After closing the System Panel, Ron tidied up quickly and left the shop.
He followed Eckley Street all the way to the Gold Depository in the Emerald District.
The Gold Depository was an institution jointly run by several major races, serving a purpose similar to that of a bank in Ron's old world.
Ron walked into the spacious, brightly lit hall. After the elf receptionist introduced herself, he took out two payment slips and said he wanted to apply for a gold card.
The young lady accepted the slips with a sweet smile. She glanced down at the amounts, and a look of surprise immediately crossed her face.
A deposit of just 100 gold coins was enough to get a gold card. Ron's 6,000 gold coins far exceeded that amount.
"Um... sir... the amount is too large. I'll need to consult the manager. Could you wait over there for a little while?" the young lady asked softly. After seeing the amount on the slips, her face had gone slightly red.
"Sure." Ron nodded and went to sit in a nearby chair.
Less than a minute later, he saw a goblin hurrying toward him, jogging behind the elf receptionist.
"Hello, sir. I'm Guy, the manager here. It's a pleasure to meet you." Guy the goblin gave Ron his most cordial smile and extended his hand in greeting.
Ron shook his hand lightly. "Ron Andre."
Guy froze when he heard Ron's name, then recovered and asked cautiously, "Are you His Highness Ron? His Highness Ron, the Seventh Prince?"
Ron looked surprised. "You know me?"
"Of course, of course. You're a direct member of the imperial family. How could I not know who you are?" Guy smiled sincerely. "Every direct member of the imperial family can receive a Black Gold Card, regardless of how much they deposit at the Gold Depository. They're also entitled to a monthly credit limit of 100 gold coins at any Gold Depository on the continent, along with various other benefits. You may not have paid much attention to these things, so you probably weren't aware."
Although Ron was merely a powerless Seventh Prince, his status alone meant that an institution like the Gold Depository would certainly have records on him.
After hearing Guy's explanation, Ron raised an eyebrow, but he wasn't particularly bothered.
A hundred gold coins wasn't much to him now.
Besides, it was free. He might as well take it.
Ron nodded. "Then please make me one. And deposit the money from those two payment slips as well."
Guy immediately agreed. He handed his authorization card to the elf receptionist beside him and instructed her to process the application.
The highest authorization a receptionist had was to issue gold cards. Anything beyond that required a manager's authorization, so they couldn't process it on their own.
A few minutes later, Ron received a Black Gold Card about half the size of his palm.
The black surface was flecked with faint starlight, making it look beautiful.
His name was engraved in one corner, marking it as the exclusive card of Ron Andre.
After learning that Ron was already a First-Order Mage, Guy taught him to channel his mana into the Black Gold Card. Ron did as he was told, only to discover that the card was an enchanted item.
Once he channeled in his mana, the Black Gold Card bonded with his mana signature. Whenever his mana flowed into it, the starlight on its surface brightened, and his name lit up as well.
That made forgery impossible.
Normally, this enchanted item had to be bonded through blood, but mages only needed to bond it with their mana, which was even more reliable than a blood bond.
After taking care of the Black Gold Card, Ron said goodbye to Guy and the elf receptionist, then returned to his shop and opened the System Panel—
System Level: 2 Host: Ron Andre (Title Badge) Race: Human/Fox-kin Hybrid Gender: Male Age: 18 (Pattern) Profession: First-Order Mage Wealth Points: 6621 [Quests] [Inventory] [Shop]
Seeing his Wealth Points rise into the thousands, Ron felt a sudden urge to splurge with his newly fattened wallet.
The [Shop] had also refreshed at just the right time—
[Cultivation Space]: 100 Wealth Points for 1 square meter (maximum exchange: 10 square meters) [Nether Orchid Seed]: 10 Wealth Points for 1 seed [Golden Red Chrysanthemum Seed]: 15 Wealth Points for 1 seed [Dew Technique]: 500 Wealth Points [Soil Tilling Technique]: 500 Wealth Points [Plant Manipulation Technique]: 200 Wealth Points [Permanent Mental Interference]: 100 Wealth Points per person (temporary item; will remain in the shop until the related quest is completed, then be removed) [Miracle of the Goddess of Harvest]: 10,000 Wealth Points for 1 use
Besides the original items, the [Shop] now had two new ones: [Golden Red Chrysanthemum Seed] and [Plant Manipulation Technique].
Looking at the prices in the shop, Ron couldn't help thinking they weren't all that bad.
Of course, the last item was an exception.
Now that he was a partner of the Magic Academy, once he got his supplier badge and hung it by the entrance, surely no one would dare come looking for trouble anymore.
So there was no need to hurry to exchange for the [Miracle of the Goddess of Harvest].
The Magic Academy probably still thought Ron had the Empire backing him. Jasper had run into Professor Hicks yesterday, which would only have reinforced that impression.
So there shouldn't be any problems for now.
Unless the Empire started getting suspicious of him and investigating him. That would be troublesome.
In any case, he only had 6,621 Wealth Points now. He'd probably have to wait until next month's 4,000 gold coins from the Magic Academy came in before he could save up 10,000.
Besides, he still needed to spend Wealth Points on other things, so he'd have to put off exchanging for the [Miracle of the Goddess of Harvest] even longer.
He'd better spend as little as possible. He didn't plan to exchange for things like the [Dew Technique] or the [Plant Growth Technique]. He'd learn them in person at the Magic Academy and save those Wealth Points.
Thinking this, Ron first exchanged for nine square meters of Cultivation Space.
Wealth Points: 5721
At the same time, the [Shop] immediately refreshed the price for the next amount of Cultivation Space—
[Cultivation Space]: 1,000 Wealth Points for 1 square meter (maximum exchange: 20 square meters)
"...That's an outrageous price hike!" Ron rolled his eyes.
System: "The host was previously reminded that Cultivation Space is a scarce resource. The previous rate of 100 Wealth Points per square meter was already an exceptional discount, so the price increase is entirely reasonable."
What a shameless system!
Ron grumbled to himself. Looking at the price of the Cultivation Space, then at his remaining 5,721 Wealth Points, he suddenly felt poor again.
So he decisively closed the System Panel, lest he get itchy fingers and exchange for something else.
Then Ron went to the storage room and pushed open the door to the Dimensional Space.
Before you continue