Chapter 46

Вуutеk аnd Sharin starеd аt Кhаn’s bаck as he lеd thе way, lоst in thought.

‘I alwауs thоught hе оnlу wore а cold ехprеssiоn аnd wаs indiffеrent… Вut as еxpесtеd, Sir Кhan’s heаrt is warmеr than anyоnе else’s.’

‘Mastеr is mоre human than I thought… And hе wаs incredibly coоl!’

Тhrough this incidеnt, the twо rеаlizеd that Khan was а more sеntimеntаl persоn thаn thеy had imаgined.

Hе appeаrеd coldеr аnd morе emotiоnless than anуonе, аnd sometimes even sеemеd rudе, but in truth, hе was а warm-heаrtеd рerson.

Оf cоursе, this wаs оnlу the twо’s реrcерtion; Khan was still feeling a bit irritated.

‘Hmph, what insolence. If it were up to me, I’d have beaten some sense into them.’

If it were before entering the game—that is, if he were Lee Huseong—he would have thoroughly beaten that merchant’s daughter until she came to her senses.

However, because of the ‘Sage’s Heart,’ he always maintained rationality to the point of making only optimal judgments, so he ended it at this.

Khan shook his head slightly, brushing off his irritation.

He was currently heading to an Artifact shop nearby.

On the way to Selenad, he had asked Brente if there were any Artifact shops here, and unfortunately, he was told there was only one.

‘Asmar had many Alchemists, so Artifact shops were developed there… To buy a proper Artifact, I’ll have to visit Asmar separately later.’

This Hidden Quest, the Cerberus Subjugation.

Effectively, Khan had to defeat the Cerberus alone, but before that, acquiring useful Artifacts from the Artifact shop would help with the subjugation.

Arriving at the only Artifact shop in Selenad, it was about twice the size of the Artifact shop he had seen in Grodek.

Of course, the Artifact shop in Grodek was exceptionally small, so even twice its size only amounted to about 10 pyeong.

“Welcome! Feel free to look around, and if you have any questions, just call me!”

The Artifact shop employee greeted Khan’s party warmly.

Khan slightly bowed his head in greeting and began checking what Artifacts were available.

‘They’re all low-tier Artifacts, nothing particularly useful. Most accessories are useless too…’

Equipping or using an Artifact with a ‘Mana’ option doesn’t increase one’s Mana Capacity.

To be precise, it must have a ‘Mana Capacity Increase’ option for one’s Mana to increase.

The ‘Mana’ option on Artifacts simply slightly boosts the power of Skills.

‘In the game, items with the ‘Mana Capacity Increase’ option were sold at ridiculously high prices; it must be the same here.’

To begin with, obtaining Artifacts with the ‘Mana Capacity Increase’ option wasn’t easy.

In the game, merchant players who learned Alchemy as a sub-class to craft and sell Artifacts would stay up for nights just to get one Artifact with the ‘Mana Capacity Increase’ option.

“Sir Khan, may I ask what kind of Artifact you need? I’ll help you look for it too!”

“Me too! Tell me, Master! I have a good eye for Artifacts since I often visit Artifact shops.”

“It’s fine. I’ve already checked everything, and what I want isn’t here.”

Khan could examine Artifact options in detail and had already checked everything long ago.

He double-checked if there were any usable Artifacts, but they were all at a similar level to what Khan already possessed.

As for accessories, their options were too poor to be worth buying.

“Guest, it seems you haven’t found the Artifact you’re looking for. Could you tell me what kind of Artifact you need? I have some Artifacts in storage that aren’t displayed.”

The shop owner was a fairly young woman who seemed quite friendly.

“I need an Artifact with the ‘Mana Capacity Increase’ option, but of course, you don’t have it, right?”

“Ah, you’re a Sir Mage! Artifacts with such a rare option aren’t available in our shop… Probably in Asmar, though. You should visit an Artifact shop in Asmar later!”

“Thank you.”

That there were Artifacts with the ‘Mana Capacity Increase’ option in Asmar was somewhat Khan’s wishful speculation, but hearing it directly from the Artifact shop owner gave him confidence.

‘I’ll definitely be able to get one in Asmar.’

Currently, Khan’s Mana Capacity was absurdly insufficient, so he needed to rely on Artifacts’ power, even if just a little.

“I’ll come back later if I need anything.”

“Yes! You’re always welcome!”

As Khan said that and turned to leave the shop, a large number of papers hanging behind the counter caught his eye.

“Are those Scrolls?”

“Ah, yes! These are Scrolls I made myself! They’re one-time use, but I can confidently say their duration and performance are quite excellent. I just succeeded in making the finished product for the first time yesterday, so there aren’t many… Actually, no one has bought any yet… If the Sir Mage purchases them, I’ll give you a special…”

“How much per sheet?”

“It’s 5 Gold Coins per sheet, but since you’re the first buyer of my Scrolls, I’ll make it 3 Coins for you!”

“I’ll take all you have.”

