31 Vahlokzin-II
Upon entering the shop, Haru noticed that the interior was poorly lit, but at the same time, it was not difficult to observe what were different areas. The shop seemed to have several lines, which one could find something different based on where he headed, very similar to a supermarket in his old world, but he erased these thoughts from his mind as he had to focus on armour and swords.
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During their search, Haru and Misha talked so that the latter could obtain more information about what he needed. After a little discussion, Haru told her that most likely if he had to wear armour, then he wanted something light. Otherwise, his speed would drop considerably.
"So your fighting style is all about strength and speed at the same time... interesting. In this case, you have to opt for light armour. Look for something that interests you around here, I'm sure you'll come out satisfied."
At her words, Haru nodded. However, before he could look for something at all, he noticed a panel appear in front of him.
[46 grade E, 15 grade D, 1 grade C armour are recognized.]
[Entering required parameters: Lightweight]
[13 grade E, 1 grade D, 1 grade C armour are recognized.]
'... This function looks more comfortable than I expected.'
He knew recognizing the rank of the items per se was very important, as to the naked eye it would be much more complicated for him. Yet thanks to Misha's help asking him in detail what he was looking for, the system had interpreted the information, narrowing the field of armour to a paltry 15 pieces.
Seeing panels appear in his surroundings, Haru chose to take a look only at the armour that met his requirements. He had a suitable quantity of Valis to buy more than one piece of E-grade armour, but Haru had no idea of the current prices for D and C grade armour.
Glancing at the various armours, Haru noticed many of them had a lower amount of defence than the vambraces he had bought from the blacksmith in his village. It was grade F, yet these armours at grade E couldn't compare.
'Maybe it's because these are light and allow ample movement.. I can't expect too much defence from something done to move freely, after all.'
Sighing, Haru found himself searching for the D grade armour. It would surely cost a lot, yet it didn't mean he would back out. If the price was too high, he could still negotiate with magic stones and monster drops. Which had the same value as regular money, if not for the small fee the guild would have demanded from all those who exchanged this type of material for Valis without being adventurers.
When he arrived at his destination, Haru looked closely at the armour. It had a breastplate made from various layers of squared metal sheets, covering everything from the neck down and ending at the groin. However, there's a wide neckline which left it somewhat exposed.
'This suit of armour should be rather light, but I don't see myself wearing a full-fledged armour like this...'
In addition to this, the armour also covered the upper arms, protected by covering rerebraces which sit quite well under the shoulder plates also present in the set. Lastly, it covered the upper legs with several layered metal sheets reaching just below the groin.
His thoughts told him the armour was not suitable for him as it covered too much of his body, at least before he could take a look at the abilities it possessed.
---
[Vahlokzin-II]
Grade: D
Creator: Livian/Yome
Abilities: [Lightweight:C], [Flexibility:E], [Durability:D]
Perks: +35 defence
Details: Produced by a Hephaestus Familia's blacksmith
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Reading the armour's abilities, Haru was visibly surprised. He had no idea how flexibility could affect armour, but he was sure that if it appeared to be light, now it was even more so than he thought.
Taking the various pieces, Haru was shocked to notice the armour seemed to weigh as much as the vambraces the blacksmith of his village had given him. The defence value was distributed into the armour, resulting in a 35.
'Although the armour does not have enough defence for its rank, why did it end up in such a poor quality store...? This armour would be ideal for numerous adventurers looking for something as light as me.'
He knew nothing of the history of this armour, yet Haru chose to buy it, even if the price exceeded what he could afford at the time.
Informing Misha of his decision, the latter was pleased, as he seemed determined to buy the armour in her possession.
Going to the person at the counter, Haru showed the latter what he wanted to buy, and to the vision of the armour set the blacksmith knew well, the latter sighed.
"And so the time has come for someone to buy this armour... I didn't think this day would ever come."
To the blacksmith's words, Haru was confused. To be safe, he took another look at the armour in his hands, and yet there was nothing that Haru found so strange in it.
"...May I know the reason for these words?"
Haru wanted to know why the blacksmith seemed to be saying that it was a miracle that this armour could finally leave his shop, and to his question, the blacksmith did not hesitate to explain why the armour, had a long history behind it.
