The iron gates of the Academy swung open, and the noise hit them like a physical wall.
"They're coming out!"
"Miss Nyx! Over here!"
"Mr. Axiom! The Golden Lion Guild has a proposal!"
A sea of recruiters, journalists, and guild scouts had formed a blockade at the Academy entrance. The news of the "Instant Clear" in the assessment dungeon had apparently leaked faster than the Boss's death notification.
Moira's eyes went cold. The Radiant Claymore was sheathed on her back, but the mana radiating from her was sharp enough to cut glass. She stepped slightly in front of Eidon, her hand hovering near the hilt.
"Back off," she said. Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried the weight of 405 Strength. The front row of recruiters flinched, instinctively stepping back.
A man in a sharp blue suit, wearing the insignia of the Violet Moon Guild, held his ground. "Miss Nyx, we are prepared to offer a signing bonus of 100 million credits. We can provide you with A-Rank Grimoires and a personal mansion in the Upper District. We don't care about the... baggage." He glanced dismissively at Eidon.
Eidon stopped walking. He looked at the recruiter.
"Baggage," Eidon repeated calmly. "Is that the official stance of the Violet Moon?"
The recruiter sneered slightly. "Mr. Axiom, you are a Dermit. We are willing to support you as a civilian dependent to secure Miss Nyx, but let's be realistic. You are a pet project. She is the asset."
Moira's aura flared violently. The ground beneath her boots spider-webbed. "I will cut your tongue out."
"Moira," Eidon said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Don't."
"But he—"
"He's irrelevant," Eidon said, guiding her through the gap in the stunned crowd. "We aren't signing with anyone today. We have to study."
He ignored the shouting, the camera flashes, and the desperate offers thrown at their backs. They walked to the bus stop, the most powerful duo in the city waiting for public transit like commoners.
District 9 Apartment - Evening
The moment the door locked, the silence was a blessing.
Eidon sat at the table, while Moira paced the small living room, still fuming.
"They looked at you like you were nothing," she hissed. "I should have broken his legs."
"Let them look," Eidon said, opening his interface. "Underestimation is our best armor right now. If they knew I controlled the economy they're currently addicted to, they wouldn't be offering contracts; they'd be sending assassins."
He checked his balance.
[ CURRENT SP: 2,150,000 ]
The frenzy over the Accessory Boxes had settled, but the steady flow of transaction fees from potions and low-tier gear was consistent. He was rich in points, but physically, he was running into logistics issues.
He looked at the E-Rank Core on the table. Then he looked at Moira's massive sword leaning against the couch.
"The 5kg inventory limit is annoying," Eidon muttered. "And carrying that sword around is a target."
He opened the [ SPECIAL ITEMS ] tab—the Admin-exclusive section.
[ ITEM: Expanded Void Bag (Ex-Rank) ]
[ RANK: Ex ]
[ CAPACITY: Unlimited Weight / Spatial Stasis ]
[ SPECIAL EFFECT: Integration. Can be absorbed directly into the user's native Inventory Slot. ]
[ PRICE: 100,000 SP ]
"Integration," Eidon noted. "Perfect."
[ PURCHASE: 2x Expanded Void Bag (Ex-Rank) ]
[ TOTAL COST: 200,000 SP ]
Two sleek, black leather pouches appeared on the table.
He tossed one to Moira. "Hold this. Command your System to 'Absorb'."
Moira caught it, looking confused. "Absorb?"
She closed her eyes. A moment later, the pouch dissolved into particles of blue light that seeped into her skin. Her eyes snapped open in shock.
"My capacity..." she whispered. "It went from 5kg to... infinity symbol?"
"Mine too," Eidon said, having absorbed his own. He picked up the E-Rank Core and made it vanish with a thought. "Put the sword away. We don't need to carry luggage anymore."
Moira touched the Radiant Claymore. It vanished instantly into her personal subspace.
"Now for the real investment," Eidon said. His expression darkened slightly. "Moira, you're strong. Level 6, SSS-Rank. But you're human. You need to sleep. You need to eat. And with the news cycle tomorrow, we are going to have targets on our backs."
"I can protect us," Moira insisted, stepping closer. "I'll stay awake. I don't mind."
"No," Eidon said firmly. "I won't burn you out. We need a deterrent that doesn't sleep."
He navigated to the [ SLAVES ] category.
He filtered by [ COMBAT ] and [ LOYALTY: ABSOLUTE ].
He needed something that scaled well into the mid-game. The Level Cap of the world was 1000. Most S-Rank Guild Masters were estimated to be around Level 150.
He scrolled past the goblins and orcs. He stopped at a shadowy figure.
[ ITEM: Shadow Sentinel ]
[ RACE: Umbra Construct ]
[ LEVEL: 250 ]
[ CLASS: Assassin / Guardian ]
[ DESCRIPTION: A construct woven from the shadows of the Lower Haven. Does not eat, sleep, or speak. Exists to protect the Master. ]
[ PRICE: 1,500,000 SP ]
Level 250.
It was overkill. It was stronger than any human currently alive in Valoria.
"Buy," Eidon commanded.
[ TRANSACTION COMPLETE. ]
[ REMAINING BALANCE: ~450,000 SP ]
The shadows in the corner of the room boiled. Moira instinctively summoned her Claymore back from her new inventory, stepping in front of Eidon.
"Eidon, get back!"
"Stand down, Moira," Eidon said calmly. "It's ours."
From the darkness, a humanoid figure rose. It was seven feet tall, wrapped in armor made of shifting black smoke. It had no face, only a pair of glowing violet slits for eyes. It knelt instantly, bowing its head toward Eidon.
