When it came to the procuration of equipment, there were two primary methods, each dependant entirely on a person's financial status.

The preferred method of procuring equipment was having it made-to-order. This ensured that armor fit properly and, while it may not matter to unskilled individuals, an expert's combat potential would markedly increase when their weapons were properly balanced. Even the construction of a weapon's grip could make a big difference, something many learned at the cost of their lives.

The other method of procuring equipment was buying stock items directly from the display area. These were generally bulk goods and, while there were some high-quality items mixed in, most of them were used goods that had been resold several times. This didn't make them any worse than other pieces of equipment but most of these had formerly been made-to-order, meaning there was a good chance it simply wouldn't feel comfortable for anyone by the original owner to wield.

As could be expected, stock items were much cheaper than made-to-order equipment but, knowing he would undoubtedly encounter situations where he couldn't be choosy, Linnaeus had no problems with purchasing them. They had split the 300,000 bulk Soul Kindling between them so he had 75,000 on hand for purchasing equipment.

While it wouldn't allow him to purchase the highest-quality equipment, 75,000 Soul Kindling was a fair amount, even if he wanted to purchase made-to-order stuff. In Linnaeus' mind, however, each of these Soul Kindling was a precious resource and, while it would be beneficial to acquire proper gear, he didn't want to bankrupt himself in the process.

One of the main factors resulting in his frugality was the fact that his [Barrier Aura] basically replaced the need for heavy or restrictive armor. He trusted it far more than any protective equipment, even if his death was all but guaranteed once he ran out of SP. Since this would be the case, irrespective of whether or not he had decent armor, Linnaeus felt it was better to purchase accessories that allowed for quicker SP regeneration, rather than waste Soul Kindling on items that would potentially restrict his movement.

To this end, Linnaeus purchased two shortswords of relatively decent quality before visiting one of Central City's various auction houses. These were places where exceptionally rare materials, high-quality Elixers, and artifacts of various quality could be found. The latter were items found whilst exploring the various regions of the Fifth Floor, items seemingly produced naturally by the mystic forces at play behind the scenes.

Though it would be possible to have an accessory made by a skilled Craftsman, Linnaeus wanted to investigate the Auction Houses, at least once. They seemed relatively popular amongst the populace and, if rumors were to be believed, it was possible to obtain valuable items at a significantly reduced cost, albeit very rarely.

What brought Linnaeus to the Auction House was not these rumors but the fact that it was the only place that really traded in Artifacts. There were even some on display in the showroom, purchasable by anyone willing to fork over the display value on the spot.

Most of the display items were objects that had failed to sell in the past so you might expect their prices to be marked down in order to get rid of them. To Linnaeus' annoyance, however, the prices seemed hiked up, rather than discounted.

Seeing the display values, Linnaeus was certain that the Auction House, in order to recoup losses, increased the posted value of the items in order to take advantage of anyone looking to avoid the actual auction. He even found a ring that increased SP Regeneration by 7%, something that would cost around 40,000 Soul Kindling outside, listed at 90,000. The justification for this markup? It was a low-grade Artifact that 'might' have a hidden quality to it...

It only took a few minutes of exploring the showroom for Linnaeus to realize that the entire Auction House was a scam. This had been obvious from the very beginning but, seeing how shameless they were with their display pieces, he couldn't help but shake his head in exasperation as he turned away and made his way toward the exit.

In order to entice customers into spending their Soul Kindling, there were various showgirls present in the room, many of which had tantalizing figures, pretty faces, and ornate dresses that accentuated their various racial traits. There was even a Manalyte girl with pale-blue hair and star-shaped pupils but, with how Linnaeus was dressed, none of the onsite girls were willing to approach him.

While looks could go a long way in certain situations, the girls present were all working for partial commissions, not seeking partners. They acted flirtatious when needed but, if you didn't have the money to throw your weight around, you might as well have maximum level [Stealth], as they would pretend you didn't even exist.

Linnaeus obviously didn't care about their behavior as he had already lost interest in the Auction House entirely. He had no interest in being scammed and, while he still wanted to obtain an Artifact, it wasn't a pressing matter. For now, he would just find a capable Jeweler or Craftsman and, while it may cost most of his remaining Kindling, it may make the difference between life and death when their Party reached the Hell Hole.

Though they still intended to visit the Monster Ant Colony, Linnaeus was making preparations for their inevitable exploration of the Hell Hole. There, his [Barrier Aura] would be their most important asset so, in order to make sure he could continually power all four auras, he wanted to find methods to increase his SP Regeneration.

While it was possible to supplement SP with the use of consumable items, every competent Magic user focused more on increasing their passive regeneration. After all, items that restored enough SP to be of any real use were generally very expensive. Since it was possible to increase your passive regen to the point that it had similar returns to mass-produced items, it was the obvious route to go for anyone reliant on their SP reserves.

