For Sale. Fallen Lady. Never Used.

Chapter 338: Like The Claw Of A Platypus (2)

“We… did it!”

With those words, Faye collapsed backward.

Seeing she was about to fall, I quickly ran over and caught her small frame from behind.

“Great job, Senior Faye.”

“Hehehe. It was worth all the hard work.”

Faye, nestled in my arms, giggled, her eyes turning toward a shelf stacked with various types of armaments.

There were weapons like staffs and wands, alongside accessories like brooches and necklaces.

They were different types of equipment, but they all shared one thing in common: they radiated an extraordinary aura.

“That’s the least I can do.”

First, I stuffed the equipment into my inventory, then scooped Faye up by hugging her from behind under her shoulders and knees.

Faye let out a joyful scream as she was lifted into the classic princess carry.

“Yikes! I thought you were going to give me a piggyback ride!”

“Would you like a piggyback ride?”

“No? I like this. I get to look at your handsome face.”

“Then I’ll look at Senior Faye’s–”

“Chest?”

“I was going to say I wanted to see your eyes spinning from exhaustion.”

“So? You won’t look at my chest?”

“…Of course, I’ll look.”

“Hehe. Look all you want. And don’t forget, when you get back, it’ll be your turn to show me something.”

What is she planning to make me do…?

Knowing Faye’s mischievous side, I got goosebumps, but upon reflection, the plays she suggested were always quite enjoyable.

Now there was one more reason to finish quickly and return.

Chuckling, I headed to the room where our companions were staying. Once inside, I laid Faye on the bed and dumped the equipment on a nearby table.

The group watched with sparkling eyes, immediately recognizing these as items you couldn’t buy with money.

Faye, who had been staring blankly at the ceiling, spoke with a suddenly weary voice.

“First, I’ll explain your equipment, Junior. See that long, black staff? That’s your weapon.”

“Oh…”

I picked up the staff, which was long enough to be almost like a spear, making it easy to spot.

The staff, made of some kind of mineral, had a sleek, glossy finish, and it pulsed in a strange way, feeling almost alive.

…No, describing it like this made it sound strange.

A big, beautiful, sturdy, and pulsating magic stick.

Maybe the shock from when Faye once offered to make a dildo staff had left me with some PTSD.

Shaking my head to clear these unnecessary thoughts, Faye turned her head slightly to look at me and continued.

“The overall design is similar to the staff you’re currently using. But it’s significantly improved in terms of materials and efficiency.”

“By what I’m using now, you mean… it resonates with me?”

“Yes. It uses the branch of the World Tree as its core, with artificial slime connected like nerves. The finishing touch is an alloy made from scales and horns scraped off you. When you infuse it with mana, it will automatically resonate and authenticate you as the owner.”

“Ah…”

This staff combined only the advantages of all the experiments Faye had done so far.

From material processing to structural design, I could feel Faye’s deep experience embedded in it.

With a thumping heart, I infused mana into the staff. It began to tremble as if it had been waiting.

Hum.

I felt my nerves extending from my hand, merging with the staff. The outer alloy was originally part of my body, after all.

The moment this enhanced sense of unity penetrated deep into the staff, connecting with the hidden branch of the World Tree…

“Wow.”

The surrounding mana began to stir.

Even though I hadn’t drawn much mana, the staff started resonating with the mana in the area by itself.

Even if I had mastered the Lintblum Breathing Technique to the point where resonance occurred naturally, like breathing, this was unusual.

There was only one way this could happen: the mana amplification rate, which was a chronic issue with Faye’s equipment, had skyrocketed.

Having already grown accustomed to the staff as if it were part of my body, I gripped it tightly, swung it through the air, cast simple lower-level spells, and then canceled them before finally speaking.

“It’s incredible.”

“Heh. It has to be. Yeah. Who made it, after all? Of course, it should be like this.”

With an eerie laugh and a smirk, Faye looked rather cute at the moment, even if her usual demeanor would be slightly off-putting.

This staff was much sturdier than before, had superior mana conductivity, and its amplification rate was outstanding.

Previously, I had to either use resonance or brute-force mana to boost spell power.

But now, with this staff, I could further amplify even higher-level spells.

With this, no matter how many monsters would come at me, I could sweep them all away.

While I was busy admiring the staff, Faye, still smirking, nodded her head again.

“There’s one more thing left. Remember how your cloak got damaged during the fight with the Empress? So, I made a robe this time.”

“A robe?”

“Yeah. I used the largest, toughest leaf from what the Circulating Life gave us. Due to time constraints, I couldn’t do a proper design like with the staff, so I just altered the shape and did some finishing. If I had more time, I would’ve enchanted it with various magics…”

Faye sighed with regret. But in my eyes, it didn’t seem like something to be that regretful about.

The design had black with purple lines for accent. At first glance, it didn’t look like a leaf anymore, but the moment I put it on, I realized it was from the World Tree.

The strange sensation wrapping around my body felt very similar to what I experienced in the sanctuary of the Circulating Life at the upper levels of the World Tree.

