If the first few weeks after being summoned to this world felt like years to me, then the time that followed until the end of the month flew by in the blink of an eye. In just three days, the countdown to the start of the wave will end, and we need to return to the capital. To update and repair our gear, buy some potions that Akira and I still can't make ourselves due to lack of recipes and insufficient Alchemy level. I need to try copying some mid-level magic books at the bookstore — my level should already allow it… There's a lot to do in the capital. Though I really don't want to go back there.
During this time, Akira and I discovered fifteen new grimoires and shields. Ten of them only gave bonuses to magical attack, +2 each, but they remained unused because there were always more interesting options with skills or professions.
But five of them had professions, skills, and stat boosts, and I've already mastered almost all of those:
Woodland Grimoire 0/5 E
Equipment bonus: Magical Attack +2 (mastered)
Equipment bonus: Logging Technique 1
Mastery: 0
Butterfly Grimoire 0/10 D
Equipment bonus: Magical Attack +2 (mastered)
Equipment bonus: Small Paralysis Resistance
Mastery: 0
Rock Worm Grimoire 0/15 D
Equipment bonus: Magical Attack +2 (not mastered)
Equipment bonus: Cooking: Journeyman
Mastery: 12
Alsava Grimoire 0/5 D
Equipment bonus: Magical Attack +2 (mastered)
Equipment bonus: Endurance +5
Mastery: 32
Porcupine Grimoire 0/15 D
Equipment bonus: Magical Attack +4 (mastered)
Equipment bonus: Small Poison Resistance
Mastery: 0
Unlike Akira, my number of active skills didn't increase, but from the Porcupine Shield Akira got a very useful skill called "Shield Prison." This skill creates a cage made of four shields about six meters apart. The skill is intended to protect a target, but Akira came up with using it as a trap as well. The cage lasts for ten seconds.
As for earnings, there's also something to brag about. After the village manager found out how many "Light Metal" nuggets we had mined, he offered us help with ore vein development by assigning three sturdy men to us. They had been miners before the mine closed and knew the work well. They didn't claim any Light Metal, only 20% of the value of the black metal we mined. Since the longest part of the process is searching for and extracting ore, we agreed.
When those village miners saw how Akira and I extracted ore, they couldn't believe their eyes for a long time. And I understand them. When with a light swing of the pickaxe we were breaking entire walls of stone, while it took them hours of hard and strenuous labor…
By the way, there was absolutely no difference between me and Akira — she smashed walls just as easily as I did. Physical strength didn't matter at all; only skill level.
The three miners barely managed to process the ore and nuggets, but it significantly increased the mining speed. From just the "Black Iron Ore" alone, we earned 1,400 silver coins. The village manager handled the sales for the same 20% cut. We could have sold it ourselves in the capital and probably earned even more, but we decided to share the profits with the manager. After all, the village treated us well, and it wouldn't hurt to have good relations with local authorities.
As it turned out, the ore vein Raftalia found was very large. We just got lucky back then. During all this time, we managed to mine only fifty nuggets in addition to those we got on the first day.
Akira additionally earned money by selling homemade potions — mostly healing ones that help with minor ailments. She had no competition in the village, there was no apothecary, and usually people bought such things in the capital. Though her potions were lower quality than those sold in the capital, she didn't charge exorbitant prices. Every time she sold one, she honestly warned that her creations were worse than those in the capital's pharmacy.
I also sold most of the meat that had been sitting unused in my inventory. One hundred silver coins is still money, and I can always get more if needed.
Besides all this, the Shield Heroine and I started learning the local language together, which was greatly helped by the skill "Concentration."
This skill caused some inconvenience, but I have to admit, its benefits are quite significant.
Entering this state, I would look at the book that Raftalia read aloud, her finger tracing the just-read words. The meaning of the words memorized itself, and the next time I encountered them in the text, I already understood their meaning… The problem was that usually the meaning was not one, or even a few. Depending on context and placement, the meaning could be very different.
Unlike Akira, in two weeks I learned to understand the local writing, albeit sparsely. Reading books is still far away, but the beginning is laid. Akira struggled with the books but stubbornly continued learning the meanings of all those squiggles. The tanuki herself could already read and write quite freely.
She didn't like it — which annoyed us — but she was good at it. But she enjoyed playing teacher, which annoyed us even more. How smugly she sometimes corrected us… with such a satisfied look, like: "I can do what you can't! Ignoramuses!"
As for "Concentration"... I still haven't found a way to exit this focused state myself. As long as someone nearby can pull me out, it's okay. But I need to be careful.
We also leveled up quite well. Akira reached level 30, Raftalia 32, and I...
