The items Michael had purchased earlier were very simple.
He bought all the necessary tools to perform alchemy, forge weapons and armor, and for gardening. The tools were of high quality and enough in quantity for three to four Alchemists and Blacksmiths to use.
Other than the tools, Michael purchased high-quality fertilizer for the Tiatcha Trees and potions with growth hormones. The potions had been developed for monsters and livestock. They would be quite useful for the Bilrox once they hatch.
Michael purchased several sets of tempered leather armors manufactured with the hide of Tier-1 monsters for his Warriors and Tiara to use, a wide variety of potions, a large medicine kit, and a bunch of recipes and books for all Subjects who were still Apprentices.
Being an Apprentice meant that they had the potential to become Experts when they were still alive. Sadly, they died before reaching that level, which meant that they could attain it now that they had been resurrected.
Unfortunately, everything was ridiculously expensive.
More than a third of his earnings had been spent on the items above, which had left Michael with a little bit more than 600,000$ to purchase a better Bow Artifact and Arrows.
The Antler Bow was great, but it was not good enough anymore. Michael wanted to train his archery skills without being restricted by the power output of a Tierless 1-Star Bow Artifact. Thus, he purchased a bow whose pulling force could be adjusted by channeling energy inside it.
The 3-Star Tier-0 Hardwood Bow Artifact was perfect for this purpose. It didn't possess an additional enchantment, but the hardness of the frame could be adjusted with the amount of energy inserted. It could injure Peak Tier-1 Monsters in its strongest form, which was exactly what Michael needed!
The discounted price Michael received was 600,000$ and a batch of arrows was included in it. However, he purchased a few hundred additional arrows, spending most of his remaining fortune.
Leaving the House of Witchery with an empty pocket – just like last time – Michael felt a little sad, but he was also satisfied with himself.
'I can give Tiara the Antler Bow to increase her perception a little. I can teach her a little if she is still interested in archery,' Michael thought to himself before he retrieved the Antler Bow.
He cut the connection between the Antler Bow and his War Rune and proceeded to bind the Hardwood Bow to his War Rune once he and his brother entered the shuttle, which they had hailed to return home.
A familiar white strand of energy emerged from within his War Rune. Michael willed it to bind the Hardwood Bow, and the strand of energy shot forward. Like a tentacle, it coiled around the Hardwood Bow Artifact before starting the binding process.
Michael closed his eyes to feel and sense the binding process intently while the Hardwood Bow turned into a white wisp, which was pulled inside his War Rune shortly thereafter.
The enhancement provided by the Hardwood Bow spread through his entire being when they arrived in front of their apartment complex. Michael felt his perception and agility increase considerably. It was several times stronger than the perception increment he had received from the Antler Bow!
However, the increment in his perception and agility was still weak compared to the enhancement he received from his Epic Artifact.
'Even if the difference between a 1-Star Artifact and a 3-Star Artifact is worlds apart, Tigerfang is even more exceptional!'
The Hardwood Bow increased his perception and agility by roughly 20%, while Tigerfang's overall increment was more than 70% even now. The external increase of strength provided by Artifacts was predetermined and wouldn't change. Nonetheless, Tigerfang's enhancement was still extremely high even after his War Rune's degree of refinement was about to reach the Late stage.
It was truly an invaluable treasure for a Tierless Lord and served as a mean to increase Michael's survivability drastically!
"Are you not getting out?" Danny asked, pulling Michael out of his train of thought.
Michael shook his head to free his mind and left the shuttle. It was only then that he noticed something lying on his lap.
It was an arrow.
"Huh? Isn't that the…" He blurted out in a dumbfounded voice when Danny nodded his head, "That's the Return Arrow. You were looking at it as if you were going to steal it, so I purchased it."
Danny laughed lightly, recalling when Michael had a look of pure yearning on his face while staring at the Return Arrow. Unfortunately, he didn't have enough money to purchase it just yet. He would have to save up another million to purchase the Tierless 3-Star Artifact, the Return Arrow.
"You bought it? Why wo–..." Michael began, but he couldn't even finish his sentence when Danny began glaring at him.
"I just bought it, so what?! Don't tell me that you don't need it? I know that your territory is in an extremely dangerous region, otherwise, how would you be able to earn 50,000$ after you spent three days in the Origin Expanse, and a million after spending eight days in the Origin Expanse??" Danny shouted after being slightly influenced by the emotions that wreaked havoc in his mind for the last half an hour.
Danny was fuming in anger when he noticed that Michael was about to retort, so he added, "It's fine if you don't want to talk about it, but don't you dare to lie to me, Michael!"
Michael kept his mouth shut and scratched the back of his head helplessly.
"Okay…" He could only say before he began to bind the Return Arrow Artifact to his War Rune, "...Thank you…"
The Return Arrow was actually something Michael wanted. It was a Tierless 3-Star Artifact that could be used indefinitely, until it broke into pieces, to be precise.
The Arrow Artifact was strong enough to support the Hardwood bow, and it had the 'Return' enchantment, which was the biggest reason why Michael wanted to purchase it, in the first place.
One could configure the return enchantment by channeling energy inside it to determine exactly how far the arrow could travel away from of the War Rune before it would return to him automatically. The concept was similar to that of a boomerang.
"It's good that you did not reject my gift. I just want to make sure that you can survive as long as possible. The Return Arrow will increase your agility a little but you should ensure that you will never lose your weapons when you're in battle. Arrows are consumables, and you cannot retrieve them most of the time. The Return Arrow is different, so I can feel reassured that you'll be fine…hopefully!" Danny said before he added lightly,
"I can buy you a few more Artifacts if you want!"
However, Michael shook his head immediately.
"I'm fine, thanks Danny. Pay attention to your Primedival Pyramid and buy yourself some Artifacts!"
"Alright, I will do as you say. But first, I will leave to take a look at my territory. The preparations for the expedition should be completed by now," Danny answered as they stepped inside their apartment.
The next moment, two Runic Gates appeared in the living room at the same time, one created through Michael's War Rune, the other manifested by Danny's War Rune.
"It was great to spend time with you. Let's repeat that soon!" Danny said as he approached his Runic Gate.
He was a little reluctant to leave his brother alone, but he also knew that Michael would be fine. His little brother was stronger and more talented than he was, after all!
Michael nodded his head with a bright smile on his face.
"Yes, let's go out to eat when we meet again!"