"No, no, no! Hero, you can't spend all your money on equipment! That's a whole month's support money! It has to last us the entire month. If you spend it all on equipment, we won't have anything left for food or lodging!" Myne hastily stopped Chuan Wenwu's reckless spending.
"Of course I know that. I just wanted to see how much eight hundred silver coins could buy. I wasn't going to spend it all... So how much do you think we should spend on equipment?" Chuan Wenwu asked.
Myne looked Chuan Wenwu up and down with an appraising gaze and considered it. "We have eight hundred silver coins in support money, but there are two of us... A month's worth of clothes, food, lodging, and travel... Hmm, around two hundred and fifty silver coins, I suppose."
"Got it." Chuan Wenwu turned to the shopkeeper. "All right, our budget is only 250 silver coins now. Got any good-value equipment in that price range?"
"Hold on a moment..."
Rather than immediately trying to sell him something, the shopkeeper looked him up and down in astonishment. "You're... a Hero?"
Standing right in front of them, the shopkeeper had naturally heard how Myne addressed Chuan Wenwu.
Chuan Wenwu made no attempt to hide his identity. He showed off the gleaming Shield of the Hero stuck to his arm and raised an eyebrow at the shopkeeper. "That's right. What, don't I look the part?"
"No, you certainly have the bearing of a Hero. Or rather, I get the feeling you were already a warrior before becoming one."
Chuan Wenwu stood at 182 centimeters tall, with a big, muscular build and a straight posture. His black hair was short and tousled (he hadn't had time to get a buzz cut yet), his face handsome and resolute, and his dark eyes bright and alert. Despite the easygoing smile on his face, his inner confidence was still faintly palpable.
Pleased by the shopkeeper's praise, Chuan Wenwu grinned. "You've got an exceptional eye yourself, spotting how exceptional I am at a glance. So, with a Hero shopping in your store, shouldn't you give me a discount?"
The shopkeeper's smile vanished, and he shook his head repeatedly. "It's a small business, and my prices are already very low. If I gave you another discount, I'd lose the shirt off my back!"
Chuan Wenwu was not happy. Sounding disappointed in him, he said, "Hey, I just said you had an exceptional eye, and now you're being so shortsighted? Think about it. If you advertised that the weapons a Hero used came from your shop, who knows how many customers you'd attract? You've got to take the long view!"
Following Chuan Wenwu's suggestion, the shopkeeper actually considered what would happen if he spread the word throughout the kingdom that equipment bought at his shop had helped the Shield Hero thrive on his adventures... Oh, heavens. He would probably have to move out of the country, wouldn't he?
The shopkeeper's face fell. Looking back at the Shield Hero, who apparently still didn't understand the situation, he shook his head with a deep frown. "Sigh, all this talk of advertising... Fine, fine. I'll give you twenty percent off, but the original price can't exceed three hundred silver coins... Just don't give anyone my name if you cause trouble later."
What was this, an otherworldly Patriarch Bodhi and Sun Wukong?
Still, a discount was a good thing. Chuan Wenwu made a mental note of the shopkeeper's strange behavior and said, "Then I'll trouble you to recommend some suitable equipment."
The shopkeeper came out from behind the counter and selected several weapons from the shop's display racks.
"Young man, you said earlier that you wanted a sword, didn't you? These should suit you nicely." The shopkeeper laid the longswords he had brought over on the counter and introduced them. "These models all have a blood-resistant coating. If you're going to be killing monsters regularly, these are the weapons I'd recommend."
As the name suggested, a blood-resistant coating prevented blood from dulling and corroding a weapon.
Chuan Wenwu leaned forward and carefully examined the swords on the counter. Each had a well-balanced design, and their materials looked far more authentic than those of the replica props he had seen in his previous life. He didn't know much about melee weapons, only a few expressions describing sharp swords, like "splitting a hair blown against the edge" and "cutting iron like mud."
To his eyes, they all looked impressive, even if he couldn't say why. They seemed like quality goods.
Clang-
He flicked a blade with his finger, producing a clear metallic ring-which told him nothing.
The shopkeeper continued, "From left to right, the materials are iron, magic iron, magic steel, and silver iron. The prices rise in the same order, but I can guarantee that each sword is excellent compared to others made of the same material."
The prices were 50, 100, 200, and 300 silver coins, respectively.
Naturally, the more expensive ones were better. But if he went straight for the best and most expensive option, the silver iron sword, there would be no money left in the budget for armor.
"What are magic iron and magic steel?" Chuan Wenwu asked the shopkeeper.
"Oh, they're special magical materials. In simple terms, they're iron and steel that contain magical power and can channel it. Many monsters protect themselves with magical power, and ordinary iron weapons conduct it very poorly, making it hard to deal effective damage. That's why you need weapons made from magic iron or magic steel, which conduct magical power better. After all, only magic can deal with magic! Silver iron is an even higher-grade material. Not only does it conduct magical power exceptionally well, but it also deals additional damage to evil monsters. It's just a little pricey..."
In that case, he could rule out the iron and silver iron swords. One would be of little use, while the other was too expensive.
Looking at the two swords made from magic iron and magic steel, Chuan Wenwu asked the shopkeeper, "Can I try them?"
"Of course. Go ahead."
With the shopkeeper's permission, he reached for a sword's hilt. While browsing his Hero System yesterday, he had noticed a particularly absurd piece of information:
[Heroes cannot use weapons or equipment other than their own legendary weapon with the intent to fight.]
What an absurd restriction, right?
How was a shield warrior supposed to level up if he couldn't switch to a weapon with higher attack power?
That was why he wanted to test how it actually worked today.
His fingers touched the hilt, which was wrapped in nonslip leather. It felt smooth and faintly cool in his hand. Then he tightened his grip... Nothing happened.
But just as he prepared to take a couple of swings through the air to test how it felt, a burst of electricity shot out of the Shield of the Hero and struck his sword arm. The sword was instantly jolted out of his grip, leaving sharp, stabbing pain in his palm.
"So I can hold it, but I can't use it?" Chuan Wenwu muttered. Then he bent down, picked up the sword that had fallen to the floor, and returned it to the counter without any trouble.
"Did something just happen? It looked like the sword got knocked away."
The shopkeeper asked in confusion, and Myne gave him a puzzled look as well.
Chuan Wenwu gave a wry smile and pointed at the shield on his arm. "Can't help it. This shield of mine is a little possessive. It won't let me use any other weapon."
Before you continue