Preparations

Two months had passed since my near-death experience with Ace. Nothing interesting happened other than the fact that I was rich! My skateboards were a hit among kids and young adults, and bicycles were a hit with old people. I was a fricking genius! Naturally, I reinvested my fortune into other businesses, to spread my financial risk, and now I was swimming in gold! Metaphorically of course. A big reason why I had money to spare was because I stayed in my shabby apartment and kept my cost of living low. A simple, yet effective trick.

I was also able to rank up my adventure card… once. It was basically useless. Normally, I would have joined a party, but with Hermit Wiseman, it was pointless. I found myself often asking for people to train me, but even the top-tier teachers could only teach so much about combat and adventuring. I needed experience! What a pain. I sighed.

"Mr. Smarus, are you listening?" Edward's voice snapped me back to reality.

Edward and Austria asked to meet with me this morning. I assumed it was about what products to make next or something, but I wasn't really paying attention.

"I wasn't, my bad…" I cleared my throat. "My apologies, I mean. Can you repeat what you were saying, please?"

That was a close call. I had to act somewhat dignified.

"I was saying that my wife and I had a request for you. If you would be so kind to hear us out," He explained.

They both looked worried. Whatever they wanted to discuss clearly had some weight to it.

"Sure, I can listen…"

"CAN YOU TAKE OUR DAUGHTER WITH YOU?" Edward slammed his head on the desk.

"WHAT ARE YOU SAYING OLD MAN!?" I instinctively yelled back.

This led to a lot of yelling and confusion before Austria smacked both of us with a rolled-up newspaper. She was like a second mother to me… well first, I guess. Regardless, I grew fond of these two, so I wanted to help them as much as I could. Austria scolded Edward and the situation soon calmed down.

"I'm sorry Mr. Smarus. Let me explain properly," He shifted in his seat. "We would like you to take our daughter, Lily, with you to the academy."

"Ok," I shrugged.

"I know it is a lot to ask, but we can pay you more than the royalties that you currently…"

"I said I'll do it," I repeated myself.

"Heh?" Both of them leaned forward surprised. "You really do that for us?" Austria asked.

"Of course. You guys did a lot for me, so it's the least I can do," I nodded my head. "But I have one condition."

Their face immediately shifted from joy to another form of worry. They sat back down in their seats and lowered their heads.

"Y-yes?" Edward spoke first.

"The academy has an entrance exam. A written test and a physical exam. If I am going to take the time to bring Lily with me, I want to make sure she actually gets in. So I'll take the initiative to train her myself," I explained to them.

They seemed a little more relaxed, but there was still some worry in their eyes. It made sense. It was already hard to get into the academy, but if I had to actually prepare her for the exam, it must have been near impossible for a middle-class family like them. I was sure they hoped that my status would give her a free pass, but nope. The academy didn't care about status.

"Don't worry Edward and Austria. I will make sure Lily will get into the academy. Trust me," I gave them a thumbs up.

"Thank you Mr. Smarus," Edward said as he bowed his head. Austria also bowed her head.

I said I would help them, and I meant it… but I should have thought about this before agreeing. Lily was now in my apartment, and she hadn't said a single thing to me. She sat on the couch, legs crossed, looking away from me. She was really tense. She even refused to drink the tea I made for her.

I asked her to come over after my conversation with her parents. I had hoped that she knew about her parents' wish for her to go to the academy. She already had a late start, and things would become harder for me since I had to babysit her.

"Why did you call me over? Do my parents owe you money?" She finally said something.

"What? No, what's wrong with you?" I responded.

"Do you have a job for me then?"

"No."

"Ah! You wanted me for my body!" She gasped and backed away in her seat.

"No! Just shut up!" I crossed my arms.

She jumped up when I yelled, but she held her tongue. She sat there, anxious about what I was about to say.

"Your parents want you to go to the academy, so I'm gonna train you. You'll need to study and train for the exams," I explained to her.

