Father and son

Alden sat in the front passenger seat of his father's car. He was patiently watching the windy road ahead of them, waiting to reach their destination. Alden glanced at its hands and fell deep into the abyss of contemplation. He was wondering, how, and why did he just stand there as the man who destroyed his life and stole the love of his life humiliated and insulted him.

Alden understood something very clearly, he could have punched the guy in the face without him being able to do anything about it. With Alden's newfound power, there was no ordinary human who could stand before him, he was very sure of that. Why then, did he allow himself to be disrespected in such a way?

Alden thought and thought about it until finally, he realized why. It was because he hadn't changed, he had not grown from the miserable loser he had been. He had not gotten over the past and he did not embrace the power and glory he had in the present because it was only when he did those things would he truly change. He wanted to change and he needed to.

The problem was Alden did not know or understand where to start.

In the present moment, all Alden felt like doing was using his bare fists to rediscover and feel the feeling of being powerful. He wanted to crush the heads and break the bones of monsters roaming through the dungeons. Alden wanted that feeling of superiority and that feeling of strength but he knew that would have to wait.

He needed to first complete the monthly mission assigned to him by the association before he even thought about punching beasts. Part of the reason why he couldn't just do it in the association's mission was that he would be entering with other Rangers and he was a Puppeteer so naturally he would only have a high energy stat. It would be pretty weird if he suddenly started cracking skulls with his bare hands.

"Hey Alden, you alright?" Alden's father asked, a look of concern on his face. Alden's father had noticed how down Alden had been the entire week. Alden had been training with his father ever since that day as his father insisted that basic hand-to-hand combat skills were a must for rangers. As a result of the training, Alden had acquired a new skill.

"I'm good, Dad," Alden said, flashing a reassuring smile at his father. Alden could not help but admit that he and his parents were having a particularly good relationship for the past few days. Alden guessed it was because since he had acquired his hacker class, he had been in a great mood and had initiated conversations with them. Alden was grateful for it, though.

His father stayed silent for a few seconds before speaking, "Alden, I know you got an F-class in your awakening but I have discovered a way to raise your stats at least 2 grades above."

"What!?" Alden exclaimed shocked. He opened his mouth to speak but closed it, deciding to hear what his father had to say first.

"A red bug's core. The fire attribute creature drops a core that allows the person who consumes it to raise their stats. It is a very rare creature and is only found in the S-class dungeon where the Red Dragon resides.

"So it was acquired in an S-class dungeon?" Alden asked.

"Yes, in Australia. It was put up for sale by the Rangers Union." Alden's father said, hesitating before continuing. "I have joined the bidding for it."

"Can you even afford it?" Alden asked his father. He was sure that the core would be extremely expensive.

" Although it would normally be very expensive, the pill we want is a C-grade one, meaning it would only be effective to those below C-grade. There are about 5 or 6 other cores for sale and those are all above C-grade. That's why, not many people want the C-grade core. And the only ones who can use the C-grade ones don't earn enough to try and buy it so few will be in the race for it. That presents a chance for us."

Alden was speechless for a few seconds, he struggled to compose himself, and when he finally did he turned to his father.

"Thanks a lot, Dad," Alden mumbled, a little awkward in his speech.

"It's no problem, son," Alden's father said, a smile on his face.

The rest of the drive was mostly quiet and when they finally reached, Alden's father turned to him and spoke," Oh son, I have something for you."

Alden's father went into the boot of his car and pulled out a cloak and a dagger, "These are for you."

Alden was surprised and had a look at the cloak his father gave him. He recognized as his fathers, a black cloak his father always wore. The cloak could be mistaken as a hooded cardigan and it had great defensive capabilities. Alden knew that just before his death, his late grandfather had given it to his father as a gift.

The dagger was a very high-quality one and it was his father's second-best dagger. It was nicknamed "Venus". Alden estimated the coat was an A-grade one and the dagger a B-grade dagger. Alden was more than thankful for his father's actions, and he had no idea how on earth to thank his father.

"Thanks, Dad, you didn't have to..." Alden said as he held everything in his hands.

"Don't worry about it," His father said, a smile on his face. "Go on son, I'll see you after your first mission."

Alden smiled, he was feeling truly happy, and his heart was at peace.

"Yeah, goodbye Dad. I'll see you too."