I opened a shop on the Astral Train

In the vast universe, a space station called "Black Tower" stood like a monolith against the cosmic backdrop.

This was a gathering place for the greatest scientific minds. Only those with unparalleled expertise in their respective fields could set foot here.

And today, a businessman named "Yuri" had managed to sneak inside.

—

Inside the main control cabin, Yuri had a firm grip on the arm of a small, gray-haired boy.

"My friend, I have some treasures here. Interested in taking a look?"

The boy, Kevin, protagonist of the Star Dome Railway, raised an eyebrow at the offer.

"Treasures? What kind of treasures? Let me see."

Yuri snapped his fingers, and three items encased in shimmering "bubbles" materialized before Kevin.

Kevin watched the finger snap with admiration, thinking it looked like a well-executed magic trick.

Yuri smirked. "Allow me to introduce them. These are the Destiny Coin, the Space Ring, and the Physical Fruit."

Kevin curiously poked the bubbles but found that he couldn't touch the items inside.

Pointing at the Destiny Coin, he asked, "What's this? What does it do?"

Yuri explained, "It's simple. Flip the coin. If it lands on heads, it will instantly heal all your injuries, including curses, poison, and other negative effects."

Kevin's eyes lit up. "And if it lands on tails?"

"Well… you'll get struck by lightning. No big deal."

Kevin, clearly more focused on the thrill than the risk, grinned. "This thing is awesome. How much?"

Yuri wagged his finger. "I don't take credits."

Kevin sighed, spreading his hands. "I only have 10,000 credits from my last job. That's all I've got."

Yuri chuckled. "You have something I want more than credits."

With a wave of his hand, a scale appeared between them.

"You should have some Stellar Jade, right?"

Kevin nodded and reached into his pocket, pulling out a handful of glowing Star Pearls. "I picked these up because they looked pretty. Didn't think they were worth much."

He wasn't exactly well-off. These were the spoils from fighting two virtual soldiers and opening a treasure chest—nothing too extravagant.

In the real world of Bengtie, treasure chests were always guarded by monsters. The moment you got close, they attacked. Because of that, most people ignored them, leaving only a few Destiny Travelers willing to take the risk.

Yuri took the five Stellar Jade from Kevin and placed them on one side of the scale. In an instant, a white light flashed, and five crisp 100-star-coin banknotes appeared on the other end, while the Stellar Jade vanished.

Yuri picked up the cash. "This is the exchange rate here. I only accept Stellar Jade. Here, your 500 star coins."

Kevin ignored the money, still fixated on the Destiny Coin. "How much for that? Is 500 enough?"

Yuri nodded. "It's only 300. You'll have 200 left."

He placed 300 star coins on the bubble, causing both the coins and the bubble to disappear. The Destiny Coin materialized in Yuri's palm, and he handed it, along with the remaining 200 star coins, to Kevin.

Kevin took the coin, inspecting it with great anticipation. Just as he was about to flip it, Yuri stopped him.

"Hold on! This is your emergency lifeline. Use it wisely. If you flip it right, it's like having an extra life."

Kevin thought about it and nodded, tucking the Destiny Coin into his bag.

His eyes then drifted to the other two items.

Yuri continued his pitch. "The Space Ring costs 1,000 star coins. It has a 10-cubic-meter storage capacity but can't store living beings. The Physical Fitness Fruit is 600 star coins and will permanently enhance your physical strength."

Kevin's eyes sparkled. "Both of those sound amazing!"

Then he checked his bag and sighed. "Emmm… I'm broke."

He extended his hand. "Let's exchange contact info so I can buy more from you later."

Yuri took out his phone and added Kevin to his contacts.

With their business concluded, they parted ways.

—

After Kevin left, Yuri turned inward, communicating with his system.

"System, did I complete my novice mission?"

[Notice! Congratulations, host, for completing the novice mission: Conduct a successful transaction.

Rewards: Shop Card x1, High-Level Destiny Walker Imaginary Energy x1.]

As the system's voice faded, a sudden surge of powerful energy flooded Yuri's body.

