Chapter 40 – A Small Goal: Earn One Billion!
After a while, the exchange process was finally done. Eina returned with a pouch full of coins in her hand.
But judging from her face... she clearly wasn't thrilled about something.
Of course. With how many small Magic Stone shards Akira had brought, sorting and checking each one must have been a real pain. The total value wasn't that impressive, but the sheer quantity made the task a chore.
"Total for your Magic Stones: eighteen thousand valis."
"This whole bag... and only eighteen thousand?"
"What did you expect? They're just tiny Magic Stone fragments. Their value isn't much to begin with. But what I really want to know is—how many monsters did you kill on the upper floors to collect all this?"
"No choice. My advisor said adventurers shouldn't take unnecessary risks, so I just roamed around the upper floors."
"You little—!"
Eina could feel her eye twitch. She knew exactly what Akira was doing—throwing her own words right back at her in the most polite way possible.
Even so, it only highlighted Akira's skill. Gathering that many stones on the fifth floor alone wasn't something just anyone could do. He might be new to adventuring, but he definitely wasn't weak.
"See you later, Miss Eina."
Akira grabbed his coin pouch and backpack from the table, then casually made his way out of the guild.
After a full night of nonstop hunting, that was all he got from the fifth floor. Clearly, if he ever wanted to get rich quickly, he'd have to start diving deeper. Monsters on the upper floors just weren't worth much.
Inside his pocket, he carried a small fang radiating a faint warmth.
It was the fang of a young dragon—a drop item from a juvenile drake. The very first—and so far, only—rare drop he had ever gotten.
The sun was already beginning to dip. All across Orario, adventurers were returning from the Dungeon.
Many of them were covered in dirt and blood, their clothes torn, armor cracked, and faces worn with fatigue.
This was the reality of the Dungeon. It had never been a "safe zone."
Akira only moved through it smoothly because of his exceptional abilities. But for the average adventurer, unless they were truly powerful, entering the Dungeon was the same as gambling their life for money.
In fact, the majority of adventurers in Orario would never surpass Level 1 in their entire lives.
Carrying the spoils from his hunt, Akira made his way toward Babel Tower once more. But this time, he wasn't going home. His destination was the Hephaestus Familia's weapon shop.
Even though he was now a member of Hephaestus Familia, he hadn't interacted with anyone other than Captain Tsubaki. Technically speaking, it felt like he had joined Hephaestus herself, rather than the Familia as a whole.
Drrring~
"Welcome to Hephaestus Weapon Shop! Are you looking for a particular weapon today?"
The moment he stepped in, a cheerful catgirl with short hair greeted him warmly.
"Not exactly. I came to meet someone."
"To meet someone? May I ask who?"
"I'd like to speak with Goddess Hephaestus."
"I'm sorry, she's not in the store at the moment."
"Then who's in charge right now?"
"Our Captain, Tsubaki-sama, is here."
"Great. I'll speak with her."
"Understood. Please wait a moment."
The girl gave a polite bow before heading into the back of the store.
Akira chuckled to himself. In most novels, demanding to meet the boss directly was often seen as rude. Fortunately, this wasn't one of those stories.
And honestly, it made sense. A major shop like this wouldn't be run by amateurs. Customer service was clearly top-tier here.
"Who's asking for me?"
A familiar voice called out not long after. Akira turned and smiled.
"Captain Tsubaki. It's been a while."
When she stepped out and saw who it was, Tsubaki raised an eyebrow in surprise.
Of course she remembered him—the guy who had joined their Familia in the most unusual way. He appeared out of nowhere at the Goddess's home, and even after joining, he continued to live with both Hephaestus and Hestia.
If this wasn't suspicious, then what was?
"Shin Akira. Long time no see. What brings you here?"
"I've come because I have a request."
"A request, huh?"
Tsubaki scoffed lightly. If it's something you need, why not just ask the Goddess herself?
Hephaestus was one of the wealthiest goddesses in all of Orario. Her daily expenses were minimal, and her Familia brought in steady profits. She had money to burn.
As for herself, while she made good money, her spending habits matched her income.
"Fine, but I'll say this upfront—I can't do too much for you."
"I just need some information. The defective weapons stored in your warehouse—how many are left?"
"Hmm... I'm not exactly sure. You've seen them yourself, right? Mid-grade weapons. Not exactly top-tier, but still usable. Selling them wouldn't bring much profit, but the materials were expensive. So yeah, it'd be a waste to toss them out."
"I want to buy them. All of them."
"You? All of them?"
"Yep. Name your price."
"Wow~ You're really clinging to our Goddess's thigh now, huh? Feeling bold?"
"This has nothing to do with Hephaestus."
"Heh. You're even calling her by name now."
Tsubaki's gaze sharpened a bit.
"But since you're technically family now... one billion valis. Take the whole lot."
"One billion, huh..."
To Akira, that number felt like the heavens themselves. Even if he could earn 100 to 200 thousand a day, one billion was still an absurd goal.
But thinking it through—it wasn't a bad deal. Sure, the items were technically 'defective,' but not failed products. Many of them were still in excellent condition.
In the current market, even a single Tier 2 weapon could go for hundreds of thousands—sometimes more.
And in Tsubaki's warehouse, there were well over a hundred pieces. A billion was practically a discount.
"What's wrong? Too steep? Want me to knock it down to nine hundred million?"
"No need. One billion it is. I'll be back when I've saved enough."
"Alright then. I'll be waiting."
Tsubaki didn't press him further. She knew Akira wasn't the kind of guy who joked about this sort of thing.
After all, she'd seen his ability to store weapons within the shadows. For Akira, weapons weren't just tools—they were part of his fighting style itself.
Drrring~
The bell above the door rang again.
"Shin Akira? What are you doing here?"
The one who walked in was none other than Goddess Hephaestus herself.
She had just returned from a tea meeting with Loki, where they'd discussed their next collaborative operation.
"Hephaestus-sama, you're back. How did the meeting go?"
"The usual. Just take care of everything. Coordinate with Finn from Loki Familia."
"Understood."
Tsubaki nodded. She and Finn had known each other for a long time. The Loki Familia was one of their biggest clients, regularly placing large orders every month.
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