Pluton Vorontsov
Specialty: Grimoire Hero
Level: 35
Experience: 54,891 (86,000)
Stats:
HP: 720
MP: 1640
Magical Attack: 169
Defense: 17
Agility: 57
Endurance: 45
Compared to when we were first summoned here, the difference is striking. From the mastered grimoires, I gained: seventy-nine magical attack, five defense, fifteen agility, and three endurance. Looking at these numbers, it's clear that a Grimoire Hero is a "Glass Cannon." That's a term in games for someone who hits very hard but has almost no defense. And right now, that's 100% me.
I'm helped a little by armor. But there is a huge difference between armor and defense from stats. Defense applies to the whole body, making it tougher and stronger. Akira can take a hit on the head with a club and barely notice it. Something like that would at least knock me out for a while. Whether I get hit on the helmet or uncovered head doesn't really matter — the difference is only in the damage level.
I hope that at least mid-level magic will have some kind of barrier or mage armor… For now, the only thing like that is "Shield," like Akira's. But even ignoring that it takes a long time to cast, "Roots" can hold an enemy much more effectively, and "Shield" can be bypassed. Especially since it doesn't move after being cast.
At first, I lagged behind the girls in level, but with each level the amount of mana and its recovery increased, making hunting easier and easier. Especially with the shortened spell formula. Now I can almost kill monsters with the weakened version of "Lightning Arrow" without worrying about mana. And with increased magical attack, it's hardly weaker than the normal version when I first learned it. There are no strong monsters nearby, and what there is, is enough — they leave nothing but ashes.
I also learned seven relatively useful spells:
"Wind Ram" (Air magic) — does no damage, just knocks enemies down.
"Pit" (Earth magic) — self-explanatory.
"Quick Heal" (Healing magic) — in my case, not very quick yet, it's the full formula after all.
Several Support spells: "Shield" like Akira's skill, but as a spell. "Increase Running Speed," "Sleep," and "Encouragement." The last three consume crazy amounts of mana — from 140 to 200 mana in standard mode. In general, all spells in this magic school are very mana-expensive.
I thought a long time about whether to learn "Sleep." Two hundred mana in standard form… For that mana, I can cast lightning five times — and really put enemies to sleep. But it might come in handy when you can't kill but need to neutralize. So, it won't hurt to have it in the arsenal.
I didn't learn anything else. I just don't get why those spells even exist in the grimoire. For example, "Breeze" (Water magic) — it just causes a light breeze. That's it! And it costs thirty mana! Or "Flame Sparks" — just a bunch of small fire sparks around you that barely do any damage. Most spells are like that…
It feels like these spells are for teaching kids magic — useless, harmless, and safe.
So for now, I focused on more useful things: improving my understanding of the spells "Roots," and next was "Quick Heal." The first is very useful if you need to hold a monster for a while. It will be handy if I don't have to spend more than ten seconds reading it before use. The second is so that it really becomes quick. In emergencies, there might not be time to say the full formula.
***
We entered the capital wearing cloaks with our hoods pulled low. First, we stopped by an inn and booked a room. Only after we had left the inn did I realize we could have taken separate rooms.
Right after that, we headed down the main road toward the castle, where Elhart's weapons shop was located.
Walking like this, without people looking at us with disdain or judgment, felt unusual. The whole experience of being in the city was more pleasant.
Ding-Ding
"Welcome…" Elhart began, but stopped mid-sentence as soon as we took off our hoods. "What guests I have! It's been a while. I was starting to think something had happened to you."
"Hi, uncle, were you worried about us?" Akira asked with a smile.
"Well… yeah, kind of," Elhart scratched his cheek awkwardly.
"Hello. We missed you too," I added as I approached the counter.
"And who's this with you?.. Wait, Raftalia?"
"Yes, hello, Elhart-sama," Raftalia said, waving as she took off her cloak.
"You've really grown into a beauty…" the merchant muttered, staring at the tanuki. "And put on some weight… not skinny like before, that's quite different."
"Please don't say it like I've gotten fat," Raftalia replied nervously fidgeting with her fingers.
"Hahaha, you've grown so cute!"
"You're embarrassing me…" the girl blushed.
"So, how can I help you?" Elhart turned his gaze to me and Akira.
"The wave is coming soon, we wanted to update our gear, and more than that. We gathered a lot of materials while hunting. Need to sort out what can be used and what's better to discard."
"Yeah, and we also wanted to repay the debt," Akira put a pouch of money on the counter. "Uncle, thanks, you really helped us out."
"No problem," the merchant waved it off and, without counting, tossed the pouch under the counter. "Let's go to the warehouse, show me what materials you have."
"I'm afraid not everything will fit in the warehouse," I admitted. "And one more thing — do you need nuggets of 'Light Metal'?"
"'Light Metal'? And do you have many?" the merchant asked, interested.
"Eighty pieces," Akira answered.
"Wow… I can buy some if we agree on a price…" He thoughtfully scratched his chin. "I'll take twenty silver per piece if they're good quality. Twenty or maybe thirty nuggets. This metal is always in demand."
