616 Payment

"That Aersus is a clone?" Vale was taken aback, as he had believed the dragon he encountered to be genuine.

He had even extracted Aersus, yielding him hundreds of Draconic Essence, two Spell Models, and several Water Dragon Scales, in addition to the attributes he obtained.

"Yes... Even if they're clones, they were still made of true Dragon's Essence, so it is not wrong to call them Dragons as well. Aersus' technique is so incredible that his clones can be stronger than other true Dragons." Orden explained.

'So it's like that'

Vale nodded gently upon hearing this. He hadn't anticipated Aersus to be so remarkable. He was certainly looking forward to meeting Aersus' real body someday.

'I wonder if he'll remember our encounter' Vale mused.

If Aersus had memories of Vale, he would certainly be enraged once they've met again.

Vale then thanked the two dragons for the valuable information as he left Chad in their care.

In any case, he believed that Chad would benefit from this encounter since the two dragons would soon receive the items they desired, the Arcane Ores. They shouldn't think of doing something stupid that would increase their number of years of being imprisoned.

Furthermore, Vale already hinted that he could kill a dragon. They should know how to conduct themself by now.

"I wonder where we could get them" Vale mused as he walked outside the castle. He was referring to the Arcane Ore.

Although he knew of their existence, he had no idea where to get them since there was not a time when he needed to use them.

"Is there a problem?" Faith suddenly asked after hearing Vale's words.

She had appeared behind Vale, seeming to have just come from her room. Vale also couldn't help but notice how she smelled great, as if she had just taken a bath.

Vale immediately shook his head to dispel his random thoughts and replied.

"Miss Faith, I didn't notice you coming. Do you know where to get the Arcane Ores? Are they expensive? I need plenty of them."

"Arcane Ores? I know where to get them, and you're right, they're quite expensive since they are not just materials to craft certain Magic Artifacts, but they're also used to summon Elemental Spirits. You can expect the monopoly from the Elemental Arts Faction but there are still other sources" Faith replied.

As expected of the Manager of the Contribution Points Exchange Hall, she knew about plenty of items.

"That's excellent news! I heard that we made over 300 thousand zen from selling all the potions and talismans that Magnus crafted... After deducting our purchases, we should still have around a hundred thousand zen, correct?" Vale said as he recalled their recent earnings.

"Yes... But still, a small ore can be sold for 5 thousand zen, so you won't get many of them."

"What? They're so expensive?" Vale exclaimed as he compared the price of the Immortal Shards.

"It's mainly because they're being hoarded by several factions. They aren't scarce, but they're difficult to buy. I have a few of them with me. How many do you need?" Faith suddenly said, giving hope to Vale.

"What? Is that true? I need as many as I can..." Vale said and continued to explain that it was for the Dragons imprisoned in the underground hall of the castle.

He also mentioned that Chad was currently there, accompanying the two dragons.

"That's interesting... Alright, I can provide you with about 300 of them..." Faith said after recalling the number of ores that she had brought with her.

"That's great! How much will that be?" Vale inquired.

"Mhmmm I don't need money, but I need something from you..." Faith said with a faint smile.

Vale couldn't help but feel a little nervous, but he still returned a smile and replied, "Let me know, I'll do my best to fulfill your request."

"That's good to hear... I've been interested in the pocketwatch you've been keeping in your pocket all this time... My senses tell me that it's an ordinary item, but when I open my eyes, I notice that it's quite extraordinary. Although it's sealed, it seems as if it has the power to change the world," Faith asked.

"I'm not planning to take it from you. I'm only interested in seeing the seal it has and finding out what it can do." She added.

Vale was stunned after hearing this.

Faith seemed blind, as she always had her eyes closed. However, it was clearly not the case from her words just now. Vale had been pondering about this for some time, as Faith had never acted blind, even though she always had her eyes closed.

"This timepiece is quite important to me, Miss Faith..." Vale said after some thought.

"I know I will not damage it. I've been handling magic artifacts for many years, and I can say that even the Headmaster doesn't have the skill that I have when it comes to handling artifacts." Faith said.

Vale lapsed into silence for a moment.

Upon reflection, it didn't sound too bad after all.

If Faith studied the timepiece, he could also gain insights into how it functions. He didn't even mind if the item was fully unsealed.

In fact, he might even ask her to unseal the Creation Ring as well!

But then, a thought struck him, 'No... Not the Creation Ring... Pearl said that I can use it to deal with the Abyss Realm and even stop the invasion. It's better to ask Pearl. I'll keep it for now'

Vale mused as he retrieved the Temporal Timepiece.

"Here it is... I only know a few things about this pocket watch. I know that it looked similar to the Temporal Timepiece. It is one of the items owned by the Three Paragons that was left here before they ascended... according to what I've read. I've concealed this item using a basic sealing technique a few times and hidden it inside the academy. However, after being outside for a long time, I stopped sealing it, so you managed to sense its presence" Vale explained.