There was only one more day until the end of the month where the next Task was waiting for him. After preparing all he could, Fen was more than confident that he would survive. But first, there was something that he needed to do...
Yes, buying the new equipment! Even Fen was a little excited just thinking about the possible sets of armor he could buy, and what kind of weapon would be best for him. Because he didn't know what weapon he'd be using in the Task, he'd been practicing with his Vital energy constructs to create different types of weapons such as axes, short swords, spears, and even a greatsword in case he ever needed a huge weapon like that.
Truthfully, Fen was more attracted towards the sword options, but being able to wield an axe was always something that he wanted to do. And he had to admit, it's power was nothing to scoff at. The only downside to having an axe was that he would lack the ability to stab and pierce through small targets; an axe was excellent for hacking through an armored target however.
'Hmm. Well, why not both?' Fen had the rough image of himself duel-wielding both a sword and axe in the middle of a battlefield in his head, being able to both stab and slash through every opponent facing him. 'Haaa, but that's dumb. I should probably keep a hand free just in case. Who knows if I'll need to grab something out of my equipment bag or something.'
While he didn't need to use his hand to cast magic (he just needed to manipulate his own magical energy to create the runes and shapes necessary for a spellwork), keeping a hand free would let him grab his opponent, and even use the environment to his advantage somehow.
Still, if he had enough points left over from purchasing all the equipment he needed Fen would definitely look in the Shop for a good enough axe. For now he'd just stick to a sword.
Without wasting any more time, Fen pressed the interface open with his finger and watched as the golden particles arranged themselves in front of him.
[Shop]
[Candidate 178-3001: Fen Altairus]
[Points: 4651]
[Current Purchasing Level: Opfer +1]
[Knowledge Available: Stage one {Knight} ]
[Search Restrictions: Equipment]
[1. Axe of Vital Wielding {Knight} ]
[Properties: An axe with a short handle and long blade. Using technology recovered from an ancient civilization seemingly cursed with endless fights against ravaging monsters, it is possible to determine the strength of the weapon with Vital energy. The sharpness, durability, and properties of the axe are dependent on the ability of it's user, making it a great weapon in the hands of those possessing talent with wielding energy and utterly useless for ordinary people.]
[Cost: 900 points]
[2. Reverbrum Shield {Class Three Material} ]
[Properties: A shield designed and created by the Reverium Federation, a Stellar Grade Civilization. The shield is designed in a kite fashion, with a light metal trim meant for parrying and a denser, more protective metal alloy in the core areas of the shield for protecting against piercing attacks. It is possible to temporarily enhance the defensive capabilities of the shield by injecting energy into the metal, although the materials are not meant to hold energy for long and so require a constant injection of energy.]
[Cost: 550 points]
[3. Round Shield {Class One Material} ]
[Properties: A common round shield used in primitive Planet Grade civilizations with no access to space-traveling technology or other advanced weaponry. The shield is made with animal leather and bone, and will not protect against attacks from the Empowered.]
[Cost: 150]
[4. Tymine Armor (Chest / Back) {Class Three Material} ]
[Properties: Constructed from a sturdy Mana-conductive metal, this chest-set can even endure strikes from attacks capable of breaking through a Class four material when injected with enough energy. This defensive capability comes with a price however, as the armor will need time to cool off before another injection can be made.]
[Cost: 400]
"Hmm. Some interesting stuff just pops out immediately." Fen muttered. He was more than a little intrigued at the idea of an axe that got stronger the more energy he injected into it, but that kind of technology had to have it's drawbacks. If it's creator civilization was so old, maybe the axe had it's limits of strengthening? For example, maybe it wouldn't be able to grow stronger than the Class three material level?
Without enough information, it was impossible to make a good decision. And yet, after running through so many Duel Scenarios Fen felt that he had more than enough points to make experimenting worthwhile.
'Haa, what the hell am I thinking. I need equipment for tomorrow, there's no way I can buy potentially useless weapons... Well, it might not be useless though... No!' Fen cleared his head by shaking it.
When he got back from the Task, given that he'd receive a nice sum of points for his performance in the Task, Fen would buy the axe.
For now, he watched as his total points went down to 3451 after buying the full Tymine armor set that covered his chest, waist, shoulders and arms.
