Chapter 13: Farming Equipment Acquired

"Kidding, kidding! My previous employer was raided by the government, and during my escape, I took these things to better defend myself. When I saw the government forces, they did not stop me from leaving with this stuff."

Min waved a hand dismissively as if this was very normal. Mr. Blaken squinted at this guy before doing a quick search in the item databases to verify the customer's claim.

Returning to the computer, the cashier entered a search and found that while these items were "missing", they were not labeled as stolen. Perhaps this customer was playing a joke on him.

Mr. Blaken determined the value of the equipment before offering the options for trade-ins. After scrolling through the options, Min chose an above-average quality bastard sword. While his roots were in Chinese-style martial arts, this European-style weapon remained his favorite. The sword's quality did not matter much since it would be obsolete within a year. 

He'd still need some defense on Brighton, so Meng Min moved to the armor and clothing catalog. Similar to the sword, anything here would be obsolete within about a year. So, he sorted by cheapest and inspected every choice. One item set in particular seemed to be marked down by around 30%. 

The marked-down items were a dark green, wide-strapped tank top made from extremely durable fibers that came with black cargo pants and some military-grade boots. The cargo pants had a rather thick belt that held many satchels and the like. Going for this would save nearly 10 Enas, so while it was basically just durable clothing, that was fine. He could probably add armor to this clothing later on.

186 Enas remained after the exchange, but this hadn't been transferred to Min's account yet. Most of this value came from the sword since it was more luxurious than the rest. Yet, the sword and clothing were not today's focus. Technology in the Galaxy was far superior to that of Brighton, so cutting-edge devices on that primitive planet would be commonplace here. With Min's current budget, purchasing gadgets and utility items would be the most efficient course of action.

"Can I find some other items to use the exchange value on?"

"Of course. Just take them from the shelves and bring the products to the counter."

After giving the cashier a nod, Min explored the store in search of some utility items that would probably be useful on Brighton. Since that planet had a focus on the arcane, technological tools could have hidden advantages. But perhaps that was wishful thinking on Min's part- for he did not understand the magical systems at play.

Regardless, of his current abilities, recon was a weak point. Min had a lot of weak points, actually… But that's not the point! A low-level Super was bound to have a weak foundation, and this Min was not one of those main characters that instantly became OP just to hook up with babes.

Many suitable items sat on the store's shelves. The first thing that caught Min's attention was the scanners. Most of them had an orb-like shape with a metal finish and a small circle where red-tinted glass allowed for scanning. They seemed to be about the size of a Pokèball. 

The system could provide a 100% accurate description of items, so instead of trusting what the store provided, Min reached out and touched one of the scanners at random. A new window in the Interface popped up.

—-------------------

Meng-Tsu Shai Surface Analyzer

Grade: Grey

Power output: 1-5

Energy Source: Battery, Solar Panels

Energy Capacity: 31/35 Ona

Remarks: A simple scanner developed by the Meng-Tsu Shai Corporation. It is one of the lower-end models with the capability to scan a surface. This device has a maximum range of thirty-five meters and can penetrate one meter of solid mass. Manufactured in Factory 31 at Zarentak City, Burkhash, Star Zone 3, True Bend.

—-----------------------------------------

'My American brain is fried by this metric system. Thirty-five meters is somewhat close to one hundred feet I believe, which isn't too bad… but I want to see my other options. This one's price is only 10 Enas.'

The available scanners varied rather wildly. The cheapest was only 1 Ena, but one clearly got what they paid for. For the higher-end ones, one could scan the area of a city in the right circumstances, but 100+ Enas was not something Min wanted to spend. 

So, after some consideration, Min picked the Shani Deep Floor Scanner. While its range was modest with a maximum of forty-three meters, its penetration was the exact same. Min had a hunch that a scanner would be useful on the planet. His research affirmed this.

Using the method of touching things, Meng Min scouted the rest of the store for products. There was a pretty extensive selection of goods, but some sections referred the customer to an online shop. 

After about ten minutes of looking, Min had picked out three items. One was a little robot similar to the spiders and bugs Han Xiao created on Aquamarine. It had a remote control and was great for recon or spying. A magical planet's denizens would have ways to detect magical surveillance, but technological methods could catch some off guard. However, one should not underestimate a Super's senses.

The other two items were a pair of food and water containers both manufactured by the Meng-Tsu Shai Corporation. The food container could store food for a very long time and keep it fresh. Being the size of a satchel, it would fit on the new outfit's utility belt just fine. The water container was a flask that would automatically filter water when it entered. This included dirty water and poisoned water. 

