Back in the dorm, Kaden was by himself.

Everyone else had gone to the library to study, so he took this chance to look up the idea that had come to him earlier. He didn’t have much trouble, a quick search yielded many results covering what he wanted.

There was no skill that could help him, but that wasn’t what he was looking for, anyway. A skill could only be selected every five levels, and there was still some time left before he could enter dungeons and get the levels he needed.

Instead, what he found was something called pure essence. A liquid created by harvesting essence crystals from dungeons, that were then taken through a long process, where in they were broken down and carefully refined.

But it was incredibly expensive. Apparently the essence crystals were rather rare, contained little essence, and the process was extensive and had to be done by a high level artisan.

The price? 25 credits per milliliter.

A gob smacking amount considering each milliliter only amounted to a single point of essence. His father had given him just one thousand credits. If he ignored that he had already spent ten of them, he could buy 40 milliliters.

An amount that wouldn’t exactly make a difference. He might as well just wait 40 minutes and get it for free through his regeneration.

But that wasn’t enough to make him give up. On average, it took about a thousand essence to decrease the barrier’s integrity by ten percent. That didn’t seem so bad, but as the barrier regenerated, it meant it could take a long time to destroy it. By the time someone refilled their essence, only a small part of their progress would remain.

However, if he could get his hands on a few thousand milliliters, he could shorten the time it took him to break the barrier by weeks, if not months. All he had to do was use up all the pure essence right when the barrier was at it’s weakest, leaving it no chance to regenerate.

But even if it was that simple, there was still a big hurdle in his way.

Money.

With a sigh, he opened the contact list on his wrist communicator, realizing that he only had one possible solution to such a problem.

As the communicator started dialing, Kaden tried to think of a clever way to bring up the subject of money, but he didn’t have any bright ideas.

And before he could think on it any further, the ringing tone was cut off and replaced by an annoyed voice, while the projection of a man appeared in front of him.

“You rascal! It took you this long to think of your dear father? This long to call me? It’s been months and all you’ve sent is a single message.” His father’s face stared back at him, not looking too happy with his unfilial son.

“It’s a two-way street.” Kaden shrugged, using an expression he had picked up in yet another book. “Besides, I’ve been busy. You set that instructor friend of yours on me.”

“Ah yes.” Camden grinned. “Rob contacted me a while ago, it was quite surprising. I hadn’t known that he was back at the academy. Last time I heard from him was while Godfrey and Amy were still attending. He went on break sometime back then.”

“Well, now he’s back, much to my misfortune.” Kaden said.

“Don’t think of it like that. He taught Godfrey too, and that turned out well. And now he’s an Apprentice Templar of the Holy Church.” He said, smiling and swelling with pride. “That really is no small feat. My only regret is that he doesn’t teach the ranged combat courses, so Amy never had the chance to have him as her instructor.”

“I suppose.” Kaden said, not thinking much of it. Becoming a Templar was definitely not an easy thing, as the church was powerful and only took in the top geniuses. But they were also the ones that sowed the hate for demons among humans. He didn’t have much respect for the church and its practises.

Changing the subject, Kaden brought up the matter of Essence Manipulation.

“Oh, you’ve thought of that, huh?” Camden rubbed his chin. “It’s a good idea. With that ability, you may actually be able to do it. To be honest, Rob and I just expected you to suffer for a few months until you could level up. Do your best and surprise him, I won’t tell. I’m surprised that you chose that course though—”

“I didn’t.” Kaden interrupted, and his father scrunched up his brows in response, as if asking him to explain. “A friend who’s taking it is teaching me.”

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

“Ahhh,” Camden smiled, “that’s smart. Very dedicated too. You’re basically taking an entire extra course.”

“Yeah. It was a hard choice, though. Initially, I couldn’t decide whether to take it or not. I figured since you didn’t tell me I had to, it wasn’t that important.”

Kaden had thought his father would appreciate his reasoning, but instead a deep frown had formed on the man’s face.

Camden shook his head slowly and then gave him a serious look. “While what you’ve said isn’t untrue, that’s not why I didn’t tell you to take the course. Not even remotely close. I haven’t commented on any of the other courses either, have I?”

“No, you haven’t.” Kaden said, wondering what had made him change his tone like that.

“Why do you think?” Camden watched him intently, and Kaden knew instantly that there was only one right answer to this question.

After hesitating a little, he said, “So I could pick for myself?”

“So you had to pick for yourself.” Camden’s gaze cooled a little, and he let out a sigh. “The path to the top in this world is not so simple. There are a ton of things that come into play. You were born into quite good circumstances, far better than most. But that is both a benefit and a curse.”

