Chapter 64

Winnie had been shopping for several days and found nothing suitable.

The stringent requirements of the [Armour Fortress] were partly to blame, as it demanded physical injuries, but another reason was the incomplete collection of skills in these shops.

There was no way around it, the types of skills compatible with [Armor] were too limited. Even some general spells were out of reach, let alone more specialized ones.

When Winnie entered the Armament shop, the doorkeeper barely glanced at him, too engrossed in the newspaper in his hands.

The man seemed on the verge of falling asleep, likely lulled by the warmth of the magic stone heating indoors.

Winnie didn’t feel like going home either.

His house lacked magic stones for heating, so he decided to stay in the hall and enjoy the warmth.

As he casually flipped through a skill, Winnie examined the recorded skill and, with a sigh of disappointment, put it back.

It was yet another skill he could only admire but never use.

He didn’t need to choose a skill for Vanessa.

Her Soul Armament was innate, recorded in the [Saint Envoy].

Whether she had it or not, she didn’t need to learn it, such was the prestige of a root Soul Armament.

The afternoon dragged on as Winnie wandered through the shop, sifting through various skills.

By now, he had little hope left. He couldn’t imagine finding a spell that would align with the [Armour].

“Thunder Net, suitable for Mage Soul Armament.”

“Rockfall Blade, suitable for Mage-Soul Armament.”

“Flame Burst Arrow, suitable for Mage-Soul Armament… Why are they all for Mage Soul Armament?”

Winnie sighed softly. It was no surprise, really.

In a world dominated by mages, most long-range skills were exclusive to them.

No wonder so many aspired to become mages.

“Frost Lock, suitable for Mage-Soul Armament…” Winnie was about to put the scroll back when he noticed something different.

Like the others, it was suited for Mage Soul Armament, but there was an additional line at the back, “People with Ice Affinity could also use it.”

“Oh?” Winnie frowned.

This meant the threshold for using this skill was lower compared to others.

Besides requiring a Mage Soul Armament, it only demanded a good level of ice elemental affinity.

Could he learn it?

Winnie felt a flicker of hope. This was the only skill he had found all afternoon that didn’t strictly require a Mage Soul Armament, only a good level of elemental affinity.

If Winnie remembered correctly, the levels of elemental affinity, from lowest to highest, were: Very Poor, Poor, Mediocre, Good, Excellent, and Extraordinary.

There was, in fact, another level above Extraordinary—Limit Breaker.

This was when the crystal ball used to test affinity would explode outright.

Of course, such a dramatic scenario was reserved for protagonists.

In the original game, the protagonist Aesphyra’s fire elemental affinity was at the Limit Breaker level.

During the entrance test, the crystal ball shattered, leaving the audience in awe.

But don’t assume Aesphyra’s affinity was strong only for fire.

Her affinity for other elements was equally impressive.

Indeed, people like Aesphyra are well-known and, frankly, quite arrogant.

Her elemental affinities are all exceptional, not just limited to fire.

It’s as if the words “peerless genius” are practically written on her forehead.

It’s terrifying, really.

Consider this, if someone’s magical qualifications are sufficient to obtain a mage Soul Armament, they’re already considered exceptional.

If, on top of that, they possess even one elemental affinity at the “Excellent” level, they can instantly proclaim themselves a genius and announce their rise to stardom.

Once such news spreads, countless factions would rush to recruit this prodigious mage.

Their future would be paved with endlessopportunities, and they could enjoy abundant resources without lifting a finger.

This alone shows how rare and coveted an “Excellent” level elemental affinity is.

Calling such a person a “once-in-a-millennium genius” wouldn’t be an exaggeration.

And then there’s Aesphyra. Not only does she have a “Limit Breaker” level in fire, but her affinities for all other elements are also “Excellent.”

Any one of these affinities, if given to someone else, would instantly elevate them to the status of a peerless genius.

It just goes to show that the gap between people can sometimes be wider than the gap between humans and dogs.

Winnie isn’t mistaken. Aesphyra’s first Soul Armament, [Hero], has a unique trait, it’s incredibly adaptable.

Whether it’s a mage or a warrior, she can learn almost any technique with ease.

Imagine Aesphyra casually picking a magic skill off the street.

She can choose anything, and there’s nothing she can’t master.

Meanwhile, Winnie has to agonize over selecting even a low-level skill.

Winnie isn’t sure if he can master Frost Lock.

He’s only tested his magical qualifications, not his elemental affinity.

He has no idea what his elemental affinity is.

In the game’s lore, the ice element is relativelyunpopular. It’s not that it’s weak, it’s just that few people have a high affinity for it.

This makes the ice element one of the least common, second only to the even rarer elements of darkness and light.

Winnie recalled that his elemental affinity in the plot is rather peculiar.

The text mentions that light and darkness seem to “insulate” him.

As for his affinity with other elements, it’s unclear.

But it’s unlikely to be anything remarkable.

According to scholarly research, magical qualifications are closely tied to elemental affinity.

Generally, if someone has high magical qualifications, they’re guaranteed to have at least two elemental affinities at the “Good” level or above.

This is considered the baseline for those with strong magical potential.

People with low magical qualifications don’t have such guarantees, and their elemental affinities are often as disappointingly weak as one might expect.

After pondering for a long time, and considering his current financial stability, Winnie decides to purchase this skill.

It doesn’t necessarily have to be used immediately; it also serves another purpose.

He can use it to test his ice elemental affinity in advance.

If he can’t use it, then his ice elemental affinity isn’t even at the “Good” level.

But if he can, then it means his affinity is at least “Good” or higher.

With this in mind, Winnie approached the dozing gatekeeper, woke him up with the magic scroll in hand, and purchased it for eight silver coins.

It’s worth noting that mages truly operate on a different level.

The cost of a single low-level skill is equivalent to a year’s expenses for several ordinary families.

Back at home, Winnie opened his Soul Armament and begins to study the skill.

The next morning, after staying up all night, Winnie felt surprisingly clear-headed.

He headed to the backyard, took a deep breath, and prepared to cast his first skill.

Nervousness is inevitable, after all, this is his first time using magic.

He silently recited the incantation, following the instructions on the scroll, and channeled the faint traces of magic within his body, transforming it into extreme cold.

In an instant, a crystalline chain of Frost shot out from his palm, piercing the dead tree in front of him.

It worked?!

Winnie stared in disbelief at the Frost chain he had just released.

Although his technique was far from refined, and the Frost chain lacked proper form, this was still a monumental step for him.

He hadn’t relied on some opportunistic mage Soul Armament or external aid.

This was entirely his own effort, and he had succeeded in casting magic.

Moreover, it seemed his ice elemental affinity wasn’t as low as he had feared.