017 New Weapon and Evan

Sunday, 30 August, around 11 AM.

Following the address that Zea gives, Luis is now around the area. Located in a commercial area, this place is around 40 minutes by car from the dungeon. As Luis is not familiar with this area, he called his friend to help him look for the shop.

"It should be located around here." A man with curly chestnut-colored hair said to Luis. The thin beard that he rarely shaves decorates his face. He has a well-built body that is taller and more muscular than Luis. This young man is Evan White. Two weeks ago, Evan and his girlfriend—Erika—should be going to the dungeon along with Luis and Zea. But as Evan and Erika have an emergency, they pull out from the plan, leaving only Luis and Zea to explore the dungeon.

"Looks like this is the shop・ Luis said while observing the shop. A pair of decorative plants are placed on the side of the door. Above the right plant, there is a board hanging that indicates the shop is open. "Let's go inside."

Evan opened the door to the shop, Luis followed suit.

Inside the shop, many kinds of weapons are displayed. From sword, knives, bow, polearm to some obscure weapon that Luis has never seen. The atmosphere of the store is strangely similar to Ethereal.

"Welcome," an old man with many wrinkles on his face greet those two. "Feel free to look around. Tell me if you want to try the weapon."

"Thank you, we will look around," replied Luis. "Oh right, can we touch the weapons?"

"Please do, but be careful. Remember the rule, 'Breaking means buying.'"

Both Evan and Luis walked toward the sword area. In this place, there are many kinds of swords and daggers, from the usual long sword, rapier, claymore, to sword that Luis doesn't know its name.

"Look at this sword. Don't you think this will fit me?" asked Evan while picking a longsword.

"Is that not heavy?"

"Not really." Evan lifted the sword along with its sheath easily.

"That is a two-handed sword, right? How can you lift it that easily?" Luis is surprised when he sees Evan lift the sword using only a hand.

"But it is not heavy... Try it." Evan passes the sword to Luis. Luis holds the hilt using his right hand while his other hand holds the sheath.

"You are right this is light... Luis looked around to search for the old man.

"Owner, is this sword made by mithril?" Luis asked when he noticed the old man are looking at both of them.

"Yes, you are right," the old man answered with a smile on his face. "Unsheathe it, it is a good sword. I made it myself by combining mithril and iron."

"Oh..." Luis and Evan both let out a little sound surprised by the blade. Luis that is a beginner at sword can know that this is a good sword. At least better than the average swords that are sold.

"How much is this sword?" Evan asked the owner.

"As it is made using mithril that is still rare," the owner showed Evan four of his hand. "Four thousand."

"Expensive!" Evan unconsciously shouted.

Luis is a little surprised when he heard the price, but he then thinks about how little mithril circulates in the world. "May I ask how would this sword be priced if the sword is made using the normal material?"

"Hmm... Let's see... Eight hundred or at most thousand dollars is the maximum."

"Evan, if you really want this sword, it is better to buy it now. The price is a little expensive but it should be worth it. I can also lend you money to buy this sword." Luis still has the money that he got from selling the high-quality antidote.

The owner heard Luis and his expression changed a little. "I never expected you to advise your friend to buy this sword. Most people will step back when they hear the price. What makes you think the sword is worth the price?"

"Eh—" Luis didn't expect he get questioned by the owner. "Uhm, I know the mithril situation. Mithril is not widely available. Because of that, anything that is made using mithril is more expensive. That is the classic economic principle. The supply is not high enough to push the price down. Then you said that this sword can be sold for eight hundred if it is not made by mithril. 800 dollars sword can be considered as a high-quality sword. To get a high-quality sword that is made using mithril for only 4000 dollars is a steal."

The old man grinned a little, "Hehe, nicely said young man... What is your name again? Luis?"

"Did I introduce myself before?"

"Nah, it is your friend Zea, she told me about you yesterday. She even sent your photo, so I know how you look. But I didn't expect that you would come with a friend." The owner picks the sword from Luis's hand and puts it back to its sheath. He then gives the sword to Evan. "Here take the sword, an introduction gift."

