Chương 59: Chapter Fifty-Nine: Tactically Acquired Goods

"…" We both stare at each other for a couple beats before the boy realizes that I'm not joking.

"What the hell do you mean, 'Is that it'?"

"I mean… I don't know… Can you change more than just your arm?"

"I mean yeah, but it's a lot harder! What did you expect; that I was going to turn into a full-blown shapeshifter overnight? It was hard enough to change just a finger back when Floor Two started!" I've clearly upset Wade, as his excitement from earlier is gone and his bear arm is thrown up in the air from his annoyance.

"No, I mean, I didn't mean to sound like that." I quickly try to remedy the situation.

"I think it's cool and all, I was just surprised that's all it did. I haven't really seen you use your skills that much yet since Vince locked me down as his sparring partner for a while. I guess I kind of just assumed you could already do something like that since you told me <Emulate> could copy aspects of something's appearance." I finish lamely. I can see Wade's jaw work for a moment while he absorbs my words.

"I'll…take that as a compliment." He decides, much to my relief.

"Since you already had such a high impression of my talents, I suppose I will have to work harder to make sure I can match them." I inwardly relax a bit after his proclamation, but I can tell my underwhelming reaction hurt his pride a little bit. Luckily, Wade is the type of guy to never really let himself be caught flat footed, so he swiftly sweeps my unintentional diss under the rug for the time being.

"Well then, Mr. Prodigy of the Ages, your class better do something more than make glowing donuts, or I'm afraid you are fulfilling your role as the kettle!"

"Hmmm, well if your kitten arm can turn this entire building into a pile of ash, then I guess I am a kettle after all." I claim coolly while spinning the loop around like a coin. Wade laughs for a moment before looking at me, and then at the construct, and then back at me. Suddenly, his smile falls once again as he realizes that I'm not joking.

"Seb…Goddamnit I should've known you wouldn't lie about something like that." Someone less merciful might feel bad about crapping on their friend's class before showing them up with a literal bomb. Too bad I'm not that someone.

"Yeah, I expect with my new passive skill, it should be a pretty flashy explosion." I mention casually. Keeping my face as controlled as possible, I actually engage <Fixation> a bit in order to keep myself from laughing out loud at the blatant outrage on Wade's face.

"Fuck you man. Whose boots did you lick to get so lucky?!"

"No one. I'm just built different."

"I hope you know you don't sound cool at all saying that."

"Yeah, I know." We both hold each other's gaze for a moment before bursting out laughing. The commotion is loud enough for Nikki to tell us to shut up, but that just makes us laugh even harder. After almost a full minute of our outburst, I finally get a hold of myself while wiping a tear off my face. Wade recovers shortly after, and I push my body up from the bed to catch my breath for a second.

"Geez, I'm going to take a shower man. I really need to get a nap too before we head out."

"Yeah yeah, just try not to fall over some legendary treasure or new skill while you're in there."

"No promises, mate."

Time passes much quicker than I want it to, and before I know it, Wade is waking me up from my nap so we can leave. Rubbing my surely bloodshot eyes, I move to get up, only to find a fuzzy ball of cuteness somehow found its way onto my chest while I was sleeping. Giving Pawl his required pets, I take a moment to check the stability of the Flare Loop I left hovering in the air beside my bed. Some might say it's a bit reckless to leave an untested and dangerous bomb unattended, but I disagree with this assessment.

Reaching over, I tap the ring with my finger to <Infuse> the built-up radiation I compiled while asleep. Surprisingly, there doesn't seem to be as much excess heat in the air as I would have expected from my time unconscious. Not bothering to think about it too deeply, I observe that Pawl has still not finished waking up fully, so I take the moment to inspect my construct to see if there was any significant deterioration of its mana barrier.

With a few quick fixes, the loop is back to its fully operational state, and I marvel at how well my invention held up without my constant attention on it. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

"Big stretch!" I obligatorily exclaim while watching Pawl reach for the sky with his paws. The lovable rascal blinks lazily at me like a frog, and I give him a short nuzzle before hopping out of bed- much more energized than I was moments before. As everyone grabs their things and streams out of the barracks, I toss on my fireproof pants with a simple long-sleeve shirt before grabbing my bag.

At this point, I don't even bother wearing shoes, as they are terribly uncomfortable after melting underneath the intense heat caused by using <Emit> freely. Checking behind me to make sure Pawl and my construct are following closely behind, I throw the loops of my bag over my slender shoulders before trailing after the rest of the group. Making my way through the tavern, I quietly reminisce over the time I spent here. It might not have been fun, but the time I've been here has been special.

It was my first time having my own space and people to share it with. The bunk and the group members made the barracks seem kind of like home. Despite the fact my space was comprised of a small bed and a metal locker, the presence of everyone else made the place somewhat spacious. Wait a minute… The only space I had was a bed. We were all in one big room stacked close to each other practically like sardines. We had jerks in charge of our safety… I just described the fucking hospital.

