*”Ding dong.”*
*”It’s 6:00 AM, and this is your Florida morning news. Another night without an SSSS-rank challenge in the Tower of Truth. Thor hasn’t attempted a climb in nearly a week…”*
Mike stretched, yawning, and quickly finished his morning routine.
Last night, he and Cain had stuffed their faces at a barbecue joint until 11:30 PM.
Cain had brought his own ingredients – a whole live sheep – and the owner had kindly roasted it for them.
Mike had a lamb chop and some veggies.
Cain… devoured the rest.
The owner, witnessing this feat of gastronomical prowess, was awestruck.
“I’ve never seen a young man eat so much!”
These two were clearly students, probably not even Soldiers yet, let alone superpower university material.
Yet, Cain had not only demolished an entire roasted sheep but also cleaned out the restaurant’s entire stock of side dishes.
The kid had a bottomless pit for a stomach.
Cain, however, was moaning and groaning, his face a mask of despair.
“Mike, I’m almost out of food already. What am I going to do?”
He had been studying the warrior under Anderson’s tutelage.
Lesson one: Eat everything in sight.
Cain’s strength hadn’t increased much, but his appetite had doubled, maybe tripled.
At summer camp, food and lodging had been covered.
Now, once his stash was gone, he was facing starvation.
“Easy peasy,” Mike said, offering a solution. “Go back to school tomorrow and challenge everyone in your combat class.”
“Challenge them?” Cain looked confused. “Why would I do that?”
Mike rolled his eyes. “You need to show off your skills, dominate the school, and demonstrate your potential to become Florida’s Rising Star. That’s how you get the school to invest in you!”
Without external support, Cain wouldn’t have a chance to grow until he reached a superpower university.
“Oh, I get it…” Cain’s eyes widened in understanding.
They parted ways, heading home.
Mike hadn’t given the matter much thought.
After finishing his morning routine, he booked an 8:00 AM flight to New York, planning to leave solo.
He had only told Cain about his plans to attend a superpower university out of state, without mentioning the location, just that he would be gone for a while.
He arrived at the airport at 7:15 AM.
Cain should be having breakfast around this time.
As Mike was about to board the plane, a voice called out.
“Mike! Wait!”
A bruised and battered Cain, his face a roadmap of pain, came running towards him, lugging five backpacks.
Mike raised an eyebrow. “Who did this to you?”
“The Dean,” Cain replied cheerfully.
Mike: ???
“Story time. As your friend, I’m obligated to hear all the gory details.”
“Don’t even ask.” Cain sighed. “Remember what you said about challenging people and making a name for myself? I figured, why bother with individual challenges? I’ll just block the school entrance!”
At 6:03 AM, Cain had planted himself at the school gates, ready to rumble.
The first person to arrive was the Dean. Cain, without even checking who it was, immediately challenged him to a duel.
The Dean, a formidable powerhouse, had promptly wiped the floor with Cain.
Undeterred, Cain had resumed his post at the school gates. freeweɓnovel.cѳm
Several instructors had taken turns pummeling him, resulting in his current… disheveled state.
They had reached a unanimous conclusion: “This kid can take a beating!”
After losing talented students like Mike, Jessica, and James, Cain had become Magic High School’s new star pupil!
From the instructors’ perspective, Cain was a diamond in the rough!
“Well, at least it worked out in the end,” Mike said.
He was confident that Cain wouldn’t have to worry about food for a while.
In the current system, the stronger and more promising you were, the more resources you received.
Mike, Jessica, and the others could head straight to New York’s superpower university.
Cain, however, had to stay in Florida, grinding until he earned his ticket to bigger and better
things.
In a way, falling behind early meant falling behind permanently.
But every cloud had a silver lining.
For Cain, slower progress might be a blessing in disguise.
Mike firmly believed that being around a potential Supreme Being was a recipe for disaster.
He didn’t want to drag Cain down with him.
After his sparring session with the instructors, Cain had rushed to the airport to see Mike off.
In Florida, Cain was the only person likely to see him off.
In the past, Blaze might have joined them.
But Blaze, freshly promoted to Lord tier, was busy with his new responsibilities.
Besides, Blaze was probably already in New York, waiting for Mike.
Cain rummaged through his backpacks. “Here’s a Windstride Slash skill book, some healing potions, scrolls… you’ll need these…”
He handed one of the backpacks to Mike.
Mike raised an eyebrow. “Why did you bring five backpacks if you were only giving me one?”
“Breakfast,” Cain replied matter-of-factly. “Gotta eat on the way back, right?”
Mike gave him a thumbs-up. “You win.”
Neither of them was good at goodbyes.
After handing Mike the backpack, Cain mumbled a few words and walked away.
Only after the plane took off did Cain turn to leave, munching on a giant, custom-made
burger.
“I feel like I forgot something important…” he muttered between bites.
Then it hit him.
“Crap, I forgot to get the IOU back!”
He had given Mike the skill books not only as a gesture of friendship but also to retrieve the
IOU.
With the IOU still in Mike’s hands, who knew how much it would be worth the next time they
met? The interest rates were insane!
“Oh well, next time,” he sighed.
…
Two hours later, Mike, wearing a baseball cap, discreetly disembarked from the plane.
After contemplating the subway map for ten seconds, he decided to take a taxi.
“Free shuttle to New York’s superpower university! Free sightseeing tours!” A student walked
by, holding a sign, his enthusiasm lacking.
He didn’t understand why they had suddenly arranged a free shuttle service.
Most superpower university students came from wealthy families. They wouldn’t be caught
dead on a bus. Many even had their own private teleportation arrays.
And ordinary citizens weren’t exactly clamoring to visit a superpower university.
Who would take a free shuttle?
Mike, spotting the bus, confidently approached the student.
“Hello, I’m a tourist from out of town. I’d love to take a free tour of your superpower
university!”