Nawa recognized the group immediately—they were subordinates of Kraisorn, the man from the upper-floor bar in the PlayFloor Clash building, where he had gone to borrow money.
"What business do you have coming to my house?"
Nawa asked, glaring at the men with clear annoyance.
There were still several days left before his payment was due, so he couldn't understand why these people had shown up at his doorstep—especially at such a late hour.
"Well, well… look who it is.
The delusional brat who thinks he can try his luck in the One-Ness."
Wan sneered, looking Nawa up and down with contempt.
"You've got guts, I'll give you that. Borrowed a massive sum, yet you're still lounging around at home?
Or… did you fail the Player test?
If so, you'd better get ready to sell a kidney to pay off the interest! Hahaha!"
Even though Nawa was wearing his Player equipment, it was hidden behind his ear—so discreet that unless someone looked closely, it resembled a normal smart-head device.
"That's none of your business.If you don't have anything important, get out."
Nawa cut him off and moved to close the door.
He had no intention of wasting time talking to these people.In his eyes, anyone who made a living off the suffering of others had no dignity worth acknowledging.
Besides, his mother and younger brother would be home soon—he didn't want them distressed by seeing thugs at their door.
"Hold it."
Wan pushed the door open with one hand, peering into the house.
"I'm not here for you.I'm here for that old hag Pim—and I remember she lives here."
At that moment, something inside Nawa snapped.
Ordinarily, he was calm, patient, and tolerant of insults directed at him.
But insulting someone he loved…
That was different.
"My mother,"Nawa said softly.
But the killing intent that exploded from him was far more terrifying than what he had released at the Player exam.
Wan and his men were Players—albeit low-rank ones—so they had experience facing monsters.They were not as fragile as students from Asashi Academy.
But even they had never felt killing intent like this.If Nawa weren't supposedly weak—a man not yet even inside the One-Ness—they might have collapsed in fear already.
Wan forced himself to speak, biting back his instinct to flee.
"Watch your mouth, kid.Your mother borrowed money from us—and it's time to pay.
I'm just doing my job, so you'd best watch how you talk."
Hearing this, Nawa's murderous aura thinned and shifted—replaced by hesitation, confusion, and growing dread.
"When did my mother owe you anything?" he asked quietly.
"That's not something I have to tell you.What matters is that if I don't get my money today, someone's going to end up in the hospital tomorrow."
Wan shoved his hand toward Nawa's chest——but before he could touch him:
"AAAGH!"
Wan screamed.He collapsed, clutching his ankle as blood spurted like a fountain.
On the ground, a tiny white snake—barely a few inches long—lifted its head and hissed sharply, its presence sending chills through the air.
"Snake! Snake!!"
Wan's men panicked instantly.
Though they were Players, they were only low-rank.They were stronger than ordinary people, but not immune to venom.A single bite from a poisonous snake could still kill them.
Worse yet—the snake didn't flee after biting.
It lunged at them again.
Wan's men tried desperately to fend off the creature, but it was too small and far too fast.Within less than a minute, all five men had been bitten two or three times each, blood spurting from every wound.
"Hospital! We have to get to a hospital—NOW!"
Wan shouted.
It didn't matter whether the snake was venomous—At this rate, they would bleed out before long.
They fled into the night, disappearing from sight.
And then, with no enemies left to attack, the small white snake slithered back toward Nawa—and vanished into his body.
This was the White Snake, the beast spirit that had fused with him when he escaped the Himmapan Forest.
"We really have to enter the One-Ness soon…"
Nawa murmured as he looked toward his shabby home.
He wanted his mother and brother free from this hardship as soon as possible.
Some time passed before his mother and younger brother returned.
After calming down, Nawa told them about the debt collectors—though he omitted the part where the White Snake had attacked them.
With enough questioning, his mother finally admitted that she had borrowed over two hundred thousand baht—but because she couldn't keep up with the interest, the debt had grown to five hundred thousand.
Today, she had returned late because she went to request an advance from her manager to pay the interest.Tos, meanwhile, had sold all the old items he could gather.
Nawa didn't blame his mother for hiding it.He understood she only wanted to protect him from worrying.But now he understood why their lives had become so difficult.
