Cthulhu Gonfalon

A magic kit was a type of magic prop, and magicians could use magic to add special effects to an ordinary kit. Prices varied with the different effects and materials used.

Prices increased when the enchantment power was stronger, more lasting, and applied to a smaller kit… There were clear principles.

Ryder had lent one to Shawn the ogre wrister that could steadily and significantly enhance the user’s power. Plus, as it was a tiny wrister that only took up a little space, its price had increased massively. It was very likely that the magician who had created it would have upgraded it further into a high-level magic kit if they hadn’t been limited by the materials and size.

Even so, it was already a true luxury. Crick had seen a pair of “vigorous gloves of ogre” in an Association of Adventurers armor shop in the Void Mask Land that had claimed to “substantially enhance power” and was priced at four thousand gold coins. He didn’t know what “substantially” actually denoted, perhaps four points of power at most—as Hercules was four points more powerful than average people according to the statistics.

Considering that the wrister was much smaller in size than gloves, enabling one to wear short gloves on top of the wrister, Ryder’s wrister should have been worth over two thousand gold coins in a conservative case.

Crick privately told Shawn about the value of the wrister after Ryder had left, leaving Shawn with his eyes open wide and staring at the grey wrister on his right hand nervously, not knowing what to do.

For a second child like Shawn from a knight’s family, two thousand gold coins was a big fortune and wearing such a fortune on the wrist was genuinely much too… extravagant!

Leaving Shawn to worry by himself, Crick immediately left for the Association of Adventurers in the Keane Town.

Ordinary blacksmiths couldn’t make magic kits. One had to go to magicians or adventurers for a magic kit. Though there was a magician living in the Keane Town, he mainly studied potions, not magic kits. Therefore, the Association of Adventurers was the only source that could supply a magic kit.

It didn’t mean that the Association produced magic kits by itself; it just resold adventurers’ collections from their adventures, especially featuring low-end magic kits.

Located in an area with few quality adventure venues nearby, the Association of Adventurers in the Keane Town only had some business. When Crick arrived there, he saw Piene, the president, was holding a glass of beer and chatting with his waitress, Lily.

President Piene was almost fifty. He had been an adventurer and received some fame. When he had been a robber, he had been good at seeing through tricks and identifying objects. Later, he had become tired of life-risking adventures, so he had retired and used his connections to run the Association of Adventurers in this small Keane Town.

Lily was the daughter of one of his old adventuring friends. Since that friend had unfortunately died in battle and left his daughter and other senior family members behind, Piene—already retired—had taken them to the Keane Town and looked after them. It had been ten years since then, and the seniors had passed away, but the little girl had grown up to become a beauty in the Association of Adventures, attracting quite a few adventurers to go there for her.

“Lily, you’ve grown up. Has any boy here ever interested you?” The once adventurer was like an old father who was worried about his children now. “An got married last year, and I should be a grandfather soon. You should seize the opportunity!”

Lily obviously didn’t like talking about this. After President Piene’s son, An, got married, she had become the only remaining target for this old man to urge into a marriage, which frustrated her.

So she was excited at Crick’s visit and ran out to welcome him, easily allowing an outsider to mistake her as someone more than a friend to Crick, yet Crick didn’t notice anything. After a few minutes of chatting, she asked what he had come there for.

“A low-end magic kit?” Piene thought for a minute, then took Crick to his warehouse.

It wasn’t a big warehouse for the Association of Adventurers, although there was a lot in there. Most of it was necessary consumables for adventures or special tools that weren’t often available in ordinary stores, but few of them met Crick’s requirements.

“Two protective waistbands with force-field shields to roughly function as thin leather armor; a pair of Boots of Life that could slightly promote vitality; a weak enchantment sling that enables ten-minute activation per day, during which it adds a weak sundering effect to stones that are thrown; a weak enchantment machete that also enables ten-minute activation per day with the effect to aggravate injuries; ten identical semi-enchantment daggers to aggravate injuries that were probably found in military camp relics, but need magic power to take effect.” Piene introduced all the kits to Crick and sighed, “Honestly, nothing good for you, and none of them would really suit you as a baron.”

But Crick didn’t mind that. He asked about the price and paid for all this stuff, spending only around one thousand gold coins altogether.

Then he returned to the camp and passed all of it to Shawn and asked him to have the elites in the troop wear these fine kits.

