"A million TG? That's a lot of money! Are you sure you're a graduate fresh from university? I'm sure there are senior climbers here who haven't earnt that amount of money in their entire careers yet–" Amelia said, feeling impressed that Rocky had a million TG at his disposal.
A key skill for a climber was the ability to make money.
Although many ignored this aspect of being a climber, the difference between a good climber and a great climber often came down to their auxiliary abilities not related to their combat strength, and one of those abilities was the management of wealth.
Having good, reliable gear made a huge difference in life and death situations and the best way to buy good gear was to purchase it via paying hefty sums of money.
"I got it for ending my university as the valedictorian.... It's my felicitation money" Rocky clarified, as Amelia nodded in approval.
Even if Rocky asked her for a loan, she would have probably agreed to it contingent on him paying a 9% p.a. interest on it, however, with him having the ability to finance his own purchases Amelia no longer found it necessary to extend a loan.
Watching keenly instead, Amelia patiently waited for Rocky to make a choice on what sword he wished to purchase.
For a while, Rocky only briefly read the descriptions of each item, before starting to narrow down on the item's he felt suited him best as he deliberated between their strengths and weaknesses.
"Want to borrow some pen and paper to write down the pros and cons?" Asked Amelia, as Rocky nodded and began to furiously take some notes, as he narrowed down the list from 25, to just 4 pairs of swords which felt like the best option for him to buy.
---
[ Crimson Reaper & Blood Fang ]
Grade : (Epic)
Price: 400,000 TG
- [ Crimson Reaper ]
- Weight: 25 kg
- Length: 70 cm
- High attack power and excellent durability.
- Inflicts bleeding damage on hit due to built-in blood runes.
- Slightly shorter blade length, less reach.
- [ Blood Fang ]
- Weight: 25 kg
- Length: 65 cm
- Inflicts additional bleeding damage due to serrated edges.
- Lightweight, allowing for fast strikes.
- Has inbuilt blood runes similar to Crimson Reaper.
---
[ Shadow Dancer & Night Stalker ]
Grade : (Epic)
[ Dragon's Wrath & Phoenix Talon ]
(Semi-Legendary)
Price: 800,000 TG
- [ Dragon's Wrath ]
- Weight: 35 kg
- Length: 80 cm
- Extremely high attack power with fire damage due to embedded fire runes.
- Increases the wielder's resistance to fire.
- Can release a dragon-shaped flame attack with built-in fire magic formations.
- [ Phoenix Talon ]
- Weight: 30 kg
- Length: 78 cm Experience tales at m v|l e-NovelFire
- Inflicts burn damage over time due to fire runes.
- Can heal minor wounds of the wielder with life runes.
- Consumes a lot of stamina and mana to activate special abilities.
---
Out of all the sword pairs available on the market place, Rocky did not choose a single homogenous sword pair, where both the blades were similar in weight and dimensions and instead chose for sword pairs which were different, yet had a synergy to one another.
The price of these weapons ranged between 400,000 to 800,000 TG, however, Rocky felt that the price of these weapons was well worth it, considering that almost every single one of them came with inbuilt runes that provided him with some form of special ability or another.
Reviewing the four blades that he had shortlisted, Rocky weighed their pros and cons seriously before eliminating them one after another to make the final choice.
First, he rejected the Shadow Dancer & Night Stalker pair because the weight of this pair was too low for his comfort and although the blades offered great stealth ability add-ons, they offered nothing in the area of increasing attack damage, which was a priority for Rocky.
Next, he rejected the Stormbringer & Thunderstrike pair as although the ability to summon a storm and release electric shocks was enticing on paper, the AOE of these skills was not large enough for them to be considered proper mage-level spells, whole at close range, Rocky had no need for them as he could simply dispatch his enemies at that range with sword projections.
Then, he dismissed the Crimson Reaper & Blood Fang pair as despite their high attack power and the additional effect of bleeding damage which was a great pairing, the shorter blade length and high their combined weight made Rocky feel like it could limit his reach and agility in fast-paced combat, which was why Rocky ultimately rejected this pairing.
This meant that he was only left with the Dragon's Wrath & Phoenix Talon pair to choose from, however, Rocky was not sad to make this choice at all.
The impressive fire damage, coupled with the special ability the 'dragon-shaped flame attack', and the ability to heal minor wounds with life runes provided the perfect balance of power and utility.
Although the swords were hefty and weighed a lot, the benefits they provided significantly outweighed the cons.
With his decision made, Rocky placed an order for the blades, knowing that the Dragon's Wrath & Phoenix Talon pair would give him the edge he needed in his future battles.
—----
/// A/N - Bonus chapter for hitting the PS target, good job everyone! ///