"I didn’t realize my instructor had so much free time."
The meaning behind the words was obvious.
Cedric understood it.
Damon understood it too.
Kane wasn’t openly ordering him.
That would be disrespectful.
Instead, he was reminding Cedric where the family’s priorities currently lay.
And everyone knew it.
Cedric belonged beside the family’s brightest talent.
Not its biggest disappointment.
For a moment, the old man looked troubled.
Damon sighed internally.
This was exactly why he had hesitated.
He wasn’t angry.
Just realistic.
Without waiting for Cedric to respond, Damon shook his head.
"It’s fine."
Both men looked at him.
Damon gave Cedric a small nod.
"You’ve got work to do."
The old man looked like he wanted to say something.
But before he could, Damon had already turned around.
As he passed Kane, he caught the faint smirk on the boy’s face.
A small victory.
At least in Kane’s mind.
Damon didn’t react. There was no point.
A man drowning didn’t waste energy arguing with people standing on shore.
He simply focused on swimming.
So he left.
Back to his room.
One option had disappeared.
That was all.
Not the end of the world. It was just another obstacle.
Once inside, Damon resumed what had become his daily routine.
Cultivation.
Testing the Spark Seed.
Searching for answers.
Hours passed quietly.
The familiar connection soon returned.
The moment he circulated energy through the mysterious core, the Spark Seed reacted.
Tiny sparks danced around it.
Soft pulses echoed through the room.
And once again, Damon felt that strange sense of connection.
It was becoming stronger.
Much stronger.
The first day had felt like touching a distant signal.
Now it almost felt alive.
Responsive.
As if something on the other side could vaguely sense him too.
Damon couldn’t hide his excitement.
Every day confirmed his theory a little more.
The mysterious core was affecting the dormant spirit.
There was definitely a connection between them.
"I knew I wasn’t imagining it."
The Spark Seed pulsed once.
Damon grinned.
"At this point, you’re basically agreeing with me."
Another pulse.
His grin widened.
The thing couldn’t actually speak.
But somehow, he still found himself talking to it.
Hours passed before he finally stopped.
The room grew quiet again.
Damon was still thinking about possible ways to obtain lightning essence when...
Knock.
Knock.
Knock.
He blinked.
Visitors were rare these days.
Especially for him.
Getting up, he walked toward the door and opened it.
A young servant stood outside.
No older than twelve.
The boy immediately handed over a heavy bag and a sealed letter.
Then he bowed.
"Delivery for Young Master Damon."
Before Damon could ask a single question, the servant turned and hurried away.
"Wait."
Too late.
The boy was already halfway down the hallway.
Damon stared after him.
Then looked at the items in his hands.
The bag felt surprisingly heavy.
The letter carried no name on the outside.
Only a simple wax seal.
Slowly, Damon closed the door.
His curiosity had already won.
Something told him this wasn’t a coincidence.
Damon carried the bag and sealed letter back to his desk.
For a moment, he simply stared at them.
Then he reached for the bag first.
The weight alone had already given him a good idea of what was inside.
As soon as he opened it, a faint crackle of lightning greeted him.
Several pieces of blue-gray ore lay inside.
Tiny sparks occasionally danced across their surfaces.
Lightning ore.
A smile immediately appeared on Damon’s face.
"Looks like I’m not completely out of luck."
His eyes lingered on the ores for a moment before shifting toward the letter.
Compared to the ores, this was what interested him more.
After all, someone had taken a risk to send these.
He carefully broke the seal and unfolded the letter.
As expected, there was no signature.
No name.
Nothing that could identify the sender.
Still, Damon only needed a few lines before he recognized the writing style.
Cedric.
There was no doubt about it.
A small smile appeared on his face as he continued reading.
The contents were simple.
Cedric explained that he had to be careful.
Helping Damon openly would attract unnecessary attention, especially now.
Kane had already made his position very clear.
The old butler couldn’t afford to be seen favoring Damon.
Damon nodded slightly.
He understood.
Cedric was walking a fine line already.
The next part of the letter made him pause.
The old man admitted he didn’t know what Damon planned to do with the lightning ores.
But he also couldn’t bring himself to ignore him.
The two of them had spent years together.
Teacher and student.
And while others might have already given up on Damon, Cedric hadn’t completely done so.
At least not yet.
Damon quietly reread that section.
For the first time since arriving in this world, someone had chosen to help him without expecting anything in return.
It was a strange feeling.
A good one.
The letter continued.
The ores had been taken from the family’s reserve stock.
Nothing significant enough to be noticed.
The Calloways collected lightning resources constantly from nearby distorted zones.
A small bag like this wouldn’t attract attention.
Still, lightning ore wasn’t cheap.
Even this amount represented a considerable favor.
Toward the end, Cedric wished him luck.
Not luck in becoming powerful.
Not luck in proving everyone wrong.
Just luck surviving.
The old man seemed to believe Damon would eventually live an ordinary life away from all of this.
Damon chuckled softly.
"Sorry, old man."
"That’s probably not happening."
The final lines reassured him about the delivery.
The servant who brought the package was completely trustworthy.
There was no need to worry.
Once he finished reading, Damon folded the letter carefully.
For a few seconds, he simply sat there.
Then he lit a small flame.
The paper slowly burned away until nothing remained but ash.
No evidence.
No trouble for Cedric.
Only then did he turn his attention back to the ores.
His eyes landed on the Spark Seed resting nearby.