Inside an enormous spaceship floating in the endless void somewhere in the multiverse, the command chamber lit up all of a sudden.
"Establishing a connection with Merchant 2206."
"Calibrating the wormhole data."
"Coordinates fixed to the closest interplanetary spaceship."
"Connection successful. Sending the merchant to Eternal – A7710."
"If it is your first cosmic travel, please don't vomit on the spaceship. If it is not, Have a pleasant journey!"
"Welcome back – Merchant 2206."
While the mechanical voice was transmitting a series of commands, two shadows rushed into the command center. These shadows looked like projections rather than a complete entity.
At the forefront, a humongous shadow listened to the machine seriously.
"Merchant 2206…It's been a long time."
The giant appeared to be shocked by this news. To the giant's left, an ethereal shadow flickered in and out of existence.
"It can't be him. He entered that treacherous domain. Moreover, our agents didn't pick up any new wormhole transmissions near that domain."
The shadow echoed the giant's sentiments.
"Alissa, check if his gene data matches with merchant 2206's records," the giant ordered.
"Processing the command."
"Command authorized."
"Comparing with the existing database."
"Body/Spirit comparison negative."
"Reprocessing for additional information."
"Cultivation in the initial stages, similar bloodline patterns..."
"Final result: Merchant 2206's offspring."
The giant stayed silent for a long time.
"You decided to let your son inherit your position. You kept it a secret for a long time," the giant said with a smile on his face.
"Hahaha, he is still the same after so many years. He was never the one to show his emotions outward. I hope his son can live up to his father's prestige," The smaller shadow continued cheerfully.
"Alissa, block all the information about Merchant 2206," the giant ordered sternly.
"Command accepted."
"Minimum requirement to access Merchant 2206's data: Eternal commander."
The smaller shadow appeared to be shocked by the giant's decision.
The giant saw through his concern.
"The secrets behind his departure cannot be revealed. The elders would want the same thing. Moreover, his existence has become a taboo everywhere except the Eternal domain. Fewer people should know about his son's existence."
"Sigh, you are right. What happened that year..."
"Stop. These aren't things we can discuss out loud."
"Stop lecturing me, you giant blockhead. Do you seriously think that I am that stupid?"
BOOM
The giant sent the smaller shadow flying. The already ethereal shadow was on the verge of dissipation.
"You idiot. I am not in the Titan universe now. It is hard for me to maintain my shadow projection," the smaller shadow shouted in anger.
"Yes, I seriously think you are that stupid. One day, you'll get yourself killed because of your death seeking tendencies."
The giant had enough of his friend.
"Alissa, change Merchant 2206's serial number."
"Command registered."
"Searching for a vacant serial number."
"Creating a new profile."
"Permission to access the merchant's memories."
"Permission granted."
"Profile created."
"Name: Rhys Adler
Age: 18 years
Serial number: 7777
…"
The giant looked emotionally at the new profile.
"Your son is following in your footsteps, my old friend. I hope he can honor your name."
"Hahaha, I bet he will become a better merchant than that ice cube," the smaller shadow answered cheerfully.
BOOM
"Crap. Why did you hit me again you giant turd?" the smaller shadow screamed indignantly.
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
"I just hit you in his place."
"After I finish my trade with the big fish, I can go to the headquarters to enter the timeless sanctum. I'll punch the muscle out of your muscle head after coming out."
"Hehehe, you never learn do you?"
BOOM
Their violent banter continued for a long time.
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Everything in the multiverse runs on laws defined by the cosmos. The multiverse is in an ever-present cycle of life and death. No one understands what determines the life and death of a galaxy or a planetary system. However, they must abide by these universal laws. Some men in history have been able to subvert these laws to form their domains. Nonetheless, they can never thoroughly remove cosmic restraints.
The August system is a planetary system located at the ends of the universe. The notion of universal boundaries is very intriguing. Over time, people started calling them "The Edges of the Universe."
Many scholars believe that a Universe is born out of primal energy located in the Edges of the Universe. This primal energy keeps on spreading until the birth of the universe. No one knows whether this theory is valid, but it makes one excited imagining the endless mysteries of the universe. Many Powerful individuals in their final years of life enter the edges of the universe to search for opportunities to breakthrough. Hence, these individuals need someplace close to get valuable information, treasures, supplies, helpers, transport. Even for these celestials, it takes a lot of time and effort to travel light-years of distance.
There is a saying in the vast multiverse: "Where there are profits to be made, Eternal merchants will be somewhere close by lurking around."
The Eternal merchants: blood-sucking parasites to some, saviors to others. However, they are nothing but a bunch of businessmen looking to make a profit.
No one knows their origin or how long they have been active. They can get you anything you desire if the price is right. They work by stringent rules under the supervision of the Eternal merchant organization.
They are the merchants of the universe, ever-present since the time immemorial.
Every galaxy deemed business-friendly has a branch of the Eternal Merchant Organisation. The August system is a relatively young planetary system with no important business opportunities. However, it is the system closest to the edge of its Universe. Since the business opportunities are abundant, the Eternal merchant organization decided to establish a new branch in this part of the Universe.
The Eternal A - 7710 is an artificial planet of the Eternal merchant Organisation in the August system.
Every Eternal branch has an entire planet reserved for their respective operations. The base is home to an Eternal major to oversee his/her area of influence.
