Mira's face flushed slightly.
A pink hue spread across her cheeks as Alex's words sank in.
He was offering her something beyond rare — something that she had never dreamed of getting her hands on if it weren't for Alex.
"Alex... I-I can't just accept this!"
She stammered and stuttered as she tried to get her words out, shaking her head.
"You know how precious these are. I'd never even have the chance to repay you!"
Alex simply shrugged, his smile softening.
"That's exactly why I'm giving them to you. I've got more than I'd ever need now, and it's not like I'm going to hog them all for myself."
"But—"
"No 'buts', Mira."
Alex interrupted gently, holding up a hand.
"You're the closest thing I have to a family, so giving them to you would never be a waste. Besides, I'd rather they be put to a good use than sit in my inventory collecting dust."
Mira bit her lip, torn between her pride and gratitude.
It wasn't every day someone handed over priceless treasures like they were nothing.
The thought of refusing crossed her mind again, but she knew Alex was right.
He couldn't possibly use all of them on his own, and it would be useless to him if he did so. She had the potential to actually make use of them.
It was a no brainer really.
"Okay, fine. I'll accept them... but only if you promise me one thing."
Alex tilted his head curiously.
"What's that?"
"That you'll let me pay you back, somehow, someday. I don't know how or when, but I want to earn these properly."
Mira said with a firm voice, her determination leaving no room for argument.
Alex chuckled softly, understanding Mira's reasons.
"Deal. But don't stress over it."
"Combined with the King of Evermoor's corpse... who knows what kind of powerful armour he could make us!"
Mira's excitement mirrored his as she nodded eagerly.
"But we need to be careful. If he catches us out on the half truths, it might put us in a difficult position."
"Agreed." Alex said.
His expression turned serious.
"I'll try to keep it vague and act like I don't know much about it. We'll let him speculate."
With a shared glance, Alex reached out to the privacy barrier and deactivated it with just a touch, like Rothwind said to do so.
"Finally decided to include the ol' Rothwind in your secret schemin', have ye?"
Rothwind grumbled when he saw the two of them finally appear in front of him once again, but his tone was light hearted.
"So what've ye been whisperi' 'bout now, eh? Or is it not privy to little ol' me?"
"Nothing too serious." Alex said with a smile.
"Just some stuff about my talent having some new features, that's all." He lied through his teeth.
But then he casually pulled out a C tier Variant class orb.
"I just wasn't sure whether I should mention this little oddity I found a while back, since it's been sitting in my storage ever since I found it, and I had only just remembered it. I was wondering if you knew what it was with your centuries of experience."
Rothwind's eyes immediately zeroed in on the orb, the glint in his gaze shifting from curiosity to sharp interest.
He squinted, leaning forward as if drawn by the faint glow emanating from within the orb's shimmering structure.
"Hmmm..."
The dwarf's gruff voice trailed off as he reached out to take hold of the orb, which caused Alex to sweat nervously a little bit.
He wasn't expecting Rothwind to start getting all touchy feely with it right after he brought it out.
Rothwind's fingers slowly brushed the orb's surface, and a sharp intake of breath escaped him.
He seemed transfixed, his usually steady hands trembling ever so slightly as he reeled back in shock.
For a moment, he simply stared at it, his eyes wide open.
"By the Ancestors..." Rothwind whispered, his voice a mix of awe and disbelief.
He looked up at Alex, his gaze piercing and questioning at this point.
"Lad, where in the nine hells did ye get your hands on this!?"