"Ah, Officer Roy, you’ve gone to so much trouble." Lynch’s face immediately broke into a grateful smile as he stepped forward and extended both hands to shake Roy’s.

The moment their hands clasped, a bearer check for five hundred Gold Coins silently slid into the officer’s palm.

After a quick glance at the amount, the smile on the portly officer known as Roy’s face grew even more brilliant and sincere.

He tucked the check into his uniform pocket with a practiced, natural motion and said humbly, "Oh, what’s a little trouble? It’s all so the Empire can quell the rebellion sooner. It’s my duty. All part of the job, really."

Lynch offered a few more compliments, but he couldn’t help grumbling to himself, ’Senior Brother Raymond is always complaining about how the quartermaster’s office drags its feet and gets nothing done. It seems that, in the end, he’s just too cheap. As long as the wheels are greased, this department is more efficient than a goblin merchant.’

"Come, come, have a seat." Officer Roy enthusiastically gestured for Lynch and Avril to sit down, personally pouring them two glasses of warm water. "I’ll have someone bring your things over right away."

He walked to the door and shouted into the hallway.

Soon, a subordinate brought everything over.

Roy personally opened the box, first taking out a black Mage Robe, which he unfolded and held up with both hands.

The robe was a deep, shadowy black, but upon closer inspection, one could see fine, dark-silver threads woven into the fabric, which emanated a faint, shimmering pulse of Magic under the room’s light.

He presented it as if seeking praise. "This is the Shadow Shelter Robe, which our Quartermaster Section Three specially coordinated for you. We commissioned a master tailor from the ’House of Robes’ workshop to custom-make it according to the measurements and requirements you provided."

"The main materials are a blend of ’Shadow Spider Silk’ from the Shadow Plane and ’Starlight Cotton.’ It’s light, thin, yet durable, with excellent breathability. It also comes with a faint ’Shadow Affinity’ effect, which is good for stealth and concealment. Of course, I know you probably don’t need that, but every little bit helps, right?"

"But the main feature is this." He pointed to the runes. "The robe is enchanted with a Tier Two ’Energy Deflection Shield.’ When activated, it can block a single elemental or physical attack of the same tier."

"Furthermore, thanks to the High Tier enchanting materials used, this robe provides a boost of approximately 5 standard points to your Spiritual Power."

Lynch listened and nodded to himself.

This Top Grade Mage Robe was exactly what he needed right now.

Leaving aside the built-in deflection shield for preventing accidents, the most important part was the 5-point boost to his Spiritual Power.

For a Mage, Spiritual Power had always been the most important attribute.

And for a Necromancer, greater Spiritual Power not only meant a deeper Mana pool and easier spellcasting, but more importantly, it also meant stronger Commanding Power, allowing them to directly control more, and more powerful, Soul Fire units.

He already had a host of powerful subordinates—the Corpse Demon, Bloodfang, Esther, Bone Jade, Guyoki... each one consumed a significant share of his Commanding Power, severely limiting the maximum size of his Undead Army.

He estimated that after his recent advancement to Tier Two, his base Spiritual Power was around 30 standard points. It sounded like a lot, but most of his main Soul Fire Skeletons were already Tier Two. Add to that the three Tier Three units—Guyoki, Esther, and Bloodfang—and one Tier Four Corpse Demon, and his Commanding Power was stretched thin.

This robe, which directly added 5 points to his Spiritual Power, was a godsend.

"Thank you so much, Officer Roy. I’m very satisfied with this Mage Robe," Lynch said gratefully.

’If he hadn’t pulled some serious strings,’ he thought, ’how could I have obtained such a Top Grade Mage Robe so quickly, one perfectly suited to my current abilities and needs?’

"I’m glad you’re satisfied. It did cost you 500 military merit points, after all." Officer Roy smiled and handed the Mage Robe to Lynch. "Why don’t you try it on now? If it doesn’t fit, we can make minor adjustments—though with a master’s touch, there’s unlikely to be any issue."

Lynch didn’t stand on ceremony and immediately changed into the brand-new Shadow Shelter Robe.

As he put the robe on, he found the fit was indeed perfect.

More importantly, as soon as he wore it, a cool and soothing sensation spread from his skin to his mind, sharpening his thoughts instantly.

Lynch could clearly sense that the activity of his Spiritual Power had increased, and by no small amount.

"A fine piece of equipment," Lynch praised.

Seeing this, Officer Roy’s smile widened. He took another item from the box he was holding.

It was a pendant.

It had a thin chain and a dark silver setting, in which a deep blue crystal was embedded.

"Come, come, take a look at this." Officer Roy showed the pendant to Lynch as if presenting a treasure. "This pendant is called the Peaceful Starlight. It was personally designed and crafted by a master alchemist specially hired by the quartermaster’s department."

"Its main component is a fragment of a ’Deep Sea Meditation Crystal,’ purified with a dual blessing from both High Tier Priests and Mages. Wearing it can effectively calm a restless mind, increase your Meditation efficiency, and help you resist a certain degree of mental interference and Curses."

He paused, the smug look on his face growing more pronounced. "Of course, its greatest value lies in the fact that it increases the wearer’s Spiritual Power by 8 points! Heh heh, an item with stats like this would fetch no less than seven or eight thousand Gold Coins at an auction house. It’s only here in the quartermaster’s department, exchanging with military merit, that you get a fair price. It only cost you 500 military merit points."

points of Spiritual Power.

Lynch’s breathing quickened slightly.

Combined with the 5 points from the robe, that was a total increase of 13 points in Spiritual Power.

That was more than forty percent of his total Spiritual Power in his unequipped state.