This weapons shop had a very simple name, just two words - "Holy Hall". But before even entering the shop, a gorgeous long sword displayed in the window had already caught my attention.
This sword was really special. Firstly, its hilt adopted the more common style in Edenmere - winding lines, and golden lustre, giving it a noble yet graceful feel. However, that wasn't too special. The important part was the straight blade, engraved with countless tiny glyphs, emitting a white glow through the conduction of the sword body, looking as dazzling as those weapons with special effects in online games.
"Pretty nice right?"
A familiar voice suddenly sounded next to my ear. I turned my head to look, and surprisingly it was Aetna. She seemed to have just exited the weapons shop.
"What a coincidence..."
I was stunned for a moment, not expecting to run into her at this time and place. We were going to see each other in class in a few hours anyway.
"Yeah... I saw you staring at that sword for a long time, so I really couldn't resist coming over to say hi."
She smiled back, although she was our teacher now, she didn't put on much of a teacher's air before me and Nicola. Perhaps in her eyes, we were still fellow tribesmen at an equal level rather than students.
"Although this sword looks flashy and eye-catching, it's just an ordinary elemental weapon. Other than being more effective against magical beasts, it's not that different from a normal long sword. Its sharpness might even be inferior. And to achieve this glowing effect, glyphs are carved to deliberately leak out its inner elemental composition. It's simply wasteful with an extremely low cost-effectiveness."
"Elemental weapon?"
I discovered another new term and asked quizzically.
"Elemental weapons are weapons made directly out of specific elements. Generally one needs exceptionally profound control over an element to produce them. So they are very expensive across the board."
Aetna patiently explained this to me in detail.
"Take this exhibit for example. It's made out of the light element. Typically it would require at least three 10-winged angels, taking dozens of days, with the assistance of spell formations, before it can finally be forged into shape."
"That difficult?"
It sounded just like Nicola's Condensation Sword. I immediately moved closer to carefully sensing the blade. Indeed as she said, nearly the whole sword was made up of the light element, and the light element within those glyphs seemed particularly unstable, slowly dissipating outwards at an extremely slow pace. So this sword, plainly speaking, was just a consumable item, merely with an extremely gradual consumption rate - roughly needing many years to completely disappear.
But her statement about needing three 10-winged angels to make it really surprised me. Given what 10-winged angels represented in Edenmere, they were all big shots, belonging to the highest echelons. Judging from the looks of those elders, legion commanders and Elara, they were all unfathomable beings who had lived for thousands of years. For a weapon made by mobilizing three such characters, exhausting massive amounts of their energy, one could imagine the astronomical difficulty.
"Of course it's difficult! Directly transmuting elements into matter is an extremely arduous process to begin with."
Aetna patiently lectured me as if I was still her student outside of class too.
"Take the Angel Descend Formation that gave rise to your birth for example. Not only are the precious materials too numerous to count, but the mere task of gathering them would require several decades just to set up initially. To smoothly operate, it requires close to a hundred high-ranking angels simultaneously conduct the ritual simultaneously. Compared to that, making this sword is already very simple."
"I see..."
I suddenly understood a bit why Reed was so desperate to do experiments on Nicola - if it were me, I wouldn't easily let go of such a rare chance either.
"If you came specifically to purchase a weapon, I don't recommend buying this long sword. It's merely some high-ranking angels having nothing better to do and making an extravagant toy. It's completely unsuitable for actual combat. Moreover, it is already very expensive, costing hundreds of thousands of silvers. Although that would be considered cheap for an elemental weapon in the human world, a newborn angel like you definitely can't afford it right?"
Seeing me staring blankly at the display, she naturally didn't know what I was thinking. Instead, she assumed I had taken a liking to the long sword and wouldn't buy anything else, hence kindly tried to dissuade me.
"No no, I was just randomly looking, I didn't want to buy it..."
Hearing that, I hurriedly explained. No kidding, hundreds of thousands of silvers? I probably couldn't afford it even if I sold myself.
Moreover, even if I had the money, I wouldn't buy this kind of impractical consumable item. Heaven knows if it might suddenly vanish while using it one day - that would be truly heartbreaking.
"Are there any weapons suitable to recommend to a newborn angel then?"
Speaking of which, I turned and entered the weapons shop. Although my personal preferences leaned more towards magic, I hadn't learnt many spells yet. What's more, mages still needed weapons to defend themselves sometimes. Gandalf's staff contained a sword within after all. As an angel, I could consider getting a slightly better weapon too.