“As I mentioned, I just changed the shape of the leaf into a robe, and coated both sides with a thin layer of artificial slime, mixing your scales and the bark of the World Tree to make an outer shell.”

“Do I just infuse it with mana?”

“Yes. It basically increases overall recovery speed and has a slight mana amplification effect. Plus, it has physical and magical defense capabilities… but they won’t be that impressive under normal circumstances. Instead, the moment you focus, it’ll move by itself and harden.”

“It reacts to my will to provide focused defense.”

“Quick to understand. That’s exactly it.”

As Faye said, I first infused it with mana to imprint the owner’s mark. There was a momentary sense of disorientation, like floating, but soon an accustomed unity enveloped everything.

After a couple of deep breaths in that state, I focused my attention on my right side and raised my arm high.

Flutter.

The robe then moved on its own, covering my entire body like a curtain. When I tapped it lightly, it felt even harder than a typical steel plate.

This would be perfect for situations where one shield wouldn’t be enough or when there would be no time to cast a shield.

In fact, my previous robe was focused on stealth and sensory manipulation, making it somewhat less effective in combat.

During fights, I had some success by suddenly turning invisible and striking unexpectedly, but… that trick only worked among opponents of similar low levels.

Since it was starting not to work anymore, having something that directly aided in combat was much more useful. And the performance was certainly good.

Thus, I decided to express my feelings in words.

“Senior Faye is a genius! Senior Faye is the best! She’s pretty, has a big chest, is good at alchemy, and will even be the next countess… you have everything except height!”

“Ahem. Don’t praise me too much. Wait, is this praise?”

Faye, who had been giggling, tilted her head in confusion but soon shook it off and continued.

“Anyway, this equipment was possible not just because of my alchemy, but because the materials were excellent. But it’s made from an avatar rather than the main body, so it holds less power… Fundamentally, it’s made from a part of a god, like your dagger, right? If I had handed the materials over to the Clashing Steel as the Circulating Life suggested, something even better might have come out.”

Faye gave a wry smile, suggesting that perhaps a divine artifact might have been produced.

The Clashing Steel was currently recovering in his sanctuary, so he couldn’t make it himself… but his high priests lived here.

They were skilled craftsmen who had received a lot of divine power related to crafting. Maybe, as Faye said, they could have created a divine artifact. However,

“Even then, it would just be a low-grade divine artifact.”

“…Just? It’s a divine artifact. Something humans can’t make without divine intervention.”

“The ones I’m dealing with aren’t human; they’re gods. A low-grade divine artifact would work well against bishops or archbishops. But against anyone higher, the story changes.”

Fiona was exceptional, but cardinals were more like extensions of Evil Gods, rather than human, in many respects.

That was when the efficiency of the Shining Lion Dagger would to drop. Even with critical hits, these monsters wouldn’t die in one or two blows.

Or, if the corruption was too deep, they might be judged as monsters rather than cultists, and the guaranteed criticals might not even activate.

For such creatures, it would be more effective to just hit them with high-level spells or equivalent firepower rather than insisting on using a divine artifact.

Even when Iona defeated her nemesis and sister, Ayla, she used this method.

Since even high-level spells could be withstood, she finished it off with a kind of ultimate move, which absorbed the enemy’s power to grow stronger.

“Unless it’s like the holy sword used by the first hero, an average divine artifact is meaningless.”

“…Then, doesn’t that make my weapon equally meaningless?”

“No. Senior Faye’s equipment is different.”

There were many craftsmen who could create staffs with higher amplification rates or sharper swords than what Faye made.

Any master craftsman with the title of Meister could do it.

“But none of them can make a weapon I can trust.”

There was no such thing as a perfect weapon in this world. No matter how great a weapon was, it would break against a stronger opponent.

How many famous swords broke during the War of the Gods?

But Faye’s weapons were different.

Whether it was because they were made with alchemy that sought an impossible perfection, or due to Faye’s personal traits, I didn’t know.

However, Faye’s weapons didn’t break easily, and even if they did, they’d never let me down.

While their performance was excellent, they focused more on bringing out the best in the user’s skills. They came with unique effects that couldn’t be made ordinarily.

That was the sentiment I felt upon seeing Faye’s work.

“A weapon made by a craftsman who knows me well, made just for me, one that will never betray me even in the most desperate situations. Is there anything more important than that?”

“Ah…”

“Above all, Senior Faye will become even greater. As fast as I get stronger, or even faster. One day, you might even make a staff greater than the one I saw at the Chairman’s. So, do you understand?”

“Understand what…?”

“I’m saying that my exclusive craftsman is Senior Faye. When I say it has to be you, it’s not an empty statement.”

“…”

Faye, whose face turned beet red, stuttered before suddenly pounding the innocent pillow several times and then jumping up.

“M-Move aside, Junior! I need to explain everyone else’s equipment, and we’re running out of time!”

Even as she said this, Faye was smiling so brightly her lips reached her ears.

Well… the fact that she looked like a mad ghost with her tousled hair and haggard face from staying up all night was a secret.