Once your strength increased, wasn't making money easy? At worst, they could just dive into the Dungeon and hack away. With Spatial Rings, they could make money like crazy in there.
As for Ren Isana's joke about paying him back with her body? In his dreams. Asuna made it clear that he was overthinking things. How could she ever allow that? Megumi Kato was her good friend; she couldn't just watch her go astray. If anyone was going to do something like that, it should be her—Megumi wouldn't be able to handle him!
Hearing Ren Isana and Asuna's banter, Megumi thought for a moment before accepting the ring. "I'll take it, then. Consider it a loan. I'll pay you back little by little in the future!"
There was nothing left to agonize over. She could just pay off the debt slowly, and the Spatial Ring would be incredibly useful to her. Ren Isana didn't mind at all; otherwise, he wouldn't have exchanged for these items in the first place.
"How much? I'll transfer the money to you," Asuna chimed in. She couldn't take her eyes off the ring in her hand, absolutely loving it. Yukino listened closely as well, since she also needed to pay.
"It's a 6x6x6 meter space. I'll just charge you 600 million."
Hearing this price, Asuna paused for a moment before replying, "I'll give you one billion. My father gave me 1.5 billion. You can't even buy one of these on the outside for 600 million." Asuna was very aware of the market value of Spatial Rings.
If she hadn't piggybacked off Ren Isana's success this time, she wouldn't have even dared to dream of owning one. They were practically impossible to buy. Finding a private seller on the outside would easily cost over 1.2 billion, so Asuna directly raised the price to one billion.
With that, she pulled out her phone and transferred the money to Ren Isana. Yukino did the same. Neither had any objections to the price; they were still getting a massive bargain.
"Then I owe you one billion," Megumi spoke up, feeling a bit helpless. It looked like she would have to figure out a way to make money from now on. Suddenly falling a billion in debt was simply absurd.
Watching them haggle *upwards*, Ren Isana rubbed the back of his head. *These rich kids really don't treat money like money.* He had deliberately offered them a discount, yet they actually reverse-bargained him.
Since they insisted on paying more, Ren Isana naturally had no reason to refuse. Even though he wasn't short on cash anymore, he wasn't about to push money away.
After finishing the transfers, Asuna and Yukino picked up their Spatial Rings and began studying them. Seeing this, Ren Isana instructed, "Inject your Magic Power into them to leave a mark first."
Spatial Rings were a lot like smartphones. At first, they were completely unactivated. You needed to inject your Magic Power so the internal magic formulas could record your unique signature. Only then would it be fully activated.
Once activated, the Spatial Ring could only be opened by your specific Magic Power. Wiping it was also simple: the owner just had to use their own Magic Power to extract the recorded signature from within.
Following Ren Isana's explanation, the three girls immediately complied, channeling their Magic Power into the rings. A moment later, the rings emitted a soft glow that quickly faded away.
This signaled that the binding was complete. Eagerly, they slipped the rings onto their middle fingers. Asuna stared at the ring on her hand, a bright smile permanently fixed on her face.
Without hesitation, she hurriedly transferred the contents of her Spatial Backpack into it. Naturally, the commotion around Ren Isana's desk didn't escape the notice of the rest of the class. Sora ran straight over, plopping down next to Ren Isana and staring at him.
"Class Rep, you didn't tell us you had the good stuff!" Sora's eyes practically bugged out of her head as she stared at the rings on Asuna and the others' hands. *Good lord, they all have Spatial Rings now?!*
Many people in the class didn't even have Spatial Backpacks yet, but Ren Isana's group was already rocking Spatial Rings. It was enough to make anyone die of envy. More importantly, where did Ren Isana even get them?
"Do you want one? One billion!" Ren Isana calmly stated the price. If she wanted one, he could get her one when the opportunity arose.
"Can't afford it!" Hearing the price, Sora immediately waved her hands in surrender. That amount of money could buy her family's entire company. She definitely couldn't afford it. Sora looked completely shell-shocked.
She truly hadn't expected Spatial Rings to be that expensive. Seeing her reaction, Ren Isana chuckled. "See? It's not that I didn't want to share, it's just that you don't have the fortune to enjoy it, young lady!"
If she couldn't afford it, why was she even dreaming about Spatial Rings? She could have anything she wanted in her dreams, so she was better off keeping quiet and letting them enjoy their luxury.
Sora didn't dwell on the issue for too long. Instead, she couldn't help but ask, "Class Rep, where did you even get these Spatial Rings? Do you have a special connection?"
Even if she couldn't afford one, it didn't hurt to ask. Knowing the supply chain was the most important thing. She always felt like Ren Isana could pull out a surprise at any moment. First, he introduced her to Maya, where she could buy a Spatial Backpack.
Now he had a connection for Spatial Rings? Did the Class Rep have some sort of heaven-defying background? Was he some kind of super second-generation heir? Sora couldn't help but wonder.
"Director Ken helped me get them. There were only these few, actually. I traded the knowledge I brought back for them." Ren Isana didn't hide the truth, directly bringing up Director Ken.
Hearing this, Sora immediately understood. *So that's how it is. Director Ken helped him get them.* No wonder. He went through official channels. It looked like if she wanted one in the future, she would have to find another way.