"Huuhh!?" She made a disgusted face. "I'm already pretty smart, and I don't want to sweat… I think I'll pass."

"You have the opportunity of a lifetime and you're just gonna say no?" I sighed.

"Yup," She said a little too proudly.

She was a spoiled brat. She reminded me of kids that had over-doting parents, therefore they would fail to see the opportunities in front of them. I didn't want her to regret her decision later, but I also didn't want to waste my time.

"What do you plan to do then?" I asked her.

"Help mom and dad with the shop!" Her eyes beamed.

"Do you have a class to make trinkets and toys?"

"Um… No," She sheepishly said.

"Can you write up invoices, take accounts of funds, as well as handle communications and deals between different businesses?" I shot back at her.

"Ah! Um, I definitely can," She looked away as she said this.

I raised an eyebrow at her in disbelief.

"No…" She finally confessed.

"Then get over yourself. I already have books, plans, and of course, training routines for you," I smiled.

"Will it be hard?" She pouted.

"It will be so hard, you'd feel like quitting."

"I don't wanna!" She complained.

"Too bad. Since you are a nature mage, most of your training will involve magic enchantments and spells," I showed her some scrolls I bought.

"How did you know my class?" She tilted her head.

Shit! I forgot that reading other people's stats isn't normal. Well, it was for me since I played games, but to them that must have been creepy. 

"Your parents told me," I lied through my teeth.

"Oh… ok. What do I have to do then," She finally gave in.

"All you have to do is follow everything here!" I placed a stack of papers on the tea table. "It has a day-by-day plan as well as a projected growth!"

It was actually old notes about leveling up that I modified for Lily. Truth be told, most of her growth was dependent on her and her willingness to actually work. I still wasn't sure what counted as a party and what didn't, so I wanted to avoid teaching her in person. I still needed EXP for myself. I also had to do my own prep for the entrance exams.

"Any questions?"

"Actually, I have a few que…"

"Good!" I interrupted her. "Whenever you need more materials or books just drop by and grab it. Otherwise, I'll see you when we leave to take the exams!"

She tried to speak up, but I ran towards the door. She was obviously confused. It was up to her now. I had my own things I needed to take care of, so I left her alone in the apartment.

I looked into my spatial inventory, and saw that I still had my camping equipment as well as some other things. Since I was now a silver-ranked adventurer, I was able to explore low-level dungeons. I was thinking about exploring dungeons when a notification popped up.

Lily's character log updated!

I wondered what her log could possibly be about. I was wary, but I forced myself to open her info.

"She was a bit confused as to why her parents wanted her to go to the academy, and to why you were so passionate to help her. Regardless, she did understand that this was important to her parents, so she will at least try. She also wants to know if you will really leave her alone until the exams."

That was actually a pretty normal reaction. Was it bad that it made me happy? Most likely. There were also no possible outcomes, so I didn't have to worry about anything crazy. It seemed like it was safe to leave her to her own devices. I walked to the guild to buy a map of nearby dungeons.

"How can I help ya, kid!" Zar greeted me with his usual smile.

"I need a map for the dungeons around here," I explained.

"Coming right up."

Zar walked into a separate room behind his receptionist's desk. I had to wait a few minutes before he came back.

"I take it you would be in a solo party as usual?" He handed me a map.

"Yeah. It's the best way for me to level up," I nodded my head.

"I think you're just a loner, kid. That'll be 5 silver coins."

"Thanks again Zar. I owe you one," I paid him.

"Just don't die kid. It's bad enough you refuse to party up," Zar sighed.

"Maybe one day," I waved once more before I left guild.

I opened my map and briefly examined it. Since I was by myself, even a low level dungeon can be difficult. I should start at the lowest level to test the waters, but I also didn't have a lot of time. High risk high rewards. I shrugged to myself. I guessed it was best for me to just start off with the highest level dungeons that I can. Before that, I had to prepare for the dungeons. Since I planned to camp in the dungeons, it would be a constant fight for my life, but I will level up everything. I smiled with excitement.