The next morning, Lian opened his eyes much earlier than he usually woke up.
The soft sunlight entered the room through the dormitory curtains and created a peaceful atmosphere, a peace that was completely different from his mind.
For several seconds, he lay on the bed without moving and stared at the ceiling.
Today was a different day. He was not going to fight monsters something like that like always
Today, he was going to a place that might be more dangerous than any battlefield.
he was going to do something completely different.
Today, he was finally going back to his old home...or to be more exact, the territory of the Vorhelm family.
Lian let out a short sigh and got out of bed, the first thing he did was pick up his phone.
He turned on the screen, nothing unusual had happened during the night, a few news reports about the Ruined Realms, a few reports about border conflicts.
Two economic news reports and a few other unimportant notifications, everything was normal.
Then he opened his bank account, a moment later his eyebrow rose.
[ Bank Balance : 220,970,000$ ]
He stared at the number for several seconds, then opened the transaction details, and just as he had expected, the sender was the government.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"So they finally paid..." He had expected one hundred million dollars, but they had still paid much more than he expected.
It was obvious, the Federation had not only paid compensation, it was making an investment.
An investment in someone whose future was still unknown, but who was expected to become one of the greatest Awakened of the next generation.
At times like this, the Federation tried to build good relationships with geniuses and gain their trust and goodwill, this way, in the future, when they reached the peak of their potential, it would be easier to work with them...or control them.
Lian closed his phone.
But unlike what many people might think, seeing such an amount did not make him especially excited.
No happiness, no shock, not even pride, he only quietly nodded.
When he had been kicked out of his family, he had almost nothing.
No support, no future, no position, but now? He had power, he had money, and he had fame, and more importantly...he had the freedom to choose.
But today was not the day to think about these things, today he had to enter the enemy’s territory.
A few hours later, Lian walked out of the dormitory building.
The morning air inside the academy was cool and pleasant.
Many students were walking around, some were going to class, some were getting ready for missions, and some had just woken up.
Everything looked normal, but for Lian, this view felt a little different.
He stopped, and looked across the huge academy buildings.
The training grounds, the teaching towers, the dormitories, the research halls.
In less than one month...this place had completely changed his life.
From a student who looked untalented...to someone the entire country was talking about.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
Then, without saying anything, he walked toward the academy exit, took a taxi, and went directly to the capital’s transportation center.
The capital’s transportation center was as busy as always.
It was a huge building that thousands of people used every day, dozens of giant portals were placed in different sections.
Blue mana light flowed inside each one of them, and the sound of destination announcements could be heard from the speakers.
Merchants, hunters, government workers, and normal travelers, everyone was coming and going.
Lian walked toward the destination registration and ticket section, because of the portals, very few people used airplanes these days.
When you could travel a distance of several hours in only a few seconds, what was the need for them?
"Destination?" The young employee behind the desk asked without looking up.
"Medes."
The man’s hand stopped for a moment, and he looked up.
"Medes?"
The city of Medes was one of the most expensive and most important destinations in the country, he looked at the registered information.
A few seconds later, his eyes widened.
Vorhelm.
Suddenly, he understood everything, and his attitude immediately became more formal and much more respectful, as if he was speaking to a king.
"Sir, please go to Portal Number Seven, it will activate in ten minutes."
Lian only nodded, he noticed the man’s change in attitude, but he did not care, without wasting any time, he walked toward the portal, there was a long line, but it seemed that the portal manager had already been informed, and allowed him to enter first.
The feeling of teleportation was always strange, blue light gathered around him, space twisted, and he felt his body being pulled through a huge flow of mana.
For a moment, time lost its meaning.
And then...everything became calm.
When he opened his eyes, the city he had not seen for two years was in front of him.
Medes.
One of the richest cities in the world, and the country he lived in was one of the three great powers of the Global Union.
And Medes was its economic heart, many of the world’s most important banks, technology companies, weapons companies, security organizations, and international offices were located in this city.
Also, three of the biggest guilds in the country had their main headquarters here, although all three of them were more or less under the control of the Vorhelm family.
The reason was simple.
As long as the Vorhelm family protected this city, no one dared to create trouble there.
Lian slowly walked out of the portal center.
Two years was a long time, but the city had remained almost the same.
Wide and shining streets, towers whose surfaces were covered with mana crystals.
Luxury cars that moved silently through the streets.
Well-equipped security forces that could be seen at every intersection.
Stores where even looking at the display windows was enough for normal people to understand that they would never be able to buy the products inside.
And most importantly...the symbol of the Vorhelm family, everywhere, on buildings, on banks, on business centers, on the uniforms of the security forces, and even on the flags hanging across the streets.
This city was practically the family’s personal territory.
The farther he walked, the more memories returned.
The old training center, the city’s main square, the tower where he used to go with Kain for training competitions.
And then...a restaurant that made him stop for a moment.
His eyes stayed on the building, years ago, he, Kain, and Serafina had spent many hours there.
Before everything changed, before life took a different path.
A short feeling of nostalgia appeared inside him, but it quickly disappeared, because there was something more important than memories.
Reality, and the reality was that this same city had once witnessed his complete fall.
Just as he had many good memories in this city, he also had many bad ones, but he was not the kind of person who let a few bad memories make his entire view of a city negative.
However, the problem was that now that he had become an Awakened, he could feel much more clearly how controlled this city was, it was as if everything was being watched every moment by eyes hidden in the darkness, and it gave him the feeling that he was under constant observation.
The closer he got to the central area of the family’s territory, the fewer buildings there were.
They became bigger, more noble, and more heavily protected, until finally, the walls appeared.
The walls of the Vorhelm territory, walls that looked more like the defenses of a country than the borders of a family.
They were dozens of meters tall, with many layers of defenses, watchtowers, mana cannons, and guards, each one having the combat value of a small military unit.
Lian looked at them for a while, then continued walking.
And finally...he saw the main palace.
No.
Palace was not the right word, this place looked more like the capital of an empire, dozens of smaller palaces were spread around it.
Gardens whose ends could not be seen, huge artificial lakes, giant statues of the family’s ancestors.
Towering buildings, hundreds of servants, hundreds of guards.
And in the center of all of them...the main palace of the Vorhelm family.
A building whose greatness could be felt even from several kilometers away.
Two years.
A full two years had passed since the last time he had seen it.
Lian stopped in front of the main gate, from this point on, the guards had to give permission before he could go any farther.
The guards looked at him, at first they did not recognize him, but when he came closer and announced his identity...
The face of one of them immediately changed, another one unconsciously stood up straight, and several quick messages were exchanged.
And a moment later...the huge gates slowly began to open.
The heavy sound of metal echoed through the air, and a huge opening appeared before him.
Lian looked at them, and their reaction was not unexpected, he still had the family name, and as long as he had it, these guards would treat him with respect.
Then his eyes looked inside, toward the place that had once been his home, and perhaps now the greatest battlefield standing before him.
Then he gave a faint smile and took his first step into the territory of the Vorhelm family.