"First, as we all agree, the market is vast."
"Moreover, we don't have any risks because, as I just said, we aren't afraid of overstocking. At worst, we can pause the orders and slowly sell off the remaining inventory. After all, sales won't drop too low." Glancing at little Abel, Lanen rotated the cup in his hand and continued, "And our vision shouldn't be limited to just the kingdom."
"...What do you mean?" Little Abel seemed to have thought of something.
"The surrounding areas—the entire continent is an untapped market in this field," Lanen waved his right hand. "Just as I described on the day we first partnered, the east, west, south, and north—any prosperous region has a demand for our products. Even if domestic sales have declined due to saturation, as long as we sell to the surrounding areas, our performance will inevitably rise exponentially. At that point, the only bottleneck will be our production capacity, especially the funds we can invest in production."
Lanen painted a bright future, and little Abel was gradually convinced.
"According to my plan, we'll continue to reinvest our earnings from the next few rounds into production, endlessly expanding. And you, all you need to do is reach out to supply channels in neighboring countries through your friends or other means—or find merchants with cross-border supply networks. We'll soon face a shortage of production capacity."
"Let me think..." Little Abel's voice held only the faintest hint of hesitation.
"I hope our 'Frieden Computing Technology Co., Ltd.' can become a major company of significance across the continent. And most importantly, it should earn us more money than we can spend. What do you think of this idea?"
Then little Abel was persuaded.
After all, for those who already possess capital, not doing something that requires only effort and carries no risk is practically equivalent to a loss.
Bidding farewell to little Abel, who was still pondering sales routes, Lanen stepped out of the clean little tavern.
Shivering in the chilly wind, he stood on the street, suddenly uneasy at the thought of the five gold coins in his wallet. Every passerby seemed to eye him with greed and ill intent. For a moment, he even missed his warm dorm room and the secure iron-framed bed.
Better to deposit it.
Lanen decided after some thought.
The tall marble pillars supported the stone archway, intricately carved with elaborate patterns at their tops and the triangular arch, exuding an air of weathered dignity. The outer walls were covered in withered ivy, at first glance resembling the school's lecture hall, but the barred windows gave a completely different impression.
The multinational bank run by the elves, with its formidable reserves and security capabilities, held an overwhelming advantage in the global banking industry, dominating far more than half the market. Of course, no one had precisely calculated the exact share, as it was nearly impossible under current information conditions.
And so, the elves had spread to every city, becoming the most familiar non-human race to humans—even as a rare species, one could always spot a few in the elven banks within cities. This was something dwarves, orcs, and other races couldn't match. Most ordinary people could only see other races in picture books or imagine them through novels.
For Lanen, visiting a bank for the first time, the service was excellent and made him feel comfortable.
Guided through a well-structured process by a patient and soft-spoken female attendant, Lanen smoothly opened his first bank account and filled in his identity details and password.
Lanen marveled inwardly—there was a reason elven banks spanned two continents.
Handing over four gold coins in exchange for a deposit slip redeemable across the continent (with some delay for cross-region verification due to communication needs), Lanen suddenly felt hollow—those four adorable, golden little squares had left his possession, leaving him with a sense of loss and emptiness.
With mixed emotions of joy and a tinge of melancholy, Lanen prepared to return to school and dive back into problem-solving.
The power of relentless practice had begun to show. Lanen had already completed all his courses and built a solid foundation. He even planned to attempt the advancement exam by year's end.
His friends had also benefited greatly.
Elina had solidified her knowledge, declaring she would surely graduate this time. Hal and Sophia had significantly accelerated their learning pace. After fully consolidating their existing knowledge, they had even started emulating Lanen by studying ahead. Astonished by their progress, the group felt encouraged to continue their problem-solving crusade.
At the same time, they held Lanen in even higher regard. His methods had begun to spread, with many like Roger and Beta starting to imitate them to some degree. It was foreseeable that the school's ranking in the kingdom might rise as a result.
Turning his head, Lanen suddenly spotted two familiar faces.
Three elves were entering through the main door together—two of them were Lanen's classmates, Scott Silvermoon and Jennifer Silvermoon, while the third was an older-looking young elf (or perhaps young? Lanen wasn't entirely sure, given elves' long lifespans and eternally youthful appearances).
Just as Lanen noticed them, the Silvermoon siblings recognized him.
"Hello! Lanen, didn't expect to see you here."
Without waiting for a reply, Scott turned to his sister and the older elf. "Uncle Eip, this is Lanen Banneret, the one who saved me before. Lanen, this is my uncle, Eip Silvermoon. My sister needs no introduction—you already know her."
"I heard about little Abel from the grocery store partnering with a student for business—seems it's under your name. Wishing you prosperity. Also, thank you so much for saving Scott. He and Jennifer are all I have—I don't know what I'd do if something happened to him." Eip Silvermoon expressed his gratitude with polite grace.
Jennifer Silvermoon also thanked Lanen, expressing guilt and fear over failing to notice her brother's disappearance sooner.
Suddenly faced with their enthusiastic gratitude, Lanen fumbled slightly in response.
He was then ushered into the VIP lounge for drinks and conversation, chatting about school life and his current business.
"As thanks for your bravery, if you ever face financial issues in your business, feel free to come to me. Within my authority, I'll give you the best terms. Even if that's not enough, our family will find a way to help. This is my promise—please don't refuse."
As he escorted Lanen out after their chat, Eip delivered these carefully considered, heartfelt words.