Chapter 17: Chapter 17: Gifts

“Hey, I remember when this kid was new.”

“Shut up.”

“He was so cocky, I mean, he said he’d take me down with him if he had a hard time with a job!”

“Hahaha!”

“Oh god.”

I covered my face as Rayla laughed her ass off. 

After an hour or so, we were all tipsy from the high quality drinks this restaurant served. The food we ordered was also fantastically high class. I stuffed my face with some cubes of meat to distract from the embarrassing memories. 

Libitus nodded and spoke while chewing. 

“Yea, but in his defense, his summons are pretty crazy. Five months later and he was able to survive even in the Trenches. He can kill people far above his level.”

“Well, no thanks to Maxwell. How you managed to land that man as a teacher is beyond me.”

Plex was flabbergasted while tilting back another drink. 

I raised my glass to Libitus.

“Thanks man.”

“Still stupid for trying to challenge Plex though.”

“Then I take back my thanks.”

“Hahaha…”

Libitus laughed as I stuck up my middle finger.

At that moment, Rayla suddenly clapped. 

“Oh! We still need to do presents!”

“Presents!”

I cheered as Rayla stood and went to a corner of the room. 

There, she grabbed a couple boxes. One was big, and one was small.

“Open the big one first!”

Libitus smiled as Rayla handed the big box to me. 

I grabbed it from her, feeling a bit of weight. 

“This is from all of us and Maxwell.”

“Maxwell?”

“Yes. I’m pretty sure he pitched in the most out of us all.”

“Heh, not that he isn’t wiping his ass with gold paper.”

Plex chuckled as I opened the box. 

Inside, I could see a piece of clothing. But not just any ordinary clothing. 

I took out the item, unfurling it and finding that it was a coat, not unlike the one I had bought a while ago. 

Except, although it was a black long coat, it had purple lines branching from the spine outward toward the edges. They occasionally pulsed, like veins connected to a beating heart.

“It’s a coat made from the pelt of a Hybrid Mind Beast. These hybrids are basically a combination of two branches of Magi. This one is both a Summoner and Knight.. They’re rare, and even harder to kill. Not only that, but this pelt is made from the most expensive part of their body, the spinal column.”

“Basically, it’s fucking expensive and if you die while wearing that, you’ll be the biggest joke of the kingdom.”

Plex summed up, causing Rayla to kick his leg. 

“Don’t listen to him. We know that your weakness is defense, so this should make up for a good portion of that. It goes down to your knees, so it even protects most of your legs. Just be careful of what it doesn’t protect, like your head and feet. Also, although the coat won’t break, the impact can still hurt you. This won’t make you invincible. It even has some utility when activated that can help you in battles.”

“Of course. This is more than enough. Thank you, everyone. I’ll take care of it.”

“We got it to take care of you, so keep yourself safe.”

Libitus gave me a warm smile. 

After that, Rayla handed me the small box. She hastened me to open it. 

“Oh! It’s this!”

I was surprised as I pulled out a bracelet. 

It was a Spatial Sack. I had gone and looked for some myself since I was thinking about buying one and knew what they looked like. 

In fact, the Polaris Bank sold a line of them. This seemed to be one of those.

“This is a Polaris Brand Spatial Sack. It doesn’t have a lot of room, no more than a chest full of worth. But we mainly chose this one for its functionality. With it, you can directly will items into your hand. Its ease of use is worth much more than the potential sheer space. The bracelet also locks to your arm, so it won’t be stolen unless someone cuts it off you.”

“That’s cool! Thanks you guys!”

I smiled while slipping it onto my right wrist, same place that my Aerial was. The bracelet went a bit higher up the forearm before clamping down comfortably. 

After that, it seemed to scan my Crest before activating with a pulse of blue light. Then I suddenly became aware of the space inside the bracelet. 

It really was about a chest sized area, about 4 cubic feet big. So while it couldn’t be used to store any significant amount of supplies, it was enough for any small items I needed. 

For instance, instead of needing to take a recovery pill out of a container within my pocket, I could just make one appear in my hand and pop it into my mouth. 

With this, I wouldn’t need to carry anything on my person, so nothing would get lost or stolen. 

These two gifts that I was given were valuable, especially the coat. I couldn’t imagine how much was spent on it if not just Maxwell, but everyone here pitched in for it. 

It was a big gift, making me feel really grateful. 

These were the first friends I had in this world. After leaving behind everything I knew, I suppose that I had been ignoring the homesickness and focusing on making my way here. 

