NoveLight ™
The next morning, after giving a brief report to Arpina before departing the city, Leon and Ria set out on their journey.
The Free City closest to Astellia was a five-day flight away.
On the first day after leaving Astellia, as the sky began to darken, they decided to rest for a while.
“I’ll make stew,” Ria offered.
She began pulling ingredients and cooking tools from her dimensional pouch, one by one. Various ingredients, pots, and even spice jars seemed to endlessly emerge from the magical bag.
“…You like cooking, huh?”
“Not really. When I’m training, I don’t usually eat properly,” Ria replied with a light smile.
Bread and dried meat—those were the staples of training food.
Leon, who had resigned himself to his usual dried meat, found himself awkwardly waiting as Ria cooked.
It would have been nice to find some game to hunt, but if he went looking, he would probably only encounter monsters.
Orc meat wasn’t exactly appetizing.
“Is there anything I can help with?”
“No, that’s fine. If you’re bored, you can just sit by me and watch.”
Leon quietly sat next to her.
The crackling of the campfire echoed around them.
Perhaps this journey was something he wouldn’t have experienced if he had gone alone.
‘All I’ve done is keep moving forward until now.’
Of course, he wasn’t planning to relax just yet.
The purpose of visiting the Free City was ultimately to repair his A-rank artifact, gather herbs for elixirs, and strengthen his abilities. The issue with the Blood Mages was still unresolved, and he couldn’t let his guard down so soon.
‘I wonder what it would feel like to reach the level of an Archmage someday…’
For a moment, he allowed himself that thought. But that path was still far off.
As Leon’s thoughts deepened, Kito, who had been dozing above him, stirred.
She observed Ria’s cooking quietly before speaking.
“Make it delicious.”
Ria, hearing Kito’s words, glanced at her with her characteristic impassive expression, then focused back on her cooking.
Feeling awkward, Leon interjected.
“You don’t eat human food.”
“But I should at least taste it, shouldn’t I?”
Leon raised an eyebrow in confusion.
“Why…?”
“There’s a test to be done, after all.”
“A test? What kind of test?”
As Leon gave her an exasperated look, Kito smirked slightly.
“Oh, there is such a thing.”
Leon could only shake his head.
When the meal was ready, Leon sat beside Ria, picked up a spoon, and began to eat.
The subtle flavors of the spices impressed him.
As they ate in silence, Ria eventually spoke up.
“How did you two meet?”
“It was in Widia.”
Leon recounted the time when he was attacked by Forn, the keeper of the forbidden library in Widia, and his encounter with Kito, who had been trapped there.
“So that happened right after you arrived. I had no idea,” Ria murmured, her expression pensive.
“So you’ve known each other since then…”
She paused, seemingly lost in thought, then turned to Kito.
“I’ve known him for much longer, though.”
Kito raised an eyebrow at her, but Ria showed no further reaction and instead turned back to Leon.
“Have you heard any news about Rowen?”
“Rowen? You know something?”
Leon set down his spoon, looking at her with surprise. He had been curious about Rowen’s whereabouts as well.
“I heard it from my teacher. Rowen joined another school in Bastelion.”
“Oh… That’s a relief. So he didn’t get caught by Tenelon?”
“Apparently, he got help from a mage from another school on his way to Meira. That’s when he learned about the dark mages lying in wait for him on the path to Meira, which prompted him to join that mage’s school.”
Leon nodded in understanding.
“Do you know anything about Tenelon’s movements?”
“I’m not sure. But according to my teacher, Tenelon, who had been attacking other schools starting from Widia, suddenly stopped those aggressive actions. No one knows why.”
Could the Witch be behind it?
Leon instinctively took out his tracking compass and checked the needle.
If she were getting closer, the needle would have moved, but it remained still, pointing in another direction.
“Whew…”
It had been a while since the Witch was sent to Widia, but she hadn’t made an appearance, which made him wonder if something else had happened.
Since crossing into the Empire, Leon hadn’t heard from Basfreon, so he could only guess.
After finishing the warm stew Ria had made, Leon sat cross-legged near a tree and closed his eyes in quiet contemplation.
After several days of flight, Leon and Ria arrived at the magical city of Pyrein.
This was the place Arpina had recommended, which felt more like a Free City for mages than for adventurers.
