Morning arrived.

Yet, Navi and Mimir were still nowhere to be found.

Instead of the annoying little penguin, an automated window displayed the daily upgrade he received: a mere 5% speed increase to the system's auto-crafting.

"Even though I should've received a system upgrade, almost nothing changed..." he grumbled, stretching his arms.

Once he was ready, the first thing he did was refuel the Humvee.

It had been running all night, after all. Not to mention, it had traveled over 1,000 kilometers from one Major Fortress to another. A standard Humvee would have run out of gas in half that distance, so this one was definitely not ordinary.

Of course, gasoline in the system shop is quite pricey. A gallon costs 100,000 Colts, and a full tank requires 100 liters—roughly 10 million Colts for gasoline alone. Inflation has nothing to do with it!

Although this seems expensive, for Axel, that amount could be earned back in the blink of an eye.

"Let's see..."

It had been a while since he had checked his shop, and he was surprised to see his balance. Considering he hadn't yet sold the minerals and rare metals he gathered from the labyrinth, he had accumulated a substantial amount of funds.

"Five trillion!"

Curious about the reason for this high balance, he checked his selling history and discovered one mistake: the automation for dismantling the Max Level Potions had stopped.

In short, the auto-sell was listing fractions of the Lv. Max Greater Recovery Potion and Greater Mana Potion instead!

By then, a couple dozen of each type had already been sold, making it too late to stop the process.

This was dangerous for Axel and his dimension in general. But if there was a silver lining, it was that he could now seek backing from the Wisteria Dimension in case they were raided.

"Is this why I'm feeling so uneasy?" Axel wondered, but he shook his head. "No, it's definitely not. I'll only know for sure when Navi and Mimir return..."

In any case, with larger funds, he could explore more crafting recipes.

Now that nearly all the witch goods had returned to normal supply, he needed to identify his next focus. Without much thought, he determined his next venture.

No, it's not the potions he sold. Although they are one option, what he planned to sell next—something useful for both himself and others—are the tonics.

If he could purchase one tonic recipe and then use the reward he'd receive later to upgrade it, he would definitely earn a substantial amount of money. At least, that's his plan.

"But for now, I can't afford it..."

Tonics are essentially the only type of item that boosts one's stats, so their recipes are valued in the trillions. While the introduction of Axel's max-level potions has altered the market somewhat, tonics remain the primary source of extra power for everyone across dimensions.

After all, Axel's potions have a limited supply.

To avoid going bankrupt if he buys a tonic recipe and fails to create one, he needs to accumulate at least 15 trillion Colts. This means he must continue selling his potions for about five more days.

Considering his current schedule...

"I should have more than enough time."

Now that he has some money, he decided to make a purchase from the shop. Something to "complete" the Humvee...

After that, Axel finally closed the window and took a deep breath.

For now, his sole task was to finish repairing the third and final major fortress!

…

Breakfast for Axel and the girls was simple. They had leftover meat from the night before, along with a soup that Axel had bought and heated over the bonfire.

At that moment, they couldn't ask for more, as the entire fortress bustled with activity. Witches moved about, manning all the defensive facilities, and food was the least of their concerns; the demons didn't give them a moment to rest.

"Alright, time to set off!" Axel announced.

Once they finished breakfast and changed into their battle gear, they headed toward the Humvee. However, unlike the previous night, there was one noticeable change.

"What's that, Sir Axel?" Penelope asked, curiosity evident in her voice.

"That?" Axel replied, smiling as he gestured toward the turret he had installed. "It's a weapon. I attached it this morning."

"A weapon...?" The girls looked puzzled; to them, it didn't resemble any weapon they had seen.

The turret appeared to be several tubes connected in a circular formation, secured by brackets, with a long chain of smaller metal chunks alongside it.

"The Humvee originally had weapons like this mounted on it, but I couldn't afford one before." Axel smiled, feeling a surge of pride. 'But now, it's different!'

What he had mounted was an M134 minigun, capable of firing 7.62x51mm NATO rounds at a rate of 2,000 to 6,000 rounds per minute. The gun itself cost 500 billion, while the bullets were priced at 300 million for a 3,000-round ammo box, complete with a linked belt feed system.

It was an expense he could hardly fathom before.

But now, he could afford to waste—no, invest—that much money.

With excitement, Axel explained the weapon's operation to the girls. However, once they were all inside the Humvee, Gwyneth raised her hand and asked, "B-But... non-holy weapons don't work on demons, do they...?"

"...Ah."

Axel paused, realizing he had completely forgotten the nature of their enemies.

Unlike the items he crafted, objects bought from the shop lacked the default "holy" element. So, even if he used the minigun against demons, it would be no more effective than a peashooter.

"W-Well, it's good for the vehicle's design, so let's just leave it at that!" Axel replied, his smile wavering.

After all, the minigun wouldn't expire; it was a solid investment that would last until the end of its life, so he didn't need to worry about it becoming a "dead investment."

However, in their current situation, it was also true that it felt like nothing more than a useless trinket.

With a hint of bitterness in his heart, Axel drove onward, heading toward the last fortress.

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