Chapter 87: Calyca

Knock, knock, knock.

A rhythmic, steady knocking sound echoed through the empty hall.

Gao De stood up after a morning of work, quite surprised.

Had business come to his door? The Artisans’ Guild’s “advertisement” had only just gone up this morning—could it really draw customers so quickly? Or had some passerby spotted the curtain he’d hung just at noon? As he pondered, he walked to the door and opened it.

The visitor was a strikingly beautiful young woman, her pale purple gown shimmering with light, accentuating her graceful figure.

Her eyes carried a faint, watery melancholy.

Behind her stood an elderly man in uniform, his expression respectful—clearly a butler.

A lavishly decorated carriage stood parked by the roadside, its strong steed gently swaying its mane in the breeze.

“Hello, may I ask if Master Google is here? I need to speak with him.” The young woman asked politely.

“If by ‘Master Google’ you mean the repair artisan Google Ditu, then I am he.” Gao De replied with equal politeness.

“Ah?!” The beautiful woman covered her mouth with her hand, eyes wide with astonishment.

“You’re Master Google?”

Amy had not told her Google Ditu’s age when promoting him.

By common sense, she had instinctively assumed a repair artisan recognized by the Artisans’ Guild must be a man at least thirty years old.

Yet upon meeting him, she discovered this master was even younger than herself.

This made her unconsciously hesitate.

“Yes, if you’ve come for me to repair a magical artifact, please come in—we’ll discuss the details inside.” Gao De stepped aside, gesturing toward the reception area he’d specially prepared in the hall.

The first step is always the hardest.

For a craft like repair artistry, once your skill is proven and your first few jobs are done, word of mouth will naturally bring more business.

The young woman before him clearly held high status and was no ordinary client.

If this job went well, it would greatly boost his “career.”

So Gao De placed great importance on this business that had come to his door.

The young woman nodded and stepped inside.

The old man did not follow; he waited at the door.

Under Gao De’s guidance, the young woman sat at the table in the hall.

“Ceylon black tea, would that be acceptable?” Gao De asked politely, not expecting a positive answer.

Though Ceylon black tea was mid-tier and generally suitable for entertaining guests,

Clearly, the woman in the purple gown did not fall into the category of “ordinary.”

“Yes, thank you,” the young woman nodded gracefully.

Gao De picked up a small pinch of tea leaves from the jar, placed them in an elegant cup, poured in freshly boiled water, then carried both cups to sit down.

“How may I address you?” Gao De placed one cup of black tea before the young woman.

“Calyca.” Calyca removed her delicate white gloves, lifted the cup, took a symbolic sip, then set it down again.

She looked at Gao De with hopeful yet doubtful eyes: “Master Google, I’d like you to repair this magical necklace—would you be able to?”

She pulled the exquisite necklace from the side pocket of her gown and displayed it before Gao De.

Gao De carefully examined the crack in the gem at the necklace’s center. Confirming it was split in two but with no missing material, he relaxed.

According to the [Repair Art] rules, as long as the object’s core remained intact, even if shattered into hundreds of pieces, with enough patience and time, Repair Art could restore it perfectly.

Gao De shifted his gaze to his first true client as a repair artisan and asked cautiously: “What is your estimated repair budget?”

Calyca’s words cut off abruptly.

After a few seconds of hesitation, she asked uncertainly: “You mean… you can repair it?”

“Of course,” Gao De was also puzzled. “Is it a level-one or higher alchemical artifact?”

It didn’t look like it, he thought to himself.

The counterfeit “repair artisan” Gao De, who relied on magic shortcuts, did not realize that even a repair artisan capable of fixing level-one magical artifacts could not fix every kind of damage to such items.

If repair artisans could fix most damaged magical artifacts, their value wouldn’t be so far below that of alchemists.

Generally, only minor damage or wear on alchemical artifacts fell within a repair artisan’s scope.

That was precisely why Calyca had approached with such cautious Shitan .

Because the damage to her necklace had already exceeded the repair artisan’s domain.

In truth, Calyca had not held much hope—she was merely driven by emotion to try, never expecting to hear a confident “yes” from Gao De.

Calyca widened her beautiful eyes, blinking. “No, it’s only a level-one alchemical artifact.”

Her voice brightened. “Ten gold coins? No—would fifteen gold coins be enough?”

“Miss Calyca, the standard repair fee for a level-one alchemical artifact is between six and seven gold coins, varying slightly based on the item’s value and extent of damage.”

Gao De gently reminded her: “Ten Syen gold coins is a reasonable price; fifteen gold coins exceeds market rate.”

Though he wanted to earn more, this lady clearly came from a powerful background—he had to know the market, or if word got out, losing his reputation would be far worse than returning a few coins.

Gao De knew clearly: slow and steady was the wise path.

“It doesn’t matter—I don’t care about such a small amount. Just fix it for me!” Calyca declared firmly.

Fifteen gold coins was “small change”? She was clearly a wealthy noble. Gao De suppressed his inner envy and nodded: “I guarantee it will be restored to its original state.”

He had already informed her of the market rate. Since she insisted on fifteen gold coins, he had no reason to refuse—ethically or otherwise.

When someone insists on handing you money, why refuse?

“R-really?” Calyca still couldn’t believe it.

This young repair artisan not only dared to take on such a damaged item, but promised it with such certainty.

“It will take a few days,” Gao De smiled gently. “Repairing a level-one magical item isn’t simple, and your necklace’s damage is quite severe.”

“I understand,” Calyca said.

“One week,” Gao De considered. “Come back on Sunlight Moon Day 10 to collect it.”

When his mana could only sustain five cantrips at once, repairing the level-one arcane item “Mistfang” had taken ten days.

Now that his mana had grown, he could cast seven cantrips in one breath—so the time needed to repair level-one arcane items had decreased accordingly.

“Do I need to pay a deposit?” Calyca held back her excitement.

“No, Miss Calyca. I trust your integrity,” Gao De smiled.

Actually, I trust your wealth, he thought silently.

“Very well. I’ll return in a week,” Calyca put her gloves back on, rose gracefully, placed a hand over her chest, and bowed to Gao De in a chest-touching salute.

“This necklace was left to me by my mother. It holds great meaning for me—it’s not just an ordinary alchemical artifact. I entrust it to you, Master Google.”

“I will,” Gao De assured her again.

(End of Chapter)