Seth abruptly sat up and leaned forward at the president’s words.

His gaze narrowed. Did the government really have more information on these foreign races, or was his conjecture true — that the president’s background was as mysterious and ancient as he had theorized on his way here?

Though the agent who briefed them on their mission last time spoke of having information about foreign races, Seth was under the impression that their info was still baseline shallow.

’But it seems I was wrong...’

"For you to say that, do you know more about our enemies?" Seth finally voiced.

The president just smiled mysteriously and spoke, answering with a question of his own.

"Tell me, boy, do you think humans are some kind of divine race born of Earth?"

Seth’s brows raised in confusion, but he still shook his head regardless.

The president nodded. "Good. Now think carefully again before you ask. And just so you know, humans are the last intellectual race to be birthed."

Seth silently brooded on the president’s words, but it didn’t take long for him to piece it together.

His eyes widened, a chill creeping down his back as he realized what the president meant.

In a sense, one could call these other native races of Earth siblings of the humans. And Earth was the parent.

Meaning if humans could be so talented, who said the others weren’t even more so?

What was worse — humans were the last of the intellectual species to be born to Earth, meaning...

Seth let out a sharp hiss. Those words — humans are at the bottom of the food chain — just got clearer.

At this point, Seth spoke no more, his mind drowning in countless conjectures.

Seeing everyone silent, no one having anything else to say, the president spoke. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

"I take it that’s all the information you all have, really?"

The six nodded sharply. He smiled, his cold demeanor diffusing into the wind as the temperature noticeably lightened.

"If that’s all, I will have to be going. Hehe, you see, even doing nothing is an exhausting task..." Patting the table, he stood up, striding majestically to the doors.

Reaching them, he paused, glancing behind. "Trisha, what are you waiting for?"

The blind lady quickly stood up, rushing right after him.

Only now did everyone recall she was only with them for their mission. Now that it was over, she was an asset they had to return to the government.

There wasn’t time for them all to share farewells — not that there was any need, seeing that they would all be residing in the same city for now.

And in the blink of an eye, the five were the only ones left in the conference room.

Security staff quickly came in to lead them out, and like that, they boarded their vehicles to head back to their residential home.

In the vehicle, Seth suddenly slapped himself on the head. "Ah, I was so swept up in thought I forgot to ask about the progress on deciphering the journal I left them."

His words provoked memories of the frivolous old engineer they had met before they left.

Seth could only massage his forehead in regret. It wasn’t like he could demand to go back...

And there was also the question he had planned to ask about the president’s surname.

’Ah shit, I can’t believe I forgot.’ He face-palmed once more at this thought.

’I’ll have to leave it for next time then...’ he sighed.

The vehicle pulled up before their designated residence.

The five alighted, everyone rushing into the comfort of the mansion.

They had stayed here for only a night last time, but the comfort was beyond that of their night in Dunn County for sure.

Elaine rushed upstairs to her room, itching for a long-overdue bath.

Brandon rushed to the freezer, famished, with Jack following behind.

Uriel, on the other hand, was immersed in reading the book on foreign races Seth had borrowed him — one he had gained from the Rangol race woman back in the origin.

Seth, feeling parched, walked to the dispenser nearby to get a refreshing drink of water.

It was evening, so everyone did their own thing, barely interacting with each other.

Night came, and dawn...

Seth went down the stairs and immediately noticed the sounds of voices coming from the kitchen.

Following the sound of the commotion, Seth stepped into the kitchen and, to his surprise, all four of his roommates were there.

"Come on! You’re a girl, how can you not cook!" Brandon accused, shoving a finger at Elaine.

Though the other two didn’t speak, the judging stare bored into her back, causing the poor icy beauty’s demeanor to crack.

A shameful blush rose to her cheeks. Clutching the hem of her pajama top, she averted her gaze, replying in four words: "I had a maid."

Brandon’s eyes widened, despair welling from their depths. Were they doomed to feast on fast food only?

With the state of the country as it was, there were hardly any restaurants around anymore.

The best they would get was snacks. How the fuck were they to sustain on junk only?

Even if they didn’t have to eat as frequently as regular humans, eating had long been incorporated into human nature.

Even if they weren’t starving, Brandon felt he’d go mad if he didn’t eat something delectable.

It was an urge neither he nor the others could resist.

"What’s going on?" Seth’s voice rang.

Only then did everyone notice Seth’s presence. Their eyes lit up as they focused on him, blinking.

Brandon rushed his way, arms wide. "Big bro, y-you have to save the day!"

A few minutes later, Seth stared at the four before him with an odd gaze and twitching lips.

It turned out the downside of being bred elites was their lack of cooking abilities.

Before him were a bunch of nepo babies who had never stepped into a kitchen a day in their lives.

Apparently, the commotion of this morning was caused because no one even knew how to make a basic egg-and-bacon breakfast meal.

Seth sighed helplessly. Rolling up his sleeves, he waved at them. "Leave it to me."

Tears gathered in Brandon’s eyes. "I knew I could count on you, big bro!"

Relief flickered in the eyes of the other two. The three quickly departed the kitchen, giving him space.

Seth’s eyes twitched as he watched their departing backs. ’These fuckers didn’t even hesitate!’

They didn’t know how to cook and weren’t even ready to learn...

He clicked his tongue and turned around. "Huh?"

He blinked, seeing Elaine still silently standing there. "Do you need something?" he carefully asked.

Fiddling with her shirt for a bit, she lifted her gaze. "I-I’ll help."

Seth blinked, stunned. He almost asked her to repeat that, but in the end, not wanting to embarrass the ice princess, he swallowed his words and just nodded.

Seth had stayed alone for a considerable time, and so naturally he picked up cooking from his little aunt Maya.

And while his culinary skills weren’t on her level, they weren’t bad either.

He quickly walked toward the freezer, with Elaine quietly trailing behind, watching his every move.

He opened the freezer, a cold rush blowing across his face. He smiled, seeing it loaded.

"This I can work with..."

And so he got to work whipping up breakfast for everyone, with his eager assistant Elaine silently taking notes.

Hours passed, and the five sat at the dining table with a platter of empty plates before them.

Brandon patted his bloated belly, satisfied. As an Awakened, his calorie intake was far higher than the average human.

And though they could substitute with essence, raw calories gained from food still nourished their bodies better.

It made him wonder how an origin beast would taste. ’After all, those guys don’t disappear after death, right?’ Brandon thought, smacking his lips.

Turning his gaze to Seth, his eyes turned reverent. "Sigh... big bro, how can I repay you? You’ve come in clutch for us more times than I can count."

Seth just smiled in response, feeling satisfied himself. But then Uriel posed a very important question.

"So, like... what next?"

Seth sat up at that question. His smile widened as his gaze scanned every face in the room.

"Well, it’s a good thing you asked, because I was just thinking... it’s about time we got a class."