Just as Theo was about to continue, a familiar voice rang out behind him.
"I knew you'd be here," Owen's voice said.
Theo turned around. "Hey."
Owen sat down beside him on the bench, letting out a deep breath. "You good now?"
Theo fell silent for a moment, his gaze drifting back to the playground before his eyes narrowed slightly.
Then it all clicked.
'I went outside to clear my head,' he realized, a small smile appearing on his face. 'But to them… it probably looks like I was completely crushed.'
Though the thought made him pause.
It was undeniable that his heart ached knowing his parents had to sleep in a car while they pretended to be fine in front of him.
He clenched his hands.
'It'll all be fine with my new affinity,' he promised himself.
Theo turned to Owen, the small smile still on his face. "Yeah, I feel much better now."
"That's good," Owen said, nodding slowly as he shoved his hands into his pockets. "You wanna head back inside then? It's getting pretty damn cold out here."
"Sure," Theo answered, standing up and stretching his arms.
They walked back toward the apartment building together, Owen immediately starting on some more casual topics.
"Oh right," he said after only a few steps, remembering something. "You must've missed the announcement with everything going on."
Theo glanced at him, raising an eyebrow. "What announcement?"
Owen grinned. "The city confirmed the Youth Competition for this year of freshly awakened students."
Theo's steps slowed for a moment.
The Youth Competition, an event held every year right before the final year of high school ended.
It was a city-wide competition open to all awakened youths born in Santa Barbara, with rich rewards to boost students' chances before they headed to college.
Theo remembered it well, having been in the stands each year it was held. Every top performer easily made it into decent colleges, some even going to the best in the country.
"…What's the prize this year?" he asked, his mind racing.
Owen shot him a look, a grin spreading across his face. "Man, you're not gonna believe it."
Theo raised an eyebrow. "Spit it out."
"They're letting the winners choose," Owen said, raising two fingers, still grinning, "between an artifact or an elemental resource worth up to one million dollars."
"What?!" Theo said, stopping in his tracks. "That's twice as much as last year."
"Yup," Owen nodded. "Apparently Olivia Danes sponsored the city after doing well in Aurelion Academy as a way of giving back."
Theo fell silent for a moment.
'An elemental resource worth a million…' he thought. 'That's something far outside my reach, and she seems to have made it so easily at Aurelion.'
Aurelion Academy was the number one school in Europe. The benefits of joining it were obvious.
'I should… probably join this year's competition,' he thought, his mind racing. 'With my talent, I can compete, even if I don't have any financial support.'
It was an opportunity he wouldn't pass on.
'Three months of time, huh.'
Just then, Owen continued speaking, rambling on and on about the speculations around this year's competition and which students were likely to participate.
By the time they reached the apartment, the lights inside were already on.
Owen's parents greeted them warmly, ushering them in and insisting Theo eat a little more before resting. At some point, while he wasn't paying attention, an air mattress had been laid out in Owen's room.
"Thank you," Theo said quietly, bowing his head. "Really."
Owen's mother waved him off with a gentle smile. "Don't mention it. Just focus on resting."
That night, Theo lay on the air mattress, staring at the ceiling.
Owen was already asleep on the bed beside him, snoring loudly without a care in the world.
Theo didn't know whether to envy him or feel annoyed, since he couldn't fall asleep.
His thoughts darted around endlessly, from the fire to his parents and his new affinity.
And then… the screen.
The transparent hologram replayed itself in his mind, every line clearly visible.
'Would you rather…' Theo repeated, his mind churning. 'What kind of crazy thing must that screen be to offer these rewards?'
He frowned slightly.
'Come to think of it,' he thought, 'there was a punishment for not choosing an option.'
It was something about the system disappearing… and not showing up again.
'Doesn't that mean it will show up in the future?'
The thought gave him a strange, exhilarating feeling.
Would it offer him another insane choice? And with no cost at all?
Theo let out a soft breath, rubbing his face with both hands.
'Enough of that,' he thought, forcing himself to stop thinking. 'I should be happy with what I already have.'
There was no way he could rely on a screen that might not show itself ever again, not with his current affinity.
His thoughts shifted to his parents, to his father's forced smile and his mother pretending everything was fine.
'I need to earn money,' he thought, clenching his fist and raising it to the ceiling. 'The best way to do that is to join the Hunters Association.'
Even if it put his life in danger, there was no way he wanted to hide while his parents suffered.
'And I need to do it fast,' he convinced himself. 'Within a week, even.'
Hunters made real money, even the lowest-ranked missions paying more than his parents could earn in a week.
But to apply, there were clear requirements.
'The Hunters Association doesn't care about talent,' he thought. 'They just need people who can use their brain and proper spells.'
Every awakened individual could manipulate their element to some degree. But raw control was slow and required focus, making it completely unreliable in combat.
That was why spells existed.
They guided mana through specific pathways in the body, repeating the process over and over again until it became like muscle memory.
'I'll have to use my free ticket from the spell library to find a simple spell,' he thought. 'Just something I can protect myself with.'
Without at least one registered spell, the Hunters Association wouldn't even look at him.
He glanced up, confirming his plans with a smile.
After a few more minutes, his eyes closed as exhaustion caught up to him.