Not that it actually hit Luke that hard.
It was just money, wasn't it?
These days he didn't really take money all that seriously anyway.
He was a transmigrator, after all. Making a bit of cash should be effortless, right?
Filled with confidence, Luke stood up and went to his study to research for a while.
After quite some time…
He slumped into his chair and fell into deep thought.
Damn Piltover.
They'd already done all the "homework" he was planning to copy.
Soap, perfume, women's lingerie—those universal, money-printing "show-off tools." Any one of them could sell like crazy, but that little research-obsessed city had already developed all of it.
By now, those things were already wildly popular across Runeterra.
Seriously!
Couldn't those damned Pilties leave a transmigrator a single path to survive?
"Then maybe I'll copy books… The Lord of the Rings, A Song of Ice and Fire… except I haven't even read the originals."
Luke muttered to himself.
Never mind whether they'd even fit the local culture.
Even if Demacia could accept those novels, Luke couldn't write them.
At best he'd watched a TV version of a monkey flipping the heavens upside down, or a melodrama about two pieces of jade and their love-hate tragedy. As for the original texts… he'd basically only seen the titles.
By now he'd forgotten all the details anyway.
"Can't do it, can't do it. I'll just keep coasting."
Luke gave up quickly. Honestly, things were fine as they were—he still had twenty gold a week.
He wasn't all that picky about quality of life.
For now, he'd just drop into bare-minimum mode.
As long as you can live, you're good.
Luke had also considered selling some of the system's check-in rewards—rare exotic fruits, even Smoky Earl Grey Tea.
But after thinking about what could happen if he did that, even if the odds were low, he really didn't want to take the risk.
So he abandoned the idea.
Dinner was cooked by Yurna. Taste-wise… normal.
Luke could live with it. After all, his usual breakfast was made by Yurna too.
The next day.
Luke went to the Royal Academy as usual. On the way, he did a quick check-in. Nothing special—just two rare exotic fruits.
When he entered the classroom, Lady Crownguard was already there.
A delicate cake sat on her desk.
Lux was staring at it with eager eyes, about to dig in.
When she saw Luke sit down beside her, she immediately became vigilant.
Luke gave her a speechless look and said, "Why are you on guard around me every day like I'm some kind of wolf?"
"I don't know." Lux still looked wary, then added, "But I strongly suggest you move your eyes away from my cake."
Fine.
Luke dragged his gaze off the strawberry cake and killed the idea in his head.
Lady Crownguard wasn't as easy to fool as she used to be.
At that moment, Luke felt like he was remembering something—but it was blurry.
By the time it came into focus, it was already afternoon outdoors.
The temperature was, as always, scorching. It was the hottest stretch of summer.
After two laps around the field, even Luke was sweating buckets.
He glanced at Lux. She looked calm and normal, like she didn't feel especially hot at all, and Luke couldn't help finding that strange.
He watched her a moment longer, then finally spotted the problem. "What delicious thing are you secretly eating?"
Hearing him, Lux turned her head, smiling smugly as she opened her mouth a little.
There was an ice cube inside.
Luke blinked. "Where'd you get that?"
Lux showed off proudly. "At lunch. I snuck into the cafeteria kitchen and stole it."
Luke finally understood.
No wonder she'd been eating perfectly fine at noon, then suddenly looked suspicious and disappeared for a while.
So she'd been sneaking off to steal ice.
"Any left?" Luke asked.
"Yes, but not much." Lux gave a little huff. She already knew what he wanted, so she said, "Say something nice, and I'll give you some."
That was effortless for Luke. He rattled it off instantly: "Lady Crownguard is beautiful and kind, considerate and understanding, smart and adorable, gentle and graceful, naturally stunning, so lovely the moon would hide in shame, elegant and poised—"
"Enough, enough. Here." With so many students looking over, Lux hurriedly cut him off and stuffed a small bag of ice into his hands.
Where did this guy even find that many words?
Luke accepted the bag happily, completely missing how bright red Lux's ears had gotten.
He opened the bag. There were four or five chunks of ice left. The insulation was decent, but some had already melted.
After thinking for a second, Luke simply tipped his head back and poured all of it into his mouth at once.
In an instant, the chill flooded through him to the core.
Lux's eyes went wide. She was both anxious and furious. "Why did you eat all of it?! Leave me two!"
"Forgot… it was hot," Luke replied through the ice, his words muffled.
"Forgot my ass!" Lux's eyes flashed with murder as she clenched her little fist and swung.
Luke dodged nimbly, then took a quick step back to open distance—giving her zero chance to get revenge.
Still, after the run was over, he went back over.
Lux was clearly furious this time. She ignored Luke when he approached, turning her face away and refusing to look at him at all.
"Are you mad?"
"If I said sorry, would you feel better?"
"I'm sorry."
The ice in Luke's mouth hadn't completely melted yet, but he could speak normally now.
Every time he said a line, he leaned into the direction Lux was facing. And every time he leaned over, Lux would huff and turn to the other side.
It was ridiculously entertaining.
No matter what Luke said, Lux refused to respond.
Looks like a normal apology wasn't going to work.
So Luke thought for a moment, then started strolling slowly around Lux, hands clasped behind his back, speaking in a leisurely tone. "You know, in summer, ice is fine for cooling off, but that's about it. If we're talking real deliciousness, nothing beats a certain treat I've had—ice cream."
At that, Lux's ears perked up immediately.
Her eyes also slid over, sneaking a glance.
Luke snorted inwardly. Got you.
Pretending not to notice, he continued. "Ice cream is like cake—soft and creamy. But unlike cake, it's also cold and refreshing. Rich milk blended with the sweet brightness of fruit and the deep fragrance of chocolate… it melts the moment it hits your tongue, leaving a scent that goes straight to your heart. In the middle of summer, one bite of that is basically the greatest pleasure on earth."
Lux had already sidled closer, her big eyes blinking as she stared at Luke. "Is it really that good?"
She'd completely forgotten she was mad a second ago.
Luke smiled. "Want some?"
Lux nodded instantly. Very much.
Luke said, "You pay, I do the work. Tonight."
When she heard she had to pay, Lux hesitated—then, in the end, she couldn't resist the temptation of good food. She gritted her teeth and nodded. "Fine! Deal!"
//Check out my P@tre0n for 20 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810.