Level Up The Colony
Chapter 41: College Exams

Chapter 41: College Exams

She jolted upright in her seat, startled, before bowing her head in greeting.

It was a sign of deep respect, usually reserved for elders or those highly esteemed.

Timothy was still trying to figure out what was troubling her when his aunt emerged from the passageway, beaming.

"Your uncle is in the bedroom! He’s calling for both of you," she announced cheerfully.

"Alright," Timothy responded, suddenly remembering the bag he had been carrying.

He opened it and pulled out an assortment of canned food and snacks, mostly for the children and his siblings.

He handed a large Snickers bar to his sister, who hesitated before reluctantly accepting it with a quiet

"thank you."

He noted her lack of enthusiasm, she usually loved Snickers.

Maybe her tastes had changed, or maybe something else was bothering her.

For his uncle and aunt, he had brought along some cooking ingredients and a small 12kg sack of fine-grain rice.

His aunt’s face lit up with excitement as she hurriedly examined the gifts before playfully pushing Timothy and his sister toward the passageway.

"Go on, go see your uncle! I’ll finish sorting these out," she said, momentarily postponing her outing.

Timothy followed his sister down the dimly lit hallway, passing by rooms whose purposes he didn’t even know.

She stopped in front of one and, without hesitation, stepped inside.

Timothy followed close behind.

His uncle was seated casually on the bed, scrolling through his phone, the open windows allowing the distant chirping of crickets to seep into the room.

Timothy smiled slightly as he greeted the man, one of the few people he had admired in his younger years.

His uncle had always been a lively troublemaker, never refusing any request Timothy made.

But now, looking at him, he seemed drained, his face worn with unkempt beards and wrinkles that made him appear far older than his actual age.

This was his mother’s youngest brother, the last child of their family, barely in his forties but already looking like a man in his fifties.

"Timothy, you’ve gotten taller," his uncle noted.

"Thank you," Timothy replied.

"How have you been?"

"I’m doing well."

His uncle nodded.

"I can see that. I heard you brought some goodies for us?"

Timothy chuckled, his aunt had wasted no time mentioning it.

"Yes, sir. I gave them to Aunty," he confirmed.

"Those must have been quite expensive. Where’d you get the money?" his uncle asked, his tone casual but his gaze sharp.

"I work for the Association," Timothy replied.

"As a hunter? And if I remember correctly, a low-ranked one at that?"

"Yes, but I have my ways, so the pay has improved," Timothy said vaguely.

His uncle finally looked up from his phone, studying Timothy’s expression like he was trying to sift through a lie.

"When did you get back?"

"Two weeks ago," Timothy admitted.

At that moment, his sister, who had been standing silently beside him with her head down, widened her eyes in surprise.

"You’ve been back for two weeks, and you didn’t bother to let us know, you were declared missing and presumed dead for a while are you aware?" his uncle asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I was busy," Timothy said, knowing full well how unconvincing that sounded.

His uncle didn’t push further.

Instead, he asked, "Have you seen your mother?"

The room fell into a brief silence before Timothy responded.

"I went to the hospital to find her, but they told me she had been transferred to a special facility. I don’t have access to it at the moment."

His uncle sighed.

"Yeah, they told us the same thing." He then leaned back against the bedframe.

"So, are you here to see your family, or are you planning to take them with you?"

Timothy hesitated before answering.

"I can’t take care of them alone. My work keeps me busy, and my life is dangerous..."

His uncle nodded knowingly.

"So you’re officially leaving them in my care?" He let out a small chuckle.

"Well, you didn’t need to tell me that, I already consider them my responsibility."

Timothy smiled, but his uncle wasn’t finished.

"That being said," he continued, his voice more serious,

"I can only provide for their daily needs. Those kids eat a lot, and I’m afraid I won’t be able to do much beyond that."

Timothy was about to reassure him when his uncle added,

"And what about their schooling?"

Timothy frowned slightly, confused.

"What about school?"

At that moment, all eyes turned to his sister.

"We stopped going," she admitted quietly.

Timothy’s expression froze, shock evident on his face.

"Why?" he asked, keeping his voice calm.

"Fear," his uncle answered for her.

Timothy looked between them, exhaling softly.

It made sense.

The trauma from that incident must have left its mark, especially on his sister.

The twins had been fast asleep during everything, but she had been there, she had seen it all.

