Tier 3+ - Accidental Champion (Book 2) - Chapter 88 - Ding!

[Author Note: I think this is the end of book 2. Chapter 1 of Book 3 will release as normal tomorrow.]

Xavier couldn’t look past this opportunity. He needed to act now. There was only an hour and ten minutes left before they would be returned to Earth, and though he couldn’t wait to get back there, he was pretty darn sure he wouldn’t be able to access the System Shop when he got there.

He selected the one-hour option and found he had two choices—he could either give the Item Broker his budget for the item itself, and the broker would purchase the item instantly on his behalf, or he could put a hold on the item. A Tier 1 item broker apparently had the ability to put a ten-minute hold on an item being purchased, which hid the item from other users of the System Shop for that duration.

As Xavier had no idea how much the item would cost, either in spirit coins or in Participation Points, he chose the latter option, which happened to cost the exact same amount.

That means if I can’t afford to purchase this, then I’ve just wasted fifty of my Participation Points, which seem to be far more valuable than I’d previously realised.

Xavier put in a description of the item that he wanted, then purchased the service.

Then he spent a good minute wracking his brain for other useful items he might be able to use when they returned to Earth. He had a Seed Sanctuary, a Seed Garden, a Portal Hub, Portal Stones, and a Portal Block. All of these things would be incredibly useful when he returned. Not to mention the Communication Stones he had—something he’d looked up in the store, too, and they were currently way outside of his price range, at least if he hoped to afford the item from the Item Broker.

It was a lot easier getting items from loot boxes than it was getting them from the System Shop, that was for sure…

Maybe I could use my Participation Points for some more Communication Stones. If I have enough for each member of my party, I’ll always be able to keep in contact with them, and the stones that were world-restricted were much cheaper than sector-restricted…

He pushed that thought aside. There was a chance he would need every single Participation Point that he had for the purchase of the item he wanted. It was too important to risk.

This item will help Earth’s safety, stopping enemy invaders from getting word back to their people about what level I am. I need this more than I need more Communication Stones.

He sighed. He also needed it more than he needed a smithy, which was another item he’d just thought of—somewhere for a skilled blacksmith to work. He imagined adding that to his Seed Sanctuary would be very advantageous. There was probably an item that could grow what he needed.

Instead of worrying about what other items he might be currently missing out on, Xavier sat down, cross-legged on the floor, and did something he hadn’t had the time nor the inclination to do in a while.

He created more spirit coins, and with his Spirit attribute being as high as it was, he was a little astounded by just how many he was able to create.

In a single batch, he could create 1,580 Lesser Spirit Coins, or 158 Minor Spirit Coins. He actually had an option as to which one he could choose. He, of course, chose Minor Spirit Coins. The amount became a littledisappointing when he changed it to those, but he couldn’t complain.

His Spirit Energy reserve was, well, for lack of a better phrase, a crap ton. Each batch took him about a second to create, and his E Grade Spirit Energy was 79,100 points when full.

Previously, when he’d been F Grade, he’d needed to use 500 points of Spirit Energy to create one batch of spirit coins. Now, it only toon him 50 points of Spirit Energy to achieve the same task.

Which meant he could create 1,582 batches of 158 Minor Spirit Coins in less than twenty-six minutes, which gave him just shy of two hundred and fifty thousand Minor Spirit Coins. His Spirit Energy regeneration, while not perfect, was incredibly powerful, which meant for the entire time he sat there he never had to stop creating coins—his reserve regenerated as he created them, though it didn’t regenerate quite as fast as he was expending it, so it would eventually run out.

Piles of coins kept appearing in front of him, over and over. He touched the piles, deposited them into his Storage Ring, and repeated the process over and over.

The others ignored him. They knew when he needed to focus, and they always respected that. He could hear them chatting amongst themselves, but their words never penetrated his mind, as focused as he was. He didn’t need to be so laser-focused on creating spirit coins. The last time he’d been steadily doing this it had been while they’d all been sitting in the bar, but he was contemplating how exactly currency worked in the Greater Universe. Or rather, how the economy worked.

How could spirit coins be worth much of anything if one could simply create them? It was a question he’d had before, and one he didn’t really have an answer to.

Xavier had been keeping track of how much time was passing as he accumulated more and more spirit coins. He was both eagerly awaiting the response from the Item Broker, and dreading it in case he couldn’t afford what he’d ordered. Participation Points, he’d discovered, were non-transferable. He wasn’t about to take the Participation Points away from the other members of his party—he’d stopped taking their winnings away from them a few floors ago—but he just hoped using half of what he had would pay off.

Time, he thought. Time equals money, literally.

He wondered if it was some kind of metaphor. The universe will give you anything you want as long as you put in enough time. It sounded like a rather naive idea. He supposed it only worked if one stayed alive long enough to benefit from it.

Ding!

The noise sounded in his mind, making him open his eyes and frown. It had only been about forty-five minutes, but he’d been able to create 426,000 Minor Spirit Coins in that time.

Hopefully that would make a dent.

Your order from Item Broker R2D25E is complete! The item is awaiting your purchasing decision. You have 10 minutes to purchase the item before it goes back on the market.

