NOVEL WEB Chapter 350: Alice's Final Stalk
[Weapon: Magic Robe Brimming With Mana]
[Quality: Treasure]
[Effect: Spirit +80, Control +80, Mana +100]
[Additional Effect:
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Mana Defense (Passive Skill. Reduces the offensive magic damage you receive by 25%);
Mana Offense (Passive Skill. Increases your offensive magic damage by 10%);
Mana Concealment (Active Skill. Conceals the appearance and aura of the weapon and its user for one hour.) ]
…
So there's a "Treasure" rank above the "Fine" rank?
After spending some time looking through shops in the magic town, Alice finally found a magic robe that wasn't rated as "Not Bad" or "Fine." This was also the first time Alice had seen the "Treasure" rank.
Previously, Alice already suspected there might be another rank between "Fine" and "Legendary," considering the huge gap in stats. Now, her guess was verified as there apparently was a "Treasure" rank between Fine and Legendary.[1]
She had mostly been coming into contact with high-end weapons thus far, so even though she had seen many Artifact-, Epic-, and Legendary-grade weapons, she saw very little of everything else. This was partly due to her identity and frequent encounters with Heroes and Demon Kings of the past. In addition, tools at the Treasure grade were likely considered top-tier for the average person and were incredibly rare on the market. Hence, Alice had only come across her first Treasure-grade weapon after living in this otherworld for several months.
The Treasure-grade magic robe was displayed in the most conspicuous position in the shop. It could be seen from almost anywhere in the shop. It was also the first item Alice had approached and inspected after entering the shop. Meanwhile, the results of her inspection instantly attracted her attention.
The bonus stats and Mana Defense and Mana Offense skills were useless to Alice since she could get significantly better stats and skills from her panties. What attracted her attention was the strengthened Mana Concealment skill. The enhanced version of this skill allowed her to stay concealed for one whole hour. Although it went without saying the skill's cooldown would also increase, the one-hour duration was enough for her purposes.
Alice's plan was to use this skill to observe Arcana from a close distance. Going by Mador's information, each class session held in the Royal Magic Center was 40 minutes long. So, the skill's one-hour duration was enough to last her through an entire class and plenty of time to spare to leave without anybody noticing.
In exchange for this enhanced performance, this Treasure-grade magic robe also cost significantly more than a Fine-grade magic robe. It was a price that would break the bank of the average magician. It was no wonder the robe was displayed in the most conspicuous location.
However, Alice obviously didn't belong to the category of ordinary magicians. The thing she lacked least right now was money. Although the magic robe was incredibly expensive, she could buy several with just the money King Haydn had sent her.
After purchasing the robe, Alice promptly made her way to the Royal Magic Center. This would be the first time she had entered a magic center since arriving in this otherworld.
Magic centers in this world were venues prepared specifically for magicians. They provided a place for magicians to conduct their magic research. They also provided magicians with all sorts of magic apparatuses.
In a sense, one could say that magic centers were the magician's version of internet cafes. However, instead of paying to access expensive computers and the internet, magicians were paying to rent magic tools that they normally couldn't afford or saw no reason to purchase. Of course, they would still have to pay up if they broke these tools.
For most civilian magicians, it was incredibly worthwhile to pay just a small amount of money to gain access to high-end magic apparatuses that they normally couldn't get their hands on. As for why Alice had never visited a magic center before today, it was because she never saw any need to visit one.
There were research labs in the March Academy, and the magic apparatuses in these labs weren't inferior to those in magic centers. Alice could simply visit the academy's labs if she needed to use any particular magic apparatuses.
After entering the Royal Magic Center, Alice did not pay the magicians in the lobby any heed since none of them was her target. Currently, she still hadn't put on her newly-bought cloak, exposing her white-blue dress for all to see. Though, she did wear a straw hat to cover most of her face.
After waiting in the lobby for a few minutes, Alice saw the entrance opening and a group of children entering the building. It was currently 1:30 PM, and the first class the Royal Magic Tower's middle school students had in the afternoon began at 2:00 PM. So, it was right about time for the middle schoolers to show up in the Royal Magic Center.
Alice watched as this first group of middle schoolers entered an elevator and rode it to the 7th floor. Just like Mador mentioned, the rooms on the Royal Magic Center's 7th to 10th floors were reserved as classrooms for the Royal Magic Tower's first- and second-year middle schoolers.
After Alice waited a bit longer, her target, Arcana Doyle, finally showed up. Unlike King Haydn's gloomy appearance, Third Prince Arcana had a very lively appearance. Although two black-clad warriors followed some distance behind him, he could still engage in a passionate conversation with his fellow students walking next to him.
It could be seen that Arcana was already considerably popular among his peers. His charm and charisma could help him establish his own forces in the future, but whether he had already secretly developed his own forces… Alice would have to observe the boy more before coming to a conclusion.
A child mature enough to secretly develop his own forces would definitely have difficulty integrating into children his age. Alice's goal was to observe Arcana in class and spot any abnormal behavior.
After finding a cramped and deserted corner, Alice put on her magic robe, grabbed the edge with her right hand, and activated Mana Concealment. Immediately, her figure vanished from the lobby.
Alice quickly followed Arcana's footsteps and entered the same elevator after going invisible. Then, she used psychic power to lift herself into the air to prevent people from noticing that there was an invisible person in the elevator.
After the elevator reached the 7th floor, Arcana walked out of the elevator, flanked by his two bodyguards. Seeing this, Alice lowered herself and walked out of the elevator with several other children. Then, she followed Arcana into a plain-looking classroom.
The classroom here was no different from any other ordinary classroom. The only exception was the various magic apparatuses, which were clearly designed with young students in mind, set up on the classroom's desks. After scanning the classroom with her eyes, Alice's gaze eventually settled on a device set up on the wall by the window.
So this is the mana control device?
Alice approached the device while staying concealed. If she were to be honest, she was quite tempted to analyze this device using Psychokinesis Transcendence. If she could upgrade this device's function of suppressing weak mana, it might come in handy in the future.
However, Alice was currently in stealth. She might expose herself if she messed around with this device. Instead of taking such a risk, she found an open window, sat on the windowsill, and began watching as the middle schoolers in the classroom got ready for class.
…
TL Notes:
[1]there might be another rank between "Fine" and "Legendary":
I think the author forgot about the "Excellent" rank, which is the rank between Fine and Legendary. The "Excellent" rank has been given to Ciel and Johanna(catkin's chieftain) in Chapter 222, and the stat numbers of an "Excellent" weapon match the stats of a "Treasure" weapon. "Excellent" weapons have only appeared in one chapter thus far, so the author probably forgot about this rating.
Here is the list of weapon ranks: