The "mild disorientation" that the system had warned about turned out to be the euphemism of the millennium.
One moment Marco was standing in the woods, mentally preparing himself for whatever was coming, and the next the world folded in on itself as if someone had grabbed reality and wrung it out like a wet towel. The colors stretched, the ground disappeared beneath his feet, and he had the horrible sensation of falling in all directions at once.
When everything stopped, Marco was on his knees on the ground, his hands planted on something cold and solid, trying not to throw up the chilaquiles he had eaten for breakfast... how long ago? Hours? Days? Time felt strange, as if his brain couldn't decide if seconds or years had passed.
"Son of a..." he began, but stopped when he finally looked up.
—Fucking mother.
There were no other words. There simply weren't any.
I was inside a building. But calling it a "building" was like calling a five-star banquet "food." The space stretched in every direction, so vast I couldn't see the far walls. The ceiling—if there was one—disappeared into a haze of golden light that seemed to glow with a life of its own. And the shelves...
Good heavens, the shelves.
They rose toward infinity, row upon row upon row, each one crammed with objects that glowed with an inner light. Some shelves were made of ancient wood that seemed older than civilization itself. Others were made of glass, metal, or materials Marco couldn't even name. And on those shelves was... everything.
Literally everything.
Marco stood slowly, turning in a full circle. To his right, he could see what appeared to be a sword engulfed in blue flames. Beyond that, there was an orb containing what looked like an entire galaxy. To his left, he recognized armor that bore a striking resemblance to Iron Man 's. Man , but not quite, as if it were an alternate version. And on the shelf opposite...
"Holy shit," he whispered, moving closer. "Are those the Dragon Balls?"
Indeed, there were the seven Dragon Balls. Ball , gleaming with its characteristic orange glow, each with its red stars perfectly visible. Marco reached out a trembling hand toward the one with four stars, but stopped inches from touching it.
[WARNING: TOUCHING MERCHANDISE WITHOUT PURCHASE AUTHORIZATION WILL RESULT IN PENALTY]
The blue screen appeared floating next to his head, making him jump.
—Penalty ? What kind of penalty?
[10,000 VOLT ELECTRIC SHOCK]
[NON-LETHAL, BUT EXTREMELY PAINFUL]
Marco withdrew his hand as if the spheres were made of lava.
"Okay, okay. Message received. Do not touch the merchandise." He looked around, still trying to process the magnitude of what he was seeing. "So... all this is for sale?"
[CORRECT]
[THE CATALOG CONTAINS ALL OBJECTS FROM ALL UNIVERSES]
[INCLUDING FICTIONAL OBJECTS FROM YOUR WORLD OF ORIGIN]
"Wait, wait." Marco put his hands to his head, trying to organize his thoughts. "Are you telling me that all the stuff in movies, video games, anime... all of that actually exists? In some universe?"
[AFFIRMATIVE]
[THE FICTION OF ONE UNIVERSE IS THE REALITY OF ANOTHER]
[EVERYTHING IS REAL SOMEWHERE]
Marco had to sit down. Luckily, a chair appeared right behind him at the exact moment, which was convenient but also a little unsettling.
" Okay ," he said, taking a deep breath. " Okay , okay , okay . This is... this is a lot. So, basically, anything I've ever imagined, anything I've ever seen in a movie or read in a manga... I can sell it. I can buy it. It exists."
[CORRECT]
[DO YOU WANT TO VIEW YOUR OWNER PANEL?]
" Panel of what?" Marco asked, but the screen was already changing.
Suddenly, the blue interface expanded to fill his entire field of vision, displaying information in neat columns reminiscent of an RPG's start screen.
[OWNER PANEL]
NAME: Marco Antonio Durán
AGE: 24 years old
WORLD OF ORIGIN: Earth (Alpha-616 Dimension)
CURRENT LOCATION: Middle Earth, Second Era
MULTIVERSAL CREDITS (CM): 1,000
MERCHANT RANK: Novice (Level 1)
TOTAL SALES: 0
ACCUMULATED COMMISSION: 0 CM
OWNER PRIVILEGES:
80% discount on all purchasesAccess to the complete catalog (Level 1)Use of store facilitiesBasic inventory search
UNLOCKED SKILLS:
None (Make first sale to unlock skill tree)
Marco read all the information twice before focusing on the obvious.
—I have a thousand credits? Just like that? Where did they come from?
