American Adventure: My Uncle is Don Quixote

The more exclusive a mansion, the higher the upfront costs. Money was pouring out like water from an open floodgate.

But Li Wei was enjoying every moment of it. With his accumulated prize money from multiple competitions and the remainder from his various commercial endorsements, his disposable savings had once again climbed steadily past the 10 million USD mark, even after paying for the house in full.

Of course, the property taxes and basic maintenance on the Long Island Manor, the rent for the Fortress City Apartments, the massive insurance and upkeep for his cars like the Koenigsegg and Cullinan, plus daily, dating, and social expenses... it all added up, burning through seven or eight hundred thousand USD a month. But—

The Fortress City Apartments had been nice, but it wasn’t a home. It hadn’t belonged to him; he was just a tenant.

No matter how expensive the annual property taxes and maintenance fees for this Long Island villa were, it was, after all, his first house.

Since coming to the United States of America, this was the first house that was completely and truly his, with his name on the deed—his, both legally and physically.

On the afternoon he paid the final installment, Li Wei and Don Quixote drove out to Long Island.

The winter sun streamed through the main building’s massive floor-to-ceiling windows, pouring unreservedly into the empty, unfurnished grand hall.

The sound of their footsteps echoed off the marble floors, ringing out with exceptional clarity in the more than 1,850 square meters of indoor space.

"Finally, a place to call home," he said, turning to Don Quixote with a half-joking smile.

Don Quixote glanced around, his gaze sweeping from the high-vaulted ceilings to the world outside the windows, all the way to their private stretch of Long Island coastline. He couldn’t help but sigh.

"This is quite a home," he said. "It must be four or five times larger than the Fortress City Apartments."

"Well, a man’s got to have a house," Li Wei said with a smile. "How’d I do?"

"You did wonderfully," Don Quixote said earnestly.

"I know," Li Wei said, his smile widening.

"I know you do," Don Quixote replied, laughing as well.

The two walked another lap around the empty manor, planning out the future uses for its various wings. It wasn’t until sunset that they drove back to Manhattan.

For the next few days, Li Wei’s schedule was packed.

Between training, classes, and game preparations, he also had to carve out time for a trip to New Jersey.

Li Wei and Jin Heon sat in a laboratory filled with various essences, test tubes, and instruments at Coca-Cola’s North American flavor development center.

Coca-Cola’s chief flavorist, a middle-aged man in black-framed glasses, arranged nine transparent glass beakers, each with a different colored label, in a neat row and carefully pushed them toward Li Wei.

"Mr. Li Wei, these nine options are the final candidates our team has developed based on your original formula. After several days of repeated blending and fine-tuning," the flavorist said, pushing up his glasses, "they cover the full spectrum, from extremely crisp to rich and fruity. Now, we need you to make the final decision."

Seeing the nine differently colored liquids, Jin Heon leaned in, taking out a notebook to record his boss’s feedback.

Li Wei leaned forward, studying the nine different flavors before him. With a thought, the Chattering Court Jester’s Skull slipped silently out of his inventory.

The moment it appeared, the skull, its eye sockets flickering with red light, began to habitually flit and circle around Li Wei.

Jin Heon, sitting beside Li Wei, and the flavorist across from him were completely oblivious. To them, Li Wei was simply staring intently at the beakers on the cart.

Li Wei put on a show of picking up the first beaker. As he poured a small amount for himself, he issued a command to the Jester’s Skull.

’Among these nine diluted Magic Potions, which flavors will appeal most to the common folk?’

’I am a jester of the royal court... or at least, I was in life!’

’My mystic eyes should be used to probe the gaze of the abyss, to seek the treasures of lost kingdoms, or to expose the darkest desires of the human heart!’

’And now you have me picking out sugar water for this rabble?!’

’This is a desecration of Magic! A desecration of Magic Potions!’

’Cut the crap,’ Li Wei thought. ’If the sky falls, I’ll be the one to hold it up. You just do your job.’

Faced with Li Wei’s demand and insistence, the Jester’s Skull didn’t dare whine any longer. The red light in its eyes suddenly contracted, switching to a brilliant, dazzling Gold.

The Chattering Court Jester’s Skull activated its Gold-tier skill: Probe!

A golden light swept over the nine beakers on the cart like a searchlight. Just two seconds later, the skull flew back. The golden light faded, and its eyes returned to their Ruby glow.

It gave a perfunctory nod in mid-air toward three of the beakers: the second from the left, the one in the middle, and the one on the far right.

’Those three, I suppose. Though I still feel this is a profanity against my very being. Such a waste of my talents. You’d be better off letting me spy on the secrets of noblewomen; at least then I could gather some useful intelligence.’

Li Wei ignored the Jester’s Skull, which was still protesting about being utterly wasted on such a menial task.

He tasted them one by one and found that the few chosen by the Jester’s Skull all seemed to be slightly less sweet than the others.

"Let’s go with these," he said.

The Jester’s Skull continued to flit up and down beside him, apparently still disgruntled.

Li Wei suddenly recalled something Don Quixote had mentioned offhandedly one evening before Christmas, about advancing to the rank of Dragon Knight. He needed the heart of a Gold-tier dragon.

’Since you think this work is beneath you,’ Li Wei asked inwardly, ’do you know where to find any dragons?’

Hearing Li Wei’s question, the Jester’s Skull froze in mid-air. The red light in its sockets flickered erratically, as if it had short-circuited.

A moment later, it sent a flood of thoughts:

’Earth Dragons, wyverns, and drakes are quite common, but a Gold-tier dragon...’

’A Gold-tier dragon is practically a pureblood. Rumor has it that as Magic has gradually faded from the world, those behemoths haven’t been seen on this land for over a thousand years.’

The answer was what Li Wei had expected.

After all, finding a creature on par with a pureblood dragon wasn’t going to be easy, at least not any time soon.

He had an idea of his own, but he didn’t have the time to flesh it out. It was still half-baked.

Another weekend arrived, and Li Wei was playing a home game at MetLife Stadium against a team he’d never faced before—the Chicago Bears.

However, despite their reputation as a tough team, they were little more than a stat-padding exercise for Li Wei.

With an easy 16th consecutive win, the Giants were now just one game away from a 17-game winning streak in the regular season.

This final game was drawing massive attention online from fans, netizens, and industry experts alike. Everyone was speculating: would Li Wei make history, or would he fumble at the critical moment?

「Late that night, after their 16th straight win, inside the Fortress City Apartments.」

Li Wei had just decided to pour himself a glass of water before heading upstairs to play some games when he heard a noise from Don Quixote’s room again.

Moonlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, casting a glow on the living room carpet. The door opened, and Don Quixote emerged, his eyes closed.

"Good day, Knight Don Quixote," Li Wei said cheerfully as he approached. "How have you been?"

Hearing Li Wei’s voice, Don Quixote, his eyes still closed, slowly turned to face him.

"Good day, Knight Li Wei," Don Quixote’s voice was deep. "I have just returned from the investiture ceremony at the royal court. I have waited here to offer you my most sincere congratulations."

"Congratulate me?" Li Wei raised an eyebrow. "For winning my 16th tourney?"

"That is one reason," Don Quixote said, smiling with his eyes still closed. "But I am truly here to congratulate you. The young Princess you swore to support has finally gained enough power to become a candidate for the throne of this Kingdom."

A jolt went through Li Wei. He understood what Don Quixote was talking about.

"However, while I came to congratulate you," Don Quixote said, his smile vanishing, "I also came to give you an early warning. The rewards you have gained are too great; you have attracted the attention of the decadent nobles."