The sensation was overwhelming, his entire being undergoing a transformation. Muscles strengthened, senses sharpened, and a deep well of energy settled within him.

After more than ten minutes, the power stabilized. With a thought, Yuri summoned a dark golden energy sphere in his palm.

"Not bad. Finally, I have the power to protect myself."

In a universe filled with terrifyingly strong beings, ordinary people were nothing more than ants.

Take the Interstellar Peace Corporation, for example—if they wanted to wipe out a planet, they'd do it without hesitation. No one would question them for annihilating an inferior civilization.

Feeling his newfound strength, Yuri turned his attention to his other reward.

[Store Card: Upon use, transforms a 300-square-meter space into a beautifully decorated shop.]

[New Task Released: Open a Store!

Host must establish a shop.

Rewards: Special product—Elf Series unlocked, Alien Guest Invitation x1.]

According to the system, these special products could only be unlocked by completing specific tasks.

But for now, Yuri had more than enough items to sell. The system's product list was endless.

The real question was where to set up shop.

After some thought, Yuri decided the best location was the Starry Sky Train.

If there was one place overflowing with Stellar Jade, it was there.

The Starry Sky Train traversed the cosmos, visiting planet after planet. Unknown travelers would naturally accumulate Stellar Jade, making them ideal customers.

And with the number of train compartments available, renting one would be the perfect setup.

Now, he just needed a way to convince the train crew to lease him a space.

Yuri leaned back, sipping a cold drink as he strategized.

—

Meanwhile, Kevin had made his way to the Black Tower's office.

Inside, the Black Tower was busy debugging the simulated universe—a joint creation of herself and three other geniuses, designed to unravel the mysteries of the Star God.

Kevin had already tested it yesterday. It was fun, and there were rewards to be earned.

Today, he was here to help fine-tune the system.

"Black Tower, I'm here."

The Black Tower turned, arms crossed. "You're late. I hope you have a good excuse."

Kevin grinned sheepishly. "Got sidetracked by a vendor. Bought something cool. Sorry, sorry."

Kevin looked at the Black Tower, and suddenly, an idea flashed through his mind. He had just figured out a way to get more Stellar Jade!

Grinning mischievously, he pulled out the Coin of Destiny.

"Hey, Black Tower, take a look at this," he said with a sly smile.

The Black Tower puppet glanced at the coin with a look of mild disdain. "Isn't this just an ordinary coin? What's so special about it?"

Kevin smirked, placing his hands on his hips. "Of course, it's special! This is the Coin of Destiny. You flip it into the air, and if it lands on heads, you instantly heal all injuries. If it lands on tails… well, you get struck by lightning. Cool, right?"

The Black Tower's curiosity was piqued. She picked up the coin and tossed it into the air without hesitation.

Kevin watched, his heart pounding with excitement. His plan was coming together perfectly. No matter the outcome, as long as the coin worked as described, he could use it as leverage to extort some compensation from the Black Tower.

The Coin of Destiny spun through the air, flipping end over end, before finally landing on the ground.

[Tails.]

The next second, the Black Tower puppet let out an ear-piercing scream, as if struck by an unseen force.

Kevin scratched his head in confusion. The puppet didn't seem physically harmed, aside from its dramatic reaction. "Hey, you okay, Black Tower?"

What Kevin didn't know was that, at that exact moment, the real Black Tower had been struck by a sudden bolt of lightning. Thankfully, her intelligence and foresight had prevented serious injury, but the shock had been real.

Now intrigued, the Black Tower quickly realized that the Coin of Destiny had somehow locked onto her directly, bypassing the puppet entirely. This was no ordinary artifact.

Controlling the puppet, she bent down and picked up the coin from the floor. The moment her fingers touched it, the Coin of Destiny disintegrated into shimmering dust.

"Interesting… very interesting! Kevin, where did you get this thing? Do you have more?"

Kevin shook his head. "Nope. That was the only one. Now, pay up!"

He confidently stretched out his hand, demanding compensation.

