“However, I can’t carry one of those things with me.”

Although he was astonished by the siege weapons’ presence, Merlin soon focused on the section that contained the bows. He wasn’t interested in the catapults.

“Ah, my magic power and internal energy are at full capacity.”

As he glanced at the various weapons, Merlin stopped and fed Younghwi some of his internal energy. Unfortunately, while doing this, Merlin couldn’t utilize Mercury or Venus to expand his internal energy. Of course, the reason was obvious. Mercury and Venus didn’t increase his internal energy capacity. They served as an expansion processing system that converted and expanded internal energy, or the qi inside one’s body, into the force that internal energy produced, otherwise known as internal force. Since he wasn’t feeding Younghwi any destructive internal energy, he was essentially only using his static internal energy.

Whoosh.

Since Merlin was able to hold an impressive amount of internal energy, he was now able to feed Younghwi until the spirit couldn’t absorb any more. Currently, Younghwi was able to consume about ten years of internal energy. Once Younghwi was done eating, Merlin worked on using his magic power.

Whoosh.

His quarterstaff, a mage’s representative item, started glowing as magic power flowed into it. The quarterstaff was made from a jujube tree that had been struck by lightning, and it was excellent at storing magic and retaining it, being able to absorb 50 points of magic power. As for enchantments, the quarterstaff was able to hold five enchantment spells.

“This type of item is much better than the average arrow. I can also reuse it.”

The quarterstaff was reaching its limit. Merlin’s internal magic system was highly efficient, almost comparable to a Swiss watch with accurate teething on its gears. Yet, despite this, his constant stacking of enchantment spells was filling up the staff’s capacity. It was already absurd that a low-level mage like Merlin could place five enchantment spells into a single item.

“Excuse me, Merlin. I need to look at the crossbows. Can you make way?”

“Oh, certainly.”

“Aha! You were enchanting. Sorry to trouble you. Okay… then… hmm? A Repeating Bowgun?”

The man gasped as he tried to get a closer look at the sophisticated crossbow, though it didn’t look all that complex to Merlin. Above the man’s head was a nametag that read ‘Robin.’ It was apparent that Robin was a user, and it was only then that Merlin realized that there were many other players around him. At a glance, there seemed to be around thirty users.

‘I see. Unlike the other shops, this place doesn’t give users their own space.’

After finishing his enchantments, Merlin placed the quarterstaff back into his inventory and perused the displayed bows. More specifically, he was looking for a longbow.

/You have picked up a piece of equipment! If you do not pay for your item, it will vanish as soon as you leave this space. You are responsible for any damage to the displayed items./

“So, picking up and looking at items seems to be fine.”

Merlin grabbed a bow made of ebony-colored wood and pulled on its bowstring.

The draw weight felt a little light, but that was only because Merlin possessed ten times the muscular strength of an average person. In reality, it took a considerable amount of force to pull on the bowstring. The dark, ebony color of the bow was also quite alluring.

“Amazing, such a masterpiece….”

Merlin couldn’t help but gasp. Since he had practiced archery in the past, he had come across countless bows, but he had never seen one like this. If this bow were put up for auction, it would easily get bids that were in the millions- no, tens of millions in Won. Yet, the weapon’s price was…

“Three… silver?”

It was dirt cheap. Of course, three silver was around 15,000 Won or roughly 11 USD, so it wasn’t a small sum per se, but for such a masterpiece to be so cheap and only considered a 7th tier item…

Merlin couldn’t help but be astonished.

“Wow! The Village Return item was three silver as well. Wait, the housing was 40 gold?”

Merlin now realized how much money his house had cost. At first, he had only gotten his gold by a stroke of luck, so he hadn’t thought much of it, but he was now starting to realize the value of the in-game currency. 

“Dang.”

Merlin admired the bow a bit more before he put it back on its display. It was a well-made item, but it was too light. Since he had ample muscular strength, Merlin wanted a bow with more tension so that he could have more range.

“Excuse me, Robin?”

“Ah, yes, Merlin?”

“I’m looking for bows. Do you know where I can find high tension bows?”

