When he got back home, Rodrick already had an idea in mind. The step he had to take was crystal clear.
"I have to go to New York as soon as possible..."
His sister Emily used to talk to them about her travels as an aspiring actress, and most of these conversations were about her experiences, all of which took place in one particular place.
New York, the place where the Tower of America is located...
Rodrick had to start challenging the tower as quickly as possible if he wanted to save her. According to reports, his sister had been lost on one of the upper floors.
"Damn..."
It was quite likely that his sister was lost on an unexplored floor. Beyond the 40th floor, to be specific...
To reach those floors, the normal thing would be to first reach the Imperial Class as an aspirant, which meant reaching or exceeding level 25.
That was crazy for Rodrick right now.
He hadn't even reached level 2!
So the most logical thing would be to start challenging the lower floors of the tower. With the Star Corps, taking the first steps should be relatively easy, or so Rodrick assumed, at least.
"Damn... I've never taken a combat class in my life!"
Rodrick walked to the kitchen, grabbed a glass of water, and drank it greedily. He was nervous. A little while ago, he had done things out of character for him. Detect a trap for aspirants? Killing a mad doctor? Since when had Rodrick become like this?
But now, when he needed that steely determination the most, it was nowhere to be found...
"Shit... shit, shit..."
Rodrick was scared. He had no idea how to fight and hunt creatures in the tower. It was crazy. Maybe he should take a step back and take his time?
Rodrick stood in the kitchen contemplating the cold loneliness of his home. Silence dominated the house as it normally did the city. It was painful. His family was currently in New York finishing the necessary paperwork for the search for his sister. He was alone, afraid to act, but still so eager to save her, to prove that he could too...
Then, a light bulb went off in Rodrick's head.
"The academy..."
Of course, it was crystal clear what he had to do. Going into the tower right now would be suicide! He had no idea how to kill creatures and had never killed a living thing.
Well, except for ants and the occasional cockroach.
Now, determined not to let this resolve fade, Rodrick ran for his cell phone and called his mother. It took a few seconds for her to answer, the ring tone echoing in the silent house.
"Hi, Mom, is everything okay?" Rodrick asked, feigning slight optimism.
"Yes, son. What's wrong? Did something happen?"
"Mom, I want to join the academy for aspirants."
"What?"
"Yes, Mom, I just woke up and I want to learn as quickly as possible."
"Oh... I see," his mother's voice was sad. "You were never attracted to the world of aspirants. Do you really want this, son?"
Rodrick took a second to answer.
It was the perfect moment to back out. He could just say he was joking and put this crazy idea aside, right?
"It's a..."
Rodrick hesitated. An immense, crushing doubt took hold of his heart and squeezed it mercilessly. The doubt was painful.
"Yes, Mom. I want to do it. I'm going to become an aspirant."
Rodrick's mother was silent on the other end of the phone, and he could hear slight sobs coming from the other side.
"Mom?"
"It's okay, son. You have my support, and you know you have your father's too. Take care of yourself, okay?"
Rodrick clenched his teeth, trying to hold back the tears.
"Yes, Mom. I will."
Then his mother hung up. Rodrick remained in the same position for a second, then dropped the phone on the dining room table. Rodrick wiped his tears and looked out the window at the steady rain.
"Okay, let's do it," Rodrick said with a smile.
***
Two days flew by; these days had been really busy. Rodrick had sent the application to the academy and even had to include several details in it. His base stats, his aspiration, which in this case was "Weapons Aspirant," and his current level. The number of requirements this academy requested was crazy. Rodrick even had to add to his application that he had the stats of a level 5 aspirant in order to be accepted.
"Damn, my plan to hide my strength until the end failed..."
Rodrick was actually a big fan of light novels and manga. He had a dream of one day being as powerful and cool as one of his favorite protagonists, so revealing a part of his inherent talent seemed annoying to him, but in the end, he had managed to get in without having to reveal his stellar body.
The second day was even more hectic, as in just one day, Rodrick's application to the academy had already been answered.
"The Eagle Aspirants Academy reports that, following the corresponding evaluation process, Rodrick Gray Oarion has been officially accepted as a student at our prestigious institution.
Having satisfactorily met the established requirements and evaluations, his enrollment as a student takes effect as of this notification.
He is strongly requested to report to the institution within a time limit of two days.
Sincerely,
Rose Morgan.
General Director"
The acceptance into the academy was so sudden that Rodrick had barely had time to prepare for his trip to New York.
The day had been spent packing his suitcase and buying plane tickets, which had, in fact, consumed most of his savings.
Rodrick, a boy who had been taught to be thrifty for most of his life, now felt like he was in his worst nightmare. But he let it go this time; his sister was the priority, and who knows? Maybe as an Aspirant he could earn a lot of money and finally leave his stingy ways behind.
Today, his journey began. Rodrick stood at his front door ready to leave, wearing a beige coat and formal black pants. It felt strange to dress like this, but the academy required formality. Rodrick grabbed his umbrella by the door and pulled his suitcase with his other hand. As he stepped outside, he opened his umbrella; he didn't want to bring bad luck by opening it inside.
Rodrick walked through the lonely city with his suitcase in hand, heading for the center, where several shopping malls were located and where most taxis tended to be. On the way, he came across a group of children playing in a small park. The playground equipment looked wet, and the wind was cold, but these children were not wearing warm clothes, let alone umbrellas.
"How strange, how can their parents let them go out like this?"
Rodrick approached and spoke to the children from a distance as they played.
"Hey, kids! Aren't you cold?"
