Nicholas POV

At the Curtana Mansion

Arriving home from my first dungeon experience, I immediately went for a jog around the vicinity for the daily mission. I hadn't done it due to a lack of time in the morning.

After that, I went to the bath to clean myself from the sweat and blood of monsters that had accumulated on my body. Then I took a dip in the tub; the water was warm and fragrant due to some herbs infused in it.

Nicholas: "Ahh, this is the best." Honestly, this is the best part of my daily routines ever since I reincarnated in this world.

I got out after resting myself for half an hour in the bath, dried myself, and then went straight to my room to prepare for tomorrow.

Normally, in my previous life, after taking a bath I would watch a show or play games after a tiring day. But this world really lacks the entertainment culture that was prevalent in my past world.

Nicholas: *sigh* "I wish there were better forms of entertainment in this world other than books, poems, and screen plays."

If there is one thing that I constantly sought after from my previous memories, it was better forms of entertainment in his previous world.

Nicholas: "Well, it can't be helped."

After briefly complaining about this world, I began writing about my experiences in my journal.

Nicholas: "Well, to be honest, the rush I felt going battling monsters for the first time was more exciting than watching action movies or playing games... Is there something wrong with me?" I questioned myself after realizing that I might be a battle freak.

Nicholas: "No, no, no, that can't be it." shaking my head and continuing my writing.

Our team will be completing the Kobold Quarry dungeon daily to familiarize themselves with combat coordination before taking on harder dungeons in their area.

Nicholas: "It will be repetitive, yes. But it was the right call to have when starting something new. Train the basics before doing the hard part."

Our team decided to try different strategies aimed to clear the kobold quarry dungeon faster and more efficiently as a form of practice while reaching level 2 or 3.

I also realized that the stamina consumption in practice battles versus real life is largely different, we need to have a rest interval more suited to our team.

It would take 2-3 days, depending on the number of spawns in the dungeon, for the girls to level up; therefore, we will be taking on the next dungeon next week if we take a rest day on the weekend.

Nicholas: "That would be it; on to the next one, I guess."

I closed the journal since I finished my daily logs. Putting it back in the drawer of the desk and grabbing documents from one of the drawers.

The documents contain dungeon information about the nearby permanent dungeons around Curtana. "If the plans go smoothly, we can level up to 12 before going to the nearby town's dungeon," he thought loudly.

The Curtana's permanent dungeons vary in level; it has plenty of 1–10 dungeons, some levels 20–30, and a two level 50 permanent dungeon.

According to the information available, we need to go to a nearby adventuring town to level up from 10 to 20.

Nicholas: "Going on an adventure sounds pretty nice, but it would be pretty dangerous going in with such stats when there are a lot of people with the same stats as me." I said as I checked my status panel and looked at my stats.

Nicholas: "I think I should do some Gacha later on to lessen my worries."

I also want to clear some fluctuated dungeons to hasten our progress, but those dungeons are managed by the adventure's guild and the local lords, so to get permission to clear some of them, I might need to talk to my father.

Speaking of talking to my father, I also need to talk about my proposal to build a business with him.

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Nicholas: "Should I consult my mother first? I should do that."

It's better to consult your mother first since this business is definitely more aligned with her, and in addition, talking to her would be less stressful than talking to my strict father.

While preparing several documents for the discussion with my mother tomorrow, I burned the midnight oil. Finishing after a few hours, I yawned, looked at the time, and went to bed. But before sleeping, I remembered to check the reward from the system after finishing the story quest.

[Promotion Slot Scroll]

[The scroll is adorned with intricate symbols and faded ink, their meanings shrouded in mystery yet hinting at profound wisdom. Each character is meticulously crafted, as though the scribe poured their very soul into the script. There is an undeniable aura of reverence about it, a sense that it holds secrets of ancient knowledge and forgotten lore. Unrolling it will give the person a chance at another soul core and teachings, a silent testament to a culture long past but still echoing through the ages. ]

Nicholas: "Woah, that's nice. A scroll that adds an addition slot for a soul core."

