Volume 2 Chapter 4 The Temptation Of The Spellbook And The Visit To The Levy Merchant Guild
Al first headed to the Levy Merchant Guild. The main street, North 1st street, seemed to be filled with impressive mansions and large shops, with many beautifully decorated buildings. Most shop entrances had signs showing the products they sold and the names of the stores. Among them was the sign for the Levy Merchant Guild, but Al's eyes were glued to a sign in front of another shop that said they sold magic spellbooks.
"I have to check this out..."
In his pocket, he had about 20 gold coins, which included money he had saved up, a reward for helping the Levy Merchant Guild's caravan from a bandit attack, a bounty for defeating the bloody bandit leader, and loot he got from Barbara after defeating the bandits.
The shop seemed to sell not only Spellbooks but also magical tools, but it wasn't very big; it just had a sofa and a table. As he entered, a man who looked like a shopkeeper came out from the back and bowed politely.
"Welcome!"
"Hello. I want to ask about the Spellbook."
The shopkeeper tilted his head slightly. Spellbooks are expensive, so it was natural for him to be surprised since Al was still young. However, that attitude only lasted a moment before he switched to a polite demeanor. He offered Al a seat on the sofa, and Al sat down, looking a bit uneasy. The shopkeeper, not seeming to mind, sat down on another sofa diagonally across from him.
"We have a variety of items available. Our store is partnered with the magician guild, so you can trust the quality of our Spellbooks. What kind of spells are you looking for? Do you have any specific spells in mind?"
A Spellbook is essential for learning spells. They can be found in places like ancient ruins, or they can be created by copying them from other magician's works. However, there are also low-quality items and fakes made by scammers, so it's best to choose ones that come with a quality guarantee from the magician guild.
"Do you have the Sleep spell, Paralysis spell, or Fly spell?"
Both of these spells are very popular in the capital. From Al's memory, the magician guild in the capital often ran out of stock, but the Sleep and Paralysis spells were sold for 20 gold coins, while the Fly spell was 30 gold coins. He thought that maybe the prices would be a bit lower here, where there are many adventurers. However, the clerk replied that they had both in stock, but the Sleep and Paralysis spells were 25 gold coins, and the Fly spell was 40 gold coins. Al frowned at the prices. Seeing his reaction, the clerk sympathetically explained that in this city, not only magic items but also weapons and armor used by adventurers are about 20% to 30% more expensive than in the capital. When he asked why, the clerk said that the rewards for defeating monsters like goblins, lizardmen, and large lizards are set higher here compared to other cities, so adventurers earn more money, which naturally raises the prices of the items they buy.
Al felt down and thought maybe he should hold off on buying the Spellbook for now. Eventually, he would have a chance to go to the capital. After all, it would take a few weeks to learn the Conceal spell. There was no rush to get it.
"How about the popular Magic Shockwave spell or the Magic Tornado spell? Both are 35 gold coins."
The clerk recommended 2 attack spells. The Magic Shockwave spell creates a cone-shaped attack from the palm, while the Magic Tornado spell creates a spherical attack centered on a specified point. Both spells could hit multiple targets at once, making them flashy and popular. However, he didn't have enough money for either.
"Well then, how about a rare spell from another city? The 2nd Tier spell, Carrier spell, is only 18 gold coins. It's very popular around here."
The clerk seemed proud. Al had never heard of the Carrier spell, so he asked what it was. The clerk explained that it creates a black disc that follows the caster. You can place items on that black disc, which is why it's called the Carrier spell. When Al asked how it was different from telekinesis, the clerk said that the disc could last for about 3 hours without needing to focus on maintaining the spell.
"Isn't that pretty much the same as bringing a donkey along?"
In response to Al's question, the clerk shook his head vigorously.
"Try loading a donkey with the dirty corpses of barbarians or magic beasts. Cleaning up that mess later is a real hassle. Plus, all livestock need food and water, and if the road is bad, it can slow you down or even stop you. On top of that, there's the risk of livestock being attacked. With this spell, you won't have to worry about any of those annoying things. And with this disk, even if you load it a bit messily, the cargo won't fall apart. I've heard it's fine even if the caster is upside down."
The clerk's explanation was truly professional. They fluently explained the benefits of this spell.