Robin was momentarily confused at the sudden question, but he soon understood what Merlin meant and responded, “Oh, bows that can reach far distances? The items are cheaper to the left and more expensive as you go to the right. The pricier bows would probably shoot farther, right?”

“Yeah, thank you.”

“No worries. Have a good time gaming.”

After saying his goodbyes to the good-natured Robin, Merlin started walking towards the end of the aisle. All the items on display were top-notch. However, all of them were only 7th tier. Merlin couldn’t help but shake his head in disbelief.

“6th Tier, 5th tier… no, 1st tier bows, what quality would they possess? Since SS tier items are akin to weapons of mass destruction, I can’t even fathom what these higher tier weapons are like.”

As he mumbled to himself, Merlin made his way to the end of the aisle. The bows here were all relatively large and of high quality, but there was one that especially caught Merlin’s eye.

“This…”

The bow was made of metal, and it shined with a silver luster, emanating spiritual qi. It was about 1.6 meters tall. Merlin appraised the item.

“Wow, it’s really expensive. That first wooden bow and this bow are both 7th tier, but why’s there such a significant price difference?”

What Merlin didn’t know was that an item’s tier had little to do with its price. The tier was strictly based on how useful it was; tiers did not convey the value of an item. For example, compare a magic-infused wooden sword to a masterwork sword.

In terms of usefulness, the wooden sword would be considered superior. A wooden sword with an appropriate amount of magic infused in it could easily crush boulders or slice through iron if swung correctly. On the other hand, a masterwork sword was made by an expert and would possibly have an incomparably sharp edge, but its uses were limited to what any other sword could do.

Hence, the aforementioned wooden sword would be given a 5th tier rating, while the masterwork sword would be given a 7th tier rating. This was how DIO’s system categorized items. However, what about the price?

The wooden sword wouldn’t be too expensive. Although it contained a formidable magic spell within it, there was a limit to how much the wooden sword could be upgraded. Since it was already infused with magic, it probably wouldn’t be able to take additional spells. Furthermore, the wooden sword was inherently weak and brittle, so it couldn’t be used for any extended period. Actually, the magic spell within it could also expire. As such, this was an item without little potential.

However, a masterwork sword might be a standard weapon initially, but if it were imbued with magic spells, it would last quite a bit longer since it was sturdier than a wooden sword. This was how and why certain items were higher priced than others.

“Mithril…”

The materials that made up an item also affected its price. This was precisely the reason why the bow that he was looking at was astronomically expensive. It shone with a silver glint, could inherently contain magic, and was durable from the Mithril comprising it, which cost more than its weight in gold.

Merlin took the Mithril bow off from the display and stepped towards the weapon room’s exit. He then entered the [Defensive Item] room. 

“I should purchase some armor as well.”

Since he didn’t need a shield, he passed the shield section and went straight for the armor. The weight didn’t concern him too much, so he skipped the light armor and headed to the mid-weight armor.

“Wow, this is even more expensive.”

Despite saying this, Merlin calculated the cost in his head. His wealth wasn’t infinite, and he had already reached his limits. Originally, he had 250 gold, but after purchasing a few items here and there and buying the Mithril bow, he was left with 24 gold. 

“What’s the point in saving it? Easy come, easy go.”

He also bought a pair of boots, some armor, and a pair of gauntlets before wearing them. While users typically wouldn’t be able to put their equipment on by themself, Younghwi could change into any shape and help him. His helmet had wing-like extensions that stuck out towards the back of his head and a seemingly customized opening for his eyes, so they didn’t block his field of vision.

After equipping his items, Merlin inspected his appearance in a nearby mirror. He was amused to find that he was unrecognizable with all his gear on. There was virtually no skin showing, and it was as if Merlin was a completely different user from the one that had entered the shop mere moments ago. He actually looked similar to the user that he had seen haggling and negotiating with the clerk, as Merlin was also covered from head to toe in gear.

“I look more like a robot than someone wearing armor. In any case, it’s comfortable and looks cool, so… ‘Set Gear.’”

Currently, his first gear slot was his beginner mage robe, the wide-brimmed hat, and his quarterstaff. His second gear slot was for his swimwear, which essentially just meant his underwear. This left the third, fourth, and fifth gear slots empty.