Shawn carefully inspected the kits and expressed his concern. “Sir, the semi-enchantment weapon would need magic power to activate, but we don’t have anyone to cast the spell on it in our camp.”

“I’ll find someone.”

“And we’re training armored pikemen here. Do you think they’ll still have an advantage when using daggers?”

Crick hadn’t considered this fact. He thought and agreed. Forcing a smile on his face, he said, “Then let the archers use the daggers. I guess they should have some weapons for close combat.”

“But it seems a bit wasteful to have archers use magic kits.”

“I’ve paid for them anyway, and I don’t think we can ask for a refund.”

Shawn sighed and asked, “What about the slings? Few of us in town know how to use one.”

“Try to find someone who knows how to train them. It should be pretty easy to learn, right?”

“It’s just not so easy to aim with them,” sighed Shawn. “I used to practice with them out of curiosity. They’re powerful at a distance of a dozen steps, at least more powerful than throwing a stone, but they’re not easy to aim. It takes one no less than one or two months to practice.”

“Are you still able to use them now?”

Shawn paused and forced a smile. “I am a knight after all, it’d be a shame to use this…”

Crick smiled, “Since you know how to use them, things are looking much easier. After the battle with the gnomes, let’s get a few smart lads to practice using them—I don’t think there’s any special physical requirements for using slings, is there?”

“Not at all. In fact, it’s a simple weapon created by small and slim species like dwarves.”

So it was decided.

Among all the kits, the most popular ones were definitely the three constant magic kits, which were also major expenses. With thorough consideration, Shawn decided to distribute them to the three soldiers who had shown the best performances in training. In Crick’s eyes, they were three grade-two soldiers with slightly higher properties.

When everything was ready, the soldiers fed themselves properly and took a rest. It would be a hard battle for them the next day!

But Crick hadn’t finished his work. He was going to contact adventurers to help draw the Grey Gnomes out from the mountains so that it would be easier to encircle and suppress them.

He thought of getting some help from the Association of Adventurers while he stopped to look at the big tree where Reina was hidden.

Good, she was still there.

He walked directly to the tree and lifted his head to shout, “Reina! Can you do me a favor?”

With her eyes closed, Reina was taking a rest from her half-day monitoring. His voice almost frightened her into falling out of the tree.

The former baron? How does he know I’m here? When did he find out? Is my shield really working, or am I actually being monitored by him? Gosh! That’s unbelievable! No wonder he’s a legend! No… what should I do now? Fight? Run? Or just give in? It’s not possible to fight. I’m not good at fighting and I’ll lose! Run… can I run from him? Maybe I can… but… gosh! That “Three Arrows” Ryder happens to be nearby on patrol! I can’t manage to run away! Impossible! That guy could shoot three arrows in a row, and nobody can run from him! So, should I just give in? Am I going to be hanged? I could be… no way! I don’t want that! I’m just a well-behaved informant! Why would I be involved in such things! Gosh! God! What should I do!

This investigating female adventurer was struggling. If she had been a character in a modern game or animation, she might have had sparks flying around her head, and her eyes would have become vortex-like.

Crick didn’t hear any answer. He frowned and shouted again, “Reina! Are you sleeping there?”

It dragged Reina out from her thoughts, and she immediately answered, “No.”

“Then can you come down here? It’s not easy to talk like this.”

Reina forced a smile. She gave up the idea of fighting or running away and jumped down the tree.

She was expecting to be interrogated when surprisingly, she realized the former baron was talking about Grey Gnomes without mentioning anything about the monitoring.

“I believe you’re capable and especially good at investigating. Are you interested in helping me draw those Grey Gnomes out from the mountain in the north to…” Crick thought and continued, “There’s an open space under the mountain at the river bend. Can you lead them there?”

Reina was surprised. She thought a bit and said, “Grey Gnomes are greedy and vicious. It should be easy to lure them there with some chickens.”

“Fine. I’m leading my soldiers to eliminate them tomorrow. Once we’re out of town, you can lure them there so that we’ll block their retreat from the pathway and suppress them.” Crick said, “Are you happy to take this on? How much do you charge?”

Reina hadn’t expected such a question. She thought for a while and decided to take the mission.

Crick paid her deposit and left happily, leaving the female adventurer who had been monitoring him standing under the tree, confused.

“What am I doing…”