Early the next morning, dressed in a familiar white button-down shirt and blue college uniform pants, Skyler had breakfast with his parents, who were getting ready to leave for the guild together.
Over the past month, the couple had been dedicating all their time to watching every broadcast to ensure their son was fine in the preliminary test, just like Jenny, which resulted in a lot of work piling up.
The fact that Johnson was one of the two leaders of the only guild in Nowan City, and that the Lights working under him had also neglected their work while searching for his son, did nothing to improve the situation.
In their absence, new crystals leading to other dimensions filled with monsters had materialized above the city, and now they had to manage those that had turned gray or were about to turn orange.
Unlike the top six guilds in the Human Continent, which were officially granted their titles by the royalty, Johnson’s guild lacked fame. However, it had many strong Lights. Moreover, small cities like Nowan City could only rely on guilds like his that were dedicated to ensuring public safety.
Skyler was putting on his sneakers when his father asked him for the second time.
"Are you sure you don’t want us to drop you off at the entrance of the college?"
Riya also glanced at her son, who was seated before the apartment entrance, but Skyler shook his head with a smirk.
"It’s fine. I’m going to use my electric motorcycle that’s been collecting dust for so long. It’s my last day of college, and I want to break all the rules, especially the one that says students aren’t allowed to park their vehicles at the gate. Hehe."
He stood up, pleased that with the storage ring he no longer had to carry anything, and twirled the silver keychain around his finger as he quickly exited the apartment.
Johnson watched him leave, speechless.
"So that’s why he wants to go alone. I am not sure if I should scold him. His old habit of causing trouble is coming back."
Riya chuckled, and he picked up his phone and dialed a number. The call connected on the first ring, and an alert voice answered.
"Sir, I am already outside the building!"
Johnson conversed with the Light he had assigned to watch over Skyler.
"Good. Protect my son for the next few days until he leaves for the academy."
***
At the same time, Skyler took the elevator down to the parking area in front of the tall building and approached the motorcycle parked in a corner among the cars.
It was covered in a dark waterproof fabric, and the moment he removed the fabric, its whole body gleamed in the sunlight.
He sighed softly. The motorcycle was sleek and beautiful, but in a world filled with flying cars, it was all he had—or should he say, all that his dad had bought for him? Even his parents didn’t own a flying car.
"Hopefully, once I have enough money in the future and become stronger, I will buy a flying car... Wait, why do I need to buy a flying car when I can just fly around?"
Skyler laughed, causing the eyebrow of the man—hidden in the shadows—his dad had assigned to watch over him to twitch.
Only Lights above 10 stars or those with rare skills, such as flying or levitating, have the ability to float. Even he did not possess that ability as a 8-star, and yet this kid was already thinking about flying around.
Skyler put on the full-face helmet and smoothly got onto the motorcycle, donning dark fingerless gloves before speeding off.
The man followed him quietly, utilizing a skill that greatly enhanced his speed.
In no time, Skyler arrived at 4th Nowan High, the top college in all of Nowan City.
The students entering the college’s gate all gasped when a motorcycle pulled up at the entrance and Skyler got off. He removed his helmet and ran his hand through his hair.
"It’s a beautiful morning."
Those who recognized him erupted into loud murmurs since he was famous in the city and the fact that he was teleported to the preliminary test a month ago, despite being ineligible, had spread as well.
Skyler rubbed his nose.
For the first time, he didn’t mind the murmurs surrounding him. Of course, the next moment, his electric motorcycle was confiscated by the guards at the entrance. Even though he was famous, he still had to abide by the college’s rules. But he didn’t care and even handed them his helmet.
"Please take care of it for me. I will be back shortly. I’m here to have my name removed from the college. Today’s my last day."
With that, he turned to enter the gates, only to look back when he sensed eyes on him.
"I have been feeling like someone is watching me, or is it my imagination?"
He frowned but continued to stroll through the gates, unaware that in a dark alley near the college, the 8-star Light his father had placed to watch over him had captured a villain who had come to kidnap him.
Robert snickered at the man in his grasp.
"Sir was right; you pesky dark lights are bound to show up around his son!"
The dark-haired man in his hold chuckled, revealing rows of yellow teeth.
"I am just an ordinary citizen. How can you think I’m one of those bad villains?"
His smirk and the wild glint in his eye didn’t match his words. Before Robert could knock the man out, a woman dressed in red slammed a metal pipe against his head. In an instant, blood oozed from the wound as he staggered back, his vision clouding. The woman struck him in the same spot again and again, and he lost consciousness.
She clicked her tongue and tossed the metal pipe she had just picked up from the alley away before wiping her hands.
"Clean this up and let’s go. You know, the doc is impatient. He said to capture the test subjects, and lucky for us, both of them happened to be at the same college."
The man with yellow teeth smirked and leaned down to slap Robert’s cheek softly. He was known as Dread.
"Hiss... it must have been painful. Miss Scar is a cruel woman. My apologies."
He looked at the woman. They were both minor villains who worked for higher-ups in the underworld for money and resources. Scar and Dread were their fake aliases.
They both had bounties on their heads, and the ’Doc’ the woman was discussing was a wealthy dark alchemist in the underworld. He was a notorious villain in small cities because he experimented on humans.
The Doc was interested in Skyler since he saw a video of the boy awakening a 1-star potential online two years ago. But he let it go because the kid didn’t seem special. Yet, his interest was rekindled again when he noticed Skyler in the preliminary test.
"I was going to get the blue-eyed boy from his home, but unlike your target, his parents are powerful. We need to be cautious."
She nodded. Then the two villains vanished and entered 4th Nowan High silently.