Death Knell? Every shot is Death Knell tolling for the enemy? I like this name... Klein controlled his facial expression, moving closer without any expectation or excitement, and reached out to take the slightly longer, iron-black revolver.
He was initially worried that if he showed strong interest, the other party would raise the price at the last minute, which was common in business Gehrman Sparrow was already well-known, and with Anderson, the Strongest Hunter in the Sonia Sea, Oakov Konacris might have been Sequence 5 powerhouse, he had retired from the adventurer circle and only wanted a peaceful life. He was sure that Connorcris wouldn't dare to offend him. Fearing that the crazy adventurer might not retaliate to his face, he sneaked into the manor under cover of night.
Therefore, his efforts to maintain a calm attitude became purely a necessity for preserving his public image.
Seeing Gehrman Sparrow carefully examining and studying " The Death Knell," Oakov explained in detail:
"Its ability is actually quite simple: to reap other people's lives. There are three ways to do this:"
"Firstly, it's Weakness Attack. No activation conditions are required; simply infuse it with Spirituality and pull the trigger to use it. It allows you to discover the target's weaknesses from a mystical perspective, that is, the weak points in their defenses, and provides corresponding precision, thereby causing terrifying damage beyond normal levels."
"Secondly, there is the Fatal Attack. You must cock the hammer before firing to use it. Its characteristic is that no matter where you hit the target, it is equivalent to Weakness Attack. If you do hit a real weak point, you can kill an enemy with weak defense with one shot. For targets with strong defense, you can take them out within three shots. This includes the ' Guardian '. Of course, the premise is that the interval between the three hits should not be too long, preferably no more than 5 seconds."
"Thirdly, there is ' Slaughter,' which provides more than double the Spirituality on the basis of Weakness Attack. This can make normal bullets have a shotgun effect and attack a large number of enemies in the direction the gun is aimed at at the same time, which is an area-of-effect attack. To increase the damage, more than double the Spirituality is provided on the basis of the Fatal Attack, which is a considerable burden for the user."
"It can also be used with bullets of different properties to target different types of enemies."
That sounds like Sequence 5 " The Reaper " from the " Hunter " pathway... Klein glanced at Anderson beside him and asked thoughtfully:
"If the target is Dragon with a physical strength of Sequence 4, how many shots would it take to kill it with Fatal Attack?"
Oakov paused for a second, then shook his head somewhat blankly:
"I've never encountered Dragon."
Not to mention Dragon whose physical abilities reach the level of Demigod!
Was Gehrman Sparrow planning to use this gun to slay a dragon? Or Demigod- level Dragon? Wasn't that a bit too crazy? Oakov suddenly realized that today's adventurers were completely different from the ones he used to be; they didn't seem to care about dying at all!
Anderson coughed twice, cleared his throat, and said:
"It depends on luck, really, believe me, luck is very important!"
"If you encounter Dragon that's already been brought to the brink of death, one shot will finish it off. Otherwise, my advice is to run away as fast as you can. After all, staying alive is more important."
"Of course, if Demigod- level Dragon doesn't defend itself and just stands there letting you hit it, then about five Fatal Attack should be enough to kill it."
Oakov glanced at Anderson, then at Gehrman Sparrow, and decided to change the subject. He said instead:
" Anderson told you about the negative effects of ' Death Knell,' right? Each time you use it, you gain a weakness that wasn't there before, or you amplify an existing weakness, making it even more extreme. This effect lasts for 6 hours. Once, I became so afraid of dogs that, even after hunting down a famous pirate, my legs went weak in front of a kitten that had just been born, and I knelt down, screaming for help and begging for mercy."
"If you're just carrying it around, it's not a big problem. You'll just get thirsty easily, but drinking more water and going to the restroom more often will solve that."
I have a feeling that having another weakness will cause a lot of unexpected problems... but relatively speaking, it's something I can bear... Klein considered for a moment and said:
Name your price.
"9,000 pounds, Anderson should have mentioned that, that's my bottom line." Oakov looked at the " Death Knell in Gehrman Sparrow's hand and said, "That's cheap enough. If I weren't worried that getting to know more Beyonder would negatively impact my current life, and if I weren't actively promoting it, I could definitely sell it for 12,000 pounds."
Indeed, magical items of this caliber, as long as the negative effects aren't too severe, could fetch an astronomical price if they find a suitable buyer... Normally, 10,000 to 12,000 pounds would be reasonable... Although Klein wanted to haggle, the price offered was so low that he felt a little embarrassed to take advantage further, so he simply grunted and said:
"I'll give it a try. If there are no problems, then we'll close the deal."
He certainly wasn't actually testing the gun, as that would create another weakness for himself. His method was to use Spirituality exploration combined with Divination and lie detection to check, doing so quite openly and without paying any attention to Oakov and Anderson's gaze.
