Chapter 125: Delivery Time!

By the time Ethan returned to his dorm, he found Rin already standing outside his door.

Ethan stopped in front of him forcing back a chuckle and raised an eyebrow. "Why are you so hyped up?"

Rin immediately looked at him as though that was the most ridiculous question he had ever heard. "I have every reason to be hyped up!"

He practically followed Ethan through the door the moment Ethan unlocked it, and Ethan could only shake his head as he closed the door behind them.

Once they settled down, Ethan pulled out his phone and opened his seller account.

"Look."

Rin leaned closer.

His eyes widened almost immediately.

"You actually sold out!"

"I told you!" Ethan said, unable to hide the excitement in his voice. "Everything is gone."

Rin stared at the screen for another few seconds before nodding repeatedly.

"It really is. You sold every single one."

Ethan grinned.

He still found it difficult to believe.

Only a few hours ago, he had been wondering whether anyone would even take his strange-looking spiritual apples seriously. Now there were no apples left in his inventory, and actual customers were waiting for their orders to arrive.

There was just one problem.

"How do we deliver them?"

Rin’s expression immediately became serious.

"That," he said, pulling out the packaging supplies he had brought with him, "is what we’re here to figure out."

He sat down beside Ethan and opened the notes he had prepared.

"There are several delivery methods available through the Empire’s commercial network. We have ordinary courier delivery, registered courier delivery, secure transit delivery, and transit delivery pods."

Ethan picked up a notebook and began writing.

"Explain them."

"Ordinary courier delivery is the cheapest and easiest option. You hand the package over to a regular delivery company, and they take it directly to the address provided by the customer. It’s fast enough for normal purchases, but there isn’t much privacy."

Ethan immediately crossed that one out.

"No."

Rin laughed.

"I knew you’d say that."

He continued.

"Registered courier delivery is safer because the package is tracked from the moment it leaves the seller until it reaches the customer. The buyer has to confirm receipt, and the seller gets a complete delivery record."

"That sounds better."

"It is, but your identity is still connected to the shipment through the seller information."

Ethan frowned.

"Then no."

Rin nodded before moving on.

"Secure transit delivery is different. It is mainly used for valuable, sensitive, or expensive goods. Packages are placed into secured transport channels, and the system handles most of the delivery process. It is more private than ordinary courier delivery, but it still isn’t completely anonymous."

Ethan tapped his pen against the notebook.

"And the transit delivery pod?"

Rin’s expression brightened.

"That’s probably the one you’re going to like."

Ethan leaned closer.

"Transit delivery pods are automated delivery units that transport packages through the Empire’s secured transit network. When you book one, you can choose to keep the seller information anonymous. You can also select a secure drop-off location instead of having the delivery personnel come directly to your dorm."

Ethan’s eyes immediately lit up.

"Anonymous and secure?"

"Exactly."

"How fast?"

Rin hesitated.

"That depends."

"On what?"

"Distance, route availability, and whether there’s already a pod assigned to that destination."

Ethan thought about it for a moment before nodding.

"I don’t care if it’s slightly slower. I want whatever is fast and reliable, but most importantly, I want my identity to remain anonymous."

Rin smiled.

"Then we’ve found your method."

They opened the transit delivery service on Ethan’s phone and began setting up the shipment.

The system displayed several options, and Ethan selected the anonymous seller option. He then chose the secure drop-off option, which allowed him to leave the package at a designated protected transit point rather than revealing his dormitory location.

Once everything was selected, they began preparing the orders.

Ethan opened the order list and started checking the delivery information while Rin took charge of the packaging.

Rin had brought several sturdy packaging boxes and protective materials with him, and he handled everything surprisingly well.

He placed each apple carefully inside its protective wrapping, ensuring that the fruit would not be damaged during transportation before placing it into the appropriate packaging box.

Meanwhile, Ethan checked each order one by one.

Most of the orders came from three different people.

Two of the orders were for two batches, meaning twenty-two spiritual apples in total.

Ethan was reading through the delivery details when his eyes suddenly stopped.

He blinked.

