Rodgraim stood unmoving, and sure enough, Seraphina turned her head to glance at him.
Right beside him was Rodgraim , and at that moment, Captain Vulcan Boatman approached him.
The captain stood up respectfully and said, "That customer, one of your S-class ship and an A-class has been inspected"
"The S-class only requires some minor maintenance while the A-class ship has rust in several places"
"However, please rest assured that it will be fixed perfectly.".
He had a confident grin. "We can get the two repaired in a little over 24 hours. Here's your bill, take a look."
Rodgraim took the bill and was speechless for a moment when he caught his eyes on the price of the maintenance of both ships.
an incredible 500,000 Star Coins.
Although Rodgraim was aware of the charges—considering the size and the intricacy of the two vessels—he could not help but feel that it was a tad overpriced.
He glanced at Seraphina, who stood beside him, and without giving her a second thought, handed her the bill.
"Go and pay for it," he instructed.
Seraphina blinked hard, surprised.
"What?" she asked, as if she wasn't sure she heard.
Still, she presented her Star Coin card obediently to pay.
The moment he caught sight of the card in Seraphina's hand, his expression subtly changed.
His eyes lit up with recognition, and his excitement was pretty hard to miss.
If he wasn't mistaken, the card she held was no other than the fabled Black Gold Star Card—symbolizing immense wealth, issued only by the Star Sea Bank to those with deposits exceeding 10 billion Star Coins.
This reality hit him hard.
The lady in front of him was not merely rich; she was, unusually so.
Even Rodgraim was surprised when he saw the Black Gold Star Card in Seraphina's palm.
He had already thought she was of a wealthy family background.
But not to the extent that now crossed his mind.
A sly thought came to his mind
'If I don't take advantage of this opportunity, wouldn't I be letting my conscience down?'
There was a sudden chill that seemed to slide down her spine, like someone hiding in the shadows was watching her.
A certain uneasiness now settled over her.
"Beep!"
In short work of the Black Gold Star Card on the technological watch of the captain, 500,000 Star Coins were transferred to his account with little difficulty.
As soon as this was done, Seraphina turned to Rodgraim, her expression full of doubts.
"Why did I pay for this?" she demanded.
She had asked a fair question—these, after all, were Rodgraim's ships.
Why was she paying for the costs of maintenance?
Rodgraim only smiled, reaching out to pat her head in a gesture that looked almost affectionate but was also dangerous at the same time.
"Think of all the time you've eaten and drunk on my ships. Don't you think it's only fair?"
"That doesn't add up to 500,000 Star Coins!"
Seraphina answered back, puffed up in offense.
Rodgraim's smirk spread wider as he leaned closer.
"Well, who told you to board my ships in the first place?" he goaded.
Seraphina's retort died in her throat.
For a moment she stood speechless, regretting her decision to associate herself with this cunning individual.
Luna approached them.
"Long time no see, Rodgraim ," she greeted.
Rodgraim nodded briefly. "Not seeing each other for so long," he returned shortly before terminating the discussion.
Their encounter didn't last long as Rodgraim was off and on his way to inspect the rest of Vulcan with Seraphina while Luna remained standing there, her eyes glued to Rodgraim's two ships.
One was the S-class Aether Dominion , and the other was the A-class White Night. Both were far superior to her Redflame.
She couldn't help but feel a pang of regret at seeing the difference between them.
If only I had been nicer to Rodgraim in the past.
Our relationship would probably have been much better now. she sighed wistfully.
As for Rodgraim, he did not bother with Luna's daydreams.
He took Seraphina to Vulcan Star's biggest shopping mall.
As expected of a girl, Seraphina immediately fell into the frenzy of going around the shops and buying goods with abandon.
Fortunately, Rodgraim had prepared with a few Predator bodyguards.
Otherwise, he would have been acting like her porter for all the purchases she made.
Seraphina continued shopping, and Rodgraim followed closely behind
however, his thoughts were interrupted by a familiar sound in his mind.
[Ding! A check-in location has been detected: Vulcan! Do you wish to sign in?]
"Yes, sign in," Rodgraim answered immediately.
[Ding! Congratulations! You have signed in and acquired: 1,000 Iron Pilots and 100 Battle Titans!]
Rodgraim was taken aback.
It was indeed much more generous than he expected.
A thousand Iron Pilots and a hundred Battle Titans were treasure indeed.
Just the Titans would be enough to drastically improve his military strengthes.
Titans for their part, were known for their good fighting capacity.
A single Titan could conquer an entire battlefield at one go.
"System, where are these assets stored?" Rodgraim asked.
[The Iron Pilots are now hibernating on the Aether Dominion]
[They can be activated at any time]
[The Battle Titans are placed in the air compartment of the White Night and can be called upon whenever. ]
Rodgraim nodded in satisfaction.
The cargo capacity of the White Night really does have its worth, accommodating all the Titans that fit inside.
Vulcan's unique planetary conditions fascinated Rodgraim.
Its slow rotation resulted in exceptionally long days and nights—each lasting approximately 168 hours.
This prolonged daylight allowed its inhabitants to maintain high-intensity work schedules.
While Rodgraim rested on an open-air bench, Seraphina approached him, holding something in her hands.
"Here, I got you something special from Vulcan," she said, presenting a cup.
Rodgraim accepted the cup and sniffed it over.
He glanced at the Alien and said, "Moon Milk Tea?" Then he thought aliens might be drinking milk tea, too.
He took a sip and discovered most alien foodstuffs were disgusting to the Earth.
Yet this milk tea was an exception.
As he drank, Rodgraim looked up into the sky.
A fleet of ships had appeared on the horizon and caught the attention of alien races in the surrounding area.
The fleet was composed of one A-class fireship, two B-class frigates, and ten C-class frigates-a formation that was too complicated to be attributed to ordinary mercenaries or pirates.
Seraphina turned and followed Rodgraim's line of sight.
"Those ships look like they belong to the Dark Elves," she said.