For the next nine days, nothing unusual happened. Every day, Zac entered the portal to train his swordsmanship and senses. During the night he cultivated the ’Heart Sword’ technique with the remaining lightning essence.

On the tenth day, instead of going to a portal, he went to the association to meet Lima.

"Why are you here again?" Lima asked him, leaning against the doorframe with crossed arms and one brow slightly raised as she looked him over.

With a faint smile tugging at his lips. "Can’t stay away from seeing you."

"Oh? Since when did you learn to flatter?" Her voice carried that same teasing edge.

Zac scratched the back of his head, almost sheepishly. "I’m trying to learn a new hobby."

She studied him for a second, then stepped aside with a small tilt of her head. "Well, you do whatever you want. Now state your reason for being here."

"Nothing. Just came to see you."

Lima suddenly stopped walking, turned sharply, and gave him a look. "Is that so? Then come in."

Zac followed, glancing around before speaking again. "Do you like tea?"

She stopped mid-step once again and looked back at him, confusion flickering across her face. "Tea? Where did that come from?"

"Just answer."

She sighed lightly, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "Not really."

"Good enough. Is there a kitchen here?"

"Don’t tell me you are going to make me tea."

"What if I am?"

"If it is then I have to inform you that my standards are pretty high."

"Just show me the way, will you?"

"Come," she said, leading him toward the small kitchen on the sixth floor.

Zac immediately began preparing tea with the leaves he had bought from the variant website a few days earlier.

"Isn’t your entrance exam coming up? Shouldn’t you be preparing instead of brewing tea here?"

"Just wanted to show my brewing skills... to my favorite woman."

"So much buttering. I don’t know what you’re planning... If it’s about the bet, then don’t expect me to take back what I’ve already put in."

"That’s not why I am here. "Here, try it."

Lima took the cup and started sipping it.

"System, do I really have to suck up to her this much? Can’t I just ask and pay for it?"

[Idiot. Do you think elemental essence is something you can buy easily? She already has a soft spot for you; why not use it?]

"Fine..."

"It’s not bad."

[She’s is clearly enjoying it, just look at her drinking it like a fish.]

She finished the entire glass and looked at Zac. "So... what do you really want?"

"Coming to that... do you have any elemental essence?"

Her eyes narrowed. "I knew you were up to something. So all your compliments are just worms hiding in a hook?"

"That’s...." Zac scratched his head out of embarrassment.

"Not like I really cared about it. Anyway, why would a rookie like you need elemental essence? People usually only need that at B or A rank."

"I’m practicing a skill that requires it."

"Ah...Now that’s interesting. So what kind of skill is it?" 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Zac stayed quiet without answering her.

She looked at him expectantly for a moment and then waved it off. "Fine, don’t tell me."

"Elemental essence isn’t easy to come by even in the association. The headquarters might have more, but getting it for an E-rank like you would be a hassle. And even if I tried, they wouldn’t give it to me."

"So you don’t have any?"

"We do have lightning essence in storage." She paused. "But you should already have some, right?"

"I already used it all."

[Idiot]

Zac frowned. "Wait, how do you know I had lightning essence?"

[You first need to learn how to control your mouth.]

"Just because we didn’t ask doesn’t mean we don’t know. You think everyone in the Variant Association is blind?"

"...Fine. You win. So, are you giving it or not?"

"Oh...oh...quite a tone you have there. Where did that sucker from before disappeared to."

"He is dead!"

"Too bad I was thinking about giving it to him. But now that he is dead..."

"Wait... Wait...sigh... The most beautiful woman I have ever met, can you please give it to me? Pretty please."

"Good. How much do you want?" Lima asked with a mocking smile.

"Two potions."

She tilted her head slightly. "That’ll cost you two million kyros."

"Fine...Wait. What... two potions... two million? Are you serious? Do you even know how much that is?"

"Why are you overreacting?" she said calmly. "Didn’t you get your father’s inheritance?"

"I did, but that doesn’t mean you can rob me."

"I am robbing you," she replied without hesitation. "Buy it or leave." She waved her hand dismissively, as if shooing him away.

Zac clenched his teeth. "...Fine. I’ll take it."

"Go to the second floor and tell them I sent you."

Once the door closed, she picked up the glass, poured the remaining tea, and drank it in one go.

"How does he make this...?"

***

Zac headed to the second floor and approached the shopkeeper.

"You’re the one Ms. Lima sent, right?"

"Yes."

"Two batches of lightning essence. That’ll be 1,600,000 Kyros."

Zac frowned. "She said it will be two million."

[That’s the most idiotic thing to tell a shopkeeper. Seriously did you live under a rock or something?]

"What do you mean? Isn’t it true?"

[It is. But no matter what, you should never increase a higher price to a shopkeeper.]

"It is," the shopkeeper replied. "But an ’SS’ rank holder gets a 20% discount on purchases in the Variant Association."

"That’s... nice." He paused. "Can I pay with mana crystals and monster carcasses instead of cash?"

"Sure. Show me what you’ve got."

Zac emptied everything he got from the last nine days’ hunt onto the counter. Crystals and carcasses piled up, spreading across the table.

The shopkeeper blinked. "You could’ve used a space ring."

"...Sorry."

He called in a few staff members, and they began counting.

Two hours later, he returned.

"2,223 E-rank, 24 D-rank mana crystals, and 20 D-rank monster carcasses," he said. "E-rank crystals are 100 Kyros, and D-rank are 250."

"Adding the carcasses. Total: 357,000 Kyros."

He looked up. "With your 400,000 discount, you still need to pay 1,243,000 Kyros."

Zac let out a slow breath. "Even after all that... I still have to pay over a million." Reluctantly, he paid the remaining amount and took the lightning essence.

***

From then on, he returned to his routine of training and cultivating.

Twenty days passed in a blur, and only two days remained before the examination. Zac opened his eyes after cultivating the Heart Sword.

Just then, his VSB rang.

Ring. Ring. Ring.