After adding the final touches to Giantslayer, such as polish to the wood and a sling, Frank pulled back the bolt. He looked inside and noticed 10 already loaded 7.62mm rounds. He pushed the bolt forward slowly. Frank watched as a bullet was loaded into the chamber, and another bullet was magically added to the magazine.
He took a moment to appreciate his craftsmanship and slung it over his right shoulder. Thus, if necessary, he could readily pull it out. It still had iron sights, but once he created a scope and side-mounted sights he would be ready for all ranges.
Frank entered Hank's house and moved to his room, quickly grabbing his new bag of holding and leaving out the front door. He had 250 gold coins left, and it was high time he turned them into a fortune.
As he walked to the local smithy, Frank looked through the new options he had for arcane creations and enchantments. Four items caught his attention: Ventilating Lungs, Winged Boots, Ring of Intellect, and the Ring of Strength.
The magical lungs allowed him to breathe normally even when there was no air. It also had a host of other breathing-related effects but those were circumstantial.
The boots would allow him to fly as fast as he could run. They only had fours of flight time—which reset at dawn—but flying was useful.
The rings, as simple as they were named, augmented the wearer's strength or intelligence, depending. After learning a bit about the system from Hank, Frank was positive they only boosted his stats without actually improving anything corporeal.
Currently, he did not need either ring, so he selected the lungs and the boots. Frank's immediate thoughts had been of making and selling the boots. Then again, he didn't want to alert people to the fact he could craft magical items quite yet.
Finally arriving at the smithy, Frank purchased all he would need to make 10 hand crossbows and 10 light crossbows. Unlike the smithy that James and his father ran, this one seemed to know what Frank was up to and sold him the parts for an increased price.
In total, he had paid 175 gold, leaving him with 75 to buy everything else he needed to make his gauntlet and repeating crossbows. Arriving back home an additional 15 coins lighter, Frank got to work on building the crossbows.
[Level up!]
During his crafting session, Frank was rewarded with a level-up. Following wiser guidance, he put all five points into luck and closed his status page. He then peaked outside and saw that he still had time.
With a quickness that was brought about by urgency, Frank made it to the smithy at record time to sell his crossbows. Just like how he had made a deal with James, Frank was similarly able to make a deal with this workshop to sell his crossbows.
Using some good ol' haggling, Frank was able to sell each gauntlet crossbow for 80 gold a pop and the repeating crossbows for 150 gold apiece. Now, much richer than he was before he ended up in this city, Frank returned home happy.
The next day he would toil to craft a suit of armor, try and modify two skills and build up an even greater fortune.
…
Two weeks after the creation of Giantslayer, Frank was still in his workshop, tinkering. He was currently creating the last piece of his armor, the helmet. It would have usually taken him much longer since the cost of plate armor was expensive, but thanks to [Crafter's Blessing] leveling up, he was able to make slightly more expensive items.
The past few weeks had been productive for Frank. Although he could have crafted enough crossbows to make him a millionaire, he decided not to. It not only devalued the crossbows but put a target on his back.
Because of this, he limited his sales to a small batch, netting him an additional 2,000 gold. He had tried to pay back Hank, who returned a few days after he left, but he wouldn't accept it. Instead, he told Frank to invest it in himself.
So, that's exactly what he did. After spending 1,500 gold to craft his armor, he was left with 2,860. It was still a lot so he decided to save it and buy something useful once his armor was complete.
The armor in question was a mix of functionality and looks. It was made thick with leather between two plates to help absorb shock. The inside was also further padded. The torso was ornamental and intricate to give a regal look.
Two large, pointed pauldrons rested on the shoulders, and a cape cascaded down the back. The joints were protected with scale mail segments and the gauntlets were equipped with a smaller revised version of the foldable crossbows.
The rest of the armor, from the cuisses to the sabatons were just as protected and ornate as the breastplate. Satisfied with the rest of the armor, Frank placed the finished helmet on top. The helmet was truly a nerd's creation.
What started as a great helm slowly transformed into a shape reminiscent of a certain space bounty hunter in a galaxy far far away. Frank had finally solved his issue with the "T" visor; he had found some obsidian that after working, made a perfect replacement.
Once the helmet was placed on the stand, Frank began adding the [Arcane Armor] enchantment. Once finished he received a surprise bunch of notifications.
[Level up!]
[[Arcane Crafting] has become lvl.5. Two unselected options.]
[Created a unique armor. Name it to see its stats.]
"MK. II" Frank kept it simple since he knew eventually he would create a better version of this armor.
[Name: Mk. II
Type: Unique Armor
This armor was made with defense in mind. From the doubled plates to the scaled joints, not many foes will be able to penetrate this armor. This armor also aids in stealth and increases attack speed.]
"Huh, looks like the enchantment evolved." Frank rubbed his chin as he read the description of his armor. He then placed his hand on the armor's pauldron and willed the armor on. Almost like liquid metal, the suit of armor attached itself to Frank.
