Chapter 44: World of Money

Amon sat on the floor of his room with his legs crossed.

A small sphere of pale-blue Frost Mana floated above his palm.

The mana slowly rotated around his fingers, forming thin strands of frost that twisted together before separating again.

Wherever the strands passed, the temperature around him dropped slightly, and a thin layer of frost began forming along the edge of his desk.

Amon moved his fingers, and the Frost Mana immediately responded.

The sphere compressed into a small needle before expanding again, changing shape according to the amount of mana he fed into it.

’This is actually pretty interesting.’

He had only recently acquired Frost Mana Manipulation, but the skill was already proving to be extremely practical.

Instead of simply throwing ice around, he could control the mana itself and decide exactly how he wanted it to behave.

’If I get better at this, I could probably use it for more than just combat.’

Amon continued playing with the mana for a while before his thoughts slowly shifted toward something else.

’...How am I going to make more money?’

He currently had a decent amount saved, especially after receiving the payment from the Adventure Bureau.

However, five hundred thousand Federal Notes wasn’t nearly enough for what Amon wanted.

He wanted a proper house, better equipment, access to expensive resources, and eventually enough money that he wouldn’t have to worry about ordinary expenses anymore.

’Should I visit the antique shops again?’ The thought immediately came to his mind. ’...No.’

The problem wasn’t whether he could make money.

The problem was that finding those opportunities took time.

He couldn’t simply walk through the market every day, hoping to discover another priceless artifact being sold for a few coins.

’There has to be something better.’

Amon extinguished the Frost Mana floating above his hand before standing up.

He walked over to his desk and sat down in the chair before pulling out the notebook he had used the previous day.

Amon stared at it for a moment before turning the page.

This time, he wrote another heading.

’Ways to Make Money.’

He rested the pen against his chin while thinking carefully.

After a few seconds, he began writing.

1. Get Stronger.

Amon looked at the first line before nodding. ’This is the only method I’m completely certain about.’

The stronger he became, the more money he could make by dungeon diving.

He had already seen how profitable dungeon exploration could be.

’If I become strong enough, money will eventually come looking for me.’

Amon moved to the next line and slowly wrote.

2. Buy Mana-Rich Land.

He circled the words after writing them.

There were certain regions where the concentration of mana was naturally much higher than normal.

Such places were extremely valuable to adventurers because they could be developed into mana enhancement zones where people could cultivate, recover, or train their abilities.

Normally, finding a suitable piece of land would require extensive research.

For Amon, however, things were different.

’Merchant’s Divine Insight could probably tell me exactly which pieces of land are undervalued.’

If he could purchase mana-rich land before its value became widely known, he could develop it later and either sell it for a huge profit or turn it into a permanent source of income.

’This one is worth considering.’

Another thought appeared in his mind.

3. Hidden Treasures.

Amon stared at the words before writing underneath them.

Ancient ruins. Buried fortunes. Hidden vaults.

There were countless stories about powerful people hiding their wealth before dying.

Some had buried treasure beneath their estates, while others had hidden their fortunes inside secret locations that were never discovered.

Most of those stories were probably exaggerated, but not all of them.

’With Merchant’s Divine Insight, I might actually be able to find the valuable ones.’

If he could determine which locations contained something valuable, his chances would be dramatically higher than those of ordinary treasure hunters.

Amon tapped the pen against the notebook. ’Ninety percent chance I can find something.’

He wasn’t completely certain, but he trusted his Divine Insight enough to make the gamble worthwhile.

Finally, he wrote the last idea.

4. Start a Business.

Amon stared at the four options for several minutes.

Starting a business could eventually make him extremely wealthy, but it would require the most time and effort.

He would need employees, management, capital, connections, and an actual business model.

’That’s a headache.’

Amon drew a line beneath the four options before turning the page slightly.

Then he rearranged them into a priority list.

1. Buy Mana-Rich Land.

2. Get Stronger.

3. Search for Hidden Treasures.

4. Start a Business.

He looked at the list before adding a small note beside it.

’Priority based on time and effort required.’

Buying land was something he could potentially do once he had enough capital.

After that, the property could continue generating money without requiring all of his attention.

Getting stronger was something he needed to do regardless.

Treasure hunting could be done whenever he encountered the right opportunity.

Starting a business would take the most time, so he would leave it for later.

Amon leaned back in his chair and sighed. ’The problem is the initial funding.’

He had five hundred thousand Federal Notes, but that wasn’t nearly enough to start buying valuable land.

Even if he found an undervalued property, developing it would require considerably more money.

Amon stared at the ceiling.

’I need more capital.’ For a moment, he remained silent before a strange thought crossed his mind. ’Having a rich wife would solve quite a few problems.’

Amon’s expression became thoughtful.

A System notification immediately appeared in front of him.

---

[Wife Candidate Available.]

[Felicia Vale.]

[Estimated Financial Capacity: Extremely High.]

---

Amon stared at the message.

"..."

He slowly lowered his head.

’System, you really know how to make things awkward.’

Amon closed the notification before putting the notebook away.

’I’ll figure out the money myself.’ He thought to himself. ’Probably.’

With a sigh, he walked toward his bed and lay down, staring at the ceiling.

His mind was still occupied with the thought of Felicia.

The thought of her moaning under him was a temptation that clogged his mind.

’...What the hell am I thinking?’ Amon shook his head. ’That’s my mother-in-law!’

Amon took in a deep breath, but his mind once again showed him Felicia and Seraphina together.

’...What a scummy person I am.’