Chapter 67: Dating a Girl?

The midterm exams finished in a flash. Well, that is just a metaphor. The tiresome exams definitely did not end that quickly, but the grueling days slowly passed as every single test for the different courses finally wrapped up.

Every student felt like they had just climbed a massive mountain, several kilometers high, without even using their feet.

Now that the midterms were over, the academy offered the students a sweet one-week vacation. Of course, it wasn’t just to enjoy and laze around; it was a designated time for them to train and practice what they had studied over the past months.

Speaking of the academic schedule, the first-year structure works like this: there are two semesters a year, each lasting four months. In between those semesters, the grand New Year festival takes place, featuring various programs that last for a whole month. Calculating the time, after the two semesters finish in the tenth month, the student council elections take place. After that, the students get a glorious two-month vacation. Later, the new freshers come in, the juniors become seniors, and the academic year cycle repeats.

But right now, with just a one-week break given to them, they could either stay at the academy to train by themselves or visit their homes. Many students were already enthusiastically packing their bags to return home after surviving their stressful days at the academy. They left the campus without even looking back to say goodbye, already knowing that, even if they didn’t want to, they still had to come back eventually.

In a training ground far away from the departing crowds, a boy sat on a bench under the academy’s cool shade.

There were actually many training grounds present in the academy. The one where Alden had shattered the dummy with a wooden sword was a different facility altogether. Here, the bright sun rays illuminated the open-ceiling ground. Sitting safely out of the sun’s reach, under the shadow of a tall wall, Alden stared blankly ahead while sipping a energy drink.

Thankfully, from basic potions to cafeteria food and other daily necessities, everything in the academy was free of charge. That made surviving in the academy much easier than in the outside world. For Alden, who was already an exiled heir with barely a few pennies in his pocket, this place was nothing short of heaven.

Even though he could pass his days comfortably at the academy, he couldn’t depend on it forever. He didn’t know if or when the academy might expel him. He needed to secure a constant source of income to support himself after graduation. He didn’t want to become the richest man in the world or some famous big shot; he just wanted enough money to pass his later days without worrying about his next meal.

But saying it is easy—actually earning the money makes all the difference.

There were various rules that actively lowered his chances of earning cash. Since he was an academy student, he couldn’t take up a part-time job after classes. The academy protocol strictly stated that students must focus on their growth rather than working outside, which was exactly why the school provided all their basic needs. Even if Alden chose to work a part-time job during vacations, another problem popped up: shopkeepers and business owners didn’t prefer hiring academy students because they would inevitably leave once classes resumed.

With the part-time job option crossed out, the next logical choice was joining a guild. That was the simplest way to earn money. If he joined a guild, he could take on missions and get paid. He would have to share a percentage of the revenue with the guild, but he would still earn a decent amount.

But Alden rejected this option too. Why? If he joined a guild, he would have to provide his background information. They would easily find out he was the exiled son of the Astra family. Then, people would start mocking him, and another annoying face-slapping drama would drag on.

Sigh... But that was only one reason. The bigger issue? He didn’t want other people to find out about his overpowered ’Growth-Acceleration’ skill or his awakened bloodline.

How would they find out if he just kept quiet? Well, guilds constantly measure and track their members’ growth to advance their ranks from D to A. Alden was sure they would feel suspicious about his rapid growth, and that would just attract unwanted trouble.

As for his bloodline, no one had discovered it yet, and he wanted to keep it hidden to avoid attention. If he fought alongside other guild members in tough battles, a situation might force him to use it. Revealing it to the guild meant revealing it to his ex-parents, and they certainly wouldn’t keep their mouths shut.

Of course, all of this was just Alden’s wild fantasy of what ’could’ happen. But since Alden was always such a "lucky" person, his worst possibilities often came true even if he didn’t want them to.

As every logical option began to shut in front of him, and he couldn’t see any unique methods to earn money, his system suddenly chimed, offering a faint sense of hope!

[Ding!]

[Special Quest Arrived!]

[Quest: Date a Random Girl!]

[Reward: System upgrade to Level 4!]

Alden stared at the quest window for a moment. He pinched his skin just to make sure this was real and not fake.

’Date a girl? Are you serious? When did you convert from a villainous system into a dating-sim system?’

[Ding! I felt pity and got bored after watching you lurk around single, so I thought to push you forward. Go on a date.]

Alden listened to the female voice of the system and suddenly felt very self-conscious. He glared at the quest and decided to ignore it.

’Nope, I am not completing it. Dismiss!’

[Ding! The System insists the host should complete the quest. Many benefits will come after the system upgrades to Level 4, including new abilities that can help solve many of your problems.]

[Ding! Additional penalties will be issued if you try to reject the quest!]

[Penalty: Reduction of 50 Stat points across all attributes!]

Alden couldn’t help but glare daggers at the system interface. And why wouldn’t he? The system was actively blackmailing him into dating a girl! He had never dated a girl before... Or maybe he had in recent times, but that didn’t mean he was eager to go find some random girl for a date right now. That just wasn’t like him.

Just as he cursed to himself—keeping his face perfectly expressionless—a girl walked up from behind. He felt her familiar presence immediately. He didn’t even have to look over his shoulder to know who it was.

"What do you want?" he asked.

The familiar female voice answered, not sounding in a hurry at all.

"Are you free in the evening?"