"We divide our exclusive goods and services by their nature," The man began by explaining. "The first and foremost broad category is, of course, material products. This category very broadly includes goods whose value lies in the material physical product that we offer."
The man paused, before continuing. "Things like Martial gear, that you won't find in the utility department, that aids Martial Artists beyond what normal products can. You can think of extremely powerful versions of the gear that you already rely on. Particularly high-grade monocular, abnormally effective restraining gear, potent healing potions, even Martial garbs that can provide defensive protection against other Martial Artists or, in your case, Martial Squires!"
Rui widened his eyes. He knew that for something as small and thin as a Martial garb, providing any amount of defense against Squire-level power was definitely a difficult task!
"Why aren't such products more commonly available to Martial Artists?" Rui asked.
"Because the materials used to make them are strategically valuable," The man replied. "I'm sure someone as shrewd as you have figured out that the sheer quality of the material must be high in order to allow cloth fabric to provide any kind of defense against another Martial Squire, correct?"
Rui nodded. He wasn't stupid. The quality and quantity of a material determined what the limit of the product, created with that quantity of material, was.
If the quantity was very low, like that of a Martial garb, then the quality would have to be exceedingly high!
"If I'm not wrong..." Rui gulped. "Such a Martial garb would need to be made out of Senior-level materials."
"Correct," The man grinned.
Rui shook his head, chuckling weakly.
To think he could potentially purchase a Martial garb made out of a material whose tensile strength was an entire Realm above his own power!
This was certainly not a privilege that many Martial Artists could afford. Only weapon-oriented Martial Artists possessed such products, and only because it was necessary.
"That isn't all, however." The man smiled. "The Martial Union offers all kinds of products whose utility is not exclusive to field usage. For example, we offer potions that can permanently boost the physicality of a Martial Squire like yourself."
Rui's eyes widened. "By how much?"
"The effects vary," The man replied. "But it provides a fifteen percent boost on average."
"For a singular potion, that is incredibly amazing," Rui murmured in amazement. "Can it be repeatedly consumed to stack its effects?"
"I'm afraid not," The man shook his head with a rueful smile. "If life was that convenient, Martial Artists as a class would be far more powerful than we are right now. Most high-grade Martial Squires end up having consumed one by the time they've spent enough time in the Squire Realm, you are the only one who has an opportunity to consume one this early in the Squire Realm."
"I see..." Rui rested his chin on his hands as he considered the matter. "I bet with the combination of my latest technique and the potion, I'll be promoted to grade five very soon."
"I wouldn't be so sure if I were you," The man replied.
Rui furrowed his eyes in confusion. "Is there such a large difference between the grades? In the Apprentice Realm, I jumped between grades much more easily."
"The Squire Realm is generally far larger than the Apprentice Realm, young man. Our evolved, varied and customized bodies obtained from the breakthrough process make synergy between Martial Art, techniques, and Martial body a much more powerful variable, allowing for a greater difference between the base and the peak of the Squire Realm compared to the Apprentice Realm." Senior Ceeran explained. "Grade-ten Martial Squires are a sight to behold within the Squire Realm. Any one of them would utterly annihilate multiple of you simultaneously in combat, based on the mission records of yours that I took the liberty of going through. You cannot simply extrapolate your stunning rate of growth in the Apprentice Realm to the Squire Realm, I assure you your journey in the Squire realm will be long and grueling."
"I see... To think that even a grade-ten technique and a fifteen-percent boost would not be enough for a jump in grade..." Rui sighed. He was being overloaded with information at the moment. He could consider this matter later, for now, he needed to focus on the discussion at hand.
"But this is all irrelevant," The man waved dismissively. "The point is you can gain an important boost to your physicality in the long run. Normally, Martial Squires have to spend many years grinding on missions to finally save up enough funds to purchase such potions."
Rui would be lying if he said he wasn't deeply attracted to this option. Gaining such a boost to his physicality was immense. Although fifteen percent may not seem that game-changing, it would allow Rui to become strong enough to decisively win against his previous self every time. The effective boost it provided to his combat was not something that could be dismissed so easily.
Of course, Rui had yet to hear about the rest of the goods and services that the Martial Union offered, but this was a solid competitor. However, Senior Ceeran hadn't even finished covering the first broad category. He looked back at the man with a measured look.
"As far as potions go, that isn't the only kind that we offer. We offer extremely potent potions that take significantly less time to work and can heal even critical wounds extremely quickly. Or mental rejuvenation potions that lessen the burden that prolonged lack of sleep causes on the mind. Even longevity potions that can extend your lifespan beyond even the evolved lifespan of Martial Artists."
Each of these was a highly desirable potion, especially the latter which was the dream of not just Martial Artists but also the human species in general. No one objected to being able to extend their natural lives beyond their limits!
