He opened his eyes in what seemed like a room, on a bed he was too familiar with.
He looked around and he saw children near him which he recognised also.
Tears unconsciously fell from his eyes as he didn't even know when he started crying.
This was the orphanage where he grew up with love, care and hate at the same time.
Some of the children hated him because he was quite better at his studies than them, not that he was smart or intelligent, but he just had better grades than them.
Some children that became jealous tried to bully him, but Mike was no pushover.
When push came to shove, he would simply handle them or beat them up in self defense.
Mike wasn't one to back down when he knows he has a chance against you, if he doesn't have a chance at all, he would simply run away.
So even if some of the children hated him, they couldn't really do anything than grumble and complain and feel jealous from a distance
When children awaken at the age of ten, they usually continue staying at the orphanage until thirteen to fourteen years old and they are told to leave and fend for themselves.
(Don't compare this world to our world, the children here are literally too big, tall and intelligent for their age because mana simply developed everything here, even if they don't awaken until ten, mana still passively seeps into their body to make them developed)
Mike left the orphanage at thirteen and joined the Adventurer guild in other to have an income and become stable.
Some part of the money he made he sent back to the orphanage.
When Anthony gave them a billion each, he sent back forty percent of that to the Orphanage.
When Mike woke up in the room, on the bed, the remaining children woke up also as their eye lashes fluttered open to the morning sun.
One of the girls looked at him and said with a really cute voice.
"Good morning brother, how was your night?" Asked child 1
"My night was good how was yours sister" Mike replied with a smile plastered on his face
They all started their usual morning routine as they worked by washing the dishes, sweeping, washing clothes.
As they carried out their morning duties, one of the jealous kids walked up to Mike and said
"Well if it isn't mister smart pants" said the boy with a sarcastic tone.
"Not everyone is as dumb and stupid like you, so I should call you dumb pants" Mike retorted.
Mike went by the day with happiness in his heart, but that happiness was mixed with melancholy and heart ache.
After going through the day, night arrived and everyone settled in their rooms to sleep.
"Big brother, good night, don't have nightmares like before, I am sure you will awaken a good class during the awakening and big brother will become the strongest in the world and become a god" said child 3 with a cute voice again
Mike smiled and said while looking at the moon with slight happiness mixed in his voice
"I already met a god sister"
"When did you meet them"
Mike didn't reply, he just kept looking out the window, then he sighed and said
"It's time to leave sister"
"Where are you going brother, the head mistress would be angry if you leave the room right now" said the sister.
"I will be back soon sister, it won't be long, just wait for me for a while" mike replied.
"I am waiting for you brother"
Mike stood up and smiled at his sister and left the room.
Immediately he did, his face returned to normal.
**Crack**
Sounds of glass shattering echoed, as everywhere broken apart into shards and returned to normal natural environment.
Mike had been in an illusion all these while.
He had fallen into the illusion since the moment he appeared here and opened his eyes.
He knew something was wrong as his senses always tingled constantly through out the illusion.
But he was too happy to break away as he saw the people he considers family.
Even as he stayed in the illusion as his heart wanted to, his mind refused to stay and kept sending warnings.
One wanting to stay, the other wanting to leave immediately.
His mind developed a skill immediately as he has been in the illusion for a while, one that allows him to easily see through illusions, thanks to his ridiculous talent again.
When Mike got the skill, he saw through everything, but he still decided to spend sometime with them, before he decided to leave here, as he has something to do.
Mike looked at his watch and saw the time.
"It seems like I spent one hour in real time huh, it seems I might have to work harder in exchange for my foolishness"
Mike looked around and he just saw trees upon tress everywhere.
He was about to move when another illusion appeared.
Anthony stood Infront of Mike and said.
"You are my greatest failure, I gave you everything and you couldn't eve..."
The illusion shattered before the fake Anthony could finish speaking.
The instant it shattered a sword came out from nowhere aiming for Mike's head.
Mark blocked the sword with his own sword and looked at the attacker.
The attacker had a long hair running down his back with two pointed ears, with chaos radiating from it's body without restraint.
It was an elf, or rather the 'Forsaken Cult's dog.
Marcus squinted his eyes at this new development, there was no chaos in the air or anything, the elf appear immediately he entered the illusion.
"To think you would break out of the illusion so quickly, colour me surprised human" said the elf.
"The only colour I have right now is Death" said Mike as he shifted the balance of his sword and his hand blurred as it aimed at the head of the elf.
The elf was decapitated, but Mike didn't fall for it, the elf turned into mist and disappeared.
The real elf appeared on a tree and looked at Mike, Mike looked back at the elf as their eyes clashed.
"I didn't expect you to see through that too"
"Your illusion technique are just basic techniques, you would have to use something better to fool me"
"Is that so, I wonder how our battle would go"
As the elf was about to disappear again after the last sentence, the atmosphere suddenly became hot.
Mike already had enough of this elf's nonsense, the elf really dare to bring his family and his boss into an Illusion.
The elf has definitely crossed a river of no return here.
The elf looked at Mike and it's eyes widened in shock by the sight it saw.
The entire forest suddenly turned crimson as Mike subconsciously controlled the fire element in the air making the entire surrounding turn into a different temperature.
Trees burned, stones melted, mountains shook just from the sheer change in temperature.
Mike walked with steady gait and bearing as if his footstep was echoing through out the forest.
As Mike walked towards the elf, the elf started sweating as it's danger senses kept ringing and ringing but it couldn't take a step back or forward as it just step on a tail it shouldn't have touched.
Mike arrived infront of the elf and said
"I am sure you aren't the only forsaken cult dog that is here, give me their location and I will give you a quick and painless death"
This was a way for Mike to save point as he already wasted an hour.
Although he was angry, he could still think clearly, he won't just suddenly turn into an idiot and let his emotion cloud his judgement.
Why run around in circles and search an entire forest while you have someone that could just give you the information and just head straight for their base.
The elf engulfed with the monster Infront of it spilled everything it knows without a second thought.
Mike raised his hands and held the neck of the elf and lifted it off the ground and said.
"There are some things that aren't meant to be touched at all"
Then the fire element in the environment moved and converged around the elf as it was burned and fried the elf alive as it turned to crisps before it could even feel the pain from the burn.
Mike looked at the wind which carried the ashes, then moved with a speed burst in the direction given by the elf in other to gather points.