The creator of this armour was named Yome, a dwarf that from his homeland travelled to Orario hoping to enter the Hephaestus familia. His talent was impeccable, something that immediately struck Hephaestus, to the point of taking him with her among the lowest ranks, precisely because his skill as a blacksmith was quite promising.
After a few years, however, the blacksmith went from his creation of heavy armour, which guaranteed a lot of defence, to producing armour that guaranteed maximum mobility and minimal defence for the quality of the materials he used. Besides, he had confused all the people who had decided to arrange contracts with the latter.
They could observe how many of his attempts to create light armour failed, as the armour was always lacking, It didn't matter what lightweight materials he made his armour with, the armour resulted heavy on the body
But from that realization, Yome became obsessed with creating armour that guaranteed lightness, and after several years of continuous failures, he succeeded in creating the first set of light armour. The only problem was that it was so light-hearted it provided a tiny defence comparable to beginner armour. Over time, his obsession led him to lose his clients, yet shortly before his death, Yome had managed to complete the second set of armour. After proclaiming it to be the lightest armour in circulation for the quality of materials used, however, the numerous failures he had made, caused the distrust of the people who knew him. Nobody believed he would have been able to make an armour useful in battle, which is why, after his death, the armour became one of the most avoided sets by adventurers and blacksmiths.
"...Which is why you should avoid buying that armour. I do not think you still want to buy it, but if you want, it can be yours for 15,000 Valis."
Haru was surprised by it. The story behind this armour seemed deeper than he expected, yet the skills that were on it spoke clearly. It had excellent qualities, and although the defence was not too high, each piece of armour provided +35, which was quite good compared to its previous 20, and that protected only a small part of his body.
"I will still buy it."
Upon his statement, Misha asked him if it was safe to buy such armour, but reassuring her that it was okay anyway, Haru chose to buy it for the price the blacksmith offered. He would have felt that the price was too low for the quality of the armour. Yet in this case, what was happening was different. The armour had not only lightness but also a skill that seemed to increase the hardness of the latter, which meant the actual armour defence could even be superior to what he thought, only they couldn't know without some test.
'Others can't notice the armour's abilities with one look, that was what brought it here to this store...'
The low price was nothing more than the result of all the criticism the dwarf had found. He did not doubt it was difficult to believe someone who had produced many failures would succeed. But anyway, even he would have attempted to confirm what the blacksmith said. Haru found the story rather sad, but even if it had not been so, he would have bought this armour anyway.
---
Once paid for the armour, Haru and Misha again set out to find some sword to satisfy him, but Haru was not lucky enough to find something suitable, so the only purchase he made for the day was the armour.
"..I think we should visit other similar shops to find a suitable sword, what do you think?"
At her words, Haru sighed as he shook his head. He wanted a sword with his armour. However, he came up with an idea of how to get what he wanted.
"...Let's stop for today. That long explanation made me want to relax a bit."
Although it was not the main reason he wanted to stop, Haru still wanted to relax a bit. He had spent his days doing different things, and he felt like he was never resting enough, so spending his free time relaxing a bit did not hurt.
"You are indirectly asking me to spend the rest of my time wandering through stores without the goal of buying new armour? How would that differ from a date?"
As usual, Misha did not lose her hope and tried for the umpteenth time to tease Haru, but as always, this didn't have the desired effect.
"...Aren't you pretty tired too, as if you can never get enough rest? We are used to this feeling over time as we have duties to perform, but spending a bit of your time doing nothing in particular if not eating something or losing ourselves in a conversation doesn't seem so bad. We can call it a date if you prefer, but my only reason is to relax, and I'm sure you want the same."
At his words, Misha sighed. His answer made perfect sense as usual, and if Haru wanted to rest a little while eating somewhere or just going around the shops to spend his time, Misha would accept his indirect invitation without hesitation.
"..Sometimes."
It is with this single word that Misha made Haru understand she had accepted his invitation, and so the two went to some shops to eat something after Haru wore the armour he had bought so as not to be noticed.
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(So, it's a real date now? I wonder. By the way! The poll is active on the discord, you have to choose the extent of Bell's development I will show in the novel first! Join to add your vote! discord.gg/y8VBZAp)