Linnaeus' current SP Regen was around 200 SP per minute and, while this wasn't exactly bad, it was far from ideal. Even the most basic [Barrier] cost a minimum of 50 SP to manifest so he would quickly run low on SP in the midst of active combat. While this was negligible against weak enemies, he had met several people that could even shatter barriers with more than 500 SP invested in them, a cruel reality he had no choice but to face head-on.

With the way the Equipment system worked, Linnaeus could wear up to ten unique accessories to enhance his attributes and capabilities. The only problem with this was that accessories produced by people had 'shared' effects, meaning only the most powerful effect could be active at any given moment. This was the reason why Artifacts were so important as, unlike hand-crafted goods, they each had 'unique' effects.

If he had enough Soul Kindling, Linnaeus could potentially double his SP Regeneration for around 600,000-900,000. Since this was almost enough to buy back his life, he obviously wasn't going to fork over such an exorbitant amount but, when he finally returned to the Tower, it was something to look into...

For now, Linnaeus settled by finding a Jewelry shop called 'The Dragon's Horde Jewelers', finding the name and sign rather eye-catching. Inside, he found three identical girls who, despite being around 120cm in height, appeared to be older than him based on their facial structure. Though it was hard to be certain, he would guess their age to be around mid-to-late twenties, even if their hair, styled in neat brown pigtails, made them seem younger.

Hearing the bell of their shop ring, all three girls looked over to the entrance before the closest one skipped over to Linnaeus' side, a practiced smile on her face as she asked, "Dear customer, is there anything we can help you with today~? If you're looking for something as a gift, we have plenty of pretty trinkets and baubles that would make an appropriate present~."

Since Linnaeus was wearing what amounted to rags in the eyes of most Central City dwellers, most people didn't really see him as an actual customer. The girls assumed he was just a window shopper that wandered inside for a better look but, regardless of whether or not this was the case, they still gave him the basic courtesy of a greeting.

In truth, Linnaeus opted to dress down in order to have people underestimate him so he didn't take offense to the obvious chagrin visible in the girl's eyes. Instead, he maintained a calm disposition as he plainly stated, "I would like to have something made-to-order. Before that, I will look around to gauge the quality and your display goods."

Hearing that Linnaeus wanted to have something made, the girl was more than a little surprised but, rather than let it show on her face, her business smile became more 'sincere' as she happily escorted him over to the displays. At the same time, one of her sisters went to grab measuring tools while the other grabbed a catalog that listed various materials and their expected effects.

Seeing how well the three worked together, Linnaeus felt that his choice in Jewelers wasn't that bad. Their prices seemed to be within an acceptable range as well since, in the center display, there was an ornate silver ring set with a sapphire. It not only looked nice, but it had the effect of increasing a person's Intelligence by +2 and, more importantly, their SP Regeneration by 10%.

While 10% was far from the strongest possible effect, higher values increased the cost of an item exponentially. This could be seen by comparing the ring to another one in the same display, a pale-gold ring set with an emerald that increased SP Regeneration by 17%. It cost a monstrous 310,000 Soul Kindling, a monstrous increase when directly compared to the 47,000 price tag on the sapphire ring...

Had he been lucky, Linnaeus would have been able to walk away with the sapphire ring in hand but, due to his rather diminutive size, it was far too big for him. This alone didn't really bother him but, learning that the ring was intended to be worn by women, he couldn't help but hang his head a bit as one of the sisters measured the circumference of his ring finger...

Generally speaking, it was better to acquire an amulet or a wristlet but, as these were far beyond his means to purchase, Linnaeus had to settle on a ring slightly too big. Fortunately, this could still be worn around the neck on a specialized chain, granting the same effect.

Linnaeus ended up choosing a silver compound to serve as the base of his ring, one which lacked the characteristic shininess of normal silver. As for the gemstone, he surprised the girls by providing a fragment of Jadite Ore and a pale-purple opal that he had prepared beforehand. This caused the girls to spontaneously treat him like an important customer but, same as before, Linnaeus kept his usual calm and composed demeanor in response to their pestering...

Once the terms of the contract were finalized, Linnaeus paid out 68,420 Soul Kindling to have his ring produced, not by the three girls, but their father. Like them, he was also considerably short but, without any other discernible traits, Linnaeus couldn't really ascertain what tribe they belonged to. Since this didn't really matter, however, he sealed the contract and agreed to pick up the ring after three days. From then, he would have up to a year to claim the ring or, like some of the other display pieces, it would become the property of the shop. This was an important clause as, in the past, there had been many cases of people simply dying before they claimed their goods.

Had he heard this previously, Linnaeus would have assumed there was some scheme afoot but, after gathering information prior to the transaction, he knew this was the norm. He didn't doubt there had been instances where this clause had been taken advantage of but, considering the ring in question was only worth around 70,000 Soul Kindling, he doubted a shop that likely earned millions per year would resort to such underhanded methods.