Not long from now, the Chitauri would invade Earth, and the people of the Marvel World would become increasingly desperate for high-end weaponry.
By then, Kro-Alloy a high-grade metallic material was bound to become highly sought after. Selling it would be the least of Rowan's concerns.
"When the time comes, I'll find a way to get my hands on some vibranium and sell it in the Devourer of Stars world. That should rake in an absolute fortune."
The more Rowan thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.
In the Devourer of Stars world, vibranium would undoubtedly qualify as a rare metal. Armor forged from it might even surpass the defense of the SSS-grade Kro-Alloy battle suits.
Theoretically, a suit made of vibranium would rank just below the legendary Black God Set.
"If I really can get some vibranium and sell it there, maybe I could trade for a dose of Dragon Blood..."
Rowan scribbled Dragon Blood on a blank page of his notebook.
In the Devourer of Stars version of Earth, there were few items capable of increasing one's strength without side effects.
At the early stages, Dragon Blood was just about the only viable option.
Things like the Spirit of Wood or the Woodbud Essence were all created by Babata completely out of reach for Rowan.
But Dragon Blood? That was something he just might be able to acquire.
His mind grew clearer. His notebook pages were rapidly filling with scribbled plans, notes, and ideas.
The Marvel World and the Devourer of Stars world really did offer countless ways to cross-leverage opportunities.
Even something as mundane as bulk grain trading could make him a tycoon.
As the night wore on, it was already past eleven by the time Rowan finally set his pen down.
Three full pages, densely packed.
He checked the time and smiled.
"Sleep first. Tomorrow, I'll find Howard Zhou to get his ID."
…
The next morning, Rowan was already awake by five.
His entire body felt brimming with energy.
Since being infected with the RR virus, his sleep quality had skyrocketed. Six hours of rest was enough to fully restore his physical functions.
The first thing he did after opening his eyes was sneak into Hill's room to check on her.
Seeing her sleeping peacefully, breathing steadily with no signs of fever, Rowan finally relaxed.
It seemed he hadn't brought the RR virus back with him.
The time-space vortex likely filtered out or destroyed any viral traces.
After confirming Hill was fine, Rowan felt a wave of relief. He washed up quickly and headed into the kitchen to prepare breakfast.
Sandwiches and egg pancakes, plus two cups of warm milk.
Maybe it was the sound of cooking, but as he carried the milk into the dining room, Hill came out of her room, still groggy.
Her hair was a bit messy, her eyes half-closed, looking adorably sleepy and familiar.
"Good morning, Hill."
"Mm... morning, Rowan."
"I don't even remember falling asleep last night."
"You dozed off while blow-drying your hair. Go wash up, breakfast's ready."
"Okay—"
After freshening up, Hill changed into a white blouse and a black knee-length pencil skirt, pinning up her hair with a shark clip. She looked polished and beautiful.
She sat down, spotted the egg pancake on her plate, and her eyes lit up. Without hesitation, she picked it up and took a big bite.
"Mmm, delicious!"
She chewed in bliss and took a sip of milk.
Watching her satisfied expression, Rowan couldn't help but smile.
Clearly, she'd been through a rough few days. Even a simple egg pancake made her this happy.
Well, to be fair, he had put genuine effort into it.
Back in his past life, he had learned to make them from an old lady who ran a family-owned breakfast stall.
Even Natasha was hooked on them.
An entire platter of egg pancakes disappeared. In the end, Rowan only got one slice. Hill devoured the rest.
As for the sandwiches? She didn't even spare them a glance.
Left with no choice, Rowan ate both himself.
Once breakfast was done, Hill tidied up her briefcase, ready to head out.
Work at S.H.I.E.L.D. was relentless. Most mornings, she had to be at the office by 7 a.m. to assist Fury.
"Oh, by the way, Hill, I'm planning to start a small business. I'll be using some of the money in the bank card."
While she was changing shoes, Rowan spoke casually as he cleared the dishes.
Hill didn't really have many personal expenses. Her salary high as a Level 9 agent was mostly untouched and had been handed over to Rowan long ago.
There was well over a million dollars in that account.
"Okay. Use it as you see fit. If it's not enough, let me know. I can apply for a loan from the agency."
Dressed in her sleek pencil skirt, black leather shoes clicking on the floor, she still had a triangle-cut egg pancake dangling from her mouth as she spoke.
Rowan chuckled softly. He wasn't surprised.
Hill had handed over her bank card three years ago.
He only brought it up now to mentally prepare her.
Otherwise, she might be a bit stunned when he turned into a multimillionaire overnight.
After Hill left, Rowan opened his laptop and tapped into a secured system.
This was S.H.I.E.L.D.'s information retrieval network accessible only to internal personnel.
Though Rowan wasn't a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, with a Level 9 agent in his house and another who ranked Level 10, backdoors weren't hard to come by.
His account only had Level 1 clearance, though. Nothing classified.
Logging in, he searched for local rice distributors in New York with East-Asian supply chains.
Soon, Rowan narrowed it down to one particularly suitable supplier.
He noted the phone number, closed the system, and made the call.
"Hello? I'd like to purchase a bulk shipment of rice."
…
After making contact, Rowan negotiated directly with the distributor.
In the Devourer of Stars world, the East-Continental Alliance had six major base cities. Just the Jiangnan Base alone held nearly 200 million people.
Farmland was scarce, which made staple foods a valuable resource.
Rowan had checked grain prices there the night before. Rice sold at two to three times the Marvel World's rate.
"What kind of rice do you need? And approximately how many tons?"
The distributor on the phone was polite and professional.
"I'm looking for top-grade northeast long-grain, straight from the Eastern Continent. I've got about one million dollars to spend. How much can you get me?"
Rowan was direct.
"One million?"
The distributor was visibly surprised.
It wasn't often a first-time customer ordered such a massive load.
"For that price, I can get you around 2,500 tons."
He paused briefly, then added in a steady tone.
"That works. I'll need the delivery today. Can you arrange that?"
"Your warehouse is in New York?"
"Correct."
"Then yes. I can have the shipment delivered today."
The distributor sounded genuine and efficient.
"Alright. I'll come inspect the goods in person first. I'll wire over half the deposit right away."
"Sounds good. Looking forward to meeting you."
After hanging up, Rowan didn't head out just yet.
As important as the rice deal was, he was even more concerned with testing his physical condition.
Grabbing Hill's access card, he once again swiped into the C9 training facility.
He was familiar with every inch of the place. Once inside, he jumped straight into a full-body diagnostics session.
So far, the only world he could travel to using his dual-phase ring was the Devourer of Stars.
And that was more than enough for now.