— — — — — —
Joey fell into deep thought. "The best thing to buy is probably technology."
He began to think more carefully.
The next option would be magic.
After all… He already had a magic system on his side.
Elves, Dark Elves, High Elves—
All of them were races that specialized in magic.
"Hmmm— Let's talk to this guy first."
[Beep!]
Soon enough, the video call connected, showing a known-looking guy on the screen.
With an amused grin, the man said, "Yo~! The famous Charlotte merchant is actually reaching out to me? So surprised!"
Joey replied calmly, "Stark. Ten Devil Fruits. I want to buy the complete technological package from all five industrial revolutions. I know you've got it. The question is—are you willing to sell?"
Hearing that, Tony Stark started thinking.
Yeah—that Tony Stark, from the Marvel universe.
Joey had always known that if he wanted advanced technology, Stark was the guy to go to.
The only problem?
He wasn't sure if Stark would actually sell it.
First, the five industrial revolutions were:
1. Steam Power & Machinery – Factories and engines.
2. Electricity & Mass Production – Assembly lines and cars.
3. Computers & Automation – Electronics and robots.
4. AI & Smart Tech – AI, and connected systems.
5. Future Tech & Human Fusion – Biotechnology, quantum tech, and human-AI cooperation.
Second, this wasn't the movie version of Tony.
This was the comic book version—a full-blown, god-tier monster of a genius.
With a guy like this? Joey wouldn't be surprised if he became a tech god tomorrow.
He wasn't exactly good or evil—just someone with his own agenda.
Joey knew him well.
When Tony Stark figured out the whole "family system" thing, he'd gathered cells from nearly every superhero and supervillain in existence.
Then, in no time flat, he cloned his own children.
And that's not all—He was out there collecting genetic samples from powerhouses across different worlds.
Rumor has it, he even made a deal with Batman of the DC Comics Universe.
He got Kryptonian DNA out of that one.
On one side: Tony Stark, comic version, leading the Stark Family.
On the other: The Laughing Batman, also known as The Batman Who Laughs, leading the Batman Family. Yep he named it like that.
Neither of those guys were good news for the whole multiverse.
Honestly—If Joey didn't need what they had, he wouldn't even bother talking to these two freakishly smart maniacs.
Their brains were just too damn good.
And besides, these guys were straight-up cheats.
Until his own family was strong enough, Joey had no plans to mess with them too much.
"Oh?"
Tony Stark narrowed his eyes, interest flashing in them. "If I'm not mistaken, Charlotte— you wanna buy a complete tech system to mix it with your world and the other worlds' unique power systems??..."
Yeah.
Stark's mind was clearly racing.
A moment later, he looked stunned. "Even if I don't believe it… You're seriously trying to go that route? You're nuts. You aren't me, so that's amazing!"
It was clear: Stark knew exactly what Joey was planning.
Joey didn't even say it to many of his family members, and here Tony Stark just had one second to know.
"Yeah, yeah," Joey said with a sigh. "That's why I hate dealing with smart guys like you. Just tell me—deal or no deal? I don't have time to waste."
Tony Stark chuckled confidently. "Of course I'll make the deal! And not just the five industrial revolutions—I'll give you the tech from all seven, plus the full magical system from my world."
But then, his eyes narrowed.
Joey cut in, calm and cold. "Stark. You know full well—that thing you want from me? That's never gonna happen. Like I said, if you're willing to trade, great. If not, then let's not waste each other's time."
Tony Stark sighed dramatically. "Man, you power-hungry types are so annoying. Always gotta be in control of everything. Such a pain! Fine, fine! 70 Devil Fruits. That's my price."
The trade was exactly what Joey wanted.
He nodded. "Deal."
Tony Stark gave a thumbs up. "Give me 20 minutes. That's all I need." Then he ended the call and got to work.
Joey muttered to himself, "Tony Stark, huh… He's really interested in Katakuri. But well, there's still 80 years to go. You're powerful now, sure… but who knows what things'll look like in 80 years?"
He smirked.
Then moved on to look for his next target.
— — —
[Beep!]
Another video call connected.
This time, the Angel Clan Chief appeared, looking rather displeased. "Charlotte. What do you want this time?"
Clearly—
He was still pissed off about getting scammed in their last deal.
Joey smiled. "No need to get so worked up, Angel. It's just business, nothing personal."
The angel sighed, trying to stay calm. "Whatever. Just get to the point."
Joey got serious. "I want the full magic system from your world. Light, dark, wind, fire, thunder, earth, water, time, space—all of it. Any system related to magic training. I want everything."
"Hm?"
The angel stared at him, weighing the offer in silence.
