Chapter 1: The Hut of Hope

Bang!

Pain woke Kira from his sleep.

"Ouch! Which blind fool dares to disturb my nap? I will definitely..."

"It's me!"

Opening his sky-blue eyes, the woman before him had long hair of the same color. Her angry expression was like the fiery pepper next door, her eyes full of malice, as if to say, "If you don't get up, I'll smash your shop!"

Kira's eyes instantly cleared, and his tone changed: "I should be grateful that she woke me up to work."

"Oh, isn't this Erza?" He sprang up, wiping the drool from the corner of his mouth: "Sit, sit. What would you like?"

At this moment, Kira seemed more like a waiter in a bar than the owner of a magic shop.

"Oh... I heard you bought all the strawberry cakes from the new bakery next door yesterday?"

"I understand, I'll prepare it for you right away!"

His eagerness wasn't because Kira feared Erza's power, but because...

"Venerable VIP customer, please enjoy! If you find the taste unsatisfactory, I'll smash that bakery for you!"

Kira's "Hut of Hope" was the best magic shop in Magnolia, selling various magical items, including some powerful weapons and armor.

Therefore, Erza, who could use transformation magic, knight magic, and was an S-class mage, naturally became a VIP customer of the "Hut of Hope." Most importantly, she had money.

One minute later…

Erza sat on a leather sofa, gracefully tasting the uniquely flavored new cake: "The taste is good, and the texture suits my taste, but the service was a bit slow."

Good grief, she still thinks it's slow?

After savoring the delicacy, Erza finally stated her purpose: "I came to pick up the armor I ordered the day before yesterday."

"I understand, please wait a moment."

Kira nodded and turned to walk into a small room in the shop. Soon, he returned carrying a gleaming suit of armor.

The armor was spotlessly white, light yet sturdy. The helmet, chest plate, arm guards, leg guards, boots, and gloves seemed to form a seamless whole. Along with a round shield, the entire set perfectly highlighted Erza's unique and powerful beauty.

"This set of Adamantine Armor was made according to your requirements and the design from the H-K store, using new technology and the best materials..." Kira introduced it with great enthusiasm, mentioning scales of giant serpents, horns of rhinoceroses, claws of wolves, and teeth of crocodiles, exaggerating to the extreme, "I also cast a defensive magic spell that I've used for twelve years, ensuring top-notch defense."

This was the experience he gained from a famous magic shop owner in the capital last month, claiming it could dazzle customers and leave them dazed.

Unfortunately, he was now facing Erza.

Although Erza politely didn't interrupt Kira's enthusiastic introduction, not a single word entered her ears. She only cared about the practicality of the armor: "Let's try it on now."

"Ah? But I haven't finished yet!"

This was his masterpiece, which took a long time to create. Even if she was a VIP, being ignored like this was too much! If he couldn't explain it, it would be like wearing fine clothes at night, unbearable.

"It's fine, I don't mind."

"Alright, I understand... Here's our shop's small logo, in the future..."

"Um, okay," Erza continued to应付敷衍, not caring about the logo at all. As long as the armor was good, she didn't mind spending money: "Hurry up!!"

"Alright!!!"

Kira systematically placed the armor in front of a uniquely shaped wall made of energy-absorbing stones.

Energy-absorbing stones were a special type of mineral, expensive, capable of absorbing most of the energy from magical and physical attacks, preventing the aftermath from spreading. They were used in many places that needed protection, such as city walls, to create defensive barriers.

In Ishgar, there was another special mineral called magic-sealing stone, often used to make handcuffs. Mages wearing magic-sealing handcuffs would be unable to use magic.

As a magic shop, it was essential to demonstrate the power of the equipment to customers. Therefore, having a wall made of energy-absorbing stones was a hallmark of an excellent magic shop.

Despite the high cost, Kira had one built in his shop.

Kira pulled out a unique magic wand from his sleeve. The wand was about 30 centimeters long, as thick as a finger, silver in color, with a metallic feel, and inscribed with several strange characters.

From its appearance, it was just a beautiful short wand, but a powerful and experienced mage could instantly perceive the special magic array it contained.

"Watch closely!" Kira gently placed the wand against the armor and softly chanted, "Energy Impact."

A surge of magic power was released, and a crimson magic array suddenly appeared in the air. The mystical power responded to Kira's command, transforming the surging magic into a massive energy impact. Amplified by the wand, it formed a destructive force capable of destroying the entire magic shop, shooting out from the tip of the wand!

The energy created a strong wind, blowing Erza's hair and skirt wildly, but her feet remained firmly planted.

Kira glanced at Erza, thinking: No wonder it's Erza, she can stand firm even in such an aftermath!

Erza also glanced at Kira, thinking: No wonder it's Kira, he can easily cast such a powerful spell!

After a brief exchange of glances, both of them looked away and then had the same thought: We should find time to practice together!

Erza inwardly marveled: "Kira, after being so lazy for so long without doing missions, I thought his skills hadn't improved much, but his magic incantation has become so strong."

Without a fixed mounting, the powerful energy impact sent the armor flying into the wall. However, the armor hitting the wall didn't produce the expected sound—the energy-absorbing stone wall absorbed the magic aftermath and minimized the vibration.

With this wall, few attacks could damage the small shop.

Kira ran over to pick up the armor and, in front of Erza, patted it: "See, see, the defense is super strong, not a single scratch."

Erza stepped forward to examine it closely. Indeed, she had experienced the power of that spell before.

Under such magic, the armor remained undamaged, clearly surpassing her previous armors in terms of defense. Erza couldn't help but nod in satisfaction.