Akira and I exchanged glances. The price had doubled — no wonder we didn't sell it in the village. They wouldn't offer more than ten there… cheats.
"Are ingots of this metal worth more than nuggets?"
"The difference isn't that big, about ten percent more."
"How about we leave all the ore to you, and you smelt it and sell the excess? You get extra money, and it's less hassle for us," I suggested. Elhart looked at us confused.
"What's wrong?"
"If I didn't see your Sacred Weapons, I'd say you'd been replaced," the man muttered thoughtfully. "People who made me sell gear at cost, that's what they tell me."
"Well, we can be grateful too," Akira shrugged.
"Elhart-sama, don't make us out as villains," Raftalia said sternly.
"Yeah, I still haven't thanked you for that armor," I tapped the cuirass. "And don't hassle us! If you wanted to give us a discount, no one would force you."
"Hmm… Okay, let's go to the warehouse. I'll close the shop for now if that's the case."
When we got to the warehouse, the first thing I did was lay out all the nuggets from the inventory. Elhart carefully inspected them, and once assured of their quality and purity, agreed to help sell them. Then I began to lay out materials — starting with those I considered most valuable: bones, claws, and sinews from the Cerberus and two-headed dogs, and so on. All separated into different piles.
By the time I finished, more than half the warehouse space was covered with materials. And those were only the most valuable ones.
"Is that all?" Elhart asked, surprised.
"No, of course not! This is only the higher-quality stuff."
"Are these Cerberus bones?.. and claws… Excellent quality!" the shopkeeper assessed, picking up the material from the pile. "And what do you want to make from this?"
"Armor for the three of us — either improved or new sets. And a good sword for Raftalia. Is there enough material?"
"This is enough for a dozen sets, and some leftover. Of course, some materials will need to be bought," Elhart said thoughtfully. "If you make new armor. Or you can strengthen and enchant your current gear… although no, the girls should get new armor anyway. Especially since money isn't a problem for you. Your armor can just be enchanted and reinforced — I made it really impressive."
"One more thing — can you appraise this?" I pulled from the inventory a monstrous sword, pauldrons, and helmet dropped by the Cerberus. Even with our blacksmith skill, we couldn't identify this equipment with the 'Appraisal' skill.
After careful inspection, Elhart gave his expert opinion:
"The sword is good quality, made from ordinary black iron but enchanted remarkably: 'Self-repair,' minor 'Attack boost,' medium 'Strength boost,' and a built-in skill 'Triple Strike.' That's pretty good for a weapon, since it's harder to enchant." Setting the sword aside, he began to turn over the armor pieces.
"The pauldrons and helmet are from the same set, also black iron, excellent quality. Also enchanted: medium 'Resistance to blunt attacks,' medium 'Resistance to slashing attacks,' medium 'Health regeneration increase,' medium 'Mana regeneration reduction.' Enchantments are excellent and crafted masterfully, but black iron… not the best choice, in my opinion."
"'Mana regeneration reduction'?" I picked out the part most important to me. "Bad, I was thinking of adding that to my armor."
"No, dude, bad idea. Then I wouldn't be able to enchant your armor at all," Elhart shook his head. "I can add mana increase and mana regeneration to your armor. It won't be better than magical armor in those stats, but that armor can't boast much defense anyway. But it takes more enchantments. Those pauldrons and helmet are better given to Akira — defense never hurts, and hers is very good."
"I won't wear that," the girl refused immediately. "I'm fine with my current defense."
"The appearance bothers her," I explained to the puzzled look of the shopkeeper. "Those are dog heads, after all…"
"Stupid. So what do you want from me? I still don't get it."
"Sell the sword. Nobody can use that big thing. And the pauldrons and helmet… now I don't even know what to do with them."
"I'll buy the sword from you for one hundred fifty silver," Elhart said, stroking his beard. "Maybe I'll learn something interesting studying it more closely. It's never too late to learn. As for the pauldrons and helmet… I can reforge them. Into something less dog-like, if that's really an issue."
"Can you make me a helmet with a view like this one?" I remembered my promise.
"Yes, these are standard lenses and not very good quality. I can make a better one. Just for you or for the others too?"
"They don't have anything, so they don't need it," I answered a bit irritably. "Just make sure the hair flows nicely in the wind."
"There he goes again…" Akira sighed. "I've told you a hundred times, our defense isn't as bad as yours. The shield protects me." She tapped her Sacred Weapon irritably. "And it would only get in Raftalia's way. She's a fast fighter!"
"And I have ears!" Raftalia gave an undeniable argument.
"Got it. Now let's decide what exactly you want to enchant on the armor. Time is tight; you should have come an hour before the wave," Elhart stopped the conversation. "Since you want helmets, I'll make them. Let them decide if they want to wear them or not."
"Agreed," I answered, and we exchanged understanding glances.