All of this new equipment was 154 Enas in total. The flowery katana was only worth slightly less than this.

'That should be all. Though my heart aches with every purchase, it is a necessary evil. I don't have a Mechanic's equipment advantage.'

Meng Min slapped everything he wanted to buy on the counter and passed Mr. Blaken his communicator. While peacefully awaiting the transaction's conclusion, a silver glint caught the corner of his eye. Glancing to the side, one of the displays by the register held a necklace. Its ornament was a mature oak tree with roots almost as large as its branches, and a simple silver chain looped through a small circle at the branches' top. The surface did not have much detail, but Min was drawn to this jewelry. Its price tag was only 2 Enas, so Min grabbed it and put it on the counter.

"This too, please."

Mr. Blaken gave a nod before inputting all of the items into the register. Satisfied with the haul, Min wore a content smile, closed his eyes, and swayed his head. Yet, the contents of one of the televisions behind the counter caught his ear.

"The Space-time Research Council has opened Planet Preda, previously only regarded as an inhospitable rock, to archeological exploration. Winter Frontier has announced an interest in this planet due to its potential importance to Austri heritage. Despite Her Excellency [Twilight Apostle]'s absence, the organization continues to…"

A squint appeared on Min's face. Space-time Research Council? That name felt rather familiar…

"...Do you have an interest in Archealogy, too? SRC Scholars have been hogging that planet for so long. With it's opening, we can finally…"

Yet, the clerk's passionate yapping was not heard by Min. The world faded into darkness as his eyes widened and his mouth hung open in shock.

'The [Scholar] Subclass! How could I have forgotten?!? 50 'free' INT along with that other ability that gives INT based on ability count! Raaagh!!!'

Noting this variable, Min controlled his shock and returned to normal pretty quickly. The weirded-out clerk noticed his customer's episode ending and pointed at the consumer-facing screen on the register.

"I subtracted 99 Enas from your traded-in equipment's value. You'll find the remaining value in your bank account."

"Thank you. Also, archeology is cool. History is a pretty interesting subject."

After grabbing his new things and defusing the cashier's saltiness over being ignored, Min stuffed the items into a duffle bag and left. The original plan was to leave after this, but now he had to get the subclass.

Having too many subclasses was definitely a bad thing. The [Scholar] subclass was best for Mechanics and then Mages, so it was not the most optimal choice for Min. However, since illusion spells seemed to account for INT, having a little extra of that stat wouldn't be a terrible idea. It should also increase his resistance to mental attacks and mental spells.

Besides, attribute subclasses weren't horrible. It would take until the next class advancement for the main class to provide more attributes overall. Besides, Min had a reason to go for INT. 

To maximize his advantage, the contents of the novel were key. Meng Min's memory wasn't the best, so despite being a thorough reader, much had been forgotten. Especially with the turmoil over the past eight months. INT happened to strengthen one's memory and could even grant complete control over them. 

So, he quickly b-lined it to the Space-time Research Council's HQ and obtained the subclass. The process lasted for only about a minute, which felt strangely off. Meng Min realized that he forgot to tease the lady secretary! Regret almost filled his heart, but then he remembered that the secretary was actually a man. Close call there.

—-----------------------------------------

Subclass [Scholar] Unlocked! 

+10 INT

You have received 1 Potential point.

[Research Theory] talent unlocked!

—-----------------------------------------

With that, he was set. 

It was strange, really. After so many setbacks he was on track to his real journey. While some obstacles remained, it was a hell of a lot better than being locked in that damn Arena. 

There was the matter of discrete transportation to Brighton but apparently, it didn't matter. Any transport ship that could conceal itself would suffice. Since there was no need to make his presence known, the Halmet bureaucracy did not contact the various governments of Brighton. Min suspected that this action was partially so he couldn't get any special treatment. 

After all, if Halmetistan had taken his 'predictions' seriously, they would have simply sent a force of their own and rejected the application. It was possible that they had assigned people to deal with this matter but such a thing did not matter to Min. He was primarily going to that planet to develop himself anyway.

A list of recommended transport agencies accompanied the confirmation email. With a glance at his bank account, Min exhaled deeply and chose the cheapest option with the nearest ship. The vessel was only a few hours out from Agonlu Hub. 

He strolled to the common docks and waited for the ship to arrive. After boarding, he moved to one of the recreation room's windows and stared at the hub.

"If… no, when I come back, a legion of immortals will follow. See you soon, Agonlu Hub!"

The Elf chuckled at his own words and stepped away from the window. 