But now, I wasn’t so homesick. 

“Thank you guys, really.”

Getting slightly emotional, I got up and went around hugging everyone. 

Plex was the last, and as I stood in front of him, he looked up at me weirdly.

“You’re gonna make me get up?”

“Come on. An apprentice can thank his master with a hug, no? Besides, you gave me this job when I needed it most. Despite everything, I’m still thankful for all you’ve done for me.”

“Eh, fine. I can have a heart.”

Standing up, the man accepted the hug with a pat on the back. 

After that, the party went on for a little while longer before ending a bit before the sun came up. 

When everyone finally decided to go, it was Libitus who pulled something out of his jacket. 

“Hey! Let’s all take a picture!”

“With what?”

“This thing I got. The guy who sold it said it would make physical copies.”

He fumbled around with a magical device that looked similar to my bank card. As he was still a bit drunk, he was less coordinated. 

But he got it set up and waved everyone over with a smile. We all bundled together, looking into the card with smiles.

“Wait, what about Tovex?”

“He’s passed out.”

“Dumbass. Whatever. Smile!”

Raising it above us, Libitus activated the device with magic. 

It flashed, and he brought it down. After that, it divided into five cards. 

“One for everybody. As a memory.”

“This is cool.”

I smiled at the flexible card that now had a picture of the four of us. 

Libitus with a goofy grin, Rayla putting up two fingers, Plex barely keeping himself standing with a drunken face. Tovex in the back on the ground and with his ass in the air.

I put the picture into my bracelet, feeling fuzzy on the inside.

It reminded me of home.

……

Rayla and I were still in the room after everyone had left. I guess they had tacitly decided to give us our own space, as if we were dating. Not that our relationship was that far from it. 

And when it was just the two of us, I finally got to focus on perhaps the greatest thing about this reserved room in this high class restaurant. 

One of the walls was completely glass, and since this place was near the center of the city and so high up, it gave a clear view of the surrounding landscape. 

I could see the morning rays light up the sides of hundreds of buildings around the Kingdom’s capital. I could even see part of the Royal Palace in all its marvelous golden glory. 

It was a breathtaking sight, and I ended up staring at it for a long time. 

Rayla took a seat with me, staring out the window for a while before reaching over. 

She placed a small box in my lap. I looked over at her as she smiled. 

“A personal gift from yours truly.”

“...”

I was silent as I opened the box with care. 

Inside were a pair of gloves. 

The gloves that Plex had me wear when I first got here were now worn, torn in some places. But since they were for the purpose of covering my crest, I didn’t care much. Besides, worn could have its own charm. 

Then again, the gloves also helped prevent blisters from wielding all the guns I did. 

But regardless of all that, this was a personal present from Rayla. 

I took them out. They were black and fingerless like my current ones. But these seemed to be made of high quality leather, much better than the others. 

And on the back of the right hand were four letters written in red. 

Bang

I smiled at the thought, and Rayla seemed a bit embarrassed. 

“I thought, since your summons always explode when you shoot them, it would be fitting. Anyway, the gloves are far better than your current ones. They should be comfortable and have good grip, and the leather shouldn’t ever get worn down or tear from normal use…”

“They’re great.”

I spoke after a moment, putting the new gloves on. They really were comfortable, but more than that, they came from a good friend. 

“...You know, when I arrived here, I had literally nothing but the clothes on my back. I’ll never be able to see my family or friends again, and everything that was ever familiar to me is now gone forever.”

“...”

Rayla was silent, not expecting my sudden confession. 

I sighed as I looked out the window. As if it already hadn’t, the reality of my situation was hitting me hard. 

“I knew nobody. But I was lucky to be caught by Plex and dragged into this business. After that I met Libitus. And then, I met you.”

I looked over, seeing Rayla hang her head. 

Then she suddenly leaned over, resting her temple against my shoulder. I wrapped my arm around her at the same time. 

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“I’m really glad I met you, Rayla. It’s hard to make genuine friends, especially in a new place. So I feel lucky that you happened to be at the company I got dragged into.”

“...Yea. I guess I’m lucky too.”

She spoke softly, her blood red hair brushing against my neck as she settled in deeper. 

We watched the sun come up, and it was only when I heard her snoring that I figured it was time to go. 

I picked her up and left the market, taking her to my room in the hotel. 

