Lord of the Sky City

However, despite his earnest persuasion, Rocky, although exasperated, still shook his head, "Monte, you should know, I don’t have much money."

After saying this, he ignored Monte’s reaction and directly turned to the shop owner, "Owner, give me a hundred of these shields."

And after saying this, he even asked, "Do you have more armor like this?"

"Yes! Yes!"

The sly-smiling owner quickly nodded and, just like before, went to the back of the shop and brought out another set of armor.

This armor, just like the previous shields, were counterfeit magical equipment. They looked no different from regular magic armor, but in actuality, they were embedded with micro magic stones that had no effect whatsoever.

This type of armor, as well as the prior shields, seemed like magical equipment, but were actually equivalent to ordinary equipment; however, these items had one advantage—they were cheap!

A hundred sets of armor and a hundred shields together cost only six thousand gold coins, and after some bargaining, Rocky actually spent only five thousand gold coins to buy all two hundred pieces.

Without a doubt, this price was incredibly cheap, because if the same five thousand gold coins were used to buy real magic energy equipment, even the lowest one-star magic energy gear, he could only buy at most twenty pieces. That is to say, the price difference between the real and fake items was more than tenfold!

It didn’t take much time for Rocky to complete this transaction. He also arranged with the owner that early next morning, he would have all the equipment he purchased delivered to the skyship, where they would settle the payment.

And throughout all this, Rocky did not try to avoid Monte, so his various actions were all seen by Monte, making Monte even more disappointed.

Thus, after Rocky finished the transaction and left the shop, Monte, who had been silent until then, suddenly spoke up.

"Sir, I’m heading back first."

After saying this to Rocky and even without waiting for Rocky’s response, Monte turned and left right away.

Clearly, though he didn’t say much, his behavior spoke volumes; Monte obviously left filled with anger.

And watching his receding figure, Liliya glanced at Rocky, "Aren’t you going to explain to him?"

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"Explain what?"

Turning to Liliya, Rocky’s expression was helpless, "In front of everyone, should I tell him about the mana runes?"

After saying this, Rocky looked in the direction Monte had left, not worried but rather nodding in satisfaction.

He certainly knew that Monte was disappointed with him because of the recent incident, but he wasn’t in a hurry, because it was clearly a misunderstanding.

Rocky hadn’t gone to great lengths to purchase a batch of fake Mana Equipment because he truly wanted to save money at the expense of his guards’ lives. Indeed, it wasn’t Monte who cared the most about the Thunderhawk City Guard Squad, but Rocky himself!

That was the only armed force under his command, which was bound to play a significant role now and in the future. How could Rocky possibly joke about their lives? He would never engage in such self-destructive behavior.

In fact, he had bought the counterfeit Mana Equipment precisely to increase the survival chances of the Thunderhawk City guards in future battles.

Because only with such fake Mana Equipment could the real Mana Runes function effectively!

As he had said many times before, with the current strength of Rocky and Thunderhawk City, the Mana Runes could not be exposed carelessly. Hence, Rocky had to devise a way to maximize their effect without revealing them.

That was the rationale behind the transaction just now. Although the Mana Equipment he had just purchased was fake and couldn’t exert the power of genuine Mana Equipment, the problem would be solved if Rocky drew Mana Runes on this gear!

Once runes were inscribed on these fake pieces of Mana Equipment, they would become authentic rune equipment!

And why had Rocky specifically chosen to buy shields and Armor? Among all the types of equipment, these two were the most expensive. If he had merely wanted to economize, he could have simply bought wrist guards or even helmets, which are far cheaper.

Yet Rocky did not do so. He specifically chose Armor and shields because more Mana Runes could be drawn on these two items. He estimated that at least fifty First Level Runes could be applied to the Armor and shields, enough to bring their defensive power to the level of One Star Magic Energy Gear!

More importantly, this approach wouldn’t allow the Mana Runes to be easily exposed. No one would suspect that these pieces of Mana Equipment were embedded only with Micro Magic Stones, while the actual source of Mana was the Runes.

This solution was the best Rocky could conceive at this stage. It would not expose the top-tier technology of the Mana Runes, while subtly allowing the Mana Runes to unleash their effects. Indeed, it was a strategy that killed two birds with one stone.

Unfortunately, the only person who understood his intentions was Liliya. Others, such as Monte, would completely misunderstand him.

However, Rocky wasn’t worried about Monte’s misunderstanding. Instead, he felt that this incident had allowed him to understand Monte better.

Although he had always wanted to recruit Monte to his side, the two had known each other for such a short time that Rocky had always been apprehensive about Monte’s character. He wasn’t recruiting Monte just to work under him; he wanted to build his own team!

Monte’s behavior today, however, gave Rocky a deeper understanding of him. Moreover, the straightforward nature displayed by the Beastmen greatly appealed to Rocky.

So, although Monte had left in a huff, this reaction was instead seen as a validation by Rocky. He also believed that once he explained everything, the Beastman would surely understand him.

Under these circumstances, he didn’t chase after Monte. Instead, he soon went on a leisurely walk through the weapon market with Liliya, and they didn’t return to their hotel until evening.

The day had not only resulted in a successful deal but also exposed him to much of the world. The weapon market in Eternal City was extremely vast and offered an array of equipment, including Floating Warships and Void Magic Armor.

After Monte left, Rocky and Liliya focused their attention on the Void Magic Armor and Skyships. They visited several large stores in succession, not returning until their legs were weak. This round of exploration made Rocky feel that he was finally on track with the world.

For he had not realized until he saw for himself; up to now, he had been a frog at the bottom of a well. The age had left Thunderhawk City far, far behind...