Arc's Vault was impressive, to say the least. David's eyes landed on several chests filled with currency slates and Fragnts. The wealth in each wooden chest was probably enough to purchase entire streets in Arc—perhaps even more.
Beside him, the receptionist tried to maintain her composure, but he heard her gasp. It looked like she wasn't prepared to find the Vault filled with this much wealth.
His attention shifted from the chests to several less conspicuous shelves. These shelves filled one of the Vault's corners, but at first glance, they didn't make much of an impression. David walked through the small Vault, which couldn't have been larger than forty square ters, and began inspecting the items.
"I have information on each item here," Tirac whispered, flinching slightly when he turned to her. She held up a piece of paper with shifting letters that almost seed alive. "You can tell what you're looking for, or we can go through them one by one, and I'll explain what they can do."
David wasn't sure what he was looking for. He had a few things in mind but hadn't decided yet. He wasn't even sure what he could find in the Vault. Maybe the Vault held sothing truly unique—sothing he couldn't even imagine. He didn't want to miss out on a treasure by narrowing his choices too soon.
He picked up a vial and inspected it curiously. The vial, made of glass or so similar translucent material, contained a purple liquid. But what caught his attention wasn't its appearance—it was the life emanating from within.
"Interesting choice," the receptionist said. "This is a special reagent called an Elixir of Life. It can bring you back from the brink of death or—" she hesitated, glancing at his left arm, "—or regrow limbs."
David frowned. He didn't need that. Not now. Not from here. Regrowing his arm wouldn't improve his combat prowess. If anything, it would make him weaker, as he'd lose Deryadus' Arm. He set the vial back on the shelf and moved to the next item.
"Pill of Attributes," the receptionist explained. "Increases a random Attribute Point by one. You can only increase your attributes twice with the Pill of Attributes."
David barely glanced at it before moving on.
"Tranquility of Mind. Mages love this one. It aids in training with Skill Runes and helps you understand Skill Runes, Class Skills, and Laws more easily."
He picked up another item.
"Limit Removal. The potion allows the user to access their Essence and remove their Body, Mind, and Soul limiters for one hour."
David set it down and moved on.
"Molten Aether. A potion often used by Warriors who struggle to access or utilize Aether. Not all Warriors require Aether, but many powerful advanced Classes grant Class Skills that need both Stamina and Aether to function. So Classes even fuse Aether and Stamina to form new energies, like Force, which is essential for creating an Aura."
Finally, his attention landed on another vial.
"Golden Road. The perfect potion to unlock and expand all Energy Pathways."
...
...
There were far more interesting potions and pills than David had anticipated—ten, possibly more, were of great use. But he could only choose one.
That was unfortunate. However, he now fully understood why the receptionist had warned him about the Pantheon's wrath. While he might have loved to take more than one item from the Vault, he wouldn't risk it.
"This is only Arc's Vault, right? The integration wasn't that long ago—"
David didn't finish the sentence before the receptionist cut in. She nodded, her eyes curving into crescent shapes as she smiled. "Arc is still at the lowest grade. In fact, no Sanctuary in the Earthen Union has t the requirents to advance just yet. That's why you'll find many items designed to build a powerful foundation here. These items are incredibly valuable for Iron and Bronze Ranks."
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David raised an eyebrow but chose not to press further. It wasn't relevant to his decision.
A powerful foundation was essential, but his Energy Pathways were already unlocked. Most were still malnourished and required extensive treatnt—quite a lot, probably. Still, it might not take long to heal them. [Holy Touch] cast with Blood was far more effective now than when he had relied on holy power. He could further accelerate the process by amplifying Blood with his Relic.
Molten Aether and Limit Removal seed intriguing, but neither was necessary for him. David had no trouble wielding and absorbing Aether, and he could remove his limiters without assistance. He'd already used his Essence on multiple occasions and could do so again if the situation demanded it.