The Black Tower was silent for a few moments. Then, Kevin's phone beeped.

[Company Transfer: 100,000 Credits Received.]

Kevin's eyes sparkled as he saw the notification. With this money, he could buy more Stellar Jade, return to Yuri, and purchase the remaining items he wanted. Even after that, he'd still have plenty of credits left over. Genius move, if he said so himself.

Satisfied, Kevin saw no need to linger.

"Alright, Black Tower, I have other things to do today. No testing the simulated universe for me."

Surprisingly, the Black Tower didn't object. She had already decided to let Kevin go freely. After all, now that she had proof the Coin of Destiny was real, she was far more interested in finding out who sold it.

She had no doubt that whoever was behind it had other equally fascinating treasures.

All she needed to do was follow Kevin.

"Fine. I'm not in the mood for testing today either. We'll pick it up tomorrow."

With that, the Black Tower puppet went offline, standing motionless in place.

Kevin raised an eyebrow, shrugged, and walked out of the office.

—

As he wandered through the station, Kevin asked nearly everyone he met if they had any spare Steller Jade.

To his surprise, quite a few people were willing to trade. To them, Stellar Jade was nothing more than a pretty rock—if Kevin was offering 500 credits each, why not take the deal?

By the time he finished searching the main control cabin, his bag was filled with twenty more Steller Jade.

Just as he was about to find Yuri, a voice called out from behind him.

"Kevin, what are you up to?"

He turned to see March 7 approaching.

"March, I'm gathering Steller Jade. You got any? I'll pay you 500 credits each."

March 7 narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Why do you need them so badly? And why are you paying for them?"

Kevin looked around, making sure no one else was nearby. Then, flashing a mischievous grin, he leaned in and whispered.

"Let's just say… I've got something big planned."

March 7's curiosity was piqued. "Sounds interesting! Tell me more."

Kevin smirked. "Alright, listen closely…"

As he whispered his plan, March 7's expression shifted from surprise to excitement. "That sounds fun! I wanna come with you."

Kevin stood up straight, nodding. "Then let's go! Keep up!"

—

Together, they followed the location Yuri had sent Kevin earlier.

They found Yuri strolling through the small garden near the main control cabin. Kevin had to admit, the garden was impressive—filled with flowers of vibrant colors and unique shapes. Clearly, Asta had spent a fortune designing it.

Spotting Yuri, Kevin pulled March 7 along as they jogged over.

Yuri noticed them and waved with a smile. "Kevin! Over here."

As they got closer, Kevin's eyes darted around. March 7 noticed and asked, "Kevin, what are you looking for?"

"The scale. Come on, Yuri, take out your scale. I need to exchange these for star coins."

Yuri chuckled, producing the scale with a flick of his wrist. "I see you brought a friend. Aren't you going to introduce us?"

Kevin blinked, realizing he'd forgotten to do so. "Oh! Right. Yuri, this is March 7, my best friend and a fellow passenger on the Astral Express."

He turned to March 7. "March, this is Yuri—the businessman I told you about."

With introductions out of the way, Kevin eagerly dumped all twenty Stellar Jade from his bag onto the scale.

In a flash of white light, the Stellar Jade vanished, replaced by twenty crisp 100-star-coin bills.

Kevin picked them up, grinning. Dipping his fingers into the automatic sprinkler nearby, he began counting them one by one. The feeling of holding money was simply too satisfying.

March 7 watched with curiosity. "So, these are star coins?"

Kevin nodded. "Yep! Now you should exchange yours too. Then we can start shopping."

March 7 followed suit, placing her ten Stellar Jade onto the scale. Moments later, she received ten 100-star-coin bills in return.

As she examined them, Yuri smiled and handed them his phone.

"My store isn't officially open yet, so for now, you can browse using my phone. I've listed all the available products here—name, price, and effects are all clearly described."

Yuri had been struggling to come up with a way to rent a train carriage for his shop. So, instead, he had spent the time meticulously recording the details of over 500 different products into his phone.

It was the perfect solution—for now.