I failed. I failed hard.

Did I get unlucky with this year's qualification exam?

[Holy Armour] is easy enough to sustain with my current mana and my mana regenerating equipment. Even if you remove the equipment, I still have enough mana to keep up [Holy Armour] for a couple of hours. Either way, I still meet the requirements to pass the first test.

The second round was brutal too! The mithril golem that I fought was the strongest among those I fought against for the qualification exam before. I didn't expect to fail at that stage!

I was at least confident to outwit the golem, as I danced around it, but not only was it stronger, it was faster too. Why would they do that? Shouldn't exams like those have a minimum standard as well as a maximum?

If the golem strength fluctuates like that then you'll have years where you look and wonder why no one passed! Well you know why no one passed? It's because they lucked out and faced an enemy they can't defeat at their current level!

I'll just put this to one side and prepare for the things I need for the journey.

*Knock* *Knock*

"Victor? Are you still there? It's me, brill!"

Is he not here? Don't tell me he already left? It wasn't that long ago that I went to take the exam.

*Creak Open*

"Excuse me? You must be brill. Victor told me to give you this letter when you come here."
"Oh thanks! Jimmy? Right?"
"Ah, yes. Anyway, here is the letter, bye."
"Thanks, bye!"

*Creak Close*

You might want to grease those hinges. It's starting to give that haunted house door opening sound.

I wonder if I got his name wrong. Victor mentioned his neighbor a few times. He mentioned him being a sculptor student. They got along well for the most part but he said that he was too passive.

Anyway, what could possibly happen for victor to leave early.

Hey brill, If James gave you this letter then I should be on my way to the capital now. My father heard news that his master is visiting the capital. His former teacher, who taught him all he knew about fighting. He retired a couple of years ago the moment his grandson was born. It seems that they wanted him back because of our current situation. I think they want him to help train the new recruits as well as use them to fortify the homecourt while most of the army is sent to the dragon's road. He has a bit of a renown as the pure solid iron mountain instructor.

I really did get his name wrong. I'm sorry about that. At least I don't have to interact with him again.

My father is almost healed and wanted to pay respects to his teacher, as well as ask for help in retraining him back to health. I think he might also want me to pay my respects too, so we left as soon as he received the news. I didn't see the results, so send me a message if you passed or failed. Me and chatterbox will visit when we have time. If you failed the exam and are on the way to hire a mercenary group, since I doubt you would use public transport with all your luggages, I suggest going for a big name mercenary group. Those that have a good reputation and don't have money problems. They are less likely to turn to banditry. Good luck, bye!!

That does make sense I suppose. Paying respects to your teacher is something I understand but the reason they headed for the capital must be for something more.

The teacher has renown and even though retired, the knowledge is still there. However, if that is all then the current instructor, whomever replaced him, could stay behind and continue teaching the newbies. I think the main reason they called for him is to boost their morale while sending a message to the bandits who escaped into the continent that they still have a lot of hidden cards, so they can't make big waves here.

It's a shame that I won't have a professional mercenary help me travel to my new village but it can't be helped. Our friendship isn't based on one sided help, they have their own things they need to do.

For now, let's get my shopping done. I could shop at other places but there are certain items that are cheaper here. Like mithril ore which I need to stock up on. I also don't want to deal with weird laws other towns might have.

This is the first I need to visit since this one needs some time to gather the products I might buy. Also, among the stores I visited this one is best in bulk.

The building material store! I need materials to build my workshop, I need materials to build my house and I need extra materials to be able to rebuild those at least three times. If possible, a little extra for repairs too!

I have a general design that I want to do. However, I haven't actually picked a spot on where to place it. I want it on top of a volcano, preferably a small one, so I need something that doesn't melt and conduct heat. Knowing that our teacher fought by [Shaping] the metal he scattered to impale the bandits, I want to do something similar. I want the floor to be metal and it would spike up at enemies as a trap or I could shape the metal to create a hole to drop the enemies into the volcano.

"Welcome to Bill's material warehouse! How may I help you today?"
"Don't mind me, I'm just browsing."
"Understood, if you need anything feel free to call us and I will do the best I can to deliver your needs. We have every kind of resource you have and every contact to call upon if we don't."
"I will call if I need something. Leave me to muse on my decisions."

It looks like this saledwarf is one of those kinds of salesmen. The aggressive kind that hangs around you with that creepy business smile.

Places like these are owned by large merchant guilds. The big shots of those usually stay at their headquarters. This one is a branch and it has been here for a long time, so chances are that this salesman is an ordinary salesman. He is not some young heir sent to learn the ropes, nor a capable high ranking member sent to stabilize a new branch. I am sure that he is like this because of the potential commission he can get from customers buying stuff at the store.

