Chapter 27
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: The Magic Tower Genius Descends into the Labyrinth
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-Labyrinth City Termina.
As many mages flocked to Termina in search of various mysteries,
the magic tool shops were enjoying considerable prosperity.
Cling!
As a group entered through the door of the magic tool shop, the gazes of several people instantly turned toward them.
"Hm...?"
"Ahem!"
The mages who had been browsing magic tools and reagents glanced over, not bothering to hide their displeasure.
-A mage and a beastkin.
On the surface, it wasn't an unusual combination.
There were, albeit rarely, mages who paid a hefty price to take beastkin as their subordinates.
However, what ruffled their feathers was the Stigma etched on the mage's neck.
Step.
Sylbian strode confidently toward the counter, undeterred.
"I'd like some assistance purchasing a specific magic tool."
His tone remained utterly calm amid the stares, and Cherentia stood naturally by his side.
"What item are you looking for?"
Unlike the other mages, the shop owner responded to him with composure.
"I'd like a custom-made bracelet to aid mana flow. The gem should be sapphire, and it needs to be of very high purity."
There was no hesitation in his direct tone.
The shop owner glanced at Sylbian's attire, nodded, and laid out a few items from the display on the table.
"That's perfectly doable. However, if you let me know if any of these similar items catch your eye, I can shorten the crafting time considerably."
She had placed three magic tools on the table.
A ring embedded with a large ruby.
A necklace coated in ornate gold.
And black gloves that wrapped around the index and thumb fingers.
Even though they seemed unrelated to his request at first glance, he examined them calmly.
'Not bad.'
Magic tools were ultimately made for the masses of mages and the rare adventurer or mercenary.
In that sense, all the displayed items shared one common trait.
They all enhanced mana flow.
"Is it possible to engrave a sapphire into any of these?"
As Sylbian raised his head slightly to ask, the shop owner nodded as if it were obvious.
"Yes, it is. However, these are finished products in their own right, so it'll cost quite a bit. Custom orders aren't cheap either."
She cautiously brought up the price, and Sylbian pondered for a moment before nodding.
"My maximum budget is two gold coins."
"Two gold coins, then..."
The shop owner made a rather peculiar expression with her response.
Two gold coins was no small sum.
But for a truly expensive magic tool, it was ambiguously modest.
"Is that not enough?"
"No, it's sufficient. But if you're going custom, there are limitations. Among these, only the gloves can be engraved."
Twitch.
Sylbian's eyes grew icy.
Two gold coins should have been more than enough by his calculations.
Especially since he wasn't asking for extravagant engraving or an elaborate magic wand or staff.
Glance.
As he subtly scanned the surroundings, a few mages were openly staring at him.
'Haa.'
He swallowed a sigh inwardly but nodded anyway.
Asking them directly would yield nothing good, obviously.
In a labyrinth city like Termina, they might even demand an even higher price.
In the end, there were no better options.
With plans to enter the labyrinth tomorrow, maximizing preparations was the right call.
"What exactly are these limitations?"
"For a custom piece with high-purity sapphire, the gem size will be small. Engraving it into the gloves offers the most efficient quality."
Sylbian nodded at her concise explanation.
'Well, money can always be earned again.'
Heading into the labyrinth to make some was a viable option too.
Termina's fame stemmed from the rare items harvested from the labyrinth, after all.
"I'll go with the gloves."
His decision was swift.
"We take about one-third of the total cost as a deposit on commission."
The shop owner smiled brightly as she replied, and Sylbian paid without further thought.
Once decided, he saw no reason to linger.
"Come back tomorrow morning, and everything will be ready."
"Understood."
It was just as they were about to leave the shop.
"Hold on. How much did you say those gloves were?"
Suddenly, a mage interjected.
"Pardon? Sir, this item was just reserved..."
The shop owner faltered momentarily as she addressed him, and Sylbian's steps halted as well.
"I've had my eye on those gloves too. I'll pay more than that guy did."
Even as Sylbian turned to stare, the mage smirked and curled his lip.
It was blatant provocation.
Moreover, the mage's gaze was fixed entirely on the Stigma on Sylbian's neck.
"Sylbian."
At that moment, Cherentia called out to him from beside.
Her glare at the mage brimmed with clear hostility.
"It's fine."
Sylbian gently raised a hand to stop her and resumed walking nonchalantly.
Step.
