Asher walked downstairs and headed towards the living room where he saw Sylvie sitting there, wearing a black suit. She had just arrived from the office and hadn’t changed yet. Sylvie looked towards Asher, but her mood seemed off.
“Care to explain?” Sylvie’s voice was cold as she spoke to Asher.
Asher looked at her with an indifferent face.
“What?” he said.
“I heard you defeated the dungeon boss all by yourself,” Sylvie said. “Ash, I’m proud of your talent, but such carelessness could lead even a genius like you to your demise.”
For her, Asher was indeed a genius. His talent had shown his capabilities so far, but in her eyes, he was still a 14-year-old child. He might act mature, but in Sylvie’s eyes, he was a child who would continue to make mistakes and learn from them. It was her job as a mother to ensure Asher understood the risk.
“I knew my limits, and I had the safety bracelet as well,” Asher didn’t want to argue anymore.
He couldn’t tell her that he wasn’t a child who would make rookie mistakes.
“Sigh. Sit down. Emmy told me that you wanted to talk about something,” Sylvie said, changing the topic rather than arguing any further.
“Yeah, when I explored the dungeons, it was full of Rockeaters, but when I approached the last two caves, I found out that they were filled with Mana Crystals,” Asher spoke.
“What?!?” Sylvie’s eyes widened with surprise.
“If I’m not wrong, that supply could confirm our dominance on the Mana stones market,” Asher explained.
“Wait, let me think about it for a second,” Sylvie needed some time to think.
Finding a Mana crystal mine was even rarer than an SS-Rank Mana Gem, and currently, there were only four such mines under the direct control of the Greville family, which allowed them to dominate the market. However, some elite families were worried about the increasing economy of the Grevilles, so they decided to band together to put pressure on them.
This was the issue that created a headache for Sylvie. She couldn’t outright remove the Elite families, and competing on a global scale with some elite families interrupting their business didn’t help them much.
“Tell me, what do you want to do with it?” Sylvie looked up and asked Asher.
“I want to break the supply 60/40 by selling 60% to the Abyss guild and keeping the rest and creating my own supply chain,” Asher told Sylvie.
“Make it 80/20, and you can do it,” Sylvie stared at her own son as a smile appeared on her face.
Her true nature as a fearsome businesswoman was coming out. She wouldn’t even allow her own son to take advantage of her in business. She was called a demon in the business world, and her acumen for business was far greater than Asher’s, who was a genius himself.
“You know that I own that dungeon, right?” Asher crossed his legs.
“Oh, my little boy is so cute!” Sylvie smiled at Asher, but the next moment, the motherly smile changed.
“But don’t forget that your cute little dungeon is in Soran, and you don’t want to experience minor issues, right?” Sylvie was half-joking, but the Mana crystal mine was not something she would blindly give to Asher, who was still a child.
She did not bat an eye at Asher spending a huge amount of 1 Billion AUR for his personal use because she knew that he was smart enough to make something out of it. She had seen her son’s intelligence in such fields as he grew up. Both Sylvie and Arthur would make Asher actively participate in their business talks during dinner and test him.
“70/30, I will not lower it more than this,” Asher knew the nature of his mother and her own talent in business and her capabilities as well. If he did not need some of his own independent funds for his future plans, he would have agreed with Sylvie.
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“Sigh, alas, it was true that children cut off their poor parents as they grow up,” Sylvie said as she fake wiped tears from her eyes.
She looked at Asher and saw his same indifferent face. He was not one bit affected by her little performance.
“Tsk, Okay, you have a deal. I will send the contract to Emmy; sign it when you receive it.” Sylvie ended her little charade and agreed to a deal.
“Okay, I might skip dinner today as I need to continue my training,” Asher stood up, and Sylvie also stood up.
“Training is good, but don’t forget to rest, okay?” Sylvie walked and said as she kissed Asher on the forehead with her hands on his shoulder.
“I will,” Asher assured and left the room, leaving Sylvie alone.
“Something was off about him, maybe because of his first dungeon run. I should give him some time.” Sylvie could notice that Asher’s vibe was a bit different.
She wanted to lighten up the mood, so she played around with him like that.
****************************
In a small apartment room in Vernes, a man sat in front of his computer amidst snacks and a messy room. He wore glasses, had black hair, and an average face. He typed away on his system, muttering to himself.
<Manager> I am sorry, but we have decided to continue without you on board. I wish you the best and appreciate your hard work throughout.
“Damn it, these fucking bastards,” the man grumbled.
“I worked on this project for a month, and now they cut me off like that!!” He flung a bottle at the wall.
“Arghhh, I need to pay the bill this month as well.” He stood up from his chair, frustrated.
“This damn world can’t understand talent like me.” He was exhausted from applying to numerous jobs and being rejected due to not being a hunter and a social person.
*beep*
He received a notification on his phone and decided to check it out.
<Sara> Brother, you haven’t called me in a week. Is everything okay?
“Haaah, what should I even tell her?” He massaged his head as he walked around his small apartment room.
<Tom> Oh, I was just applying for some jobs. I might find one soon and finally get some funds for my cute little nephew.
<Sara> I’ve said it before, but you don’t need to shoulder all these problems alone. Have some rest. I’m sure it will get better in the future.
<Tom> Sara, I’ll chat with you later. I received a work-related text.
<Sara> Oh, sure. But don’t forget to take care of yourself.
<Tom> I know, take care. Bye!!
“Sigh, it’s so difficult to work for the World Association.” He threw his phone on his bed.
“Why did I even come to this city?” He looked up at the ceiling, remembering the time he came to find a job at the World Association. His application was rejected multiple times because he was not a capable hunter according to their standards, and his poor background did not help him much.
“Should I just give up?” He looked out of his window and saw many people happily walking around.
He was a young man in his mid-twenties, but he could not enjoy his life like other people. He was jealous, but he needed to earn for his sister who was a single mother with an ill son suffering from a disease that required a lot of money and good facilities.
“What am I even thinking? I should just apply for another job,” he said to himself as he sat back on his chair and started scrolling through job portals.
*ding* *ding*
He heard the bell of his apartment and stopped typing.
“Fuck, why is that fat bastard ringing my bell? It’s not even the end of the month yet,” he muttered as he annoyingly got up from his chair and went towards his door.
*ding* *ding*
“Chill, man, I am coming!” he shouted.
“Sir, it’s not even the end of the month yet, and I have told you I will give the last month’s payment next–” he opened the door saying something but stopped midway.
“Who are you guys?” He was confused as he saw two men with black clothes and glasses standing in front of him.
“Are you Mr. Tom Gylips?” one of the men with a deep voice asked him.
“Umm, yes, I am, but can I know why you need me?” He was a bit intimidated by them.
“Oh, we need you to come with us,” the man behind him spoke.
“What are you–” Tom was saying something when he suddenly felt something hit the back of his head, knocking him out.
“Don’t waste time chatting. We need to complete this mission fast,” a third man with a mask on his face appeared behind Tom and was holding his unconscious body.
“Come on, I had one more line I wanted to say,” one of them spoke.
“Make sure you delete any footage that might trace this man,” the masked man spoke.
“Okay!” Both men replied.