Chapter 57 Hated

Although its durability is still very low compared to the Cryogenic Sleep Chamber, it is still quite decent considering it's just made of wood!

Vincent has been worrying about the durability of his weapons all this time.

Whenever he uses the cane with its Crush Attribute, its durability was also getting affected. This is why he would always try to use his Mana Arts during his battle.

This is to ensure that he won't be putting all the pressure on his weapon. This problem is actually mostly related to his powerful surge of Aura.

Since he's not a 3-Star Aura Knight yet, he still doesn't have the Aura Resonance skill that would allow him to ease the burden of the weapon he's wielding.

Of course, there is also an equivalent Tier 3 or Tier 4 Mana Arts to help him protect or repair the weapon but he obviously doesn't have an access to it.

At most, he hoped to become a 3-Star Aura Knight so even though he's incapable of repairing an item, he would be capable of prolonging its lifespan.

However, now that the durability of his item had increased tremendously, it would take a very long time before he would have to worry about his weapon being destroyed.

Ding!

[ Congratulations! You have successfully ascended an item for the first time. ]

[ You have unlocked the Enhancement Eraser option. ]

[ Enhancement Eraser: In exchange for some units of mana, you can remove the enhancements of any item that has been enhanced. The higher the mana used, the higher the chance for the enhancement to be removed. ]

Vincent couldn't help but smile after seeing the new feature of the system being unlocked! He can remove an enhancement! Though he doesn't know whether this will be useful or not, it's still an additional feature that might have a purpose in the future…

'Wait… It says any item… Does it mean that even if I'm not the one who enhanced it, I can remove the enhancement from that item?'

Vincent couldn't help but recall the Cryogenic Sleep Chamber which was a +10 item. If he has to fight a Celestial Being, can he try to remove the enhancement of their Armor while in combat?

Of course, he never wanted to fight a Celestial Being considering his current level, he just thought of this in passing.

"Forget it, let's try strengthening this cane one more time…"

Vincent muttered as he decided to go all out now for his precious weapon.

[ One-Time Random Item Skill Card. ]

He decided to pull out one of the items in his 5-Slot Inventory. Right now, his inventory only has two Success Rate Boost Vouchers.

"Since I'm planning to keep this cane with me as much as I can for Grandpa's sake, I might as well make it more suitable with me."

Vincent muttered as he has been holding back to use this card all this time. His reason was simply that he thought that the Ironbark Cane wasn't worthy enough considering it's only a Rare-Rank.

However, now that he can actually Ascend an item to a higher rank, he decided to stop dithering and just do it!

[ Would you like to activate the One-Time Random Item Skill Card to the item Soul Forged Ironbark Cane +9 ]

"Yes!"

Vincent answered as he waited for the card to take effect.

He carefully looked at his cane with bated breath as he prayed in his heart to get a decent skill.

'I'm not looking for flashy skill… Just give me a normal one since I don't really know any staff technique…'

To be honest, his skills with the cane were truly lacking. If he met a weapon expert, he will surely be a laughingstock.

He only knows how to wave the staff using the most basic moves like block, strike, stab, chop, and slashes… He doesn't know any decent techniques and he could only win most of his fights against Savage Beasts using his speed and brute force.

Of course, this includes the Crush Attribute of his weapon as well.

Ding!

[ Your Soul-Forged Ironbark Cane +9 has obtained a new skill. ]

[ Ensnare: In exchange for 10 units of mana, a target within 10 meters of the user will be trapped by Ironcoral Vines. ]

'Not bad!'

Vincent wasn't disappointed after realizing that the new skill was quite useful. It can be used to capture small animals or trap people.

However, since it only costs 10 units of mana, it's probably not that strong so he wasn't too happy as well.

For the next hour, Vincent explored his newfound skills.

He tried to remove the Enhancement of some of his +5 clothes and others. He then realized that the Enhancements of Poor and Common Quality Items can be removed easily using a few bits of mana while he would encounter failures for Uncommon Items.

As soon as he felt that he fully understand his skill, he finally decided to leave the inn and go to work.

***

"Follow me!"

As soon as Vincent arrived at the Auction House, he was blocked by Maurice as if he was a thug who was trying to extort him.

Vincent was planning to report to Therese so he can ask her to continue with his appraisal but since Maurice is still a Resident Appraiser, he decided to just follow him for now.

'What's wrong with this guy? Did I offend him somehow? Is he that suspicious about my background?'

Vincent deeply thought as he couldn't really remember anything that might offend this person. Luckily Yvette already arranged his proof of identity and he brought it with him! This is something that the count has even stamped!

He was also planning to show this Therese to clear up his identity but this guy just came looking for trouble.

Vincent was then brought to what seemed like a warehouse of various items before Maurice confronted him…

The smell was awful and he couldn't help but frown at the sight.

There were ten or so shelves with various items and more than 20 stashes filled with random things. Many of them seem useless and already covered with dust, rust, and even mold.

More than that, the lighting here was also bad making the place gloomier.

"Newbie… Clean this place up! This is also part of your training since you don't have any experience. Do you understand?!"

Maurice said and as if he didn't want Vincent to miss that he was provoking him, he even added that the other three newbies are at the Appraisal Hall already doing real jobs.