What kind of freaking ass Stockholm Syndrome is this? Okay, forget everything I just said about the barracks. Fuck this place, I have ZERO positive feelings about the time I spent there. Making my way through the halls, I put a bit more speed into my stride while I distance myself from the building we all just left. As I near the main entrance, I find our group passing the door to the basement where I spent my training with Master Lirin. My gait slows and I come to a stop in front of the door.

So far, the trainers have not returned since their summons to the castle. That means Master Lirin's basement is empty right now.

"Hey, Wade?"

"Huh?" The guy walking in front of me grunts.

"I'll be outside in a sec. Buy me a couple minutes if I'm not there in time."

"Uh, sure. Fill me in later though, okay?"

"Will do." I say while heading through the basement door.

"Are you the last one?" A rumbling baritone voice greets me as I storm out of the tavern, breathing heavily.

"Yes, sir." I respond automatically.

"Get in then, we don't have all day." Nodding along, I don't mention the fact that it's currently dawn, and we do, in fact, have all day. Not bothering to look at the man, I stumble over to the caravan of large carts chained to each other on the side of the cobblestone street. I can see random people in varying pieces of gear peering at me from behind the folds of their carts' coverings.

Ignoring the looks and any questions I have about the other passengers of the caravan, I engage <Polarize> for a moment to identify the familiar heat signatures of my team members. My heavy backpack causes me to sway for a moment, but I safely make my way to the back of the chain of carts where I find my team waiting inside. Tossing my bag into the wooden vehicle, I let out a small huff at the exertion before glancing around the small space.

The cart itself is almost exactly the same as the one that brought me to the city on the first day of this floor. Instead of being filled with supplies though, it is filled with a few annoyed and confused gazes that I pointedly ignore for the moment while I settle in on the bench nearest Wade, who gives me a small wink.

"Did you get whatever you wanted?" The blond boy whispers. Instead of answering, I give him a slight smirk and turn my attention over to Vince, who currently looks even more angry at me now than when I had been late last night. Before he can blow his lid, I raise my hands in defense while I point at my bag.

"I know I'm a bit late, but I got us some stuff that should significantly improve our chances of surviving the wave." I say with the most innocent tone I can muster.

"Which is?" Vince grounds out while clearly restraining himself from leaping across the cart to strangle me. Giving an exaggerated look around, I put a finger to my lips while gesturing at the cart. Seeming to understand, the man controls himself for a bit longer as we wait for the cart to get moving. I'm not sure of the exact origin of the carts, but I know that the caravan we are apart of has more people residing in the other chained vessels as well.

The specific items I may or may not have tactically acquired are not something I want to be seen by anyone other than my group for the time being, so I force them to wait until we are on the road and have some buffer noise between us and the other people. After a few minutes of silence, the wheels beneath us squeal into action, and the cart-train is off to its march toward the Southern Veil Gate. With the constant rumble of the cart in place, I finally reach toward my bag while Vince's eyes drill into me.

My hands grope blindly inside my bag as I grin while matching Vince's gaze. Tiny objects and different sensations brush against my fingers, but finally, my nail scratches against a cool metal inside. Grabbing the larger item with both hands, I heave the giant disc out of my bag while making sure not to reveal some of the other goodies I found in the basement.

As the object's surface hits the light from my Flare Loop glimmering inside the stuffy cart, I watch with satisfaction as everyone in the cart's eyes glue themselves to the large buckler shield that sits heavily in my palms. The shield itself sparkles slightly underneath the faint glow of the night, showing off the shiny, silver metal alloy it's made of.

The buckler's surface is smoothed down with some sort of resin, but underneath this transparent coating is layers upon layers of inscribed patterns that cover all visible edges of the shield. A dark ruby sits in the center of the metal, and all lines of the inscriptions clearly trace back to the gem as it glows dully while powering the item's prepared defenses. Leaning forward, I let Vince's finger touch the shield, and I watch as any anger he had remaining completely vanishes in the face of the item's description.

Flicking a glance up to me, he nods slightly before I completely release my hold on the piece of equipment, letting him marvel over my offering. After a few moments of stroking the surface of the buckler, Vince finally looks up at everyone's expectant expressions, and with a furrow of his brow, the man is gracious enough to let the rest of the group place a hand on the item to see what all the fuss is about.

Gasps ring out, and some of the group members have to cover their mouths to not draw attention from anybody outside. Sandra's reaction is probably the most odd, as she actually starts laughing after reading the description. While the item is passed around the small vehicle with a variety of surprised expressions and responses, the woman has to force herself to calm down while wiping a tear from her eye. I can't even blame her though. The buckler is seriously that ridiculous.

[Mobile Array Barrier Shield] – Rare < A shield delicately inscribed with various defense enhancements and powered by a rechargeable mana battery at its center. The inscribed array allows the item to create a barrier of mana that extends in size according to the amount of mana used to power the shield. >