Chapter 41: The Pitiful One Who Desires Magic (3)

To learn magic, one must offer a sacrifice. Taesan rummaged through his inventory.

“How about these?”

Taesan brought out the items he obtained from killing lizardmen. They were ambiguous things that made no big difference from his current equipment.

Lilis, who examined the equipment, tapped her chin.

“Well, it works... but you can’t learn even a single magic spell with these.”

“Isn’t it quite a lot?”

“This is magic. It’s not just about the quantity. It has to be something valuable, unique.”

“So, it’s not easy to go for it.”

Indeed, if magic could be learned with these things, everyone would have learned it. But even Taeyeon could not do it. Taesan turned his eyes to the equipment he was wearing.

“How about this?”The roots of this story extend from novell bìn origin.

Taesan showed Baltha’s earrings. Lilis still had a doubtful face.

“It’s okay... but this alone is not enough. You need to have two pieces of equipment of the same grade.”

“Then how about this?”

This time, he showed the Necklace for a Master he received from killing the goblin lord. Surprise appeared on Lilis’s face.

“Huh? That doesn’t look like equipment that can be obtained here?”

“So what?”

“If that’s the case, it’s valuable. Maybe enough for one basic magic spell?”

“That’s cheap.”

“Really? I thought it was a lot.”

The lord’s item was equivalent to a single basic magic spell. Considering this was from near the entrance, it was somewhat understandable. Then Taesan pulled out the Sword of Lakiratas.

“How about this?”



“Oh.”

“Um.”

Lilis opened her mouth with a nervous expression.

“He would be quite pleased... even though the value might be less, he might think of it as giving candy and may even grant you a beginner’s magic spell, but can you handle it?”

“Lakiratas would like it.”

He was greatly fond of Taesan. He did not seem to bear any grudges for selling the sword he had bestowed.

At Taesan’s words, Lilis made a bored face.

“You’re the first one I’ve seen talk about a god like that.”

He put the weapon back. Magic was important, but not to the extent of selling his current equipment. He was only comparing, not considering selling.

As Taesan searched his inventory, one piece of equipment caught his eye.

“What about this one?”

[Old Hardwood Staff] [Magic +3] [A faint magic power is contained. It seems usable by someone with talent.]

This was equipment obtained when he defeated the Goblin Chief. A stat called magic’ which was new even to Taesan, was attached to it. Lilis, who confirmed the equipment, nodded.

“This could work. Just barely enough for one basic magic spell.”

“This is equivalent to the lord’s necklace?”

“Not in terms of value, but it differs when it comes to sacrifices. Gods prefer items related to them. Unless you can offend the opponent like the Sword of Lakiratas, they place greater value on objects related to magic.”

Then, it worked out well.

Honestly, it was useless.

The concept of magic was peculiar, and he had left it untouched, unable to find a use for it.

“What is this magic?”

“It literally is magical power. If you hold a staff and use magic, it improves the power, size, duration, and judgment.”



Then it was useless for Taesan. He was learning magic to use it conveniently in combat.

“Let’s go with this one.”

“Great! Got it!”

Lilis spiritedly took the staff. She seemed to start a prayer but then paused.

“Oh, I almost forgot. Is there any specific magic you want? Invisibility is too high in value, but I think other spells should be possible.”

“I don’t even know what magic is available.”

“Let me show you.”

She waved her hand. A list of spells obscured his view in succession.

[Fireball] [Ice Arrow] [Invisibility] [Basic Detection] [Shield of Concealment] [Food Production]

“So, I have to come back here?”

“No. When you conquer a floor, I’ll go down too. A kind of safety zone is created in the floors that have recently been cleared.”

“There’s such a thing?”

Taesan was surprised. It was news to him. Normally, there was no reason to revisit a cleared floor; if one did, they would just stay in the shop.

“It’s basically a hidden place. So, there’s no need to come down here inconveniently.”

“That’s a relief.”

It would have been quite bothersome to have to return to the 6th floor after descending to the deeper levels. Lilis smiled faintly and waved her hand.

“Then see you later! I’ll be waiting for you to bring back good stuff!”

“But before that, one thing.”

There was something he had to ask.

“Does magic used here get a skill check?”

“Though they’re different types, I suppose it does if you’re asking which side it falls on?”

“Then, like skills, can one not receive it and create it themselves?”

“Um...”

Lilis hesitated. She trailed off with a vague expression.

“In theory, it’s possible since it’s a skill check. But I don’t think I’ve heard of it.”

“That’s enough for me.”

It wasn’t that it couldn’t be done, but that it was unknown. That was sufficient.

[Why did you ask that at the end?]

“Because I have an experiment to conduct.”

Magic was also something he was obtaining for the first time. Unlike skills, it was an unexplored territory.

There were numerous things worth trying.

First, he checked the reward from the secret room that Lilis gave him.

[Ashen Boots] [Defense +4] [Movement Speed +5%] [Comfortable footwear for movement. It looks quite good.]

These were nice shoes with an additional movement speed boost. Although it reduced his attack power by 1, it was still worth the trade-off.

From now on, the process was simple. As he descended the floors, he would collect valuable items, sell them at the shop or bring them to Lilis to learn magic. That was the plan.

Therefore, he intended to learn everything he could before that.

“Karguk!”

Taesan blocked the Lizardman’s attack while contemplating.

‘How much was the damage again?’

He rummaged through his past memories. He recalled the defense he had at the time and the damage he took.

Then, the answer surfaced.

‘Basic Attack Power Boss Room’

Without any armor, that would be the expected damage.

Taesan checked his protective shield.

[Protective Shield: 35/35]

It was possible. Taesan put force into his sword, and the Lizardman was knocked back, crashing into the wall.

“Kerk, Karguk.”

While it struggled to get up, Taesan just watched. The ghost seemed to guess what he was thinking and let out a dry chuckle.

[Here he goes again, about to do something strange.]

“Karguk.”

The Lizardman, barely standing, held its spear with resolved eyes. Despite knowing it couldn’t win, it didn’t retreat.

The Lizardman, prepared to face death honorably, was taken aback.

“Karguk?”

Taesan started to remove his gear one by one. Necklace, armor, shoes, wrist guards, and so forth. He put all equipment with a defense boost back into his inventory.

[... What's he doing now?]

Wearing the same clothes as when he first arrived in this world, like the ones from Earth, Taesan stood in front of the Lizardman.

“Karguk?”

The Lizardman hesitated. Its small reptilian brain couldn’t understand. A formidable opponent suddenly weakened itself. Even if it had higher intelligence, it would react the same way.

“Come at me.”

Taesan crossed his arms.