Eternal Life

While money was incredibly important to Randolph, he knew that he could always gain more later so long as he had capital to start with.

That was why he had accepted the amount that had come to him, not being blinded by greed.

He firmly grasped the true importance of this matter in his heart, and it was what came next in this section of the trade.

"That is to say, the clauses and conditions. Most notably, if you want to sign with me, you'll have to accept that I value privacy above all else."

"You mean to say…?"

"It's fairly simple. Don't leak both this trade and my existence to any outsiders outside of the two parties in this agreement. When I say that, I mean anything and everything that has to do with my existence. If you fail then this then you can consider the contract null and void."

"…Violation of the contract will result in?"

"Er…" Slightly stumped, Randolph scrambled for an answer in his head. "The rest of your lifespan. Also, your soul."

He quickly realized that the rotting old man's lifespan probably wasn't even enough for him to fill the gaps in his teeth. It was easily exploited as well, so he hastily added the second condition.

His eyes stay glued on the screen the entire time, only content once he saw that it didn't bring up any sign of rejection.

"My soul?." John gave him a weird look, but humoured him. "Sure, fine. Whatever."

Only after confirming the agreement did Randolph allow himself to relax a little.

This was the true test – the most important one – in the completion of this trade. It's importance was even above money, or any merchandise for that matter. The existence of the system and his abilities had to be kept a closely-guarded secret.

Their importance truly couldn't be put into words. It was paramount.

If the old man had decided to treat it flippantly, not agreeing, even Randolph himself didn't know what he would have done.

"I will give you the lifespan on the spot, but you're going to have to transfer me the money somehow. I don't a bank account, so it'll have to be in hard cash."

"I have an offshore account that I can provide you the details of. Would that be alright?"

"Aren't offshore accounts… illegal?"

"I don't use it anymore, it's empty. I can just transfer the money there and you can use the account as is until you're able to make your own."

The option sounded good, but identification was a lengthy process that he didn't have the luxury to currently open. It also gave the man way too much control over his funds, as well as the location of its withdrawals as all he needed to do was ask his bank.

"What's the withdrawal limit?

"$10k daily. But I can increase it to $20k maximum if you'd like. I can only do so three times in a year, and this is only because it's an offshore account."

"Fine. That's enough."

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Contract Initiated~

Article I: Parties Involved

1.1 Individuals

a)  Randolph Ivy

b)  John Brut

1.2 Administrator(s)

 a) Randolph Ivy's Trading System 

Article II: Trading Principles

2.1 Items Eligible for Trade

Both parties upon completion of the contract will hereby agree to the terms of (5) years of party (a)'s lifespan in exchange for ($100,000 (CAD) dollars) belonging to party (b).

2.2 Transaction Verification

The party responsible for verification of aforementioned items will be administrator (a).

2.3 Privacy Clause

Upon completion of the contract, party (b) will agree to the condition of absolute confidentiality of party (a). Party (a) reserves the right to interpretation of such an event.

2.4 Additional Conditions

(_)

Article III: Transaction Protocols 

3.1 Trade Completion

 Upon Contract Generation, a contract will be generated in which both parties must sign in blood (fingerprint).

Party (b) will provide party (a) with their own account's details to (x) country's capital bank, for the purpose of withdrawal upon receiving the agreed upon items. For access, party (b) will provide party (a) with additional assistance as required until the agreed upon terms are met. Failure to do so will be deemed a violation of the contract.

3.2 Dispute Resolution

Upon breach of contract as confirmed by administrator (a), party (b) will have their soul and lifespan granted to party (a) in its entirety.

[Generate Contract]

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The final result of the contract was lengthy, the complete opposite of his original contract with the system. If there was one similarity that Randolph noticed, it was that it was still simple.

Much of it was left vague and unanswered as compared to the contract he had received from the loan sharks. It didn't include many events such as one's death or any guarantors, and it relied on only a single party for the verification and administration of any processes, being the system itself. Though the system was probably the most absolute choice, eliminating many problems.

Despite its simplicity, it clearly gave Randolph the edge over the other party in the trade, but this wasn't something unacceptable seeing as to how his merchandise was invaluable.

A silence overcame the room as Randolph read through the details several times. The old man didn't know what was happening, but he remained patient.

Once he had confirmed the contents, the young man decisively clicked on the contract generation button.

The moment he did, a large amount of flame burst into the air surrounding Randolph's index and thumb.

The fire was intense, and John could feel the heatwave from where he was sitting. It almost reached the ceiling of the room, and probably would have set off the fire alarm had it not disappeared the moment it came.

From the old man's view, it was almost as if Randolph had snapped his fingers and the fire had appeared out of thin-air.

"…!" Despite his calm before, he couldn't hold that demeanour when faced with the supernatural.

John's eyes widened as he stared at the sheet of paper that had appeared within Randolph's hand. He was flabbergasted, the event having come as a complete surprise to him.

As he stared, his gaze was drawn to Randolph as he pulled up his finger, biting down on it before firmly stamping it on the contract.

A feeling of dread welled up in his stomach from the sight. An argument could be made for a potential scam or some strange technological advancement, but that heat wasn't fake, and his decades of experience was telling him that the man before him wasn't joking.

"Have I just… signed a contract with the devil?" His face turned pale as he shrunk away from Randolph.

"Did you think I was joking this entire time?"

"…Is it too late to turn back?"

"What do you think."

"…"

"Don't worry, the contents are still the same." As he spoke, he handed the sheet over for John to inspect. "Just think about it John. Think carefully about what that means."

"…"

The old man had long thought that his heart was no longer capable of beating so quickly, but his body proved him wrong. His face felt flush as he surveyed the details of the contract carefully.

Of course he could turn back now, but what would that entail?

It would mean leaving this piece of hope behind. It meant lying on this deathbed for the rest of his life, dying of old age in time. There was a chance ahead of him, shouldn't he reach out to grab it?

If he played his cards correctly, a long-term business relationship was entirely possible. It was something he couldn't not accept.

"…I want to change something."

"What?"

"Under the privacy clause, the open right to interpretation is too vague. It gives you too much power, I don't agree."

"You'll just have to trust in my judgement. You've known me for several years now, do you really think I'd do that?"

"Don't manipulate me, Randolph. I clearly have not known about you for several years if this is what you're showing me now." A bead of sweat dropped as John furrowed his brow.

"It doesn't matter. I'm taking no chances. Eternal life, or to rot away on your deathbed, choose."

"…What if I were to decline and simply leak the details of our trade today?"

"Are you really going to ask something so stupid?"

"…" Looking down, John let out a stale breath.

If the man before him could really trade in lifespan, then he likely had other horrifying abilities or means that were beyond his imagination.

Of course Randolph was bluffing, but he wasn't about to let John know that.

This led to the old factory owner sighing once again before rereading the contents of the contract. A minute later, he steadied his breath before biting into the skin of his thumb.

He did so hesitantly, so it only produced a little drop, but it was enough. He followed Randolph's example, firmly stamping his thumb on the contract.