Died for a Million Times: I can Copy Infinite SSS Talents!-Chapter 80 --I’m No Match for Him!

"What are you laughing at?"

Noticing the corners of Link’s mouth curl up uncontrollably, Edward, who was standing beside him, raised an eyebrow in confusion.

Link quickly waved his hand and explained, "N-nothing. I just feel like... getting into Astral Nexus Academy is almost in the bag now."

Edward chuckled softly. "Of course it is. With those 200,000 merit points in your pocket, the rest of the students in the camp can’t even begin to compete with you. Once you graduate from the Eagle Hatchling Camp as the top student, the best universities across the country will be lining up to take you."

"But I’ll give you a word of advice—don’t get too full of yourself just because you’ve achieved a few accomplishments. Whether in the military or in academia, pulling strings and using connections to get ahead is something people despise. You’re only just starting to show your potential. If rumors start to spread now, it could taint your reputation before you’ve even had a chance to build one."

After speaking, Edward sighed lightly, as if he had personally been through something similar.

What he said, Link naturally understood.

In fact, when he had first gotten to know Ryze, he had deliberately asked his mentor about it.

At the time, Ryze had explained that he could indeed offer a recommendation in Link’s name, using his personal authority.

But... that was all it would be—a recommendation. Whether Link would be accepted or not, that wasn’t up to Ryze alone. Even though he was the headmaster, decisions at a top-tier university like Spiritual Powers Academy were made by a panel, not by a single person.

Part of that was to avoid poor decisions—after all, headmasters were still human.

The other part was to prevent powerful clans and age-old factions from using underhanded methods to insert their descendants into elite schools, which could easily lead to corruption scandals.

These days, everyone cares about appearances. No one wants to be humiliated under the public spotlight.

After listening to Ryze’s explanation, Link had long since dismissed the idea of relying on connections to get into Spiritual Powers Academy.

Besides, it wasn’t like he was a borderline candidate who needed special favors just to get accepted.

As long as he continued to hold first place at the Eagle Hatchling Camp, it wouldn’t be a matter of universities choosing him—it would be him choosing them.

And more importantly, the [Future Notebook] was still waiting... waiting for a new page to be revealed the moment he was officially accepted into Astral Nexus Academy.

Ahem... cough, cough—!

Just as Link was fantasizing about what kind of new entry might appear in the notebook, he suddenly heard a series of heavy coughs nearby.

Turning his head, he saw the source of the noise—it was Edward.

At this moment, Edward had one hand braced against the wall, and the other was wiping blood—and bits of tissue—from the corner of his mouth with a tissue.

"Commander... are you all right?"

Link stepped forward anxiously, asking with concern.

Edward waved him off, his expression calm. "Don’t worry. Just an old problem. It’s from overusing my talent. It’s not something that’ll kill me right away."

"Your... talent..."

Hearing that, Link felt a pang of unease.

Others might not know the details, but he knew all too well.

Edward’s talent was the SS-ranked Collapse. It could unleash devastating force on enemies—but the downside was just as severe. The user’s own body would suffer considerable backlash.

Link, on the other hand, had managed to evolve the Collapse talent into Destruction and Rebirth using Cannibal Devour, which completely eliminated any side effects.

But Edward hadn’t had that chance.

"Looks like I need to find a time to help him solve this problem once and for all..."

Link glanced at his own panel, where Destruction and Rebirth gleamed with its distinct golden hue, then looked back at Edward, whose complexion had turned visibly pale. A silent determination formed in his heart. freeweɓnøvel.com

"Don’t look at me like that. I told you—I’m fine."

Edward straightened up and walked over to Link, giving his shoulder a light pat.

"Thank you, Link. I joined the Northern Front a long time ago, and everyone here is like family to me. If you hadn’t sent back that intelligence about General Adamu’s betrayal in time, I don’t even want to imagine how many people would’ve died in this operation."

"From now on, my life is yours. If there’s ever anything you need from me, I’ll do it without hesitation!"

Edward’s tone was sincere. It wasn’t just polite words.

Link could sense the firm resolve in the major’s voice. He replied solemnly, "Commander, that’s not necessary. Your life belongs to you alone. Sure, I happened to save everyone this time—but I’d never use that as a bargaining chip to demand anything from you."

"Hahahaha... ha—cough, cough!"

Hearing Link’s words, Edward couldn’t help bursting into laughter.

"Well said! Just for that sentence alone, I know I didn’t misjudge your character. But I wasn’t joking earlier—if there’s ever something I can help with, I want you to come find me right away. If you don’t, I’ll feel guilty about it for the rest of my life."

"Alright then... I’ll hold you to that, Commander."

Seeing that Link had finally accepted the offer, Edward didn’t push further. He simply waved, then turned and walked away.

Link didn’t linger either. He took out his metal badge to confirm that the merit points had been credited to his account. Once verified, he headed straight for the mission hall to upgrade his merit rank.

Once the two of them had left, two figures slowly emerged from the shadows of a nearby corner.

The slightly chubby young man on the left curled his lip in disdain. He then glanced at the youth beside him—who wore a black baseball cap—and said, "This kid is way too arrogant. Major Edward clearly values him a lot, and yet he acts all aloof and indifferent. Is this how Eagle Hatchling Camp trains its people now? So full of themselves?"

"Hey, Rawfill, didn’t you also attend that camp back in the day? Weren’t you the top of your cohort too? You must’ve been way stronger than this Link kid, right? Not to mention, your personality was way better than his!"

"..."

The young man in the cap, Rawfill, remained silent for a long time, staring intently in the direction Link had left.

Only after a while did he sigh and speak softly.

"...I’m no match for him."

"What?!"

The chubby youth looked shocked. "Come on, you’re joking, right? That guy doesn’t seem all that powerful to me. You—you—the ’Mad Dog’ of the Northern Front, are saying you’re not as good as him?"

Rawfill gave a bitter smile. "’Mad Dog’ was just a mocking nickname people gave me because they couldn’t beat me. Honestly, you shouldn’t call me that anymore."

"A mocking nickname, huh... But I heard that you once beat up everyone in camp who didn’t submit to you, all by yourself. People said your attitude was arrogant to the extreme, and that’s why they gave you that name."

Rawfill froze.

Then his expression darkened considerably.

"You idiot! Must you bring up the one damn thing I’ve been trying to forget for years?! I finally managed to bury that memory—and now you’re dragging it back up again? You looking to get smacked?"

As he spoke, Rawfill suddenly lunged forward and gave the chubby youth’s thigh a vicious pinch.

"Ow, ow, ow—Rawfill bro, I give up, I give up! I was wrong, okay?! I said I’m sorry!"

Only after the chubby guy cried out in pain, clutching his leg and begging for mercy, did Rawfill finally let him off.