"I feel like loading corpses is only necessary when you need meat... But if it's 2nd tier, that means I won't be able to use it for about 6 months, right? Is it really worth that much? With the size of the black disk, how much weight can it carry?"
Al was still half in doubt. A donkey cart could probably carry about 50 kg (� 110 lbs) with one donkey. Of course, it wouldn't be suitable for rough terrain, but surely that could be managed for about 5 gold coins. Was the 18 gold coins and the time to learn really worth it?
"It seems you haven't been in this city for very long. I think you'll understand better once you start moving around a bit. The disk has a diameter of about 1 meter (� 3.28 feet). I've heard it can carry around 30 kg (� 66.14 pounds). Once you become skilled with the spell, you'll be able to carry even more."
The clerk was very confident. After thinking for a while, Al decided to make the purchase. Since this was such a large store, it should be trustworthy. The clerk nodded happily, then brought out a luxurious box containing the Spellbook from the back of the store and received 18 gold coins from Al in exchange.
"Thank you!"
The clerk saw Al off outside the store. He put the newly bought 'Spellbook' into his bag and tightened his smile a bit, feeling like he had gained new magic. After checking that his clothes were not dirty by patting them, he walked through the door of the nearby Levy Merchant Guild.
"Hello. My name is Al. I had a little interaction with the trading caravan the day before yesterday. I would appreciate it if I could speak with the head, Sir Levy, or Mrs. Ruella."
Hearing his words, the clerk nodded immediately. It seemed that the message had been properly conveyed. The clerk said they had been waiting and quickly guided him to the reception room at the back of the store. The inside of the Levy Merchant Guild was much livelier compared to the neighboring store, and the reception room was nicely decorated with flowers, showing a lot of thoughtfulness. After a while, Levy, the guildmaster of the Levy Merchant Guild, and Desmond, who was in charge of the guards, arrived together. Al hurriedly stood up.
"Thank you for coming, Al. It seems you handled Sir Naresh's request very well. Barbara praised you highly."
Guildmaster Levy encouraged him to sit down while he himself took a seat in front of Al. Al looked around a bit nervously and slowly sat down.
"I'm glad I could complete it without any issues. I hope you don't mind me dropping by."
"Without any issues, huh? According to her, she said you are much more skilled than a regular magician. She mentioned that if you teamed up, you could handle most things."
"That's because Ms. Barbara is very skilled. I'm still just a beginner."
Al smiled wryly and shook his head. Next to him, Desmond looked up at the sky and shook his head slightly. Guildmaster Levy stared intently at Al's face.
"I see, I understand your thoughts. However, I find it a bit lacking. When I was your age, I was much more ambitious. You should have more confidence. Objectively speaking, I think you did quite well. I heard that Barbara arranged the reward for defeating the bandits, but was there any problem?"
"Um..., yes, I received plenty at the guard post by the ferry."
Hearing Al's answer, Chairman Levy nodded slightly.
"Good, that's fine. Let me ask you one more thing. How about working at my place? Since you and Ruella are from the same middle school, I can trust you. I can offer you two gold coins a month as a living allowance. If you lack confidence in your skills, I can provide training in my mercenary group. I think it's a good deal."
Al was surprised by Guildmaster Levy's offer. It was not a typical offer for a 15-year-old who had just graduated from school. If it was live-in, he would also get meals. For someone his age, a living allowance would usually be just pocket money, so 2 gold coins was an exceptional amount. He thought for a moment, but after a while, he tightly closed his mouth and shook his head.
"I really appreciate the offer. Thank you very much. But, I'm sorry, I still want to study magic more."
Chairman Levy and Desmond exchanged surprised looks and stared at Al's face again. However, he no longer seemed to be hesitating. Seeing this, Guildmaster Levy couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Is that so? I see, Ruella said you were a weirdo, and it seems that was true. That's very unfortunate. If you change your mind, feel free to let me know anytime. By the way, I heard you were planning to work as an adventurer in Lester for a while. Have you decided on an inn yet?"
"I think I'll be staying at the (Red-Faced Sheep) Inn for a while."
Levy glanced at Desmond to confirm. He nodded as if he already knew.
"Got it. Sir Naresh will probably want to meet you. I'll tell him to send a messenger your way. You should hear from them in a few days, so in the meantime, could you make sure to return to the inn at night?"
"Thank you very much. I will do that. I appreciate it."
Al smiled brightly and nodded.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)