Chapter 43
Chapter 43
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 43
Chapter Title: The Completed Gloves
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"You're late."
As I stepped into the forge, the dwarf owner rose from his seat as if he'd been waiting.
He shook off his hands and brought over a wooden box from atop a large anvil.
"Is this it? Did it work?"
"Yeah. Take a look."
Thump, thump, thump!
What would it look like?
With eager anticipation, I slowly opened the lid of the box.
Clunk.
"Whoa..."
Inside lay a pair of black gloves, clearly made from high-quality leather, neatly arranged.
Gold bands ran along the seams, and the wrist area featured straps for a secure fit that wouldn't slip off easily.
They were nicely understated and seemed to pair well with the robe I'd bought earlier, so the design was a hit right off the bat.
But with weapons, design wasn't the point. Performance was.
"May I try them on?"
Sensing my excitement, the dwarf owner smirked and nodded.
"You're the owner now."
"...Alright then."
Swish.
I slipped them on immediately.
At once, I felt the change in my mana.
'One circle increase.'
It was the same sense of fullness I'd gotten from gripping the [Holy Staff].
The staff's unique effect of boosting circles had transferred over successfully.
But settling for that would defeat the purpose of getting a new weapon.
"Now then..."
Whoooosh!
I channeled mana over my gloved hand.
Sssrrrrk!
The mana, infused with my will, flowed up my arm without any resistance and formed a sphere above my palm.
The process was even smoother than handling mana with the [Holy Staff].
And I could detect a subtle but noticeable difference.
The time it took for the mana to reach its destination had shortened.
'Mana conductivity is top-notch, huh...'
I could see why they used such fine leather.
It wasn't a massive, game-changing improvement, but in combat, it would make a big difference.
'Nice.'
Shiiiik!
Next, I moved on without pause.
I imbued the sphere with the light attribute and reshaped it.
The form I chose was the sword shape I'd practiced at the academy.
It formed a far more stable light sword than when I'd made it barehanded.
"Hup!"
Sring!
With a kiai, I swung it through the air, and it traced a smooth arc.
Exactly as I'd hoped.
I'd braced for at least some awkwardness...
"Hoo..."
This exceeded expectations entirely.
It felt just like wielding mana barehanded.
If I closed my eyes, I'd forget I was even wearing gloves—the handling was that good.
And yet, I still got the full benefit of the equipment. A very satisfying result.
"You cast magic in a unique way."
"Haha... Yeah, I do."
"So, you like it?"
"Yes, the feel is great. Mana conduction is noticeably faster too."
"Good to hear. It was my first time transferring properties to gloves, so I was worried. Gave me a bit of trouble."
"Wait, your first time?"
"Yeah."
The dwarf owner nodded casually.
"Huh..."
They say the god of equipment is a dwarf's distant ancestor... and it wasn't just talk.
How could this be the work of someone doing it for the first time?
It felt like he'd made them hundreds of times over.
"...Impressive."
"Well, I've made a living at this my whole life. Anyway... time to pay up?"
"Oh."
I'd gotten so caught up in the gear that I'd forgotten.
Right, this wasn't free.
Thump, thump, thump!
Talk of payment tensed my body and set my heart racing.
In the worst way possible.
"How much...?"
I forced the words out, stiff as a board.
I had zero info on the cost going in, so no clue what to expect.
And with the quality this high, of course I was nervous...
"Just 200 gold."
200 gold.
A hefty sum, but within my means, thankfully.
Though it'd wipe out my entire savings.
Lucky me—the money left from commissioning other gear came out to exactly around 200 gold.
'...Damn.'
I'd figured there'd be some left over.
In most games, crafting fees were just material costs.
I'd planned to spend the rest on potions, scrolls, and other consumables...
'Guess I'll have to skip that.'
No room for it now.
Still, it was a relief I didn't have to work off the cost with manual labor here.
"...Here you go."
"Perfect."
Clink, clink.
The owner took the gold with a bright expression and rummaged through the coin pouch.
He seemed meticulous about accounts.
"Hm, spot on. Off you go."
He'd finished tallying already and shook his hands with a satisfied look.
Watching him, I got a read on this dwarf.
Gruff but skilled, and well aware of his own talent... workaholic type?
