After leaving the Principal’s office, Alen walked out the front doors and saw Kailas, who was waiting just outside.

"Why are you still waiting for me? Don’t you have a job to do?" Alen asked.

Kailas snapped out of his daze as he saw Alen stepping out.

"Oh... no, it’s just that I was worried you might be too scared to talk to the Principal."

Alen stared at him blankly. He felt genuinely insulted. He wanted to punch the guy in the face, but he couldn’t do that to someone who had wasted his own time to bring him here. Alen had enough dignity not to exploit another person’s kindness.

Without another word, Alen started walking down the corridor. He had nothing left to learn about this place for now. His next priority was finding a temporary residence so he could rest, and he had to think of a method to earn some money.

He had been starving for days; he needed to feed his stomach first.

’Note to self: I have a few immediate tasks.’

’First, find a suitable way to earn a decent amount of money.’

’Next, eat some delicious food. I feel like I’m going to die of starvation.’

’Third, find a place to rest... I can’t sleep in the wilderness forever.’

’And finally, prepare for the next trial in the Ascension Realm...’

’If there is something that will make me stronger, it is walking my own Path. And in order to achieve the absolute limit of my Path, I have to climb to the very end.’

He looked up at the evening sun. As dusk began to claim the light of the earth, his journey in this new world was truly beginning.

"H-Hey! Wait for me!"

Alen stopped in his tracks and looked back.

"Where are you going, ki—I mean, Alen?" Kailas asked, jogging to catch up.

"Somewhere I can find some peace," Alen replied.

"Well, why not come with me?"

"To the police station?" Alen raised an eyebrow.

"N-No, not there! You can come to my home. You probably don’t have a place to stay yet, so it’s alright if you stay with me."

Alen looked at the man in front of him. For the first time, he hesitated to refuse someone. He looked deeply into Kailas’s eyes and found no malice or deception—only a genuine kindness that he hadn’t seen since he last looked into his parents’ eyes.

"Well... thank you for offering," Alen said softly.

"But I can’t depend on others forever. I have to pull my own weight."

"Besides, I’m not some helpless guy. I’m an Awakener now. I can handle myself and take responsibility for my own life."

Kailas looked at the boy. He wanted to try and convince him again, but after seeing the absolute confidence and calmness in Alen’s posture, he hesitated. He didn’t want to hold back a young man who was determined to stand on his own two feet.

"Okay... But you can at least take this," Kailas said.

He extended his hand. He was holding some local currency notes and a wrapped burger snack.

Alen looked at the offering. He gently picked up the snack, leaving the money behind.

"This is enough. I don’t want your money."

"Once again, thanks for the food. I will surely repay your kindness someday."

Alen turned around and started to walk down the path. He followed the paved walkway through the lush gardens and left through the giant gates of the Academy. Many students looked at him curiously, but he completely ignored their gazes.

...

Later that night, outside the bustling center of Vale City, the outer markets swarmed with crowds of people. The moon shone in the sky, illuminating the world with their warm, eerie light. Everyone was busy walking through the market alleys, buying and selling goods.

Sitting on top of a water tank on one of the tallest buildings was a silver-haired boy. He sat calmly at the very edge of the roof, looking up at the night sky. Beside him lay several empty food wrappers; he had finally managed to fill his starving stomach.

Right next to the wrappers lay several empty leather wallets.

"Damn... The food here is just as tasteless as it was in my old world. I really miss my mother’s cooking... Sigh..."

He picked up one of the wallets and inspected the inside. There was no money left in it.

"Sigh... What has my life come to? Now I have to become a thief just to eat."

"Well, it’s not like I stole from innocent people. I stole from the thieves themselves."

He shook his head, a small smirk forming.

After leaving the Academy, he had tried to think about getting a normal job. But if he focused on a 9-to-5 job, he wouldn’t have the freedom to enter the Ascension Realm. Most of the small merchants down below were commoners who didn’t have to worry about participating in the deadly trials, making those jobs unsuitable for an Awakener.

While wandering the market alleys thinking about what to do, his heightened senses picked up on a group of pickpockets. Because he was an Awakener with the Night Vision skill, he could see perfectly through the dark, narrow alleys.

