With gleaming eyes, Gideon grabbed the broadsword with one hand, and with the other, he traced his finger over its sharp edge. He didn't protect himself, and his finger received a thin cut; this showed how well the sword was made. The weight distribution was also perfect.
He slowly sent his mana into the rune, and the sword immediately blazed with a raging fire.
Gideon made a slow swing in midair with the blazing sword, and a thick arc of fire was formed along with his slash, making the room glow with a new radiance.
He secretly swallowed and really wanted to keep the sword as a trophy or a decoration; he felt extremely reluctant to use it in any battle.
Eric let the old man enjoy the sword and then proceeded to ask with a nonchalant face, "Have you decided on the price yet?"
Normally, high-grade Tier 2 weapons cost around 1,000 mana stones in guild stores, which he had learned from Caius. But since it was a broadsword, it should cost 50% more, and following that with a rune, the price should increase by another 100%, making it 3,000 mana stones!
Stores definitely took a commission on selling any item, so the base price should be lower; however, Eric believed he was a genius, so he definitely deserved the full payment.
Counting the previous donation from the necromancers' warm bodies, they should now have a total of 5,000 mana stones!
He was now one-third of his way to becoming a billionaire! His dream wasn't out of reach anymore!
Gideon fell into deep thought. He wouldn't stoop low enough to fool little children. He was also very satisfied with the sword and couldn't bear to pay any less for this wonderful gift.
He said with a sincere expression, "Normally I would say 5,000 mana stones. However, this sword came at the right time and also fits perfectly with me, so I will pay 8,000 mana stones; is that good?"
Eric went silent. Livy nearly jumped with excitement but controlled herself.
However, in truth, it was Lyria who was holding back the most upon hearing the price. She really wanted to punch the old man and make him cough up all that money quickly, so she could count it soon and use it more efficiently for their future.
Noticing Eric's silence, Gideon grimaced. "Please be kind to this old man. I don't have too many savings as I tend to focus on improving the city more. 8,000 mana stones is still a huge sum for me."
Eric glanced at the old fellow and thought it was already well above his original estimate; pushing further was pointless and unnecessary. If possible, he also wanted Gideon and Batley City to survive, so he nodded and agreed, "8,000 it is, then. I don't have any cards, so all payment needs to be in solid stones."
Gideon breathed a sigh of relief. He then pulled out eight large pouches from his ring and put them on the tea table.
Eric nodded like a gang leader who was very satisfied doing this illegal transaction which took place behind the authorities' eyes and ears, and waved his hand, "Alright old man, you can go now. I hope you survive and make Batley City more prosperous, so we can do more such trades." Although he wasn't certain if he would ever come back to Batley City or not, he did hope the city would prosper.
City Lord Gideon's eyebrow twitched. He wondered if he was doing something illegal behind his back. However, now was not the time to think about those things, so he quickly turned and left through the open door. He couldn't wait to try this new sword within his own courtyard.
Brunhild was still in shock from what had just occurred in front of her eyes.
After some time, she gradually calmed down and smiled happily. The stronger the City Lord became, the more protected the city would be.
Lyria was busy counting the mana stones one by one, while Livy and Eric continued to enjoy their tea.
Livy turned to Brunhild and asked curiously, "If the space gateway is useless, how long will it take to walk to Sildargrade?"
Brunhild's happy smile froze.
Walking?
Indeed, a mana wielder could walk countless times faster if they had good legs and high enough stats, but if there was no need to walk that fast, then all of them usually walked at the same pace as mortals.
She still answered honestly, "At least a decade."
Eric and Livy nearly puked out their tea, while Lyria practically miscalculated due to the frightening news.
They all turned to Brunhild with incredulous expressions.
Was she trying to shock them to death?
Brunhild smiled awkwardly at their expressions.
After some thought, she decided to explain properly, "Sildargrade is further north from the center of the Silvia Kingdom, and very far from here. Normally, if groups such as merchants, traders, and so on wish to travel that far, they would post a mission in the guilds to hire mercenaries or adventurers. But these traders don't travel directly and stop at various towns and cities, so the time taken is approximately eight to ten years, and that is by using mounts. No one really tries to travel straight towards Sildargrade unless they are flying in an airship or on a flying mount, as the terrain is not necessarily easy to traverse by foot. Thus, Batley City's citizens rarely travel that far. People who truly wish to go to Sildargrade will either take a space gateway or book an airship in advance for it to arrive here and pick them up."
Eric, Lyria, and Livy stayed silent. They understood that it was beyond stupid to walk that far since they had a time limit.
