Chapter 561 A Fair Exchange



"Aegis it is, then," said Valyr in response, to which the system promptly responded by sending him a series of notifications.

Ding!

[You have renamed the item 'Unnamed Helmet' to 'Aegis Helmet'.]

[You have renamed the item 'Unnamed Pauldrons' to 'Aegis Pauldrons'.]

...

[You have renamed the item 'Unnamed Boots' to 'Aegis Boots'.]

While multiple notification sounds resounded in his mind, as if responding to the name it had received, the armor set radiated a faint glow. From what the two could tell, it seemed as if the armor set was delighted with the name Braum chose, feeling as if it were the perfect name for the set.

'[Greater Analysis].' As he let Braum get up close with the armor set and test it out, the young man went ahead and used his identification skill on one of the pieces to see if anything about it changed after being given a name.

And surprisingly enough, something did.

Ding!

————

[(+10) Aegis Chestplate] (Level 75)

Rarity: Epic

Defense: 835 - 1391

Forge Quality: Exceptional

Additional Attributes:

> VIT +48

>STR +41

Initially an unnamed piece of armor that was forged from extraordinary materials by an incredibly prodigious blacksmith, this chestplate was given new life after it had been named Aegis, a name that resonated greatly with the spirit residing within.

Being forged under the greatest level of concentration the blacksmith could achieve, this chestplate has been imbued with the Hammer of Beginnings' [Breath of Earth], taking on the properties of the Earth element in order to bolster its defense even further.

Nevertheless, even without the imbuing of the Earth element, this piece of armor is already something many people would kill for. With it imbued, the experience and level of craftsmanship of the blacksmith only becomes more obvious.

<Innate Skill 1: Heart of the Aegis - Increases the user's maximum HP and Defense stat by 10%. Also increases the user's VIT by 5%.>

<Innate Skill 2: Aegis Awakening - Allows the user to cast a mana barrier around their body, reducing the amount of damage taken by 25% for 5 minutes. Has a small chance to reflect attacks back at 50% of their original strength. Cooldown: 10 minutes. Cost: 5,000 MP.>

————

<Aegis Set | 1/6>

3 pieces: HP and Def +15%

6 pieces: VIT +10%, Damage Reduction +10%

Note: This is a piece of armor solely made for those with the aim of protecting others.

————

'The innate skills definitely changed.' By the time he was done reading through the armor's updated description, Braum had already exchanged the armor set he was currently wearing with the Aegis armor set.

In less than an instant, the aura being radiated by his body underwent a substantial increase, making him give off the feeling that he was some sort of impenetrable wall no one could go through.

And that was only the man's passive aura coming into play.

"This..." Getting more and more used to his new armor set, Braum eventually looked at the young man with a series of expression flashing across his face. Though, after looking at Valyr for a bit more, a wry smile crept up onto his lips.

On one hand, he felt immense gratitude and excitement since the armor set Valyr forged for him had undoubtedly boosted his combat strength multiple times. If his hunch was correct, he could give peak Rank 5 beings a run for the money, even without activating his Intent.

However, on the other, he still felt immense guilt from the fact that the young man had collapsed after he had finished making the armor set. Of course, he told Valyr that the information the latter requested from him would now be free of charge in exchange.

Yet, now that he was wearing the entire armor set and experiencing its effects firsthand...

He realized that it wasn't enough.

"You know what..." Letting out a somewhat exasperated sigh after pondering over his next action, a determined expression eventually appeared on Braum's face as he looked at the young man.

"What is it?" Raising his eyebrows in curiosity, Valyr waited for Braum to continue his words.

"From now on, any piece of information you request from me will be free of charge," said the man as he continued where he left off, prompting the young man to look at him with his eyes wide open.

"Whether it be as complicated as the one you're requesting right now, to something simple like the weather for the next few days, all of it will be free from now on," added Braum not long after, which only added onto the curiosity and confusion Valyr was feeling.

Then again, it did not take long for the young man to understand the cause of the man's sudden shift in personality, faintly smirking as he looked at the armor set the latter was wearing.

"Once again, I'll be thanking you in advance." Knowing that the two of them would just go in circles if he were to ask Braum the reason behind it, Valyr decided to thank the man outright, causing the former to look back at him with a smile.

"You know... we've talked a lot about other things that I almost forgot the main reason why I came here." Letting out a faint chuckle as the man regained his original train of thought, Braum infused a bit of his mana into his spatial bracelet, bringing out a stack of documents that he carefully gave to Valyr.

"What information is in this, exactly?" Though he was slightly surprised by the amount of documents Braum had brought out for him, Valyr already expected himself to have through such a great amount of information in the first place. With that, he began to skim through the various documents as Braum explained what he had given.

"Well, most of it goes into the hierarchy of the Zeihardt clan in detail," said Braum to the young man. "The main Imperial clan, the various Royal clans, as well as the numerous noble clans under it as all explained in the documents in detail."

"I see." Nodding in response, Valyr continued to read through the documents, only to find out that the man's words were true. "Anything else?"

"Aside from that, the documents also go through some of the most important people that reside within the clan," replied Braum, prompting Valyr to skim through the documents once more. "Though it doesn't go into their strength in detail, it does go through their level of authority within the clan."

"Uh huh." Nodding once more, the young man eventually found the documents that listed down the important people Braum had just mentioned. Unsurprisingly, at the very moment he began to read through those documents, a few words instantly came to mind.

"Damn."

"That's a lot more than I thought."