Lucius stepped inside the shoddy structure, its rotting floor boards creaking underneath his feet. The inside of the building was no prettier than the outside, signs of neglect omnipresent. The rotting stench from the street outside followed him into the shop.

  His boots tracked mud onto the floor, but it had already been covered with it before his arrival. Lucius pinched his nose, cursing under his breath. ‘I guess this truly is where things come to die, not even the buildings are spared.’ He thought to himself.

  Lucius began searching the shelves, eager to not spend one more minute than was necessary in the wretched place. But he soon felt like a racoon rummaging through the trash in search of treasure.

  The slums were an amalgamation of all the things society had cast out. As the dregs of society gathered around the decrepit district, the property values plummeted. With no money to be made, the big landlords pulled out, leaving their former properties to rot along with the thugs.

  Like a black hole, the slums had slowly grown larger, absorbing everything society had cast away. The few shops which remained in the slums saw the quality of their goods decline until they inevitably sold nothing but rejects too.

  Yet even in a pile of mud, there was a chance that gold could be found. Lucius scanned over a collection of masks. Some had been leftover from festivals, others discarded children’s toys.

  Some portrayed demons or animals, while others held unfamiliar designs. However, among the bunch, one stood out to him. It was a black slate mask, made from a metallic material he couldn’t recognize.

  It was a full face mask, with a large golden T in the shape of a visor. But the strangest thing about it was the absence of holes. Lucius was perplexed by the design flaw.

  Who would make such a thing? What is the point of a mask, if you can’t see or breathe through it? Maybe it wasn’t a mask, and the owner of the shop had simply misplaced it?

  Yet despite the odd appearance, something was urging him to try it on. He slipped it over his face, half expecting something to happen.

  But after a few seconds of staring into the darkness, he peeled the piece of junk off of his face. Feeling stupid, he clenched the mask in a bout of anger.

  The muscles tightened and mana surged through his hand as if in response to the reflex. Lucius cursed at his mistake. Yet instead of the mask breaking as he had expected, The mana had flown out of his hand and into the mask.

  The golden markings on its front began to glow dimly, like it had woken up from a slumber. Lucius’s eyes shot open as the sudden realization of what he had in his hands hit him. It was not a hunk of metal, but an artifact.

  Artifacts were magical items which drew their power from the runes engraved upon them. Since they could only be crafted with precious metals able to conduct mana, they were extremely rare.

  So much so that an estimated 80% of all artifacts were just communication rings. Lucius glanced at the ring Iris had given him. A further 15% were estimated to be weapons, meaning that he had struck more than gold.

  Lucius slipped the mask back onto his face, eager to discover the nature of the supposed artifact. Instead of being greeted with darkness again, this time he could see through the mask, and in full color too.

  He scanned the room in an attempt to discover any other abilities. It was then that he realized he was not struggling to breathe. Despite the solid metal plate in front of his face, air flowed freely into his nostrils as if he wasn’t wearing the mask at all.

  The store clerk gave him a strange look, probably thinking he had gone crazy. Lucius pulled the mask from his face in embarrassment, shuffling up to the counter with the mask now in his hand. Under the guise of embarrassment, Lucius tried to hide his excitement.

  “How much for this?” He asked the clerk in a nervous manner. The woman took the mask from his hand. Lucius broke into a nervous sweat as the woman inspected the mask.

  “For this piece of junk? 20 coppers.” She tossed the mask back onto the counter. Despite knowing it was durable, Lucius cringed as the artifact bounced unceremoniously on the desk.

  He snatched the mask up and gave the clerk 20 coppers. He put the mask in his cloak, not letting his guard down until he had left the slum district.

  With the sun now set, he walked the streets of Ranok which had become cast in darkness. When he was sure no one was looking, he slipped the mask out of his cloak and put it on once again.

  When his eyes opened, he could see clearly despite the lack of light. The night vision was so clear, that he could even read the signs that littered the city.

  Lucius felt like a bandit, having robbed the poor ignorant woman. The streets of Ranok were calm at night, candles dimly lighting the few establishments that remained open.

  He made his way back to the Ironside manor, admiring his newfound artifact along the way. He would still have to wait in town until his armor was finished, but at least it would give him time to plan his journey.

  When he grew close he removed his mask, knowing the guards would likely not have the same appreciation for it as he did.

  After confirming his identity, he was allowed back into the manor. He was preparing for bed, when he felt a pull at his ring.

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  Lucius rolled his eyes, she would always call at the worst time. “What do you want?” He answered the call, speaking into the ring.

  “Most people start with hello, but I guess in your case it might be too much to ask for.” Iris sighed in disappointment.

  Lucius was channeling mana to shut off the ring when Iris interrupted. “Wait, don't hang up yet, it’s important.”

  “Sure it is. I haven't heard that one before.” Lucius rolled his eyes again, but relented. “Well get on with it.”

  “Ever the gentlemen I see.” She mumbled before continuing. “Remember that thing you asked me for?”

  Lucius searched his memory. It had been just over four years since they had exchanged communication rings. Contrary to his expectations however, she did not call often.

