Master Varley froze for a fraction of a second, his glass of dark red wine hovering mid-air.
His mind, heavily clouded and nudged by the invisible weight of Max's theft target drawback, began to race at a million miles an hour. 'An Aura-type Beast Soul. Ultra-Rare. A localized domain that amplifies elemental power to the point of lifting my ship when combined with the right Beast Soul and Geno Art... and this fool wants to trade something so good for a localized, physical defense armor?'
Master Varley's heart hammered against his ribs in an excitement he normally only felt when hunting down and preparing to finish off a creature. He forced a smooth, patronizing chuckle to escape his lips, swirling his wine with practiced ease while looking down at Max like an older, wiser brother looking at a know-nothing kid
"Trade my Silver Dragon Crest armor-? For a mere Aura Beast Soul?" Master Varley let out a slow, dramatic sigh, shaking his head with a look of deep, but secretly fake, reluctance. "Ah, Mr. Flux... you are a warrior of undeniable might, but I fear you do not understand the true value of what I wear. This is a Sacred-Blood Beast Soul armor, forged from a dragon of the Sky-Piercing Peaks. Its defense is absolute, and its ultra-lightweight, overlapping scales grant unparalleled agility. To part with it would be like parting with a piece of my own soul."
Master Varley leaned forward across the log, his eyes starting to gleam in the firelight with predatory greed, masquerading as business advice.
Everyone else around was shocked to hear the leader of their expedition say something this shameless. They all knew how lucky it was to get an Aura Beast Soul like that.
"An Aura-type is flashy, yes. But let us be honest, Mr. Flux—such a localized domain is only useful because you possess that wondrous cloud dust Beast Soul and whatever mysterious hyper geno art you're using to pair it with. For anyone else, it would be a highly situational luxury. My Silver Dragon Crest armor, however, provides absolute, life-saving physical defense in any corner of the Second Sanctuary. If we look at the raw usability, it feels as though you would be taking advantage of me by taking my primary lifeline in exchange for a boost that requires a hyper-specific setup to even function."
Master Varley paused, taking a slow sip of his wine to hide the greed in his eyes. His mind, under the influence of theft target, was screaming at him that if he could just secure this Aura, he could find a way to replicate Max's setup and become completely unstoppable in the Third God's Sanctuary; not only that, it was keeping Master Varley from realizing how much bullshit he was spewing.
He had several other Sacred-Blood armors that were sturdier than the Silver Dragon Crest, but this was the nicest looking one he owned by far; Master Varley was wearing it out of vanity. Normally, he wouldn't hesitate to make this trade but today was not a normal one for him.
The gentle, unconscious influence of theft target pushed him to continue with his pitch, but every time Master Varley took a look over at the blue-haired giant he was about to swindle, well, he still couldn't help but get a little nervous.
A thumb started polishing one of the many gleaming rings adorning Master Varley's fingers while he quietly spoke, "Seeing it up close is believing, Mr. Flux." He then silently made up his mind to ask for more, much more!
With a snap of his fingers, the Silver Dragon Crest Beast Soul was summoned, the volume of his voice and confidence returned to normal, now that he was wearing his bargaining chip.
"I am a businessman at heart, Flux. But a trade this heavily weighted in your favor... well, it would take something truly special to make me risk walking away without my armor."
Max kept his smile after watching Master Varley summon the armor again to show it off, as if it was a visual aid for his speech. He looked Varley up and down, then replied, "Well duh, no doubt it would be like giving up a piece of your soul, it's a Beast Soul and lives there unless it's on your back... and right now it already isn't in your sea of soul anymore, which solves half of your concerns. I'll be honest with you, Master Varley, the armor reminds me of a hero from my childhood. I just like how it looks, but I don't lack strong, pretty, Sacred-Blood class armors myself..."
Max paused for a second and summoned an armor of his own. Moments later, a gold and purple styled Beast Soul armor with a fully enclosed helmet appeared.
It looked kind of close to the 'Panther Habit' suit belonging to a certain hero from Wakanda, and that's why Max had raised it from the Mutant class Beast Soul it started out as, up to Sacred-Blood level, using the Gem living in his sea of soul.
But he much preferred the look Varley had, and was more than happy to let this one go, especially if this would make theft target go away for a couple of weeks.
"So? Max asked from inside the armor while picturing himself riding Zephyr with the Silver Dragon Crest Beast Soul equipped. "This takes care of part two, needing a Sacred-Blood armor to protect ya' neck in the Sanctuary. My Moon Tiger Beast Soul armor and the Aura. Two for one. What do ya say?"
Varley's eyes locked onto the sleek, gold and purple contours of the Moon Tiger armor, his pupils dilating as the theft target 'curse' worked its magic on his brain. In his warped mind, he wasn't just making a trade; he was committing absolute highway robbery.
'Two Sacred-Blood Beast Souls—a flawless, full-coverage suit of armor AND a rare elemental Aura—in exchange for a set of silver plates I literally only wear to look fancy? You absolute idiot!'
He could barely keep his hands from shaking with excitement. He had to force himself to maintain his rigid, dignified posture, clearing his throat to hide the sudden crack in his voice.
The bewitched man looked up at Max, trying to suppress the massive, condescending smirk threatening to break across his face. 'He really wants my armor that badly. The fool is letting sentimentality blind him to raw value!'
"Two for one...hhhmmm..." Varley repeated, letting out a slow, deeply dramatic sigh as if he were carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. He shook his head, looking at Max with a face full of solemn, heavy reluctance.
