Chapter 28: Chapter 28: Do You Have Time?
Zelir glanced back at the man with the handlebar mustache, feeling more and more certain that he had the face of a swindler.
Four Gold Coins. Was he trying to play him for a fool?
Not even the highest-quality Heavy Pressure Technique Magic Scroll could sell for that price.
’He must think all Mages are rich, so we’re just pigs to be slaughtered.’
"Fifty Silver Coins," Zelir tossed out a price casually.
"What?!"
The handlebar-mustached man’s voice immediately turned shrill.
"Fifty Silver Coins? Sir, you must be joking! You can’t even buy the parchment for Fifty Silver Coins, and this is a Magic Scroll!"
"You know as well as I do that this is a Magic Scroll, not some family heirloom. Its quality is average, and the Spell Structure left by the inscriber isn’t very clear. Don’t tell me you didn’t know."
Zelir said calmly, "I imagine you’ve already had another Mage appraise it, haven’t you?"
The man’s expression stiffened. "Well... you can’t just slash the price like that! Fifty Silver Coins is absolutely out of the question. I can lower it to three Gold Coins for you."
"A Gold Coin," Zelir said, his face expressionless.
"A Gold Coin is too low."
The man shook his head. "Two gold and fifty silver. That’s my bottom line."
"The most I’ll pay is one gold and twenty silver."
"Two Gold Coins! How about that? Two Gold Coins, that’s already a huge discount."
"Then you’d better keep it and sell it to someone else." Zelir turned to leave again without the slightest hesitation.
"One gold and fifty silver! I can’t go any lower!"
The handlebar-mustached man gritted his teeth and called out his final price. "Not one cent more to give!"
Zelir paused.
He currently had three gold and twelve silver on him. Spending one gold and fifty silver on a Scroll...
’Alright, that’s acceptable.’
"Deal."
With the newly purchased Heavy Pressure Technique Scroll in his pocket, Zelir arrived at the outskirts of town where he usually practiced Magic.
He unrolled the slightly yellowed parchment Scroll; it was blank.
Zelir channeled his Spiritual Power into it. A faint glow appeared on his body, and the parchment also began to emit a soft light.
The hidden secret within the Scroll opened its gates, and a brand-new Spell Structure flooded into Zelir’s sea of consciousness.
From the input interface to the Magic Power conduits, then the acceleration circuits... the guidance runes...
As he had suspected, the quality of this Magic Scroll wasn’t good. The inscriber’s skill was clearly not up to par, as many parts of the Spell Structure were blurry and indistinct.
For anyone else, it would probably take a great deal of effort, perhaps a week or two of study, to reconstruct it.
Fortunately, Zelir possessed Technique Celestial Calculation, so a minor issue like a partially blurred Spell Structure was quickly resolved.
After only ten-odd minutes, the Spell Structure for the Heavy Pressure Technique was clearly presented in his sea of consciousness. The number of spells he had mastered rose to six.
The faint glow on the Scroll then dissipated, turning it into a piece of perfectly ordinary scrap paper.
"Whew... Heavy Pressure Technique."
Zelir clenched his fist. "Let’s see how this works."
But it was hard to judge the effectiveness of this kind of Magic just by casting it into the air.
Zelir scanned his surroundings and spotted a bird perched on a high branch nearby.
The distance gave the bird a sufficient sense of security. It tilted its head, looking down at Zelir under the tree, not understanding what he was doing.
’You’re the one...’
Zelir had selected his target.
After a moment of charging, he unleashed the Heavy Pressure Technique!
"BANG!"
The bird sensed something was wrong and was just about to spread its wings and fly away when an invisible force suddenly erupted!
The Heavy Pressure Technique Zelir had guided burst downward in a surge of Magic Power.
The finger-thick branch snapped with a CRACK, and the bird plummeted from the air, slamming stiffly onto the ground.
"Whoa..."
Zelir was a little surprised.
’The effect isn’t half bad.’
Once charged, the release was an Instant Cast, making it practically impossible for an enemy to dodge. It was impossible to defend against.
Although it didn’t have much killing power, in the heat of battle, this brief delaying effect could be surprisingly effective. It might even be enough to turn the tables.
...
For the next few days, Zelir constantly practiced his Magic, working to digest the four-point increase to his Intelligence.
"Fireball Skill!"
"BANG!"
A brilliant Fireball blossomed from his palm, then shot straight into the river, hissing as it sent up a cloud of white steam.
Zelir’s control over these few Level Two Magic spells had now become quite proficient.
Additionally, his analysis progress for Embrace of the Mist Veil had reached 52%, while Arcane Missile was at 64%.
Both spells still needed some time before their analysis was complete.
However, one thing continued to puzzle Zelir.
Even though his Intelligence had increased by four points, his empty-handed Casting Speed hadn’t improved at all, remaining stuck at just over four seconds.
Every time Zelir tried to optimize the Spell Structure, he failed, as if some invisible threshold was blocking him.
After some analysis, Zelir speculated and came to a conclusion.
Increasing Attributes didn’t shorten casting time with every point.
A Mage’s growth curve was staggered, not linear.
Only when Intelligence reached a specific threshold could the Spell Structure be optimized again.
He just didn’t know what that threshold was.
’Looks like I’ll have to take on more missions and level up again.’
...
「Dawn.」
Red Beard Inn.
Marcus sat on the edge of his bed. He opened his leather toolkit, which contained two long whetstones and a small jar of thick, paste-like maintenance oil.
In the faint morning light, the patterns on the blade were clearly visible, as was a residual dark-red gleam.
Marcus sat quietly for a moment before picking up a strip of damp Linen cloth.
He wiped the surface bit by bit. After cleaning it, he began to hone the edge with the two gray whetstones.
"SHHH... SHHH..."
The grating sound was a bit harsh, and tiny iron filings fell away with a soft RUSTLE.
With Marcus’s careful polishing, the lines of the blade became smooth once more, and it regained its proper sharpness.
Marcus began to oil the Battle Saber.
The oil paste was spread evenly over every inch of the blade.
Not only did it prevent the steel from rusting in humid environments, but it also allowed the Battle Saber to be drawn more smoothly. When the blade cut into an enemy’s body, it would also slice through flesh and blood like silk.
After completing all the steps, Marcus tested the edge with his thumb. He was very satisfied with this maintenance session.
Just then, a knock suddenly sounded at the door.
"KNOCK KNOCK..."
"Come in," Marcus said, sheathing his blade.
The wooden door opened, and the person who entered was Zelir.
"Hey."
Zelir greeted him.
"Got a minute? Want to go to the Adventurer’s Association and pick up a mission together?"
The result was as expected.
"Of course," Marcus said with a smile.
Before heading to the Adventurer’s Association, Marcus and Zelir took a detour to the inn where Valles was temporarily staying.
He happened to be free as well.
Valles didn’t hesitate for long before accepting their invitation.
After the last few missions, Valles had already grown quite accustomed to this team.