[WELCOME BONUS FOR NEW OWNER]
[CONSIDERED "STARTING CAPITAL" FOR YOUR FIRST INVENTORY]
"Ah, like when you open a business and the bank lends you money to get started." Marco nodded. " Okay , that makes sense. Sort of." He frowned. "Wait, and how much do things cost?"
The screen changed again, now showing what appeared to be a Google search engine but for multiversal objects .
[EXAMPLE PRICES (WITHOUT DISCOUNT):]
- Basic steel sword (medieval): 50 CM
- Glock 19 pistol: 300 CM
- Magic wand (basic): 1,500 CM
- Lightsaber ( Star) Wars ): 45,000 CM
- Dragon Balls (complete set): 5,000,000 CM
- Infinity Stone (individual): 50,000,000 CM
- Super Saiyan (permanent transformation): 500,000,000 CM
Marco felt his soul leave his body with each number he read.
" FIVE HUNDRED MILLION?" he shouted , jumping to his feet. "To be Super ?" Saiyan ? Are you kidding me?
[PRICES REFLECT THE POWER AND RARITY OF THE ITEM]
[WITH YOUR 80% DISCOUNT, YOU WOULD ONLY PAY 100,000,000 CM ]
"Oh, right, 'only' one hundred million. What a bargain." Marco ran his hands through his hair. "And how much do the clients charge? Do they also pay one hundred million?"
[NEGATIVE]
[CUSTOMERS PAY FULL PRICE]
[YOU RECEIVE A 50% COMMISSION ON EACH SALE]
Marco did the calculations in his head. If he sold the Super transformation Saiyan for five hundred million, he would keep two hundred and fifty million. Which sounded good until you realized that you would still need to sell two complete transformations just to be able to buy one for yourself.
"This is a shitty business," he muttered. "The system takes everything and I have to do all the work."
[CORRECTION: IT'S A FAIR BUSINESS]
[THE SYSTEM PROVIDES: INFINITE ACCESS TO THE MULTIVERSE, TOTAL PROTECTION WITHIN THE STORE, UNLIMITED TIME, AND DIMENSIONAL STABILITY]
[YOU PROVIDE: CUSTOMER SERVICE AND SALES MANAGEMENT]
"Yeah, yeah, I get it now. It's like working at a cosmic Walmart ." Marco sighed, looking around. "Oh well, what can you do? I guess I have to start somewhere. What can I buy with a thousand credits?"
The screen updated immediately, displaying a filtered list of items within his budget. Marco began scrolling (though he wasn't physically touching anything, the simple movement of his eyes made the list scroll), watching all sorts of things go by.
There were basic swords, leather armor, health potions from various video games, kunai from Naruto, and some Devil Fruits from One. Piece (the weaker versions), normal clothes from different eras and universes, and...
"Wait, wait." Marco stopped at a specific item. "Do they sell food?"
[AFFIRMATIVE]
[THE "CONSUMABLES" CATEGORY INCLUDES FOOD FROM ALL UNIVERSES]
Marco's eyes lit up in a way they hadn't since he saw the Dragon Balls.
—Show me the food. All the food. Especially Bolivian, Argentinian, Peruvian, and European food.
[SHOWING RESULTS...]
The screen exploded into a food catalog that instantly made Marco's mouth water. Everything was there: perfectly golden Bolivian salteñas, Peruvian anticuchos with that smoky aroma he could almost smell through the screen, Argentinian empanadas, asado with chimichurri, stuffed potatoes, chuño, ají de gallina, lomo saltado, Italian pasta that looked like it had been made by the strictest nonna in Naples, Spanish paella, French croissants...
"Oh my god," Marco groaned, literally groaning. "I need all of this in my life. How much does it cost?"
[PRICES VARY]
[EXAMPLE: SALTEÑA (UNIT) - 5 CM]
[WITH YOUR DISCOUNT: 1 CM]
Marco blinked. One credit for one salteña. He had a thousand credits. He could literally buy a thousand salteñas.
Or I could be smart about this.
"System," he said, adopting the "serious businessman" voice he used when trying to get a discount at the flea market. "If I were to buy, say, a set of several different dishes, would there be some kind of... package? Combo? Offer?"
[INTERESTING QUESTION]
[THE SYSTEM CAN CREATE "CUSTOM PACKAGES" WITH AN ADDITIONAL 10% DISCOUNT]
[DO YOU WANT TO CREATE A MEAL PACKAGE?]
