Chapter 85: The Archer, Falcon

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Before me lay a selection of warrior-type, top-tier silver equipment, and I could hardly suppress a smile. I picked up the only weapon I could use at my current level, the level 15 "Serpent Crystal Magic Dagger," and looked up at the archer standing nearby: "I'll take this weapon."

Serpent Crystal Magic Dagger (Silver Equipment): Attack 20–25, Agility +6, 3% chance to inflict poison damage, Level Requirement 15, Usable by warrior types.

In every respect, its attributes surpassed those of the Silver Beast Magic Dagger. Moreover, it allowed the use of close-combat skills for archers, significantly boosting my attack power. As for the other weapons on display, they were all exceptional silver-grade arms tailored for high-agility builds. If their prices hadn’t all been marked at thirty or forty gold coins, I’d have loved to collect them all for easy swapping in the future!

Noticing someone was interested in buying, "Falcon" finally realized another person had approached the stall—a level 15 archer, Scavenger Qilin, who, to his surprise, was an archer just like himself!

Over the past month, Falcon had rarely seen archers thriving in "Magic Era." Even his own gear was acquired by privately trading gold coins earned from decent income. Yet, this Scavenger Qilin before him...

Drawing on a month’s experience, Falcon keenly recognized that the equipment on Qilin was specifically tailored for high-agility builds. At only level 15, he was already equipped with top-tier, first-grade gear—likely amassed through credit points, much as Falcon himself had done.

Alas...

Falcon was suddenly struck by a deep sense of melancholy about his own circumstances in the game and nearly forgot to respond to Scavenger Qilin.

"Take it for twenty coins," he said.

The moment those words left his mouth, several players at the stall gasped in astonishment. Scavenger Qilin, a newcomer at level 15, had already drawn their attention—curious how a rookie could possess such a full set of fine silver equipment. They kept an eye on his chosen item, only to be shocked when they saw that the Serpent Crystal Magic Dagger was originally marked at thirty coins.

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In their eyes, Falcon was notoriously stingy, so for him to voluntarily lower the price was unfathomable!

I too cast a curious glance at Falcon, only believing he was serious when he initiated the trade request. After paying twenty coins, I nodded gratefully to him.

Falcon gave a sincere, honest smile. "Archers have a hard time making their way," he said, then fell silent.

But this scene infuriated the nearby players! A few stood up, sneering:

"Damn! What’s with the attitude? I offered seventy coins for that ring and you wouldn’t budge—now you drop the price for this guy? Who do you think you are?" With that, he spat out, "Forget it, I’m not buying!" and melted into the crowd.

With their departure, only Scavenger Qilin remained at the stall, debating whether to buy another weapon.

Falcon didn’t seem worried about selling his goods. Seeing the others leave, he squatted down beside me, looking up:

"Brother, how much did this set of equipment cost you?"

At that moment, I was weighing an eighteen-level short sword—the "Gold-Slaughter Sword." Without looking up, I replied, "I didn’t spend any money..."

Falcon was taken aback, realizing he’d misjudged. He rubbed his nose self-deprecatingly.

"Heh, I thought you were another credit-point buyer, too. You’ve got great gear... It’s good to have friends. But whoever helped you get this must be pretty capable—this kind of equipment isn’t easy to assemble, even if you have the money."

I immediately knew Falcon had misunderstood, so I explained, "This is my first time here. I don’t have skilled friends inside. This set was traded for items I acquired myself."

"Traded?" Falcon’s eyes widened like copper bells. He stared at me in disbelief. "You’re only level 15—did you find a magical beast’s crystal core? No, even a low-level core is worth at most a dozen coins... What was it, then? What could be so valuable?"

He seemed genuinely interested, but I could only shrug and smile wryly, indicating I couldn’t tell him.

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There was no way around it. Before Light Whisper left, she specifically urged the three of us to maintain secrecy regarding the Kodo Beast’s magic stone. Since no one had considered a fourth-tier priest’s resurrection spell, nor paid much attention to that aspect, Light Whisper had only learned about it by chance.

Though there’s no such thing as an impenetrable secret, the longer we kept the magic stone concealed, the better it would be for the Light Whisper Mercenary Group. That was one reason she invested so heavily in "buying" our loyalty.

Falcon nodded, understanding. To trade for several hundred coins’ worth of goods, it had to be something extraordinary. No wonder he wouldn’t disclose it—Falcon wouldn’t either, in his place.

He now believed Scavenger Qilin’s story.

Suddenly, Falcon, somewhat emotionally, gestured to the equipment at the stall. "Do you know how many credit points I spent on all this?"

He paused, then held up two fingers. "Twenty thousand!"

I was momentarily stunned, then laughed, "Haha, you must be loaded!"

"Don’t mock me, brother. What’s the use? I bought all this gear, but every night I grind alone. I’ve tried the third-tier advancement quest three times in a row and still can’t clear it! I’m so frustrated!"

Seeing Falcon pour out his troubles, I was slightly surprised and asked, "Is the third-tier advancement quest really that hard?"

Falcon waved his hand with a bitter smile. "Forget it, I won’t talk about it. Just thinking about it gives me a headache... You’ll find out someday!" He shifted his tone abruptly and looked at me intently:

"By the way, you’re soloing too, right? I know a good leveling spot—not many players go there, and it’s ideal for high-agility builds. It’s a bit far, though..."

Perfect! Just what I needed—a place to train!