Step...
With each step toward the mage, more gazes focused on them.
"Ha, do you have some business with me?"
The mage looked down at Sylbian standing before him with utter arrogance.
Above all, he simply couldn't stomach a stigmatized mage visiting a magic tool shop.
"Those gloves are the ones I reserved, aren't they?"
Sylbian asked politely on the surface, but in a voice utterly devoid of emotion.
"They are. But doesn't it all work out if I pay more?"
"..."
Sylbian quietly pressed his lips together and examined the mage thoroughly.
First, he noted the vivid blue robe.
It symbolized the Eastern Magic Tower. But that was it.
'His mana reserves don't seem all that impressive.'
He might have the talent to enter a tower, but he didn't feel like a mage who had reached great heights within one.
At the very least, the mana aura he exuded was extremely faint.
Which meant he was far beneath the realm Sylbian had attained.
The only thing this mage had over him was mana quantity, purely.
With that realization, a chuckle escaped him.
"Even decked out in such expensive magic tools, your mana control seems quite unstable."
Above all, the mage was adorned with all sorts of dangling accessories.
He had wealth.
But as a mage, his talent was clearly far inferior.
Sylbian could assert that much with certainty.
"What? What did you just say...?"
As the mage stammered in disbelief,
"If your mana control is unstable despite all those magic tools, I'll gladly yield it to you."
Sylbian cut him off without mercy.
As if he weren't the one having his magic tool snatched, but rather graciously offering it out of pity.
It completely flipped the situation on its head.
"..."
The mage's face visibly stiffened for all to see.
Above all, he couldn't comprehend Sylbian's words or actions.
How dare a stigmatized mage toy with him like this?
"Then please refund my deposit. I'll buy something else."
Sylbian addressed the shop owner, completely ignoring the mage.
"A-are you sure that's alright?"
The shop owner swallowed hard as she looked at him.
This was no ordinary matter.
-A dispute between mages.
It wouldn't end as a mere spat; it could escalate into a major incident.
"Yes. I'm fine yielding that much."
"Hold on! What nonsense are you spouting? That my mana control is poor? Hahaha! You've got some nerve!"
"From what I see, your mana control looks quite lacking. Isn't that why you're coveting my magic tool?"
As Sylbian countered without yielding an inch, the shop's atmosphere sank into utter silence.
Stillness.
"..."
The shop owner gaped at him in a daze, while the other mages watched the confrontation with keen interest.
Oddly, the most relaxed among them was Cherentia, standing by Sylbian's side.
Thud!
The mage slammed his expensive staff down hard and snorted aggressively at Sylbian.
His face flushed beet red with rage.
"Haha! No wonder you're a stigmatized exile! You've lost your mind completely!"
"If you think I've lost my mind... how about a little wager, then?"
"A wager!? What kind of wager with an exile!?"
It was the moment the mage puffed himself up even more arrogantly.
Swish.
Sylbian raised his hand instead of replying.
"If you're a mage, prove it like one. Manifest your mana through a magic tool. That's the simple wager I'm proposing."
A faint smile played on Sylbian's lips as he fixed the mage with a piercing stare from beneath his subtly trembling silver hair.
Cold and emotionless.
It was a gaze so stern that no one could meet it.
"L-like a mage... You half-baked fool have some guts! Fine, what are you putting on the line? Even if I win, what would I get from you?"
He faltered briefly under Sylbian's gaze but, conscious of the onlookers, refused to back down.
No, he couldn't back down now.
Retreating against an exile would tarnish his honor irreparably.
"I'll stake two gold coins. If you stake the gloves I reserved, that balances the wager nicely, doesn't it?"
Having orchestrated it perfectly, Sylbian proposed the stakes as if it were the most natural thing.
"Ha... You're going to taste the bitterness of life today. For failing to know your place!"
Sylbian merely nodded lightly at the mage's arrogant declaration.
"Very well. Could you provide any magic tool suitable for channeling mana?"
He pressed forward relentlessly.
The outcome was obvious even before it began.
Perhaps from the moment he turned the provocation back on the mage, it had all been anticipated.
'To think I could save two gold coins like this.'
It felt like pure, unexpected luck had come his way.
"...Th-then, I'll lend this crystal orb to the two of you."
The shop owner carefully placed a displayed crystal orb on the table.
Strangely, the orb gleamed with a deep green hue.