The Price of Progress

After Nyra asked Barron Vrax to name his price, the wealthy construction mogul didn't hesitate.

"How about 250 million lux per bot?" Barron said coolly. "I need 10. That's as much as I can buy right now. I'll milk the value out of those machines in no time."

Nyra raised a brow, impressed by the bold offer but kept her tone measured. "Noted. I'll get in touch with you by tomorrow."

"Make it quick," Barron replied. "Before this gets even more expensive."

As he left, a sly grin crossed Nyra's face. She turned to her team and quickly called for an urgent conference. Once everyone was gathered, she dropped the news.

"Barron just quoted 250 million lux… per unit," she said.

Korin nearly fell out of his seat. "That's 2.5 billion for 10 bots!"

Even Saelyn looked stunned. Lira was speechless.

Raen, silent at first, processed the numbers. He leaned forward, eyes sharp.

"Nyra," he said. "Contact Barron. Tell him we can't sell him 10 bots."

Everyone turned to him, confused. "What? Why?" Nyra asked.

"We can only sell him five—at 250 million each," Raen clarified. "And delivery will take five days."

"That long?" Nyra asked, confused. "Why not now? We already have the ten bots stationed."

Raen nodded. "Yes, but clearly, you haven't been paying attention to what I do with them. I need these 10 bots to create more. I'm not just selling machines—I'm building a foundation. These bots will build their own replacements."

Realization settled over the room.

"We're not in a rush to sell," Raen continued. "We're in a race to scale. Barron can pay in advance. Once we're done using these ten, we can deliver his five."

Korin grinned. "That's genius."

Nyra nodded slowly, pulling out her tablet. "I'll message him now."