'My own room…'
Sol was escorted to one of the rooms in the residential area of the royal knights' headquarters. He didn't get to pick the room, but he didn't mind, as he knew they were all identical. It was a 4 by 4 meter room, the same size as his small home back in Initium. The only difference was that it was much nicer. It had a proper bed similar to the ones used in inns and furniture that was of much better quality than the handmade table and chair Sol had built for himself.
"So much changed in two months."
From his small home in a faraway town, he would soon be a royal knight, one of the most highly regarded positions in the kingdom. Sure, it was only temporary until he obtained the information he needed for himself and Amber, but it was a big achievement nonetheless.
Sol took off his leather armor and lay on the bed.
"Oh, now that I think of it, I did evolve a skill."
[[Terra Manipulation] Lv 1: Take control of the earth and bend it to your will. Sand, dirt, stone, and non magical metals fall under your domain. Able to create permanent earth out of mana at a higher cost.]
"Interesting…"
With a small portion of his mana, a perfectly square rock appeared out of thin air. Even after Sol removed his mana and cut his connection from the rock, it didn't disappear.
"It's much purer than normal stone, and it even lasts forever. Normally, earth magic would either command already existing dirt and stone to move, or it would create some, but it doesn't last forever."
The common earth spell [Stone Shot] was an example of the latter type of earth magic. It would create a small rock from the mana and shoot it toward the target. After impact, the rock would dissipate back into ambient mana.
While neat, Sol didn't find it more important than the other effects of the skill.
"Well, if I ever want to retire, I could become the best bricklayer in the city. The real benefit from the skill is that I now have full control over the element."
As long as he had the mana, he could create whatever he wanted. During the fight against his fake mother, Sol was able to compress large amounts of stone into an extremely dense and powerful attack, but there were countless other ways he could use it as well.
Reflecting back on what the skill used to be, Sol chuckled. 'To think this used to be a hammer skill.'
He was very happy and proud of the fact he was able to turn a skill into something he could truly call his own. He had developed and grown the skill like other people would instead of leveling it up with [Siphon].
Closing his status page, Sol wondered what he should do now.
'I could go explore the headquarters or meet with some of the other new recruits…'
While thinking of what to do besides lie in bed, his eyes moved to his leather armor.
'It's about time I get an upgrade.'
It was common rarity armor he had been using, which he never bothered to replace. The main reason for not doing so was because of the time it would take to find armor that would fit him. It was very important with armor to not only choose it based on its capabilities but also whether or not it fit the user well. Even if the armor was only slightly uncomfortable, being tight or loose in some places could spell victory or defeat.
'I don't know if I can find a good set of armor today, but I might as well try.'
It was early in the afternoon, so with the rest of the day free, he got up and left his room.
"Yoooo~! It's the future winner of the tournament!"
A somewhat familiar voice called out to him. It was the pugilist he met earlier today, alongside a few other recruits.
"Oh hey, what are you all up to?"
"Nothing much, we were exploring the headquarters. Did you know there is a private open air bath? Sadly, we can't use it unless we are Captain rank or higher. You just got here after the tournament stuff, right? Wanna join us in checking this place out?"
Sol shook his head. "Maybe later. I'm thinking of getting new armor for the tournament."
The pugilist had a pensive look on his face. "New armor at this time? Well, if you need one on such short notice, I might know a guy."
Sol felt it was weird for the pugilist, who barely wore armor, to know someone in that field, but it could've been some other connection that bonded the two. He was elated at the fact he didn't need to wander around looking for someone.
"Really?! That would save me a lot of time."
The man smiled back. "No problem. So first, head to the market district…"
The pugilist told him the directions, and he did his best to commit them to memory. Once he finished, the man remembered one final detail.
"Oh, and when you get there, tell them you want Weaver. The others aren't as good nor as fast as him."
"W-Weaver?"
Hearing that name out of nowhere truly surprised Sol. He would have never expected to hear that name once more, especially because it's not even a name but a nickname.
"You know him?"
"No, it's just an odd name. Also, it doesn't sound like he sells armor, but clothes."
"Yep, but that's the best part! His clothes are as good as armor, trust me. You can keep the flexibility of clothes and the special effects of armor. The only downside is the lower defense rating compared to other armors of the same rarity, but if you are using that common ranked armor I saw before, then it will be a massive improvement."
"How did you know it was common?"
The pugilist looked at him with pity. "Have you looked at it? It looked like you got it for 5 gold."
'I got it for 3…'
Sol was embarrassed at how he had been wearing noticeably bad armor and realized it would have been better to wear none at all. His body was naturally stronger than the armor, and it wasn't like the defense value added to his total defense. Defense values associated with the armor only apply to the armor itself. If an attack passes through the gaps, then the defense values would be useless.
The pugilist slapped him on the back.
"Hey! Don't worry about it. Just make sure to tell Weaver that you will wear it for the tournament. Give him some extra motivation to make it better than normal!"
Sol nodded weakly, still reflecting on his foolish actions. "Thanks… I'll do that."