Later that night in the boys' dormitory, Arthur lay on his bed, ready to sleep.
"Why don't you come in?" Arthur spoke, directing his gaze toward the window.
Thud!
A cloaked figure entered the room through the window. He then stood, removed the cloak, and looked down at Arthur, who was still lying on the bed.
"Well, it seems my window has become a door," Arthur said with a laugh.
"So, Durin, have you given any thought to my offer?" Arthur asked Durin, who stood like a pillar, staring at Arthur, now sitting up on the bed.
"I will hear your explanation before I decide," Durin said in a cold voice.
"Okay then, listen… I intend to sell monster mana cores to your guild. So, what do you say? Doesn't your guild own a black market too?" Arthur asked with a serious expression.
Durin was stunned by Arthur's knowledge.
How much does this guy know? Will it be okay to let him live even though he knows this much? Who is he?
Durin thought of many things; he didn't expect Arthur to know about the black market too.
"You know about the black market too?" Durin asked, both curious and suspicious.
"Is it something I'm not supposed to know?" Arthur sneered.
"Phew," Durin sighed heavily, then shrugged and responded, "It feels like you know everything when you look at a person. You're more mysterious than anyone I have ever encountered."
"Well then, will you accept my business proposal?" Arthur asked.
Durin looked at Arthur for a while before he sighed and spoke, "Mana cores alone aren't enough for you to be our customer and business partner."
"Who said I want to sell just some mana cores?" Arthur spoke disdainfully, causing Durin to be taken aback.
"What do you mean?" Durin asked, noticing the shift in Arthur's demeanor.
Arthur extended his arm, and a mana core appeared in his hand. At that moment, Durin was shocked, not by the sudden appearance of the mana core, but by something else.
The mana coming from the mana core Arthur was holding—it was from a different world and denser than any monster mana core Durin had ever seen. Durin's sharp mind caught on to what he should do.
He believed that even his guild master had never seen such concentrated mana in a monster core.
What monster does this mana core come from? Is it a monster we have never seen? How did Arthur manage to get his hands on it?
Durin thought for a long time, staring at the glowing blue mana core.
A few hours before Durin came to Arthur's room.
Arthur had returned from the test and had dinner. It was night already, so he was preparing to sleep. He thought about checking his inventory and how many mana cores he had collected from hunting to prepare before Durin came to talk business.
[Inventory]
The status window popped up, clearly showing different items Arthur had stored in his inventory. There was an egg he got from the trial and mana cores he collected at the test site through hunting.
But there was another thing that shocked Arthur: many things he had stored during his past life were there.
"What is this? How are these things here?" Arthur asked, bewildered. He didn't know why these things were here.
He thought that when he reincarnated, he would lose everything he had in his past life, just like he lost his past life skills. But here in front of him, in his inventory, were all the items he had stored from his past life: armor suits, weapons like swords and daggers, mana cores from abyss monsters, and even some food rations and clothes. He had packed all these when he was preparing to enter the abyss because they weren't sure how long it would take. He fought and fought, forgetting he had all these things in his inventory, even ending up eating monster corpses because he thought he didn't have food.
This was truly unexpected. Arthur didn't expect to have all his belongings from his past life when he reincarnated, so this was a jackpot for him.
And that's how Arthur ended up with the mana cores from monsters from his past life. He thought that by using these as products to sell, he could earn money for his living while helping the people of this world research these mana cores, develop through them, and become aware that there are monsters beyond imagination so they could prepare early.
Present time.
Arthur looked at the bewildered Durin, who stood staring at the mana core like a pillar.
He must have felt that the mana coming from this mana core isn't normal and how dense it is. Well, I expect much from the branch leader of the Tranquility Circle, Arthur thought.
"Well then, I think you already know what I meant," Arthur spoke, approaching Durin and then leaning in to whisper in his ear, "This is a great opportunity. You'll have a guaranteed place after you graduate, isn't that right, Durin?"
He then stepped back and continued talking, "Just think about it, being the only one who knows the source of these things and the middleman between the source and the guild. Just from this alone, it will make you respected at the Tranquility Circle."
Durin liked this opportunity but was afraid. What if his guild found out he was talking to an outsider about guild matters and that he knew more than some members who served the guild for years? He pondered again and again, then gathered his courage and spoke.
"What do you want?" Durin asked, now dead serious, looking at Arthur.
Arthur smirked and then responded, "I don't want anything big. I just want some cash to help me for a living."
Durin was shocked.
Is this guy really serious? He has something that can shake the entire continent, but he wants just some cash?
"Is that all?" bewildered, Durin asked.
"Oh no, I didn't finish yet." Durin was taken aback again, wondering what great thing Arthur would ask for.
"I want my information to be confidential, both outside and within your guild. Also, I want a plot of land inside the academy and outside the academy."
Durin asked, "Just a plot of land? What do you want to do with it?"
"I want to start my own faction," Arthur spoke, causing Durin to be surprised.
It was possible to establish a faction, but it required backup. If one was talented and wanted to create a faction, the big factions would trample them, forcing them to join. This made it difficult for small factions to develop and for new factions to be created, unless one had influence and power, like the third prince of the Magnus Empire, Prince Reynard.
"Do you think big factions will let you?" Durin asked.
"Well, I don't care about them, and I have you, don't I?" Arthur responded with a smooth smile.
"But do you know what you're supposed to do to create your own faction? You will have to be the winner in this event. Then, you need enough funds and someone to back you. If you were a noble, maybe things would be smooth because your influence alone could establish a faction," Durin said.
"Do you think I can't be the winner of the event?" Arthur asked.
Durin thought, It is possible for you.
"Do you think if I sell mana cores to you, I won't have enough funds?"
You can have more than you can use, Durin thought.
"Do you think if I have someone like you from one of the big factions as my backup, I won't be able to stand proud?"
No, you can, Durin thought.
"See, it's so simple. So don't worry about small things and get things ready," Arthur said, smiling at Durin.
"… Then what kind of land plot do you want me to look for?" Durin asked.
Arthur smiled, "An isolated area in the academy, a place where there aren't many people around. And for the land plot outside the academy, I hope you have information about restricted areas. Please come with a suggestion of one that is more restricted than others."
Durin looked at Arthur, bewildered. He didn't expect the places he wanted to be isolated and restricted.
He sighed heavily and spoke, "Is that where you're going to build your faction base?"
"Yes, I want a place where there are no eyes," Arthur responded.
After that, Arthur handed some of the top-quality mana cores to Durin. Durin told Arthur to wait for the money while he continued dealing with the event. He would also hand over the plot after the event ended. Then Durin left the way he came. Arthur sighed and went to bed.