“Why?” Now Kaden was the one frowning. He couldn’t see how being born into a well off family could be a curse. It was the only life he had ever known, and it had served him well both times.

“If you live your whole life having everything given to you, never having to work or strive for anything, you become complacent. During the time you spent here at home, I’ve seen firsthand how hard you work. It impressed me. If you stick to it, and keep working hard, you will become a great man. And that’s all the more reason that I don’t want to coddle you.”

“But you’re not, you haven’t.” Kaden argued, still feeling confused.

“No, I haven’t. But it’s a dangerous edge to walk. We share the same class, the same bloodline. I even advised you on your attribute ratios and your first skill. I taught you how to fight and told you the effective ways to make use of your class. See where I’m going with this?”

“We’re too alike? But you’re the one who wanted me to pick this class.” Kaden said.

“Indeed, and I’m glad you did. I’ve gotten you started on this path, but now it’s time for me to take a step back and watch you develop. Which brings me right back to why I didn’t advise you on the courses. Simply, you need to think for yourself, and make your own choices. If I did everything for you, what will you do when you’re in a dungeon and encounter a challenge? I can’t help you there.”

“Right, I get it.” Kaden nodded.

“Good. Some rich parents do everything to aid their kids. The things I’ve seen… hired assistants leading brats through dungeons, expensive relics given to low-level amateurs. Sure, it helps them reach a high level. But when they encounter a bottleneck? It becomes clear that all they have are high attributes. They haven’t developed a shred of ability. You’re different. You’ll be different. I have faith in that.”

Hearing his father, Kaden felt oddly touched. The man always seemed to have his best interests in mind.

“Now, that doesn’t mean I won’t help you when it counts. That’s what I’m here for, after all. But I know that you don’t need my help for these things. From level 0 to 100, there are only ever 21 chances to select a skill. This is what makes everyone unique. If you just followed my recommendations the whole way, I’d just be forging you into a carbon copy of myself.” Camden said with a smile. “You have a good head on your shoulders. Better than most. I trust your ability to find what will work best for you.”

“I know, I get it. I really do. Thanks dad,” Kaden said, feeling warm in his heart.

“Okay then. I won’t take anymore of your time. Glad you gave your old man a call, but don’t wait so long before calling next time. I miss you, you know?” Camden gave him a stern look.

Kaden just rolled his eyes and said, “I miss you too, but actually, there is one more thing.”

“Hm? What is it?” Camden looked at him expectantly.

“Uhh…” Kaden couldn’t help but feel kind of awkward. He had just been given a grand speech on how he had to make it on his own, and here he was, about to ask for a large sum of money. “Well, I was wondering… could I have some more money?”

“Hahaha what?” Camden’s expression turned incredulous. “Did you already spend all of it?” He seemed to find the idea immensely humorous, laughing happily.

“No, that’s not exactly it.” Kaden winced, thinking of how to word it. He really could’ve used some more preparation. “Actually, I haven’t really spent any of the money. But what I need, it costs quite a bit more than what you gave me.”

“Oh lord, I don’t like where this is going.” Camden frowned, looking uneasy now. “How much do you need?”

Doing some quick mental calculations, Kaden made an estimate. “About… a hundred thousand credits should do. I think.”

“A HUNDRED THOUSAND?” Camden spluttered, paling. “What could you possibly need so much money for?”

Clearing his throat, Kaden said, “I found something called pure essence online. With it, I’ll be able to advance to the next level much quicker—“

Camden waved him off, interrupting. “Yeah yeah… I know what it is. Devilishly expensive.”

Kaden nodded, ignoring the use of the demonic adjective.

The voice channel went silent as Camden took a moment to deliberate over the matter. Kaden just watched, feeling uncomfortable, and hoping things would turn out well.

Finally, he seemed to have made up his mind, and said, “Fine. But I have two conditions.”

“Anything.” Kaden was desperate to have this.

“First, this counts as your birthday present for the next five years. And second, you don’t actually get the money. I will order it from the company I work for. Should fetch a slightly better price as well.”

“Of course, that’s fine!” Kaden jumped at the deal. All things considering, five years’ worth of birthday presents was a pretty good trade.

“Okay then. I’ll take care of it. Shipping will probably take a week or two.”

“I appreciate it, thanks dad.”

“Yeah yeah, you rascal. Bet you only called me to ask for money.” Camden just shook his head as a teasing grin appeared on his face. “Give Rob my greetings.” And then he hung up, leaving Kaden no chance to respond to the provocation.

“Tsk.” That old codger was rather annoying, but what annoyed Kaden the most was that what he had said before hanging up was actually correct.