Chapter 73: Dark Demon Grasps the Iron Hook of Fate [5]
Virt Gold was extremely grateful for his sore bottom, as it had caused him to arrive late.
He'd initially assumed the cult members wouldn't be back after their gathering the previous night, so he'd decided to check if that perverted fellow had desecrated the statue.
To his surprise, not only had the cult members returned, but there were significantly more of them than before.
Their deeply prostrate posture exuded such humility that it only further emphasized the goddess's nobility.
This wasn't Virt's first time witnessing their gatherings.
Yet, he always felt a distinct sense of separation from them.
It was a matter of hierarchy.
This gave him a peculiar sense of superiority.
However, now wasn't the time to linger.
From his vantage point, he still couldn't see the goddess's eyes, but the statue seemed even more sacred than before.
He quietly slipped away.
Although the cracks in the statue had worsened, the "tinkerers" were already at work making repairs.
There was no need for him to worry.
Still, he decided it would be best to avoid the place for a while.
Life at St. Marian's remained as monotonous as ever, albeit with a touch of amusement.
News of the kingdom's princesses attending the upcoming masquerade ball spread like wildfire, injecting a wave of excitement into the otherwise dull routine.
The students began to buzz with anticipation.
And not just the first-years.
The entire castle was abuzz.
Princess Anqi, the eldest, was a strong contender for the throne, beloved for both her beauty and virtue.
It was no exaggeration to say that over half the boys in the castle were her admirers.
Of course, admiration and love were two different things.
The princesses' confirmed attendance elevated the Christmas Eve masquerade ball to a whole new level.
What was once seen as just another annual event now held a different significance.
The boys started thinking about dressing more formally, more handsomely.
The girls dreamed of making themselves more beautiful, hoping to rival the princesses themselves!
The masquerade ball was a special occasion where even commoners could wear princess-like dresses without being criticized.
Everyone wanted to feel like a princess, especially with real princesses present.
"How childish!"
Emma muttered under her breath while carefully choosing a cute hairpin.
Rumor had it that the beauty shop run by the elves sold a plant essence that could temporarily straighten hair.
While she liked her voluminous curls, she sometimes wanted to experiment with a different style.
On the second Friday of October, the young mages found themselves with more leeway in their credits, and with the excuse of "gathering core materials for their magic spirit cards," Traveler's Street was bustling with energetic first-years.
Virt's bottom had finally stopped hurting so much, and he wandered around the "10-Credit Store" with Robert, hoping to find some cheap but unique materials.
Virt had lost 50 credits for using [Lust] to shine it on Professor Cazel's head.
Robert, though also a victim, had lost 10 credits for sneaking out at night.
He kept complaining about how boring Professor Sarah was and how much nicer Sister Carrian was.
Meanwhile, Dark had also arrived at Traveler's Street.
He restocked on some things his Cat Grass liked and pondered what materials to use for Monday's magic class to craft his magic spirit card.
He was growing tired of using Cat Grass's fur and wanted to try something new.
Perhaps a combination of rat fur and thunderstruck wood?
He had heard of a magic spirit called the Lightning Rat, which, despite being only a two-star, was incredibly fast and perfect for dodging attacks in dueling matches.
For young mages who couldn't yet manipulate magic orbs from a distance, this was a cost-effective option.
Another idea was combining dried chameleon lizard and transparent umbrella mushrooms, which supposedly had a decent chance of crafting a magic spirit with an invisibility skill!
Such a visual advantage was undoubtedly something young mages feared, as they lacked the means to counter it.
As the number of magic cards in their possession grew, it was likely that some first-years would qualify to join the Dueling Club before Christmas.
Participating in dueling matches was the proper way to earn more credits.
Dark was already preparing for this.
He hoped to have at least one second-tier (4-6 star) magic spirit card by then.
Although using [Lust I] could evolve Eevee into a four-star Umbreon, its "disobedience" made it unusable in official matches.
Indeed, even the "goddess's" sin couldn't compare to his own.
Dark stepped into a materials shop.
This shop, called [Wind Traveler], was the most popular among the lower-year students on Traveler's Street.
First and second-years with limited credits needed affordable yet decent-quality shops like this.
Dark looked at the dried lizards, rats, centipedes, and scorpions in the shop...
Finally, it felt like he was getting a taste of being a "wizard."
Some of these common materials cost only a few credits, and the most expensive wouldn't exceed 100 credits.
After some thought, he bought a pitch-black "century-old" turtle shell and some fragments of magic armor.
Whether he could use them or not was another matter, but it was good to have them on hand.
With Umbreon out of the picture, he needed a tank-type magic spirit card to form his strategy.
For example, Robert's [Mystic Beast: Castle] was a decent type.
→If only its star level were higher.
Then, with a strange look, he accepted a flower card from the shopkeeper as a free gift for spending over 100 credits.
It seemed...
The shops on Traveler's Street had started giving out flower cards again?
Though he didn't know the reason, this was undoubtedly great news.
Dark's steps became more energetic, and his enthusiasm for shopping grew.
Candy shops, flower shops, jewelry stores, clothing stores:
Before he knew it, he had already covered half the street.
Looking at the eight additional flower cards in his hand, Dark couldn't help but grin.
As the sun set, painting the sky with red hues, the streets of Traveler's Street lit up with colorful lights.
Dark's steps came to a halt in front of an antique shop, his eyes locked onto an item on the stall, unable to look away.
The shape of the item was something he had seen in a book while researching ways to counter the Seven Sins.
→The Hook of Fate!
Legend had it that in ancient times, gods would cast fishing lines from the heavens, with the Hook of Fate attached, to "fish" for humans.
The gods were the anglers, and humans were the fish. Those hooked would be taken to heaven.
Although the last line in the book read: "If your soul is hooked, you naturally go to heaven."
Dark had still been left with a strong impression of the hook.
Aside from being covered in rust, the hook looked exactly like the one described in the book.
Of course, antique shops were full of similar replicas, and thinking he could find a treasure based on a mere description was unlikely.
He simply thought that even as a replica, this item held some value.
"Child, what catches your eye?"
An elderly man with a face full of wrinkles emerged from the dimly lit antique shop, his expression kind.
________________________________________
If you want more chapters, please consider supporting my page on Patreon. with 30 advanced chapters available on Patreon
patreon.com/Leanzin