“Save as Gear 3.”

And with that, it was instantly saved; his complete set of Mithril armor was saved in slot three. He then lifted his Mithril bow. 

“Save as Gear 4.”

The bow was saved in the fourth slot. The only difference between slot three and four was that slot four contained his armor and his bow. Slot three only had his armor assigned to it. 

“I don’t have anything else for slot five. Anyway, Gear 1.”

Merlin returned to his beginner mage clothes. The Mithril armor was more comfortable than he had expected, but the robe still weighed less.

“No more shopping. I feel like I’ve been a thrust back down to earth. Well, anyway…”

The weapon room door didn’t present any trouble on his way out. It seemed that it had been opened for another user to enter or leave.

“Have you purchased what you wanted?”

“Yes. The weapons were really nice. Their quality and the broad selection available made my shopping experience pleasant.”

“Great gear makes combat much easier. It seems you’ve chosen a bow.”

As the clerk spoke, a name tag appeared above the clerk’s head, which read, [Weapon Clerk Parson]. Parson took out a large quiver of arrows; there were 100 arrows in the quiver.

“How much do they cost?”

“Five copper.”

Merlin didn’t ask any more questions and handed Parson the copper.

“Ah, don’t you have any sturdier arrows?”

“Sturdier arrows?”

“Yeah, like metallic ones….”

“Yes, we do. They cost two silver.”

Seeing how Parson casually took out another quiver, Merlin felt that many users were using the metallic arrows. He paid for the metallic arrows and placed both quivers into his inventory. He then turned around to leave the weapon shop.

“Have a nice day of business!”

“Wait.”

“…?”

Merlin turned around after the unexpected response to see Parson taking out a 1.3-meter-long bow and pushing it toward Merlin.

“This bow… try drawing it.”

“Well, that’s not difficult, but….”

/NPC Parson has lent you an item! Since the lending period has not been recorded, the default ‘One Day’ term shall apply. If the owner requests the item back, you must return it./

Merlin was about to laugh good-naturedly at the system’s attention to detail, but a frown soon appeared on his face. He couldn’t draw back the bow’s string.

“Huh?”

Surprised, Merlin gathered his bearings again, renewing his efforts to pull on the bowstring. He was able to pull the bowstring back a little, but his arms started shaking wildly.

He didn’t have enough strength. He needed to be stronger.

Whoosh!

His internal energy moved according to his wishes as it started circulating. Based on a designated path, his internal energy moved throughout his body and melted into it. Without much delay, he was able to exhibit strength that shouldn’t have been physically possible.

/Muscular strength has been strengthened by 50 points, and life force has been strengthened by 20 points. The application time is 20 seconds!/

/Your physical body reinforcement skill has risen to rank 6!/

The Golden Pill Immortal Technique wasn’t the best for physical body reinforcement. Instead, it was optimized for short bursts of combat. Merlin’s internal energy capacity wasn’t too expansive, and he didn’t have a quick recovery speed either. Physical body reinforcement required a steady stream of internal energy over a long period of time. As such, techniques that could provide a steady stream of internal energy were much more optimized for physical body reinforcement. Furthermore, this skill couldn’t utilize the full expansion of internal energy that the Golden Pill Immortal Technique offered. Merlin could use Mercury since it didn’t have any lag, but Venus needed one and a half to two seconds to operate, and it required half a second to cooldown time before the next cycle. So, it wasn’t much help in providing a constant stream of internal energy.

Creek.

“Ugh…!”

Merlin’s hands started shaking, and veins began popping up from his forehead, but he wasn’t about to stop after already pulling the bow string halfway. Seeing this, Parson asked, “How is it?”

“It’s… heavy… but…!”

Creek!

/Muscular strength has been reinforced by 100 points, and life force has been reinforced by 50 points. The application time is 20 seconds!/

/Your physical body reinforcement skill has risen to rank 5!/

/You have acquired the title, ‘Advanced Physical Body Reinforcer!’/

/You have acquired the special skill, ‘Reinforcement!’/