"If you really want one, you can ask Maya. She can get her hands on them too." Maya had told Ren Isana that she was just temporarily out of stock, not that she couldn't get them at all.
That older sister's connections were incredibly vast. Thinking of this, Ren Isana suddenly remembered that he hadn't visited her shop since he got back. He decided to drop by after school that afternoon.
"Maya? That makes sense. If I ever want to buy one, I can just go to her. Oh, right, Class Rep, are we going to Maya's place this afternoon? I happen to have some things I need to sell off." Hearing Ren Isana mention Maya reminded Sora of the leftover materials she still had on hand.
"Let's go together, then." Ren Isana was already planning to go anyway, so they might as well head over together. He could also sell some materials to Maya and borrow her husband's workshop while he was at it.
Sora chattered away with Ren Isana for a bit longer before scurrying back to her seat. By now, Asuna and the others had finished transferring their items. Looking at their Spatial Backpacks, Ren Isana couldn't help but ask, "Are you guys going to keep those Spatial Backpacks?"
Hearing his question, Asuna nodded and explained, "I'm planning to have my father send someone to pick it up. I'll just give it to my family."
She had no intention of selling it secondhand. Even though she had outgrown the Spatial Backpack, her family definitely still had a use for it—she had an older brother, after all. Yukino shared the same sentiment.
"Or you could just keep them for yourselves. After all, who would ever complain about having too much storage space, right?" Seeing their reactions, Ren Isana figured they might as well hold onto them.
Hearing his logic, the two girls thought about it for a moment and agreed it made perfect sense. Since Ren Isana suggested it, they decided to keep them. They might come in handy later.
Today's classes were still just self-study sessions. Once noon rolled around, Ren Isana spoke up, "The afternoon is just self-study anyway, so we might as well just head home. It's not like we have anything to do."
That's right—Ren Isana was taking the lead in skipping class. After all, there was absolutely nothing to do at school. The classmates, who were just getting ready to eat lunch, heard his proposal and immediately found it incredibly reasonable.
After a quick discussion, everyone unanimously decided to dismiss themselves for the day. Ren Isana led Asuna and the others toward Maya's shop. Aside from Sora, quite a few other classmates tagged along as well.
Some of them even wanted to go buy a Spatial Backpack. Their recent trip to the other world had made everyone acutely aware of the importance of spatial equipment. Without it, the amount of money you'd lose out on was staggering.
Because of this, many students had set their sights on buying one. Everyone already knew the price, so those who could afford it followed Ren Isana today.
The security guards didn't stop them from leaving the school. After all, the guards knew exactly which class Ren Isana and his friends belonged to. The Director had explicitly stated that this group of students could do whatever they wanted and should be left alone.
After leaving the campus, Ren Isana and the group found a place to eat lunch outside before heading to Maya's shop.
Maya's shop was as deserted as ever, with practically zero foot traffic. Maya herself was sitting behind the counter, binge-watching a TV drama.
The arrival of Ren Isana and his entourage made Maya pause her show. She looked up at Ren Isana as he walked in and asked, "When did you get back? Wait, don't you guys have class?"
Facing Maya's question, Ren Isana casually explained, "Maya! We got back last Friday, but our teachers haven't returned yet, so we don't have any classes."
Hearing this, Maya asked in surprise, "You came back that quickly? It sounds like you guys ran into some trouble. Did you get a good haul?"
Getting back last Friday meant their trip to the other world was rather short. If it wasn't an accident, they must have encountered some sort of incident that forced them to return so early.
"The haul was actually pretty huge. We came over this time to sell off some materials, and I was hoping to borrow your husband's workshop while I'm at it!" Ren Isana stated his purpose for the visit.
Maya was immediately intrigued. She looked Ren Isana up and down before she couldn't help but ask, "You even learned how to forge during your trip to the other world? That's no problem. I'll take you over there in a bit."
She was quick on the uptake and instantly realized that Ren Isana must have picked up blacksmithing skills; otherwise, he wouldn't have asked to borrow the workshop. Her husband would probably be thrilled.
Maya beamed with amusement. After chatting for a bit, Ren Isana took out the materials he had brought and handed them over to her. This time, he wasn't giving her any low-level junk.
While he was still over there, Ren Isana had already offloaded all the low-tier loot. Everything he had kept was mid-to-high-grade material. Seeing the items, Maya's eyes instantly lit up.
"How about this: pack all of this up, and I'll take you straight to my husband. Let him appraise it." There were some materials she couldn't even recognize, so it was best to leave professional matters to the professionals.
This kid Ren Isana really knew how to surprise her. Whenever he got his hands on top-tier materials, he was genuinely willing to bring them to her to sell. Maya felt deeply gratified. *What a good kid.*
Hearing Maya's suggestion, Ren Isana naturally had no objections. Heading straight over there was perfect. He could fuse his weapons while he was at it.
With that settled, Maya shifted her gaze to the rest of the group. "Are you guys here to sell materials today too? If so, let's all head over together."
