Li and the Chests of Iron

The fight ended when Li Qiang fainted.

To them, it was already expected. However, Li Qiang knew it was only because he was stupid. Yes, he actually overestimated his abilities and ended up losing consciousness. It was extremely embarrassing for someone like him who prided himself on his genius intelligence.

The more he thought about the fight, the more irritated he became.

The only good thing about what happened was the fact that he could use that as a reason to stay in his bed and asked everyone not to disturb him. Of course, this was an opportunity for him to sneak out during the night.

"Duke… we are here." Dou Lin said just as the carriage stopped. "This place is the only one selling weapons and needles. Though the size isn't the same as the needle that you wanted. They usually offer simple weapons that anyone could use. They don't have the best swords and daggers, but they are the only one who sell needles."

In this world, no one actually uses smaller needles as weapons. And using the bigger ones was considered rare. Few people could use needles and would prefer using daggers, especially the ones who can use the element of wind. At first, he wanted some longer ones, the ones that he used to carry on Earth. But after a lot of thinking, he decided to go with the smaller, something that he could easily hide anywhere.

"Are you sure no one would notice us?" Dou Lin asked. This wasn't the first time that he asked this question, since Li Qiang altered their looks. The two of them now looked like normal people, wearing normal clothes with different hairstyles. Moreover, Li Qiang's face completely changed using some cosmetics and something that Dou Lin didn't recognize.

On the other hand, Li Qiang made little changes in Dou Lin's face. He just added a fake mole, a fake beard, and a mustache that made Dou Lin look intimidating.

"I am." Li Qiang was very confident when it comes to his skills in changing one's appearance. "And don't call me Duke," he hissed. "Li. Call me Li."

"I understand."

The two went inside the store and Li Qiang immediately knew how unique this place was. "Welcome!" an attendant with a genuine smile immediately walked towards them. "May I know what kind of weapons are you looking for?"

"Smaller ones." Dou Lin answered. "Show us everything small." They already agreed ahead of time, not to mention the word needle the moment they come inside.

"You also sold materials for forging a weapon?" Li Qiang looked at the various types of metals that were on display. Actually, he was only looking at one. The lump of iron looked like a table.

"Ah… that is a normal iron, cheap, and it's very common. We found the big lump in a mine and thought it would look good as a table, something that we can use to test some of the weapons."

"Why not make it into a sword?"

"Ah, all the weapons that we have are made of iron. As I said, that is a really common material. However, we also use it to test other weapons made of magic stones and stuff."

"Weapons made of magic stones?"

"Yes. We can turn magic stones into weapons. However, it would take a long time to forge them, and only an expert blacksmith could make one." He meant a blacksmith that could harness the elements of fire.

"So… the cracks in this table…"

"Caused by magic weapons. Ah… are you not from the capital?"

"No."

"I understand. Well… would you like me to show you the weapons made of magic stones? Obviously, only people who could harness the elements could use one. As you know, not many people could use elements. Most of them were in the military. While we don't supply the military with weapons, we also have weapons that could easily rival the swords used by people in the military."

The man led them into another room. This time, the weapons inside were… shiny.

Li Qiang frowned. All the weapons were flashy. The swords, the daggers, arrows, and bows, even the shield and aces were shining. Li Qiang recalled that Wang Ruoyun's sword has a different shine too.

He started to think about the books that he read about weapons and recalled that weapons made of magic stones usually have that luster. However, the high-quality magic weapons have less luster around them. Still, they emit that luster, especially if the one holding them can harness elements.

Dou Lin approached the wall where the weapons hang and grabbed a sword. Just as expected, the sword turned brighter under Dou Lin's hands. Meaning, the sword had low-quality magic stones. He then grabbed the daggers with a blue hilt. This time, the brightness was lesser than the previous weapon.

"The daggers… are sold for ten thousand gold."

Li Qiang nodded. Actually, the magic weapons were useless to him because… he cannot use elements. "Then may I buy the iron outside?"

"The table?" Almost immediately, the demeanor of the attendant changed. "I'm sorry. I didn't think I heard the right words. You mean… you wanted to buy an iron?"

"Yes." The thing is, Steel didn't exist in this world. However, he could easily use the iron to make steel. Then turn it into spring steel. He was familiar with forging something without using magic, and he was planning to forge his own weapon.

"This customer… I mean… Iron?"

"Yes. Iron." He turned his head towards the attendant and notice the disgust in the man's eyes.

"Alright… let me get you some…"

"Actually… I want to buy all the iron that you have."

"…"

"Everything." Li Qiang added.

"Everything?"

"Yes, including the cracked table outside."

Li Qiang met Dou Lin's gaze, and the latter was also showing a look of interest on his face. He must be wondering why Li Qiang wanted to buy the cheapest ingredient in the store.

After a few minutes, the attendant came back with tens of wooden chests. "A total of one hundred gold."

"Each chest?"

"No. For everything."

Li Qiang lifted an eyebrow. "Alright."

After they finished the transaction, the attendants helped them load everything inside the carriage.

"Now… how are you going to get this into the mansion?" Dou Lin asked while looking at the carriage that was already full of chests. Slowly, he turned his head towards Li Qiang. "You—You are not planning to let me carry them, right?"