“This spear’s not too shabby!” I exclaid with glee.
Sure, it had cost fifty plausibility, but not only had it upgraded the spear to rare grade, it also fully repaired it, making it as good as new. The upgraded weapon could definitely hold its own in prolonged combat during future scenarios.
I wonder, could it be upgraded further? I tried using Grant Plausibility on the spear again.
Further enhancent through Grant Plausibility is not possible at the mont.
Alas…
Still, that got thinking: could my other old equipnt be upgraded too? If I could enhance the spear this way, then surely sothing even older—like my cursed coat, which I’d been wearing for quite so ti—might respond as well.
I took off the cursed coat I’d worn for over a week and inspected it through the System.
Shrouding Coat(Cursed)
Grade: Uncommon
Type: Enchanted Coat
A lightweight black coat woven from an unknown material that absorbs light, giving it a faintly shifting, shadowy appearance. While it offers decent protection and boosts speed, the curse it bears makes its benefits double-edged.
Durability: 12/30Grants 3 DexterityCursed the wearer with [Unstable Presence]
While wearing this coat, your presence becos harder to track. However, your own perception and awareness are dulled over ti. The longer you wear it, the greater the disorientation, which can lead to occasional monts of confusion during critical actions.
It was honestly a wonder how it hadn’t been destroyed by now, especially since I’d never once repaired it.
Without further ado, I used Grant Plausibility on the coat.
An equipnt with deep potential has been detected.
Would you like to proceed with Grant Plausibility?
[Yes/No]
Deep potential? I raised an eyebrow but tapped [Yes] without hesitation.
You have used Grant Plausibility.
You have permanently enhanced the grade of Shrouding Coat.
Shrouding Coat has evolved into Shrouding Coat of Living Night.
A total of 225 Plausibility has been consud.
Shrouding Coatof Living Night (Cursed)
Grade: Unique
Type: Enchanted Coat
A high-grade shadow-weave garnt reborn through plausibility. This coat is now bound to the user’s will, cloaking them in a living veil of darkness. It refines the stealth of its predecessor and tempers its curse further, granting near-invisibility at the cost of tethering the wearer to the void.
Durability: 110/110Grants 8 Dexterity and 5 Magic PowerApplies [Veil of Dusk] to the wearer
While worn, the user’s presence becos extrely difficult to detect by conventional or magical ans. In dim environnts, movent speed is increased by 15%, and footsteps generate no sound. Additionally, grants a low-level blur effect during combat that slightly reduces the chance of being hit.
Cursed the wearer with [Echo of the Void]
Prolonged use of this coat gradually drags you closer into the void. Over ti, this can lead to minor hallucinations, difficulty perceiving bright light, and a growing sense of detachnt from physical reality. The effect worsens if worn continuously for extended periods without rest.
“Well, of course it’s a cursed coat for a reason…” I muttered.
I could remove the curse, but that would cost a significant amount of plausibility—and honestly, the drawback wasn’t that severe. Though perhaps it might be wiser to avoid wearing the coat constantly and limit its use to combat situations.
The ntal Tolerance skill would help mitigate the curse’s effects, but it wouldn’t be enough in the long run. I’d need a skill like Calm Mind or sothing similar to fully suppress the ntal strain. That kind of skill would also co in handy when using Berserk or other mind-affecting abilities.
It looked like my plausibility had dropped to 490 after upgrading both the spear and the coat. At this point, it would be smarter to conserve the rest for later.
Deciding to end the experintation for now, I stored the coat back into my inventory and lay down to sleep.
As a tribute to the Goddess of Imagination, Istellia, 100 Soul Coins have been deducted from your balance.
***
The morning sunlight spilled through the window as I stretched and got up, feeling slightly more rested, though the weight of the upcoming Battle of Divine Will still lingered in the back of my mind. I truly needed to get prepared for it thoroughly.
After a quick breakfast, Michelle, Boris, and I agreed to split up for the first half of the day to take care of individual errands before regrouping at the main plaza to head toward District D. They went off to procure supplies and browse a few rchant stalls. Michelle, in particular, needed to restock her supply of specialized arrows.
anwhile, I had a different objective in mind.
With a decent pile of more than ten thousand soul coins now in my possession, it was the perfect opportunity to invest in sothing I’d been aning to acquire for a while—proper alchemical tools.
Up until now, I’d been concocting the Elixir of Harmonic Balance using simple alchemy thods and makeshift tools I’d “borrowed” from the first inn. Although I wasn’t planning to waste ti brewing other types of elixirs, I wanted to streamline the process for this one in particular. We were going to rely on it more heavily moving forward, and cutting down on preparation ti would be crucial. Furthermore, more advanced elixirs in the sa category would eventually require proper equipnt anyway.
