Illimitable Until Death

Chapter 899: IUD-Chapter 894 A Very Distinctive Companion

This was the most well-known armory in Axel, a place both reputable and reliable.

Not only did it import finely crafted arms and armor from major cities, but it also carried used equipment once owned by high-ranking Adventurers who had outgrown their gear.

For newcomers, it was considered the peak of affordable outfitting, a veritable treasure trove.

“Oooh!”

The moment Kazuma and Aqua stepped inside, both let out exaggerated gasps.

“Welcome!”

The shopkeeper, a broad-shouldered man wielding a smithing hammer, greeted them with a booming voice and a proud pose that flexed his bulging muscles, looking every bit like a veteran blacksmith from the frontlines.

Inside, finely forged weapons and gleaming suits of armor were displayed across the shop in a manner bordering on artistic.

Swords that looked like they belonged in a noble’s private collection rested inside pristine glass cases.

Meanwhile, heavy armor stood mounted on polished stands, reflecting stray rays of light from their flawless steel surfaces.

The shop also featured an assortment of shields, staffs, reinforced leather gear, and even gauntlets, covering nearly every known equipment type.

In short, Kazuma and Aqua were instantly enchanted.

“This! This is the feeling of a proper fantasy world!”

“Do they have any Divine Relics that suit a radiant Goddess like me?”

Spouting such delusional lines, the two immediately dove into the shop’s wares.

Soon, shouts began echoing throughout the room.

“This dagger costs 500,000 Eris?! Are you out of your mind?!” (Kazuma)

“Oooh! This robe is perfect for me! But it’s way too expensive! Lower the price! Do it for a divine customer!” (Aqua)

“No, hold on. Shops like this always have a pile of junk weapons lying around. Then the protagonist shows up, finds a busted-looking item, and it turns out to be some Legendary Artifact in disguise!” (Kazuma)

“Wait, really?! I’m heading straight for the junk heap!” (Aqua)

“You’re not the protagonist! You’re just comic relief! Get out of that spot!” (Kazuma)

“Ugh! It reeks! But I can feel it, nobody wants to go near this corner, which must mean it hides something powerful! This is Goddess-tier intuition!” (Aqua)

“…That’s just garbage… Please don’t dig through it.” (Kazuma)

Watching this bizarre duo making a scene by the literal trash pile, even the shopkeeper looked like he’d lost the will to intervene.

As for Fang Li, he seriously considered throwing them both out.

“I’m asking one last time, are you going to pick your gear or not?” Fang Li said bluntly.

“Because if not, I’m walking.”

With that, he turned, making for the door.

“Wait! I was wrong! Please, give me another chance!”

“Don’t leave me! I’m a Goddess! A real one! If you abandon me, divine punishment is guaranteed!”

Kazuma and Aqua scrambled forward, each hugging one of Fang Li’s legs, one sobbing like a child, the other pretending to.

Fang Li very nearly buried his face in his hands.

“No wonder bringing these two is listed as a B-Rank Side Quest…”

At least in terms of sheer difficulty, trying to drag these two to Level 30 seemed like a Herculean task.

Forget B-Rank, even if this were secretly an S-Rank Quest from the Guild’s secret notice board, he wouldn’t be surprised.

“You two better pick your gear now,” Fang Li sighed.

“Or we’re not getting out on a Quest today.”

That finally snapped them out of it.

“Wait, isn’t this kind of unfair to you?” Kazuma scratched his head.

“You just joined the party, and now you’re already paying to outfit us? Sounds like a bad deal…”

“There’s no helping it,” Fang Li shrugged.

“I’m a no-class Adventurer. If I want to join a team that only accepts high-tier classes, I’ve gotta pay my dues one way or another, right?”

“No, no, no, that’s not how this works,” Kazuma said quickly.

“You can’t join the party just because you offered to lend us money. You still don’t meet the recruitment criteria!”

“Eh?”

Aqua suddenly lifted her head from where she clung to Fang Li’s leg, blinking in surprise as she turned to Kazuma.

“Wait, really?”

“……”

“……”

Fang Li and Kazuma were both stunned into silence.

Judging by the look of genuine shock on Aqua’s face, this self-proclaimed Goddess truly believed Fang Li would be accepted into the team purely for offering financial aid.

It seemed she hadn’t even considered the actual qualifications.

“…Just ignore her. That’s the only way to stay sane,” Kazuma muttered with a sigh, patting Fang Li on the shoulder.

“She’s basically dead weight. Her luck stat is in the gutter, and her intelligence isn’t much better. If we’re being honest, she’s not even average.”

“Excuse me?!” Aqua cried out, her voice high-pitched with indignation.

“You’re seriously gonna stand there and call me below average? I’ve got divine power! And I still ended up being dragged into this world by a hikikomori NEET with the weakest class!”

“…Whatever the case, just hurry up and choose your gear.” Fang Li sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“Hand me your Adventurer cards and go pick your Equipment. If you don’t, I will walk out of here.”

Without missing a beat, Kazuma and Aqua quickly presented their Adventurer cards, then dashed off toward the weapon racks, bubbling with excitement.

Left holding the two cards, Fang Li glanced over their data.

First up was Kazuma.

As Aqua had said, his class was Adventurer, the base-level class and widely regarded as the weakest.

The only stat that stood out was his unusually high luck.

Intelligence was decent, but everything else fell below the average Adventurer line.

Currently, Kazuma was at Level 3, with 2 unused skill points.

He hadn’t learned a single technique yet.

Being an Adventurer meant he could theoretically learn any skill from any class, provided someone taught him.

However, without specific class bonuses, such skills would be inefficient and cost an absurd number of points.

In other words, outside of his extreme luck, he had nothing to work with.

Aqua’s card, on the other hand, was a different story entirely.

Her stats were exceptional across the board.

Nearly every ability category far surpassed the norm.

Her Magic Power was so absurdly high, it might have even exceeded the elite bloodlines of noble families, those who carried the remnants of long-lost Heroic Spirits.

However, her Intelligence stat was painfully low.

Too low, in fact, to qualify for any of the advanced Magic classes that required both arcane proficiency and mental discipline.

As if that wasn’t enough, her Luck stat was the absolute worst.

So bad that choking on water, or stuffing bread up her own nose, seemed entirely in character.

Still, her other parameters were so outstanding that even at Level 1, she qualified for a top-tier class.

Thus, Aqua had class-changed into an Arch Priest.

And not just any Arch Priest.

Her card showed an absurd pool of skill points, which she had used to unlock every single ability available to the class.

On top of that, she had picked up a baffling number of banquet-related skills as well.

“…What’s even the point of banquet skills?” Fang Li murmured, staring blankly at her card.

(End of Chapter)

PS-“For every 200 power stones, I’ll release one bonus chapter (Current-12)!”