The morning after meeting Rosalie’s family, I woke up earlier than usual.
For several seconds, I remained still beneath the thin blanket, staring at the ceiling while the memories from the previous evening slowly came back to me.
Her mother’s questions, her father’s quiet but intimidating stare, her brother’s occasional smirk whenever the conversation became uncomfortable, and Rosalie herself looking far too entertained by how nervous I had been.
I covered my face with one hand.
I had fought people who wanted to hurt me, dealt with criminals, investigated suspicious groups, and survived situations where a single mistake could have had serious consequences.
Yet somehow, sitting across from Rosalie’s parents had been one of the most stressful experiences I’d had since returning to this life.
At least I had survived it.
I got out of bed, changed into something comfortable, and went downstairs.
My mother was already in the kitchen preparing breakfast.
The smell of fried eggs and rice filled the small house, while the clatter of plates and the occasional scrape of a chair told me the others were already awake.
Dad was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee in front of him, still looking slightly tired from his early shift.
Edmund was beside him, eating quickly while occasionally checking the clock.
Joey was trying to reach across the table for another piece of fried egg, only for Lucy to slap his hand away.
“That’s mine.”
“You already have one.”
“I want another.”
“Then ask Ma.”
Joey looked toward the kitchen.
“Ma!”
My mother didn’t even turn around.
“Eat what’s on your plate.”
Joey immediately pulled his hand back, while Lecia giggled from the other side of the table.
I took the empty seat beside Edmund.
“Good morning.”
“Morning,” Dad said.
“Morning,” Edmund answered.
Lucy and Lecia greeted me almost at the same time, while Joey simply continued eating.
I had barely picked up my spoon when Edmund glanced at me with a knowing smile.
“So?”
I looked at him.
“So what?”
“How did it go yesterday?”
I immediately knew what he meant.
“It went fine.”
“Fine?” Edmund raised an eyebrow.
“That’s all?”
Dad looked up from his coffee.
“What happened yesterday?”
Edmund turned toward him.
“Rafael met Rosalie’s parents.”
Dad’s expression changed slightly.
“Oh.”
My mother finally came over and placed another plate on the table.
“He’s been nervous about it since yesterday.”
“I wasn’t nervous.”
Five pairs of eyes turned toward me.
Even Joey stopped eating for a moment.
I sighed.
“Fine.
I was a little nervous.”
Edmund laughed.
“A little?”
“You weren’t there.”
“I didn’t need to be there.
I saw your face before you left.”
Lucy leaned forward with obvious curiosity.
“What did they ask you?”
“Lots of things.”
“Like what?”
“School, my family, tutoring, and what I plan to do in the future.”
Lecia looked curious.
“Did they ask if you’re going to marry Ate Rosalie?”
I nearly choked on my rice.
Edmund immediately burst out laughing, while Dad lowered his coffee cup and tried unsuccessfully to hide his smile.
My mother shook her head.
“Lecia.”
“What?
I was just asking.”
“I’m fourteen.”
“So?”
“So I’m not getting married.”
Joey looked at me.
“Why not?”
“Because I’m fourteen.”
He considered that for a moment before simply saying, “Oh,” and returning to his food as though the matter had been completely settled.
Edmund was still laughing.
“You’re enjoying this way too much.”
“Of course I am.”
Dad finally spoke.
“Did her parents seem angry?”
I shook my head.
“No.
They were serious, but they weren’t hostile.”
“That’s good.” He took another sip of coffee.
“If you’re going to spend time with their daughter, it’s good that you’ve met them properly.”
“I thought so too.”
My mother sat down beside Dad.
“What did you tell them about us?”
“The truth.”
Dad nodded approvingly.
“Good.”
“What about your plans?” Edmund asked.
“Did you tell them you’re planning to become some kind of crazy scientist?”
I gave him a look.
“I said I was interested in engineering and technology.”
“Same thing.”
“It’s not.”
“To me it is.”
Lucy looked at me.
“Did they like you?”
“I think so.”
“You think?”
“I wasn’t exactly going to ask them to rate me.”
Edmund grinned.
“Maybe Rosalie’s father secretly hates you.”
“Edmund.”
“What?
I’m just saying.”
Dad gave him a look.
“Don’t make your brother more nervous than he already is.”
“I said I’m fine.”
My mother smiled.
“You were checking your clothes in the mirror for ten minutes before you left.”
The table erupted in laughter.
I stared at her.
“Ma.”
“What?”
“You promised not to tell them.”
“I never promised that.”
Edmund leaned back in his chair.
“Ten minutes?”
“It wasn’t ten minutes.”
“How long?”
“Maybe three.”
“Four,” Lucy corrected.
I looked at my mother.
“You timed me?”
She shrugged.
“You kept fixing your hair.”
Lucy giggled.
“I saw him changing shirts.”
“Twice,” Lecia added.
I looked around the table in disbelief.
“Why does everyone know everything I do?”
Dad smiled into his coffee. This chapter is updated first at novelping.com.
