Aaron was taken aback when he heard a familiar voice calling him from behind. "Aaron!" he turned to see Jessica and her spouse, who bore a striking resemblance to one another.
Their height, fashion sense, and flaxen hair hue were uncannily alike. It was as if they were made for each other. Aaron found it odd that he had only just corresponded with her earlier today, yet here she was in person.
"Surprised to see you here, Aaron. By the way, this is my spouse, Gareth," said Jessica as she hugged Gareth's arm.
"The pleasure is mine, Aaron," Gareth added as he extended his hand for a handshake.
They both shook hands and started chatting while walking inside the mansion.
During their conversation, Jessica told Aaron about their wedding several months ago and how they received a house here as a wedding gift from Gareth's family. It was a very expensive gift, but according to her, Gareth's family owns even more expensive properties. Both Gareth and Jessica were models, and they met during a photo shoot for sports and beauty products, which sparked their romantic journey leading to their marriage.
Aaron glanced at Gareth's appearance and noticed how fit he looked. Gareth was taller and leaner than him, with long blonde hair, a chiseled jaw, and great-looking teeth. He was also charismatic, which made him easily approachable by others. Ever since they walked, people nearby greeted or said hello to him.
"I am so glad she is feeling better now... At least Gareth looks good and responsible," thought Aaron as he prepared to greet Uncle Garry, who was waiting for them at the main entrance.
"Ah, welcome my fellow neighbors," greeted Uncle Garry in a gentlemanly and courteous manner.
He then led them to the party venue, which was located inside a single-story building with a fairly large balcony that could accommodate many people. As Aaron entered the building, he was pleasantly surprised by the interior design of the ballroom.
"Wow... It's actually a ballroom... The paint, curtains, furniture, and the huge and majestic-looking chandelier... Everything looks expensive here! How wealthy is Uncle Garry..." thought Aaron as he walked slowly inside, observing that people were already chatting and eating at their respective tables.
Aaron was left alone since everyone was busy socializing. He walked up a fancy-looking staircase that seemed to lead to a balcony, wanting to see the view from up there. When he reached the top, he saw how beautiful the scenery was at night, with the fountain garden below and the lighting designed to be neither too bright nor too dark.
"To be honest, I don't even know what to do here... I mean, this isn't the kind of party I expected," thought Aaron as he looked for a table to sit and enjoy the buffet that had been prepared.
After sampling each dish from the exquisite buffet, which included options such as succulent prime rib, delectable crab cakes, flavorful truffle risotto, and refreshing fruit tartlets.
Aaron decided to call it a night and head home before 11. As an introvert, he longed for some quiet time to do what he loved most.
"Eh, would it be rude to leave earlier... I mean... I didn't expect it to be this tiring," thought Aaron as he grew weary of talking to the people, most of whom were his neighbors.
It was difficult for him to mingle since the gap between the wealthy and non-wealthy made him feel out of place. Although these people were nice, he felt unworthy of being there.
He mustered up his courage to meet Uncle Garry and inform him about leaving the party. At least he could ask nicely, what else could go wrong?
He strolled for a while until he found Uncle Garry talking with some children who seemed to be his grandchildren. When he looked closely, he noticed that one of the children looked familiar, and he remembered that she was a student at the school where Aaron taught.
Unexpectedly, as he approached them, Garry immediately greeted him and introduced his grandchildren to Aaron, which made him feel more guilty to leave the party earlier. Especially with the children still present there. They chatted for a while, with Aaron mostly listening to their conversation, until Garry dismissed the others and asked Aaron to stay.
"So, are you going to leave, Aaron?" asked Garry politely.
Aaron just nodded, then, unusually, he felt like he had to say something to justify leaving earlier. "Yeah… I felt terribly exhausted from socializing for too long."
"Hahahah, I know that feeling, young man. Stop being so formal with me. I organized the party just to see you in person. Hohoho, don't look so shocked. I'll see you tomorrow. Here's my contact card. Not that you will contact me first anyway." Garry's gentlemanly demeanor vanished for a while, and he became quite casual. Aaron was startled when Garry mentioned the reason for the party and took it as a joke.
"Sigh... Thank you, Uncle Garry. Happy New Year to you," Aaron politely bowed down after that and walked out of the mansion.
He left the mansion without looking back, it has been a very long night for him. On his way back, he looked his app to see if there is any changes there but he had completed everything today and left with 9 item tokens.
"Cant wait to do the 10 rolls, who knows it might the only way to get the skill token.." thought Aaron as he was just arrived at his place. He immediately clean himself first and do some chores to clean the house in case Garry actually coming tomorrow..
It was almost midnight when Aaron finished all his chores. Although he was tempted to play games or watch anime, he held himself back. He grabbed a bottle of wine he had bought at Geant with 50% discount and brought it outside, along with a glass, to enjoy it while waiting for the fireworks. Since he didn't have an extra chair to bring outside, he sat on his black sedan looking at the sky. The night was clear of clouds and the moon's full light covered the night, creating a calm before the storm.
Later, as the new year began, fireworks lit up the sky.
"Boom... boom... boom..."
Aaron watched the colorful display with a sense of gratitude for his decent life. With the help of the system, he hoped to improve it even further. However, he also loved his life before the system, so he wouldn't abandon it completely.
Later that morning, Aaron woke up slightly late and noticed an empty wine bottle next to his bed. Normally, he would have to deal with a hangover, but he felt completely sober and even better than usual.
"Hmm, the healing pendant is way too good for an uncommon item. I really hope I'll get at least a rare item today," he thought as he looked at the pendant on his right hand.
Since it was the last day of the school break, he didn't want to do anything work-related. He wanted to complete the first sub-quest as soon as possible since he only needed one more token to do the 10x roll.
He was glad when he opened the daily quest tab and saw that two of the sub-quests were the same as yesterday. To read 20 journals and write 5 articles. However, the last quest required him to meditate for an hour.
"But I don't know how to meditate... Sigh... I'll just do the reading and writing quests first," Aaron complained, but he immediately started reading since it was already 9 AM and he had already made breakfast earlier.