The armor was crafted from a blend of mithril ore and monster leather.
A delicate foxtail pattern was engraved across the breastplate, while the arm and leg guards fit Haruhime’s slender limbs perfectly, ensuring full protection without hindering her movements as a supporter.
When Haruhime tried on her new gear, she looked surprisingly noble and heroic, her ears twitching with excitement and nervous energy.
Mizuki chose a sturdy black breastplate along with matching arm and leg guards for himself.
The edges of the gear were trimmed with dark red metallic accents, and the core of the breastplate held an embedded magic crystal capable of dampening physical impacts to a small degree.
Next came the weapons.
Mizuki eventually settled on a longsword named silent wind.
The blade was slender and matte black without any extra decoration, save for a thin, blood red line running from the guard to the tip.
The sword was worth over two million valis, said to easily slice through the tough hides of upper floor monsters.
With their selections made, the three of them walked up to the checkout counter.
“Hello, your total comes to eleven million seven hundred sixty thousand valis.”
The clerk, a young human woman, tallied the items quickly and called out the final amount.
Over ten million valis was a sum far beyond the reach of almost every level 1 adventurer.
Even a level 2 would have to save for a very long time to afford it.
For Mizuki, however, the price was within expectations.
“Goddess Hephaestus just promised to give me a ten percent discount,” he noted calmly.
A ten percent discount?
The moment those words left Mizuki’s mouth, the clerk paused in mid motion.
She looked up, keeping a professional smile on her face even as disbelief showed in her gaze.
“Excuse me, sir, what did you say?” she asked.
“Goddess Hephaestus personally promised you a discount?”
Mizuki nodded.
“That is right.”
The clerk’s smile froze completely.
Eina stepped forward and presented her official guild advisor badge.
“Hello, I am Eina Tulle from the guild headquarters. I can verify that what he said is true.”
Seeing Eina’s badge, the clerk’s tone softened significantly.
“Miss Eina, of course I trust your word. However, we have never had a precedent for this, and I do not have the authority to grant a discount on my own.”
“Please wait here for a moment while I confirm this immediately.”
With that, she hurried toward the inner quarters of the shop.
The surrounding adventurers immediately broke into hushed chatter.
“Did you hear that? He claimed goddess Hephaestus gave him a discount!”
“Are you kidding me? Who does he think he is? Ais from the Loki familia?”
“He is totally blowing hot air. I saw them come down from the eighth floor earlier. I thought they were big shots, but they are just here to show off.”
“How embarrassing. Even the guild advisor stepped up for him but nobody buys it.”
Before the murmurings could fade, the female clerk came running back.
Only this time, all doubt had vanished from her expression, replaced by pure astonishment.
She rushed to the counter and bowed deeply to Mizuki.
“I’m terribly sorry, Lord Mizuki! Please forgive me for wasting your time!”
“I have confirmed everything. The goddess indeed issued the order. You will receive a permanent ten percent discount on all purchases made in our store!”
“With your discount applied, the total comes to ten million five hundred eighty four thousand valis!”
The adventurers who had been mocking him just a moment ago stood frozen, their eyes wide and their mouths agape.
A permanent ten percent discount!
That combination sent shockwaves through everyone listening.
The clerk carefully packed all the gear with utmost respect.
“Good grief… it was true!”
“A permanent ten percent discount… Even leaders of top tier familias might not get that kind of treatment, right?”
“Just who is that guy?”
Envious gazes burned into Mizuki, everyone wishing they could receive such treatment.
Just as Mizuki paid the bill and waited for the final gear inspection, the trio he had met earlier walked up to the fifth floor.
It was Lunoire and her two companions.
“Wow! The gear here really is way better than what they had on the fourth floor!” The young human girl stared wide eyed at the display cases, her face practically pressed against the glass.
The male rubbed the back of his neck and glanced sheepishly at a price tag.
“It is so expensive though…”
Lunoire scanned the glittering array of equipment, her voice softening into a gentle tone.
“Maggie, Sylan, you two are getting married next month, right?”
“Consider this a wedding gift from me. Go ahead and pick whatever you like, I will pay for it.”
“Lunoire!” Maggie and Sylan, both looked at her in surprise.
