is that really alright? I'm saved . 』
「This much is fine! Then, what kind of armor would you like? I may be a Blacksmith, but I can also work with leather . I don't mind whatever you choose . 」
『Hmm . Well, what do you think?』
「Lighter is good . 」
「Leather then . My recommendation is to use steel to strengthen the areas that cover your vitals . 」
「I see . 」
「What about headgear?」
「Better with none . Bad visibility . 」
「Then, perhaps an earring for Beastmen? There're types that don't need a piercing, if you'd like . 」
「Nn . 」
「Just a moment, then . 」
Old man Gallus takes multiple pieces of equipment out from a storehouse of some sort . There're various kinds .
「Try out whichever one catches your eye . 」
Name :Remodeled Breastplate of the Flame Bull DEF :88 Durability :330/330
Effect :Fire Resistance ↑ LowName :Remodeled Gauntlet of the Paralysis Clawed Cat DEF :39 Durability :160/160 Effect :Impact Resistance ↑ Low, Paralysis Resistance ↑ LowName :Boots of the Poison Wyrm[1]DEF :52 Durability :200/200Effect :Poison Resistance ↑ LowName :Mithril Earring of the Cat TribeDEF:10 Durability:100/100Effect :Magic Resistance ↑ Low
As a set, the DEF adds up to 189 .
It's weaker than the Guild Master's equipment, but compared to most Adventurers around town it's a bit strong . It's better equipment than I had expected to receive .
The main color of the equipment is black, which suits Fran better than I had anticipated . In addition, two pieces of clothing without any defensive properties were also tailored for her .
『Is it alright giving us such strong equipment?』
「It's fine . Strong Adventurers should be equipped with strong equipment . Above all, this equipment is inferior compared to yourself, so it's quite vexing . Well, anyways, I won't go into the red or anything, so don't worry about it . 」
『Well, Fran?』
「Thank you . 」
「Come again in the future . It's not every day I get an opportunity to analyze an Intelligent Weapon, after all . 」
『Isn't that reason a bit strange?』
「Don't mind it . It's for Appraisal and Discernment . 」
『Well, if that's how it is...』
「Bringing in materials is also welcome, you know? If you bring them in, I'll lower the price of the equipment made out of it . 」
At his words I remembered the strong Demonic Beasts' materials I had stored . Since I won't be selling them to the Guild, wouldn't passing them to old man Gallus for the sake of better equipment be as inconspicous as it gets?
「Materials . 」
『That's right . I'd like you to make some protective gear out of them to dispose of them without attracting attention, old man . 』
「Hou . Putting it like that, their quality must be quite substantial . 」
『They're not from small-fry Demonic Beasts . They're from beings with threat levels of D and C . 』
It wouldn't be strange for an entire Country to take action for Demonic Beasts of Threat Level C . If one such creature appears near a town, the armed forces appearing soon after would be expected .
Even for Adventurers, they're dangerous to the degree that you'd need at least 3 parties — more than 15 people — of Silver ranks .
『Are there any vacant rooms we can use?』
「Yeah, there's an empty room over there . Did you bring them with you?」
「We did . 」
「You have an item bag, then? But where......」
No item bags can be seen from the figure of Fran . She only has clothes, sandals, and me equipped currently .
『It's an ability of mine . 』
「I see . Interesting... For a Sword to have an item box ability...... I had no idea...」
While the old man murmurs and mumbles to himself, I was moved to the vacant room . It was likely a warehouse of some sort originally . It has a dirt floor, a high ceiling, and a sizeable area . I have no complaints .
『Then, I'll take them out . 』
I take out the fur, fangs, and claws of the Tyrant Saber . Next are the poisonous fangs and scales of the Doppel Snake, and followng that is the shell and skin of the Blast Tortoise . With just that, the room was filled with materials .
For the materials of the large Slime Lord, I left them stored and simply conveyed their existence verbally . The whole room would be covered with its slimy liquid if I took it out, after all .
