The second floor wasn’t welcoming to newcomers. As Alex and his team stepped through the portal, they felt the weight of the world they had entered. **Ironclad City**, the capital of the Dwarven Kingdom, loomed before them—its stone walls, towering forges, and massive gears turning in the distance. The air was thick with the power of higher-level players. Here, everyone was **level 100-199**, and CODE was at the lower end of that range. Their **level 105** didn’t mean much anymore.
But while the surroundings were intimidating, Alex had something no one else did—a **glitched power** that even he hadn’t fully explored.
“We need to stay under the radar for now,” Alex said, his eyes scanning the streets where heavily-armored players walked past with ease. “We’re not strong enough to fight these guys head-on.”
Betsy nodded, always quick to assess their situation. “Agreed. But we can’t just hide forever. We need to level up and build influence here.”
Drax’s usual grin was gone. “Fine by me, but we need to be careful. One wrong move, and we’ll be crushed.”
Luke stood quietly, his shield at his side, always present but rarely speaking. “**Verum**,” he said softly.
They set up a temporary base in one of the quieter parts of Ironclad City, a run-down building that once belonged to a now-defunct guild. It wasn’t much, but it gave them a place to regroup and think about their next steps. Alex, as always, kept his mind on the bigger picture. Fighting dungeon after dungeon would take too long. They needed another way to rise.
**The Shade Master’s powers** were still a mystery to everyone—including Alex. He had learned to summon and control his shades, using them in combat and recon, but he knew there was more. There was always more.
One evening, after the rest of the team had settled into their makeshift headquarters, Alex stayed up, experimenting with the shades, trying to push their limits. He summoned one after another, fusing them together, willing them to take on new forms. He was trying to see if he could **use them for more than just fighting**—if they could be used for practical tasks.
“Let’s see what else you can do,” Alex muttered to himself, focusing on a single shade.
The dark mass flickered, hovering in the air as he commanded it to solidify. Slowly, it began to take shape—dark, ethereal, and fluid. For fun, Alex mentally shaped it into something simple: a **small loaf of bread**. He grinned, amused by the novelty. But then something unexpected happened.
A faint **glow** emanated from the loaf. Alex felt a strange sensation—like time itself was bending around the bread.
“What the…?” he whispered, staring at the shade-formed food.
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Curious, Alex picked up the bread and took a bite. A system notification flashed across his vision:
**[You have consumed a Time-Infused Shade Loaf.]**
**[+1 Hour of Real-World Time Granted.]**
**[+5 Strength for the next 24 hours.]**
Alex froze. “Wait… this can’t be real.”
He stared at the notification, then at the bread. The bite he had taken dissolved in his mouth like any other food, but it was far from ordinary. Not only had he gained **an extra hour of time**, but his **stats** had temporarily increased. This was no ordinary food. It was **broken**—in the best way possible.
Alex summoned another shade and focused harder, shaping it into a **small fruit** this time. The result was the same: a glowing fruit that gave time in the real world and temporary stat boosts.
“This… this changes everything,” Alex whispered.
He quickly summoned more shades, experimenting with different forms of food. Every single creation granted both **time** and **stat bonuses**. And since his shades could work endlessly in the background, the possibilities were **limitless**.
---
The next morning, Alex gathered the team.
“We’ve got something huge,” he said, barely containing his excitement. “We’re sitting on the most broken advantage in this entire game.”
Betsy raised an eyebrow, intrigued but cautious. “What are you talking about?”
Alex explained the discovery—how he had accidentally created food that not only gave **real-world time** but also **boosted stats**. The others listened in stunned silence.
“Wait,” Drax said, wide-eyed. “You’re telling me we can make food that gives people more time? Like, actual time?”
Alex nodded. “Exactly. And it gives stat bonuses too.”
Betsy’s mind was already racing. “This is… no one else can replicate this, right?”
“No one,” Alex confirmed. “This is tied directly to my **Shade Master powers**. I don’t think this is something that can be reproduced by normal means.”
“That’s insane,” Betsy said. “Do you know what this means? Every player in this game would kill for extra real-world time. It’s the most valuable commodity here. And with stat boosts on top of that… we could be unstoppable.”
Alex grinned. “We’re sitting on a **gold mine**. If we play this right, we can make more money than any dungeon run ever could. And the best part? We can produce it endlessly, thanks to the shades.”
Drax clapped his hands together. “So, what are we waiting for? Let’s get cooking!”
---
### **Part 1.2: The Birth of a Brand**
Alex’s accidental discovery became the foundation of their new strategy. Instead of grinding through dangerous dungeons, CODE was going to build their power through **business**—by offering something no one else could: **Time-infused food**.
They worked quickly to set up a **small production operation** in their headquarters. Alex used his shades to mass-produce various food items—bread, fruit, cookies, and even drinks—each infused with **time bonuses** and **stat buffs**. It didn’t take long for them to realize the potential.
But simply having the product wasn’t enough—they needed to **market it**, and they needed to do it carefully. They couldn’t afford to attract too much attention too soon, especially from the larger guilds.
“We need a name,” Betsy said, sitting at a table covered in different food samples. “Something catchy but subtle. We don’t want to scream ‘we’re selling time’ right away.”
“How about… **Tempus Delights**?” Drax suggested, looking proud of himself.
Betsy snorted. “We’re not selling magic tea, Drax.”
“How about something that hints at the buffs?” Alex mused. “**Eternal Bite**. It’s vague enough to get people interested, but it hints at longevity and power.”
Betsy smiled. “I like it. ‘Eternal Bite’ it is.”
With the name settled, they began **spreading the word** in the market districts of Ironclad City. Betsy, with her natural charm and strategic mind, took the lead on the **promotion**. They offered **free samples** to players, targeting **small guilds and merchants** at first, careful not to draw too much attention from the larger, more established guilds.
The results were immediate.
Players were hooked from the first bite, not just because of the buffs, but because of the **extra time** it granted them in the real world. Soon, word spread like wildfire through the city. “Eternal Bite” was quickly becoming the **must-have product** for anyone serious about leveling up on the second floor.
But it wasn’t just players who were taking notice. **Merchants** began approaching them, offering to distribute the food to other cities on the second floor. Even some smaller **NPC guilds** showed interest, hoping to gain an edge in their own endeavors.
“We’ve got momentum now,” Betsy said one night as they looked over their growing orders. “But we need to expand if we want to keep up. We can’t rely on small deals forever.”
Alex nodded. “We need **trade routes**. And we need them fast.”