radicalducati Chapter 179 Shopping
Chapter 179 Shopping
Chapter 179 Shopping
"Oh, so you were introduced by 'Lady Wise'? My apologies—"
Upon hearing this title, the young man's wariness lessened somewhat. He smiled sheepishly and introduced himself:
"My name is Nishizawa. Of course, you can also call me the Four of Spades here."
"4 of Spades—" Upon hearing this familiar code name composed of suits and numbers, Lorne was slightly taken aback.
"What's wrong?" Caesar keenly noticed Lorne's unusual behavior.
Lorne thought for a moment, and with the idea of getting closer and testing the waters, he said, "It's nothing. A long time ago, I also had a deal with someone who called himself the Five of Clubs."
"The Five of Clubs," Xize murmured, lost in a brief recollection. He then shrugged and said in a nonchalant tone, "A guy who's always wandering around somewhere. To be honest, I'm not that close to him."
"..." Upon hearing this reply, Lorne's lips twitched slightly, feeling somewhat embarrassed.
"Sir, what would you like to order?" Xize didn't pursue the topic further, but instead asked professionally, "Rest assured, 'Ms. Wise' is an extremely cautious person. We will be absolutely responsible for any clients she refers. Here, client privacy and safety are our top priority."
Lorne nodded and said, "I want to buy some powerful magical items or talismans that can cause instant damage."
"If it's a magical item, the best one is a melee weapon." Thanks to the weakened combat power of the "monster" pathway, he needs some high-powered weapons for self-defense. He already has "Phantom" as a ranged weapon, so he won't consider it for the time being.
"High-powered melee combat" Caesar looked Lorne up and down a few times, then fell into deep thought.
"We do have some decent stock of talismans," he said, "but powerful magical items, without significant side effects..."
These are mostly in high demand, and we don't have them readily available here. However, we can help you try to purchase them.
"Or," he added, "we also regularly host gatherings of extraordinary individuals here, where you can also purchase directly from other guests."
"There's a party here?"
"Yes, the most recent one is this afternoon, it starts in a little over an hour," Xize replied. "Don't worry, we offer free authentication services, so you don't need to worry about buying counterfeit goods or being cheated."
The words "appraisal service" piqued Lorne's interest. "May I take a look at your talismans first?"
"Of course, please follow me."
"The 'Explosion' talisman." Caesar took out a brass talisman from a locked display case.
Lorne recognized this thing.
"Unlike those cheap knock-offs outside," Xize explained, "the talismans here are of absolutely guaranteed quality."
This one, once activated, is powerful enough to reach the level of a 'Hunter' pathway Sequence 6. 230 pounds.
"And this—" Xize carefully picked up a talisman made of pure gold that emitted a soft glow.
"The 'Blazing Sun' Spell. Extremely effective against malevolent creatures such as vengeful spirits and undead, and also deals considerable damage to ordinary enemies. When fully activated, its power is equivalent to a full-force attack from Sequence 5 of the 'Sun' pathway. 650 pounds."
The strange creature—Lorne immediately thought of the parasitic beasts of the Rose School and the giant hand on the primitive island.
"Then I want two 'Blazing Sun' and two 'Explosive'." He didn't hesitate for long.
"Okay, okay! Thank you for your patronage!" Xize immediately rubbed his hands together with a big smile.
"By the way—" Lorne hesitated for a moment, and after confirming that his "Calamity" perception was normal, he asked, "Do you have any disguise tools here?"
"For camouflage?" Caesar thought for a moment. "Do you need it permanent, or reversible?"
"It's recoverable."
After pondering for a moment, Xize took out a delicate little box from the deepest part of the counter. When the box was opened, a small object that looked like a cufflink, engraved with intricate patterns, lay quietly inside.
"The 'Disguise Cufflink'," Xize explained. "Once activated, it can alter the user's facial muscles and bone structure to some extent, thus changing their appearance. However, the changes are limited and cannot achieve a complete disguise."
