Chapter 40

"Breaking a weapon that was just given to you... You sure have a great personality, don't you...?"

"Ugh... I have no words to say..."

It happened right after logging in.

Thinking I should apologize, I visited Haruru, only to be met with her stern gaze.

"Well, it's fine... I've already been paid... And I heard from Rou what happened..."

"Eh?"

"Didn't you know...? I'm the one who made the *Seductive Rapier*..."

Haruru, chuckling, left me speechless.

So that's it. Could it be that Rou came all the way to this town just to meet Haruru?

"She's one of my regular customers... Criminal players can't enter the town... So I go to her... In return, she pays me for the trouble... And she's a good payer..."

With so much to say, I couldn't form any words, but Haruru spoke without a hint of remorse.

"Since I now know that Sukuna uses that forge-cryer's art quite frequently... I thought I'd prepare something good for you..."

Regaining her composure,

Haruru changed the atmosphere and brought out a weapon from the back. It was quite heavy, so she dragged it along.

Haruru, dragging the two-handed mace in front of her, sighed and began to speak.

"This is called the *Meteor Impact Zero*... It's a heavy mace in the two-handed mace category..."

The *Meteor Impact Zero*, a weapon so heavy that Haruru had to drag it, had a very powerful name.

The impact surface was shaped like a blunt pyramid on both sides, and the head was a thick hammer type. At first glance, it looked like a regular two-handed mace.

However, it was incredibly black. The base color from the handle to the head was all jet black.

The gold decorations here and there stood out beautifully.

"This is made from a mineral called *Heavy Metal*... The required strength value is quite high... but the performance is quite good considering the material cost..."

"By the way, how much is required?"

"About 150..."

"150!?"

I was surprised and shouted, but a strength value of 150 is indeed a formidable number.

Human characters generally have all their stats increase by 1 with each level up. Starting from 10, that's roughly 140 levels.

In reality, there are bonus stat points, so it's not as simple as this elementary school math, but even if you max out your strength with bonuses, you'd need 28 levels, making it a weight that a human character might not be able to wield even at level 25.

If I add the bonus points I haven't allocated yet and level up a bit more, it might be within reach...

"You might not know this, Sukuna... But a finisher isn't just an art that deals three times the normal damage..."

"Eh? Really?"

"You picked the wrong opponent to use it on..."

The only opponents I used that art on were Aria with 1 HP left and Apocalypse with an enormous HP.

While the finisher's power is impressive, I chose it for its speed in both scenarios, so I didn't really consider its damage.

"The weapon's attack power and strength value are, of course, factors... but the 300% art multiplier plus 1/10% of the remaining durability... that's the internal processing of the finisher... If the gold bar you first destroyed had 500 durability in perfect condition... it would have a maximum of 350%, or 3.5 times the damage multiplier..."

Haruru, raising her fingers playfully, explained, and I nodded, understanding the calculation in my head.

"I see. If there were no advantages to using a nearly broken weapon, you could just keep hitting with it..."

"Exactly... But considering the cost, it's not something you can use often... By the way, it doesn't even activate with beginner weapons..."

"Ah, those are only broken in terms of durability..."

Even with a low weapon attack power, the combination of strength value and art multiplier would result in incredible damage.

It was a wise decision by the developers to fix the bug first.

"Anyway... Let me explain the *Meteor Impact* again... This applies to all weapons made from *Heavy Metal*... The durability is in a different league... The *Meteor Impact* has a durability of over 1500, which is exceptional..."

"Se...!?"

"It's also a super heavy weapon with an attack power over 50... In this game, the weight itself affects the damage calculation due to the physics engine... So the actual attack power is even higher..."

I feel like I've been surprised all day.

Considering the super gold bar has a required strength value of 20, durability of 500, and attack power of 30, the *Meteor Impact*'s stats with a required strength value of 150 might not be unreasonable, but it's still crazy.

"This weapon was a prototype I made after obtaining *Heavy Metal*... But there was no one who could use it... It's for the front lines, but players coming to Duaris just can't handle it..."

"Eh, but I don't meet the stats either..."

"You have the Red Wolf's bonus points, don't you...?"

"Ugh..."

"If you've changed your job to *Shinto*, there's a stat correction as well..."

"Ugh..."

Is it her merchant's intuition or just pure knowledge? Haruru's sharp observation made me flinch.

Well, it's true that if I level up a bit more, it won't be out of reach...

After all, my strength value is already over 100, and I have several points left from the Apocalypse battle.

I allocated most of the points after the Aria battle to dexterity and agility, so I can't expect much from that, but I can gain stat points from the boss in the Demon Forest, and with just 5 more levels, I should easily reach the required number.

"Anyway, this is one option... I have another weapon I'd like to show you..."

Saying that, Haruru went back to the back and returned with a large box that looked like an aluminum case.

Inside the box, which she unlocked and opened, were a pair of metal gauntlets. They were also jet black, so they might be made of *Heavy Metal*.

"You like using impact weapons, don't you...?"

"Yeah, they're sturdy and easy to use."

"I like impact weapons too... But most of my customers are swordsmen... So most of the impact weapons I made for fun are just sitting around..."

Haruru, pouting, seemed genuinely disappointed.

I realized that the reason she had so many impact weapons was simply because it was her hobby.

"This is also an impact weapon... It's called the *Heavy Metal Gauntlet*... As you can see, it's a gauntlet used for *Unarmed Combat*..."

"Unarmed combat..."

"More precisely, the *Unarmed Combat* skill... When you're unarmed, the skill gives you an attack power bonus... But you can also equip a weapon like this and give up the skill bonus..."

She handed me the gauntlets, which were incredibly heavy.

I could hold them, but the weight was noticeable when I put them on both arms. They were probably at the limit of the required strength value.

"The required strength value is a neat 100 for both arms... Equipping them gives a negative value to agility... But they increase your attack power... They have high power due to the lack of range..."

"I see. ...Yeah, it might be a good option."

They were heavy, but they didn't hinder my movement.

Regardless of how they looked with my traditional Red Wolf outfit, the gauntlets had some defensive properties.

While they don't increase your defense, they can block attacks, which is good enough.

"Hehehe... They suit you quite well..."

"Really? Don't they clash with the kimono?"

"Not that... It's just that... I really like the look of a girl like you wearing such a tough impact weapon..."

"Uh..."

I took a few steps back from the young girl, who was grinning lecherously.

"By the way, how much will it cost?"

"150,000 Iris in total..."

"Ugh... What about the material cost?"

"That's negotiable..."

I got a discount by showing her the contents of my inventory and screenshots of my equipment. I made sure to keep the Red Wolf materials.

Damn, this blacksmith really takes advantage of people...

"Please continue to take care of me... Hehehe..."

Haruru is always looking for female players who can fulfill her hobby, but impact weapons are unpopular among female players, so she's in tears.

Rou was usually around Duaris because of this.