[ ] Competent Parent - Female
[ ] First Parent - Injury Disease
[ ] Younger Sister
X.x.X.
But, before Anthony can dive into the list of psionic powers by the system, several sharp knocks interrupted him.
"Big Brother, are you awake?" The voice of his little sister, Anna called from beyond the door. "Breakfast is almost ready."
Let's talk later, system! Anthony mentally thought.
Acknowledged. Entering Standby Mode.
"Big Brother!"
More knocks.
"Alright! I'm coming!" Anthony got out of the bed and spied himself on the mirror - hoping that the system has no obvious tell-tale features. It would be hard to explain if he was glowing or something.
Thankfully, what greeted him was his ordinary reflection. A lanky teenager with windswept black hair and black eyes and a complexion that was a bit paler complexion than the Farasian norm. Mostly, because he usually stayed indoors. Something about people and the outdoors set Anthony's senses on edge. Crowds usually were the worst, he kept hearing and seeing things that weren't there.
After fruitlessly combing his hair with his hand, Anthony opened the door and met a grumpy Anna who immediately shuffled into the kitchen dining room like a zombie. Sitting next to her, Anthony made a sympathetic sound, Anna was on dad duty yesterday which meant she was up all night and would probably be sleeping the day away.
The other table occupants were his mother Rosalie Blanco who was reading the news on her tablet while his father Emile Blanco still had an apron on from cooking and was just putting the pot of what looks like rice porridge with chicken. After the car accident, his Dad had been trying to help around the house and trying to be upbeat despite everything even taking what is considered traditional feminine tasks. Then again, even before the accident, it's not like his Dad subscribed to those values, or else he wouldn't have married their mother.
Anthony unconsciously clenched his hand around the tableware as he thought about the accident. Not only was the driver able to get away with drunken driving because he was the son of a prominent government official. Their mother had to do a dirty deal and do an interview with the media about how "generous" Governor Sanchez was in order for them to fork the money in order to pay for the surgery.
But, what made Anthony's blood boil wasn't even the surgery complication that made his Dad develop Ondine's curse. It's that little pipsqueak hasn't learned anything if his social media presence was to be believed. A month later, Sanchez Jr. was back again at frat parties and clubs, probably accidentally destroying lives everywhere like some modern xianxia arrogant young master.
"So how is my cooking, Tony?" His Dad asked, while slowly eating his porridge
"It's good," Anthony replied while taking a few mouthfuls. "I like the added herbs this time."
"Did you like this one or the spicy version better?"
"I like this one better!" Anna chimed in. "The spicy version was too hot for my taste."
"It looks like your cooking is getting better dear," his mom replied.
"Haha! I'll be a 5-star chef before you know it."
A few chitchats later, his mom asked. "By the way, Anthony have you thought about what college you'll be taking?"
"I'm still thinking."
"Think faster then. The deadline of the college application is at the end of the month."
To be honest, Anthony doesn't know if he wants to go to college. If it wasn't for his parents being teachers at the school and explaining his condition personally, he probably wouldn't be able to graduate. He had more absences than attendance at some point, even if his written tests were good.
Besides, Anthony knows that going to college needs a lot of money. And despite how hard his parents were at hiding it - he knows their financial condition was pretty bad. With his dad losing his job and the extra medical expenses they were racking up, the little nest egg that his parents saved was swiftly running out.
More than that, he once heard a hushed conversation about them planning to sell their apartment which wasn't a good sign.
Their apartment was in a pretty good location. Using the money sent by her sibling abroad their mother had the foresight to buy the apartment in the 1990s where property values were low. It turned out to be the biggest winning investment she ever made. As the capital city becomes more prosperous and more businesses open their headquarters near here, even a blind man knows that apartment value would continue to rise and his mother knew that better than Anthony himself.
Which means their money was running out.
Still, Anthony knew that his parents don't want them to worry so he hasn't said anything while surreptitiously sending resumes to certain companies. Unfortunately, he was met by rejection so far. He doesn't have qualifications and credentials for the job he wants and the job he can take needs him away from home.
X.x.X.
After breakfast, Anna went to her bedroom to go to sleep. While his Father helped grade his Mother's student papers in the living room. Anthony holed himself in his bedroom under the guise of preparing for his college admission papers.
System, are you there?
Affirmative.
You said that I could use the psionic power even with you not being fully installed?
Affirmative.
Can I learn them all?
With time, Host can learn all of the psionic powers. Warning. Learning more than one psionic imprint at the same time is inadvisable.
Wait, does this mean I can only learn one psionic power? Anthony panicked.
Until, Host has sufficiently reached enough rudimentary understanding of the psionic power to do it on their own, switching to another psionic imprint would cause brain damage as concepts become mixed.
How long would that take?
A box popped out listing the various psionic powers and their time of learning as estimated by the system:
Psy-Enchancement - 75 days
Psychometry - 75 days
Precognition - 150 days
Psychokinesis - 50 days
Astral Projection - 75 days
Now which to pick to get some funds and psionic training xp? You have 2,000 FP (1 US dollar = 20 Farasia Peso)
[ ] Psychometry
Takes an average time to learn. Of this branch the learning everything about the object that you touch power is good. Especially once, Anthony got adequate nutrition and unlocked the library part of the system. It could only help in research. Meanwhile, he can use it on getting lucky on scratch cards to help him buy groceries and hopefully get some money for future projects depending on his luck.
[ ] Precognition
The longest power to learn. But, the one who will probably give Anthony the largest money return. If he goes to the casino, roulette will give him 35:1 odds meaning every time he wins his money multiply 36 times. Enough to fund his own company and help his parent. A bit eye catching though, especially if he bets large amount and wins everytime.
[ ] Psychokinesis
The shortest power to learn. Of this branch the microkinesis seemed to be a good way to make some arts and crafts. While helpful, its not guaranteed to make money since Anthony has to sell the products that he made. But, at least, you won't have to worry about your parents finding out where you got their money from.
QM Note:
Hahaha. This update is hell to write. Using Ondine Curse as the backstory for one parent played havoc with the starting background. One, because the Ondine Curse must be the acquired one. It's hard to justify your father living old enough if he got Ondine Curse by birth and even procreating. Second, the medical expense is hell that a person who is in poverty getting Ondine curse honestly can't survive.
So, I have to adjust the background to make it work. The Blanco Family was middle class with two working parents before the accident happened. But, in exchange, your parents' funds are running out but you still have medical equipment debt - that home mechanical respirator and that bed with sensors isn't going to pay for itself you know.
Also, it's impossible for you to get a part-time job. Your Dad needs a 24 hours watcher/carer. While on summer vacation in order to save money that falls to you siblings except on weekends where your mom is home.
In exchange for the middle-class background, your not malnourished anymore so if you get extra nutrients the neurogenesis would be faster. Taking 2 turns instead of the 5 of the poverty background.
Also, I took out the Psy-Enhancement and Hypnosis option because Antony has the beginning of a personality now. He's not going to hypnotized innocent people (except not so innocent politicians). And, it's very hard to imagine he'll know any illegal fighting rings.
Second, if you're wondering how did I get the training time. It's based on the stat parameter. This is the formula: 10 / number of dots * 15 days
