Budget Magic Weapons 4
It was a warm, sunny spring afternoon in front of the Magic Department's East Building.
Students who had just finished their classes were gathered in small groups, chatting idly.
Among them, a group of three students shared an intriguing conversation.
"Hey, did you hear the rumor? Apparently, a Kraken's Staff just came out."
Iris, a girl with curly brown hair, spoke in an excited voice.
Her eyes sparkled with curiosity.
"Kraken? What's that?"
Luke, the blonde boy standing next to her, asked with a puzzled look.
Mina, a black-haired girl, chimed in to explain.
"You know, that magic weapon they've been selling on a first-come, first-served basis every dawn at that shop called Song of Steel."
Luke shrugged.
"Ah, that mana-stone-free magic weapon that's all the rage among the sword-swingers lately? I thought the guy was just a bladesmith. He makes magic staffs too?"
A flicker of disdain crossed his face.
"Do you guys want to go check it out after school?"
Iris suggested.
Her voice was full of anticipation.
"Haha, I'm good. I already know plenty of spells."
Luke replied with a scoff.
Mina agreed.
"Exactly. What year do you think we are? Why would we use something like that?"
Luke added boastfully,
"I mean, unless it's an ultra-expensive staff made from premium materials, a magic wand is basically just a reusable scroll, isn't it? A true mage should manifest magic through their own power."
His voice was thick with pride.
"I... I guess so? You're probably right."
Iris replied hesitantly.
Despite her words, a look of disappointment lingered on her face.
The spark of curiosity in her eyes remained unextinguished.
"Yeah. Those things are only popular because the freshmen who can't even cast a proper spell and the sword-swingers are getting all hyped up over them."
Luke said with a smug grin.
At that exact moment, a completely different scene was unfolding at the academy's training grounds.
"Magic Missile!"
With a student's shout, a blue light flared from the tip of a staff.
The Magic Missile, a basic non-elemental strike spell, transformed in an instant.
A flame shaped like a blue wave erupted, causing a powerful explosion.
"This is... Kraken Fire?!"
Gasps of awe erupted from the surrounding students.
A mere 1st-circle spell had surged in power to rival a 5th-circle spell.
But the utility of the Kraken's Wave Staff didn't end there.
"Take this! Invisible Whip!"
another student shouted. A standard non-elemental whip attack instantly morphed.
"Aaargh! It's a burning Kraken tentacle!"
someone screamed. The whip had transformed into a Kraken's tentacle wrapped in blue flames.
"How is he casting a spell like that...?"
Waves of shock swept through the training grounds.
The students' eyes went wide, their jaws dropping in disbelief.
The rumors spread like wildfire. By the next dawn, the line in front of the Song of Steel had doubled in length.
"Ah, the person who made this must be a god!"
someone shouted. Soon after, a Magic Department branch of the 'Kraken Cult' was formed.
"Kraken! Kraken!"
Their chants echoed throughout the academy.
For students majoring in non-elemental magic, the Kraken's Staff was nothing short of a revolution.
It rendered all the years they had suffered from a lack of elemental talent completely meaningless.
Now, they too could wield powerful elemental magic like masters.
The students fell into a state of ecstasy as they stared at the blue flames rippling like brilliant waves.
"Ah... I wonder who made this weapon?"
a student muttered.
"I don't know, but they must have an incredible sense of aesthetics... Anyone who could create such a beautiful masterpiece must be an amazing person."
their friend replied.
Their eyes were filled with deep reverence for the artisan who had crafted this mystical weapon.
Inside a classroom of the Weapon Manufacturing Department, during a brief break after a theory lecture.
The room was filled with the heated chatter of students.
Professor Elena sat at her desk, quietly listening to their conversation.
"Do you guys know about the Kraken series?"
one student asked excitedly.
"Of course. You'd have to be living under a rock not to know about it these days."
another student replied with a chuckle.
"Crafting magic weapons without mana stones... What kind of genius could have started making these?"
Murmurs of admiration rippled through the students.
"If you ask me, it has to be someone associated with the academy. I talked to my father, and he said they're only being sold inside our academy for now."
All eyes locked onto the speaker at those words.
"Whoa, really? Then could it be Professor Elena? Who else could possibly pull off something like this?"
The students turned their curious gazes toward Professor Elena.
"Then why isn't it being sold at Mystic Arts?"
"Well... I wouldn't know that."
The student who spoke last scratched his head, looking embarrassed.
As the passionate chatter in the classroom died down, Elena's gaze naturally drifted out the window.
She wasn't actually looking at the students outside.
Instead, a tangle of complicated thoughts began to fill her mind.
Ah, this is becoming quite a headache.
Elena unconsciously massaged her temples.
As the founder and CEO of Mystic Arts, the recent turn of events was deeply troubling.
In particular, the poor performance of the third Mystic Arts branch, located right inside the academy, was glaring.
At one point, this had been the brand's flagship store.
The empire's most powerful families sent their children to the academy, and the fierce competition among them ensured a constant demand for high-end magic weapons.