“Because this house is small.”
That shut me up.
For a moment, everyone returned to eating, but the atmosphere remained light.
Then Dad looked at me again.
“Did Rosalie go with you?”
“Yes.”
“Did you bring her home afterward?”
“I walked her back.”
My mother smiled.
“Good.”
Edmund immediately added, “Holding hands?”
I gave him a warning look.
“Eat your breakfast.”
“So yes.”
“Edmund.”
He laughed and finally returned his attention to his plate.
Dad shook his head, amused.
“Just remember to treat her well.”
“I will.”
There was no teasing in his voice when he said it.
I looked at him and nodded.
“I will.”
My mother reached over and put another piece of egg onto my plate.
“Then that’s enough.
Let the boy eat.”
Joey immediately looked at her.
“Can I have another?”
“No.”
“But you gave Rafael another.”
“Rafael is older.”
Joey frowned.
“That’s unfair.”
Lucy laughed.
“You’re always complaining.”
“I am not.”
“You are.”
Lecia joined in.
“You complained yesterday too.”
“About what?”
“Everything.”
The argument quickly shifted away from me as Joey started defending himself, Lucy contradicted him, and Lecia took Lucy’s side for reasons that seemed to change every few seconds.
I quietly ate my breakfast while listening to them.
It was ordinary.
There was no strategy, no investment plan, and no discussion about the future.
It was simply my family arguing over food while teasing me about a girl.
Somehow, that was exactly what I needed that morning.
The meeting with Rosalie’s family had gone well, and my own family was fine.
For the moment, nothing was wrong.
I finished breakfast, carried my plate to the sink, and headed back upstairs.
Once I closed my bedroom door, however, my thoughts returned to the matter that had been waiting for me since yesterday.
Money.
I opened my laptop and brought up the spreadsheet I had been maintaining.
The categories I had originally created as simple ways to organize my money were becoming something more important: the beginning of a financial structure.
My investment account currently held ₱2.34 million after Adrian’s first round of trading and his agreed share of the profit.
The original ₱900,000 had grown to ₱2.7 million, producing ₱1.8 million in profit.
Adrian’s twenty percent share amounted to ₱360,000, leaving me with ₱2.34 million in total capital.
For someone my age, it was an absurd amount of money.
For what I intended to accomplish, it was still small.
I leaned back in my chair and looked at the figures.
The problem was simpler than I had been treating it.
I had been thinking about individual pieces—investments, equipment, research, and eventually a company—but I was missing the structure that connected them.
Making money from one successful investment was useful, but it didn’t solve the larger problem.
I needed enough capital to keep funding the next step without having to start over every time.
That meant the money I had now couldn’t simply be spent.
It had to become the foundation for everything that came after it.
I created a new sheet and titled it Financial Foundation.
Underneath it, I began organizing the things I needed to accomplish.
I wanted to protect the capital I already had, diversify my investments, maintain enough liquidity for emergencies, gradually gain international exposure, and eventually establish the legal and professional structure necessary to handle larger amounts of money.
The ₱1.5 million investment Adrian and I had discussed was already part of that plan.
Unlike the first investment, which had produced an unusually fast return, this one was intended to be held for a longer period.
I didn’t expect another three-week miracle, and I didn’t want one.
What mattered now was building something sustainable.
I picked up my phone and called Adrian.
He answered after several rings.
“Morning.”
“Did I wake you?”
“No.
I was already awake.”
“You sound half asleep.”
“I’m awake enough to know you’re calling because you’ve thought of something complicated.”
I smiled.
“That’s fair.”
There was a brief pause before he asked, “So, what’s the update?”
“The money is ready.”
“For the ₱1.5 million?”
“Yes.”
“Good.
I’ll start preparing the transaction.”
I leaned back in my chair.
“Before you do that, I want to talk about something.”
Adrian immediately became more attentive.
“Another change?”
“Not exactly.”
“What is it?”
“I don’t want us treating every investment separately anymore.”
There was a short silence.
“You mean the way we handled the first one?”
“Yes.”
“The first one was concentrated because you were confident about the opportunity.”
“And it worked.”
“It did.”
“But I don’t want the next one to depend entirely on that kind of situation.”
Adrian was quiet for a moment.
“I was thinking the same thing.”
I looked at the spreadsheet.
“The first investment proved that I can turn my knowledge into capital.
The next step is making that capital work without constantly relying on a single opportunity.”
“So diversification.”
“Exactly.”
“What are you thinking?”
“Different sectors, different time horizons, and enough liquidity that we aren’t forced to sell something just because we suddenly need cash.
Eventually, I also want international exposure.”
“International?”
“Eventually.”
Adrian exhaled.
“You’re thinking bigger already.”
“I have to.”
“Before we go too far, there’s still the issue of your age.”
“I know.”
“No, seriously.
You’re fourteen.”
“I know.”
“You’re talking about international investments, future companies, technology businesses…”
“I know.”
“And you’re still a minor.”
I smiled.
