"You have two expanding pouches on you. That should be more than enough for the time being," Merlin mumbled as he took a proper look at Zayn's equipment. They were already in the Weaponsmith's Shop but the Weaponsmith was still working on a new weapon, which could be heard quite clearly.
The sound of a hammer striking fiercely on a bright yellow metal bar echoed throughout the entire shop and even outside.
Rather than separating his working space and the area for customers to take a look at the finished products, the weaponsmith's idea to attract buyers was a little different. Everything was located in one room, which gave the weaponsmith an even better opportunity to show off his craftsmanship and hard evidence that he was actually the one to forge all the masterpieces that were displayed in his shop.
"A Weapon Artifact would be great for you and within your budget, but it would be stolen from you sooner or later because you're a Normie without any reputation. You have only a single Soulring and you're quite literally a teenager, who will have a hard time receiving recognition while being surrounded by mature veterans no matter how strong you actually are," Merlin pointed out, ignoring that his words may actually hurt Zayn.
If Zayn did not grow a tough skin to endure the truth even after facing the ridicule and disgust of the people around him for years, he would be the wrong person to help Merlin complete his mission, in the first place!
"The Colosseum's Manager wouldn't like to see me with a Weapon Artifact as well, I guess. I just need a weapon of high quality that is strong enough to cut through the defense of the Chimera," Zayn guessed before his expression turned sour for a moment, "Though I don't really know how easy it will be to find such a weapon that can be wielded by a Normie with a single Soulring, and is not an Artifact."
Zayn had heard quite a bit about Artifact. There were various types of Artifacts but all of them had one thing in common; they were superior to ordinary weapons and other armaments. Artifacts were usually made from extraordinary materials, such as the Essences of monsters, metals that had been purified and refined through the pressure of the massive number of soul particles that entered the metal over the course of decades, or even centuries, and so on.
There were various ways to create Artifacts but only a few were skilled enough to actually be able to create a proper Artifact, including the Weaponsmith they visited.
"That's why we're only buying two sabers that will be fit for your height and strength before buying a large number of potions and other things you will need for your training," Merlin said rather calmly. Unlike Zayn, he didn't seem to be too bothered about finding a suitable weapon. His trust in the Weaponsmith was more than enough to relieve him of any stress in that regard.
"Why two sabers though?" Zayn asked, wondering what exactly Merlin had planned.
"I am going to teach you the Double Saber Kalivan technique, of course! The lesser version I've created after losing my arm is not comparable to the technique I was taught in the Dojo from a young age," Merlin said nonchalantly, looking around the shop in hopes of finding the perfect weapon for Zayn at a glance.
"Wow...thanks."
Baffled by the sudden revelation, Zayn couldn't really say much more, but Merlin just shook his head.
"I need to train you as quickly as possible because the fact that I train you, a Normie, will definitely raise suspicion and reach the Colosseum's staff sooner or later. It may take a few months because nobody really cares about me anymore, but the people I don't want to know about you yet will find out about your existence in the near future.
It would be best if you fight and defeat the Chimera before that happens. That means I need to teach you the strongest technique I know, not a lesser version of it. Whether I like it or not, I'm depending on you in that regard. I am making use of you, not the other way around!" He clarified, choosing to be honest with the teenager.
Zayn was not exactly of the same opinion as Merlin but he could tell that it was better to stay quiet at this moment.
Because it looked like the Weaponsmith would take a while to finish forging, Merlin walked through the shop while revealing a few more things about him, or his situation to be precise.
"The merchant family learned a while ago that I continued to work hard. After some research, they found out that I was actually still in possession of the System and that my God granted me a mission that rewarded me with the regrowth of my arm. Because they couldn't kill me inside the city where the government would investigate the murder of a B-rank Adventurer, they used petty tricks to dry and block all of my income streams.
That basically means that I'm dirt poor and that you have to buy everything needed for your training. Sorry about that," He pointed out while scratching the back of his head rather sheepishly.
Merlin truly felt as if he was exploiting Zayn, especially because he wanted to use the fortune accumulated by the young man to strengthen Zayn as quickly as possible.
He was getting impatient and Zayn was the answer to everything, or so it seemed.
"Oh, that's no problem. I didn't intend to be a leech either way. You are merely supposed to train me, not to feed me with highly nutritious food and potions. I actually prefer investing lots of money in my training as long as that means I can become stronger in a short period of time!" Zayn said, not to console Merlin, but because he actually did not want to use Merlin as a stepping stone.
"You're a really good kid, you know that, right?" Merlin asked, looking back at Zayn, who raised an eyebrow.
"That's not true. You just don't know me well enough," Zayn responded, not saying anything else.
Merlin stared at the young man with the corners of his lips raised and muttered,
"If you say so, kiddo."
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