We seemed like a good match overall.
'Might see him often.'
A smith who could craft gear like this? Worth coming back.
Pricey drawback aside... better than shoddy work.
"See you again."
With that, I left the forge.
The sun had fully set by now.
"Time to head over."
Checking the hour, I hurried to my next stop.
One last place to hit before meeting the others.
My destination: the Athis Request Office.
Time to pick up the requests I'd asked Lena for.
Knock knock knock.
"...Come in."
A light knock brought Lena's voice from inside.
It sounded half-dead for some reason.
Makes sense—she'd pulled two all-nighters.
A twinge of concern as I opened the door.
And...
"...You're here."
She was in far worse shape than I'd imagined.
Like a seaweed soaked limp, her face planted on the table...
No strength even to lift her head? She just kept talking from there.
"Requests in this field are scarce, as expected. But I gathered what I could... here."
Swish.
Still slumped, she pushed over the stack of request forms on the table.
"Mostly subjugation jobs. Not many with good pay, so keep that in mind."
Judging by the thickness... about twenty sheets?
More than I'd thought.
"Oh, and this."
Now she slid over a box from the other side.
"The pendant."
"Pendant?"
"Yeah. Your reward from before."
"Oh."
Had to be the [Pendant of Holy Oil] from the Aldeon request.
'Perfect timing. Great for hunting.'
I pocketed the requests and box, then asked Lena carefully.
"...You okay, though?"
"..."
Silence.
No reply from Lena.
A chill ran down my spine— I quickly held a hand to her nose.
Sniff, sniff.
Breathing, at least.
Not dead from overwork.
"...You scared me."
As relief set in, her breaths turned to soft snores.
Drrring-.
Out cold in that short span.
"Huh..."
It was more impressive than funny.
Pushing to the brink of collapse but still fulfilling her duty before crashing.
"Pro. Total pro."
Her mental fortitude was something else.
Must mean she really wants to grow this office.
Whatever. Didn't matter to me.
The more I grew, the bigger this place would get too.
Anyway.
"Time to go?"
Not much time left till the meetup.
I stepped out, wondering what my newly geared-up teammates would look like.
***
Meanwhile, at the meeting spot: the clock tower in Dmitri Square.
"Heh heh, hahaha."
Thompson sat perched there, fiddling with something and grinning vacantly.
Not because of his new gear, nor for arriving first.
It was the gift he'd bought for Yoo Han.
"Can't wait to see his reaction to this!"
Imagining Yoo Han's response had him chuckling nonstop.
Sure, from what he'd seen so far, Yoo Han rarely showed expressions or emotions...
But this time would be different.
-Level up.
He definitely knew about "soul power."
"Well, he calls it something a bit different... but names don't matter. He'll love it! Uhahaha!"
Thompson was convinced Yoo Han would be thrilled.
Soul power artifacts were worthless to those who didn't believe, but priceless to those who did.
And this one was extra convenient—no special activation needed; just carry it for the effect.
Yoo Han would surely approve, boosting his chances of becoming a hero.
Which boosted Thompson's dream right along with it.
Thompson wanted one thing.
To make Yoo Han a "hero."
So he could be the hero's companion.
"Kuhuhu, talk about lucky timing! Who knew I'd snag exactly this?"
He marveled at his fortune amid happy daydreams.
And rightly so—a stroke of heavenly luck.
The moment he thought he needed a soul power artifact, a peddler selling one appeared?
This was a divine sign.
A sign to raise Yoo Han!
"Sure, it lightened my wallet... but the top guy will understand."
Most of his gold went into it, but a minor issue.
Finding gear that fit him was tough anyway.
Thompson's fighting style differed from typical mages.
To get gear suited for close-quarters brawling with mana cloaks, he'd probably need custom work.
Size was the biggest headache.
Weapons he could manage, but armor and accessories? No way.
Robes tailored for scrawny mages couldn't contain Thompson.
So he'd settled on this artifact.
A smart call.
Better to buy something useful than let money rot, especially with hunts ahead.
"See? Smarter than I give myself credit for!"
Fresh off praising his luck and brains.
Tap, tap.
"Hm? You're early, mister."
The voice he'd been waiting for arrived.
Yoo Han.