Back in the car, Kenneth halted staring outside the window but rather at Travis. Although a glass partition generally separated the driver's seat from the passenger compartment, this limousine automobile was designed differently. Travis had to remove the glass partition before using the car in order to conveniently observe his students and speak to them if necessary. There ought to be a reason why he picked the limo car over a conventional bus or a typical sedan. Even if there were two, three, four, or at least one student remaining sitting in the car, the limo service would be large enough for that single data point. This was due to the fact that the limo car was composed of bullet-resistant polycarbonate, which could be modified to be one-way ballistic glass, preventing gunfire from an attacker. Travis had to be considerably more mindful of his surroundings when he had to bring his students with him. If an assailant appears out of nowhere, at least his pupils will be secured in this vehicle.
On the drive back to Kenneth's house, Kenneth was unconcerned about his father punishing him if he returned home, nor was he concerned about his forthcoming competition; he was unbothered, but rather to Travis. He fixed his gaze on his teacher, softly clutching the driving wheel as if Travis were the current subject in his studies. He couldn't stop wondering about his existence, his actual self, and everything about him. Travis was like a guardian angel to them appearing out of nowhere, so why was he such a mysterious figure in their eyes? Nobody knew anything about him, and why was he up at this hour? Kenneth's ideas spawned a slew of questions, many of which concerned his teacher, Travis.
"You're far too handy, aren't you?" Kenneth spoke, staring at him through the rearview mirror. He was referring to Travis handing Samantha and Emily large wads of cash earlier. Aside from his teacher's unusual appearance, he was also worried about the money he felt he had lost. In any case, Travis handed him the twenty million, which was more than enough for what he needed. If, however, that was a bluff or a fraud, Kenneth would have no option but to reveal his teacher's secret at the time he would come to know his teacher's actual self since he had this feeling his teacher was hiding his true self. He received the impression that his teacher was concealing his actual identity.
"Oh, is that a compliment?" smiling, Travis turned his head and glanced at his student, "Thank you, dear." And then focused back on driving.
Kenneth didn't intend to commend him, rather he meant to be sarcastic. Even if he was, he couldn't figure out how Travis got so much money. Nodding his head, Kenneth smirked as if mocking, "How did you know they had a shitty life?" He looked out the window again, this time at the nocturnal streets.
"Because we all do, sweetie," Travis began. "No matter how well you do in life, no matter how many people treat you right, regardless of how much you give and do to them, you sometimes think you have the worst life out there, do you know why?" Travis gripped the steering wheel and turned to the left road. Kenneth returned his gaze to Travis after gazing out the window, his palm still resting beneath his chin. His grimace went vague and disappeared after hearing those words. He didn't seem to want to listen to his teacher, but he did open his ears and listen.
"It's because of how things progress," his teacher continued. "You're constantly wondering, "Why is it this way?" every time things don't go as planned even after you've done your best to be the greatest in everyone's eyes. However, what you assume is not always the case. And after this or that, you find yourself hating someone, and worst of all, yourself. But that is unavoidable, darling. Humans are always like that."
Instead of focusing on Travis, Kenneth got concerned about what may happen to him after he arrived at his residence. Now that this topic had been brought up, he couldn't help but sweat in his seat, imagining his father lecturing him. It was 2:45 a.m. at the time. This would be his first time coming home late. Normally, he'd spend long hours in his cramped room and force himself to study, all because he wanted to be prepared in case. Previously, he had gone outside to collect his reward from his customers, but things quickly escalated and went awry when Travis appeared.
But, apart from that, everything Travis had said was valid. Kenneth despised his brother, despite the fact that he had done nothing to make his younger brother dislike him. Kenneth studied the three primary fields of natural sciences that his father required him to learn: biology, chemistry, and physics, all in order to please his father. At the same time, Kenneth pursued his interests in the social sciences, including psychology, sociology, economics, politics, law, and history. He'd won a lot of trophies, medals, and awards from prior tournaments, and he had five enormous shelves full of them in his room to prove it. Despite his efforts, he sensed a void deep within his heart. He was born a genius, yet imperfect.
"By the way, beloved Kenneth," Travis added. While keeping his gaze fixed on the road, he reached inside the glove compartment with his right hand and then grabbed something from within, "Here's your reward," he said and turned behind, openly handing Kenneth an item that appeared to be money — the same thickness and the same amount which Samantha and Emily had gotten as well.
Detaching his back from the seat out of spite merely to take the money with his bare hands, Kenneth was left aghast. Kenneth was stunned, detaching his back from the bench merely to take the money with his bare hands. His attention, which had recently been consumed with anxieties, returned to the cash in his hand — once more. His mouth sank as he realized the object in his palm was legitimate money. "H-How?" His hands trembled in delight as he gripped it hard, which was something he hadn't expected to obtain all of a sudden.
If it was truly for him, he should have to quit criticizing anybody or anything from now on. He had recently been distraught and blamed Travis for not receiving his money, and now he was all smiles ear to ear with just a single act from the guy he had previously resented. That's what Travis wished to alter in his student: to prevent him from being pulled to emotions, to prepare him for the unexpected, to prevent him from blaming someone without sufficient understanding of the issue, and to prevent him from depending on the present worry.
It was the same as this: An outraged mother would reprimand, disparage, and humiliate her kid because of her lost item (which she had no idea her child had nothing to do with), and the child would weep, and those words spewed out to the child by their mother would be engraved in their memory forever. And when the mother subsequently found her misplaced item (remembering that she was the one who misplaced it), she would be thrilled and then act as if nothing had happened, despite what she had said to her child. That is a sort of mental abuse that should not be tolerated by a parent. The mother responded based on what she had felt and she gave in to her thoughts and ended up hurting her child with her words. For the same reason Kenneth did, Travis intended on converting this pupil — much more when he transpired to become a politician and a lawyer.
"Just a teacher doing his job," Travis beamed, turning his gaze onto Kenneth. Without a second, he shifted his head back on the road again to focus on driving, "By the way, take double care in accepting random customers online, okay? It's for your safety, dear."
Kenneth simply said nothing in response to what Travis had stated. It was conceivable that he acted recklessly in order to make money — even if he had no idea what might happen if that's the case, but he also had no idea how Travis knew that. The money, which had the same thickness as Travis had given to Samantha and Emily, was similarly valued at 500,000. Travis handed them a total of one million and five hundred thousand cash. Kenneth suddenly recognized he had been right in his prior estimations.
"If I didn't obtain my reward from those robbers, should I be grateful for Travis giving me money?" Kenneth peered at the money, then at his teacher, then back at the money. When he understood Travis had nothing to do with his private job, he shook his head to clear his mind and returned his focus to the window. "Wait. Perhaps he had anything to do with the robbers I was planning to meet? Is that why he chased after me before entering the store, only to join them? " Kenneth doubted, "That makes total sense."
He held the money he was carrying securely beneath his shirt so his family wouldn't know he had brought this much money. He also didn't have time to come up with a clear explanation for where he got the cash. With his head facing down the window, Kenneth turned his eyes and gazed at Travis again.
"Hmm. You're kinda mysterious, Travis."