Amon walked through the senior student section after the classes finally ended.
He didn’t have to search for Seraphina for very long because the blue-haired girl was surrounded by a group of students as usual, with several of them trying to get her attention.
The moment Seraphina noticed Amon, her face immediately became bright pink.
She quickly excused herself from the group before walking toward him with hurried steps.
Before anyone could follow her, Seraphina grabbed Amon by the arm and pushed him into an empty classroom.
"What do you want now?" she asked impatiently, closing the door behind them.
Amon ignored her annoyed expression and reached into his bag before taking out the small box containing the Stillmind Soulstone.
He held it toward her. "Here."
Seraphina stared at the box suspiciously before slowly looking back at him.
"What is this?" She didn’t take it immediately. "And why are you giving it to me?"
Amon shrugged as though it wasn’t anything important. "It’s something that can increase your Spirit."
Seraphina’s eyes widened immediately.
"Spirit?"
She quickly shook her head and pushed his hand away.
"Do you even know how expensive things like this are?" she scolded, her voice becoming louder. "I can’t just take something like this for free—"
Amon interrupted her before she could continue. "You’ll be more useful to me if you use it."
Seraphina stared at him. "What?"
"You heard me." Amon placed the box back into her hands. "Your Spirit is too low, and this can help you in the dungeon raid. So just use it."
Seraphina continued shaking her head. "I can’t accept something worth that much."
Amon let out a tired sigh.
He stepped closer until Seraphina became slightly nervous, then leaned toward her ear and lowered his voice.
"Just take it while I’m being nice. Otherwise, I’ll shove it down your throat."
Seraphina visibly shuddered at his threatening tone before lowering her head.
Her face became bright red as she slowly extended her hand and finally took the box.
"...Fine."
Amon smiled. "Good."
Seraphina didn’t say anything else.
She quickly turned around and walked out of the classroom while clutching the small box against her chest.
Amon watched her disappear down the hallway before shaking his head.
’Just as I expected.’
He couldn’t help but think that Seraphina was strangely easy to intimidate despite being called the Ice Queen by everyone at the academy.
’...She must definitely be that kind of woman.’
A familiar blue notification suddenly appeared in front of his eyes.
[Tenfold Return Activated.]
[Investment toward registered wife detected.]
[Target: Seraphina Vale.]
[Investment: Stillmind Soulstone.]
[Investment Grade: Gold.]
[Benefit Evaluation: Significant.]
[Calculating Return...]
[Return Generated.]
[You have received: Soul Tempering Crystal.]
[Grade: Gold.]
[Effect: Permanently increases Spirit by 10 points after successful integration.]
[Additional Effect: Strengthens the soul against dungeon corruption.]
[Additional Effect: Slightly improves resistance against mental attacks.]
Amon stared at the notification.
’...Ten points?’
The Stillmind Soulstone could only increase Spirit by three points, yet the System had given him something that could increase his Spirit by ten.
Amon couldn’t help but grin. ’This thing is fucking amazing.’
He immediately imagined what would happen if he kept finding treasures that solved his wife’s problems.
The more useful his gifts became, the better his returns would become.
Amon looked toward the hallway where Seraphina had disappeared.
’Looks like taking care of my wife is going to be very profitable.’
Amon eventually returned to his apartment later that evening.
The moment he opened the door, his stomach growled loudly enough to remind him of an important problem.
"I’m hungry."
He immediately rushed toward the kitchen, hoping that Ambrosia had left something for him.
Unfortunately, the kitchen was completely empty.
There wasn’t even a plate waiting on the counter.
Amon stared at the empty kitchen for several seconds before remembering what Sidney had told him that morning.
’Right... She didn’t make anything today.’
He sighed while opening the refrigerator.
There were some ingredients inside, but nothing that could simply be heated and eaten.
Amon suddenly remembered the skill he had received from the Tenfold Return.
[Cooking Mastery].
His eyes slowly brightened.
’Why not?’
He had never properly cooked before, but the moment he activated the skill, countless pieces of knowledge suddenly appeared in his mind.
He understood how to handle the ingredients, how much seasoning to use, how to control the temperature, and even how to combine different ingredients together.
Amon rolled up his sleeves. "Let’s see what I can make."
He started preparing the ingredients.
His movements were surprisingly smooth, and even Amon himself was slightly surprised by how naturally everything came to him.
The knife moved through the vegetables with ease while the meat slowly began cooking in the pan.
The smell soon spread throughout the apartment.
Amon was focused on the food when the front door suddenly opened.
Sidney walked inside.
She was wearing a loose jacket that had slipped off one shoulder, along with short athletic shorts and a fitted top underneath.
Her black hair with orange highlights was tied messily behind her head, giving her a careless appearance.
Amon glanced at her before immediately frowning. "Could you at least dress properly?"
Sidney didn’t even stop walking.
"Here we go again."
She walked toward the kitchen and looked at him with a suspicious expression.
"What are you doing?"
"I’m cooking."
Sidney stared at him for several seconds before she laughed.
"You?"
Amon’s eyebrow twitched. "Yes, me."
"You’ve probably never even entered a kitchen properly in your entire life."
She looked around the kitchen with an amused expression. "You’re going to destroy the place."
Amon rolled his eyes. "I can at least try."
Sidney shrugged before grabbing a drink from the refrigerator.
"Fine. Just don’t burn the apartment down." She started walking toward her room before turning around. "And if you do, don’t expect me to save you."
Amon stared at her back. "You’re really encouraging."
Sidney raised her middle finger without turning around.
"Just die."
She disappeared into her room and closed the door.
Amon sighed. ’What a wonderful family.’
He turned back toward the stove and continued cooking.
The smell of the food became stronger as the meat finally began to brown.
Amon was about to taste it when a blue System notification suddenly appeared in front of his eyes.
Another panel slowly expanded beneath it.
[System Quest Detected.]
[First Quest: Discipline the Bratty Sidney.]
Amon frowned and decided to expand the quest.