Chapter 68 - Volume 4 (1/2)
While contemplating, Isaac had come to the realisation that he would be unable to carry his sculpture around despite his arduous efforts. The piece of wood would be c.u.mbersome, and there was little excuse to have such a thing with him at all times, as it was lacking in many features necessary to be called an accessory. But the most critical flaw was the magic circle, which would be exposed in plain sight.
Isaac considered sculpting metal instead of wood at first, but that was wishful thinking. Crafting a solid piece of metal would be beyond his capabilities, especially when he struggled so hard with a mere piece of wood. So the conclusion he reached was the saying, ‘hide the tree in a forest.’
Nothing was impossible with enough money, and Isaac considered that to be the indisputable truth of the world. Isaac commissioned the Silver Magic Spire, which was the most renowned magical spire in terms of defensive magic. The commission was to create a piece of clothing which was enchanted with the strongest defensive magic. Isaac’s request was met with a reply from the Silver Spire, stating that such a project had been attempted in the past. They attempted to craft clothing with the defensive capabilities of a fortress. But this was abandoned in its concept stages as they struggled to raise enough funds for the project. Isaac gave his approval to have the clothing made, and the Silver Spire quickly started crafting the clothing.
The masterpiece came at a heavy price, as the cost of its production was equal to an entire year’s worth of funding for the Silver Spire. Cordnell’s eyes dripped with blood as he haggled down its price, nitpicking at the smallest of flaws. Cordnell’s attempts were aided by the fact that the Silver Spire added a very small commission on their product, as they were more satisfied in knowing that they managed to create something that should have been been strictly fictional given the costs. But despite these factors coming together, the cost of the piece of clothing was still beyond extravagant. With that, the abominable coat was created. Its design and appearance were repugnant, as the only thing that mattered was having protective properties of a fortress.
“Are you really going to walk around wearing that?”
“… Isaac looks cool.”
“Huhuhu. I see Kunette has a great taste in style.”
Kunette’s eyes shone, and she began playing with the edge of the cloak, while Rizzly looked at Isaac with distaste on his face.
“But what’s with those strange looking symbols on it?”
Rizzly asked when his eyes caught the symbols as Kunette played around with the coat.
“This? This is my crest representing my n.o.ble lineage. What do you think? Doesn’t it look cool?”
“…”
Isaac proudly showed off his crest. Within a square, there was a checker pattern and many, many circles that overlapped within it. Looking at it was almost hypnotising.
The same crest was covering the white cloak with golden fabric. And for some unknown reason, this man, who never even looked at accessories, was carrying with him three or four necklaces and a ring for each finger. He wore bracers on both wrists.. All of these accessories were engraved with the same eccentric crest. All of these golden accessories glittered whenever Isaac moved, and his appearance looked like what you’d expect from someone who suddenly became wealthier than one would imagine.
“… Don’t tell me all of the stones on those accessories are mana crystals.”
“Hm? How did you know? They are all pures, might I add.”
“And are all those stones placed inside each crest on that coat also mana crystals?”
“All pures.”
“… Unbelievable.”
“Kunette, you’re not supposed to eat that.”
In the middle of each crest was a mana crystal that glowed with blue light. Isaac showed it off with great pride, but Kunette seemed to mistake it for candy and began gnawing at it. Isaac carefully pulled his coat from her mouth, only to have Kunette jump and chase him around. Rizzly could almost hear Cordnell’s phantom wailing as he watched the two chase one another.
“All of these necklaces, rings and bracers were specially made by the magic spires.”
The chase ended quickly, as Isaac’s stamina couldn’t keep up against Kunette. Isaac continued to show off his accessories with pride, all the while forfeiting one side of the coat to Kunette.
“You said magic spires… are they magical artefacts?”
“Yep. I commissioned all of the magical spires that are established in Meta District. I also told them that they need not worry about the costs of its production.”
“…”
The main reason Isaac wore the coat was for disguise. The coat was already known for its defensive capability, but the crests were a distraction; the outfit’s true power came from his accessories. The carefully engraved crests were perfect in every aspect, as they were hand-crafted by master craftsmen.
If Isaac drew mana onto the engraved crest, a mana circle that could only Isaac could see was formed. And Isaac ordered various types of magical artefacts to strengthen his disguise, so even if Isaac were to be cornered, he could always lie that it was the effect of an artefact he had bought. The only flaw was that it looked hideous, but Isaac wasn’t one to dwell on such things.
Rivelia’s face seemed to turn bright red at Isaac’s misbehaviour, but she sighed as if she had given up and no longer had interest.
Kunette and Reisha, however, seemed to be greatly interested and followed Isaac around as if they wanted one of their own. Isaac wanted to present the same thing to them, but when Cordnell got word of it, he wailed that Isaac should just kill him instead and strayed into a darker path as he drenched himself in alcohol. So the presents were nulled. The merchant employees and Isaac’s hubaes acted as if they didn’t care, and the syndicate bosses didn’t even have the time to care about what Isaac was doing since they were busy taking care of their own districts.
“Look, its Isaac.”
“Oh my! So the rumours were true? How shameless! How could he walk around like that?”
“They say all of those s.h.i.+ning stones are mana crystals.”
“You think that’s all? They say that all of those accessories he has on him are magical artefacts too.”
“What? Really? Then how many Gigas do you think he is wearing right now?”
The people who visited the city whispered to one another as Isaac marched through the city to show off his new look. Isaac wasn’t exactly doing this because he liked it, but there was no point in preparing something like this at a huge cost if no one noticed it. Only if he patrolled through the city with such a ridiculous look would the rumour of his extreme expenditure spread. He exposed himself to the public because he needed to, but it was quite annoying.
Although he didn’t feel enc.u.mbered due to lightweight magic, the accessories clattered whenever he moved, which disturbed his ears. And Isaac also felt some slight regret in regards to his cloak, as the mana crystals he embedded in every single crest shone brightly like a dis...o...b..ll in a nightclub, which he had never antic.i.p.ated. Annoyed by the constant clattering and the bright lights, Isaac got back into his chair and stayed there with a blank look thinking about his next move when Axlon visited him.
“What happened? Is there a riot in the mines?”
“It’s much more serious than that.”
“So?”
“I think you need to see for yourself.”
Axlon turned back and forth looking at his surroundings with a worried look, convincing Isaac that it was indeed serious.
“The mines you say? Hm… you do realise that something serious will happen to you if I don’t consider this to be serious, right?”
“… This is very serious.”
Axlon replied despite Isaac’s indirect threat. Isaac sighed and got off his chair, knowing that he would only get such an answer if it was serious.
“Where are you going?”
Trentor asked with surprise when Isaac came down the stairs.
“I have something to check.”
“Without an escort?”
Trentor spoke with worry, as Isaac, who always had Rizzly with him, was saying that he was going out alone.
“Oh yeah, where is Rizzly today?”
“Baron Rogenic invited Kunette and Reisha to a party, and Rizzly went with them as an escort. They’ll most likely be back in three days.”
“Tsk. Of all times, he’s not here today.”
Isaac complained as he was about to walk out of the city hall when Trentor suddenly shouted.
“Maybe it’s better to go after Mr. Rizzly comes back in three days…”
“There’s no one in the city that can harm me now other than Rivelia, that damsel.”
Isaac may have been treated as a pathetic, laughable opponent for combat in the past, but that was no longer the case thanks to the coat. With the amount of money he had devoted to it, only those who were equal to a sword master could harm Isaac.