It was obvious even before they entered the city gates, as they could see mages floating in the air.
Once they showed their Astellian emblems and entered, the city was, as expected, filled mostly with mages.
Shops selling magical materials and artifacts lined the streets, and in the center of the plaza, a large magical screen advertised the latest artifacts.
“I’m planning to find out when the next auction is and visit the artifact repair shop,” Leon said.
Ria nodded without hesitation.
“Yeah, I’ll come along too.”
“You’re not buying anything?”
“I can shop when there’s time, so it’s fine.”
“…Alright.”
Leon led Ria to the artifact repair shop in the city center.
It was a place that Arpina, who knew of the Silver Broomstick, had personally recommended.
The shopkeeper’s eyes widened when Leon handed over the Silver Broomstick.
“An A-rank artifact, huh? It’s been a while since I’ve seen one.”
“…Can it be repaired?”
Leon asked with a mix of hope and concern. The shopkeeper examined the broomstick carefully before nodding.
“Well… The mana stone core isn’t completely destroyed, so it’s possible. But it will require around 700,000 mana stones to fix.”
“Seven hundred thousand…”
Leon had earned 50,000 mana stones by selling various low-grade disposable scrolls and F-rank and E-rank herbs.
‘It’s not impossible to acquire.’
He recalled the orichalcum he had been accumulating since he received the material duplication box as a reward. There was now enough orichalcum to create three human-sized golems.
Of course, it was still far from enough to make a Gigantes.
Due to the limited amount of material the box could hold, there was no other option.
Once he could use the duplication box to create a single Gigantes, Leon planned to head to the Snowy Mountains with it. It was the safest way.
Honestly, just one piece of orichalcum could cover the cost of the A-rank artifact repair.
‘But I can’t just casually sell orichalcum.’
Selling more than one piece wasn’t even an option he considered.
Orichalcum was such a rare metal that flooding the market with it would inevitably draw attention.
Leon didn’t want to be caught by unexpected parties.
‘I’ll prioritize repairing the Silver Broomstick, but I also need to gather C-rank and B-rank herbs if possible…’
With his calculations complete, Leon asked the shopkeeper about the auction.
“Do you know when the next auction will be held?”
“Auction? Hmm… The main auction run by the city’s largest merchant guild, Cornel, ended three weeks ago.”
The shopkeeper paused to think before continuing.
“There is another auction hosted by a different guild a week from now. It’s not as large, but it still has a good reputation for high-quality items.”
“Thank you. Do I need an introduction?”
The shopkeeper’s eyes gleamed at this question.
“If you come to see me a week from now, I can guide you there.”
“Could I get an introduction sooner?”
“Ah, planning to put something up for auction? Come back in three days.”
Leon knew merchants would mediate for auction participants and take a commission, so he nodded.
“Understood.”
After retrieving the Silver Broomstick, Leon left the repair shop, deep in thought.
Among the items he had, the most valuable one he could put up for auction was the A-rank essence he had acquired from an ancient mage’s lair.
However, it was something Leon needed, so he couldn’t afford to sell it. The same went for the two B-rank essences.
Leon decided to review his inventory.
Artifacts that were useful to him now and would be in the future included:
As well as 20 vials of concentrated venom extracted from Kito.
Artifacts he didn’t need immediately included:
Other than that, he had recipes for elixirs ranging from F to C grades.
Magical items like the Elemental Magic Scroll (D) he had avoided using due to Arpina’s magic, the Surge of Lightning (D+) from the Lydra dimensional pouch, and the Gale he had embedded in the Gargoyle Golem (C+) could be auctioned immediately.
He was reluctant to auction off the Tome of Demonic Essence, blood magic spellbooks, and ancient spells like the Judgment of Creation or the Eternal Thunder.
The same went for his personal staff, a gift from Rowen, which he had no intention of selling.
‘Artifacts for auction…’
The Stasis Cloak, Personal Dimensional Pouch, and Fire Trap seemed suitable. They were D, C, and B-rank artifacts, respectively, so he could put them up one by one.
‘It might also be a good idea to craft a new golem.’
He considered making an upgraded version of Neo, combining ancient and modern technology. He hadn’t yet put the idea into action.
With three days until the auction, he thought he could pull it off.
Leon looked at Ria and said,
“Shall we find an inn?”