Then he looked at the screen again.

"Wait."

Rin glanced over.

"What?"

Ethan slowly turned his phone toward him.

"This one is going to the Imperial Palace?"

Rin stared at the screen.

Ethan’s eyes widened.

"Woah!"

He could hardly believe what he was seeing.

"An order from the Empire’s Palace itself?"

He looked back at the address.

"How did their order even reach the Imperial Palace gates?"

The Imperial Palace was not somewhere ordinary people could simply walk into and send packages.

And yet, someone there had found his tiny online store and placed an order for his spiritual apples.

Rin shrugged.

"Who knows?"

He continued packing as though an order from the Imperial Palace was not enough to make him stop breathing for a second.

"You can never predict anything in this Empire."

Ethan shook his head.

He still found it unbelievable, but eventually, he brushed the thought aside.

Hopefully, whatever this was, it would be for his own good.

Besides, reaching somewhere as important as the Imperial Palace on his very first attempt was comforting in its own way.

At least his spiritual fruits were already reaching high places.

Rin finished preparing the Imperial Palace order and took extra care with its appearance.

He placed the wrapped spiritual apples inside an appealing packaging bag before carefully securing it and placing the entire package into a sturdy delivery box.

Once he was satisfied with it, he looked at Ethan.

"We should send this one out first."

Ethan nodded.

They returned to the delivery application on Ethan’s phone.

Rin selected the transit delivery pod option, entered the Imperial Palace’s delivery information, chose the anonymous seller setting again, and selected the secure drop-off option.

A list of available secure transit locations appeared.

Rin selected the designated secure delivery point closest to the Imperial Palace’s approved receiving area.

The system confirmed the booking.

A transit delivery pod had been assigned.

Rin picked up the box.

"I’ll handle this one."

Ethan looked at him.

"You’re going?"

"Yeah. You can stay here and start packaging the next orders."

Ethan nodded.

Rin turned toward the door but stopped when Ethan suddenly asked, "Why don’t we just package everything and send all the orders together?"

Rin looked back at him.

"Because transit delivery is the most anonymous option, but it’s also slower."

Ethan listened.

"These pods only take one delivery to a location per booked transit route. One person can’t request multiple transit pods at the same time under the same seller account."

He gestured toward the box in his hands.

"So for now, we’re stuck with this one."

Ethan nodded slowly.

"Meaning if we package everything first, we’d just be sitting here waiting for the pod to return before we can send anything."

"Exactly. It’s faster to send this one now while you prepare the next orders. By the time the pod comes back and I’m ready to take the next shipment, the others will already be packed."

"That makes sense."

Rin smiled.

"Exactly."

He opened the door.

"I’ll be back."

Ethan nodded as Rin left with the Imperial Palace order.

Once the door closed, Ethan returned to the remaining orders.

The next package was going to the Empire’s border area.

There was no specific address listed, only the designated border delivery location.

Ethan carefully checked the information again before beginning the packaging process.

He followed the same method Rin had used, carefully protecting each apple before placing it inside the packaging material and then securing everything inside a sturdy box.

He was halfway through preparing the final package when the door opened again.

Rin was back.

Ethan looked up.

"How did it go?"

"Good," Rin replied. "They’ve been notified. We just need to wait for them to pick it up now."

He glanced at the package Ethan was preparing.

"How’s it going here?"

"Good. I finished the second order. This is the last one."

Rin nodded and immediately returned to his place beside Ethan.

Together, they resumed packaging.

Ethan looked down at the final spiritual fruit.

"This is the last one."

Rin glanced at him.

"The person only ordered one fruit, too."

Ethan nodded as he picked up his phone to check the final order details.

He opened the customer’s information.

Then his eyes landed on the delivery location.

His movements stopped.

For a moment, Ethan simply stared at the screen.

Rin noticed the sudden change in his expression.

"What?"

Ethan looked up at him, his face showing a small flicker of shock.

"This order..."

Rin frowned.

"What about it?"

Ethan looked back down at the screen.

The delivery location was clear. "This delivery is for someone inside the academy."