Instantly, their attention turned to Rodrick, and they all looked at him with some confusion.
"Not at all!"
When one of them said that, the others laughed.
"Why would we be cold?"
The children ran off seconds later to continue playing, and Rodrick just smiled.
"Of course."
The warmth of friendship, the warmth of being with people you truly love and appreciate—how could that not be enough to drive the cold from their bodies?
Rodrick turned around and continued on his way, not wanting to bother the kids any longer. As he took his first step, ready to leave, Rodrick felt something, as if his intuition were tapping him on the shoulder in warning. Rodrick turned his head and looked through the perpetual raindrops. The children were still playing in the distance, and just between the park fences, a man was watching them. The man was dressed in a black sweatshirt, wearing a hoodie and old jeans. Rodrick snorted, he already had an idea of what he was seeing.
Rodrick walked around the entire park until he was right behind the man without being detected. When he arrived, Rodrick left his suitcase and umbrella next to a tree and approached the man stealthily.
"Hello, what are you looking at?"
The man jumped in fright, so much so that he even fell to the ground on his backside.
Looking up, the man saw Rodrick's youthful appearance and his concern subsided.
"None of your business, kid. Get lost."
The man stood up, in pain, and just as he was about to get up, Rodrick kicked his right leg and he fell back to the ground.
"What the hell? You really want to fight, kid?"
Rodrick looked him in the eye without hesitation.
"Damn, damn, I'm lost, what the hell am I doing? This man is going to kill me!"
Rodrick thought.
He was actually scared to death inside. It was the first time he had ever stood up to someone who was committing an act of evil. He had never resisted someone's will like this before. It was crazy for Rodrick!
"Umm... Maybe?" Rodrick said hesitantly.
"Good... Get ready to experience the strength of a level 3 aspirant!"
The man jumped to his feet and at the same time fell on Rodrick. Rodrick stood there unmoving, and the man threw a punch at Rodrick's face with all his strength. Rodrick's head spun slightly from the blow, but there was no damage.
Rodrick frowned and looked at the man. Then, Rodrick perfectly imitated the man's punch and returned it with six times the force. The man flew into the fence protecting the park, which broke under Rodrick's force, leaving the man unconscious outside the park.
Seconds later, the abysmal silence of the city returned to the place where Rodrick had been standing. There was no one there anymore.
***
When he reached the city center, Rodrick wiped the sweat from his forehead and sat down on one of the benches there. After hitting that man, Rodrick had run away, hoping not to be blamed for the man's condition. Thankfully, there were no authorities on the scene, and Rodrick was able to leave unpunished.
After a short rest, Rodrick took the first taxi he came across.
"Good afternoon, young man. Where are you headed?"
"Hello, yes, good afternoon... To the airport, please."
The taxi driver nodded and accelerated. Along the way, Rodrick looked out the window at the expanse of the city. Rain covered and wet the entire surroundings of the city; it had always been that way. According to what his parents had said, endless rain had arrived eighteen years ago and since then, it had never let up, always maintaining the same rhythm. No important institution had taken the time to investigate this phenomenon, and the few scientists and researchers born in Noumber quickly abandoned it once they achieved a little prestige. That was how this city was. After a few years, the residents began to get used to this rain; it had become normal. Why would they investigate something so normal in their lives?
That was how everyone here lived. Of course, the only exception was his family. Rodrick's family had always been skeptical about the rain and had even speculated about it. They thought that some aspirant had managed to touch a "Mythical Floor." That was what the most prestigious and complex floors were called. On those floors were the most difficult trials in the towers, but they were also where the greatest reward was found before the one at the end of the tower, of course. But challenging these floors always has consequences... Overflows of creatures, corrupted spaces, natural phenomena, and all kinds of otherworldly things.
Even so, Rodrick always suspected that this was not the case...
After a long hour's journey, Rodrick had arrived at the airport. His flight was in an hour, so he had arrived relatively on time. Although his mother always suggested that he arrive at least two hours late for his flight, just in case of any inconveniences...
"Just in time!"
Rodrick took a seat in one of the many available spots. There were very few people there, which was normal in Noumber, but even so, it seemed strange to him.
As he looked at his cell phone while waiting, Rodrick's stomach growled.
"Oh my God, I forgot. I haven't eaten anything all day."
Rodrick had been in such a hurry to leave Noumber that he had even forgotten to eat something. Rodrick sighed and stood up, put some things in his suitcase, took out his wallet, and went to one of the fast food establishments at the airport. When he arrived, a girl was already ordering, so Rodrick simply stood behind her.
"A double hamburger... or better yet, a triple, two orders of fries, and a large soda."
The cashier's eyes widened in surprise, but she still finished taking the order.
"Nothing else? Nothing else?"
"No, that's everything."
The girl who had ordered all that food turned and looked Rodrick in the eyes. The girl's eyes...
"How... how beautiful..."
Amber, the color of those beautiful eyes was like amber. Rodrick felt a little nervous when he felt the girl's gaze on him.
"What are you looking at?"
The girl walked toward him, Rodrick's heart screaming in fear, but just as they were about to come face to face, the girl veered off and walked toward the tables in the establishment to take a seat. Rodrick swallowed hard.
"What the hell is wrong with me?"
"Are you going to order something?" asked the cashier at the establishment.
"Oh yes, I want..."
It was the first time Rodrick had ever felt such warmth in his heart.
***
After this incident, Rodrick never ran into that girl again, so he just ate his food and gathered his things. They were about to board.
"Okay, New York, let's see what you have in store for me."