"Major, we just confirmed a deal with the Elephant celestial. It's our hundredth deal since we came here."
A petite figure with two horns on her head jumped around excitedly.
"All right, calm down. You know that this is a bad start compared to others. There is nothing to celebrate."
In the highest seat of the chamber, a beautiful woman with long ears was seated. She had a regal aura around her, and you could not help but feel respectful in front of her.
Just as she was coming down from her seat
BANG
She started tumbling down and fell on the floor face first.
"Ouch, why are these floors made out of mithril."
All her regal image collapsed in a second.
"Are you all right, Major Chalia?" the petite woman asked with concern.
"I am alright, Renzi."
"You need to stop being such a klutz Major. The last time when we met the Eternal commander in Titan…"
"Stop Renzi. Please do not remind me of that day. That was probably the most embarrassing day of my life. My family almost disowned me," Chalia exclaimed with a red face.
"Hahaha, you are something Major Chalia. You are probably the only Major in history to have pulled a commander's pants in front of an eternal assembly. Hahaha," a neatly dressed figure with dark skin and two wings on his back added.
"Shut your mouth Bacu, stop making fun of Major Chalia, you two-winged bat," Renzi shouted with an angry look on her face. However, she looked rather cute when she is angry.
"Ahhhhh, Renzi you are so cute," Bacu mocked with a smirk on his face.
"Shut up, you idiot."
"Alright alright, Stop it you two. Renzi, you see if there is any new deal coming up or if there is any information about new celestials coming to the edge," Chalia asked to calm things down.
"Hmph, the Major saved you. There is no news for now, but all the merchants have their hands full."
"Sigh, we are short-staffed again. Bacu, Did the galactic command respond to our request?"
"No general. The fortune nexus system paid an enormous amount of money for a relocation mission. The galactic command is busy handling that."
"Another cosmic reset. The laws of the universe…" Chalia murmured in a sad voice.
"It's getting worse…" Bacu continued in a heavy tone.
"Alright, we aren't strong enough to worry about that. Renzi, how are our numbers for the current decade?"
Every branch must submit their earnings report each decade. It is a big deal since it will determine the investment distribution coming from the universal command center of the Titan universe.
"Our numbers didn't change a lot, Major. The business has been slow the last year. We managed to break even, but the business in these young planets is bad. They don't know a lot about us, and finding something valuable is even harder," Renzi responded in a worried tone.
The August system is a young planetary system. Even though the celestials venturing into the edge can bring in a lot of business, their number is low.
"The main problem is that the inhabitants of the planet trade with us using their planet's currency. The exchange rate for a young planet's currency is pretty dismal," Renzi continued.
Every planet's currency has a market value estimated by the galactic command. A young planetary system's currency is relatively new, and the galactic market is not so welcoming. You have to wait a few million years to get a good return, and that is if the planet develops at an amazing rate. Therefore, many Eternal merchants prefer trading with treasures instead of currency.
"Sigh, we can't do anything about it. Even though a newly developed planet has many treasures to be found, it takes time for people to get stronger and acquire them," Chalia said.
Every planet needs to go through its trials and tribulations to enter the vast cosmos and prosper. Every planet in the multiverse is protected by cosmic laws. Hence, someone can't just enter and take away all the treasures.
"You don't need to worry, Major. The higher-ups are aware that this is the youngest galaxy in the edge expanse," Renzi tried comforting her Major.
The edge expanse is a vast territory of the Titan universe with more than a million light-years of surface area. It is the closest region to the edge of the Titan universe.
"Alright, there is no use worrying about it now. We have a lot of problems that we need to investigate. Is there still no merchant in Zar'Goth?"
"Yes, Major. The high command ordered to stop investigating, but not having a merchant in Zar'Goth is not helping our revenue," Renzi responded in a troubled tone.
"I tried looking into the case file Major. However, my security clearance isn't high enough to get more information," Bacu added.
Every member of the Eternal merchant organization has access to the vast information network of the Eternal domain. However, every member has limited access to information per their position.
"I know. I tried accessing the file, but my authority was not sufficient either. I hope the problem gets resolved fast enough to increase our profits a little," Charia groaned in a despondent tone.
Suddenly a mechanical voice echoed in the command station.
"Requesting connection with Major Charia Naeris of the August system."
"Hmmm, Alissa? Request approved."
"Good morning Major Charia. I have a posting order from the galactic command."
"Ah, a posting order?"
"Merchant 7777 has been appointed as the Eternal merchant of Zar'Goth."
"What? A new merchant?"
"Yes, the merchant will be transported soon."
The whole chamber fell into an awkward silence.
"Have a pleasant day, Major!"
All you could hear was the mechanical sound ringing across the chamber.
"We got a new merchant for Zar'Goth just as we were discussing it. Quite a coincidence," Bacu said. He seemed amused by the situation.
"Yes. Maybe be its fate. Alright, prepare everything properly to welcome the new merchant. Renzi, you start preparing a comprehensive newbie guide and Bacu, you start selecting members for his new merchant squad," Charia commanded.
"Yes, Major."
"Yes, Major."
The Major stood there looking at the endless void. She appeared to be in deep thought about something.
"I heard that Zar'Goth has something delicious called pizza. Maybe he can bring me some to eat later."