Chapter 412: Tier 6 item [2] The Duke’s expression grew more serious. "I’ve kept it as a family treasure ever since, even when King Aldric himself offered to purchase it for the royal armory. I refused because I believed it would eventually find the right wielder within my bloodline. But..." he glanced at the Luxury Smoothie on Noah’s shelf with obvious desire, "I think acquiring your miraculous consumable is worth parting with even this treasure." Noah nodded slowly, understanding the situation perfectly. The Duke genuinely didn’t know the sword’s history or its immense dormant power. He recognized it as a valuable Tier 5 weapon—which was already exceptional—but had no idea it was actually a damaged Tier 6 artifact that could be restored to legendary status. The sword didn’t even look particularly damaged to untrained eyes, which made sense. The degradation was internal—magical circuits disrupted, elemental channels blocked, enchantments partially collapsed—rather than visible physical destruction. Only someone with Noah’s system-enhanced perception or a true master artificer could recognize what it really was. "What do you want to exchange for it?" Noah asked, keeping his tone casual despite knowing he would agree to almost any reasonable request for this weapon. The Duke smiled somewhat wryly, clearly expecting resistance. "I know it’s priced well above its actual value, but I was hoping we could exchange it for the Luxury Smoo—" Before he could even finish the sentence, Noah was already moving toward the shelf where the Luxury Smoothies were displayed. He grabbed one of the bottles containing the shimmering liquid and returned to present it to the astonished Duke. "Here you go," Noah said, handing over the five-thousand-golden-coin item without hesitation or negotiation. "The exchange is more than fair." Duke Ashford blinked in surprise, clearly not expecting such immediate acceptance. "You... you’re certain? I haven’t even finished explaining why I believe the trade is equitable—" "The sword is useful to me," Noah interrupted firmly, his tone carrying absolute sincerity. "And as I said earlier, as long as an item has genuine value and utility for my purposes, you can exchange it without worrying about price differentials or perfect equivalence." He raised his voice slightly, addressing all the assembled nobles rather than just the Duke. "I want everyone to understand this clearly—I’m not trying to squeeze maximum profit from these exchanges. If you bring me something I find truly valuable or interesting, I will trade generously, of course, quality matters; this is a tier 5 item after all." The other nobles perked up immediately at this declaration, their expressions showing renewed excitement. If Noah was willing to trade a Luxury Smoothie worth five thousand golden coins for a tier 5 sword, then they might be able to acquire far more than they’d initially hoped with the treasures they’d brought. Duke Ashford accepted the Luxury Smoothie with obvious gratitude, carefully securing the precious bottle. "You are remarkably generous, Lord Carter. My family will remember this kindness." Noah simply smiled and picked up the Damaged Elemental Sword, feeling the weapon’s weight and balance. It was perfectly suited to his height and reach, and even in its damaged state, he could sense the latent power waiting to be awakened. Once I find the right artificer or enchanter to restore this, Noah thought with satisfaction, I’ll have a weapon capable of slicing through grandmasters like butter. This single trade has already made this worthwhile. He looked at the remaining nobles with genuine interest. "Alright, who’s next? Let’s see what other treasures you’ve brought." Marquess Ravenswood stepped forward next, her sharp eyes gleaming with anticipation after witnessing Noah’s generous exchange with the Duke. She gestured to her servants, who brought forward a carefully wrapped spherical object. "I believe this might interest you, Lord Carter," she said as the wrappings fell away to reveal an orb that seemed to contain swirling miniature storms within its depths. [Stormglass Orb] [Tier: Tier 4] [Details: An ancient artefact capable of storing wind-element attacks and releasing them on command. The orb can be recharged indefinitely.] [Estimated Price: 500 Golden Coins] Noah’s eyes widened with genuine interest as he examined the swirling patterns within the glass. His mind immediately made connections—this wind-element artefact might be useful in the restoration process for the Damaged Elemental Sword. If the sword needed to have its wind-channelling capabilities repaired, having a concentrated source of wind essence could potentially assist a skilled artificer in the reconstruction. "This is excellent," Noah said, picking up the orb and feeling the latent power humming within. "The wind element storage could be very useful for a project I have in mind." Marquess Ravenswood smiled with satisfaction. "I’m pleased it appeals to you. I was hoping to exchange it for—" "Hold on," Noah interrupted politely, setting the orb down carefully. "This is valuable, but it’s not quite enough by itself to trade for any of my remaining tier 2 items. Do you have anything else you’d be willing to add to make the exchange more equitable?" The Marquess’s expression showed she’d anticipated this. "As a matter of fact, I do." She gestured to another servant, who brought forward a heavy wooden case. Opening it revealed five bars of silvery metal that seemed to glow with inner luminescence, each one perfectly formed and radiating subtle magical energy. [Mithril Ingots (x5)] [Tier: Tier 4 Material] [Details: Extremely rare lightweight magical metal prized for its exceptional properties in weapon and armour crafting. Mithril conducts magical energy with perfect efficiency, never corrodes, and possesses a strength-to-weight ratio far exceeding normal metals. These five ingots represent enough material to forge a complete weapon or piece of armour.] [Estimated Price: 750 Golden Coins] Noah leaned forward, inspecting the ingots. Mithril was legendary even in his original world’s fantasy stories, and seeing actual ingots of the material sitting before him was almost surreal. More importantly, this metal would definitely be useful in restoring the Elemental Sword—mithril’s magical conductivity would be perfect for repairing disrupted elemental channels. He did quick mental calculations. The Stormglass Orb at five hundred golden coins plus the five Mithril Ingots at seven hundred fifty totalled twelve hundred fifty golden coins. That was still two hundred fifty coins short of the fifteen-hundred-coin value of his cheapest tier 2 items, the Instant Coffee and Herb Tea. But Noah didn’t care about that small differential—not when these materials could potentially help him restore a Tier 6 legendary weapon. "The orb and the mithril ingots together," Noah said after a moment of contemplation. "I’ll accept both in exchange for one Herb Tea. The total value is twelve hundred fifty golden coins, which is two hundred fifty short, but these materials are useful to me for a specific project. The price difference doesn’t matter." Marquess Ravenswood’s eyebrows rose with pleasant surprise. "That’s generous of you, Lord Carter." "Thank you for the trade. These items are really useful." Noah replied, carefully collecting the Stormglass Orb and the case of mithril ingots. He retrieved one of the remaining Herb Teas from his shelf and presented it to the Marquess. The Marquess accepted the tea with obvious satisfaction, holding the precious container as if it were made of fragile glass. "My daughter will benefit immensely from this. She’s been struggling to break through to peak master rank for months, and the toxin removal might be what she needs." "I hope it serves her well," Noah said sincerely.