"Yes, the Silver Dragon Crest is pretty, Mr. Flux. It is an undeniable masterpiece of craftsmanship. But to demand it is to ask for my very identity on these waters." Varley paused, narrowing his eyes slightly.
The 'curse' was whispering to him that he had Max completely on the hook—that Flux was so desperate for this childhood dream he would give up anything. Varley decided to squeeze out one last drop of profit. "However... if I am to accept the burden of this trade and part with my signature look, my soul will feel terribly empty without a proper weapon to match my new Moon Tiger aesthetic... Throw in a high-grade weapon Beast Soul to sweeten the pot—a spear, a sword, anything worthy of being called legendary—and we can call it even. Otherwise, I simply cannot bring myself to strip off my primary defense."
Master Varley rose and stepped forward, closing the distance between them, and extended a silver-gilded hand toward Max, his eyes practically gleaming with predatory triumph. "The Moon Tiger armor, the Riptide Fin Aura, and a Sacred-Blood class weapon—in exchange for my Silver Dragon Crest. Do we have a deal, Mr. Flux?"
Max sat there, face hidden by his helmet while he pretended to ponder for a handful of seconds.
A couple of lights suddenly sparkled and danced in his palm and a beautiful, deep-violet colored dirk then took form in his hand, it had a slight curve to it, and the material its blade was made of was closer to bone than steel.
The handle had no cross-guard and had a simple black wrap as its cover and grip. "This one is from another kitty cat I ran across awhile back. Sacred-Blood obviously. It isn't a perfect set but you gotta admit they go damn well together, right? If this tickles your fancy, you've got a deal."
Varley's breath hitched as his eyes locked onto the deep violet dirk. The bone-like curve of the blade and the stark contrast of the black wrap were a flawless visual match for the Moon Tiger armor.
Under the heavy, warped fog of the theft target, his mind was absolutely screaming in triumph. 'Three Sacred-Blood Beast Souls! A full armor, a legendary warship-lifting aura, AND a matching custom weapon?! All for a suit I wear just to look fancy, in front of my crew in? This idiot is practically giving away his entire treasury for a childhood fantasy!'
Master Varley barely contained the patronizing smirk trying to be born on his face yet again. He truly believed he was stripping Max of his hard-earned spoils right to his face, utterly blind to the fact that he was playing directly into the cosmic influence of theft target.
"A matching set...well. Nearly matching." Varley murmured, his voice thick with a mix of awe and pure, unadulterated greed. "Yes, Mr. Flux. This... 'tickles my fancy' perfectly."
He extended his silver-clad hand. The moment Max's gold-armored hand met his to seal the deal, the mental transfer initiated. In a flash of light, the silver, overlapping scales of the Silver Dragon Crest vanished from Varley's body, converting into a beam of soul-light that shot straight into Max's sea of soul.
In perfect synchronization, Max's Moon Tiger armor, the Riptide Fin aura, and the violet dirk dissolved, crossing the ethereal divide to settle into Varley's sea of soul.
They shook hands, and for a fleeting second, Varley felt a profound surge of smug satisfaction while everyone watched the strange, one sided deal come to an end. They had never seen anyone make a deal this bad before and were still wondering what the hell was going on with Master Varley.
Taking the risk of taking advantage of and potentially pissing off someone that just destroyed a Spirit Shelter by themselves was not very characteristic of their normally cautious Captain.
Then, suddenly, the effect of Theft Target abruptly lifted.
'Ah, there it is, haha.' Max was watching for the moment when he could start making his way to the freshly crushed Spirit Shelter, use its evolution pool and then head to the Alliance for a small vacation free from the risk of theft target, before entering the Third God's Sanctuary as a Surpasser.
Any notion of greed or superiority in Master Varley's mind had dissolved by now.
And then, a sudden, jarring headache hit him for a second, making his vision swim for a brief moment.
As his normal rationality crashed back into place, a crushing weight of regret and sudden dread pooled in his stomach. He thought about the three powerful Beast Souls he had just acquired, and instead of triumph, he felt an icy chill. 'Why did I do that? Why did I just shamelessly trade a defensive armor for three times its value or more, in front of a monster who can lift a warship? I just took advantage of a powerhouse... what if he realizes I fleeced him and kills us all right here?'
Sweat already forming at his brow, Master Varley unconsciously began frantically rubbing the rings on his fingers, his eyes wide with anxiety as he stared at the freshly unarmored Max, who was currently sitting only in his underwear, smiling back at him while petting Zephyr.
Max tilted his head slightly while looking at him, the mysterious, all-knowing smile gracing his features was weirding everyone silently watching out. He didn't look angry; he looked like a man who had just won the lottery. "No regrets or worries, brother," Max said smoothly, his voice carrying a calm, friendly tone as he held Master Varley's gaze. "I know what I'm doing with the three for one, anyways, nice to meet you all!"
He was just happy that he was free to visit the Alliance without needing to worry about that damned theft target anymore!
Without saying a word, Max sent Zephyr back to his sea of soul and reached out his hand. The God Dust latched onto the stranded ship, which he carefully guided back into the water before stowing the dust away in his sea of soul. He then turned and headed straight for the Spirit Shelter, ignoring the remnants of the Sacred Blood feast that might still have yielded Sacred Blood Geno points and the men and women staring at him as he went by.
Master Varley and the others watched as Max strolled away, vanishing into the tree line beyond the beach until he was completely out of sight. Only then did Mo Ye finally speak.
"Varley... What the hell just happened?!"