Chapter 33: Equipment Order

Ain didn't linger on his thoughts for too long.

It was still afternoon, and there was sufficient time for him to harvest some more cores. He stored the Metal Golem Core away and continued his hunt.

A few hours later, Ain could be seen riding his fluxboard across the green plains. His bags were full of loot, not looking any different from his previous trip. He only lacked the body of a spirit beast tied behind his backpack.

The hunt was largely successful, with only some minor hiccups. He encountered another Metal Golem, adding a second Metal Golem Core to his harvest. There were also more Rock Golem Cores in his backpack.

Since he had enough space, Ain harvested some smaller Beginner Rank-1 Spirit Beasts and spirit plants on his way back.

After cruising on the fluxboard for about two hours, he vaguely made out the tall city walls in the distance.

As the paths started to converge, more and more spirit tamers could be seen, mostly on their way back to the city as well. Ain was already used to this sight and only cast a glance before moving on.

Soon, he entered the city, making his way towards the Spirit Tamer Association branch nearby.

He saw some missions for the golem cores, but Ain didn’t plan to submit them here. The prices of golem cores often fluctuated, whereas the Spirit Tamer Association had a set reward for their missions. Only after a large discrepancy between the prices would they adjust their rewards.

Ain planned to keep the Metal Golem Cores and a few Rock Golem Cores as materials for his equipment and sell the remaining cores in the market.

After leaving the Spirit Tamer Association, his account balance increased by 40,000 star coins. He submitted eight Feather Iguanas that he hunted on his way back.

After some thought, Ain decided to end the day and head home. He still needed to search for a blacksmith to forge his equipment.

He didn’t expect the two Metal Golem Cores to be enough for all his equipment. He would still have to use the Rock Golem Cores. Since he didn’t know how many golem cores were be needed, Ain decided to sell the extra golem cores later.

He boarded a hoverbus and began his journey home. With the extra time on hand, Ain spent it searching for a good blacksmith.

There were various options available. This was a big industry that Ain was unfamiliar with. He searched through various shops and individual blacksmiths before he came across the Artisan Union.

Ain had actually seen the Artisan Union’s headquarters in the central region of the city, as well as some of their branches here and there.

The Artisan Union was a behemoth organization spanning the entire Dawnstar Federation. But unlike the Spirit Tamer Association, the Artisan Union was not a government agency.

The Artisan Union oversaw the various craftsmen professions in the federation by certifying and validating their skills, while providing assessments and examinations. Similar to the Spirit Tamer Association, they also accepted direct commissions for their members to complete.

There were three major professions in the union: blacksmiths, alchemists, and artificers. There were other professions as well, but these major professions held the most sway within the union.

After some research, Ain decided against commissioning the Artisan Union. Although the quality was guaranteed, he wanted to save on the extra fees involved. The Artisan Union was pricier than lone blacksmiths or shops that provided these services.

After a few more minutes, he narrowed his options down to the Atlas Corporation and the Liberty Firm, both of which were familiar names to him.

The Atlas Corporation Ain marked was just one of their stores, not the Atlas Branch where his mentor used to preside. The Atlas Branch was only a research base as well as the local headquarters.

Although Ain often visited the Atlas Branch, he wasn't too familiar with the Atlas Corporation. Now that his mentor was no longer here, Ain didn’t feel anything special about the Atlas Corporation.

After considering his options, Ain decided to choose the Liberty Firm in the end. The deciding factor was his familiarity with the brand. After his first transaction, where he sold the Razor Panther, Ain visited them again to resupply for this trip. Not only that, even the leather armor he was wearing was a product of the Liberty Firm.

Although the stores he visited were different each time, Ain was familiar with their quality and service.

Having decided on this matter, Ain put away his hololink and opened his backpack. He detached the leather armor from his body and placed the pieces within. He glanced at the two extra bottles of Spirit Recovery Pills that he didn’t have before and closed the backpack.

Sometimes, how events unfolded couldn’t be controlled.

With a sigh, Ain turned his head and stared out the window to pass the time.

…

The next day, Ain gathered all his extra loot into a few bags and arrived at the Liberty Firm in the central region of the city.

After some inquiries, he was brought into a separate hall where crafting services were offered. He walked up to the shop assistant and stated his request.

“Please follow me this way,” the shop assistant politely led the way and continued, “Someone will be with you shortly.”

“Thank you.” Ain quietly followed her and arrived at a separate room with only a few leather seats and a large table. There was window with a clear, bustling view of the city, easing one’s mind.

The wait wasn’t long before a young man rushed into the room and spoke in a hurry. “Thank you for waiting. My name is Roland. Please tell me the specifications for your order.”

Ain looked at Roland, who had short black hair and an average build. There was a thick apron covering his body, and his face was covered in soot marks. He didn't look much older than Ain either.

“Hello, my name is Ain.” Ain also introduced himself before asking, “Are you the blacksmith by any chance?”

Ain couldn't help but ask with a hint of suspicion. It was difficult to trust someone with similar age to forge equipment for him. He would need to verify his skills first if that were the case.

Roland immediately understood the intention behind the question and hastily replied while waving his hands. “Oh no, I’m just one of the blacksmith assistants here. I’ll take your order and relay it to the blacksmith. It’s more convenient this way.”

After hearing this, Ain nodded with understanding.

The two didn’t waste any more time and got down to business.

Ain only left the room after thirty minutes. He also received an estimate for the payment, which had to be made upon the completion of the order.

For now, Ain decided to sell the remaining loot and buy some more resources.

He made his way towards the sales counter and emptied out all his loot.

After some calculations, the shop assistant quoted her price for the golem cores, “It’ll be 7,000 for each Beginner Rank-1 Rock Golem Core and 11,000 for the Intermediate Rank-1 Rock Golem Cores.”

Ain found the prices suitable and agreed. “Okay.”

With that, he sold all 26 Beginner Rank-1 golem cores and the remaining two Intermediate Rank-1 golem cores that were left over. He also sold some miscellaneous items.

“Your total will be 213,000 star coins.” The shop assistant smiled and reported Ain's total.

Ain checked his account on his hololink. Upon seeing the transfer, he thanked the shop assistant and went off to buy some things before leaving.

On the way home, Ain looked through what he had just purchased. The Ghost Stone and Grim Bark had been consumed by Nox in just one week. So this time, Ain purchased four bottles of Rank-1 Ectoplasm.

Ectoplasm was another common ghost resource, often used to nurture ghost pets. It could be considered an upgrade to Nox's resources. Teacher Turner had recommended the Ghost Stones and Grim Barks when Nox was still at Rank-0.

After reaching Rank-1, Ectoplasm was more effective.

Four bottles cost 40,000 star coins. This left Ain with 430,000 star coins.

As he looked at this sum, Ain wasn’t too excited. Although it seemed like a large amount, their need for resources was increasing as time passed. He needed to continue making weekly trips and accumulate more.

Ain still wanted to purchase a large number of techniques. Others might believe his training speed to be incredible, but he didn’t think so himself. Ain was aware of his untapped potential, and every day he spent waiting to release it was another day wasted.

With these thoughts, Ain was back home before afternoon.

After some leisure time playing with Nox and the cat, he started his meditation. Since yesterday, Ain had been sensing that he might be able to take the next step soon.

He consumed a Spirit Condensing Pill and circulated his spirit energy according to the Basic Meditation Technique.

With each cycle, his spirit core was further polished and strengthened. At the same time, a magical attraction started to manifest in his spirit core. It tugged at the revolving spirit ring intermittently.

Ain knew that this was a critical moment, so he began using Introspect constantly, closely observing his spirit core.

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