「What the......?! D-Did you kill these? Despite them being materials of high-level C and D ranks?」
『Well...』
「Alone?」
『To be precise, it was just me . I had used Telekinesis to soar around at that time . 』
「Hahahahahaha! How fierce! You must have quite the variety in abilities . 」
『If one's basic abilities are low, versatility is key . 』
「If it's this, then... Equipment of considerable quality can be made . It'll be gear at a level that would be out of reach to a bronze rank . 」
That should be expected, it's material of only strong Demonic Beasts after all .
「However, these are all leather materials . I can't handle it all alone . I'll have to cooperate with someone . After that, that guy'll —」
『Um, old man?』
「Oops, excuse me . Because there's such interesting work after a long time, I've grown a tad excited . I wonder how many times you'll surprise me before you're satisfied!」
While saying so, a big smile floats on his face .
「Then, will you?」
「Of course!」
『However, it'll be a custom-made set provided by a skilled artisan . How much would be sufficient old man?』
「That's right...... Even with materials provided, the price usually wouldn't dip below 2,000,000 Gorudo . 」
『Seriously? That's absolutely impossible . 』
「This material... Is it fine if I take it all?」
『Aah, yeah that's fine . 』
「Then, the negotiations'll be simple . There're far too many materials for the equipment of the young lady alone, so I'll buy the surplus materials . For the price, how about we settle with a complete offset of the crafting cost?」
『That'd be a great help . 』
「Alright, deal . 」
「How long?」
「It'll take one month . 」
『It'll take longer than expected,』
「What are you saying? That time is already pushing it! Well, that's just because of the material, of course . It's an odd job, for sure, but thankfully there're enough raw materials to work with, so it'll work out one way or another . 」
『It can't be helped . What do you think, Fran?』
「Nn . Looking forward . 」
「Ou! Leave it to me!」
Old man Gallus then proceeds to prepare several iron barrels to load the body of the Slime Lord into . The slime seems to have multiple uses .
「I've looked already, but... Are there no Magic Stones in these?」
「None . 」
「Really . That's too bad . 」
『Can Magic Stones be used in equipment as well?』
「Ou . During creation, I can mix them in . For example, using the fang of this Doppel Snake Poison Resistance is assured for armor; for weapons, toxic effects would be expected . However, those effects would increase with the addition of the Doppel Snake's Magic Stone . Using other stones would also apply an effect, but the materials have a natural affinity with the Magic Stone of the same kind . 」
To think that Magic Stones had such a use... Unfortunately, their Magic Stones have already been absorbed by me . Perhaps I should leave Magic Stones that have Skills I have already in the future . They can be absorbed from storage at any time if they turn out useless .
『I'll be careful in the future . 』
「Ou, that's good then . 」
『Then I suppose we'll take our leave for today . 』
「Bye bye . 」
『I'm sorry for troubling you in various ways . 』
「Hahaha! Just look forward to the finished products! Make sure to come back for the sheath in 3 days, too . 」
『Understood . 』
Because we had processed the materials, strong armors could be ordered . Really, it was quite a good encounter .
『You look good, Fran . You match the look of a fledgling Adventurer to a tee . 』
「Thank you . 」
『Next is...... Do you need underwear?』
「 ? Not really . 」
『I-Is that so?』
Because she said so, it's alright, right?
No, that won't do . Certainly the hurdle is high when it comes to lingerie and undergarments, but if I back away now, I'll end up running away forever! If I do so, Fran will lose quality as a lady!
Here and now, I must take the offensive!
『That's no good . We're going to buy some underwear!』
[1] "Wyrm" should actually be "Sub/Inferior Flying Dragon", but "Boots of the Poison Sub-Dragon" sounds kinda... Well... Weird . Especially because the Wyvern way back when was a sub-dragon of sorts, making the identity of the boots' materials quite vague compared to other gear . If you have a better recommendation, lay it on me . 劣飛竜 .