"Okay, yes. Okay." Marco rubbed his hands together. "Give me a package with... let's see. Six salteñas, four anticuchos, three Argentinian empanadas, two plates of lomo saltado, one asado with chimichurri, stuffed potatoes, and... you know what? Add an Italian tiramisu . For dessert."
[CALCULATED...]
[TOTAL PRICE WITHOUT DISCOUNTS: 450 CM]
[WITH OWNER DISCOUNT (80%): 90 CM]
[WITH ADDITIONAL PACKAGE DISCOUNT (10%): 81 CM]
[CONFIRM PURCHASE?]
Marco hesitated for only a second. It was almost ten percent of his initial capital. But on the other hand, he was hungry, he was in a magical world where he could die at any moment, and if he was going to be an interdimensional merchant , he'd better start with a full stomach.
-Confirmed.
[PURCHASE PROCESSED]
[REMAINING CREDITS: 919 CM]
There was a flash of light, and suddenly, right in front of Marco, a table appeared. No, not just any table: it was a polished wooden table with a pristine white tablecloth, and on it were all the dishes he had ordered, arranged as if in a five-star restaurant. Steam rose from the hot plates, the aroma was absolutely divine, and Marco felt his knees go weak.
"My God," she whispered, drawing closer as if in a trance. "It's beautiful."
He slumped into the chair (which had conveniently reappeared) and for a moment just stared at the food. Then, with almost religious reverence, he picked up a salteña.
The first bite was... well, it was almost spiritual.
The dough was perfectly crispy on the outside, soft on the inside. The filling had that perfect balance of meat, potato, peas, and that juicy flavor that's the hallmark of a good salteña. It was exactly like the ones her grandmother used to make, the ones she ate every time she visited La Paz, the ones she'd been missing without realizing it until this very moment.
"Oh, damn it," he said with his mouth full, not caring about his lack of manners. "This is... this is..."
[SATISFYING?]
"Satisfactory doesn't do it justice. This is fucking perfect." Marco was already reaching for an anticucho. "System, is all the food here this good?"
[ALL GOODS ARE OBTAINED IN THEIR OPTIMAL FORM]
[THE FOOD IS ALWAYS AT ITS PERFECT POINT OF FRESHNESS AND FLAVOR]
Marco chewed on the anticucho (which was so perfectly grilled he almost cried) and an idea began to form in his head. A brilliant, beautiful, and potentially very lucrative idea.
"System," he said slowly. "If I bought food here with my discount... could I resell it?"
[AFFIRMATIVE]
[ANY ITEM PURCHASED BECOMES YOUR PROPERTY]
[YOU CAN RESELL IT AT ANY PRICE YOU WANT]
The smile that spread across Marco's face was the smile of a man who had just seen the path to infinite wealth.
—Oh, this is going to get good.
But that revelation would have to wait, because right at that moment, as Marco was about to try the lomo saltado, something changed in the atmosphere of the store. It was subtle at first, like a buzzing in the air, and then...
[ALERT: FIRST CUSTOMER DETECTED]
[PREPARING DIMENSIONAL ENTRY]
Marco choked on the anticucho.
—What ? Now? Already? I haven't even finished eating!
[CUSTOMER ARRIVAL TIME IS RANDOM]
[GET READY FOR YOUR FIRST SALE]
The space in front of Marco began to glow, forming what appeared to be a circular portal of golden light. The air distorted, crackled, and then, as if someone had opened a door in reality itself, a figure began to materialize.
Marco stood up quickly, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and trying to look professional. His heart was pounding. This was it. His first client. His first chance to earn real credits.
The portal stabilized and the figure took a step forward, emerging fully into the store.
And Marco froze.
Because in front of him, looking around with a mixture of curiosity and caution, there was...
"It can't be," Marco murmured.
He was a man. Tall, slender, with shoulder-length black hair and eyes that seemed to hold centuries of wisdom. He wore elegant black and green clothing, and there was something about his bearing, the way he moved, that screamed both "royalty" and "danger."
Marvel movies to recognize that face anywhere.
" Loki ?" he said without thinking. " Loki ?" Laufeyson ?
The God of Deception turned towards him, one eyebrow perfectly arched, and smiled with that smile that could mean anything from "how interesting" to "I'm going to turn you into a toad."
Loki said in that soft, dangerous voice. "It seems someone knows me. How... unexpected."
And Marco, standing there in his sweatpants and mud-caked Nike sneakers , with anticucho sauce at the corner of his mouth, realized that his life had just become exponentially more complicated.
To be continued...