Exploring the Old Mansion

That morning, Renato browsed the newly posted quests in the Adventurers' Guild.

With his coin purse growing emptier by the day and his expenses remaining stubbornly high, he had no choice but to plan his finances.

Originally, Renato had only come to the guild to "collect" some free white bread and warm himself up with a cup of hot tea to save money, but a new quest on a sheet of parchment caught his attention.

[Quest]

Clear the Animated Armor from the Old Mansion. Reward: 20 silver coins and one magic potion with an unknown effect.

[Quest description]

At 7 Oak Street, behind an ancient door, the silence foretells a tangible threat. Since the owner's disappearance, the sound of metal scraping against stone slabs has begun to echo from deep within the mansion. Though the person they were meant to protect is long gone, the magically driven suits of armor still stubbornly guard the deserted corridors.

Quest reward: 1,000 experience points.

Animated Armor was a basic type of magical construct, often mistaken for soldiers or terrifying evil spirits.

The quest had been signed during the Waning Moon, which meant it had been available at the Adventurers' Guild for at least a month.

The reward of twenty silver coins was hardly generous, but it matched the quest's difficulty. It should not have gone unclaimed.

Only after checking the relevant records at the guild's front desk did Renato understand why.

"This quest has been accepted five times in total. The most recent attempt was two days ago."

"Since the front door was enchanted, the first three groups of first-tier adventurers couldn't even open it. They gave up after struggling with it for two days..."

"The client then added five silver coins to the reward, which finally attracted a reasonably well-trained group of adventurers. They forced the door open."

Renato leafed through the file, his brow furrowing slightly.

"But the client failed to mention that there were construct guards inside the house. While searching the place for valuables, the adventurers activated the defense mechanisms and were caught off guard by several suits of Animated Armor."

"Three were injured, one seriously, and the quest ended in failure. Since the information provided was inaccurate, they're still in a legal dispute with the guild, arguing over compensation."

"Two days ago, the client added another ten silver coins. This time, a veteran lone-wolf adventurer accepted the quest. He successfully slipped into the mansion and disabled every defensive trap inside. But despite his initial impression that the constructs were clumsy, he discovered that these suits of Animated Armor had extremely keen senses. They could pinpoint his position from sixty feet away. His crossbow bolts and daggers also struggled to penetrate their armor, so he eventually had to give up."

So that's why I hadn't seen this quest before. The initial reward was too low, so it was probably posted on the quest board in the guild hall and kept getting picked up.

Only after the client raised the reward several times was it listed separately and brought to the attention of third-tier adventurers like us.

Twenty silver coins was a respectable reward, and a thousand experience points was quite substantial too.

With the previous groups of adventurers having tested the dangers for him and provided additional information, Renato felt this quest's difficulty should be within his ability to handle.

As for the magic potion with an unknown effect, Renato did not particularly care. His only question was whether even the guild could not identify what kind of potion it was.

After getting no answers from the front desk, Renato accepted the quest first, intending to discuss it with Perly when she returned from the Grand Library at noon.

The guild would contact the client and arrange for them to discuss the details tomorrow at the front door of 7 Oak Street.

At noon, Renato was discussing the newly accepted quest with Perly on the shopping street.

Perly had just left the Grand Library. Upon hearing there was money to be made, she agreed to Renato's plan without asking a single question.

"What spells do I need to prepare? I'll have to buy the corresponding spell components at the general store."

She even left the choice of spells to Renato, clearly having no intention of thinking for herself.

"Perly, you're the mage. I can't even use magic." Renato couldn't help pressing a hand to his forehead. "Never mind. First, tell me what spells you think would work best against Animated Armor."

"Magical constructs generally have strong physical resistance. They're immune to conditions like fear and poison..."

Perly rubbed her chin thoughtfully and said:

"I'd recommend direct-damage spells from the School of Evocation, like Burning Hands and Magic Missile."

Burning Hands could unleash a cone of flame, but Renato had no desire to start a fire in the Inner District, so that was out. Perly knew relatively few first-circle damage spells, which probably left Magic Missile as their only option.

"Then let's go with Magic Missile. You'll need to prepare Mage Armor too. We don't know the layout inside, so you'll have to protect yourself. How many spells can you memorize now? Still three?"

"I'm a full-fledged mage now, you know. Lately, I've also learned plenty of general techniques for spell models from books. My memory is already far beyond what it was when I was an apprentice..."

"Just tell me."

"I can prepare four first-circle spells and two second-circle spells."

"But Magic Weapon is the only second-circle spell I've learned so far. All the other second-circle spellbooks are too expensive..."

"Then for your first-circle spells, prepare three Magic Missiles and one Mage Armor. For your second-circle spells, prepare two Magic Weapons for now..."

Perly interrupted his arrangements to add:

"You don't need to prepare two Magic Weapons, Renato. I can use 'Upcasting' on Magic Missile."

"Upcasting? What's that?" Renato asked, puzzled.

"It's a special technique where you fill a lower-circle spell model with higher-circle substitution formulas, making its structure more complex to achieve greater spell power..."

"Put simply, it's a second-circle version of Magic Missile that produces one extra magic dart."

So that's how it works. Renato nodded.

At present, their makeshift adventuring party had far too many weaknesses. There were only two of them, they lacked healing and protective measures, their spell selection was limited, and their scouting ability was practically nonexistent...

Even a simple door lock would probably require him to smash it open himself.

Unlike Renato, the young mage seemed full of enthusiasm as she tugged him toward the Silver Deer Inn.

"We'll prepare spells this afternoon, then go earn money tomorrow morning... Hmm, there's still a piece of cured leather left from last time. That'll save us the cost of one of the components for Mage Armor."

"I can earn ten Silver Crowns from this quest. If we take one every three days, I can earn a hundred Silver Crowns a month. Then I can learn another spell from the School of Transmutation..."

"No, no, I should save up for two months first. Then I can buy a little house in a nicer part of the Outer District. That way, Renato and I won't have to stay at an inn, and we can save even more money..."

Watching Perly count on her fingers, Renato couldn't help imagining the future too, only to find himself inwardly speechless a moment later.

Why think so far ahead? I never had worries like these when I was traveling alone in Brekka Town.

His original goal had simply been to escape pursuit, keep himself hidden, and find enough food to stay alive.

Now he was being just as naive as Perly, actually starting to consider how to earn more money and put together a well-balanced adventuring party.

Desire could never be satisfied. Perhaps that was simply human nature.