And money wasn't a concern anymore either. Since Nicola had taken the ring, she left me her wallet, even splitting half her savings into it. That should be sufficient in Edenmere.
"Do you usually use a sword?"
Instead of answering directly, Aetna suddenly asked while following behind me.
"I guess so..."
I thought about it slightly before replying. I never had any special requirements for weapons. It was just that most people tended to use long swords. Compared to large weapons like axes and spears, they were easier to carry around and didn't demand high technique. My first experience was Nicola's Condensation Sword. So I just stuck to swords until now.
"Do you know swordsmanship then?"
Seeing I kept staring at the various long swords on the weapon racks, she assumed I had some foundation in sword techniques. My reply was somewhat out of her expectations.
"Nope..."
I was a bit helpless about this. I hadn't improved much in that field. Sword techniques demanded enduring arduous cultivation over a long term. Without even a sword master teacher, it was naturally impossible to succeed overnight.
"It's fine. The future curriculum will also include some basic blocking and combat techniques that you can train with your preferred weapon. Sword techniques are included of course."
Seeing my expression, Aetna consoled me and took an ordinary-looking long sword off the rack.
"Since you don't have much experience, for now, you don't need some amazing weapon either. This is the standard issue long sword often distributed in the angel legions. It incorporates techniques brought over by light elves, much sharper and more durable than human-forged swords. It's usually sufficient and very affordable too. You won't feel bad changing weapons in the future either."
"Is that so?"
I accepted the long sword she handed over and looked it over. Its material and workmanship were clearly on a completely different level compared to Hayden's sword - easily over a grade higher. I couldn't help feeling a little tempted.
"How much is this?"
"10 silvers."
She simply stated a number without even checking the price.
"So cheap..."
I took a deep breath. That shabby sword I bought back in Norvale had cost me 100 silvers even after haggling relentlessly with the boss. Yet such a standard-issue angel long sword was only 10 silvers here.
"Of course, this is the only price it could sell for in Edenmere. Most lower-ranking angels don't actually have much money on them."
Atina smiled and explained.
"Also, angels wanting to travel outside usually choose to join the angel legions. Doing so allows them to get issued a weapon like this for free. As such, basic models like these don't really have a market. Selling for 10 silvers is already pretty decent."
"Where's the boss?"
I immediately took out my wallet, wanting to pay. Since Nicola had taken my ring, she left me her wallet and even split half her savings into it. I was quite well off in Edenmere now.
Yet after searching all over the weapons shop, I couldn't find any trace of the boss or even a shop assistant.
This was very strange. The shop was clearly still open for business, how could no one be watching the store?
"Could it be..."
I suddenly recalled Aetna walking out from inside the shop earlier. My gaze landed back on her as I came to the only plausible conclusion.
"You're the owner here?"
"What else could it be?"
Aetna simply smiled at me, no longer hiding it.
"I thought it would take you a bit longer to realize. Didn't expect you to guess so quickly."
"How could anyone have imagined that..."
I smiled wryly. Our usual teacher turning out to be a weapons shop owner! If I didn't witness it myself, there's no way I would believe it. Aetna normally gave me the impression of a gentle, graceful girl next door. Who knew she was openly peddling "arms" here?
Perhaps she gave me this huge discount on the long sword because I was her student...
"Remember to come for class later!"
Before I exited, Aetna couldn't help repeatedly reminding me. It left me feeling somewhat amused. I didn't expect to run into a familiar face just by randomly visiting a weapons shop. Could this also be due to the angel population scarcity?
Still, obtaining a suitable weapon for a steal of a price was quite a decent harvest. Walking along the streets while gripping the long sword, I couldn't stop looking at it over and over, utterly attached to it. I guess this is the so-called feeling of getting a bargain.
After leaving the weapons shop, I was in no hurry to return. I also dropped by a bookstore ran by light elves. Unfortunately the magic books sold here were basically the same as what Elara mentioned - all light magic without exception. And there was an extreme dearth of them too. Most documented various new light magic spells recently developed by humans. Completely useless to me.
Why waste time coming to such a place when I could directly borrow foundational light magic books from the library? Having understood this, I walked out from the bookstore disappontedly.
But it was getting late. I should still go to class first...