A few moments later—
He said, "I can make that trade. But what do you have for me in return?"
Joey replied evenly, "It's been 20 years. The most basic training systems are already all over the place. Don't tell me you actually think something like that can stop me? Magic training is child's play."
And it was true.
Over time—
It became impossible to keep that kind of thing hidden.
The "Body" and "Soul" training methods— All the major clans had gotten their hands on copies by now.
Why?
Because it was impossible to keep them under wraps.
In fact— Joey was the first one to start selling them.
His logic was simple: If you can't hide it, might as well be the first to make money off it.
Thanks to those two training techniques—
He finally managed to acquire the one he truly wanted: The method to produce Ki.
He used 2,000 Achievement Points to evolve and refine it into the a more pure Technique "Origin Energy"— the core energy method of the family now.
"The Body" trained the body itself.
"The Soul" trained the core of the human spirit.
"Origin Energy" made pure energy
On top of that—
During that trading spree— Joey earned nearly 30,000 Achievement Points.
A massive haul by any standard.
From that point forward— Joey made his presence known among the clan leaders.
Everyone knew who Joey was now.
And ever since—
Deals had gotten both easier and harder for him.
Easier because he had real capital—everyone wanted to trade with him.
Harder because, well, everyone also wanted to screw him over.
Soon—
The Angel Clan Chief spoke again. "100 Fruits…"
Joey instantly shot him down. "Angel Chief. Your world's magic system is worth 10 Devil Fruits. Don't try to haggle with me. You know full well—only rare things have true value. And your world? It's not one of them. At best, the value comes from its complete magic system."
The Angel Leader could only let out a helpless sigh.
Because…Joey was right.
Now, some people might think: "Aren't magic supposed to be super powerful?"
After all…Don't people reach godhood or immortality with those?
Too bad!!! That's not how it works.
With the System, there's unlimited potential.
Joey could push the Haki system to the extreme through the System—enough to crush even gods with Conqueror's Haki alone.
With the System balancing things out, no training path was inherently stronger than the others.
...
The Angel Leader nodded. "Fine. I'll make the deal."
"Great," Joey replied. And just like that, the trade was settled.
That said—The Angel Leader warned that it would take at least three months to collect everything.
Even though twenty years had passed in that world—and despite being in a top position—it was still no easy task to gather everything Joey wanted.
"Phew…" Joey let out a long breath.
"This makes things a lot smoother," he muttered. "Now then, next up…"
It was time to keep trading.
— — —
"All Ninjutsu, Senjutsu, and Kekkei Genkai—fifteen Devil Fruits, max."
"No way! That's worth at least twenty!"
"Absolutely not. Unless you're throwing in Wood Release from Hashirama cells and the Rinnegan."
"I can give you the Wood Release cells—but not the Rinnegan. Twenty Devil Fruits, and I'll deliver everything in three months!"
"…Deal."
After half an hour of haggling back and forth—Joey finally sealed the deal with the Uchiha Clan Leader.
He couldn't help but grumble afterward: "Anyone who still says Uchiha Madara is some meathead… I swear I'll twist their head clean off. That guy's a damn monster."
Shaking his head in frustration—He moved on to the next trade.
After all—
So far, he'd only acquired:
Tech.
Magic.
And Ninjutsu.
That was just the beginning.
There were still plenty of other systems he needed to collect.
Of course, he never expected to buy everything completely. That would be impossible.
— — —
"Phew…"
After running around nonstop for so long— Joey exhaled deeply, rubbing his temples.
"Seriously, I'd rather deal with bureaucratic work than keep trading with these guys. It's such a pain. But… judging by the time, it should be about now…"
[DING!!!]
Just then, the System notification popped up.
Tony Stark said casually, "Charlotte, here's everything you asked for. Ready to trade whenever you are."
Joey nodded. "All right. Let's do it."
The Devil Fruits vanished.
In return, an absolutely massive file appeared in front of him.
This file has two folders in total.
One had all the data from seven industrial revolutions.
The other? Contained the entire magic training system from the Marvel Universe.
In short—It was top-tier content. No doubt about it.
And of course, the System acted as a neutral judge for all trades.
If anyone tried to cheat?
Heh… The System's punishment was not something you wanted to mess with.
"Hehehe~"
Stark chuckled. "Charlotte, if you've got anything interesting, I might even trade the Infinity Stones with you."
Joey replied calmly, "I know myself well enough. As powerful as those Stones are, I probably can't control them with my current strength."
"Eh, you could still use them," Stark said with a grin. "Anyway—until next time."
Joey nodded. "Yeah. See you next time."
.
.
.