SSS-Rank Talent: Super Upgrade System-Chapter 119: Game Of Damand and Supply

The morning on the resting platform dawned with its usual serene, twilight glow.

Daniel, feeling remarkably refreshed despite the... eventful... night spent, negotiating terms with Olenna, watched as the elegant woman meticulously prepared for their expedition.

Ayra and Lia were still deeply unconscious back in their shared section of the luxurious tent, the double dose of Olenna’s special Palm Wine ensuring they wouldn’t be interrupting any delicate business transactions for quite some time.

"They’ll wake up thinking they had a particularly wild night of celebratory drinking," Olenna had assured him with a wry smile, adjusting the collar of her impeccable business suit.

"The Palm Wine has a delightful, if somewhat exaggerated, reputation for inducing profound and lengthy hangovers, especially on the unprepared.

It’s quite convenient for... delicate operations."

Daniel just shook his head, a reluctant grin playing on his lips.

Olenna, bound by their soul contract, was now his agent, his eyes and ears in the intricate underbelly of this platform.

Her first task: liquidate their mountain of surplus Yin and Yang cards.

He had entrusted her with the bulk of their haul, keeping only a small emergency reserve in his S-Grade [Elementary Storage Ring].

The risk was minimal; the soul contract ensured her absolute loyalty, a fact that both relieved and subtly unnerved him.

- - - - - - -

Daniel walked beside Olenna, his S-Grade [Aura Sense+] a silent, vigilant sentinel, mapping the chaotic tapestry of life signatures around them.

Nyx, in her small Shadow Wolf Pup form, nestled safely in his pouch, occasionally let out a low growl at strong smells or anyone who came too close.

Daniel himself, clad in his simple, if now impeccably clean, Vanguard fatigues, looked deceptively unassuming, his A-Grade Kinetic Void Gauntlets and Phantom Edge Striking Wraps worn subtly, their true power masked.

His S-Grade Blade of The Night and Flying Cloud Mystic Bow were safely tucked away in his [Elementary Storage Ring].

The Riversouth black market district was a stark contrast to the sterile promise of Rivernorth and Astralis Academy that Olenna had described.

Here, in the shadowy underbelly of the resting platform, the air was heavy with exotic spices, strange alchemical scents, and a faint hint of desperation.

Booths made from scavenged Verge materials and glowing recycled tech lined the narrow, winding alleys.

Voices were hushed, deals struck in coded whispers, and eyes, sharp and calculating, darted from every shadowed doorway.

It was a place where fortunes were made and lost on the turn of a card, and where information was a currency more valuable than gold.

Olenna, however, moved through the black market like a queen returning to her court.

Her elegant business suit, which had seemed so out of place amongst the rough-and-tumble Awakened, now lent her an air of cool, untouchable authority.

She moved through the alleys with quiet confidence, offering subtle nods to strangers who, mistaking her for someone of high authority, faded into the shadows as she passed.

"The Yin and Yang cards,"Olenna explained, her voice a low murmur that cut through the market’s noise,"they’re the lifeblood of this platform, especially for those who’ve just scraped through Level 3.

Most recruits barely manage to collect enough to pass the trial, let alone have a surplus for Astralis Academy’s exorbitant tuition fees, or to trade for decent gear before facing Level 4."

She gestured towards a dimly lit stall where a desperate-looking Awakened was bargaining fiercely with a hooded vendor over a single, chipped Yang card.

"See? He’ll probably trade his left kidney and his grandmother’s prized teapot for that one card. They’re scarce, valuable, and everyone wants them."

Her sharp, intelligent eyes then flicked to Daniel.

"Which brings me to my question, Captain Vance. You seem to have acquired... a rather substantial collection. I’ve been operating in Riversouth for cycles, and I’ve never seen such a hoard accumulated by a single team fresh from Level 3.

Even Ragnar, in his prime, would bring back only a fraction of this after a week of... ’diligent collection.’

How did you manage it? Did you stumble upon some forgotten treasure trove? Or how did you do it?"

Daniel offered a small, enigmatic smile.

"Let’s just say Ragnar was... surprisingly cooperative once we established a clear understanding of our respective bargaining positions.

And the Leviathan was a very large, very generous fish."

He wasn’t about to reveal the full extent of his SSS-Rank [Soul Assimilation] talent, nor the fact that he’d essentially looted Ragnar’s entire life savings after their rather one-sided negotiation.

Olenna’s eyes narrowed slightly at his evasiveness, but a flicker of understanding, and perhaps a touch of fear, crossed her face.

She knew Daniel was powerful, impossibly so. The details were probably best left unprobed.

However, the name Ragnar clearly struck a chord. She stopped, pulling Daniel into a more secluded corner, away from the main flow of market traffic.

"Ragnar," she said, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "You said his name was Ragnar? Lean build, cold eyes, favored a dark energy dagger?"

Daniel nodded. "That’s the one. Seemed to think he was king of the mountain pass."

Olenna’s face paled slightly. "Vance... Daniel... Ragnar wasn’t just some random higher-level bully. He was... or rather, was... one of the primary enforcers and collectors for Boss Jaeger."

