"A villa!?"
The entire family stared at Link in shock the moment he spoke those words.
To them, it sounded nothing short of a fantasy.
For an ordinary family like theirs, buying a villa was nothing but a pipe dream.
Given their modest income, even working for three hundred years might not have been enough to afford one.
Seeing their stunned reactions, Link felt a deep sense of satisfaction swelling inside him.
A warm feeling of accomplishment filled his chest.
He didn't keep them guessing for long.
He promptly pulled out the property deed and the purchase contract, handing them over.
"Twenty million!?"
"Where did you get so much money?"
"Tell us, Link! Otherwise, we really can't feel at ease. If this money came from anything shady, you must return it immediately! Don't make a mistake!"
Link, however, smiled easily and reassured them,
"Don't worry, Mom and Dad. I earned this money legitimately.
It's from selling elixir formulas."
"Recently, I got lucky and casually developed a couple of psionic potion formulas.
The Elixir Workshop under the City Lord's domain bought them from me.
Here—this is the sales contract."
The family huddled together, carefully scrutinizing the contract several times before they finally accepted Link's explanation.
Even so, they still looked as if they couldn't believe it.
To further reassure them, Link transferred five million credits to his mother's account.
"Mom, take this money," he said gently.
"From now on, you and Dad don't need to work anymore.
You've both worked hard your entire lives — it's time for you to enjoy some well-deserved rest."
Their faces instantly bloomed with happiness.
They had never dared imagine their son would one day be able to ease their burdens like this.
Pride and joy filled their hearts.
"Alright, no time to waste — let's start moving into the new place," Link said with a smile.
"I also need to start practicing seriously.
Even though I'm already a Level 1 Esper, it's still not nearly enough."
At those words, the whole family froze.
"What did you just say?"
"Level 1 Esper? You're really a Level 1 Esper now?"
Link nodded casually, as if it were no big deal.
"Yep, that's right. Nothing special," he said.
"But with this, getting into Capital University should basically be a guaranteed thing!"
"Good! That's our son — you've truly inherited the family's fine bloodline!"
"Pfft, what fine bloodline are you talking about?" his mother teased.
"Hey, don't forget — we had a T5 Esper in our family tree once!" Link's father retorted proudly.
Amid the laughter and chatter, Link shared one final piece of news.
"By the way, Mom, Dad — next month, I'll be attending the Eagle Hatchling Camp.
If I graduate successfully, I'll be directly admitted to Astral Nexus University!"
"Astral Nexus University!? Guaranteed admission!?"
"That's amazing!"
Excitement lit up everyone's faces.
Still, his mother couldn't help but worry.
"Will the camp be dangerous?" she asked anxiously.
"Relax, Mom.
Only the most gifted get invited to the camp — the teachers will definitely protect us.
There won't be any real danger."
"Besides, even if I fail, I can still take the college entrance exam later.
No big deal. I just want to give myself another opportunity."
Hearing this, his parents finally relaxed, and the whole family busied themselves with preparations for moving.
Of course, Link wasn't exactly telling the full truth.
The Eagle Hatchling Camp did carry a certain risk of death.
But thanks to his unique Talent, Death Rewind, Link was almost immune to permanent death.
Thus, he truly wasn't worried.
—
Over the following month, Link didn't frequent the public training grounds anymore.
The villa he had purchased included its own private training field — a perfect place to hone his skills.
During that time, his strength grew at an astonishing rate.
[Name: Link]
[Power Value: 389 (Level 3 Esper)]
[Mind Power: 456 (Level 4 Esper)]
[…Other attributes omitted…]
His progress was remarkable.
His Power Value was nearing 400, and his Mind Power had reached Level 4!
This meant that Link could now rewind death hundreds of times if necessary.
If he truly wished, he could even rewind all the way back to before his Awakening Ritual.
Perhaps because he had experienced death and resurrection so many times, Link had grown increasingly indifferent to the concept of dying.
Beyond improvements to his core stats, his fusion skills had also made significant strides.
He now felt confident that he could at least put up a fight even against a Tier 1 Esper.
After a refreshing cold shower, Link retrieved his notebook from the safe.
Unfortunately, the next page of the notebook was still locked — no matter what he tried, he couldn't open it.
He suspected that perhaps only after entering Astral Nexus University would he be able to access it.
In fact, the more he was denied, the more curious he became.
He couldn't shake the feeling that the notebook's secrets were somehow tied to the university itself.
Carefully putting it away again, Link enjoyed a meal with his family before packing his belongings.
It was time for him to leave for Eagle Hatchling Camp.
"Be careful on the road!" his parents called out at the door.
Link waved and grinned.
"Don't worry!
Who knows — maybe when I come back, I'll already have my acceptance letter from Astral Nexus University!"
—
Velmoria, Spiritual Powers Railway Station.
Link boarded a long train, consisting of over a dozen carriages, and couldn't help feeling a little dazed.
This thing looks exactly like an old-fashioned train!
But on second thought, it made sense.
Hundreds of years ago, humanity had indeed invented and relied heavily on trains.
It was only after the rise of spiritual powers that trains had gradually been phased out.
Still, many aspects of their design — appearance, structure — had been retained.
Sitting in his assigned seat, Link gazed out of the window.
His destination: Sanctilum.
Unlike Velmoria, Sanctilum was on an entirely different level.
It was one of the top ten cities in the entire kingdom — a sprawling metropolis, a place where elites gathered.
Link's heart filled with a sense of eager anticipation.
A new stage of life awaited him there.
Most of the passengers on the train were students like himself.
In half a year, the National Awakener Trials would take place, and many students were heading to larger cities for intensive preparation, hoping to get into prestigious universities.
The girl sitting next to Link was quiet and reserved.
Because of a small incident involving a cup of hot water, the two gradually struck up a conversation and ended up exchanging contact information.
More friends, more roads, Link thought.
He saw no harm in it.
Besides, there was another small reason —
The girl, Carrie, happened to come from a town near where Link's childhood neighbor and secret crush, Corinne, had lived.
Perhaps it was this strange coincidence that made Link willing to add her as a friend.
Meanwhile, the train gradually slowed down.
They had arrived.
Sanctilum.