Rufus would have to go through some intense training due to his lacking skills and talent with the sword.

He had to compensate with his hard work to achieve a satisfactory result in a short amount of time.

​​

'Master… I heard about many Sword Arts, like Fencing, Krima, Dao Arts, and various sword arts being practiced within the military and the Knights Order… However, Kendo is completely unheard of…'

'That's normal. This sword style came from somewhere faraway… However, you have a couple of senior Kendo Practitioners roaming around this kingdom. So it wouldn't be long until many people would know about this sword art…'

'Only two practitioners? I see… I'll work hard, master.'

'Can you tell me their names, Master?'

'Mhmm… If you reached 3-Dan under my guidance, then I'll tell you their names. One of them is quite a feisty individual, if she knows that you're practicing Kendo, she'll definitely challenge you to a duel. So you have to get stronger first…'

'Oh… I'll do my best!'

Rufus already heard a little about the ranking of practicing kendo so he couldn't help but be excited to learn it…

'We purchased a lot of things today.'

For now, they have to return to the Tower with the things they purchased, they quite have a lot of things with them so Ruthren helped them carry the things until the tower's gate.

They were then assisted by the guards assigned at the post after seeing Rufus's identity.

'Ruthren, stay within that inn in the meantime. We still have no idea about those two's locations.'

'I understand…'

'Very well. I'll contact you again once I made some plans for you.'

Reiji was hoping that Rufus can be promoted so the latter can take his slave as his servant and ensure Ruthren's safety.

'Are you going to see the merchants now?' Reiji asked after they placed all the things they bought in his room.

'Yes… I heard that the Silver Trident has some valuable gems…'

'Gems?'

'I don't think you're interested in jewelry so I assume that it has something to do with weapon crafting?'

'You're right, Master Reiji. Aside from the beast cores, only gemstones can provide some boost to the weapons or items we're creating…'

'What's the difference?'

'Mhmm… There's a huge difference between the two. The enhancements or arcane magic you can have from the Evil Beast's cores would depend on the traits that the body previously have. On the other hand, a gemstone, even if it was exposed to various sources of Spiritual Energy, would have the same enhancements… For example, a processed Bloodstone would always contain focusing properties… This gem would then be used for Magic Weapons that require preciseness with their Arcane Magic…'

Rufus did his best to explain it briefly and could be easily understood by his master. He knows that Reiji wasn't well-versed by Magic Crafting so he wasn't giving him such difficult terms.

'Mhmm… Does it mean that anyone can place magical properties with the gems as long as they have control with Spiritual Energy?'

'Ahh… That's correct, Master…'

Rufus answered as he was glad that his master could easily follow. He was impressed by this sword's way of thinking.

'However, pouring Spiritual Energy to the gems wouldn't be enough and it would normally take a long process. Nevertheless, as long as you have Spiritual Energy control, it can be done.'

'It's complicated, huh… Let's see this Silver Trident then…'

Reiji said as he urged Rufus to visit the hall assigned for the trading company.

As expected, the hall was filled with people and was quite noisy.

Aside from the gems that they most certainly have, they have various materials being sold… From beast parts to some special products from faraway villages can be seen throughout the whole space provided for the company.

"Rufus! I thought you're not coming… Come! Follow us! They will be selling some Prehnite now…" Chrisome called for his friend after seeing the lonely Rufus looking around the stalls set up.

"Prehnite? Alright, I'm coming…" Rufus immediately went in his direction…

Reiji recalled the powdered Prehnite from Ruthren… After all, this item was the reason why the bandit targeted the carriages before.*

In the end, they were blocked by Reiji and turned into his slaves.

This Prehnite should be an item that can be used even by normal people to improve their Enhanced Weapons…

'Why do you need this Prehnite?' Reiji curiously asked while the young man was busy following his friend.

'Ahh… They're quite important in the creation of low-level Magic Items... Its main purpose was to helps us add a couple or three more Arcane Magic to our creation. Isn't that amazing?'

'Well… That's indeed very important…' Reiji realized that the Prehnite was indeed useful.

'Yes… Although they're not that rare, this Prehnite was recently a target by a lot of bandit groups so we are lacking for quite a while now… I heard that they are using it to just strengthen their Enhanced Weapons… Haa~ It's such a waste of material, we could've used it for a much more meaningful purpose.'

Rufus complained after remembering how difficult it was to acquire this material. Even now, they have to buy it as quickly as possible before the supply runs out…

'I see… The problem is the method of transportation and not the production…' Reiji commented after he heard his explanation.

'Are they selling a powdered Prehnite?'

'Yes, Master…'

'How much it costs for a sack?'

Reiji still remembers that they have taken six sacks of Prehnite from the flipped carriage and brought 3 sacks in their journey since they have a lot of things to carry.

The other materials and weapons were left at the treehouses acting as the bandit's base of operations. Whether they were found by random people or not, it doesn't really matter since they were stolen things.

As for the three sacks, they decided not to sell them yet since they still have a lot of money…

'A sack? Mhmmm… A pouch would cost us 10 golds each, Master…'

'I see. That's good to hear.' Reiji was glad that the powdered Prehnite they brought here with them wasn't that useless at all.

***

Rufus bought a couple of pouches containing Prehnite and various types of gemstones for his later use.

Finally, before the day ended, they heard an announcement telling them about the result of the Evaluation!

He immediately went to the hall where the rankings are listed…

[ Evaluation Result ]

[ The names that are not written failed to pass the evaluation and would be escorted out in three days. They would be given a chance to work at the affiliated Arcanist Association's Branch within the Southern Region of the Kingdom. ]

[ 1. Rufus Magnolia ]

[ 2. Lexi Ahren ]

[ 3. Ned Felan ]

[ 4. Kathy Forde ]

[ 5. Lee Shannan ]

…

The names continued until the number 54. This means that 6 trainees failed the evaluation.

Below the list of the passers, another list was posted about the people who were promoted.

Apparently, there are 16 who got promoted to a higher status and will receive more benefits in the following year until the next evaluation.

On the other hand, there's another list of 5 trainees who qualify for being permanent residents of the Tower!

They were Rufus, Lexi, Chrisome, Nika, and Ned! It was all because of their outstanding performance and the Magic Item they presented in the 3rd Evaluation!

Rufus couldn't help but be happy after seeing the result. After all, he was only aiming for a promotion to get higher benefits but not to be a red-robed member!

Everyone who passed the evaluation celebrated especially those who got promoted…

After a while, the five young Arcanists who qualified for being permanent members were called to the highest floor to meet the two Second Class Arcanists…

***

'Hey, Reiji… We're almost done with our preparation… Are you sure that you have enough resistance? Not just corrosion, but there's also the intense fire that you have to worry about.'

Odette suddenly connected to Reiji.

Apparently, during their discussion before, they asked about his Resistance against various status ailments…

They said that the place where the Cursed Mask was hidden, was in an extraordinary environment and not many Arcanists could get in…

'Yes… Don't worry, I have enough resistance…'

Reiji replied after hearing the Wand Arcana…

If he actually doesn't have the Resistance he needed, Yui was planning to spend some money to cast protection Arcane Magic to Reiji…

This Arcane Magic requires them to use materials that can only be used once… Unfortunately, Yui can't use it to people and only effective with objects, like Magic Weapons or Arcana…

Of course, if she could cast it with Odette to take the job, she'll do it. However, the Wand was required to cast the Arcane Magic and it can't be cast to the caster. This is why they needed Reiji's help…

With all that said, Reiji's task was to turn off the defenses within that room from the inside. After this, Yui and Odette would have 15 seconds to steal the Mask and make it seem like nothing has happened within that treasure room…