“First, let's trade in this leather armor of mine.”
Lynn placed a coarse burlap sack on the counter, which contained his "battle-worn" leather armor that he had bought for fourteen silver coins.
Old Henry took the leather armor out of the sack. At first glance, he saw the gashes on the collar and chest, which were still stained with unwashed blood.
“Hiss—”
Just looking at this shocking combat damage made Old Henry's eyelids twitch. He subconsciously looked up at Lynn, but he couldn't see any signs of injury on him. This...
It was the first time Old Henry had ever seen an adventurer return alive with armor damaged to this extent.
This Master Mage's life was simply too resilient...
Without waiting for Lynn to urge him, Old Henry skillfully turned the armor pieces over, holding them in his hands to assess their condition.
“The breastplate can be repaired and sold secondhand, but the collar is no longer usable and can only be recycled as scrap. As for the other parts—the pauldrons, bracers, greaves... they're preserved quite well. In near-mint condition, perfect for a Mage's personal use.”
“Out of respect for you, Master Mage, I can trade in this leather armor for six silver coins.”
Lynn did some quick mental math. If he sold this leather armor secondhand himself, he wouldn't get fourteen silver coins anyway—at most ten to twelve. Besides, Old Henry would have to spend materials and time to repair and maintain it. The price of six silver coins was reasonable.
Lynn nodded. Thus, this set of leather armor, which had accompanied him almost from the very beginning of his adventures, was traded in to Old Henry for six silver coins.
After counting out six silver coins and handing them to Lynn, Old Henry placed the leather armor beneath the counter. Perhaps it would be better to keep this set of leather armor.
Old Henry had a feeling that this leather armor might appreciate in value in the future.
He felt that Lynn might become an extraordinary figure in the future. When that time came, this leather armor might even become a collector's item of sorts.
Having received another sum of money, Lynn's savings finally broke past fifteen gold coins.
“Show me the armor you have in the shop.”
Old Henry led Lynn to the usual spot, the inner section of the blacksmith shop.
Dozens of sets of armor were displayed in a scattered fashion throughout this not-too-spacious room, ranging from cloth armor and leather armor to chainmail, splint mail, and plate armor.
Lynn still skipped right past iron armor like plate mail.
On one hand, there was the same old problem: heavy armor would affect Lynn's Stealth efficiency. On the other hand...
Fifteen gold coins were simply not enough when it came to these heavy armors. An ordinary secondhand chainmail would cost six gold coins, while plate armor and the like were even more expensive.
The price of a single set of plate armor was enough to buy two First-Circle spell scrolls.
Therefore, Lynn's goal this time was still leather armor. Except this time, he wanted to buy leather armor made from the hide of a ranked monster!
After Lynn explained his requirements, Old Henry quickly found a few sets of armor that met his needs.
Old Henry first pointed to a cleanly tailored, relatively thin, but highly flexible set of leather armor.
“How about this one? It's made from the chest hide of a young griffon. It's extremely lightweight and barely affects the wearer's movement, and its defensive capabilities are much better than ordinary cowhide.”
Squeezing it to test the thickness, Lynn felt that this leather armor could almost be considered light armor. This did not fit his needs.
Lynn needed leather armor with sufficient defense to bring out the advantages of his high Constitution and high Strength. If it weren't for his tight budget, he might have even considered heavy armor.
Seeing Lynn's dissatisfaction with that leather armor, Old Henry then walked toward another set.
“Then how about this one? It's made of worg hide. Its defense is even better than the previous one. Wearing this, ordinary non-ranked monsters won't be able to pierce your armor even after four or five hits. Even against attacks from ranked monsters, it can offer some protection. And due to the monster's traits, it also provides a certain level of warmth.”
This one...
Lynn looked at the fur on the leather, feeling somewhat speechless.
Around Wingen Town, the two areas with a high concentration of ranked monsters were the volcano and Misty Reed Marsh. Which of those areas required fur to stay warm?
Wouldn't this thing catch fire instantly at the volcano, and turn into a heavy burden the moment it touched water in the marsh?
Lynn explained his requirements in more detail.
“I want something with stronger defense, preferably suitable for volcanic areas.”
Old Henry pondered for a moment.
The blacksmith shop was small, and its clientele mostly consisted of apprentices like Lynn or lower-level class-holders. Thus, there weren't many sets of leather armor made from monster hide. As for one that perfectly matched Lynn's requirements...
Old Henry's eyes suddenly lit up.
“Right, take a look at this one.”
Old Henry led Lynn to the deepest part of the room.
A blast of cold air rushed over them, and then, a heavy set of leather armor appeared in Lynn's line of sight.
It was unclear what kind of monster hide this leather armor was made from. Not only did its appearance exude a fierce aura unique to monsters, but simply stepping close to it made Lynn feel a cool drop in the surrounding temperature.
The forge in this blacksmith shop never went out, so the temperature was usually quite high.
Old Henry introduced, “This one is made from the hide of a Tier 2 monster, the Mist-Tailed Crocodile. Its defensive power will definitely satisfy you, Master Mage!”
Lynn examined it closely.
The main chest and back sections of this leather armor were tanned from a single, solid piece of the crocodile's dorsal scute plate. Even though it had been dyed black using an iron-vinegar process, the raised keratinous scales on the surface could still not be hidden.
As for the waist and abdomen, it utilized a method similar to splint armor, where the scute plates were divided and arranged in sections, greatly increasing the range of motion.
The joints were connected with the tough hide from the crocodile's belly, ensuring maximum flexibility once donned while still maintaining solid defense. Therefore, although this leather armor looked heavy, it did not feel clunky.
What was even more valuable was that as a swamp monster, the Mist-Tailed Crocodile's hide also inherited its living traits, possessing the ability to insulate heat and lower temperatures.
Thus, it would be of great help to Lynn when exploring the volcano.
Lynn fell in love with this leather armor at first sight.
Seeing that Lynn was very pleased with this leather armor, Old Henry struck while the iron was hot:
“Master Mage, although this leather armor is made from the hide of a Tier 2 monster, it has been sitting in the shop for quite a while due to its weight. If you want it, I can let you have it for cost price—just twelve gold coins.”
A cost price of twelve gold coins?!
Lynn clicked his tongue slightly, startled by the price.
The bounty for a Tier 1 monster was usually only two to three gold coins. This single set of leather armor was worth five or six Tier 1 monsters!
However, Lynn was already practically determined to get his hands on this leather armor. So he only tentatively haggled a bit,
“Can you go any lower?”
To his surprise, Old Henry hesitated for a long time at this simple question.
Finally, Old Henry glanced once more at the Mages' Association member badge pinned to Lynn's chest.
He would treat it as an early investment.
After all, this was a Mage lord. Establishing a good relationship now would bring no shortage of benefits in the future.
In the future, if Henry really didn't want to inherit his blacksmith shop, perhaps he could even become a follower to this Mage lord. This was much better than being a hand-to-mouth adventurer.
Gritting his teeth, Old Henry said, “Ten gold coins, Master Mage. I really can't go any lower. This is already the price I paid to acquire the monster hide.”
Lynn was somewhat surprised.
Last time, Old Henry had bickered with him over five silver coins for a long time, yet this time he gave up two gold coins without a second thought. Was this the effect of his increased Charisma attribute?
Rate on N.U.