Maggie hesitated, looking bashful.
“It is really too expensive…”
“Stop arguing and go pick something out,” Lunoire urged softly.
The pair began looking around until they stopped before a pair of wrist guards.
It was a set of paired silver wristbands inlaid with small magic crystals that glowed with a soft light.
They were clearly enchanted with a magical blessing.
“These are so beautiful,” Maggie murmured, her eyes full of admiration.
The shop assistant smiled and introduced the item.
“These concentric wristbands grant defense while subtly improving the harmony and coordination between the wearers. The pair costs one million one hundred thousand valis.”
When Maggie heard the price, her heart sank, and she waved her hands in panic.
“That’s far too expensive!”
Lunoire frowned and turned straight to the clerk.
“We will take them.”
She pulled out a pouch from her tunic and emptied her savings onto the counter.
After counting it carefully, she realized she was still short by two hundred thousand valis.
Her face stiffened, but she still pressed on, asking the clerk, “Can we put the rest on credit under the Demeter familia? We will pay off the balance next month.”
The clerk looked conflicted and shook her head apologetically.
“I am deeply sorry. Demeter familia has not been established in Orario for long.”
“According to our policy, we cannot offer credit or mortgage arrangements for your familia.”
Lunoire froze.
Several nearby adventurers turned to watch the scene unfold, making her cheeks burn with embarrassment.
Just as she was about to pull her companions away and give up on the gift, a calm voice spoke up from behind her.
“If you need the funds, I can lend you the rest on behalf of my familia.” This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
“My only condition is that if our familia ever requires extra hands, you will assist us.”
Lunoire spun around and saw Mizuki standing nearby.
He was the young man she had noticed earlier.
She looked at the stranger with sharp suspicion.
“I don’t know you.”
Not wanting to embarrass Lunoire any further, Maggie quickly tugged on her arm.
“Lunoire, forget it. We don’t need them anyway, let’s go!”
Lunoire turned to the couple and asked with serious eyes, “Do you like them or not? Tell me the truth.”
Mizuki had overheard Lunoire coming up short on money.
Having watched the anime in his past life, he knew that the staff of the Hostess of Fertility were all good people at heart.
Helping her out now was effortless.
Her combat strength was respectable, and building goodwill now could prove useful for his familia in the future.
Facing Lunoire’s question, Maggie and Sylan looked at each other.
Unable to deny their true feelings, they both nodded earnestly.
Seeing their honest response, the tension in Lunoire’s face finally relaxed.
“As long as you like them, that is all that matters.”
She took a deep breath and turned to face Mizuki.
The suspicion in her eyes had faded, replaced by calm determination.
“I will accept your loan, and I agree to your condition. In the future, as long as the request is reasonable, I’ll do everything in my power to help you.”
“To show good faith, I’ll give you my name. I am Lunoire, an adventurer from the Demeter familia.”
“These are my companions, Maggie and Sylan. We can offer you our familia crest, or…”
Before she could finish her sentence, Mizuki took a purse from his cloak and tossed it toward her.
Lunoire caught it reflexively.
The heavy weight in her hand made her heart skip a beat.
There was definitely far more than two hundred thousand valis inside.
“I trust you,” Mizuki said calmly, leaving no room for argument.
“Whenever you have the money, just come to the Astraea familia manor to return it.”
Without waiting for her reply, he turned and walked away with Haruhime and Eina.
Lunoire stood rooted to the spot, holding the heavy purse as her mind went blank.
She opened the pouch and found a stack of coins totaling a full million valis.
One million valis.
He had handed it over just like that?
Without asking a single probing question, without demanding collateral or a pledge?
He simply trusted a stranger like her?
Maggie leaned in, watching Mizuki’s departing figure with wide eyes, and whispered, “Lunoire… do you think he has a crush on you? He looks handsome.”
Sylan suddenly slapped his thigh as realization struck him.
“The Astraea familia!” he blurted out.
“I remember now! Rumors have been circulating that the Astraea familia took in its very first male member!”
“It must be him!”
A faint deprecating smile touched Lunoire’s lips.
“He clearly is no ordinary person. Why would someone like him ever fall for me?”