“You’re repeating yourself.”
“Because you’re ignoring the obvious problem.”
“I’m not ignoring it.
We just need to handle it properly.”
Adrian sighed.
“Banking restrictions, contracts, taxation, business ownership, investment accounts.
Once the amounts get larger, we can’t keep improvising.”
“That’s why I want to build the structure early.”
“Professional support.
Accountants, lawyers, and eventually proper corporate entities when the scale justifies them.”
Adrian was quiet for several seconds.
“You’ve really been thinking about this.”
“I’ve been thinking about what happens if the money keeps growing.”
“That’s the part I’m worried about.”
“Why?”
“Because right now, you’re managing a few million pesos.
If you actually succeed at what you’re planning, that number won’t stay a few million.”
I looked at the spreadsheet.
“I know.”
“And what exactly are you planning to do with it?”
I hesitated for a moment before answering honestly.
“I want to build a technology company.”
There was silence.
“A technology company?”
“Yes.”
“What kind?”
“I don’t know yet.”
Adrian laughed softly.
“That’s not a very convincing business plan.”
“I know the direction.”
“Which is?”
“Technology that solves practical problems.”
I looked at the notes I had already written.
“Energy systems, electronics, sensors, automation, software, robotics.
Eventually, more advanced machines.”
Adrian didn’t answer immediately.
“You’re not thinking small.”
“I don’t need to start big.”
“Then where do you start?”
“Where the opportunity is.”
He chuckled.
“You’re avoiding the question.”
“No.
I’m being realistic.”
I leaned forward and rested my arms on the desk.
“I don’t have the resources to build a robotics company tomorrow.
But I can invest in industries that will eventually lead there.
I can learn, build relationships, and acquire equipment when I can afford it.
Then, when the time is right, I can start building.”
Adrian was silent for several seconds before asking, “Where did this idea come from?”
I knew exactly what he meant.
“The first serious money I earned came from Mr.
Villareal.”
“The battery businessman?”
“Yes.”
Adrian was silent for a moment.
“How do you know him?”
“I tutor his daughter.”
“You what?”
“I tutor his daughter.”
“You’ve been tutoring someone from his family this whole time?”
“Yes.”
“And that’s how you ended up working with him?”
“Not exactly.
He found out I had some knowledge of engineering and asked me about a problem he was working on.”
Adrian paused.
“Wait.
You were tutoring his daughter, and then he asked you to help with an engineering problem?”
“Something like that.”
“And you actually solved it?”
“I gave him a design.
He tested it.”
“What kind of design?”
“A battery-related system.”
Adrian went quiet again.
I continued before he could jump to the wrong conclusion.
“It wasn’t some revolutionary battery invention.
I worked on part of the system around it.
I identified a problem, developed a solution, and explained how it should work.
He tested it himself before agreeing to anything.”
“And he paid you?”
“One million pesos.”
There was complete silence on the line.
I checked my phone to make sure the call hadn’t disconnected.
“Adrian?”
“I’m here.”
“You’re quiet.”
“I’m trying to process the fact that you’re fourteen, tutoring someone’s daughter, and somehow ended up negotiating a million-peso engineering deal with her father.”
I smiled.
“That sounds about right.”
“No, Rafael.
That does not sound about right.”
I laughed.
The conversation became easier after that.
I explained that I wasn’t planning to compete directly with Mr.
Villareal.
His business already had experience in battery systems and energy storage, and trying to fight him for the same market would be foolish.
Instead, I wanted to understand the systems surrounding the technology: battery management, power electronics, sensors, energy monitoring, control systems, and communication between devices.
A battery was only one part of a larger machine.
The better the surrounding system became, the more useful the battery became.
Those same technologies could eventually connect to automation, robotics, and autonomous machines.
Adrian listened carefully before finally saying, “So you’re thinking of building capabilities instead of chasing a single product.”
“Exactly.”
“That’s going to take years.”
“I know.”
“Money.”
“I know.”
“People.”
“I know.”
“Facilities.”
“I know.”
He sighed.
“And you’re fourteen.”
“I’ve noticed.”
He laughed.
“All right.
I’ll help.”
I smiled.
“Thank you.”
“But I’m going to keep reminding you that you’re insane.”
“That’s fine.”
“And I’m keeping the twenty percent arrangement.”
“Of course.”
“Good.
Then I’ll handle the ₱1.5 million investment and keep the rest liquid.
I’ll also track the portfolio separately so we can see exactly where everything is going.”
“That’s what I want.”
“And Rafael?”
“Yes?”
“If you’re serious about building a company someday, start learning how businesses actually work.”
“I am.”
“Not just engineering.
Accounting, contracts, operations, hiring, supply chains, manufacturing.
All of it.”
“I’ll learn.”
“Good.”
The call ended shortly afterward.
I looked at the spreadsheet again.
The number on the screen hadn’t changed, but my understanding of it had.
₱2.34 million wasn’t a fortune.
It was a starting point, and for the first time, I was treating it like one.