Chapter 48: An Old Friend

“Any other requirements?” Balbo asked.

“No. I trust the Grand Duke!”

At least where this matter was concerned, Robin and Grand Duke Benito’s interests aligned.

“Good. Go back for now. Six medical supernaturalists will treat you afterward and restore you completely before the battle, so you can face the enemy in your best condition.” Balbo continued, “I’ve also prepared a speech for you. You don’t need to memorize it—just convey the general meaning correctly.”

“Yes, sir!” Robin saluted.

“You rendered meritorious service by reporting the spy. There’s a reward of five hundred thousand. You can take it in cash or have it deposited into your account,” Grand Duke Benito said calmly.

This was Robin’s reward for exposing the Roland Studio incident.

Although Robin’s contribution was worth far more than five hundred thousand, that was the maximum reward for reporting a spy.

That was simply all that could be paid from the official budget.

“The set of supernatural equipment you use from now on will become your personal property.” Grand Duke Benito lifted his chin. “Young man, you have to survive before you can enjoy any of this.”

This was additional compensation for the spy incident.

“I’ll definitely survive long enough to take Vincent’s head and offer it as a sacrifice to those who died for me.”

……

After leaving the Grand Duke’s tent, Robin returned to his own.

The Grand Duke had prepared quite a few supernatural items for him.

First was a leather hat resembling something worn by a Wild West cowboy. It could stop small-caliber bullets without supernatural enhancement. Even a weak police pistol would require many shots to destroy it.

Besides that function, it could also enhance Robin’s mental power.

Over his torso was a brown vest, far more bulletproof than an ordinary ballistic vest while remaining light and comfortable.

Around his waist was a belt made of cowhide. It increased Robin’s stamina and provided him with a measure of mana.

On his wrists was a pair of bracers that strengthened his hands.

His legs were covered by a pair of work trousers that increased the power of his legs.

On his feet were riding boots that enhanced his speed.

All the supernatural equipment possessed a certain degree of bulletproofing and shock absorption. Some even protected against both cold and heat.

Supernatural items were rather interesting. They could not be worn in duplicate, or the powers within them would conflict.

It had taken humanity several thousand years to develop this six-piece set.

Each piece covered a different area, so they did not interfere with one another. Together, they also provided supernaturalists with additional enhancement.

The compatibility between supernatural items and their users was a matter of great importance. A weak supernaturalist could work himself to death using overly powerful equipment.

Conversely, powerful supernaturalists would find equipment that was too weak almost useless.

And, in the end, the best equipment was the equipment suited to its user. There was no need to pursue sheer power blindly.

Once Robin had put everything on, his attributes changed.

First, his previous values:

[Strength: E+]

[Endurance: E+]

[Agility: E+]

[Spirit: D]

[Mana: E]

Then, after the changes:

[Strength: D]

[Endurance: D]

[Agility: D]

[Spirit: D+]

[Mana: D-]

For Robin, his attributes had improved dramatically.

Although he was still somewhat inferior to Vincent, Robin would be able to fight far more effectively in an open area.

After putting on the equipment, Robin could not resist looking at himself in the mirror.

Did he look a little like a Wild West cowboy?

Robin suddenly remembered that the system had provided an equipment slot on his character panel. He had no idea what it was for.

Since the thought had occurred to him, he decided to try it. After opening the equipment panel, he found six additional pieces of equipment there, all represented by translucent images.

When he focused his mind on one of them, a prompt appeared asking whether he wished to bind it.

The prompt also stated that only one copy of each identical item could be bound at the same time.

Robin tried binding them, and then—

Nothing happened.

“That can’t be right…”

Robin first tried to take off the hat.

He tugged at it.

It did not budge.

Robin refused to believe it and tugged again. The hat felt as though it had been fused to his head.

“What the hell? Other people can’t knock the equipment off me anymore?”

Robin’s eyes widened when he noticed that every piece of equipment now displayed a durability value.

If Vincent wore the same vest, Robin could pierce it by repeatedly shooting the same spot.

But if Robin wore it, the vest would not be damaged until its durability had been completely depleted.

In other words, the equipment had been turned into game data.

More terrifying still, during battle Robin might have a chance to remove someone else’s equipment, while no one could remove his.

Robin looked at his hands.

He had thought the system would be useless in personal combat, but apparently it still provided a certain degree of enhancement.

It was not much, but in a duel, every little advantage counted!

As for the reward from the Grand Duke, Robin chose cash and immediately stuffed it into his system inventory, adding it to the twenty thousand he already had.

“Robin, I found the guns.”

At that moment, Damien entered Robin’s tent carrying several firearms.

Two rifles and a short-barreled gun.

Robin recognized his own at a glance.

He picked it up, and an instinctive sense of blood connection sprang to life.

“Oh, my beloved companion, we meet again at last! I’m so moved—sob, sob…”

“Let’s fight side by side once more. I’ll help you kill every enemy who stands in your way!”

“I never want to return to that useless man again. You don’t know how many people my bullets killed when I was in your hands.”

“But in that useless man’s hands, I never hit a single person!”

Robin felt somewhat embarrassed.

But even another sniper, no matter how incompetent, should not have been incompetent to that degree, right?

Wait a moment.

My friend, after I lost you, I don’t think I fought a single battle at all, did I?

Come to think of it, were guns really that picky about their owners?

For a moment, Robin felt as though he were in the world of *Ever Night*, where Liu Bai’s sword had been wielded by the Headmaster and consequently looked down on Liu Bai himself.

“To be honest, this one incorporates Delos craftsmanship and is the finest firearm in terms of workmanship. But it’s still an ordinary weapon, not a supernatural item.” Damien placed the other two guns in front of Robin. “These two are different. They’re both supernatural weapons and can use more powerful ammunition.”

“Freezing rounds, incendiary rounds, explosive rounds, stun rounds…”

Damien took box after box of special ammunition from the pack on his back.

“The one you used before could only handle armor-piercing rounds at most,” Damien said.

“Oh no, buddy, don’t listen to him!”

“Those two flashy harlots may be better than me in terms of performance by… well, just a tiny bit…”

Robin could almost see the gun making a gesture that contained a universe between its fingertips.

“But! They can never have the understanding we share!”

“And supernatural weapons consume a great deal of mana and mental power!”

“With me, you’ll have incredible staying power.”

“With them, you’ll become a quick shot.”

“Buddy, you don’t want to be a quick shot, do you?”