Once the suit was fully equipped, he felt the armor seal completely. It was to the point that even air couldn't pass in or out of it. Usually, this would have been detrimental, but after creating a pair of new lungs, he was able to breathe even without air.
The materials needed to create such an item normally would have cost a fortune, but making a trade with the local magic shop allowed him to get the materials for free. He had traded the plans for a golem core.
While useful, golem cores were not rare. He had just gotten lucky that they had an interest in their cores. He was also able to get what he needed to craft a pair of winged sabatons. Making some test moves with his armor on, Frank found it weightless just like normal.
His vision also changed from the "T" shaped tint the obsidian provided to his normal full field of view. "Why no one likes the [Artificer] class is a wonder to me."
Before he forgot, he also added his newest five attribute points to luck bringing him up to 30. He had leveled three times over the last week and he had gained massively in his strength and dexterity stats.
He was now up to 57 constitution, 37 dexterity, and 35 strength. His "mental" stats were the same since Hank had no ideas on how to increase them normally. Frank had remembered that [Deduction] gifted him a point but he assumed it was only for acquiring the skill.
"Okay, armor? Check. Gun? Check. Crossbow? Check. What else…Ah, I should probably get myself a sword or something soon. Maybe a shield? Nah. Won't work with my rifle." As Frank went over his checklist, a knock resounded throughout the lab.
"Son? Are you ready?" Hank poked his head in and looked at his "son" donned in armor.
His question shook Frank from his ideas on possible sword designs. "Huh? Oh yeah. Sorry. I'm ready." Frank turned to look at Hank and nodded.
He then followed the man through the house and out the front door. They were currently heading to the Adventurer's Guild where Hank would supervise and see if Frank was ready to adventure on his own.
Frank fingered his old iron tag and held onto it tightly. He continued to trail behind Hank and watched the older man as he selected a bronze-tiered quest for clearing out an old vampire's lair.
Hank then handed the paper to Frank and motioned for him to go to the counter. As he moved with Hank following right behind, Frank wondered how Aslef was doing. Unlike in the previous guild, the one here had many more receptionists.
Seeing this, Frank chose an empty line and placed both his tag and the form on the counter. "My dad and I would like this one please."
The woman behind the counter, a short elf with auburn hair and piercing green eyes lit up. "Oh my God! Someone finally came to my line." She turned to the receptionist next to her, a blond human male, "Suck it, George. My curse has been lifted."
Frank raised a brow at the statement initially but paid it no mind.
"Sir?" The woman looked toward Hank, "Can I see your tag?" She held up Frank's own and waved it.
"Sure." Hank smiled and flashed his gold tag before stuffing it back in his shirt.
The woman's eyes went wide for a moment before she looked over to George. She leaned in and whispered, "I'm helping a gold tag. Suck. It." She then turned to face Frank once again. "Okay! One bronze quest for Fra-"
Frank coughed, "Hank and Hank II."
She seemed to pick up what he was putting down and left it at that. "One bronze quest for Hank and Hank II. The reward will be 40 gold pieces for every vampire head brought in. My name is Sylvie and if you have any questions you may ask me."
"Thanks, no questions for now." Frank nodded to the woman and took his stamped parchment. He placed it in his saddle bag of holding and turned around to leave.
"Good luck!" Sylvie shouted from the counter, to which Frank nodded his head.
"So what is the first step?" Hank asked as he followed behind.
"First, I need some holy water. I'm also going to get my rifle blessed which will make it deal radiant damage for a day." Frank thought back to his training sessions and thought about the next step before Hank could even ask.
"Then I need materials to make something I've been holding off on." Frank smirked as he thought about how Vampires were weak to running water. It was a good thing Hank made him study up on most monsters.
"Oh? And mind sharing with the class?" Hank chuckled and questioned.
"There is a flask that I can create which will allow me to summon a stream of water." Frank could now technically breathe underwater, so even if the place drowned he would have no problems. Hank on the other hand… would probably be fine.
"Sounds like a good backup, but what do you need next?" Hank asked, wanting to hear some form of an equipment list.
"Next I need a mirror, ball bearings, chalk, and a 10-foot pole." It was part of a standard kit Hank had developed, each having its use.
The mirror was to check corners, and ball bearings to place in front of closed doors. Chalk would allow Frank to easily mark where he had been and the pole was for testing passageways for traps.
"Good. What else do you need to buy?" Hank seemed pleased so far, so he looked confident that Frank could answer this easily.
"Fishing wire, a crowbar, rope, oil, and a bag of sand." Frank was able to answer without thought, a testament to the training Hank had put him through.
With everything listed out, Frank got to work purchasing everything. The blessing and single vial of holy water had cost him 250 gold, with the rest of the equipment costing 10 gold. Adding on the cost of the magic materials to make the flask, his total was 330 gold.
Along the way, he could craft his Endless Water Flask and by the time he arrived early the next morning, he would be as fully prepared as he thought he could be.
"There are worse things out tonight than vampires."