Fortunately, District E had several alchemy shops, and since I wasn’t looking for anything top-tier, I didn’t have to go to District D. I wandered through the streets, taking in the peaceful scene around as divine warriors and ordinary pedestrians were moving about, chatting, bartering, and living out their own routines. With the oppressive presence of Graham now gone, I could finally breathe a little easier, despite knowing that a far greater battle lood on the horizon.
Before long, I found the store I was looking for, “rrin’s Alchemical Essentials.” It looked unassuming from the outside, just a slate-gray storefront with ivy creeping over the sign. But the polished windows and neatly arranged displays inside told the place was well-maintained.
The bell chid softly as I pushed the door open and stepped inside. Shelves lined the walls, filled with neatly labeled vials, sealed herbs, small glowing stones, polished alchemical instrunts, and components floating in translucent fluids. The sharp scent of alchemical reagents struck at once—bitter, tallic, and tinged with sothing sharp and acrid. I winced slightly as it hit the back of my throat.
At least it slled like the real deal.
“Welco,” a gruff voice called out from behind the counter. An older man with half-moon spectacles and a silver goatee erged from a back room, wiping his hands on a cloth. “Looking for components or potions?”
“I’m looking for tools, specifically for brewing balance-type elixirs,” I replied. “Sothing compact but durable.”
He nodded thoughtfully and motioned for to follow him deeper into the shop. “You’re in luck. Got a few travel-grade kits in stock. Not cheap, mind you, but they won’t blow up on you either.”
Perfect. That was exactly what I needed.
He led to a glass display case containing several neatly arranged kits. One was crafted from reinforced glass with silver-etched brass fittings; the other was more compact, featuring foldable rune plates designed for field use.
As I examined them further, I couldn’t help but think that I finally would be able to use proper tools instead of makeshift setups cobbled together from borrowed parts. This should make brewing the Elixir of Harmonic Balance a lot less of a hassle.
I didn’t need anything extravagant, so I chose the reinforced glass and silver-etched brass set. After all, I wasn’t a true alchemist. As long as it was practical and reliable, it would be enough for .
“How much for these?” I asked.
“One thousand soul coins.”
It wasn’t a massive sum, but it was definitely more than I’d expected.
“I don’t an to pry,” the shopkeeper added, eyeing over his spectacles, “but you don’t look like soone with an alchemy-related class…”
“Don’t worry about it,” I said smoothly, keeping my expression neutral. “I do alchemy as a hobby.” It was obviously a lie.
He didn't press the issue, and with a simple “I see,” and a shrug, the topic was dropped.
While I was there, I asked about healing potions as well. Fortunately, the prices were in line with what I’d seen in other stores. I picked up ten low-quality healing potions and added five mid-quality ones to my purchase, each one costing ten and one hundred soul coins, respectively. As for the top-quality healing potions, they were priced at one thousand soul coins each. I decided to pass on them for now; even the mid-grade potions were capable of treating serious injuries, and while the high-end ones could regrow lost body parts, completing scenarios would heal any injuries I took.
Of course, there were limits. The top-quality healing potions couldn’t regenerate sothing as large as a full arm or leg, but a severed hand or foot was within their range.
Before completing the purchase, I decided to haggle with the shopkeeper. After all, I was buying quite a bit in one go.
You have used Negotiation.
To his credit, he didn’t resist too much. After a few minutes of back-and-forth, I managed to bring the total down to 1,300 soul coins.
Soul Coins: 10,150 → 8,850
With everything tucked safely into my inventory, I stepped back out onto the street. The morning sun had risen higher, casting a warm, golden hue across the cobbled roads of District E. It was still early, and I had plenty of ti before I needed to et up with Michelle and Boris again.
Since I was already in District E, there was one more place I wanted to check out—the skill bookstore I frequented whenever I needed skill books and had soul coins to burn. Now that I thought about it, with my recent advancent to Giml rank, I should be able to expand the number of legendary figures I could possess. Might as well take care of that while I was here.
With that in mind, I turned down a familiar side street and soon arrived at the old bookstore. The worn wooden sign hanging above the door swayed gently in the breeze. As I stepped inside, the soft chi of the overhead bell rang out, followed by the familiar, comforting scent of aged parchnt and ink.
“Welco, custor,” ca the familiar voice of the bespectacled young woman behind the counter. “Here to purchase another skill book, I presu?”
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