Melromarc Castle Town (Day)

After getting their starting funds, the Heroes were sent their separate ways. Myne volunteered to show Connor around the town first, and then set out with him tomorrow. Since his plan would only work if he followed her lead, the mage took her up on the offer. The town itself wasn't too different from the Tech Shard, with various stands set up by the locals where they were able to sell and buy things to make a living.

"What shall we do now, Sir Hero?" Myne asked, faking a smile. To her credit, the only reason Connor knew it was a fake was because of personal experience. Oddly enough, the last person was also a woman who was associated with the color red.

"Given our current objective, it'd be a good idea to see an armory first. Is there one nearby?" the dark mage asked. Even though he already possessed a weapon, he needed to make it seem like he was a newbie. Besides, it would also allow him to see what kind of weapons and armor the people of this world used.

"That's a good idea! And with the money we were given, we'll be able to buy some fine equipment!" Myne said, praising the boy. "I'll take you to a shop I trust, then." The redhead then showed Connor the way to a small blacksmith shop. "I wholeheartedly recommend this place."

"Welcome." the shop owner said, greeting the duo. It was a bald man with scars over his right eye and on his left cheek. "Is this your first time in a weapons' shop? You sure know how to pick 'em."

"Actually, she brought me here." Connor clarified, gesturing to Myne.

The man leaned forward a bit, squinting his eyes. "Have we met before, Miss? You look familiar to me." the shop owner asked.

"I've come shopping here before. This shop is quite famous, you know." Myne explained, buttering up the man.

"Ain't that nice of ya. By the way, who's your companion with the funny outfit?" the shop owner asked.

"Can't you tell?" Myne asked.

"Wait, you mean you're one of the Heroes?" the man asked Connor, looking at the metal on his arm. "Ah, I see you've got a shield. You must be the dud."

"I'm Connor Schnee, the Shield Hero." Connor introduced. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Connor, eh? Well, if you'll be a regular, I don't give two hoots if you wield a shield or not." the shop owner said, smiling. "Nice to meet ya, kid!"

"Anyway, could you provide Sir Hero with the equipment he needs?" Myne asked, clearly wanting to speed up the interaction. "Our budget is, let's see, around 250 silvers."

"Left to right, that's iron, magic iron, magic steel, and silver iron in ascending order of cost." the man said, showing off many impressive swords. "I guarantee they're all quality swords, though."

"Hmm." Connor said as he reached for one of the blades, only for the metal to repel him with a jolt of lightning. "What in-" The status screen popped up in his vision and told him that he could not wield any weapon other than a shield. 'But, it let me use my staff last night. Must only apply to weapons from this world.'

"What was that?" Myne asked.

"I can't use any of these. I think the shield is making it so I can only use other shields." the Schnee explained, keeping the fact that he could use magic with or without a weapon secret.

"How does that work?" the shop owner wondered as he walked up to the boy. He got a small eyeglass from his pocket, which he then used to inspect the shield. "It looks like any other small shield at first glance. Doesn't this thing come off?" he asked, trying to pull it off Connor's arm.

"No. I can move it around my body, though." the boy said.

"Weird." the shop owner said, taking a closer look at the gemstone in the center of the shield. "I sense a great amount of power in this thing, but even my appraisal magic isn't telling me much. Thanks anyway for showing me this. Wanna buy some armor?"

Due to Connor's Aura and Dark Magic, armor wasn't really a priority. But, he needed to keep a low profile until the time was right. So, he obliged and bought something that would at least protect him from smaller enemies, like Chompies or Spiders.

"Now you look the part!" Myne said. "How much is it?" she asked the shop owner.

"I'll give you a discount. 120 silvers." the man said.

"How much would you buy it for?" Myne asked, getting a look from her comrade.

'You're bad at being discreet.' Connor thought, making various arm movements to see how the chainmail felt on his body.

"Huh? Well, if it's mostly new, I'll pay 100 silvers." the shop owner said.

"We'll buy it." Connor said, walking out of the store.

Melromarc Fields (Day)

After the weapons' shop, Myne brought Connor to a secluded area outside of the Castle Town's walls. There was plenty of tall grass, so the Schnee kept his guard up in case anything attacked. Seeing something moving in the grass, he ran to intercept it. They jumped out, revealing themselves to be sentient balloons with glowing white eyes and sharp teeth.

'Must be this world's version of a Chompy.' the mage said to himself as he blocked their attacks, then bashed them with his shield, only to deal little damage. 'As long as Myne's watching, I can't use magic or my weapon.' With little experience in hand-to-hand combat, he ended up fighting for an hour before finally killing a Balloon. Thankfully, with Myne's help, he managed to wipe out 30 by the time dusk came around. As he figured out last night, he was able to make his shield absorb anything if he placed it on the green gemstone.

"This must be the power of the legendary weapon." Myne said, trying to sound astonished.

"Yes. But the amount of Balloons we need to kill to make it stronger is so massive, that I'd need a second brain to understand the numbers." Connor explained, trying to sound worried. "By the way, how much can we sell these Balloon Fragments for?"

"One copper coin at most." Myne told the Hero, handing him another Fragment. "Let's call it a day and head back to the weapons' shop. If we buy some new equipment, we can go that much farther tomorrow."

'I don't know if she's lying or not, but I'll believe her for now.' the boy thought to himself as he walked back to the Castle Town.

Weapons' Shop (Night)

"Equipment for the lady, huh?" the shop owner asked. "Sure, you'll be stronger with good equipment."

"So, how much would that cost?" Connor asked, gesturing to a set of armor that Myne set on the counter.

"480 silvers with a discount. I can't go lower." the man answered.

"Thanks anyway. While I'm here, I might as well ask. Do you know a place nearby that'll buy Balloon Fragments?" the mage asked, holding a Fragment in his hand.

"There are some shops that buy Monster Parts. They'll take almost anything you have." the shop owner said.

Castle Town Inn (Night)

"It's been a while since I had food like this." Connor said, taking a bite out of some salad. He'd already made sure it wasn't poisoned, so eating it was no problem.

"I hope you relish the meal." Myne said, taking a bite as well. "Tomorrow, we'll be heading to Lafan Village. Past that is a dungeon for rookie adventurers."

'So dungeons exist here too.' Connor noted.

"We won't make much money there, but it's the perfect spot for you to level up." Myne said, still under the impression that the Schnee was at Lv.1. "Now that I have new equipment, it should be a walk in the park with you defending me."

"That does sound appealing." Connor said, trying to keep up the facade.

"By the way, Sir Hero, aren't you going to drink your wine?" Myne asked, picking up her glass.

The Sorcerer had already done an analysis of the drink prior to eating, so he was aware of what would happen if he drank it. "Sorry, but I'll have to decline." he said, disappointing the redhead.

"Really? But this is quite good, you know." Myne said, drinking from her own glass. "I'd love to drink with you."

"It's not that I don't want to. It's just that the legal drinking age back home is 21, and I've got a few more years before that." Connor explained.

"Is that so? Too bad." Myne said.

Connor got up from the booth, then yawned. "I think it's time for me to turn in. See you tomorrow." the boy said, going upstairs to his room. Once he left, Myne smiled that her plan was going well.

When Connor closed the door behind him, he reached into his shadow and pulled out a golden scepter with a shining emerald at the end. "Time to start the show." he said, casting a Portal with his weapon. The Legendary Shield attempted to reject the use of his scepter, but was overridden by a surge of Dark magic. The once green gemstone turned black as the shield changed shape.

It was now a circular shield with several orange orbs surrounding the edge. In the center was an eye that used the corrupted gemstone as a pupil.

Dark Shield unlocked!