The Aura Ascendant: A Knight's Unbroken Path

Hayden nodded as he also knew what kind of contribution he made just now. As a matter of fact, he could even earn Lady Clarisse's support and get rewarded by her if he wanted to.

However, that would just be too greedy since he was simply 'hired' by Silas.

For now, Hayden considered what reward he wanted, since he didn't want to get too overboard either.

He needed to strike a balance—ask for too little, and he'd seem naive. Ask for too much, and Silas might reject the offer.

"I needed two things," Hayden said. "Money and maybe magic artifacts."

Silas raised an eyebrow. "Artifacts?"

Magic Artifacts were known as items for Magicians. There may be some Aura Users who would use them but they were incapable of using their full potential as magic artifacts were commonly activated or triggered by Mana and not Aura.

If Aura Knights would have them, they would normally be pieces of equipment that don't really require activation and could just be easily used as a protective item. Furthermore, some weapons that were also Magic Artifacts, wouldn't be a good conductor of Aura.

Nonetheless, all kinds of Magic Artifacts were obviously expensive. After all, magicians themselves require a lot of money to advance their circle, and thus, anything they make is expensive.

As for the Magic Artifacts that could be triggered by Aura, they were considered less desirable as they weren't as great as Magic Artifacts that could harness Mana.

They would normally have third or even less than that in terms of power and they could also break faster as their durabilities weren't that great.

"Yes… You must have artifacts that can be activated with Aura." Hayden added. "I'm not looking for very expensive ones… I don't even have a single Magic Artifact with me. I'm just looking for some tools."

Silas studied him for a long moment before nodding. "Fair enough… I'll make some arrangements. How much coin?"

"Five hundred gold coins." Hayden said flatly. He wasn't really sure how much he should ask and simply threw out a number he thought would be quite expensive but also reasonable.

Silas choked. "Five hun—?! Boy, do I look like a damned treasury vault?"

Hayden didn't blink. "Lady Clarisse's life is worth far more than that to Lord Dainar. And if he finds out you nearly got his daughter killed because you skimped on proper guards for this route…"

Silas' face paled.

Although it wasn't really his fault, it was true that he was tasked to coordinate with the territory of the lords to properly maintain this route.

After all, he was paying for this matter and he should've paid more to get more guards to protect such dangerous routes.

Silas could put a complaint on this matter to the territory lord but Lord Dainar might still cut off some dealing in this region if his daughter had died in this place.

That would not be good.

There would be a huge problem if Dainar's wealth stopped flowing in this region.

Silas shook his head as he found this matter unfair to him. "Three hundred. And two artifacts from my personal stock. Final offer."

Hayden pretended to consider it before he replied.

"Deal."

Silas reached under the carriage seat and pulled out a small, iron-bound chest, unlocking it with a key from his belt.

Inside the small chest was an assortment of trinkets—some of them were dull and lifeless, but there were a few that gave off some colors.

"These are… spares," Silas muttered. "Things I picked up from failed merchants or desperate mercenaries. Most are minor enchantments, but they're stable."

Hayden's eyes scanned the contents, his Ocularis Lens also started analyzing the energy signatures of each item.

"I have a couple here that could be useful for you…" Silas said as he showed the dull silver bracelet. It really required some cleaning.

"This one's a favorite among mercenaries…" Silas said. "Just channel a bit of Aura into it, and your next strike ignites. Not enough to melt steel, but it'll scorch flesh nicely."

It was one of the most basic Magic Artifacts that Aura Users could use. To be exact, it was perfect for Aura Initiates who weren't capable of releasing or transferring their Aura yet.

"It's called Ember Bracer. You can use this five times a day. Use it more than that each day and it'll break in less than a month." Silas said as he gave the item to Hayden.

Hayden then slipped it onto his wrist and felt its heat. "Useful."

Seeing how he was satisfied, Silas continued.

"This one's rarer," Silas said with a hint of hesitation in his voice…

"It's called Whisper Cloak… Wearing it will make your movements become harder to track. Not true invisibility, but enough to confuse the eye in a fight."

Hayden ran a hand over the fabric, feeling the subtle Aura weave. It was definitely a great item.

"How long does the effect last?"

"About ten minutes per activation. Then it needs an hour to recharge." Silas then paused for a moment and looked at Hayden.

"Hey… You know that Aura Users could only have three magic artifacts in their bodies, right? More than that and you'll suffer from a backlash…"

"Ahh… I didn't know that." Hayden was shocked.

This was the first time he heard about this. It was not mentioned in the books in the library according to Ocularis Lens, and because he doesn't have any class related to Magic Artifacts yet, he wasn't aware of it as well.

"No one will probably expect that a ten-year-old kid will have them, so they didn't teach you yet" Silas chuckled as Hayden was really strange in his eyes.

"You're probably right… Then, I'll take them… Thanks for your reminder." Hayden replied.

Silas sighed, as if parting with a beloved pet, but handed the cloak over. "And the three hundred coins will be paid once we reach Silvercrest."

Hayden nodded. "Pleasure doing business."

As the carriage rolled onward, Hayden examined his new items…

The Ember Bracelet was truly a Magic Artifact since it was able to resize itself and fit on his arm.

On the other hand, the Whisper Cloak was just folded neatly into his pack since he didn't need it yet.

Then, as he thought that everything would go smoothly after this matter was settled, something unexpected happened!

The bandits had finally come and there were a lot of them!