Tranquility of Mind was one of the few potions he couldn't replicate with so effort. It was his only ans to improve the mastery of his Law quickly. But that wasn't enough.
He studied the other items on the shelves and sighed deeply. Many could be of use, but none seed perfect.
His eyes landed on the receptionist again. She smiled faintly at him.
He could tell the Tirac woman was getting used to him. She wasn't as tense as before, maybe because the scenery had shocked her to the core. Still, that was better than being around a stamring, timid girl.
"Skill Runes…" He shook his head, discarding the idea.
David hesitated to pick a powerful Skill Rune without certainty that a similar predicant would occur again. If he chose a powerful Tier-2 Skill Rune that didn't suit his Class…would it be changed again? He might not have to follow the Cleric Codex anymore, but Lifeweavers must also have so restrictions. Then again, Lifeweavers were unique entities—fighters, and healers in one.
He checked the Skill Slates displayed on the final shelf and frowned as he listened to the special Tier-0 and Tier-1 Skills stored in the Vault. David didn't consider them special enough to use his only ticket as a special reward.
"What about a powerful weapon? Combining your weapon with your soulbound weapon would increase your prowess," the receptionist offered her advice. "Or an armor. The plated armor stored in the Vault is very powerful. So have ancient enchantnts that can increase your physical strength or help you stay focused in most situations."
David considered a new armor—it would be his first proper armor—and winced when he thought about it breaking. Armor would be great, but his fighting style required speed. He'd either have to pick leather armor, which would be damaged or unusable after his first fight with a powerful enemy, or armor made from light tal protecting his vitals.
One way or another, David would break the armor within a week. He was prone to fighting the strongest enemies and wasn't afraid of injuries, either. He'd gladly exchange a few grievous wounds with his enemies, knowing he would regenerate within seconds.
An armor would make everything different—more complicated.
"It might be worth it if you have a self-repairing armor," he tilted his head. "A strong self-repairing enchantnt."
A new weapon didn't sound bad, but he already had the Obsidian Blade. Since he had Deryadus' Arm as a replacent for his left arm, he could wield two one-handed weapons easily. However, a good weapon could be purchased from rchants.
"For weapons, I'd only take a soulbound weapon." He smiled at the receptionist, who frowned deeply. It didn't look like they had what he asked for.
So be it.
"What about accessories? Do you have anything I could use?" The Cleric's Amulet hadn't been very useful, mostly because David forgot about it. As of now, he didn't need it anymore. He had no more holy power, and the Relic did a good job of improving Blood's potency.
"Enchanted items can be used by everyone, right?" David asked.
lach once told him that enchantnts could be compared to inferior versions of Skill Runes. David imagined using Skill Runes like [Fireball] through accessories to incinerate his enemies, but was that the best choice for him? Probably not.
He needed sothing valuable. Sothing he couldn't buy for money from rchants—not anyti soon, at least. An item of imnse worth—not just in terms of money, but sothing that would directly impact his growth. It had to be sothing that allowed him to progress faster than others or gain a trendous advantage others couldn't dream of obtaining this early into the Integration.
David recalled so of Zachariah's words about Arc and what his next steps would have been if Arc had been destroyed. He had ntioned the Wilderness, its issues and dangers, and the other organizations.
The possibility of the Earthen Union transforming into one of the Aether-densest planets in the Pantheon was deeply imprinted in his mind, but so was the thought of eting his parents and friends.
His to-do list was never-ending, and it kept expanding. However, one thing was certain: he would reach the Wilderness at so point.
The Wilderness was said to be dangerous, yet it was also a place of growth, filled with resources, treasures, and opportunities.
With those thoughts in mind, David narrowed his choice. He discussed his options with the Tirac receptionist.
At last, he ca to a decision.
He looked at the receptionist, whose eyes were trained on the item in his hand.
"To think we found an item like this in a Basic Vault." Her lips twitched as she looked up. "You seem to be quite lucky."
"And I sure need it," he said, snickering. "It's what kept alive."
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