Evan is stunned not reacting for a few seconds. "Wait! Are you really sure about this? Like really sure?"

"Yes, take it," the old man then looked at Luis. "Now now, you are looking for a halbert right? Come here."

Luis is not sure what he should do, "Is it really okay to give the sword away just like that?"

"It is okay, or do you want to pay for the sword?" The old man keeps walking to the pole weapon area, not noticing that Luis is still not following him. The old man reached the pole area and look back, "Hey, come here. Pick one that you want. This is also a gift."

Luis can only come toward the pole area, "That can't do, you have given us a sword. I will properly pay you for this one."

"Don't worry, it is a gi—" the old man wanted to give the halberd for free but as he sees Luis's determined face, he give up. "If you really want to pay then... Wait, you have an [Enchantment] skill right? How about you enchant some of the weapons that are for sale here? I will provide the material."

Luis strokes his chin with his right hand, thinking for a bit. "Nope, I will pay. But if you want me to enchant some weapon, I can help you."

Lifting both hands in the air, the owner gives up trying to give Luis. "Okay okay, you will pay. Also, you can try the weapon in that room. If you need help, just ask one of the staff." Without Luis noticing, there are a few staffs that are now standing in the shop.

The old man whispered a few sentences to one of the female staff before going out from the store. "Then, see you later."

'What a weird old man, refusing payment from the customer... Ah— I didn't ask his name. Well, I can ask Zea later.'

The female staff that gets instructed by the old man asked Luis, "Is there anything that I can help with?"

✦✦✦✦✦✦

After searching and trying many pole weapons in the shop, Luis has decided on one halbert. He picks a halbert that has a length of 2 meters, shorter than his old spear. The pole is wood with the head containing the spearhead, an axe blade, and a hook behind the axe blade.

The halberd is more versatile if compared to the spear. Using the spear, most attacks are stabbing attacks. Meanwhile using a halberd one can do a stabbing and slashing attack. Luis thinks that this will increase his battle capability now that his swinging attack can deal damage.

Besides buying the halberd Luis also bought a small dagger. This time he properly pay for the dagger. The dagger will be used when the enemy is able to close in and the halbert can't stop.

Luis used the shop's service to send the weapon home. This way, they can walk around the city without getting questioned by some police officer.

"Do you have any other plan for today?" Evan asked Luis. Finished with the shopping of weapons, they are now standing in front of the store. "Want to eat something? I know a good ramen shop here."

"Ramen? For Lunch?"

"Yup. Let's go?"

"Okay then."

Evan leads the way through the busy commercial area. As today is Sunday, there are many people gathered around the area. They go here to get a downtime from their usual busy day. Many shops that line up in the area are having many customers. And because it is lunchtime, many restaurants are also packed with people.

"I understand why I don't like going here. This place is too crowded," grumbled Luis while still following Evan moving through the crowd. They need 5 minutes walking to reach a quiet small alley. Here they found a ramen shop that has a few customers.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

Evan and Luis are now inside the ramen shop waiting for their order to be done.

"So how is life?" Evan asked.

Luis picked his glasses that is filled with chilled water to his mouth, refreshing his dried throat. "It is good. Many good things keep happening to me. How about you?"

Both of them talked about their recent experience. Luis talked about his adventure with Zea and getting the skill. While Evan talks about Erika's grandma. Looks like Erika's grandma is healthy again. Not long after, their ramen comes.

Just before they started to eat, Evan asked, "So what kind of girl Zea is? I have only heard about her from Erika."

"I thought you have known her already?" Luis clumsily use his chopstick to scoop up some of the noodles. After two attempts, he give up and used the fork to eat the ramen. "Well... she is— Wait, rather than I explain it, I think it is better if you just meet her."

"Then, you want to go to the dungeon together? As compensation for the canceled promise last time." Evan slurped more noodles before continuing, "I will also call Erika."

"Sure, what day we should go?"