The Frugal Mage

Satisfied with the Whisper Link Spell that he could get for a thousand gold, Rayven continued checking the other Spells.

[ Mana Thread (Common): Creates a thin strand of condensed mana that can attach to objects or creatures. Useful for marking, tracking, or setting simple traps. Weak tensile strength.

Range: 50 meters

Duration: 10 minutes

Cost per use: 1 Gold

Type: Utility / Detection ]

'Mhmm? A tracking spell?' Rayven thought as he read the description. Well, it would certainly be useful on some occasions, especially during Dungeon Explorations, but he doubts that it deserves a spot in this 10 Spells.

Rayven then turned to the next Spell.

[ Stone Shot (Common): Launches a small stone projectile at high speed. Accuracy is high, but damage is minimal unless targeting weak points.

Range: 15 meters

Cost per use: 1 Gold

Type: Offense / Earth Elemental ]

It was a decent beginner spell, and since it doesn't have any cooldown, it could be a little useful. However, with his Mana Flick, it wouldn't be a good combination.

The Minor Barrier, on the other hand, was like a cheaper version of Mana Shield in his opinion.

[ Minor Barrier (Common): Summons a small shield of mana that blocks weak physical or magical attacks. Breaks after absorbing a set amount of damage.

Coverage: 1 square meter

Duration: 10 seconds

Cost per use: 1 Gold

Type: Defense / Magic ]

It doesn't even cover his whole body. Still, the fact that it has zero cooldown and that its duration was 10 Seconds means that he could just cast it multiple times if he wanted, to cover his whole body.

'It's better to use Stone Skin rather than this.' Rayven commented in his mind as he felt that the 3 Gold Coins per use of the Stone Skin Spell could actually provide him with stronger defense.

Then, Rayven turned to one of the recommended spells from the system's guide.

[ Mist Shroud (Uncommon): Conjures a dense veil of mist that obscures vision within a small area. Useful for escape, concealment, and ambush tactics.

Radius: 10 meters

Duration: 20 seconds

Cost per use: 2 Gold

Type: Utility / Concealment ]

'Is it like a smoke screen? This is good, but if my vision is also obscured, that will just cause more problems.' Rayven thought, but he liked the idea of having a chance to escape or conceal himself with this Spell.

As for the other suggestion, the Fade Step, Rayven felt that it wasn't that incredible at first. After all, he already had Gust Step that boosts his speed. It was an incredible movement Spell that he could use to escape or to fight.

However, as he read its description, he realized how great it was, even if it was only an Uncommon Spell.

[ Fade Step (Uncommon): Instantly blurs the user's figure and shifts them a short distance in their chosen direction, leaving behind a faint afterimage. Effective for dodging attacks or repositioning.

Range: 5 meters

Cooldown: 2 seconds

Cost per use: 1 Gold

Type: Mobility / Spatial ]

'Isn't this too good?' Rayven mused as he confirmed that he was seeing a 'Spatial' type Spell for the very first time.

This should be a very unique spell if that were the case. Still, he was a bit concerned about having two movement spells in his arsenal.

Nonetheless, he continued to check the final Spell.

[ Fireball (Uncommon): Conjures a concentrated orb of flame that can be thrown toward a target. It explodes on impact, causing minor area damage. Reliable offensive spell favored by novice mages.

Range: 15 meters

Explosion Radius: 2 meters

Cost per use: 1 Gold

Type: Offensive / Fire Elemental ]

"Nice…" Rayven muttered as he read it… The Fireball was probably not appropriate for a Mystic Explorer Path, but he certainly liked having some sort of explosive Spell that might be useful in some cases.

***

Rayven was still browsing through the menu of his Coinbound System when a shadow fell over his table.

He looked up as he thought that it was Drosk and the others. However, he was instead approached by a small group of adventurers.

He thought that they wanted to use the seats, but he realized that there were plenty of empty tables around.

There were three of them with one female bow user in the group...

"Hey there, Sir Mage…" The cheerful girl greeted.

"You're Rayven, right? The one the Guildmaster called into his office earlier?"

Rayven looked at her for a moment and gave a cautious nod. "That's me. Why?"

The man beside her then sat down opposite him and leaned an elbow on the table.

"Word spreads fast in the guild hall, you know. Not every Copper-rank rookie gets called up for a private chat with the Guildmaster and gets promoted to Silver... Thought we'd come over and see what kind of rising star we're dealing with. I'm sure we will see each other in the dungeon exploration meetings from time to time…"

The last member of the group, a man with an axe, spoke with a chuckle,…

"Don't mind him. We're just curious. A lot of folks are wondering if you've already got a party, or… if you might be looking for one."

Rayven, realizing they were just here to recruit him, gave a small smile. "I see. So you all came here to scout me?"

"Scout, recruit, chat… Call it what you will…" the girl laughed as she finally sat down.

"Name's Jenna. That's Roger, and the axe user here is Fen. We've been running quests together, but we could use a mage."

Fen immediately followed. "Ahem… We don't even know if he's still available… Maybe he already has a team."

"Hmph… Then we could offer him something more enticing. He just got promoted. His group is probably not permanent yet." Jenna replied.

Rayven couldn't help but since Jenna was right.

He was indeed only a temporary replacement for Mage Josen within the Gray Ring Team.

Once Josen recovered, Rayven might consider building his own exploration team with Miki, Nara, and others…

"So? What do you say?" Roger asked. "Do you already have a party, or are you going solo?"