"Mom, we're on the phone. I can hear your voice without you yelling."
"Haha! Sorry. I just can't contain my happiness. Lately, my son has been in the news a lot."
Klaus sighed. "Come on. It's been a month now. Aren't you tired of talking about this?"
One of the people most excited by Klaus' popularity is Anna.
Ever since he made it into the news, his mother never stopped talking about her son. Anna always boasted about Klaus to her socialite friends, especially those who had once underestimated his abilities.
In every conversation, she tried to link it back to Klaus. For example, if a friend's son achieved something, Anna would say,
"Oh, Ronald got a GPA of 4? Not bad. My son started his own company at 18. If Ronald is looking for work experience, you can have him join Mors Industries. Don't worry, Klaus is a good boss."
"Oh, so your daughter got an awakening. What's her class rank? Hm, B-Class. That's pretty good. My son is only F-Class, but he already formed a guild with a bunch of S-Class and Top-Class awakeners. He has conquered hundreds of dungeons. By the way, do you know about the Elizabeth Jung scandal? My son exposed it."
"You invested in Golden Hammer Company? Oh, gosh. Don't waste your money. The big boss of that guild was working for my son."
Of course, the socialite women were bored hearing her. But they couldn't match Klaus with their own children.
The only person who was happy with her bragging was Julia Winston. This woman had genuine sincerity for Anna. The two of them were true friends. In fact, on several occasions, they often fantasized about Olivia and Klaus' wedding.
Unfortunately, the relationship between their offsprings was quite the opposite.
Klaus could hear his mother's giggles over the phone.
"Forget it. Why are you calling me during working hours? You know I'm busy."
Anna grumbled from the other end of the line. "Gosh, Klaus. Can't you relax a bit? You're the boss. You have subordinates, let them handle all your tasks!"
"Technically, Alexa is the boss. I'm just the majority shareholder who happens to be able to fire all the employees in this company. That's it. The company would be a mess if I took a one-month vacation."
"Oh, Klaus. You're not a real entrepreneur if the company can't operate without you. Besides, your subordinates can relax, but you keep working. Do you think I didn't notice?"
Klaus massaged his neck as he heard his mother's rant.
While he threw himself at work after returning from Miami, all the members of Rays of Hope went on vacation.
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Conquering an orange dungeon was an extraordinary achievement, especially after they stole the spotlight and beat the two major guilds in America. Klaus felt the need to reward them. So, he bought plane tickets to Bali for his subordinates. They enjoyed white sands and blue waves for a whole week.
His sister also joined the vacation. The spoiled girl showed Klaus that she could grow, both in maturity and abilities. Jonna blended well with the other members. She became more patient despite her unfiltered mouth.
The other members also showed progress.
Justin became a good leader. He managed to shed his idol image and transformed into a respected guild master. He performed exceptionally well under pressure and high workload. This man was almost like a robot. So, Klaus needed to give Justin a break, letting him rest from exhaustion.
The time manipulator, Sylvia, improved day by day in using her talent. She no longer fainted after using [Time Rewind] once or twice. She managed to limit the overflow of mana from her body.
The two ex-House of Blacksmith members, Michael and Akio, didn't need to be questioned anymore. These two friends were the ultimate warriors of the guild. Thanks to them, Klaus could breathe a little easier when leaving his subordinates unmonitored.
Among all the members of Rays of Hope, the one who showed the most significant progress was Olivia Winston. Ever since Klaus gave her an artificial arcana, the guild's performance has skyrocketed. She could kill thousands of monsters while inside the orange dungeon and made a significant contribution to slaying the wyrm. In just one night, she became an elite awakener.
They all deserved a vacation for their achievements.
Meanwhile, Klaus only enjoyed their joyful moments through photos sent by his sister and Justin. Somehow, Klaus felt happy seeing his subordinates happy.
"So, Mom, why did you call me?"
"Klaus, why can't you be more perceptive?" Anna sighed on the other end of the phone. "Never mind. By the way, Christmas Eve is coming. Do you know what it means?"
Klaus nodded while signing a letter on his desk. "Yeah, I know. We have to buy Christmas gifts for Grandpa. And I've also bought tickets for us to fly to Washington later."
"No! We're not going to Washington. Didn't I tell you last week, Grandpa will come here. We'll celebrate Christmas Eve at home."
"Ah, right. Sorry, Mom."I think you should take a look at
He heard Anna grumble again through the phone line. Frowning, Klaus couldn't understand why his mother was upset.
"Good Lord. Why is my son so ignorant?" Anna whined to herself. "You really don't remember, Klaus?"
Klaus stopped writing. He truly didn't understand what his mother was trying to tell him. Squinting his eyes, Klaus thought hard. Then, his eyes widened.
"Oh, the black snow! I almost forgot. We still have five days before Christmas, so I think we still have time to prepare."
One day before Christmas, the black snow fell and killed billions of people for the following year. That terrifying era left a lasting impact on those who survived.
They called it Black Christmas.
Until then, the cause of that phenomenon was still unknown. Some researchers said the black snow was related to the beginning of dimension cracks or what they called dungeon breaks. But because the black particles disappeared within a few days, they couldn't find a precise explanation. What they were sure of was that the black snow was the first mana that had descended upon this world.
The entire America mourned briefly before they celebrated Christmas. Some states even held special ceremonies to commemorate the tragedy. One of them was New York.
Major companies or certain organizations usually hold a formal event to commemorate Black Christmas. Klaus had been really busy with his work for the past few days.
"Thanks for reminding me, Mom. But I'm sure Alexa must have taken care of it. You don't need to worry."
Klaus thought his mother was worried about his company. But, in reality, she wasn't.
"Oh, God. Why is my son so clueless? Why do I have to remind you of something that others have already done for me? Klaus, your birthday is in five days!"
Naturally, Klaus dropped his pen.
Of all the important things on his mind, his birthday was not one of them. Celebrating his birthday meant celebrating getting older. What fool would be happy when they're a year closer to death? That's what Klaus thought.
"Ah, Mom. I'm not a kid anymore. I don't need to celebrate birthdays."
"Stop it, Klaus," scolded Anna. "Your pubic hair just grew last year. Just because you have a big company and a guild with weird people in it doesn't make you an adult. You're still a kid as long as I have to remind you every time you're about to do something."
Hearing the scolding from the other end of the phone, Klaus couldn't help but bury his face in his hands.
"Remember, Klaus! You have to come no matter what. I've prepared everything and sent out invitations. Don't you dare not show your face!"
Klaus stood up. "What? You sent out invitations? Hey, Mom—"
BEEP!
The call was disconnected. Anna hung up the phone.
Klaus sighed as he placed the receiver back.
He slumped into his chair and leaned back. His body relaxed a little when he realized he was too late to stop his mother.
"Human… why do you always do as you please?"
Klaus decided to take a short break. He walked to the window on the side of his office, pulled the thin white curtain to see the view outside. And there he saw it, the first snow falling earlier than usual.
At that moment, the wonders of nature opened up a beautiful spectacle before his eyes. Snowflakes twirled and danced like elegant ballerinas in the air. The grey sky provided a perfect backdrop for the pristine white beauty of the snow.
Klaus felt like time had momentarily stopped. He savored those beautiful moments.
"So beautiful."
Knock! Knock! Knock!
Someone knocked on the door. Klaus told the person to come in, and Sheila appeared with a big smile. "Boss, the snow is falling earlier! Have you seen it?"
Klaus simply nodded. Without realizing it, he had been living in this world for 19 years. Whatever lay ahead, Klaus would face it.