Wait a minute, then go back above the Gray Fog to confirm... However, Oakov probably wouldn't dare lie to me. He must be terrified of the mad adventurer's revenge afterward, since he has returned to a peaceful life with a wife and children... Klein placed " Death Knell " on the table, picked up his suitcase, and took out the huge sum of 9,000 pounds that he had brought from above the Gray Fog to the real world to "dissipate."
Oakov took the money, quickly counted it, and made a preliminary confirmation of its authenticity and total amount.
"No wonder he's the most famous adventurer lately. It's rare to see someone come up with 9,000 pounds in cash at once. Even some wealthy people don't have that much liquid capital." He remarked sincerely as he folded up the stacks of banknotes.
I even spent 5,000 pounds on a key before... Klein watched the 9,000 pounds of banknotes go into Oakov's drawer, and suddenly felt a sense of emptiness.
I've been at sea for so long, accumulating so much money, and it's all gone in such a short time... Now I only have 2683 pounds in banknotes and 6 gold coins left, not even enough to buy a decent manor... Klein sighed inexplicably, took the ordinary revolver from his armpit holster, removed the bullets, and stuffed them one by one into " Death Knell ".
Anderson watched the entire transaction and clicked his tongue, remarking:
" Oakov, you've changed. You used to check each banknote one by one to make sure it was genuine. If you find that troublesome, I can help you!"
"Absolutely no problem, but I'm worried Gehrman might shoot you." Oakov was clearly well aware of the Strongest Hunter's provocative nature.
Counting banknotes one by one, holding them up to the light to verify their authenticity—the slow, deliberate movements and the smug posture were exactly the scene he could imagine.
"That's right!" Klein silently agreed, placing the iron-black long-barreled revolver into his armpit holster.
He had originally put that one into his suitcase.
"Thank you for your generosity, which relieves me of this worry." Oakov smiled and pointed to the door. "I'll have my manservant escort you out."
Anderson opened his mouth and chuckled:
" Oakov, you're not even inviting us to dinner?"
"When you get married and have children, I'll treat you to a gourmet meal at the most luxurious restaurant," Oakov laughed, completely unconcerned about her companion's accusations.
As Anderson left the manor, he squinted, looked up at the setting the Sun, and chuckled softly.
"When I met Oakov, he was just a Doctor who was good at growing strange plants on the ship to improve everyone's lives. I thought he would die on an adventure long ago, but I didn't expect that he would have good luck and even become a ' Druid ' later."
Why are your words, even your sentimental ones, so irritating...? Klein said deliberately:
"It's really good."
"As your companion, surviving requires a great deal of luck."
Anderson turned his head slightly in surprise, scrutinized Gehrman Sparrow for a few moments, and said:
"You've started making sarcastic remarks now? Did I catch your habit?"
He didn't seem to care much about it, straightened his clothes, took off his hat, and said with a smile:
"Alright, I've got the magical item you needed. If there's nothing else, I should get back to my journey."
"Don't forget the Demigod's mission." Klein's single sentence successfully made Anderson's expression turn bitter.
"I already have an urge to get that done as soon as possible. Well, no need to say goodbye. Maybe we really will meet again someday." Anderson chuckled self-deprecatingly, shook the hand holding his hat, and turned onto another road leading to Bayam.
Klein calmly watched the Strongest Hunter depart, then slowly exhaled. Carrying his suitcase, he walked step by step along the original path towards Bayam, bathed in the fiery red of the sunset and shaded by distinctive palm-like trees.
Inside the city of Bayam.
Klein, having found a regular hotel to stay in, began to consider what to do next:
"Finally, I have some free time to try Acting of a ' Marionettist ' and extract the corresponding rules. This is one of the most important things for me right now."
"Hmm, ' Marionettist ', the focus should be on ' Marionette '. I haven't actually made a puppet or Manipulation it in battle yet, so I'll start from that aspect."
"This matter must be completed before returning to Backlund. Not only are Beyonder hiding there, making them difficult to encounter, but whatever we do could potentially offend the Church and some important figure. We must be extremely cautious and careful. It's not a good place to select and create puppets. The sea is much better. I'll go to the bar later and find a pirate whose crimes are serious enough to warrant hanging to test on."
With the idea in mind, Klein immediately got up, left the room, and headed straight for the nearby " Seaweed Bar," a place frequented by well-known pirates, as if he were taking a deposit slip to withdraw money from a bank.
He quickly arrived at the bar entrance, straightened his clothes, and pushed open the heavy wooden door.
A series of gazes unconsciously swept across his face, first shifting away naturally without any apparent change, then someone whispered:
" Gehrman Sparrow!"
In a flash, several figures swiftly ran towards the back door. Before Klein could even react, the bar had become much quieter.