As soon as the Frozen Pearl was placed in the small outer pocket of his satchel, Raymond immediately felt the scorching heat recede, replaced by an indescribable coolness.
It felt like stepping into an air-conditioned room in the middle of a sweltering summer day.
Every pore on his body seemed to be cheering with joy.
The woman noticed the change in Raymond's expression and immediately smiled as she reminded him, "Be careful. The Frozen Pearl's effect is continuous, so it's best not to keep it on you for too long, or you'll definitely catch a cold.
Also, if you put it in a bucket of water.
Then after about an hour, the surface of the water will freeze.
After two or three hours, the entire bucket will freeze solid."
"I understand. Thank you. I'll be careful." Raymond nodded lightly.
As the Creator, he had seen through the magical principles and workings of the Frozen Pearl the instant he obtained it.
Put simply, it was a freshwater pearl enchanted with freezing magic.
Its spell level was so low that it did not even qualify as a first-circle spell. At best, it was merely a zero-circle cantrip.
But its maker had been quite unconventional, choosing not to make it into a single-use offensive magical item, but instead modifying it to steadily and continuously release its effect into the surroundings.
This allowed the rate of energy consumption to achieve a perfect balance with the rate at which it drew energy from the Weave.
If Raymond had estimated its production cost, the thing was worth at most 150 to 200 gold coins, and absolutely no more.
If he could get enough magic scrolls and freshwater pearls worth ten gold coins, then with his skill in crafting magical items, he could make more than a dozen in no time.
But unfortunately, Raymond currently lacked the ability to cast spells and copy scrolls, so he could only grit his teeth and buy one at a high price to make do for now.
After all, he absolutely could not afford to get sick.
"Is there anything else you want? For example, this Charm Pendant, or that Magic Resistance Necklace?" The woman began promoting the other items on her stall without waiting for an answer.
She had clearly seen how many gold coins were packed in the soldier's luggage and desperately wanted to empty it all out.
But unfortunately, Raymond had no interest whatsoever in those low-grade magical items. Instead, he turned his gaze toward the books on the shelves and, after a brief inspection, began listing titles.
"Get me a copy of 'Elven Language and Script—From Beginner to Master,' a copy of 'Encyclopedia of Draconic,' a copy of 'From Apprentice to Wizard: Cantrips You Should Master,' a copy of 'Advanced Techniques for Arcane Casters,' a copy of 'On Eschew Materials,' a copy of 'Introduction to the Weave,' a copy of 'Required Course for High-Level Wizards,' a copy of 'Guide to Spell Initiative,' and a copy of 'Metamagic Techniques—Spell Extension.'"
"'Elven Language and Script—From Beginner to Master,' 100 gold coins. 'Encyclopedia of Draconic,' 500 gold coins. 'From Apprentice to Wizard: Cantrips You Should Master,' 250 gold coins. 'Advanced Techniques for Arcane Casters,' 2,000 gold coins. 'On Eschew Materials,' 1,000 gold coins. 'Introduction to the Weave,' 1,300 gold coins. 'Required Course for High-Level Wizards,' 5,000 gold coins. 'Guide to Spell Initiative,' 750 gold coins. 'Metamagic Techniques—Spell Extension,' 3,000 gold coins."
Each time the woman took a book from the shelf, she quoted its price.
Likewise, Raymond's heart skipped a beat every time he heard one.
When the price of the final book was announced, he suddenly realized that buying these books alone would cost him 13,900 gold coins!
What did it mean to say that knowledge was wealth?
This was it!
And in Faerûn, where magical power was everywhere, knowledge was not only wealth, but also incomparably powerful strength.
Just as Raymond was shocked by the unbelievable prices of magical books in Faerun, the soldier immediately lowered his voice and reminded him, "Master, even if we pool all the money we have, we'll still be short by a little."
"It's fine. Take out all the money first. I'll figure out the rest if it isn't enough." Raymond sighed helplessly.
Because he had previously lived in the Floating City Tower, all his books had been borrowed from Astar, the Necromancer Archmage, and had not cost him a single coin.
Only now, when he suddenly had to pay for knowledge himself, did he realize how valuable those easily obtained books and notes were outside.
Without another word, the soldier poured out all the remaining gold coins from his luggage. There were 6,326 in total.
Then he took out the deposit slips given to him by Aipuke, the leader of the Thieves' Guild. They represented 8,214 silver gold coins and a total of 36,395 assorted silver coins.
Looking at the receipts and the gold coins piled on the table, the woman quickly calculated in her head. Her mismatched eyes immediately gleamed with undisguised delight. "8,214 centaurs minted in Amn can be converted into 4,107 gold coins.
As for the silver coins, Sembian ravens are worth slightly less in Calimport.
But since you're spending so much at once, I won't haggle over it. I'll convert them into 1,820 gold coins.
That comes to 12,253 gold coins in total.
Which means you're still short 1,647 gold coins."
"Can't you give me a discount?"
Raymond deliberately blinked his eyes, trying to use cuteness to get the remaining balance waived.
But unfortunately, the woman was not swayed in the slightest and directly shook her head. "Sorry, no. The rule for buying and selling magical items is that there's no bargaining. Or you could try removing one or two of those books."
"Sigh, forget it. Please see how much this is worth."
Raymond removed the cylindrical, translucent energy-storage crystal secured to his belt and gently placed it on the counter.
"What is this?!"
It was clearly the woman's first time seeing something so strange. She immediately picked it up, intending to use magic to identify its purpose and value.
But before she could cast the spell, Raymond took the initiative to bluff, "This is a powerful energy-storage device.
It uses unprecedented new technology and advanced enchantments.
It can absorb and store all forms of Lightning Bolt energy, then release it like a wand.
But unlike an ordinary Lightning Wand, which can only fire one shot at a time.
It can empty all of its energy at once, creating astonishing damage in a short period."
"May I try it?" the woman asked without looking up, staring intently at the cylindrical energy-storage crystal.
"Of course. Be my guest."
Raymond made an inviting gesture, then pulled the soldier back several steps, leaving a relatively safe distance between them.
Having received confirmation, the woman wasted no words and immediately began drawing on the magical power in her bloodline.
When her incantation and gestures were complete, a blinding bolt of electricity shot from her fingertips and sank directly into the cylindrical crystal.
Watching silver lightning flicker inside the cylindrical crystal, her eyes lit up as she exclaimed, "It really absorbed and stored it!
What principle does this thing use?
What materials, magic, and techniques were used to make it?
How many Lightning Bolts can it store at most?"
"The maximum capacity should be thirty Lightning Bolts.
As for what principle it uses and what materials, magic, and techniques were involved, please forgive me, but I cannot tell you.
After all...
No knowledge is priceless.
Especially private knowledge that only I possess."
As he said this, the corners of Raymond's mouth curled upward slightly, revealing a sly little fox-like smile.
From her reaction, it was easy to see that the woman had already been drawn in by the cylindrical crystal storage device.
If he could not seize this opportunity to fleece her properly, how could he justify spending nearly 14,000 gold coins at this stall today?
Even if he could not make a huge profit, he at least had to recover some of his losses.
He understood it now.
If one wanted to study magical knowledge in this damned place called Faerûn, one had to prepare an astronomical amount of wealth.
Otherwise, one could not even afford a few books.
Not to mention high-level magic, epic magical items, and even artifacts that could not be measured in money.
Before you continue