Assimilate All Talents

Sol had to admit there was some truth to her words. While the items he bought from Chloe were indeed useful, they weren't anything he considered truly important.

'I wouldn't really say I'm unsatisfied, but I was hoping for something more unique…' Sol thought to himself.

Before he could respond, Madeline already seemed to know what he was thinking.

"Since nothing here caught your eye, perhaps I have something that might interest you."

"Sure, but I don't have a lot of money, so I'm not sure if I can afford it."

He had a little under 1,000 gold. He doubted he could afford whatever she was talking about, but he couldn't help but be curious to at least see what it was.

"I'm sure that won't be an issue. Value isn't only determined by the amount of gold you carry." Madeline said with a mysterious smile. "Come with me."

"I want to go too!" Chloe jumped out of Bob, ready to follow them, eager to see what her mom was about to show.

Madeline stopped her and gently patted her head.

"You were great just now, Chloe, but we're going to the vault. And what did I tell you about the vault?"

"That I can go once I have my leveling ceremony?"

Chloe was twelve, almost thirteen, and less than two years away from obtaining her talent. She had previously discussed this with her mother; she wasn't allowed to officially join the family business until she gained her talent and developed her skills as a merchant. That was why she often went into the city under Bob's protection, to practice the art of the deal so that the moment she obtained her talent, she could work alongside her mother.

"That's right! So while we're gone, why don't you go outside and play with Bob?"@@novelbin@@

"Okay!"

At first, she was disappointed that she couldn't come along, but the moment her mom mentioned playing outside, she immediately forgot about it. She turned to Bob and said, "Let's go, Bob!"

The carriage shook as its wheels began to turn, heading toward the door after Chloe, who had already run ahead. As the large carriage body approached the doorway, it suddenly shrank in size, slipping through with ease.

Seeing this, Sol did a double take and quickly used [Analysis] to check Bob's status.

[Bob (Living Rune Construct)

Unique

Skills:

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

[Physical Resistance] Lv Max, [Reinforced Armor] Lv Max, [Rune Algorithm] Lv 6, [Spell Matrix] Lv 6]

'I didn't think it could do that… Could it be [Spell Matrix]?'

Since Bob was an item rather than a real living being, he didn't have any tethers. But even after looking at his status, it didn't make sense how he was able to shrink like that. Sol wasn't sure if any of those skills should have allowed him to do so.

He wanted to ask Madeline, but when he turned, he saw that she had already begun walking in the opposite direction of Chloe and Bob. Without hesitation, he followed after her, with Thorwyn close behind.

As they ventured deeper into the mansion, they arrived at a reinforced door at the end of the hallway. Its blue metallic sheen caught Sol's attention.

"Is this made of durium?"

Stay updated through My Virtual Library Empire

"A durium-based alloy, yes." Madeline nodded. "The walls surrounding this room are also reinforced with the same material. Along with other protection mechanisms, it keeps thieves out and, more importantly, keeps it contained."

"Contained?" Sol mumbled as they approached the two armored guards flanking the door. Both nodded respectfully at Madeline as she approached.

"Open it." She ordered.

Without hesitation, the guards stepped aside. One retrieved a key from his coat and inserted it into the lock. With a heavy click, the door creaked open, revealing a well lit chamber beyond.

Sol's eyes immediately locked onto the what was inside the chamber. It was a sizable collection of artifacts and treasures, each displayed within protective glass cases.

But what alarmed him most was the wave of turbulent mana that blasted out of the room. It wasn't strong enough to affect him, Madeline, or Thorwyn, but the guards visibly tensed.

Nothing in this room was below unique rarity, and the protective cases were enchanted, not only to shield and preserve the items but also to suppress their mana emissions. Yet, some items still radiated such powerful presence he wouldn't be surprised if a spatial ring couldn't contain it without being damaged.

Sol's gaze landed on one such item. It appeared to be a massive blue heart, larger than his head. Even encased in protective glass, it absorbed and emitted an incredible amount of mana.

[Ludicolos' Third Heart

Unique

Quality: Perfect

Effect: The third heart of a Ludicolos. It absorbs ambient mana at an incredible rate and is innately attuned to the water element. Not suited for consumption.]

'Not all the items here are complete artifacts, but I imagine this would make a great staff for a water mage…' Sol thought as he continued scanning the room.

Thorwyn, following closely, looked around curiously but refrained from straying too far. He knew better than to touch anything.

Madeline eventually led them to the end of the chamber. Resting on a podium was a small black box.

She picked it up and turned to Sol.

"This," She said as she opened the box. "is what I believe might interest you."

Inside were three foggy white marbles, each the size of a thumb.

[Mimic Eye of Replication

Unique

Durability: 5/5

Skill:

[Mimicry] Lv 5]

[[Mimicry] Lv 5: The innate talent skill of Mimics. Copies any skill seen and allows the user to perfectly replicate it. Cannot copy talent skills. Requires double the energy of the original skill to replicate. Uses remaining equal to durability. Currently copied skill: None.]

"[Mimicry]… I see…"

After using [Analysis], Sol couldn't help but feel extremely disappointed.

'Isn't this just a worse version of my talent skill?'

Sure, he couldn't copy skills upon seeing them once, he had to kill his opponent and take it from them, but in return, he could learn them permanently rather than being limited to a one time use.

"If you think the limited usages diminish its value, I can assure you—wait, is this real?"

Madeline's words cut off, but not because of Sol's reaction of the items. Her eyes darted between the three marbles and Sol, disbelief written all over her face.

With a mixture of amazement and shock, she asked, "You're only willing to pay 50 gold?!"