It was there that I laid her down in my bed before jumping in myself. It was more than big enough for the two of us, so I was comfortable as I let the warmth of the alcohol take my consciousness away. 

……

…

I woke up unpleasantly to an alarm. Taking a few minutes, I eventually glanced at my eternally closed windows seeing the high sun of noon.

Today was the first day of Magisterium entries that I needed to be in the city for. It was also my first day of efforts to flip my sleeping schedule back to normal. That would be hard since the light of day now made me drowsy. 

Glancing over, I could see Rayla still sound asleep next to me. Her sleeping face was adorable with her hair draped across her lips. 

Despite supposedly being that much older than me, she only looked to be in her late 20’s. But there was no mistaking the mature charm she carried, which made her seem a bit older. 

She really was a beautiful woman. Being active with this job made her body toned and strong. And as I had discovered during our night together, her scars only made her that much hotter. 

After staring for longer than I should have, I finally pulled myself out of bed. 

I cleaned myself up and got dressed. Today was the first day of our auction runs, but since I had school to deal with, I wouldn’t be participating. 

I was probably missing out on a few dozen gold bullion, which made me groan in financial pain. 

When I was basically prepared to leave, I suddenly remembered the new coat I had received as a gift last night. 

I operated the similarly new spatial bracelet, letting the coat appear in my grasp. 

Even lower end clothing like the one I bought for 80 gold bullion was equipped with all manner of pleasant enhancements like self cleaning, temperature control, and more. 

This black coat had all those things and more. 

But the most obvious part of this item were the purple lines that looked like blood vessels spreading from the spine of the back. 

I looked at the formations with a clearer head. 

Down the back from the collar to the tailbone, I could see a long series of thick ridges. It really looked like a spinal column, just like Rayla had described. 

And from these vertebrae were all these lines that sprouted outward, spreading around to the front of the coat. 

Perhaps they were more like nerves instead of blood vessels. Either way, all these lines consistently pulsed with the bloom of purple. 

Until I put it on. 

When I slipped my arms through the sleeves, I could feel the coat suddenly pulse with a wave of magic. It reminded me of the first time I got hit by magic during my first heavyweight job, a pulse of mana that disrupted my insides. 

Except this seemed to envelop me with it, scanning my body and conforming the leather to it. 

Then, I felt something make contact with my mind. It was like I suddenly became aware of a new limb, the coat being the limb. 

This connection allowed me to see every detail of the coat. I could practically feel it, like it was a second skin. 

And after a few moments, the magic disappeared, and I found that the spinal column of the coat was now seated along my own spine. It moved with my body yet refused to let go, making it stick like a magnet. 

This was a good thing, of course. This meant it would stay snug while I moved, not restricting my movements or getting annoying. 

More than all that, it was incredibly comfortable. While the leather was surprisingly thick, the weight was negligible and the feel against my body was divine. It didn’t stick or feel abrasive. I wasn’t sure how to describe it, but it felt like how I did in my bed when I woke up under the covers during a cold morning. 

Another thing I noticed was that after the coat had bonded to my body, the pulsing of those purple lines ceased. They faded into a barely faint purple, no longer active like how it had been. 

Unless you paid attention to it, it would appear like a normal black coat. 

I was glad, far more than satisfied with this gift. While the connection it formed was mysterious, I assumed it had to do with those abilities Rayla had told me about.

After that, I also threw on my gloves. I smiled when I saw Bang on the back of the right hand. It was cute, even cuter when I thought of how Rayla had asked for it to be put there. 

“Hmm…”

Suddenly, I heard Rayla’s moan as she shifted in my bed. 

It wasn’t long after that she came strolling out of my room, her clothes a mess and her eyes squinting from drowsiness. 

“...So this is your fancy room, huh?”

She spoke and cleared her throat while looking around. 

This hotel room, as expected from the Black Spider Hotel, was more than luxurious. It had an amazing bathroom, heavenly bed, and high quality interior. The living room had soft carpets and plush couches along with a few decorations, one of which was a painting of some crazy complicated spell formation. 

I chuckled a bit. 

“Yea, its a bit better than the one at the other hotel I had.”

“It’s better than my entire apartment.”

“Speaking of, why haven’t you moved into something like a house?”

“What do you think I’m saving up for?”

She smirked at me while walking into the kitchen, grabbing a glass and filling it with water. 

She spoke after taking a sip. 

“Houses in the city are expensive. I could easily buy a mansion in any other city, but I don’t want to leave this place. So I’ve been saving to get a property on the outskirts, a bit of a distance from the Founder’s Market.”