…

Hundreds of ships of varying sizes passed in and out of the Hub's common docks. Its bustling atmosphere contrasted sharply with the quiet and professional VIP area. Though only a quarter of the common dock's size, the VIP section had a lesser ship density. This phenomenon was partially because many cheaper cargo and transport ships forwent this area due to the cost of entry, despite the more efficient unloading mechanisms.

A small personal ship entered the VIP section from the eternal void, docking in the slot nearest to the common area. This spacecraft was one of Halmetistan's top-of-the-line ES-9s which focused on luxury and comfort more than maximum specifications. Although, like most luxury cars, this vehicle still had something impressive under the hood.

This specific ship had a white color with a golden trim. It was clearly very difficult to keep clean. A side door only a few feet away from the cockpit opened while a short metal bridge connected with the dock. 

Crisp heel clacks echoed from the bridge connecting the side door to the dock, originating from a middle-aged Halmet woman. Her elven ears hung downward and, like her full head of hair, bounced slightly with each step. Countless products kept her face relatively young, though a certain chubbiness brought about by age remained. This woman's face was rather stereotypically middle-aged rich auntie.

Whilst she strode assertively, the woman procured a communicator from a designer bag that hung by her forearm. It quickly opened the SMS app for her and she tapped on the top contact.

You: [I have arrived at Agonlu Hub.]

Honey😘~~: [I'm glad you made it there safely, Hua. Good luck with that boy.]

You: [We both know how this will go.]

With an annoyed snort, the Halmet slid the communicator back into her purse and exited the VIP docks. A large mall-like area was directly adjacent to the docks. It included a food court, souvenir shops, regular stores, and more.

Meng Min had surprisingly given an explicit 'no' when she sent the meeting location. The exact wording was "Nah, Imma do my own thing.", but that wasn't very relevant. His previous situation must have caused his confidence to increase, but that did not matter to Meng Hua much. She was really only here on procedure and to say she tried.

Auntie Hua finally arrived in front of a Monheit Express. This was a fast food chain originating from the Federation of Light that was rather popular in the Galaxy. She used to come here with her child before marrying into the Meng family. Her attention-grabbing appearance drew the gazes of many, but they were only passing looks.

One of her wrists vibrated, shaking the Elf from her reminiscing. She stared at the watch and dismissed the timer with a huff. Meng Min had, once again, missed the meeting time. But this was expected. Since he was going to be a brat like always, Hua would do what she did before. Opening her contacts list once again, she tapped on a name.

…

The few day's trip passed in a breeze. Like a good player, Min had tried to find some missions on the ship, but their reaction was expected. Most gave him confused looks while a few gave crappy missions. These only netted him some exp as no one was willing to pay him. After all, this was a cheap flight.

The mountain-sized transport ship exited Hyperdrive and instantly entered stealth mode. Nobody on the ship cared about the stop- strange destinations like this primitive planet were not uncommon for this type of transport ship. 

Meng Min followed one of the ship's workers to the drop pod section. These were typically only used in an emergency evacuation and required worker authorization to use without tripping the alarms. The worker tapped a terminal next to one of the drop pods and began to enter some passwords.

The public transport vessel slowed once near Planet Brighton. A porthole was near this area, so Min walked over and peered at the planet. Like Earth, Brighton had a vibrantly blue atmosphere dotted with clouds. It was a continental-type planet with what appeared to be three major continents, but there could be more on the non-visible side. One landmass had a strange purple island floating above it. The collective size of the dot and its surrounding islands was roughly similar to the island of Puerto Rico.

Min pulled out his communicator and opened the camera function before zooming in as much as he could. That purple island appeared to be a city with a mostly transparent barrier. Though this was all he could surmise, the island's characteristics pointed to it being the city spoken about in the novel.

Taking pictures, he continued to examine the planet's characteristics. Mobile cameras had advanced quite a bit in the galactic era, so the details were pretty clear. But, when he looked at the planet's polar region, there was something strange.

A massive black satellite seemed to be looking toward the desolate ice cap. Its form was extremely faint, so it was hard to tell what it was.

With a light 'Hm', Min took a picture of this. While it's not something he'd exactly show anyone on Brighton, it would be nice to expand his image library.

"The pod is ready, sir."

Sighing, Meng Min was forced to end his picture frenzy. He nodded and thanked the ship employee before opening the pod's door and closing his eyes. Eight months of anticipation came to the surface, causing him to take a deep breath. Truth be told, this feeling was accompanied by some anxiety, but he wouldn't let that keep him down.

"Steel yourself, Min. We've got a universe to save."

Wearing a focused and intense look, Min stepped into the drop pod as the door shut behind him.