  When she did, it was usually because she needed something, or just wanted someone to vent to. However, recently Lucius had made a breakthrough.

  In exchange for answering her mana related questions, he had managed to talk her into procuring him a 4th tier grimoire. Outside of an academy or noble household, he was unlikely to encounter one.

  Lucius knew his father would be of no help either, so Iris was his best bet. While 4th tier spells were just barely considered mid grade, learning them would be a huge step up from the 3rd grade magic he had learned so far.

  Without the use of 4th grade magic or higher, a mage had little effective presence in a fight. It was the reason why the lower three grades had been relegated to the category of ‘low grade’ spells.

  Most nations would not even consider lower tiered mages for the army, their presence on the battlefield constituting a liability.

  But aside from their utility, there was one other reason why Lucius had wanted to study 4th tier spells. He hoped that they would prove insightful in his quest to develop new spellblade techniques.

  “It took some time, but I managed to find one. It should be on its way now, but don’t expect it until the day after tomorrow.” There was a hint of pride in her words.

  “Thank you, I know it couldn’t have been easy.” It felt wrong not blowing her off like he usually did, but Lucius wasn’t such an asshole that he wouldn’t give thanks where it was due.

  “You're welcome, but what do you plan to do with it anyway?” Lucius froze, unsure how to answer the question. He had not told Iris about becoming a spellblade, but she wasn’t so dumb that he could hide it from her forever.

  Lucius considered his options. They already held one secret, what harm could one more do? “Study magic, what else would I do with it?”

  He expected shock, but her reaction proved that it had not come as a surprise to her. “I thought it was the case, but I never expected you to actually admit it.” She paused for a moment.

  “Then you must have figured out a solution to core lock?” A silence hung in the air for a moment.

  “Perhaps not an ideal one, but a solution none the less.” Lucius admitted. It was more than he had planned to share with her, but the question had seemed rhetorical anyway.

  Lucius could hear a voice in the background of the call, but he couldn’t make out what was being said. “Sorry but I need to go now. I’ll keep in touch, bye.”

  For the first time since Lucius could remember, someone hung up on him. At least in his second life, he was certain it was the first time. Lucius allowed himself to collapse on his bed, drifting off to sleep shortly after.

  Just as Iris had predicted,the courier had arrived the day after. Lucius skimmed through its pages, verifying the validity of the book before stashing it into his bag.

  Coincidentally, it was also the day that he was supposed to pick up his armor from the shop. Assuming everything was in order, he was ready to depart on his journey.

  Ranok was a small city, so small in fact that the Adventurer’s guild didn’t even have a branch in it. And so, Lucius had planned to register in the neighboring city of Redmond.

  He headed down to the dining room to enjoy the last meal he would have with his family for a while. His father wasn’t home, so he ate alone with his mother.

  He announced his departure after the meal, and Elena gave him a teary farewell. After gathering his things, he returned to the armor smith’s shop to receive the set he had commissioned.

  The clerk greeted him with a smile, and led him to a fitting room. The armor was set upon a stand, stained black save for a couple of the metal clasps that held it together.

  After slipping into the full set, he tested his range of motion. His movements felt slightly stiffened, but Lucius could tell the armor smith had gone to great lengths to minimize its restrictiveness.

  The gloves were thick at the back, but thinner in the front to provide more tactile feedback to the wearer. The boots were sturdy, yet flexible enough to run in.

  The gaps around his joints were unusually large, but it provided increased mobility in exchange for the compromised defense.

  It was a good set of armor as far as he could tell. He had never worn armor in his previous life, so he had nothing to compare it to. If there were any glaring problems with the set, he would soon find out the hard way.

  “It’s a good set, I’ll take it.” Lucius nodded to the clerk, indicating he was pleased with the results. As Arthur had promised him, there were no extra fees. He left the shop in his new set of armor, eager to break it in.

  Satisfied with the quality, he headed back to settle his debt with Lionel, the weapon smith. The man looked surprised to see him again, like he hadn’t expected Lucius to actually return. Nevertheless, he was eager to accept the remaining 25 silver he was owed.

  Lucius slipped on his mask before exiting the store. With his debts settled and all his gear in order, he attempted to hail a coach from the side of the road. After some time, he managed to get one’s attention and the rider came to a stop in front of him.

  The man looked at him suspiciously, before plastering on a smile. Perhaps it was because of the strange mask he bore on his face, but Lucius paid it no mind.

  “Good afternoon Sir, how can I help you?” The carriage had seen better days, and the coachman’s attire left much to be desired. But at least it would be cheap, and it sure as hell beat walking.

  The neighboring city of Redmond was around a day by carriage from Ranok, and by foot it would take at least twice as long. “How much for passage to Redmond?” The man's face grew pensive for a moment before he responded.

  “It’ll run you 2 silver. If we leave now, I reckon we can make it by nightfall.” Lucius nodded, flipping the man two silver coins. Once he had made himself comfortable in the back of the carriage, a snap of the reigns signaled the carriage into motion.

  The loud clop of the horses' hooves hitting the cobblestone streets filled the carriage. Lucius admired the scenery as he watched Ranok fade in the distance, eventually drifting off to sleep in his seat.