A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 158 Spending Money to Get New Ideas

"Money is not a problem." After the deal with Duke Melovenga, Rorschach had a large amount of cash on hand. Rorschach's budget was within two thousand lang, and if the other party required payment in gold coins, it should not exceed one thousand five hundred.

The exchange rate for physical gold coins and banknotes is roughly the same now.

"Then, Venerable Luo Xia, let's begin. Customization is a very tiring job, not only for me, but also for the customers. We have to finalize every single detail."

Fulcanelli first took out a basic staff. Rorschach saw that it was straight and about 1.3 meters long, with a light blue crystal directly embedded in the brass base and connected to the staff.

"The most basic style is outdated now; only village sorcerers would carry it around." He unscrewed the staff head, revealing a threaded connection, and pulled out a whole mithril core engraved with densely packed circuits:

"You see, the staff head and the staff core together store prepared spells. The more magical circuits engraved in the staff core, the more types and numbers of spells can be stored."

He then turned the staff upside down: "The bottom of the staff is where the energy is stored." The end of the staff is also wrapped in brass and is connected by threads, which the alchemist unscrewed off.

Then he poured out five smaller pink crystals. Fulcanelli took them out very carefully. The crystals responsible for storing energy were much purer than the crystals on the staff, and should be of higher quality.

The master picked up a crystal, and after the ether was injected, it emitted a faint pink glow: "According to the Alchemy Association's recommended standards, it can store the energy of fifty fourth-level spells, and the number of times it can be charged and released is no less than twenty cycles. You requested to release a sixth-level spell, which means that this set of crystals can only be used about five times at full strength."

Is this a battery? From the threaded connection onwards, this basic staff has a distinctly Yiwu-made feel to Rorschach.

Since it's unlikely that he'd encounter a battle where he'd have to use sixth-circle spells fifty times in a row, Rorschach nodded: "Sure, we don't even need that many." For Rorschach, mana wasn't an issue; what he needed was the ability to store and instantly cast spells.

"That will free up some space. In the past, the energy storage crystal was directly installed at the end of the staff and exposed. Then, when the mage cast spells, for some reason, they always liked to slam the staff on the ground. Even the best materials will be damaged." The master said this with some indignation, thinking about how many of his works had been ruined because of the mages showing off.

Indeed, Rorschach recalled Master Humboldt's oak staff: "Why are there staffs made entirely of wood, like those used by the mages of the Forest Tower? It seems they don't have these parts." If it's just a piece of wood, it can be slammed into the ground without any problems.

Upon hearing this, Fulcanneli immediately switched to his previous "poetry recitation" mode. Rorschach sensed something was wrong, but the other man had already begun his long-winded explanation: "Mage Rorschach, do you know the origin of the staff?"

I don't know, and I don't want to know. I'm here to buy things, not to attend a lecture!

But the alchemist didn't give him a chance to interrupt, picking up the crystal staff: "From what I understand, most of the spells in the Forest Tower are inherited from the old-time druids. They are actually a transformation of divine magic. Their staffs need to be able to enhance the communication between the staff wielder and the natural environment. Even tree branches can become 'staffs' after undergoing druidic rituals."

The earliest Semitic kings and priests created single-feathered scepters to strengthen their connection with the gods and enhance the power of their spells.

Essentially, this type of staff emphasizes 'power,' with symbolic elements concentrated at the head, from which a subtle symbolic realm unfolds within the ether.

He produced even more sketches and design drafts:

"The twin snakes entwined and the two wings at the top represent wisdom, dexterity, and cunning, and can enhance the Enchantment, Transmutation, and Illusion skills;

A torch-shaped design paired with a corresponding crystal can be imbued with the magic of a certain element;

A staff-like object topped with pine cones or grape leaves, symbolizing prosperity and joy, is effective against some nature and necromancy magic.

But none of these styles are fashionable anymore; they're all outdated.

Why?

"With all these fancy gadgets, people can immediately tell what kind of magic you're good at, right? This kind of self-promotion is deadly in battle."

Therefore, later mages generally pursued casting efficiency and versatility, and their staves were mostly made of substances with an affinity for ether, such as various crystals, with almost no symbolic meaning. Originally favored by evocation-based barbarians, now everyone just slaps a crystal on it and that's it.

However, one could see the regret in Fulcanelli's expression; those symbolic staff heads better reflected the craftsman's skill.

Rorschach, the barbarian most skilled in the art of manipulation, had a new idea. He thought the boss's introduction to the history of staves was a waste of time, but he was actually the most suitable person to use a staff with a strong symbolic head.

That's right, the symbolic runes pointing to himself can be extracted from the core of the [Rorschach's God Exorcism] array.

"If I need a custom-made staff with symbolic design, can I use runes?"

"One is two-dimensional, the other is three-dimensional; they might affect the directionality of spellcasting," Fulcanneli said, narrowing his eyes. "Could I take a look at this rune?"

Rorschach hesitated. If it were depicted on a scroll, not everyone would realize the significance of the core symbol. But now that it was to be used as a symbol, Fulcanelli could not rule out the possibility of tracing it back to Rorschach himself after obtaining it.

Seeing that Rorschach didn't answer, the alchemist shrugged: "If you don't want to answer, I can engrave the mithril and brass alloy staff head for you yourself, but once sold, returns are not accepted, and you are fully responsible for whether it works or not."

Rorschach picked up the crystal staff head, looked at the spiral pattern, and a thought struck him: "Could I ask for a crystal staff head and a blank alloy staff head?"

Fulcanelli was taken aback; this was the first time he had heard of such a request, but he quickly nodded: "Okay, but it will cost extra."

Then Fulcanelli took out a thin sheet of paper. It was easy to see from the paintings in the attic that he was not only an alchemist but also a master painter. He drew the design draft of the custom staff on the spot according to Rorschach's needs.

Finally, the staff was a little less than three feet long, without any fancy decorations, and looked just like an ordinary person's ebony and brass walking stick.

Inside is a universal staff core. Rorschach directly chose the one with the highest purity mithril and the densest engraving of magical circuits. Once the casting structure is completed, the staff core will enter the activated state with the support of the energy storage crystal. When it is time to activate, the staff head will be activated again to complete the instant cast.

As per Rorschach's requirements, the staff was designed with a small crystal head and an alloy head. The former, due to the small size of the crystal, retained the shape of a regular cane, but at the cost of Fulcanelli estimating that it could only store one spell.

"As for the effects of the rune staff, that's entirely up to you."

For high-priced magical items, just like fashion items and electronic products in Rorschach's previous life, they emphasize appearance and various specifications, and are divided into medium, large and extra-large sizes.

Furthermore, Luo Xia's choice to DIY the core components himself seems to have turned him into a PC builder in another world.

After finalizing the deal, Luo Xia paid a deposit of 355 lang. The reason for the exact amount was that the total price was set at 1777, and seven was a lucky number, just like how prices in his previous life were always set at eight or nine.

"Please have the guest pick it up in seven days."

Emerging from the canvas, Rorschach seemed to be covered in the smell of turpentine, though thankfully it evaporated quickly.

"This boss really loves to nag people about how I'm starving." Luo Xia had already missed mealtime.

But thanks to the talkative owner of the Alchemy Workshop, Rorschach not only bought the staff with the money, but also gained new ideas that he could use in his own project.

(End of this chapter)