[7. Tymine Armor (Shoulders) {Class Three Material} ]
[Cost: 250]
[8. Tymine Armor (Lower Torso) {Class Three Material} ]
[Cost: 300]
[10. Tymine Armor (Arms) {Class Three Material} ]
[Cost: 250]
The total cost of the armor was 1200 points, so Fen hoped that he was getting his points-worth. After checking the interface , the Theoredian Armor he used in the last Task was a lower-tier Class two material even though it was made from simple leather, probably because the leather was from a monster rather than an ordinary creature. That equipment cost him 500 points so this upgrade was more than double the cost, but would it be double the quality as well?
To Fen's surprise, the golden particles from the interface didn't manifest different parts of the same armor like it was shown in the Shop, but instead as a single armor piece with the different parts combined into one.
'Was it because I bought the armor pieces all at the same time?' It seemed that there were more changes made to the interface after completing the first Task than he previously believed. 'It's still ridiculously huge, but it'll shrink after I touch it into the perfect size.'
After the golden particles finished replicating the armor set, a reddish-brown metal armor lay before him. Just by looking at it, Fen felt a sense of sturdiness. There were short spikes on the shoulder-guards of the armor and long grooved metal greaves to protect his arms from any attacks that might otherwise leave those limbs disabled.
Rather than touching it, Fen injected a sliver of his Vital energy into the metal and watched as it shrank down into the perfect size. After looking at it for a moment, he realized something.
'Ah... I don't have anything to protect my head.' There was no way that he could guarantee that he could perfectly avoid every attack a potential Chosen opponent could throw at him. He didn't want a repeat of last time when he got knocked unconscious by that ginormous magic spellwork explosion, so he had to buy something. 'Let's see if there's anything that can suit my needs.'
After scrolling through the Shop some more, Fen found something that would fit his needs.
[25. Shocking Helmet {Class Three Material} ]
[Properties: This helmet was created from the remains of a Thunderbird's skull (Beak included) and retains some of the electric properties that monstrous beast had in life. By imbuing magic arrays into the bone, a modern civilization was able to create a basic helmet that could prevent unconsciousness by forcibly shocking the bearer's brain awake.]
[Cost: 400]
'Well, it won't protect me as much as the other head pieces, but isn't this perfect for what I want?' As long as the attack didn't kill him instantly, Fen was confident in his ability to recover from a strike just moments after being hit. What he was worried about wasn't being killed so much as being left defenseless after being knocked into unconsciousness. 'This helmet is great for situations like that. And, the bone is quite a nice feature. Not only is it quite strong, but it even has an intimidation factor; not that a Chosen would be scared of it but whatever.'
While Fen was almost eighteen years old, he still had his moments of wanting to act cool. Still, he prioritized performance over form.
With one final purchase from the equipment section of the Shop, Fen was left with 3051 points, which was more than enough to buy the weapons he needed. In fact, he already picked them out from the selection shown by the Shop. Still, watching his points drop even further to 2251 hurt his heart.
[17. Iberian Short Sword {Class Three Material} ]
[Properties: Forged by a master craftsman within the Iberia civilization, the materials used in this weapon guaranteed it's place amongst the highest tiers of weapon meant only for the elite. The Class three metal is able to conduct a small amount of energy in battle, enhancing it's properties even further. The blade is sharper and sturdier than it's predecessor and won't easily break in a high-intensity battle. The Iberia civilization developed one of the original methods of developing and training Knights, and their weapons show it; when used in combination with living energy the weapon can reinforce the Vital energy injected into it and temporarily strengthen the user past their limits.]
[Cost: 500 points]
[21. Iberian Dagger {Class Three Material} ]
[Properties: Forged by a master craftsman within the Iberia civilization, this small weapon was meant for close-range skirmishes between combatants. However, it's size does not inhibit it's piercing power. The handle is strictly metal with monster leather wrapped tightly around it, making handling extremely easy and efficient with minimal slipping. Because of the Iberian civilization's technology, Knights receive an additional bonus from injecting their energy into the dagger in the form of a Vital energy shield around their hand with the ability to deflect most blows below the Stage two Knight range.]
[Cost: 350]
Fen had developed a liking for the Iberian equipment sold in the Shop, especially because of their ability to enhance his power simply from his injecting his energy into it. And because he was one of the the only Knights in all the Opfer, one could say the weapons were made specially for him in the Program.
He was still hesitant on purchasing an axe; for now he could simply use a Vital energy construct in the place of a real piece of equipment just so that he could get used to it. After the Task finished, there was even the chance that even better equipment would become available in the Shop; including an improved version of the [Axe of Vital Wielding]. If he could get the improved version which might even be capable of enhancing his Vitality then he'd be content.