"However, its biggest advantage is that it has almost no negative effects. It will only continuously deplete the user's spiritual energy, but it's still within an acceptable range. It can probably last for another two months or so. If you need it, I'll charge you 300 pounds."
"If I change my hairstyle and demeanor, I'll be hard to recognize; I really don't need to completely change my appearance," Lorne thought to himself. "This thing will take my disguise to the next level."
"Okay, I'll take it."
"Is there only one?" Lorne asked again. He also wanted to get one for Danitz as well.
"I'm sorry, sir." Caesar gave a helpless, resigned smile. "These kinds of extraordinary items, which have almost no side effects, are extremely rare. To have even one is already considered very lucky."
After buying those items, Lorne did not choose to leave immediately.
After confirming that his spiritual intuition had not given any unusual warnings, he decided to stay and attend the extraordinary gathering that Caesar had mentioned.
More than an hour later, under Caesar's personal arrangement, Lorne put on a plain white mask without any patterns and a black cloak that could completely cover his body, and was taken to a spacious room in the basement of the antique shop.
The room was simply furnished, with a large round table in the center and a dozen chairs around it.
Lorne casually found a seat and sat down. In the next few minutes, about a dozen more people, dressed similarly to him and concealing themselves completely, entered the room, each finding a seat and remaining silent and wary of one another.
After all the chairs around the round table were filled, Xize walked to the center of the room and sat in the seat that belonged to the host.
He looked around and announced in a calm, emotionless tone, "Alright, everyone, it's about time. This gathering shall officially begin."
"I want three complete tail feathers from the Blue Falcon."
"Looking to buy a pair of eyes from adult phantom pythons, they must have been removed while the animals were still alive."
As soon as the party started, someone immediately got straight to the point and made their request, and all of them were quite rare and extraordinary materials.
Lorne waited patiently for a while, and when no one spoke again, he used his disguised, hoarse voice to make his purchase request: "I want to purchase a magical item with powerful melee combat capabilities."
However, after he finished speaking, the room fell silent, and no one responded.
After a moment, an attendee wearing the same white mask, who sounded like a woman, slowly spoke: "I might have information about the weapon you need. But it will take a few days."
Lorne nodded and didn't say anything more.
Next came the sale of the goods.
Lorne cleared his throat: "Here I have a 'Storm' pathway, a Sequence 6 'Wind Favorite' extraordinary trait, which I need to sell. This is one of the extraordinary traits I brought here to sell. It's one of the three traits for which the divination results were not obtained before."
Nishizawa stated that any items sold at his gatherings or stored there for sale can be appraised for free, but a 10% commission will be charged once they are sold.
Lorne agreed to the price and obtained an appraisal before the party began.
"The extraordinary characteristics of the 'Storm' pathway—" someone whispered among themselves. After all, the sea was the territory of the Church of Storms, and such things were somewhat...
Lorne knew what they were worried about. He immediately explained in a calm tone, "This item came from an adventure."
It has absolutely no connection with the Church of Storms. This has been verified and notarized.
Sitting in the center, Caesar nodded in agreement with Lorne's statement.
At this moment, the woman wearing a white mask who had previously mentioned the weapon—Cadilla—became interested in that particular weapon.
His boatswain Nina happens to be a "navigator," and this trait is something he can buy for her.
She asked, "How much does this special ability cost?"
Lorne quoted the price he had already decided on: "3800 pounds."
This price isn't low, but it's definitely not high either; it's very fair.
"This price is very reasonable." There was no hesitation in Cattleya's tone. "I'll buy it."
The party continued for a while, but Lorne did not buy the items he wanted.
As the party was about to end and everyone was preparing to leave, the white-masked woman who had bought his special ability called him back.
"I have a rough idea of the weapons you need," Cattleya said. "I can bring them to the next gathering if needed. Alternatively, you can leave them here for Mr. Caesar to sell on your behalf."
The next gathering won't be for several days.
I hope I'll be safe and sound by then.
Lorne gave a wry smile to himself, but on the surface, he nodded calmly, indicating his agreement.
"Madam, I hope we can have a pleasant working relationship."