The more money and leisure people had, the more they liked to put on airs of culture and refinement. In the wealthy, merchant-filled cities of the City Alliance, collecting antiques had become all the rage.
A suitably prestigious antique could reflect its owner's taste and refinement.
More importantly, some antiques possessed more than cultural and sentimental value. They also contained mysterious ancient magic and could produce astonishing effects.
Levi's Antiques was one of the largest antique markets in the City Alliance. According to their coachman, there were only three other establishments of comparable size in the entire City Alliance.
Under the watchful eyes of the armored guards outside, Barrett, EeDechi, and Franco pushed open the half-height glass doors and entered Levi's Antiques.
The spacious hall contained dozens of tea tables arranged along each side. Well-dressed merchants and mages moved between them, sipping tea and coffee as they examined antiques and debated their merits at length.
Pretty maids in white dresses and floral headpieces wove through the hall, serving black tea, coffee, and delicate pastries to the customers.
The three went straight to the counter, where they were received by an attendant in a white shirt and black vest.
The attendant was not particularly polite, however, because none of the three visitors looked especially distinguished. They were like three swaggering white geese that had wandered into a flock of elegant peacocks.
A gray scarf was wrapped around EeDechi's neck, concealing the lower half of her face. Her eyes were clear and bright, and her plain black clothes were entirely unremarkable.
Barrett, on the other hand, radiated a rough, rugged air. He was tall and powerfully built, with a stern face. His dust-covered leather boots, the sharp dagger at his waist, the reinforced patches on the knees of his trousers, and the many small pouches stuffed with equipment all revealed his identity as an adventurer.
Franco was the only one who looked the part. He wore mage's robes, had carefully styled his hair, and was impeccably groomed. Handsome and fair-skinned, he idly twirled a wand between his long, slender fingers, making it clear he was not someone to be underestimated.
To avoid revealing their identities, none of them wore their adventurer plates.
The attendant ignored EeDechi, let his gaze slide past the towering Barrett, and focused on Franco. After all, it was common for mages to hire adventurers.
"Sir, have you unearthed something you'd like to sell?" the attendant asked Franco.
"Hey." Barrett waved a hand in front of him, making the attendant look his way. "I've got quite a few valuable items on me, worth several thousand gold coins at the very least. I don't want to do business out here. I'd like to speak with your owner."
The three had come here to search for ancient skyship technology so they could repair the small skyship, Apocalyptic Mourning Bell.
That technology might already have been lost, but a knowledgeable old expert—especially the owner of a major antique shop—might know where to find some clues.
When Barrett asked to see the owner, a hint of disdain crossed the attendant's face. He shook his head slightly.
"Our owner is very busy. He doesn't have time to waste looking at worthless ancient junk."
Another adventurer team entered and called out to the attendant.
"John, we pulled up something good from the bottom of the sea. Get Manager Thompson to appraise it for us."
"Right away."
The attendant turned and left without giving Barrett or Franco another glance.
Franco's expression darkened. He shot the other adventurer team a sidelong look.
There were six of them in total: three seasoned warriors, a female elf archer, an elderly long-bearded mage, and a young, beautiful priestess.
All three warriors wore fine suits of full plate, and their weapons were exceptionally ornate. Orichalcum-rank plates hung from their chests, while the other three wore mithril-rank plates.
"What are you staring at, bumpkin?" asked the full-bearded warrior leading the group. "First time in the City Alliance?"
A tall, thin man with a scar across his face chimed in, "If you dug that stuff out of some backwoods grave, don't bring it to a high-end establishment like this. The staff won't appreciate it."
The elderly long-bearded mage folded his arms and closed his eyes with an air of supreme confidence. "Once they've been turned away, they'll know better and leave."
"Who are you calling a bumpkin?" Franco spun his wand between his fingers. "I've explored more ruins than you've robbed tombs."
"What rank are you?" the full-bearded warrior asked. "Why aren't you wearing your plate?"
"Copper rank," Franco replied, flourishing his wand with exaggerated flair. "Still more than enough to handle the three of you."
"Pfft." The full-bearded warrior chuckled. "I have no interest in fighting someone below my rank. The outcome would be far too obvious."
"Exactly. It'd be boring if I won that easily." Franco gave the three warriors a disdainful glance. He was determined to show off in front of the pretty priestess.
"My young mage friend, did you eat a mandrake raw? You're clearly not in your right mind. If you're really itching for a fight, find an arena. I'll be happy to oblige."
Just as the tension between the two groups was about to boil over, a middle-aged man in a gold-embroidered robe strode toward them.
"Ah, the mighty Burning Edge adventurer team!" he called out delightedly. "What treasures have you brought us this time?"
"I'm not going to lower myself by arguing with a bumpkin like you." The full-bearded warrior glared at Franco, then turned to discuss business with the middle-aged man, who was apparently Manager Thompson.
John, the attendant, returned at a leisurely pace.
"So, what do you have to sell?"
Barrett had obtained plenty of valuable items in the Desert of the Eight Greed Kings. He had originally intended to take out an exquisite object from their era, but he had lost all goodwill toward the shop and no longer felt like offering them anything particularly valuable.
He placed a hand on the counter and casually retrieved a narrow-necked ceramic jar from his spatial ring.
"Here. We dug this out of the Desert of the Eight Greed Kings. It's an antique jar from their era."
"A spatial ring!" The attendant was mildly startled, and his expression became noticeably more respectful. He slipped on a pair of thin silk gloves and ran his fingers over the jar.
"Was this really excavated from the Desert of the Eight Greed Kings? I've heard that place is extremely dangerous. It isn't somewhere ordinary adventurers can enter."
The jar looked plain and unremarkable. Its patterns had been worn almost beyond recognition by wind and sand.
The attendant took out a crystal magnifying glass and examined it carefully.
"Even if it truly came from the Desert of the Eight Greed Kings, it appears to be nothing more than an ordinary ceramic jar."
A white-haired old mage suddenly pushed through the crowd, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
"Something from the Desert of the Eight Greed Kings? Let me see!"
"Greetings, Archmage Raffaelli." The attendant immediately put on a professional smile. "It's only an ordinary ceramic jar. Even if it had once been used as a spittoon by the Eight Greed Kings, it would still just be a spittoon."
Archmage Raffaelli snatched the jar without another word and turned it over in his hands. He brushed away the sand caked onto its surface, then widened his eyes. Bright white light flared in them as he stared intently at the bottom of the jar.
"What a treasure!"
Archmage Raffaelli cradled the jar as though he could not bear to let it go.
"I've only ever seen this in ancient records! I never imagined it truly existed!"
"My lord, isn't that just an ordinary ceramic jar?" the attendant asked in astonishment.
"An ordinary ceramic jar? Go fetch your owner. You may as well start looking for a new job."
Archmage Raffaelli glared at him, then lovingly stroked the jar and declared in a booming voice:
"This is the magic item known as Endless Water, painstakingly crafted by the mightiest rulers in history—the Eight Greed Kings!"
At Raffaelli's sensational declaration, everyone in the antique shop gathered around.
Barrett froze on the spot.
He had never imagined that something he had taken out at random would turn out to be a powerful magic item.