“And yet you pitched in how much to get me this coat?”

I raised my brow at her. I really was curious as to how much they spent on me, since I was now planning on paying it back in some way.

She snickered at me. 

“Nice try, John. It was a gift, so you have no choice but to accept it. Besides, we actually don’t know how much that coat cost. It was Maxwell who put in the order, and we’re sure he paid a lot more than the combination of what we put into it. But as Plex said, its not like the man isn’t wiping his ass with gold paper. Still, you should be thanking him.”

“I would, but I actually haven’t seen him lately.”

I scratched my head. Ever since a few days ago, Maxwell had disappeared from the Polaris headquarters. I hadn’t been to a class in around a week due to that.

Rayla changed the subject.

“You’re going to the Magisterium, right?”

“Yea, although the entrance day is tomorrow, Maxwell told me to come a day early to get things sorted.”

“Yes, especially for you since you’re already Authority 3. As a forewarning, your summons will be tested and you’ll be questioned. They’ll probably ask you things about where you got the spell formations, so have an answer prepared. And, the Polaris Family is not really an answer, nor is Maxwell. I would just say that you’re coming from a magic school in another city.”

“Oh, alright.”

I nodded at the valid explanation. It wasn’t like I had anything else. 

Rayla nodded.

“Yea, say that you’re from the Magic Academy of Haelsverg. I’ve heard of people who have used that excuse.”

“Sure. Thanks.”

“Of course. Think of it as payment for letting me use your room a bit longer. It is way too early and I need my beauty sleep. Oh, this coat looks good on you too.”

She walked over, straightening out my collar. 

Then, she leaned in and gave me a hug. 

“Have fun.”

“You know I’m not leaving forever, right? The Magisterium is close, so I’ll still be trying to work.”

“Yes, but not nearly as much as you were. You’ll be lucky to have free time a couple times a week, especially if you’re jumping into the higher ranks. So don’t worry about coming in. Just focus on getting stronger. That’s what will make you the big money.”

We separated, after which she walked by me and smacked my ass. 

“Now get going, sweet cheeks. The Magisterium doesn’t work at night like the black market.”

“Heh, alright.”

With a laugh, I finally left the room, letting Rayla have her way with it. 

Making my way down, I saw the Key Master at the clerk counter, as always. 

I questioned. 

“Do you ever sleep?”

“Oh, John! Good afternoon, and no, I don’t sleep. A full time job requires full time attention!”

“Sheesh. I hope they’re making you rich with all this work. Are the benefits at least good?”

“I would say so.”

He smiled at me charmingly.

“Off to the Magisterium?”

“I am. That reminds me. You said I would get a room until I entered. Well, that time has come.”

“Indeed. But don’t fret. The Magisterium will naturally provide you with residence, so you will no longer need my assistance. Although, I can’t say that the stay there will be quite as pleasant.”

“Well of course not. I won’t have the hospitality of the Key Master.”

“Haha, you flatter me.”

The man chuckled, and I put out my hand.

“Thank you for everything Key Master. Really. You’ve made my life much more bearable with your assistance. Hopefully one day I can pay everything back.”

“...”

The Key Master was silent as he looked at my hand for a few moments. 

Then, as if pushing past hesitation, he reached out and shook it. 

Our gloved hands clasped as we both smiled. 

“It is my pleasure, John Cooper. Oh, and take this.”

Retracting his hand, he suddenly went digging through his coat. 

Then, he took out a gold key. This was a step above the silver key I was given when taking residence. 

I grabbed it as he spoke.

“Please, come back any time you need, John. Your room will remain as it has been.”

“Ah, Key Master, you’re making me feel like a leech. Well, I had also been thinking of what I can do, so here.”

Suddenly I summoned 6 bullets. Unlike normal spirits like guns and such, these bullets could be summoned and kept permanently in the real world since they were consumable.

I placed the bullets on his desk, with slight embarassment.

“Anything you need me to do Key Master, you just tell me and I’ll do it. Of course, I’m not strong enough to do anything significant now, but give me time and I’m sure you’ll have a valuable asset to help you when you want it. 6 bullets for 6 promises.”

“I see. Very well. I will accept your promise. 6 bullets for 6 promises.”

“Thank you.”

“No, thank you. And have a nice day, John.”

With that exchange, I finally left the hotel. 

My destination was the Magisterium, the most prestigious magic college in the kingdom. 

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