The Frugal Mage

Just like before, Rayven still had to say 'Appraisal' to trigger or activate his spell.

The shopkeeper probably heard the word, but he didn't say anything.

In any case, he focused on the appraisal result that was worth 1 gold coin.

[ Item: Fragmented Spell Rune Slab ]

[ Rarity: ??? ]

[ Status: Incomplete – Damaged Record ]

[ Description: An ancient slab that contains remnants of a Spell Rune once used by Archmage Kai the Twilight Binder, a Tier 5 Mage. It is protected by lingering Soul Energy. Only 70% of the rune sequence has survived, while the rest has eroded over time. The existing sequence could still be activated to form a working spell, but its incompleteness introduces instability and severe negative side effects. ]

[ Warning: Attempting to reconstruct the missing portions without sufficient knowledge of Ancient Rune Theory may result in spell corruption. ]

[ Estimated Market Value: Unknown ]

Rayven's eyes lit up.

He liked the fact that even if only 70% had survived the passage of time, the Spell Rune could still be used! Even if it was unstable, it definitely still had some value.

Furthermore, only 30% was missing. There must be researchers out there who could fill this Spell Rune or transform it into another Spell by rewriting it.

However, since he didn't want to increase the price of the slab, he swiftly controlled his emotions and hid any sign of excitement.

It was definitely a rare ancient spell record, even damaged, it was priceless to the right mage. But he had no intention of letting the shopkeeper realize it.

"Hm… About this… " Rayven said casually as he pointed at the slab as though it were only a cracked brick.

"You have a label here that says it's an incomplete Spell Rune record of an Ancient Mage. But the inscriptions are mostly eroded. How much are you selling it for?"

The shopkeeper looked at the young man and asked another question instead.

"How much do you think? It's an item found in the tomb of Archmage Kai."

"Five silver?" Rayve asked.

"Ha… That's a good joke, kid. It came from a Tier 5 Mage! You're telling me it's worthless? Do you know how tough this is? Even if you hammer it for days, it will not break."

Rayven shrugged. He indeed read that information about being protected by Soul Energy. Still, he decided not to back down.

"Relics don't always carry power. It's just a slab that refuses to break. Most collectors wouldn't care unless it had complete runes."

The man hesitated, looking between the slab and Rayven. "It really can't be destroyed, you know. We tried smashing it with sledgehammers, burning it, and even drenching it with acid. Still the same. Feels like it's… protected by something. Just from that, isn't it already worth 10 gold coins?!"

"Even if it's unusable… It's worth that much!" He added.

Rayven gave him a flat look. "Ten gold coins for something that doesn't even function? If you're being honest, you've probably been stuck with this thing for years. Otherwise, it wouldn't be gathering dust on your counter."

The shopkeeper's mouth twitched, betraying the truth.

"Three gold…" Rayven pressed. "That's generous, considering it's little more than an unbreakable paperweight. Unless you'd rather keep staring at it every day, waiting for a miracle buyer?"

"Three gold? Impossible? Do you know that if this is complete, I can even sell it for 3,000 gold!" He said.

"That's true… But it's incomplete, so it doesn't really have any value aside from being a collector's item. Can you even find a Mage who would collect something unusable? It'll just take up the space of their storage. For ordinary people, this is also something useless. I'll be generous, take it from you for five gold."

The man grumbled, clearly unwilling but also knowing Rayven wasn't wrong. "Tch… Fine. Five gold..."

"Deal."

Rayven handed over the coins and secured the slab. To most, it was a useless fragment. But since its Spell Rune could still be used, and it had a Soul Energy lingering on it, he knew that it would be valuable…

'Soul Energy… Even if it didn't get sold, I want to know more about this…' Rayven mused.

After all, since he didn't have talent in Mana and could only rely on his System, perhaps a different source of energy was suitable for him.

'Good… Next, I should visit the Adventurer's Guild for some real work…' Rayven thought as he knew that as a copper-rank Adventurer, he must accept missions for a period of time unless he wanted to stay as a copper-rank forever.

Furthermore, Dennis and the others might be searching for him already.

Though they could do well without him, he knew that it was still important to have connections.

'I might need some battle experience before the duel…' Rayven mused as he considered accepting a mission that could get him some action.

***

In the meantime, while Rayven was still searching for a quick way to earn money, Adept Mage Cedric was making his own preparations.

Inside the dueling hall, Cedric tightened the cuffs of his robe and rolled his shoulders…

His lackeys circled him, feeding him information they had scraped together.

"Confirmed. He's just an Initiate Mage…" One of them whispered, unable to hide his snicker.

Cedric's eyes lit up. "An Initiate Mage, and he dares to stand against me? Hah. This duel will be over before it even begins."

He immediately thought of a spell he could use… He then turned to a dummy and cast a spell.

"Oh, forces that pierce the bone and flesh—

Bone Fracture!"

Soon, the dummy was broken! It was a cruel spell designed not to kill but to maim.

"I'll snap his bones one by one," Cedric murmured as he felt excited…

"Let him crawl away like the worm he is. An Initiate Mage shouldn't even dare to breathe in the same hall as me."

His lackeys chuckled nervously, though a few shifted uncomfortably at his viciousness.

Cedric ignored them, lost in his own cruel imagination.

To him, this wasn't just a duel… It was an opportunity to humiliate, to leave scars that would remind Rayven of his place.