Moira stared at the creature. She felt its mana. It was... suffocating. Deep. Like looking into an ocean trench.
She lowered her sword, but her grip didn't loosen. She looked at Eidon, then back at the Sentinel.
He bought a protector, she thought. He spent 1.5 million points on this... thing.
A pang of sharp, cold jealousy pierced her chest. I am supposed to be his shield. I am the Guardian of Heavens. Why does he need this shadow doll?
But then she looked at Eidon's face. He looked tired. He looked small next to the monster he had just summoned.
He's doing it to be safe, she realized. If I'm asleep... this thing will keep him alive. I can't be everywhere at once.
She swallowed the bitterness, though the taste remained.
"It's strong," Moira admitted quietly. "Stronger than me right now."
"Only for now," Eidon assured her. "You'll surpass it in a month. But until then... it watches the door."
He pointed to the corner. The Shadow Sentinel melded back into the darkness, becoming invisible to the naked eye, though its presence remained like a loaded gun in the room.
"One last thing before bed," Eidon murmured, opening the Admin Panel again.
He navigated to the [ WEEKLY SPECIAL ] tab.
[ WEEKLY SPECIAL SLOTS: 0 / 3 ]
"Three slots," Eidon noted. "I can list up to three special items simultaneously. I used one for the Accessory Box earlier. I have two left for this week."
He needed to refill the coffers. The Sentinel had drained him.
He selected a [ MOUNTS ] item he had been eyeing.
[ ITEM: Storm-Wing Griffin Egg (Rank A) ]
[ PRICE: 1,000,000 SP ]
[ QUANTITY: 1 ]
"A million SP," Eidon whispered. "Let's see who wants to rule the skies."
He hit [ PUBLISH ].
"Go to sleep, Moira," Eidon said. "We have business in the morning."
The Next Morning
Sunlight streamed into the living room. Eidon was already up, drinking instant coffee. The Shadow Sentinel was exactly where he had left it, a silent patch of darkness in the corner.
He checked his interface immediately.
[ WEEKLY SPECIAL UPDATE ]
[ ITEM: Storm-Wing Griffin Egg (Rank A) ]
[ STATUS: SOLD OUT ]
[ REVENUE: +1,000,000 SP ]
"Sold while I slept," Eidon grinned. "Someone panicked and liquidated their entire guild storage for that," he joked.
He checked his total balance. The number was higher than he expected. It seemed the race for the Griffin Egg had caused a massive spike in activity—thousands of hunters grinding desperately to reach the million mark, failing, and then spending their points on other things in frustration.
[ CURRENT SP: 2,100,000 ]
"Two point one million," Eidon nodded. "The economy is healthy."
"Time to fix the stats," he murmured.
He turned on the TV while he worked.
"BREAKING NEWS: THE TWIN MIRACLES OF VALORIA!"
The screen showed footage of Moira's Awakening—the platinum avatar of the Shield Maiden. Then it cut to a grainy photo of Eidon standing on the platform with the grey "Dermit" text.
"Sources confirm that Moira Nyx, the newly awakened SSS-Rank Guardian, cleared the Academy Assessment Dungeon in record time! Analysts predict she will reshape the power balance of the continent!"
"However," the anchor continued, "Questions remain about her companion, Eidon Axiom. Despite his SSS-Rank classification, his 'Dermit' status has led the Association to classify him as a Non-Combatant Commander. Yet, witnesses claim he led the expedition with absolute authority."
Eidon ignored the "Non-Combatant" label and focused on the [ STATS ] tab.
[ PRICING TIER 2: 101 - 1,100 Attribute Points ]
[ COST: 1,000 SP per Point ]
He currently had 105 in all stats.
He wanted to reach 200 in all stats.
That meant buying 95 points for each of the 7 attributes.
Math:
95 points $\times$ 1,000 SP = 95,000 SP per attribute.
95,000 $\times$ 7 Attributes = 665,000 SP.
"Easy," Eidon noted.
He tapped the interface rapidly.
[ PURCHASE COMPLETE. ]
[ STRENGTH: 105 -> 200 ]
[ AGILITY: 105 -> 200 ]
[ VITALITY: 105 -> 200 ]
[ INTELLIGENCE: 105 -> 200 ]
[ DEXTERITY: 105 -> 200 ]
[ WILLPOWER: 105 -> 200 ]
[ LUCK: 105 -> 200 ]
[ REMAINING BALANCE: 1,435,000 SP ]
His body convulsed slightly as the power flooded him. 200 Strength. That was firmly in the realm of a Level 25-30 Combat Class. He was no longer just an athlete; he was superhuman. Even his Luck, the hardest stat to raise naturally, was now far beyond any mortal's—though he knew the true ceiling for Luck was 1,000, a divine cap that only he would likely ever reach.
Moira stepped out of the bedroom, rubbing her eyes. She froze, looking at him.
"You got stronger again," she said instantly. Her senses were sharp. "Your mana feels... denser."
"Just spending the revenue," Eidon said, standing up. The chair didn't scrape; he lifted it unconsciously. "Get dressed. We're going to the Exchange."
"The Exchange? Why?"
Eidon summoned the E-Rank Core from his inventory—no bag required, just pulled straight from the air.
"Because we have millions of SP, but we can't pay rent with System Points yet," he said. "We need Credits. And we need to move out of this dump before the recruiters decide to break down the door."
He tossed the core to her.
"Let's go turn this pebble into lunch."