[Family Happiness: 7.99%]
Ethan was pleasantly surprised when the percentage increased again, and he couldn’t help but turn to his wife with a smile.
Once again, he had taken up the task of preparing dinner while his wife and daughter watched him cook.
After the assimilation of the Cooking Mastery trait, he felt the need to cook constantly. After all, he rarely cooked in his life as Victor, and only now did he realize it was actually an interesting art.
Once he was done cooking, he served the meals at the table, then sat with them as they began to eat.
"This tastes sweet, Ethan. When did you learn to cook?" Evelyn asked, glancing at him with a small smile.
Ethan paused eating and replied. "Hm, I always knew how to cook, but I kinda forgot. I only remembered a while ago."
Evelyn blinked in surprise, her eyes narrowing. "You forgot how to cook?"
He shrugged, a faint smile on his lips. "I tend to forget things sometimes. You should know that."
"Ah, that’s... sad," Evelyn replied with pity in her voice.
Ethan hadn’t expected her to take it seriously, so he stared at her incredulously.
"Pfft!"
He turned his head and caught Nora who was laughing at him. He felt his smile grow wider, but he didn’t say anything.
Instead, he focused on his food and the completed task.
[You have completed today’s task!]
[You have received Increased Stamina. Claim Reward?]
Ethan nodded inwardly. The change was subtle, but he felt it. The accumulated fatigue and soreness in his muscles disappeared, and he felt energized again.
’Not bad, not bad. This would be a nice tool for training my body. In rare cases where I have to throw fists around, I need to raise this body to its pinnacle strength and capabilities.’
He glanced at Nora, seeing her eat with a soft smile on her face.
’Would there be punishments if I fail to do a task?’
[No, Ethan. Tasks are only auxiliary methods to help increase Family Happiness and give you supportive items or tools. You can increase Family Happiness through normal actions too.]
He paused eating, surprised that the Patriarch System was actually sentient. Thankfully, it was a straightforward system without an eccentric or annoying personality.
He preferred dealing with straightforward people, after all.
’Less headaches and less schemes.’
He couldn’t help but reminisce about his old life. It was vastly different from... this.
Dinner was always by himself. Only on rare occasions did he allow his secretary to dine with him.
’This is a nice improvement. But just as I was saying earlier, I need my own source of income. What to do...?’
"What are you think about, Ethan?"
Noticing how he had paused eating, Evelyn turned to him and asked.
"I was thinking about what I could do to earn a living," He replied casually, still considering a few options.
"Ah..." Evelyn was surprised. She hadn’t expected him to think that way, as it seemed like he had given up on working several years ago.
’It’s like... he’s really changing. He wants to start earning again. He seems to have quit drinking and gambling too. Is it still right to keep doubting him?’
[Family Happiness: 9.8%]
Ethan was pulled out of his thoughts by the sudden increase, and he looked at his wife in surprise.
’This woman...’
He smiled and resumed eating, quietly devouring everything on his plate until it was completely gone.
"I’ll do the dishes," Evelyn said, packing the plates before he could do it himself.
Ethan nodded and let her do it, then turned to Nora. "Do you want to watch some cartoons?"
The little girl turned to him in surprise and bewilderment. She obviously hadn’t expected her father to think of handing his phone to her.
After all, there was no television in the house, and she had gotten used to reading books and playing with the few figurines she had.
’Why is he different...?’
Ethan smiled and took out his phone, browsing YouTube for cartoons that would interest her. He didn’t notice the melancholy hidden beneath her surprise.
Despite being so young, her gaze held a maturity beyond her years.
Once Ethan found a cartoon he was satisfied with, he gave her his phone and said, "You only get one hour, though. Don’t use more than that, okay?"
She nodded, taking the phone from him while suppressing her excitement.
"Alright, go sit in the living room."
She nodded and walked away, her eyes glued to the screen.
Soon, Evelyn returned from the kitchen and was surprised when she found Nora watching a cartoon on his phone.
"You gave her your phone?" She asked despite seeing it right before her eyes.
Ethan smiled but didn’t answer. Instead, he rested his elbows on the table and sighed.
"Can you handle the shop alone for a while tomorrow morning? I need to get somewhere."
Evelyn nodded, then paused. "Where... are you going?"
"I need to go deal with those guys at the gambling den. If I don’t, they’ll only bring more problems."
The young lady instantly panicked. "You can’t go there alone, Ethan. If it turns into a fight, you won’t be able to beat them all."
Chuckling, he asked, "Then do you want to come with me?"
Unexpectedly, she nodded immediately. Only after nodding did she realize the problem.
"I... I doubt I can help you, though. I don’t know how to fight."
Ethan laughed lightly and waved his hand. "I was just kidding. You don’t need to come with me."
He paused, his smile cold.
"And if they try anything funny, then they should be prepared to watch their entire shady business collapse."
Evelyn stared at him silently, wondering why he seemed so different. Ethan had never been this confident. Although it was a change she couldn’t understand, she wasn’t scared by it.
’He’s getting better...’ She thought with a smile.
She was pulled from her thoughts when a sharp knock echoed at the door, followed by her brother’s hurried voice.
She immediately went to answer. The door burst open, and Cole rushed inside, his face pale.
"Ethan! Ethan, you have to do something!"
Ethan raised an eyebrow as Cole grabbed his shoulders.
"This is all because of you!"