After the shop was complete, Isaac, Leora, and Tyr returned home. The others were already waiting at the table. Lunch was quiet at first.
Alice didn’t look great.
She was barely touching her food. Then, Leora casually slid next to her, grabbed her plate, and started feeding her like a mother fed a child.
“Eat,” Leora said, not giving her a chance to say no.
Alice tried to stop her but gave up after a few bites.
Leora talked to her throughout the meal, shifting topics quickly, keeping her engaged. By the end of lunch, Alice looked a little more grounded.
Isaac gave a small sigh. ’Yeah, this won’t be easy.’
He didn’t head to the market right away.
Most of the students—his main customers—wouldn’t be back until early evening. They entered the ruins early in the morning and usually returned between 6:30 pm and 8:00 pm.
Instead, he spent time with Emily.
They hung out in the small garden behind the house. They just talked. Nothing too serious. And spent time together.
+0.2 AP
+0.3 AP
+0.1 AP
By the time it was close to harvest, Isaac checked his AP again.
AP Balance: 50.069 → 71.241
It had jumped quite a bit. He smiled a little before heading towards the farm.
He swung the hoe twice, harvesting everything.
1760 Tier 0 Vitality Grain Crops harvested. Mana +160 Constitution +160.
You have obtained 8,800 Tier 0 Vitality Grains.
Constitution: 100 [797 → 957]
Mana: 100 [840 → 1000]
His Mana reached the rumored stat limit of Apex-rank species.
But that didn’t matter.
His rank limit was only 100.
His could feel the drained mana after harvesting four hectare, and he had to take a short break to recover it. After storing the grains, he burned the stalks, spread the ash, and replanted.
They headed for the market next.
At the shop, Isaac planned to unload the crates of grains. Just as he was about to lift the first one, Emily stopped him.
“I’ll take care of it,” she said.
Isaac, although confused, nodded. “Go ahead.”
She raised her hand and used Phantom Parade skill.
Twelve Zephyrs appeared. They were cute little green fairies. Isaac blinked as they zipped around her.
Emily gave them a silent look. “Can you carry those inside?”
The Zephyrs nodded and grouped up. Four each went to a crate, floating near the bottom corners. They summoned tiny whirlwinds and lifted the crates together.
One by one, they floated the crates into the shop.
Isaac watched, curious.
“You didn’t say anything other than just basic instructions. How’d they know what to do?”
Emily pointed toward the sky. “Tirra’s skill links my thoughts to my spirits. I don’t need to speak when she’s around.”
Isaac glanced at the ghostly bird flying overhead.
Once the crates were placed, Emily praised the Zephyrs. They giggled, and vanished.
Then, Emily looked at Isaac expectantly.
He got the message.
“You’ve been training hard. Good work.”
She smiled.
+0.9 AP
Professor Catherine leaned against the wall and glanced up at the plain nameplate.
“What’s the shop’s name going to be?” she asked.
Isaac looked up. “Family.”
“Family?” she repeated.
He nodded. “It’s like saying we treat our customers like family. And we give them the best, because family takes care of each other.”
Then, he asked Tyr to draw the name on the nameplate just as he had created the shop.
Tyr stepped forward and used his ability to shape the wood. The word ’Family’ rose from the board in elegant, flowing lines.
It looked nice, but something was missing. The wood and lettering were too close in color. It didn’t stand out.
“Want us help to help you paint that?” a familiar voice called out.
Isaac turned. Broon, Thalia, Elric, Nero, Zeke, Kael, Freya, Vax, and Renji were approaching. They looked excited.
“Nice shop,” Freya said. She stepped forward. “I can paint the sign, if you want.”
Isaac nodded. “Sure. You have paint on you?”
“Yes.” She pointed at Professor Catherine. “Professor Catherine told us to bring it.”
Isaac gave Professor Catherine a surprised look. She must’ve told Freya to bring the paint several minutes ago. Her quick thinking saved Isaac time.
She noticed Isaac’s gaze.
“You can thank me later. By doing you-know-what.” She winked.
He just shook his head. “Thanks.”
Freya pulled a small paint set from her spatial ring.
Isaac noticed it and thought, ’If she has a spatial ring, she must be from a well-off family.’
They quickly got to work.
Tyr grew larger and lifted Freya up gently so she could paint the name.
She worked with practiced motions, adding contrast with bold white and soft gold. Once it was done, she hopped down.
“Thanks,” Isaac said. “How much should I pay for it?”