Hmm~ I need materials that have good fire resistance but with metal for the foundation. This magma ore seems nice. The only problem is that I don't know how much heat it conducts. Metal conducts heat really well but I am hoping there is some kind of metal here that doesn't.

In my years here at the school, we didn't get to play with other metals that much because the budget wouldn't last. However, we did get taught the knowledge on how to process it. There are also some odd days where we were shown a couple of ores with other elemental shades but the teacher mostly showed us how it reacts to different kinds of handling. All of them, even the water type metal, conduct heat well.

The water type ore conducts heat the least but I doubt I could use that as the foundation for my workshop. The overwhelming power of the volcano would corrode the water mana in it sofast, it would wear out in a month.

I'll leave this be for the meantime. I'll try picking materials for the walls first.

"Do you want some help sir? I can help recommend products if you are lost on what to choose!"
"I'm fine, I'm just looking around."

You timed that really well. Are you hanging around me waiting to see if I move?

Hmm? Now that I look around, he is talking to all of the customers here. Is he doing a rotation of every customer until one calls on him? What about the others? I doubt a store this big would only have one employee.

Ah! There they are at the corner. It seems that every time a customer is calling for help, he swoops down and blocks the other salesperson from approaching. This is one aggressive salesdwarf. To think you would even push your coworkers around to take their customers.

Are you that greedy for money? Is that commision that big of a deal to you? I'm sure you aren't underpaid working for a large merchant guild like this, so what could possibly fuel your aggressive sales strategy other than greed?

I don't need to mnd him for now, I'll just pick another salesperson from the corner if I want to purchase something. It doesn't seem worth it for him to get the commission. I'm not softhearted but let's give a bit of a helping hand to those who are obstructed from doing their job.

For the walls, I wanted it to be brick because the pattern on brick walls look nice. I'll try to shape my workshop into a hemisphere with a chimney to make it look like an igloo. However, the door needs to be a normal door since I don't actually need to keep the cool away. Actually I need it to have good enough ventilation that the inside doesn't overheat but doesn't fluctuate too much in temperature. It would be troublesome when forging after all.

These fire bricks would do nicely. I wonder if they are the same kind of fire bricks back on earth? They are red and look like regular bricks. The size is a bit bigger though. It's the size of hollow blocks they use to build buildings but solid all the way through.

Actually, if I want to live near volcanoes then I need to have a plan in case one of those things explodes. These fire bricks seem good for insulating the workshop and the house but I don't know if it can take a hit in case a volcano erupts and decides to launch burning chunks of rock into the sky.

Should I go for mithril after all? It is expensive but I do have the current funds. No, it would be too conspicuous to show that much money. It would waste a lot of my actual money too. I can make do with lesser metals. I just need it to absorb the blow of any kind of impact. I could always rebuild the workshop or the house if need be. The truly important items will always be stored inside my [Soul Storage] after all.

"Is something troubling you sir? I am always ready to help! I have helped and recommended helpful suggestions to customers for over 5 years! You can trust my judgement!"
"I'm still deciding, don't mind me."

Really? Seriously!? It has only been 15 minutes. It's okay, everything is fine. I only need to visit this place once.

"...Tsk, wasting my time like that. If you aren't going to buy then leave the store and stop blocking the way for actual customers."

That is it, I was just trying to pick a different employee to spread the commission earned around but now I will do it with added spite! Look on as I buy a large amount of materials with a large amount of money while the large juicy commission goes to another person!

Alright! Annoying sales talk aside, I think it's okay to go for this dense purple coloured metal called Purple gold brick. According to the description, it seems to be an alloy of Violent Vibrant ore and gold. Actual gold? No wonder this is expensive. It does say that it's a tough metal that can take an impact very well. It also used an alchemist to help make it.

We did have an introduction about cooperation between different crafters but since the work differs for every job, the only thing the teacher said about it is to plan and discuss everything before acting. There is also the fact that most products made from the help of different crafters are the property of the organization or persons involved in making it, so they can't tell us how they made it.

I guess I will go with this. It is a bit expensive but this is a material I can't make by myself. If I am buying something, it might as well be something I don't have the ability to make.

I'll layer the house with the pattern of fire bricks, that purple brick, and then fire bricks again. This will insulate both the inside of my workshop, and the outside, while the yummy filling of purple brick will act as a sponge to absorb damages. I don't know what kind of item they have for cement but I'm sure the employees here know what to do about that.