Hearing this, the classmates eagerly agreed. After all, everyone was incredibly curious about this older sister who could casually procure Spatial Backpacks. Getting to visit her family's workshop was a great opportunity to look around.
With the plan set, Maya simply locked up her shop and led the group toward her forging workshop. Along the way, she chatted casually with Ren Isana.
"Did you come back this time to take the college entrance exams? Feeling confident? Have you thought about which university you want to go to?" Maya smiled at Ren Isana, chatting with him like a doting elder.
"Maya, we've all been granted direct admission to Dimensional Nexus University, so we don't need to take any entrance exams." Facing her questions, Ren Isana spread his hands and delivered the excellent news.
Maya was quite surprised to hear this. *All of them got direct admission? That's seriously impressive, especially since it's Dimensional Nexus University.* Thinking this, she immediately said, "Heading over there, huh? That's wonderful. It looks like we'll be seeing a lot of each other in the future."
Ren Isana blinked in surprise at her words. Asuna couldn't help but ask curiously, "Maya, are you going to be heading over there too?"
Come to think of it, if Maya could travel there, it shouldn't be surprising at all, right? After all, she could easily source Spatial Backpacks, so going to the Nexus would be a walk in the park for her.
"The biggest weapon chain store over there is actually run by me. Hehe, bet you didn't see that coming!" Maya suddenly dropped this bombshell.
Her words instantly left everyone dumbfounded. *Good lord? Is she joking? The biggest chain store on Nexus Island is run by Maya?* If that was true, didn't that mean Maya was doing business across multiple worlds?
After all, that place connected to numerous worlds. To build the largest store there spoke volumes about her capabilities. You really couldn't tell just by looking at her. Even Ren Isana was a bit shocked.
"Then why are you here, Maya?" This tiny shop clearly wasn't her main business, yet here she was. No matter how you looked at it, it was baffling.
"Because I have nothing better to do. The stores over there don't need me to manage them; I just need to check the accounts every now and then. So I figured I'd come back here, open a little shop, and collect rent!" An incredibly unpretentious reason.
Or perhaps she had just gotten bored of being over there, so she returned to this city to run a small shop for fun. The lifestyle of the ultra-rich was simply beyond comprehension. At the same time, everyone finally understood why Maya's connections were so vast and how she could procure Spatial Backpacks.
"So, Maya, you're basically the biggest arms dealer on Nexus Island!" Sora finally came to a conclusion. Their Maya was an arms dealer—a ridiculously wealthy one at that.
Maya didn't deny Sora's claim, because it was absolutely true. She was the biggest arms dealer on Nexus Island—or rather, an arms dealer spanning across several worlds.
Maya continued chatting with everyone as they made their way to her workshop. Looking at the route they were taking, Ren Isana was a bit surprised. This wasn't the way to the workshop he was familiar with at all.
They were heading somewhere else entirely. Staring at the massive complex of factory buildings in front of him, Ren Isana was taken aback. If he remembered correctly, this was a large-scale forging plant. This was actually Maya's property?
As Maya led the group inside, the security guards hurriedly opened the gates and respectfully called out, "Boss." This confirmed to everyone that this massive facility indeed belonged to Maya.
"Maya, is all of this yours?" Looking at the sprawling interior, Sora couldn't help but voice the question on everyone's minds. She was deeply shocked; she knew about this place.
This factory produced a massive amount of weapons, but most of them were shipped elsewhere to be sold. Looking at it now, that "elsewhere" was clearly Nexus Island.
"Yep. Come on, I'll take you to see my husband." With that, Maya led the group toward one of the buildings deeper inside the complex.
Upon entering, the rhythmic clanging of hammers striking iron echoed through the air. Peeking into the workshops, Ren Isana noticed something surprising: aside from a few burly human men, there were actually dwarves working inside.
"Maya, you have other races working here?" Seeing the dwarves, he was genuinely stunned. Spotting other races in the city was even rarer than seeing a foreigner.
But Maya seemed to have quite a few of them here. He had never seen these races out and about in the city before. Ren Isana's curiosity was instantly piqued.
"I do. They were all recruited from other worlds. They're cheap, hardworking, and their craftsmanship is exquisite. They don't really like going outside, though, so they just live here within the industrial park," Maya explained with a smile.
Hearing this, Ren Isana immediately understood. *So that's how it is.* Thinking about it carefully, recruiting dwarves from other worlds was actually a brilliant move. After all, some of those worlds were incredibly backwards.
However, their forging techniques were anything but poor. Low wages, excellent craftsmanship—hiring them to forge weapons was an absolute steal.
Maya led Ren Isana and the group to their destination. Walking straight in, she called out to a towering, 1.9-meter-tall muscular man busy at the forge. "Jimmy, come here for a second."
Hearing Maya's voice, he set down his tools, grabbed a towel to wipe the sweat from his face, and walked over. This man gave off an aura of overwhelming strength at a single glance—he practically had the word "invincible" written all over his face.
Ren Isana had naturally seen him before; the memories of his predecessor contained images of the man. But seeing him in person now, the first thing that popped into Ren Isana's mind was the Lion's Sin of Pride, Escanor, in his high noon form. Just a black-haired, beardless version!