Fueled by the vanity and desire of noble children to show off their strength, sales had soared day after day.
But now, the situation had completely reversed.
With the emergence of the Kraken series, the foot traffic of customers who used to line up to buy their products had completely vanished.
Ever since the first Kraken's Sword was released, Mystic Arts' sales had noticeably declined. Now, with the introduction of the Kraken's Staff, the situation was growing even worse.
She had been forced to run a free mana stone recharging event, absorbing the losses, but even that yielded little result.
They only come in for the free recharge, and it's not translating to new sales...
Elena's expression darkened.
Mystic Arts' weapons still boasted top-tier quality.
However, their prices were just as high.
Though she tried to lure customers in with the free recharge event, the steep prices prevented them from making new purchases.
The Kraken series... Who on earth made it?
Elena fell deep into thought.
It was both astonishing and disconcerting that such an innovative weapon had appeared without her knowledge.
Elena's worries deepened as she pondered how to navigate this crisis.
Late at night, the forge was still thick with heat.
I attended classes in the morning and spent the rest of my day here, continuously producing magic weapons.
The sound of sparks flying and metal heating filled the space.
In one corner, Lisa was counting money with a broad grin on her face.
Soft crinkles formed around her eyes as a blissful smile spread across her lips.
"Edward, it's another massive hit! The response from people is seriously insane."
Lisa's voice was brimming with excitement.
"Um, Lisa..."
I paused my work and spoke up cautiously.
"I mean... isn't it pretty hot in here? And noisy, too... Why are you counting money in a place like this, of all places?"
"What do you mean? We're business partners now."
She replied with her signature playful smile.
"We should talk about how well things are selling and hold meetings about our future business direction."
By now, it had become her daily routine to clean up the shop, come over here to organize the ledgers, and wrap up her day.
"I think the students are responding even better to this product,"
Lisa said.
Just as she said, the new product was spreading at an even faster rate.
It was likely thanks to the reputation we had already built up in the Swordsmanship Department.
The price of this Kraken Series No. 2 was 149 gold.
Even this was only a third of the price of a magic staff from Mystic Arts.
Yet, because its performance actually surpassed Mystic Arts' low-end products, the students' enthusiastic response was only natural.
Most conventional magic-inscribed staffs were limited to casting a single, specific spell.
The cheaper the product, the lower the tier of the spell, which severely limited its utility.
If we had simply inscribed Dance of the Stormy Waves, it probably would have ended up as a passing fad among freshmen and lower-year students.
That wouldn't have been enough to spark a massive sensation.
I had taken the design of Dance of the Stormy Waves, the spell inscribed on the Kraken's Sword, one step further.
Originally, it was a simple structure: when the caster's mana entered, a specific circuit converted the stored mana into blue wave flames.
But this time, I attempted a much greater challenge.
I modified the design so that the Kraken's unique properties could be applied to any spell cast through it.
It sounded simple, but in reality, it was a task that required highly advanced engineering.
The core function of this staff was the conversion of mana properties.
There was no need to engrave a wide variety of spells onto it.
No matter what spell the caster used, the staff would overlay the Kraken's characteristic blue wave flames onto it.
It was a high-level technique that perfectly blended the characteristics of two different magics, much like mixing paints.
For example, casting a simple fire spell would turn it into flames shaped like blue waves, while using a wind spell would produce a powerful gale that rippled like the ocean.
With this innovative design, the staff's versatility became virtually limitless.
Infinite variations were possible depending on the user's creativity.
It was a development on a completely different level from conventional magic staffs, and it was no exaggeration to say it opened a new horizon in magic weapon manufacturing.
"But..."
Lisa spoke up hesitantly.
"There's something I'm a bit worried about."
Anxiety tinged her voice.
I stopped working and looked at her.
Her expression had suddenly turned somber.
A shadow of concern hung over her face.
"Why? Did something happen today?"
"Elena von Walter from Mystic Arts paid us a visit."
I couldn't hide my surprise.
"Professor Elena von Walter? Don't tell me... she stood in line herself at dawn?"
Lisa nodded.
"You have no idea how much I agonized over it. But she's still a customer, so I couldn't just refuse to sell to her... In the end, she bought one sword and one staff."
"Hmm..."
I fell into thought for a moment.
The worry etched deeper into Lisa's face.
"Should I have refused to sell them after all?"
"No, you did the right thing."
I replied calmly.
Honestly, if Professor Elena really wanted them, she could have obtained them through other means without having to stand in line like that.
"Aren't you worried? A massive corporation bought our weapons. What if they analyze our secrets, copy them, and start churning out similar products?"
Lisa bit her lip as she finished speaking. Her eyes wavered anxiously, searching my face for a reaction.
I smiled and replied,
"I'm not particularly worried. It's not a technology just anyone can copy, anyway."
Lisa looked bewildered by my nonchalant attitude.
Though doubt still lingered in her eyes, she reluctantly nodded.
"Well... if you say so, I guess it's fine."