Xavier had been standing rather close to the System Shop’s terminal. He sprang up and slapped his hand against it. Ten minutes was plenty of time right now, but he wondered what would happen if he got one of those notifications while he was in the middle of a massive battle, or far away fighting vicious, magical monkeys in some jungle.

I guess that’s where having a Portal Stone linked to a Portal Hub could really home in handy, assuming it works that way…

He brought up the interface. There was a little red bubble near the top right corner. Xavier couldn’t help but chuckle when he saw it. It reminded him of Facebook, or any of social media app he’d ever used back on Earth, as though the Greater Universe had been taking UI advice from Mark Zuckerberg.

Or maybe it’s actually the other way around…

He selected the button, which opened the very same notification he’d just read, then took him to the item he wanted to purchase.

{Subspace Communications Area Blackout Array – Radius: 5 miles – Upgradeable}

The Subspace Communications Area Blackout Array (or SCABA) gives the user the ability to set up an array that radiates interference up to the noted radius. The array requires multiple insertion points for it to be activated.

SCABA is an equal opportunity blackout device, meaning it blacks out all subspace or telepathic communication within the affected area, whether from friend or foe.

Xavier frowned. The last thing he’d wanted was to blackout his own communications. He could see how that could get him into trouble. It was interesting that it noted it blacked out telepathic communication as well as subspace communication. From Xavier’s sci-fi knowledge—which, admittedly, was from fictional sources—he assumed that communication through subspace was instantaneous even when it was with someone light years away.

That’s how Communication Stones must work, if they are sector, and even Greater Universe, wide.

But telepathic communication? That seemed like something else entirely.

There was a countdown timer beneath the item.

You have 9 minutes and 34 seconds to purchase this item. Thanks for using Item Broker R2D25E’s services! If you’re satisfied with this user’s service, come back for a 25% discount on your next acquisition! Or recommend them to a friend!

Xavier blinked. Even interstellar Items Brokers gave discounts. Good to know. He tapped his foot on the floor of the Staging Room. The item was upgradeable, maybe that meant that if he strengthened it, eventually it would allow his own Communication Stone, or those of his allies, to work within the designated blackout area?

Either way, this was an incredibly important purchase.

Finally, he looked at the price.

This item costs 15,555,555 Minor Spirit Coins.

Xavier swore under his breath. That was three times what he had. He blinked, and looked at how many Participation Points he would need for the item.

This item costs 80 Participation Points.

Xavier shut his eyes and sighed. He didn’t have enough. He couldn’t bloody well afford it. Then he blinked. What if he combined his Participation Points and Minor Spirit Coins?

Was there a way to… split the payment?

He prompted the System Shop to give him that option. When it did, he sighed again, this time in relief. He had enough.

Just enough.

Buying this item would leave him with no Participation Points left, and only 125,480 Minor Spirit Coins.

Perhaps it wasn’t wise to spend almost every bit of his money on this one item just before returning to Earth. He had no idea what they would need to do when they returned.

But he did it anyway. He could always create or earn more spirit coins—what he couldn’t undo was the invaders’ home worlds’ learning of his true power. Learning that he was E Grade.

The item appeared on the ground before him. Usually items he purchased would end up in his hands, but this one had more components than he’d expected. He should have guessed that it would, as the description had said it had multiple insertion points.

The item looked similar to his Portal Block, but the rods were a little bit shorter, roughly three-feet long, and the spherical crystals at their ends was smaller too, roughly the size of a golf ball.

“What’s that?” Howard asked.

Xavier smiled. He’d been quiet for almost an hour now, focusing on this, and gathering more spirit coins—which he was glad he’d done, or he wouldn’t have been able to afford this at all.

“This is going to help word of how strong I am never leave Earth.”

He chatted with the others for a little while, letting his reserve of Spirit Energy regenerate back to its fullest—he didn’t want to return to Earth and have it be empty, even if it was tempting to create some more money.

There was an air of excitement about the group. The others hadn’t purchased much. Siobhan had mostly gotten health potions that could be used by F Grade Denizens. They didn’t know what they would be returning to, and even though she could heal, she wanted to distribute them to those they encountered.

“We have no idea if they even have access to health potions back on Earth,” Siobhan said. “There’s certainly no chance they will have a System Shop. If Queen Alastea’s castle didn’t have one set up, I doubt any one back on Earth will. They may have alchemists creating them, but who knows how organised it will be.”

“The invaders might have access to the System Shop,” Justin muttered.

Siobhan shook her head. “No, I don’t think that they will.”

“We don’t have to speculate for much longer,” Xavier said, looking at the timer in the top-right corner of his vision.

It was almost at zero.

Siobhan smiled. Justin rubbed his hands together, then placed one of them on the hilt of his sword. Howard got this intense expression on his face that made him look very serious. Xavier wondered if that was the face he wore back when he was a cop.

Xavier summoned Charon’s Scythe to his hand and looked down at himself.

The System had integrated Earth into the Greater Universe less than two weeks ago in Earth time. Him and his party had experienced more of that time than anyone else, being on the fifth floor for as long as they had been.

Less than two weeks, and he felt like a completely different person. Less than two weeks, and he was now the most powerful Denizen from Earth, with the weight of the entire world on his shoulders.

And now, they were finally returning home.

How much could have changed back on Earth in that time?

The End of Book 2