**Chapter 20: The Inevitable Finally Happened **
On the car ride:
"How about we split the money evenly?"
Emmett caressed the Franklin bills with a blissful expression. After a while, he tentatively looked at Adam. "A thousand each?"
"Of course."
Adam smiled. "Or did you have another idea in mind?"
"Nope, this works for me!"
Emmett raised his hand quickly, laughing cheekily. "Haha, Adam, it's all thanks to you!"
His tone and expression were quite ingratiating.
"Exactly, all thanks to him!"
Juno chimed in, laughing as well.
Adam's smile twitched slightly. He could easily read the subtext in Emmett and Juno's words but chose not to argue.
He had lived his life on his terms and never needed to explain himself to others.
---
**Late Night.**
*Ding!*
[Intelligence +0.005!]
*Ding!*
[Intelligence +0.005!]
The daily intelligence points from Juno and Little Sheldon arrived on time, lifting Adam's spirits. He refreshed his system panel.
- Intelligence: 114.6 (Normal: 100, Excellent: 120, Genius: 140, Super Genius: 180)
- Strength: 180 (Normal: 100, Strong: 200, Superhuman: 500, Beyond Human: 1000)
- Endurance: 310 (Normal: 100, Excellent: 200, Remarkable: 500, Beyond Human: 1000)
- Speed: 160 (Normal: 100, Excellent: 200, Remarkable: 500, Beyond Human: 1000)
- Lifespan: 35.04 years (Premature death: ~40, Normal: ~80, Excellent: ~100, Remarkable: ~150, Beyond Human: ~200)
- Other: [Locked]
"Huh? Why did my endurance increase without any system notification? That's odd."
Adam scanned his stats, pausing on the endurance row. He studied it for a long time but couldn't figure it out. Being a laid-back person, he ultimately shrugged it off.
"Never mind. If I can't figure out the pattern for endurance growth, so be it. This world is full of mysteries and unknowns. Wisdom and lifespan are the real priorities."
With this thought, sleepiness overtook him, and Adam drifted off into a deep slumber.
---
**The Next Day.**
"Why are you smiling like that?"
Little Sheldon frowned, staring at Emmett, who was grinning ear to ear.
"Because I'm happy!"
Emmett chuckled, "Sheldon, you really missed out last night."
"Why?"
Little Sheldon looked puzzled.
"Forget it, Emmett," Adam interjected. "Do you think Sheldon cares about money?"
In Adam's memory, Sheldon's view on money had always been one of sufficiency. A vivid example was when Penny was short on cash, and Sheldon unhesitatingly offered her his piggy bank to take whatever she needed.
In a society where money reigns supreme—even among family, couples, or friends—such genuine generosity was incredibly rare.
Not to mention, Penny's reluctance to take at first turned into taking freely later, yet Sheldon's attitude remained consistent throughout. His sincerity outshone even the rare few who would offer help.
"What money?"
Sheldon's eyes lit up.
Emmett proudly recounted the previous night's events. What surprised Adam even more was that Sheldon, after some hesitation, looked at him seriously and said, "I've thought it over. Next time, I want to join."
"Uh…" Adam was stunned. "Why?"
Given Sheldon's usual reaction to such environments—ranging from discomfort to outright fleeing or fainting—Adam couldn't imagine what could motivate him.
"I need money," Sheldon replied with a frown. "I owe my dad $200, and I need to pay him back."
"What did you do?"
Emmett exclaimed dramatically.
"It's my Vulcan hearing's fault," Sheldon said, frowning.
Emmett and Juno exchanged blank looks, clearly not familiar with the *Star Trek* Vulcan hearing reference.
"You didn't dismantle your refrigerator, did you?"
Adam ventured a guess.
"Wait, how did you know?"
Sheldon looked surprised. "Last night, I could still hear the noise from our fridge, and it was driving me crazy. My parents said they couldn't hear anything, but I couldn't take it anymore. So, I followed the manual and took it apart."
"You couldn't put it back together, could you?"
Emmett looked at Sheldon like he was a fool.
"Of course not," Sheldon retorted indignantly. "If I could dismantle it, I could definitely reassemble it. I just lacked the right tools for the job."
"But your dad didn't buy that excuse, right?"
Juno couldn't help but laugh.
"Correct."
Sheldon sighed, clearly frustrated. "He was furious and even yelled at me, so now I have to earn money to repay him."
What he didn't mention was that he had been so scared he cried—a fact that made him feel deeply embarrassed as a self-proclaimed grown-up.
"Totally understandable," Adam said, sympathizing with Sheldon's dad. "If it were your brother instead of you, he'd probably have been spanked already. That fridge was perfectly fine, and you just had to dismantle it. Two hundred dollars! Do you know how much Lone Star beer that could've bought?"
Sheldon's family of five relied solely on his father's income, so every penny had to be stretched. Blowing $200 like that would understandably infuriate anyone.
This incident also made Adam question Sheldon's practical abilities. Theoretically, Sheldon was unmatched, but if he couldn't even reassemble a simple fridge, how could he possibly handle something as complex as a nuclear reactor?
"…"
Sheldon opened his mouth, then closed it. After a moment, he sighed. "You're right. I can understand why my dad got so angry now."
For a die-hard Lone Star beer fan, everything could be measured in beer quantities.
---
**Lunch Break.**
After eating, Adam, Juno, and Sheldon headed to the library to spend their remaining free time.
As usual, Emmett separated from the group. In the past, he'd practice street dancing to look cool; now, he wandered around flaunting the fame of their indie band, *Fruit Hard Candy*.
Unfortunately, his looks weren't up to par, and he wasn't the lead singer—just the drummer. His efforts always ended in disappointment, but he never gave up.
---
**Library.**
"Hey, Sheldon! What are you in the mood for today? Quantum mechanics, liquid rockets, or astronomy?"
The librarian, a chubby young woman, greeted Sheldon warmly. They were quite familiar with each other, as these advanced scientific topics were Sheldon's favorites.
"Quantum mechanics, please," Sheldon replied cheerfully, taking the book and heading off to enjoy his intellectual haven.
Adam, meanwhile, focused on reviewing his coursework. With his intelligence score not yet at the genius threshold of 140, he needed to work diligently to maintain a 4.0 GPA in all his subjects.
"Sss…"
Out of the corner of his eye, Adam noticed Juno pulling a massive book out of her bag. He couldn't help but draw a sharp breath.
"What's wrong?"
Juno gave him a puzzled look.
"Nothing, nothing at all."
Adam's heart raced as he shook his head and lowered his gaze to his textbook. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't concentrate.
The inevitable had finally come.
*(End of Chapter)*