He studied her for a moment longer, wondering if it was guilt or something else that kept her from looking at him.

"How long has it been since they stopped?" Timothy asked.

"Six weeks," his uncle replied.

"So, since the incident," Timothy muttered under his breath.

"And what about the others?" he asked.

"The only reason they stopped was distance. We’re planning to enroll them in the same school as my kids, but I’m not sure about her," his uncle said, gesturing toward Timothy’s sister.

Timothy turned to her directly.

"Do you want to go back?"

It wasn’t his decision to make.

It had to be her choice.

But he knew their mother would have wanted her to continue.

Still, with how things were in the country, the idea of education being the "key to success" was losing its weight.

Too many teenagers were now drawn to the allure of fast money, scammers and fraudsters who saw no need for school when they could make a fortune through deceit.

Even so, Timothy knew his mother would never have wanted her daughter to give up on her education.

And neither did he.

Though there were the few successful ones who lead the group of unsuccessful ones into the crowd of thievery

The reality was undeniable, but was it morally justifiable? No.

No one prints money for themselves, people work hard to earn their living, especially salary earners who dedicate their time and effort to make ends meet.

So, for someone to wake up one day, prey on the emotionally fragile, and steal their hard-earned income under the guise of a career, it was nothing short of despicable.

Such people were scum.

Could they be blamed entirely, though? In most cases, yes.

But in others, not so much.

Many simply followed in the footsteps of corrupt political leaders, using their misdeeds as justification allegedly.

So, if his sister saw education as nothing more than a standard for the poor to pretend they belonged among scholars, that was her choice.

He didn’t support it, though.

"No, I don’t want to go to school," she said.

"Why?" Timothy and his uncle asked in unison, making it feel like she was being pressured into answering.

"I want to become a hunter."

"No," his uncle said firmly.

"Rejected," Timothy added without hesitation.

The response was so unexpected that it caught them both off guard.

She could have said anything, anything at all and it would have been more acceptable than this.

A hunter? That was her goal?

"Why not?" Divine demanded.

"You’re a hunter, and you’re making money. What if I rank higher than you? I could earn even more and help people... help you!"

Her voice trembled, and tears threatened to fall.

It wasn’t a secret that Divine had awakened her mana senses and she was a healer

Hell, at this point, it wasn’t a secret that nearly everyone had at least a trace of mana within them.

Awakening was a process he understood well.

His sister had already passed the most challenging stage, but what lay ahead was even more dangerous.

Risking her life for what?

Timothy took a deep breath before speaking.

"I understand that you want to help others and make a difference," he said.

"I get it. You’re guilty that you couldn’t do anything that day. And I’m guilty, too. I wasn’t able to do anything either. But chasing power to erase our regrets comes with struggles that might fundamentally change us. That’s an even bigger mistake, one that could push away the people we still have."

His voice was calm, reflective.

"Listen to me, Dee," he said, calling her by her pet name.

She looked up at him, her teary eyes filled with frustration and sorrow.

"You have the ability to heal others with mana, right?"

She nodded slowly.

"Then this family is in desperate need of a doctor. And doctors are scholars. If you become a hunter right away just because you can heal, you’ll only put yourself in greater danger."

"But hunters can heal better than doctors," Divine argued, her voice laced with sadness.

Timothy scoffed.

"Is that all you think healing is? Sure, hunters can fix broken bones, mend cuts, and patch up bruises, but that’s it. Doctors do the curing. Have you ever seen a hunter heal sickle cell or AIDS? Even the so-called awakened priests can’t do that."

His uncle, who had been quietly listening, seemed taken aback by Timothy’s words.

Timothy pressed on.

"So I’m saying, why not be the best of both worlds? Science hasn’t figured out how to merge magic and medicine yet. You might just be the one to bridge that gap." He smiled slightly, hoping his words would reach her.

"And where would you get the money for that?" Divine asked, her voice softening but still uncertain.

Timothy let out a confident chuckle.

"I already have the money. Don’t worry about me. Just name the amount, and I’ll have it within 24 hours. Do you know how well hunters get paid?" He puffed out his chest a little, indulging in a moment of well-earned pride.

Divine hesitated before finally saying,

"Then... I want to take the college entrance exams."

Timothy grinned.

"That... is between you and Uncle. I won’t overstep his authority."

After all, he had officially entrusted his siblings to his uncle’s care.

This was a decision they needed to make together.

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