In this game world, you are only allowed to have a single soul core. You can only upgrade your existing soul core in order to get stronger. People in the world can strengthen their elements when promoting; they can also add other elements depending on their plans for the future.

However, you cannot learn another weapon with personalized skills. With this scroll, it will be possible to not only learn another element early on but also change weapons and learn other weapons skills.

After contemplating when to awaken my second soul core, I decided to do it later since he needed to gather the materials first.

Nicholas: "Maybe the next awakening ceremony, I can get a conduit secretly."

Not wanting to get the attention of the church, I decided to get some later.

Afterwards, I also checked my other reward, which was the Random Gacha Card. I had no idea how to use it, but I decided to read its description again.

[The Calamity]

[Their movement is deliberate and unsettling, as if each step is calculated to unsettle and provoke. Their voice carries a chilling resonance, as though every word is laced with the potential to unravel peace and sow discord.

This person is often accompanied by an aura of unpredictability, and their actions are thought to bring times into catastrophe. [Whether by design or accident, their influence seems to unravel the fabric of stability wherever they tread, leaving behind a trail of disarray and calamity.]

[Summon cost (1 mana core)]

Nicholas: "What the hell is this? What an ominous message, and it describes a person. And what is a mana core?" The question started popping through my head at the description of the story quest.

But soon I shook my head, putting this thing on hold since it was not important at the moment. I had a hard time falling asleep remembering that description, but I arrived at the dream land nonetheless.

The next day

After waking up and checking up on my diary, I went to prepare myself and gather the business documents and samples necessary for the pitch for his mother.

Arriving and knocking at his mother's office.

Nicholas: "Mom, I want to talk to you about something." he said after knocking at the door

Madam Iris: "Come in, baby; you haven't visited me for a week. I thought you didn't care about me anymore." she replied immediately at the request of his son.

Nicholas: "Of course not mom; I love you the most in the world." with a wide smile, he approached his mother and hugged her.

Nicholas: "I was busy preparing many things this week. We had our first dungeon exploration, so preparing thoroughly is a must. I was also creating a business proposal for our family; I was just to tell you..."

Nicholas then proceeds to talk about wanting to create a business as training for management. He will be able to learn valuable lessons in management since he will inherit the county in the future and earn money at the same time.

After spewing drivels of righteous words about learning, he proceeded to talk about his business proposal to his mom in order to help him convince his father about this decision.

After learning that the business proposal was about a beauty product, His mom's eyes sparkled with desire, but she was a bit skeptical about whether his product was effective. Then he continued to explain each product and its effect on the body.

Nicholas: "Yes, mom, I was experimenting with the effects of these products in the last few years."

Nicholas: "I have created some sample products for trying."

Understanding his intentions, her mother discreetly took the beauty products.

Madam Iris: "I will be testing this first before making a decision."

she talked to his son while clearly only focusing on the product.

Nicholas: "Thank you, mom, I love you."

He said as he kissed his mother on the cheeks.

Madam Iris: "Well, I love you too, son. I'll get back to you after confirming the effects."

After that, he left his mother's office and went to the training ground, where Maria and Clarice were training since they had agreed to meet two hours before lunch. There they practiced their coordination and attacks to refine their team play. It was really dangerous in this game world since they didn't have any way to recover their health.

Healing potions don't exist, surprisingly.

So they can only rely on healing skills when there are injuries on their team; therefore, they needed to proceed carefully while exploring dungeons.

Their practice lasted until noon, and everyone continued to train until they were satisfied with their improvement in polishing their coordination.

After that, they went to the city center to eat lunch, rest, and recover their stamina before entering the dungeon at noon. Currently, they are talking about interesting things they did when they weren't with each other. Making fun of each other and enjoying their time before proceeding to clear the kobold quarry.

Their goal was to gain as many experience points as possible while reducing the dungeon clear time and, at the same time, staying as safe as possible with their margin of safety. This will be their routine for the week before entering another dungeon.