The Frugal Mage

The two couldn't help but look at their Adept Mage, Sofia, but she only shrugged…

She had definitely used her Mana Sensitivity a while ago and didn't find anything valuable.

Or perhaps, she couldn't sense a strong mana pulse that could make her confirm the presence of treasure…

'It must be nothing special if I didn't sense anything particular…' Sofia mused as she believed that since she ignored it, it shouldn't be that precious… and she hoped that she was right.

However, Hale had opened the small chest, and inside were a few old coins, dulled with age but still gleaming faintly with mana residue.

'Coins emitting mana? What the heck are those?' The three Gold Rank Adventurers were curious. They had never heard of anything like that.

Now, they regretted saying that they could get anything from here aside from the flower. They should've searched this place thoroughly before saying that.

Still, with how well they were hidden, it was indeed difficult to get them.

Hale and the others were also surprised to see the chest filled with strange coins emitting some mana. "Well… Can you still cast more Spells, Rayven? Or should we just have it appraised in the guild outpost?"

They believed that Rayven was just a normal Initiate Mage after all.

Rayven also felt a little cautious now that the Adept Mage was looking at him.

"I'll save my mana for now." He replied.

"Got it… Good work." Drosk said as he knew that Rayven had certainly already done a lot.

Rayven didn't respond, only gave a small shrug…

While the others continued combing through the cracks and rubble that Rayven had pointed out, he confirmed that the Adept Mage was still watching him.

At last, she stepped forward and finally talked to him…

"You… That spell you used earlier… it wasn't standard detection magic."

Rayven tensed but kept his face neutral. "What of it?"

She tilted her head slightly. "Ahhh… Sorry about that. I'm being rude. I'm Sofia from Teal Arcane Academy… Where did you study? Which academy taught you to shape mana so precisely? Beige Academy? Jade Academy?"

Rayven shook his head slowly. He didn't even know much about the Arcane Academies..

The only one he was aware of was the Teal Arcane Academy that Ardania had previously mentioned to him. He even had access to that Academy's Library thanks to his previous assistance to the Professor.

"Neither. I didn't study anywhere." He answered.

The Adept Mage was caught off guard. "What do you mean?"

"I'm self-taught…" Rayven replied simply.

Her brows rose in surprise. There was genuine disbelief across her face.

"Self-taught? Impossible. No self-trained mage can handle mana threads that cleanly. And yet…" She studied him more closely, her voice lowering. "You've got control that even apprentices at the large guild struggle with."

Rayven forced a smile, though inwardly he cursed her sharp perception. "Guess I just had good instincts."

The Adept Mage didn't look convinced. If anything, her curiosity deepened.

As Sofia studied Rayven with that same curious gaze, her eyes shifted downward.

Then, she noticed it.

"…That bag," she said suddenly, pointing with her staff.

Rayven stiffened. He had almost forgotten the weight on his shoulder. The bundle of cloth tied securely.

Drosk noticed her gaze too and gave Rayven a slight nod, silently signaling that it was fine to share.

Rayven untied the bag and pulled it forward, showing its contents. "The Skitterfang eggs. Twelve of them."

The reaction from the three Gold-Rank adventurers was instant.

Their eyes lit up like children staring at treasure.

The swordswoman leaned forward and felt excited.

"You managed to collect intact eggs? That's rare! They're damn hard to gather without breaking."

The rogue also nodded. "Those fetch a good price… they're perfect for alchemy or beast tamers."

Sofia's calm expression finally shifted into visible interest. "We'd like to buy them."

Drosk nodded once again since they were more interested in money than those eggs. "How much are you offering?"

The swordswoman didn't hesitate. "One gold each."

Drosk's group glanced at each other.

That would be twelve gold coins, and they were already happy about it!

They were on the verge of agreeing, but Rayven signaled to them.

It was a fair deal by most standards. But Rayven had already appraised it and unlike any other Appraisal abilities, the one that was given to him by the system could also assess its value!

[ Market Value: 2–3 Gold Coins each ]

Of course, he couldn't reveal that. Still, since they clearly wanted them badly, there was room to push.

He thought for a moment and shook his head. "Five gold each."

The three Gold-Rankers froze. Even Drosk and the others felt that Rayven had gone insane. Still, Rayven found them technically, so they just allowed the young man to negotiate.

"…Five?" The rogue raised a brow, half amused, half annoyed. "That's robbery."

"That's more than some magic daggers cost…" The female swordswoman added.

Sofia, however, didn't get angry. She knew that Rayven just wanted to haggle, it was not an uncommon thing, but her companions weren't used to that.

She couldn't help but study Rayven again.

"You know what they're worth… don't you?" She muttered softly.

Rayven kept his expression neutral. "I know they're rare…"

"Well, we just want to fry those eggs. They taste really good. Looking at their weak mana, they're not developed yet, and they're perfect for cooking." Sofia said and this surprised Rayven a bit.

"Three gold…" Sofia added.

Rayven didn't flinch. "Four."

The female rogue groaned. "You're really going to haggle with Gold-Rankers?"

Drosk and the others were holding their breath now, watching Rayven deal with the three Gold Rank Adventurers. In normal cases, no one would dare to do this to an Adventurer of a higher rank than you.

After all, anything could happen within the Dungeon… There weren't any guards or police who could protect them here.

Thankfully, these three adventurers weren't offended to the point that they wanted to cut Rayven in half.

Sofia finally sighed and gave a firm offer... "Two gold and fifty silver each. That's twelve eggs for thirty gold total. It's a fair price, more than double what we first offered. Take it, or leave it."