Elara headed to a small trading company that worked loosely with the northern Adventurers Guild. It was the same place she visited last time when she'd used a high-purity ice crystal to get in, so they remembered her and treated her with respect.
Crystals made by a Grand Spirit were crazy pure, and that level of quality was one of the key things people looked for when evaluating elemental crystals.
Even though she'd mixed in some impurities this time, the overall quality was still good enough to catch the shop owner's full attention. Just a few vague hints about future business, and she was already upgraded to VIP.
"Welcome back, magic lady! We've been eagerly waiting to see what you'd bring us this time," said a short, skinny old man, rubbing his hands with a grin.
He looked exactly like one of those shady shopkeepers you'd find in fantasy stories.
"Did you manage to find the stuff I asked for?"
"Certainly, certainly! And I even threw in a few extras. Handpicked from the better end of the pile."
He laid out a stack of neatly organized papers covered in spell diagrams, notes scribbled in different colors and sizes, and several old books that, despite their age, had been well cared for.
"These are the materials we've found so far. Some include advanced-level spells. Will you be paying in full this time, or...?"
"Can I try them out first?"
"Of course, be my guest."
Elara dove right into the documents, flipping through pages quickly and skipping parts she didn't care about.
She pulled out a few sheets, causing the old man to blink in surprise."These are incomplete. Useless," she said bluntly.
"Now tally up the cost. I can pay fully or trade. Anything left over, just convert it into silver coins or checks."
"These are what I'm trading in this time. The quality's a bit lower, last time I gave you the best stuff I had."
The old man's eyes lit up as soon as he took the small bag, a wide grin spreading across his face when he felt the icy energy seeping through the cloth. He peeked inside, and his breath hitched.
Even though it didn't shine like the last one, the value was still obvious. Lower purity, sure, but still way above the norm. In most crystal-rich regions, the top quality only forms at the very center; the outer layers are naturally less pure.
He had braced himself for disappointment, but this went beyond expectations. It was still a huge win. Crystals like these were worth far more than just a few gold coins. "Deal!" he said without hesitation.
Elara left the trading firm with a small bag of silver coins weighing down her backpack. In her hand, she held a plain-looking book with no title or markings, just an ordinary cover. But inside, it was recording the new spell knowledge she'd just gained, visible only to her.
Every spell and note she collected was etched into the book automatically after a legit trade. "Hmm… not a lot of them are usable right now, but that's fine," she mumbled. "I can barely even cast Fireball as it is."
Still, the last deal she made had gotten her a mental focus technique, a method for refining magic, and a whole batch of beginner spells. That alone was a solid foundation. It never hurt to stock up. Elara didn't want to be caught empty-handed when trouble started, especially since...
"If I remember right, North City's supposed to get wiped out once the first Abyss Gate opens," she muttered, scratching her head.
She wondered if she should warn the lord about the cult she suspected was involved. But would anyone believe her? She wasn't important.
And she was especially paranoid about people messing with her mind. This was a fantasy world, after all, who knew if something like a memory-reading spell or a soul-scanning curse existed?
"Better play it safe and keep preparing to run if I have to," she decided.
With that, Elara turned toward the food market.
That brought another thought to mind. 'Technically speaking, Bryella shouldn't need to eat, right?
She just looked human but wasn't really one. So... did she even have a working stomach?' Elara couldn't help but wonder.
***
"Good day, let's get going!"
Belial casually conjured an ice spike in his hand, something that looked like a deadly spear to most people, but to him, it was just a fancy toothpick. He lazily poked at his teeth, not because anything was stuck, but more out of habit.
With how he ate, nothing ever really stayed between his teeth for long, but he liked having something in his mouth anyway.
As usual, his mouth had gotten him into trouble again. He'd accidentally swallowed another wave of beast hordes while yawning. Not that it mattered.
These days, those beast waves weren't showing up as often. Their numbers were shrinking, and the ones that did appear weren't nearly as impressive anymore. Looked like the migration season was finally wrapping up.
That was Belial's guess, at least.
Still, while the beasts were fewer, the ones that remained were built different. Some of them were real monsters, overflowing with ancient mana.
Probably relics from long ago, just now waking up from their deep slumber. "And they keep getting weirder too. Is that normal in this world? The stronger they are, the freakier they look?" he wondered aloud.
A lion with spider legs. A worm covered in snarling beast faces. A stitched-up, two-headed elephant. Every new one looked more absurd than the last.
Some of them even led groups of other powerful creatures, like generals with loyal soldiers. The subordinates weren't any less bizarre, but of course, Belial wiped them all out without breaking a sweat.
They weren't just strong, they were getting smarter. They could plan attacks together, and if things weren't going their way, they'd retreat without hesitation.
Their group magic wasn't something to scoff at either. His usual ice blasts and wind spells, even his breath attacks, were starting to get blocked. The hordes he used to flatten in one breath were now leaving survivors behind.
That was... unexpected.
Not that it made much of a difference. Belial wasn't losing. Honestly, his magic was pretty rough.
It didn't rely on fancy technique or elegance, just overwhelming force powered by his absurd mana pool. His breath attacks were nothing but massive blasts of raw ice energy. No finesse, all destruction.
He'd never really believed that kind of brute force would work forever. So now that it was taking longer to crush these monsters, he figured it was a good time to brush up on his close-quarters combat.
With that thought, Belial rushed in. "Not bad. You actually managed to scratch me."
Out of respect, he didn't go all out from the start. Normally, he could punch through mountains with one hit, but he held back to give the monster a fighting chance.
After playing around for a bit, he ended it with a slap that turned the huge beast into roadkill. Its thick skull shattered like a cracker under his hand.