He quietly followed them to their hideout. Waiting for the perfect opportunity, he sneaked into the room where they stashed their stolen goods. Using his Sound magic to mute his footsteps and silence any noise, he effortlessly robbed the robbers blind without them ever noticing. He then used their stolen cash to buy himself a massive dinner.

"Well... it’s not like stealing is my profession," Alen chuckled.

"But stealing from thieves is actually pretty entertaining. I should have stuck around just to see their reactions when they realized their stash was gone. Hehe..."

He dusted his hands off.

"Ahem! Let’s see how much progress I’ve actually made."

"Status Window... Open!"

[Status Window]

[Name: Alen]

[Age: 17]

[Titles: The Outlier, The Elemental Master, Illusion Walker]

[Talent: Unknown]

[Rank: C-]

[Element: Sound]

[Physique: Celestial Body (0-★)]

[ATTRIBUTES]

STR: 90/150

AGI: 95/150

DEF: 85/150

INT: 95/150

HP: 1000/1000

MP: 2000/2000

[ABILITIES]

1. ???? (?)

[Description: Your ???? will not be affected by the ????????. The ????? will cancel every ????? recognized as a ?????. Your ???????????, so you will be ?????? Fate...]

2. Nexus Elemental Art (B-)

[Description: Attacks performed using this art will receive a 500% power boost. The proficiency of this Art depends on the user’s knowledge of the techniques. This Art is evolvable.]

3. Night Vision (B+) (Evolvable)

[Description: Your sense of sight will be increased tremendously in the dark. You can see clearly through the darkest nights and the densest fog.]

[SKILLS]

Body Strengthening (Lv. 2)

[Description: Enhances the user’s physical body by reinforcing muscles, bones, and internal structure with mana. Increases strength, endurance, and resistance to damage. Effects scale with proficiency. Continuous use gradually improves the user’s base physique.]

Mana Concentration (Lv. 2)

[Description: Compresses a large amount of mana into a single focal point and forcibly discharges it, creating a devastating mana blast.]

...

"It seems the new ability has already been added to the interface. Night Vision is definitely useful; now I can fight in the dead of night without worrying about blind spots."

"My stats have also increased significantly. I’m definitely growing stronger... Sigh... That’s a relief. At least my survival in the first trial paid off quite well."

He stared intently at the censored ’????’ ability. He still didn’t know what its true power was or what it could be used for. But whatever it was, it wasn’t normal. Alen felt a deep sense of mystery surrounding such a bizarre, broken skill.

"Let’s hope I stay alive long enough to unfold the mystery behind this..."

"Well... I already died once, so I don’t fear death anymore. At least, that’s what I currently think."

"Because... there is nothing left in my life holding me back. No friends, no family. No one to care for me, and no one waiting for me to come home. There is only one thing remaining, and that is myself."

"If I want to survive in this world, I have to build myself up to be capable of standing alone."

"If a man wants to walk his Path, he has to survive on his own. There will be no one to help you, no one to support you. You are the only one capable of supporting yourself. Only when you become that kind of person can you succeed."

A small smile tugged at his lips. His silver hair shimmered in the moonlight, fluttering gently in the night breeze.

His azure eyes shone brightly with a newfound determination, reflecting the beautiful moons above. Looking out over the vast, magical city, he closed his eyes, inhaled the cool night air, and peacefully drifted off to sleep.

...

Inside the old bunker where Alen had just stolen the thieves’ goods, two men stood staring at an empty drawer. They slowly turned to look at each other, their eyes wide with realization and anger.

​"Damn it! You f*cking bastard, I know you’re the one who stole it!" one yelled.

​"Hey, don’t try to blame this on me!" the other shot back.

"Maybe you’re the one who pocketed the wallets!"

​"Just shut up!"

​The first man lunged forward and punched the other guy right in the face.

​"Ouch! You bastard, take this!"

​He jumped on his companion and started throwing wild punches. The other guy wasn’t willing to just take a beating, and soon, a full-blown brawl broke out in the middle of the hideout.

​While they fought tooth and nail in the dusty bunker, the silver-haired boy who had actually stolen their cash was resting peacefully under the moonlight, completely unaware of the chaos he had just created in their friendship.