Marvel: Hunter-Chapter 341: Handling Fee
All of Blaine's troubles seemed as though they would vanish the moment he held the tenth-level star core in his hands.
"Huh?"
"No, when did I become this poor?"
"I'm so broke—do I really need to start picking up trash just to maintain my standard of living?"
When Blaine checked his balance, he was left completely speechless.
"Twelve billion and forty million… what can such a tiny amount of money even do?"
"Wait, wait a second."
"System, are you telling me that's how much those pieces of equipment cost?"
[[Dwarf Star Drilling Machine], produced by the Dwarf Star Dwarf King—]
"No need for the introduction. I know Dwarf Star. Just tell me the price."
Blaine felt the system was about to ramble again and hurriedly cut it off.
[The price of the [Dwarf Star–brand Ground Drilling Machine] is 80 billion.]
[The price of the [Energy Shield] is 150 billion.]
"That's insane."
"If my 120.4 billion isn't discounted, I can't even afford a single skill?"
Back then, when Blaine had hundreds of thousands, it felt like an astronomical fortune, enough to buy whatever he wanted without restraint.
Now, though his strength had skyrocketed and he could earn money more easily, the cost of maintaining that strength was horrifying. Every step forward was built on mountains of currency.
"Well, well…"
"Look, I'm a loyal customer."
"With this much spending, can't it be cheaper?"
[The Hunter System has performed extensive calculations.]
[The most suitable price has already been set for the host.]
"So… no discount."
A few years ago, Blaine would never have imagined that one day he'd be spending hundreds of billions just to buy a single skill—and that it still wouldn't count as much.
"Forget it."
"There's no point arguing with you."
"Just buy the [Energy Shield]."
[[Energy Shield]: Price 150 billion .]
[A-level Hunter discount applied.]
[Final price: 120 billion .]
"Confirm payment? Yes/No."
"Uh… 120 billion. What an auspicious number."
"That's way too coincidental."
"Forget it. Confirm."
Money was meant to be spent. If you didn't spend it, how could you make more? Even so, Blaine still felt a sharp pang of pain. He'd had 120.4 billion left, and now the entire amount was gone, leaving only 40 million. How could that not hurt?
For the current Blaine, 40 million was practically nothing—not even enough for a minor physical enhancement.
Since he'd already bought it, there was no point dwelling on the cost. Next, it was time to see how this Energy Shield worked.
After reading the description, Blaine quickly understood.
In essence, it still relied on Blaine's teleportation ability. The Energy Shield simply provided him with a private space.
Within a one-meter radius around Blaine's body, an absolute domain would form. Inside this space, substances like soil and water would be expelled.
For example, if Blaine were at the bottom of the sea, activating the Energy Shield would create a transparent barrier around him. Seawater wouldn't flow in, and he wouldn't feel the immense pressure. This completely solved the problem of underwater movement.
The same applied underground. Soil and rock would be blocked by the shield. With it, Blaine could move freely underwater or beneath the earth. Combined with his powerful physique, he could breathe and maneuver effortlessly within the barrier.
In a way, it was like learning both water-escape and earth-movement techniques at once. And the Energy Shield could do even more—it allowed movement through magma as well.
As long as it was a tangible substance in the universe—water, soil, magma, walls—if it could be seen and touched, Blaine could pass through it.
Though it sounded somewhat redundant, given Blaine's already formidable body, there were situations where it was indispensable. Like now.
And this was only level one. Once upgraded to level two, it would not only expand the domain but also provide additional defensive capabilities. Blaine believed that as the Energy Shield continued to upgrade, its value would only increase. Given its starting point, 120 billion was likely the most expensive skill he had ever purchased.
"Since I've already bought it, why not upgrade it?"
"System, I want to exchange resources."
[Exchange star cores?]
"…Yes."
…
[Detected: Host possesses ten level-0.1 star cores.]
[Three level-two star cores.]
[Four level-three star cores.]
[Two level-five star cores.]
[Among them, three level-0.1 star cores, one level-two star core, and two level-three star cores were stolen by the host from the Collector and are not eligible for exchange.]
[Therefore, the host currently has seven level-0.1 star cores, two level-two star cores, two level-three star cores, and two level-five star cores available for exchange.]
[Please confirm.]
"Damn it, you can even detect that?"
Blaine had hoped the star cores he'd secretly taken from the Collector would slip past the system's checks and be exchanged freely. Unfortunately, the pool had shrunk considerably.
"Then exchange all the level-0.1, level-two, and level-three ones."
"There'll be a tenth-level star core soon anyway."
"One tenth-level and two fifth-level cores will be kept as reserve funds."
Once Blaine confirmed, the corresponding star cores vanished from the Hunter's space. He immediately opened the attribute panel. A massive string of numbers appeared on the balance, dazzling his eyes.
"One… ten… one hundred… one thousand… ten thousand… one million… ten billion…"
"Whoa…"
"Fifty-seven billion, thirty-five million."
"What?"
"No way."
"Adding the previous forty million, shouldn't it be 57 billion, 40 million? It looks like five million is missing?"
"System, care to explain?"
[There is a handling fee for exchanging assets.]
"…What? A fee?!"
This was the first time Blaine heard that there was a handling fee when exchanging star cores.
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