Creation system

Next came the nature essences they had harvested from the dungeon's boss.

However, nature essences were more common than their ice counterparts, and the market reflected this reality.

"Nature essences, tier-two quality," Master Thorne noted, his tone becoming more businesslike. "The market is somewhat saturated at the moment, but these are fine specimens.

310 gold coins each, that's actually above the current market rate, considering their quality

The remainder of their haul told the story of their adventures: monster parts from dungeon creatures, weapons and armor stripped from their fallen ambushers; and various trinkets and curiosities that might prove valuable to the right buyer.

"The monster components will go to alchemists and enchanters," Master Thorne explained as he sorted through the materials.

"The equipment is good quality, though the bloodstains and battle damage reduce the value somewhat. Still, everything together comes to 1,150 gold coins."

When the final tally was complete, Mitch could hardly believe the numbers. "2,080 gold coins," he repeated, shaking his head in amazement."We're looking at over 2,000 gold coins in less than a week."

They divided the wealth equally, each taking 1,040 gold coins and nearly two hundred tier-two cores, which they didn't sell.

The weight of the coin purses was substantial, but it was the weight of possibility, of dreams that could now become reality.

As they emerged from the vendor's shop, Leya's expression had transformed from weary determination to bright hope.

"Mitch," she said, clutching her coin purse like a lifeline, "this might be enough. This might finally be enough to buy real medicine for my brother."

Mitch's mind was already racing with his own plans. "I want to try something," he told her as they walked through the merchant quarter.

He looked for tier two wood, he wanted to craft some weapons, then sell them.

The search for tier-two wood proved more challenging than expected. The forests around Lastwind City had been harvested extensively over the years, and the easily accessible tier-two trees were long gone.

Now, such wood came primarily from deep forest expeditions or dungeons and hidden grounds, making it precious and expensive.

Even then, awakeners didn't want to carry the heavy wood so it made it pretty scarce.

The wooden swords came mostly from the chests.

From what Mitch could see, the wooden swords had better mana conductivity and bonuses for lower mana consumption, which were good for certain awakeners.

The metal ones had a sharper edge and were more durable, but they didn't boost the magic skills that much.

Despite the scarcity, Mitch managed to acquire what he needed. He spent 500 gold coins on a selection of tier-two wood, mostly common varieties like ironbark and steel-root.

There were some types of tier two wood that cost almost 500 gold a piece.

He saw even the living wood, which was pricey, costing almost 250 a piece.

Mitch then purchased 250 mid-tier two cores, the raw materials needed to fuel his growing abilities.

No shopping expedition for an awakener was complete without visiting the skill tome vendors.

These shops were libraries, armories, and treasure vaults all rolled into one, their shelves lined with books that could grant new abilities or enhance existing ones.

Mitch selected two skills that would complement his evolving combat style:

[Body strengthening skill book – use mana to strengthen your body, making you faster

and more resilient. It requires at least 15 points in body stat.] 80 gold coins.

[Mana sword slash skill book – send a mana slash from your sword, it has a good range. It

requires at least 10 points in body stat] 140 gold coins.

"Both excellent choices for a warrior-crafter," the bookshop proprietor noted approvingly.

"The body strengthening will increase your strength, reflexes and stamina. And the sword slash technique, well, there's nothing quite like being able to hit your enemies from across the room."

At Mitch's insistence, Leya also invested in her equipment and abilities. Her new chainmail armor was a masterwork of defensive engineering, thousands of tiny rings woven together with magical reinforcement that would turn aside slashing attacks while remaining flexible enough for acrobatic combat.

[Tier 2 Chainmail armor - It offers great defence, and it doesn't impede movement. It has great slash and bashing resistance.] 140 gold coins

"The beauty of chainmail," the armorer explained as he fitted the garment, "is that it moves with you. Plate armor might stop more damage, but if you can't dodge properly, you'll end up as a heavily armored target.

This will keep you mobile while still providing excellent protection."

The she bought herself a new skill.

[Ice patch armor – manifest a patch of packet ice in any part of your body, offering great defensive capabilities. It has low mana requirements.] 110 gold coins

Her new defensive skill, Ice Patch Armor, was perfectly suited to her existing abilities. The technique would allow her to instantly manifest shields of magical ice at any point on her body, creating armor exactly where and when she needed it most.

"It's incredibly mana-efficient," she explained to Mitch as they left the skill vendor. "Instead of maintaining a full defensive enchantment all the time, I can create protection on demand.

An enemy swings at my left arm, I manifest ice on my left arm. Someone shoots an arrow at my chest, instant ice breastplate."

As they made their way back to their lodgings, both adventurers were acutely aware of how much their circumstances had changed.

"It's strange," Mitch mused as they walked through the evening crowds. "Having this much gold should feel liberating, but instead I feel... responsible. Like every coin spent has to count for something important."

Leya nodded, understanding completely. "My brother's life hangs in the balance of how wisely I use this wealth.

Your crafting experiments could determine whether we continue to prosper or squander everything we've earned. The pressure is almost worse than being poor."

The lights of the city twinkled around them like earthbound stars, and tomorrow would bring new challenges: their meeting with Lord Aldric, the investigation into the ambush, the careful process of turning raw materials into powerful weapons.

But tonight, both awakeners could sleep soundly knowing that they had the resources to shape their own destinies.