My house will be connected by a small hallway to the workshop and the materials could be the same. However, I don't need the third layer, which is the fire bricks, on the inside since my house doesn't need to have a carefully controlled temperature inside. The purple might hurt my eyes, so I can ask them for some paint to colour it.

Now that I think about it, maybe I could colour the inside of the workshop too. It's going to be boring with the inside being all red. Hmm? Maybe green and green in different swirls to make it look weird? I guess that should work. The inside of my house would have calming colours though, since I want to relax there.

"Excuse me! Can I have some help over here."
"A-ah! Yes, What can I-"
"Yes, yes! I'll be right with you. What can I-"
"Not you, her! Don't steal other people's work. Switching clients all around like that is annoying to look at. Don't bother me!"
"Eh?...Umm...Yes, Sorry for troubling you."

You were talking to someone who just came into the store. I saw how you looked at them. Their clothes were well worn out, so you judged that they wouldn't buy a lot. You heard me asking for help, so you gave them the quick version of a greeting and subtly shoved your coworker. Go in the corner and think of your actions.

"....Arrogant asshole. You probably won't buy a lot. You should be grateful I even talk politely to you. Who do you think you are? I received nobles with statuses and wealth you can't hope to achieve."

Hehehe, Keep on thinking that. Keep looking because I have a show I want you to see.

"You there, hurry up and come here. I need an opinion about things."
"Yes! How may I help you sir?"
"First of all I want to build a foundation on top of a volcano. I want a metal foundation that is extremely resistant to the magma's heat. I also need it to be a poor conductor of heat."
"Fire resistant to a magma's fumes and possibly accidental contact with it along with being a poor heat conductor. Yes! We have this Green magma metal that would work well. It is often used in larged foundries inside an active volcano. However, the price is on the expensive side since it is made with different kinds of metals and alchemy potions."
"What is it made of?"
"Sorry but the ingredients of all alloys owned by our company cannot be divulged."
"Hmm? What about that purple thing made in combination with gold?"
"Ah, those have already been replicated by other companies. The main ingredient is already known, so it didn't matter if those are known. The supporting ingredients, the ratio and the procedure on how it is made is still hidden, so it is still okay if some parts of it are known."

I guess something like a company secret?

"Anyway, this is my rough estimate on what I need to build. I want the base to be that magma metal and the walls made with three layers. First is the fire brick, then that purple thing, and finally another fire brick. The house is fine with only two layers with the fire brick on the outside. I will leave the decision on what to use to bind them to you. Give me good windows and something to shield them in case rocks started raining from the sky. Did you get that so far?"
"...Ah? .... Yes! I will get right on it! You can leave it to me!"
"Slow down first. After you figure out everything, I need you to triple that. Now go calculate everything and quote me a downpayment. I need this by tomorrow. Is it enough time?"
"Yes! A batch of materials that was supposed to go to the central island a couple of days ago got stuck here. It was supposed to return and redistribute it to the branches nearby. Using those in combination with our inventory is well over the scope of your purchase. We can have it ready by tomorrow!"
"Good, so how much downpayment do I need to leave with you?"

I'm happy that my heavy purchase can be fulfilled but I wonder how much money this is going to cost me. To be fair, the fire brick should be a popular material, so supplies for that should be high. I wonder which materials they are short of, for them to combine their natural supply with the stalled shipment.

"I have calculated the total, sir! The additions I included may be on the pricey side but they are well worth the initial price. They last long and can take hits. They are also environmentally friendly! The total comes to 500 gold coins. The downpayment comes to 100 gold coins."
"Good here is the full payment. Have everything ready tomorrow."
"Yes! I will oversee everything to make sure nothing goes wrong. Where do you want it delivered?"
"I'll bring a group to handle the transportation tomorrow morning. Just have it ready to be picked up by then."
"Yes, sir! We will have everything stored at the back. All deliveries are handled there. Also, if you would please accept this little gift from our merchant guild. This is a VIP card that will help smooth things for your next orders."
"I see, then I will tell them that. I hope everything is ready by tomorrow."
"Thank you for doing business with us. Please feel free to call us if you need anything else."

I'll keep that in mind but I already bought three sets of building materials. I doubt that I would ever come back here again.

"...T-that...that...ah....wha....."

Looks like the aggressive salesdwarf finally quieted down. As a result, the other workers are springing back to life. The atmosphere in the store got more relaxed too. This is what a store is all about!

Anyway, I still need to buy some furniture, kitchenware and utensils. I haven't made a dent on the sack of gold those humans gave me. Now that I have the funds, time to spend it to the best of my abilities.