First, she decided to investigate the products and prices available in the existing magical tool shops.
While she could create magical tools, her knowledge was limited to the information she had gained through appraisals about the types of products circulating in the market. Hence, preliminary research and groundwork were crucial. She understood that her decision to start a magical tool shop could have an impact on others in this world. She was cautious not to cause any inconvenience. Perhaps it was the influence of the gods that was making her more careful.
In Minaosa, there were only a few establishments that dealt in magical tools apart from the Minaug Trade Company. These included the Commercial Guild, the Extermination Guild, the Flaka Weapon Store, the Flate Armor Store, and the Migru General Store. All the items they sold were brought in from other towns or the capital. Transportation was done on a rotation basis, but the limited carrying capacity resulted in a reduced variety and quantity of goods. Prices were standardized throughout the town. However, there were other items in the town that were considered more important for daily life than magical tools.
"Unfortunately, most magical tool workshops are located in the capital, so they're not produced in this town."
"I see."
"You're planning to establish your own workshop, right?"
If she could produce magical tools in this town, it would lead to lower prices and more accessibility for the general populace, potentially improving their quality of life. She felt a particular desire to contribute to the betterment of the less fortunate.
While discussing these matters, she was shown various magical tools by the Minaug Trade Company.
And there, she noticed something...
Using magical tools required magical energy.
Of course, that was obvious. Those who lacked magical energy couldn't use magical tools.
To use magical tools, people needed the necessary magical energy. Those without it relied on magic stones.
Magic stones could be obtained by mining them from the earth or extracting them from the bodies of magical creatures.
Hunters were responsible for procuring these magic stones.
In this world, most people possessed magical energy, even if it was only a small amount.
However, it seemed that most people didn't possess the amount of magical energy required to operate magical tools. The average magical energy level for common individuals was around 3. In contrast, a typical illumination magical tool, for example, required 5 units of magical energy in just 10 minutes of use. Constantly supplying magical energy to a magical tool was not practical.
Therefore, magic stones were incorporated into magical tools to provide a sustainable source of magical energy. Once the magic stone's energy was depleted, it could be replenished, but individuals with the necessary magical energy were scarce. This made the magic stones that hunters collected highly valuable.
Unlike her own magical tools, which could automatically recover magical energy from the atmosphere or earth, most magical tools available here didn't have such capabilities. The consumption of magical energy in these tools was extraordinarily high. For instance, in the case of illumination magical tools, it was thirty times the average magical energy.
Could someone like herself, with zero magical energy, use the magical tools present here?
No, she could still utilize the magical energy stored within her magical tools.
Currently, she could easily channel around 3000 units of magical energy into her magical tools, just by wearing them and tapping into their energy source.
Regarding the illumination magical tools, the main device cost around 10 gold coins. However, when equipped with a magic stone that could power it for six hours, the total cost would rise to 30 gold coins. This didn't include the replacement magic stones, which would also be necessary, as well as replenishing the magic stone's energy once it was depleted. The running costs seemed likely to be exorbitant.
She also saw the storage magical tools. These could store up to 2 cubic meters of items and cost 12 gold coins. However, each retrieval or storage action required 10 units of magical energy, and a daily supply of 10 units of magical energy was necessary to maintain the tool's contents. It appeared that without this supply, the contents of the storage tool would vanish.
It was indeed challenging.
As a result, storage bags with integrated magic stones were widely used. However, these magic stones were special and rare. They were produced from specific mines known as "Special Mine Magic Stones." The cost of attaching a magic stone to a storage bag was 200 gold coins, which was 180 gold coins even in the capital.
Upon closer inspection of the storage bags, she noticed magic circles inscribed on them. Similarly, the illumination magical tools had magic circles drawn on them as well. Her own magical tools, however, didn't have magic circles.
"As you may be aware, magical circles are always necessary for magical tools. Thus, magical tool artisans who can work with magical circles are quite rare. Moreover, vital aspects of magical circles are often kept within a family's lineage, so the production of magical tools is limited. While simple magical circles are publicly known, I am quite impressed by the fact that Takashi-san is self-taught in creating magical tools."
"Well, not to that extent."
It seemed that her magical tools were considered rather special. Could this be a problem? She wondered if magical tools without magical circles would be recognized as proper magical tools. Could she sell the magical tools she had created? Repairing them might be out of the question as well.
"Speaking of which, there are new magical tools emerging that have hidden magical circles. They're quite high-performance and gaining popularity. Since these tools come with a 'Black Box' containing a magical circle, it's impossible to examine their interiors. They can only be repaired by the workshop that made them, which is turning out to be quite profitable."
"Really? Such things exist? I'd like to see one sometime."
"I believe there was a damaged magical tool with a 'Black Box' among the items we received when you acquired them. Would you like me to show it to you?"
"Please do."