Daniel frowned. "Boss Jaeger? The name sounds familiar.

The rat-faced coward Ayra almost caught back in the Yin region mentioned him. Said Jaeger would hunt us down."

"Exactly," Olenna confirmed, her expression grim.

"Boss Jaeger controls a significant portion of the illegal card trade on this entire platform, especially the flow of cards from Level 3.

Ragnar was one of his main runners. He apparently had a high-clearance access token he acquired through... less than legitimate means... that allowed him to re-enter the Level 3 Taiji Basin repeatedly.

He’d go down, farm cards by preying on newcomers or striking deals with territorial beasts, then bring them back up here for Jaeger to sell at an insane markup."

She ran a hand through her dark hair, a gesture of nervous energy.

"Ragnar was due back days ago with a massive shipment.

His disappearance has already caused a significant disruption in Jaeger’s supply chain, and Jaeger is not a patient man. He’s powerful, ruthless, and has eyes and ears everywhere on this platform."

Daniel processed this new information.

So, Ragnar wasn’t just a random encounter; he was a piece in a much larger, more dangerous game. And Daniel had just kicked over the chessboard.

"You were planning to sell our entire surplus, potentially hundreds of cards, directly into Jaeger’s territory?" Olenna asked, her voice in disbelief.

"Daniel, if you had just walked into one of Jaeger’s front operations and tried to offload that many cards at once, it wouldn’t have mattered if you were an SSS-Rank god.

They would have seen it as a hostile takeover, a direct challenge to Jaeger’s entire enterprise.

They wouldn’t have attacked you openly, perhaps, you’d have faced assassins in the dark, relentless political pressure through their contacts at Astralis Academy...

They would have buried you in so much trouble you’d wish you were back fighting the Leviathan."

The ground beneath Daniel’s feet seemed to tremble, not from his power, but from the chilling implications of Olenna’s words.

Daniel looked at Olenna, a new appreciation for her street smarts and her understanding of the platform’s delicate power balance dawning in his eyes.

He was a master of combat, of assimilation, of raw, overwhelming power.

But navigating the treacherous currents of inter-faction politics and organized crime on a platform this complex? That was Olenna’s arena.

"So, what do you suggest?" Daniel asked, his voice calm, though he now understood the depth of the hornet’s nest he had nearly poked with a very large, S-Grade stick.

Olenna’s confidence returned, her mind already formulating a new strategy.

"We can’t sell directly to Jaeger’s main outlets, not in bulk. And we can’t just open up our own stall saying ’Discount Cards Here!’, we’d be shut down or worse within an hour."

She tapped a perfectly manicured fingernail against her chin.

"But Jaeger doesn’t control all the small vendors. There are dozens of independent operators, smaller fish who are always hungry for a piece of the action, always looking for a way to undercut the big bosses."

A cunning smile touched her lips.

"We sell the cards piecemeal. A few here, a few there, to these smaller vendors. We offer them a slightly lower price than Jaeger’s usual rate, giving them a decent profit margin.

They get to make some good money, they’ll be discreet to protect their new supply line, and Jaeger will have a much harder time tracing the source of the sudden influx of cards.

It’ll be a slow bleed, not a flood. It’ll annoy him, certainly, but it won’t be enough for him to risk an open war, especially if the source remains... elusive."

Daniel nodded slowly, impressed by her ingenuity. "A distributed network. Spreading the risk, and the profit. Clever."

"It’s what I do, Captain," Olenna said with a smirk.

"I know how to survive in the shadows. This way, you get your resources, the small vendors get a boost, and Jaeger gets a headache. A win-win-win, mostly."

Daniel considered her plan. It made sense.

He wasn’t primarily interested in maximizing his Federation credit balance. He wanted rare materials, beast cores, skill imprints, anything that could fuel his [Soul Assimilation] or provide unique "gene fragments."

Selling the cards for a slightly lower price to multiple, discreet vendors in exchange for these kinds of resources, rather than just cash, was a far better outcome for him.

It also kept him off Boss Jaeger’s immediate radar, which was a significant bonus.

"Alright, Olenna," Daniel said, a note of genuine gratitude in his voice.

"Your plan is sound. Lead the way. Let’s make some deals. And try to keep me out of any back-alley brawls, if you please. My fist is itching for a real target.

I’m not looking to make any mother mourn her son. It’s too early for that, right?"

Olenna laughed, a genuine, melodic sound this time.

"Don’t worry, Captain. With my guidance, the only sound you’ll be hearing are the satisfying clink of rare materials dropping into your storage ring and federation points."

She turned, her elegant suit a stark contrast to the grimy surroundings, and led him deeper into the labyrinthine depths of the Riversouth black market, ready to play a dangerous, but potentially very rewarding, game of supply and demand.

Daniel followed, his SSS-Talent already anticipating the new essences and powers these "discrete transactions" might bring.

The lure of higher Verge levels, with even greater assimilation opportunities, burned brightly within him.

This platform was just a stepping stone, a place to refuel before the true ascent began.

This content is taken from (f)reewe(b)novel.𝗰𝗼𝐦