The weapons materialized in the air in front of him. Using a weapon's belt that he purchased from the Shop earlier, Fen strapped the dagger to his left and the short sword to his right. Both of their sizes were small enough that his movements wouldn't be restricted at all, and the belt made it easy to pull them out as soon as he entered combat.
'Alright, helmet, check. Armor, check. Weapons, check. Vitality... check.' Fen sent a small concentrated mass to the two Iberian weapons to ensure their quality and was glad to see that their listed properties weren't exaggerated in the Shop. The dagger did indeed form a small and imperceptible shield around his hand and half his forearm. 'I can probably trick someone into attacking it and then take advantage of their surprise to thrust the dagger into their throat. It'll only work once per opponent though, so I better make it count.' He thought.
"You getting your equipment? About time, I was worried that you'd streak into the Task with the flimsy clothes you're wearing." Amelia popped into the Squad room's Training Hall.
"Hah, you wish. You need the interface? I'm just about done, just gotta buy a few other things." Fen smirked. The two of them had gotten even closer after going to the Common Grounds. They made it an unofficial tradition to go together every other day to clear their heads along with Qin and Gray, if they were all available. Otherwise they'd just go together and talk about the discoveries they made in their training, what their lives were like on Earth, how screwed the Foundation personnel were... It didn't matter as long as it took their minds away from the upcoming Task.
"Nah, I bought what I needed as soon as I got the points together. I'm just here to practice a spellwork I learned." A magic construct flickered to life in front of her. Every time she moved her fingers, parts of the magic spellwork shifted and changed, altering the final product the magic produced. From looking at it, Fen laughed as he realized that she had already left him behind in her understanding of magic.
"The Defend-type Scenarios really aren't that bad, points wise. You should try them some time, rather than getting your ass kicked in the Duels." She commented, taking a seat on the white floor.
"Hmm. You should see the overgrown lizard when I'm done with him. And I'm getting better every time." Fen argued.
"Yeah, you weren't covered in blood the last time you popped back out of the Scenario. Guess that is progress." She snarked back.
"At least I'm actually bleeding. I don't think that fighting small mobs is good practice." He made a sour face while he scrolled through the Shop buying everything else he needed. "You have to at least feel threatened for it to count as a real fight, otherwise what's the point? Don't hope that your opponent's going to be weaker than you in the Task."
She snorted and got to her feet. While Fen wasn't looking at her, he heard her stepping closer by the sound of her feet softly stepping on the stone. Because he so absorbed in the interface, he didn't react when she poked a sharp needle of ice into his throat while silently casting a fireball in her other hand.
"Feel threatened yet?" She whispered with a smile.
"Do you?"
Amelia blinked at his question, before turning her head and seeing a dozen Vital Spears pointed at her from behind. Using the distraction, Fen whipped around and grabbed her shoulders, throwing her to the ground. Her needle of ice broke harmlessly against a screen of Vital energy while her fireball barely made him feel warm as it bounced off the same screen.
In order to gain some protection from offensive magic, Fen practiced until he could unconsciously use a Knight technique that Raisen called 'Vital Skin', which would provide some shielding to his body from magic spellworks while also boosting his senses; the Vital skin acted as an extra sensory organ that picked up the vibrations in the air and sent signals to his Vital core, which processed the signals before sending them to his brain. Although it sounded like a long process, Fen's Vital energy acted like one long nerve, capable of transferring much more information than his own biological nervous system at a much faster rate because it was, well, living energy.
At first, the technique overwhelmed him. Raisen had to help him by forcibly shutting off the connection between him and the Vital Skin because he couldn't handle the sudden feeling of the extra sensations. Now, after working through the overwhelmingness of the technique Fen was amazed to see just how much his perception improved. What his ears couldn't hear and his eyes couldn't see, the Vital Skin could feel. He just had to get used to it, just like learning how to use an extra limb.
Raisen had said that now that he had a Vital core, he could finally use the technique because his body was now able to process Vitality in a way that he couldn't before even with his Vitul abilities. As he progressed through more Stage Advancements, his body would become more in tune with Vitality and grant him access to abilities that he couldn't even imagine.
The Vital Spears spun through the air and gently poked Amelia's body. The entire event was over in less than a few seconds; their respective energy boosted their perception of time so much that fights like this were over before they could realize.
"I've improved, haven't I?"
"...bastard." Amelia muttered as Fen helped her back up after absorbing the Vital Spears back into his body.