“There are only ten sheets right now…”

Khan immediately took out 30 Gold Coins from his pocket and handed them over.

The reason Khan bought all the Scrolls hanging on the counter wall at once was due to their performance.

[Item: Intermediate Agility Scroll]

• Item Rank: Rare

• Level Restriction: 1

• Item Description: When the Scroll is used, Agility greatly increases for 30 seconds.

Looking at the Scrolls he had just purchased, Khan still couldn’t believe it.

‘To think I could get Intermediate Agility Scrolls this early in the game…’

Usually, in the early stages of the story, only Lowest-Rank Scrolls were available.

‘Wait, now that I think about it, the owner’s name here… seems familiar.’

Only now could Khan properly check the name of this Artifact shop’s owner.

[LV.10 Intermediate Alchemist Lilia]

Lilia.

No wonder it seemed familiar—this was the very shop where Khan had first purchased Scrolls while playing the game in the past.

‘I’m sure the NPC’s name back then was Lowest-Rank Alchemist Lilia. She looks a bit more mature than the face I saw on the game monitor…’

He wasn’t sure about the face, but what was certain was that Lilia, the owner of this Artifact shop and an Alchemist, was definitely a Lowest-Rank Alchemist.

‘Does that mean much more time has passed compared to when I played the game?’

Since the game never specified exactly what year it was at this point, Khan couldn’t know for sure.

He could only assume that time had passed enough for this NPC to advance from a Lowest-Rank Alchemist to an Intermediate Alchemist.

“Thank you so much! Actually, the Scrolls I made never sold well because their performance was poor since long ago… That was when I lacked knowledge in Alchemy… Now, I can confidently say their performance is good!”

“I bought them knowing that.”

Listening to her story, it seemed that when she first made and sold Lowest-Rank Scrolls, their poor performance spread by word of mouth, and now no one bought Scrolls made by Lilia.

“But I’m glad it’s the Sir Mage who recognized my Scrolls! Seeing that you recognized them, you must be incredibly skilled, right?”

“Haha, you have a good eye, miss! Sir Khan is the world’s greatest Archmage! I, Byutek, a Knight of Kilpheon, have never seen a Mage with skills as outstanding as his in my life!”

Suddenly, Byutek interjected loudly, and upon hearing this, Lilia replied with a surprised expression.

“Oh my! You’re a Knight of Kilpheon? No wonder… I could tell at a glance you were a strong Sir Knight! And if a Knight of Kilpheon says that… Then you truly are an amazing person who recognized the true value of my Scrolls. Hehe.”

Lilia said this, genuinely pleased.

“May I ask your name?”

“It’s Khan.”

“I’m Byutek!”

“I’m Sharin, Sir Khan’s first Disciple!”

“I’m Lilia! I’m an Alchemist and run this Artifact shop!”

After exchanging introductions, Khan immediately asked her.

“Do you remember roughly when you first made Scrolls?”

“Hmm… When I first learned Alchemy and succeeded in making Scrolls… It was about 10 years ago!”

“…I see. Thank you. I’ll come again later.”

“Thank you! Then I’ll make more Scrolls and have them ready!”

Khan’s party left the shop like that.

’10 years…’

While progressing through the Quest, there were slight differences from what Khan knew, and he began to think that this might be 10 years after the point when he played the game.

‘Originally, there was no Dungeon Monster like Cerberus appearing in Eldrida, and its appearance itself was illogical… It seems the timeline has shifted somewhat.’

For now, that was his assumption based on the speculation so far, so he crumpled and tucked the Scrolls inside his coat.

After finishing organizing, Khan boarded the Carriage with Byutek and Sharin.

The three finally headed toward the mansion of Kail Odrik, the mayor of Selenad.

* * *

Kail Odrik’s mansion.

Currently, the servants in the mansion were bustling about.

Due to the enormous Monster called Cerberus that appeared near Selenad’s Mana Crystal Mine a few months ago, not only Selenad but the entire economy of Eldrida was gradually collapsing.

Now, they had to entertain distinguished guests who would defeat that Cerberus, so the servants had no choice but to move busily.

Bang!

At that moment, a young girl entered the mansion, fuming.

Kail Odrik, who had been meticulously checking for dust at the mansion’s entrance, beamed and shouted.

“Oh my! Our Princess! You’re here now? Why are you so angry? Wait… Delion, what happened to your face?”

“Well…”

“Dad! I went to the restaurant, and there was a guy who ignored me and tried to kill me!”

“What?! What crazy bastard dares…! Who was it?!”

“I don’t know who…”

Maya told her father, Kail, about what happened at the restaurant.

Of course, omitting all the rude things she had done.

“How dare that rotten bastard!!! Even if he’s a Mage, he must be nothing special! Delion! Was he really that much stronger than you?!”

“Well…”

Just as Delion was about to speak with a serious expression.

Clack. Clack. Clack.

It was the sound of the Cerberus Subjugation Force promised support from Eldridas approaching.