Freya waved it off. “You guys treated us to dinner, and now you’re selling the grains in the market. Helping out here is the least we can do.”
With everything arranged, Isaac and Emily sat behind the counter inside the shop.
Isaac leaned back, glancing at the neatly stacked crates behind them.
He had counted 1,000 Tier 1 Vitality Grains and 24,000 Tier 0s. The numbers were good, but they made him wonder if it was possible to sell all of them in a single day.
Leora stood silently in one corner, arms crossed and eyes scanning the street.
Near the entrance, Nero, Kael, and Thalia leaned against the wooden walls.
Nero looked relaxed, and Thalia was flipping a small knife in her fingers, bored. Kael, on the other hand, was doing all the talking, bouncing between stories and jokes, trying to keep the atmosphere light.
Professor Catherine had slipped away some time ago without a word.
Knowing her, she was likely scheming something.
Alice approached the counter holding a camera.
“I’ll be clicking photos,” she said. “Of the shop, of you two, the customers, and the market. We’ll need them later.”
Emily tilted her head. “Photos?”
Alice nodded. “They’ll be important for promotions. We’ll need good visuals.”
She still didn’t look like she was completely fine, but Isaac could tell she had chosen to push forward and focus on the work. For now, that was enough.
Finally, footsteps echoed outside, and the first group of customers walked in.
They wore the dark gray combat uniforms marked with the emblem of a sage’s hat and wand—Sanctum of Masters.
Four students, each carrying gear. Their expressions were curious and eager.
“Hey, Kael! Nero! Thalia!” one of them called out with a grin.
Kael waved them in. “Hi.”
They laughed and stepped up to the counter.
The tallest one, a guy with dark brown hair and a vertical scar over his nose, looked directly at Isaac and Emily.
“So, it’s true? You’re selling the grains?”
Isaac nodded. “Yeah. Prices are up front. Tier 0s are 9,000 Obols.”
Their eyes widened.
“That cheap?” Rhea, one of the girls in the group, said. “The other shop is selling them at 13,000!”
Isaac wasn’t surprised.
The Calloway Conglomerate had distributed stock to several retailers. Limited supply had probably pushed up prices. Still, because of his contract, he wasn’t allowed to undercut 9,000, so this was already the best price in the market.
“Can we check them first?” Eren, the student with the scar, asked.
Isaac nodded and reached into the crate, pulling out a single Tier 0 Vitality Grain. He handed it over.
Eren took a small bite, chewed, then blinked in surprise. Freshness exploded in his mouth. He hasn’t eaten anything this good in months.
The surprise did not stop there. From the chewed piece, a thin stream of warm energy poured out and flowed into his body.
His shoulders relaxed, and he let out a breath.
“How did this…?” Eren looked at his body in surprise.
“Hey, what happened?” Rhea asked, concerned.
“I… feel like I slept ten hours. And the soreness in my legs is just… gone.” Eren looked like he had seen a miracle.
“Is this your first time eating these?” Isaac asked.
Eren nodded. “We never got a chance before. They’re always gone from the cafeteria before we even get there.”
“Same at the shops,” Rhea added. “The good stuff disappears the moment it arrives.”
“I will take 11 of these!” Eren suddenly said with enthusiasm.
“Five for me.”
“I’ll take six.”
“Nine for me. I need those things to study for the upcoming exams.”
They took the grains with happy expression.
A notification came on Isaac’s device
[279,000 Obols deposited in your account 123X XXX XXX XXX]
It was a good start. He earned nearly three hundred thousand Obols with the first sale.
As the students walked out, talking excitedly, Isaac looked toward Nero by the door.
“I did expect some of your friends to come, but did you tell those four early timing so that they can get the grains first?” he asked.
Thalia turned to look at him, surprised. “Wait—how’d you guess that?”
“No way. You just figured that out from the way they talked?” Kael was flabbergasted finally believing that the plan Isaac used to defeat them during the combat training was no coincidence.
Isaac just shrugged. “Seemed obvious.”
“You’re right. But it wasn’t just that,” Nero said.
He turned toward the street, where the students were already chatting with another group that had noticed the activity.
“Those guys are well-connected, and are good friends with the popular kids in our year. Once they start talking, word will spread fast. That’s why we wanted them to come first.”
Isaac nodded slowly. “Thanks. That’s a big help.”
“Don’t thank me. That was all Professor Catherine’s idea.” Nero waved it off.