Danmachi: Adventuring Till the End!

While Orsted was sorting through the items he had crafted, his sharp ears caught the sound of footsteps approaching from the stairs.

Soon, Hestia's clear and cheerful voice rang out.

"Orsted, we're back!"

Orsted turned to see Hestia and Lili at the stairs.

Along with them were two others: Hephaestus and Tsubaki Colbrande, the captain of the Hephaestus Familia.

"Welcome back."

"Good morning, Hephaestus," Orsted nodded, greeting Hephaestus politely.

"Good morning, Orsted."

"Are these… magic items?" Hephaestus's gaze was immediately drawn to the numerous pieces of items scattered around Orsted.

"Wow, so many!" Tsubaki, standing beside Hephaestus, noticed them as well and rushed over excitedly.

Tsubaki was one of Orario's master blacksmiths.

Many of the city's top-tier weapons and armor were forged by her hands. In addition, Tsubaki was also skilled in crafting Magic Swords.

In many ways, Magic items and Magic Swords were similar.

Both relied on mana to function.

The main difference was that most items required the user to supply mana or mind, while Magic Swords contained their own stored mana and could activate their effects immediately.

However, once the stored mana was depleted, the sword would shatter.

Recently, Tsubaki had been researching a new type of Magic Sword that relied on the user's mana instead of its own.

Unfortunately, she had hit a wall in her research.

She had considered purchasing some magic items to study, but there was only one person in Orario known to craft such items: Asfi Al Andromeda, the captain of the Hermes Familia.

Tsubaki had wanted to buy some from Asfi for her research, but Asfi had left Orario to wander the world, and it was unclear when she would return.

So, Tsubaki's plans had been put on hold—until now.

"Orsted?" Hestia also noticed the items on the ground and looked at Orsted with a mix of surprise and curiosity.

"I forgot to tell you, Hestia-sama."

"Orsted-sama can craft such items," Lili explained on Orsted's behalf.

"Did you make all of these?" Tsubaki, who had been examining the magic items, suddenly looked up at Orsted, her eyes shining with enthusiasm.

"Uh, yes," Orsted replied, slightly taken aback by Tsubaki's intense gaze.

For a moment, he thought she might be Freya in disguise.

Hestia was equally surprised to hear that Orsted could make such, as he didn't possess the Mystery development ability, which was typically required for such craftsmanship.

'It seems Orsted has secrets I don't know about,' Hestia thought to herself, though she had no intention of prying.

"I didn't expect you to be capable of crafting magic items."

"In that case, could I place an order with you?"

"Tsubaki is currently researching a new type of Magic Sword, and she needs these for her research," Hephaestus said, folding her arms and gazing at Orsted.

"Of course, but you'll need to provide the materials yourself."

"Since Hephaestus offered me a discount when I bought equipment from your Familia, I'll give you a 20% discount in return," Orsted replied, laying out his terms upfront.

"No problem!" Before Hephaestus could respond, Tsubaki agreed immediately, her excitement evident.

Hephaestus smiled faintly at Orsted's offer.

She had given him a discount as a gesture of support, but she hadn't expected Orsted to reciprocate in this way.

Still, she didn't comment further.

Orsted's abilities were a boon to Hestia's Familia, and Hephaestus was genuinely happy for her friend.

"Hey, hey, can I buy these right now?" Tsubaki asked eagerly, unable to contain her enthusiasm.

"Sure. If you want, I'll sell you all five pieces for 100 million valis," Orsted said after a moment of consideration.

"Deal!" Tsubaki agreed without hesitation.

Orsted: …So straightforward? Big spender!

"I'm Tsubaki Colbrande, captain of the Hephaestus Familia. I'll come to you if I need anything in the future."

"And if you ever need help, as long as it's not too unreasonable, feel free to ask."

"Actually, even if it's unreasonable, I'll help," Tsubaki added with a grin as she gathered those items into her arms.

"Let's go to the Guild now. I'll transfer the money to you," Tsubaki said, already heading for the stairs.

Orario had institutions similar to modern banks, and large transactions between Familias were typically conducted through these channels.

After all, carrying around massive amounts of valis for transactions wasn't practical.

Seeing Tsubaki's excitement, Orsted and the others exchanged glances.

Hephaestus sighed, covering her forehead in mock exasperation, then smiled apologetically at Orsted and the others.

"Let's get this done quickly, then head to the Soma Familia to help Lili."

"Agreed," Hestia nodded, taking Hephaestus's hand and leading the way.

Orsted stood up and followed with Lili.

At the Guild, Eina looked at Orsted and the others, then at the two account books in her hands, her eyebrow twitching slightly.

"Tsubaki-san, are you sure you want to transfer 100 million valis to Orsted?" Eina asked carefully.

"Yes, confirm it. Hurry up," Tsubaki replied without hesitation.

"Alright, I'll process the transaction right away."

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