If Eric were completely free in the future, he wouldn't mind enjoying such a long, leisurely stroll, but right now he didn't have such time to waste.
Lyria paused her counting and asked, "What's an airship? Also, is there any other way we can shorten the time to travel?" Though she and Livy had traveled on airships in the past, they still lacked any real knowledge related to them.
Brunhild's smile returned to normal as she answered, "An airship is a transportation artifact. Sizes depend. Some truly wealthy and powerful people of the world even own their own personal airships. They usually look like a ship or a boat; I have heard there are other designs as well."
"There is also the Airship Transportation Guild which provides such services to their customers. Batley City doesn't have them, but I know Sildargrade does. I personally saw airships a few times when my traveling family members returned to Batley City. But unless they are booked in advance and the guild sets a time, the airships of that guild won't travel this far since our city is too isolated. Although there are other cities nearby, they are even smaller than our Batley City."
"Traveling by airship reduces the time greatly. It may only take a month or two to arrive at Sildargrade from here, and that is assuming it won't stop for too long at various other cities. I don't think anyone in Batley City has their own personal airship as they are too expensive. If you guys register for that guild's service now, even then it might only arrive two to six months later, and that is why it's important to book them in advance."
She paused and then gave her honest opinion, "I would suggest borrowing the sole flying mount from the animal handlers in Batley City. It will take you all maybe three to four months to reach Sildargrade with it."
Brunhild had given some thought and truthfully informed Eric, Lyria, and Livy of everything without holding back.
The thought of holding them back and only letting them leave after the necromancers' troubles had ended did cross her mind, as any help from them might give the city a higher chance of survival. But she and all the Eclipse members had only managed to survive so far thanks to them, and due to them, they also managed to return home for one final time.
So, although Batley City was currently facing its biggest life-and-death trial, she still felt it was best to be honest and not trick the three into defending the city. There would be Master Ranks involved in this battle and they could also die. It was best not to stop them if they wished to leave before it was too late.
After listening to the lengthy explanation, Eric calmly took the last sip of his tea and asked, "How much will it cost to purchase that bird?"
Lyria and Livy also turned towards Brunhild to hear her answer.
Brunhild smiled. Eric wasn't wrong; flying mounts were usually just birds, and the one in Batley City was an old bird.
She answered, "Batley City only has one flying mount, and it is also the sole mana beast of the animal handlers here. The bird's species is Eldertalon. She is quite old and has never been borrowed as far as I remember, perhaps ever since she arrived here over a decade ago. The main reason for it being so is because the guild master of the animal handlers in Batley City set the price for it at a whopping 10,000 mana stones."
Puff.
Livy, who was on her last sip of her tea, spit all of it toward Lyria's face.
Lyria smoothly, without even physically moving, gently used her Absolute Gravity to push Livy's spit so it fell onto the table between them instead of her face.
She then glared at the lavender snake woman in front of her in rage, but currently, she was not in the mood to chide.
Lyria turned back to Brunhild, who seemed startled by her strange 'magic', and asked with an incredulous expression, "You must be kidding, right?"
10,000 mana stones!
Though most of it would probably be refunded after the bird was returned to the animal handlers' guild, just who would want to gamble that huge sum when even the City Lord of Batley City thought 8,000 mana stones was huge enough? No wonder no one wanted to borrow that bird for so long.
Brunhild decided to ignore the strange phenomenon of tea being stopped in midair and answered with a bitter smile, "I am not, and that is why that Eldertalon has been left alone in the animal handlers' guild for such a long time, as no one can afford it. And people who can have no reason to waste that much on the massive service charges that will be deducted after the bird is returned unharmed. Plus, that bird is quite old; it might just die on the way and the entire 10,000 mana stones shall vanish into thin air."
Eric, Lyria, and Livy felt a headache coming on. All their hard-earned money would be gone with this single spending, but they also didn't have any other choice left; the only good thing was that they now at least had the money.
Seeing the three's depressed looks, Brunhild consoled them, "Don't worry; as long as you can return her to the animal handlers in Sildargrade, they will pay you most of the money back. Perhaps it will only cost you 3,000 mana stones or so, if she isn't injured along the way."
Eric, Lyria, and Livy nodded with crying faces.
Eric coughed, "Thank you, Sister Brunhild. Please tell the others to collect their money as soon as possible if they wish to purchase Tier 1 weapons."
Brunhild hesitated. She wanted to ask something but couldn't; in the end, she just sighed and agreed.
Eric knew what Brunhild was hesitating about, so he provided her another offer.