He handed her the money he had left—enough to cover the interest and buy time for his father's medical needs.
But instead of being relieved, Pim became even more anxious.She asked where he got such a large amount of money.
Seeing no choice, Nawa used this moment to tell her about becoming a Player.
He didn't reveal the part about borrowing from the mafia-like organization.
He simply said a friend had referred him to high-paying work in the One-Ness—and had advanced the money to him.
Her expression softened, but worry still lingered.
"The One-Ness is dangerous… I've heard stories…" she whispered.
"Don't worry, Mom.I survived five years in the jungle.
I'll be fine.And it's just heavy labor—not fighting."
He lied several times that night, and it weighed on him.But he chose to bear that weight rather than burden his mother with fear.
Tos, meanwhile, was mesmerized by the Player equipment.
It had been years since Nawa last saw his younger brother's eyes sparkle like that—
not since his twelfth birthday, when Nawa bought him a transformable robot-airplane model.
"Tos," Nawa said suddenly.
"Get ready. I'm sending you to Asashi Academy."
Tos froze mid-page.
"I just like collecting this stuff. I don't want to be a Player.
But if you go into the One-Ness… bring me cool rocks or crystals, okay? I want those."
He pretended not to care, though entering Asashi Academy was one of his greatest dreams.
"I know you're worried I'm pushing myself too hard.But I'm stronger than you think."
Nawa ruffled his brother's hair.
"Once I come back, you and Mom won't suffer anymore.And if you really want to help me, you need to go to Asashi Academy.There's knowledge about the One-Ness that you can't find online.Knowledge that will make me stronger."
"Why do you need to be that strong?" Tos asked softly.
"Because… money isn't enough to save Dad."
Nawa's voice trembled slightly.
"Modern medicine can only keep him alive.But I'm certain the One-Ness holds items and artifacts that can cure him.To obtain them—I need power."
Understanding dawned in Tos's eyes.
Nawa then summoned his status window again.
Ding.
The holographic screen appeared—visible only to him.Neither sound nor image was detectable by Tos, as if the system connected directly to Nawa's brain.
Status Window
Rank: E — Class: Mage
Title: Gifted One
HP: 100% (Endurance 5/100)
MP: 185 / 185 [Rank D]
Strength (STR): 81 [Rank E]
Defense (DEF): 59 [Rank E]
Agility (AGI): 69 [Rank E]
Dexterity (DEX): 63 [Rank E]
Speed (SPD): 55 [Rank E]
Skill
Fireball – Creates a sphere of flame that strikes a target.
Damage and number of fireballs depend on mana used.
Nawa studied the display carefully.
The stats were almost identical to the results from the official tests, except for one detail:
The Title.
According to the examiner, he should have earned Potential One or Newborn Genius.
Yet the system displayed:
Gifted One.
Curious, Nawa merely thought the question—and the system reacted instantly.
Ding.
A new description appeared:
Title: Gifted One
Awarded by the One-Ness Association to individuals whose talent surpasses measurable standards.
Players with this title gain +25% Fame from mission completion.
Nawa blinked.
He didn't know what "Fame" was, so he felt slightly disappointed.
He would have preferred the Newborn Genius title since it granted discounts at the Association.
But in truth—The title Gifted One was far superior.
Fame could be exchanged for services, valuable goods, and privileges within the One-Ness Association.A passive 25% increase was an extraordinary advantage—one that no discount could compare to.
Nawa sighed softly, then explored the Player equipment further.
He soon learned its mechanics:
it responded directly to thought, drawing minute amounts of energy from his body—so little that even an E-rank like him barely felt it.
And the deeper he explored the system, the more amazed he became.
The equipment wasn't just a gateway into the One-Ness.
It also functioned as a communicator, recorder, analyzer——a miniature supercomputer.
Most astonishing of all was the Dimensional Storage feature.
By wearing the device, he could create a personal storage space with no time, no weight—
a pocket dimension where items could be stored safely and retrieved at will.
Even during his years in the Himmapan Forest, he had never possessed such an ability.
The next morning, after hugging his mother and brother,
Nawa stepped out of his home——and set off toward the One-Ness.