CHAPTER 72: CHAPTER 72 - BUSINESS AND SSS-RANK?

[Bonus Chapter]

Having made up his mind, Logan got up.

He trained for the rest of the day, switching between physical training and cultivating his core before heading to bed on time.

’I need to rest well today and take a day off physical training tomorrow so I can be in my peak state for the dungeon,’ he thought, glancing up at the ceiling above him.

Waking up the next day, Logan refreshed himself before sitting down at his desk.

"Thankfully, the university gave us today off to let us prepare," Logan said, turning on his hologram projector. "All that’s left is to wait for a message from Livia."

Because he’d already read through the dungeon information yesterday, Logan pulled up several summaries to read through to pass the time.

’Overall, the situation looks decent,’ he thought, scanning the final summary. ’But there are a few serious gaps I’ll need to handle before launch.’

"The first few summaries pointed out the lack of a transportation network and simple recipes," he mumbled, skimming through a list he’d made. "Now we also need to solve food testing for toxins, mana levels in the meat, and preservation methods.’’

"And finally, getting the permits," Logan muttered with a frown. "Those alone could delay everything until the end of the year."

Logan quickly sent the problems to Edric since he knew absolutely no one who could help with this.

’I barely have any connections,’ he thought, shaking his head. ’I need to invest time in meeting more people later, especially those from different regions.’

It didn’t take long before he got a response from Edric with some contact information from people he knew within the States.

"I can get started on researching easy food testing methods, preservation methods, and testing mana levels," Logan read, giving a small nod. "All I need to do is hire scientists and researchers to create suitable products."

The tech already existed, that wasn’t the issue. The problem was making it fast, portable, and idiot-proof for everyday workers.

"For the recipes, I’d need to fund multiple chefs to run some tests," Logan mumbled as he made calculations. "That shouldn’t be too expensive compared to the other issues at hand."

"Edric is still asking around for experts who can create an efficient transportation network, so that’ll have to wait."

"And then there’s the government," Logan frowned. "I’ll have to figure that out later."

He glared at the screen absentmindedly, fumbling through a few pages of notes.

’I have to make this work. If I fail, I’m not just losing billions. I’ll be seen as incompetent—and that’ll drag down the entire company if people find out.’

He knew people would find out eventually. Nothing that big could stay hidden forever.

Just then, a message popped up on his screen.

"Livia?" Logan muttered, clicking it open.

"Come meet me at the study room 2.02," the message read.

’About time,’ he thought, seeing it was already 3 PM.

He turned off his projector and switched into his student uniform before heading out of his room.

’I wonder if Derek will also be there,’ he thought, walking up a set of stairs to the library.

Logan shook his head with a smile, doubting the likelihood of that.

After reaching the library, Logan quietly walked past studying students, reaching the private study rooms near the back.

Walking down a line of doors, he finally came to a stop in front of the right door.

Holding his student ID against the door, the door shifted open automatically.

"Good afternoon," Logan said, closing the door behind him.

"You are finally here," Livia responded, pretending to be tired.

"Did Derek not come?" Logan asked, ignoring her teasing attempt.

"Nope," Livia shook her head, smiling slightly. "But isn’t that better?"

"What do you mean?" Logan asked, taking a seat in front of her.

"This way," she said, leaning forward slightly.

"It’ll be just the two of us."

Logan stared at her with a deadpanned expression.

"Bold comment from someone wearing robes and a veil," Logan said in a neutral tone.

Livia let out a sigh, stretching her arms above her head. "You hurt me, Logan," she said. "I thought my personality was good enough."

’Right,’ Logan thought sarcastically. ’What an angel you are.’

"Let’s just get started on our plans for tomorrow," Logan said, staring at Livia with a neutral expression.

"Right, right," she said, straightening herself as she pulled up a hologram. "That’s enough with the jokes for now."

"I assume you’ve gathered some basic information on the species there yourself?" she asked, pulling up a map of the dungeon.

"Correct," Logan gave a small nod.

"Alright, before we continue," she said seriously, "I’ll need to know your type of affinity."

She didn’t wait for him to respond first.

"I have a light affinity," she added simply, then gestured toward one of the tallest snow-covered mountains on the map. "My plan is to head up that ridge and hunt D and C-rank creatures in order to win."

Logan blinked, momentarily thrown off by the sudden shift in her demeanor.

’She says Light affinity, but I’m sure she was already a Silver Core during the entrance assessment,’ Logan thought, recalling her test scores. ’Her performance back then was way too good for a Bronze Core. Even back then, I suspected she might’ve been an SSS-rank.’

"I have a fire affinity," he said, nodding again, still processing the unexpected professionalism.

"Very well," Livia said, giving a small nod as she gestured toward the snow mountains again. "Your affinity will work perfectly with my plan."

Logan’s gaze shifted to the high-danger zones marked around the mountain ridge. He gave a slow nod, analyzing the terrain.

"It does seem like the best option," he admitted. "But considering the average strength of our group, I don’t see a good reason to risk going into C-rank territory."

His expression tightened slightly. Even if she was a Silver Core, he didn’t think going anywhere near the C-rank snow panthers sitting in those mountains was worth the risk.

"Compared to the rest of our class," he said, "we should be able to place well by taking down large numbers of D-rank creatures."

"You’re not wrong," Livia said, shaking her head. "We might outperform our classmates. But winning against the other classes will be far harder."

She paused, then added calmly, "I’m sure you’re also aware of the existence of SSS-rank affinities."

Logan blinked, caught off guard by how casually she said it.