Vash woke up earlier than usual.
For a few seconds, he stared at the ceiling, still half asleep. Then he remembered what day it was.
School.
He slowly sat up and looked toward the window. Morning sunlight was beginning to enter the room.
After getting dressed, Vash walked toward the restaurant.
The moment he stepped inside, he saw Grandpa checking the ingredient shelves while Grandma prepared breakfast.
Vash looked around.
There was already plenty of work waiting.
"Grandpa."
His grandfather looked up.
"You're awake early."
Vash nodded.
"I was thinking..."
Grandpa raised an eyebrow.
"That's usually dangerous."
Vash laughed.
"I can stay home today and help you."
Grandpa immediately understood.
"No."
Vash frowned.
"I haven't even explained."
"You don't need to."
Grandpa pointed toward Vash's school bag.
"You're going to school."
"But the restaurant has become really busy."
Grandma walked out of the kitchen.
"Vash."
He looked at her.
She smiled gently.
"We know you want to help."
"I do."
"And we're happy about that."
Grandma placed a hand on his shoulder.
"But you have something more important to do."
Vash looked down.
"Study."
"Exactly."
Grandpa nodded.
"This restaurant belongs to us. Taking care of it is our responsibility."
He paused.
"Your responsibility is to build your future."
Vash didn't answer.
Grandpa continued gently.
"We already lost two years with you. We don't want you to lose another."
Those words made Vash quiet.
He knew they weren't trying to push him away.
They were trying to protect his future.
Vash finally smiled.
"Okay."
Grandma adjusted his collar.
"Good boy."
Vash picked up his bag.
"I'll come back after school."
Grandpa smiled.
"We'll be waiting."
Vash stepped outside.
As he walked toward the bus stop, he looked back once at Grandpa's Noodles.
He wanted to help.
But maybe helping his grandparents didn't always mean standing in the kitchen.
Maybe sometimes it meant becoming strong enough to help them in ways they couldn't imagine.
---
The bus arrived a few minutes later.
Vash climbed aboard and found a seat near the window.
As the bus moved through the streets, he watched the city outside.
Everything still felt slightly unfamiliar.
He had been unconscious for two years.
The streets looked mostly the same.
The buildings were familiar.
The people were familiar.
But something about the world felt different.
He just hadn't figured out what.
When he arrived at school, Vash entered the building and headed toward Section C.
Rohan was already there.
He immediately noticed Vash.
"You're late."
Vash looked at the clock.
"I'm early."
"Exactly. You're late for being early."
Vash stared at him.
"That doesn't even make sense."
Rohan laughed.
"Come on."
Vash sat beside him.
A few classmates greeted him.
Vash was slowly becoming comfortable around them.
The first few classes passed normally.
Then their teacher entered the classroom.
"Everyone, pack your books."
The students looked confused.
"We have Computer Studies today."
Several students immediately started talking.
Vash looked at Rohan.
"Computer Studies?"
Rohan nodded.
"It's mandatory."
Vash became curious.
He had used computers before, but only occasionally. His grandparents didn't own one, and their phones were old keypad phones.
He had never really had the opportunity to learn properly.
The teacher led the class down the corridor.
Soon they reached the computer laboratory.
Rows of computers were arranged across the room.
Vash stopped for a moment.
There were more computers than he expected.
The teacher stood at the front.
"Everyone, take a seat."
Vash sat down in front of one.
The teacher introduced himself.
"My name is Mr. Daniel Mehta. I'll be teaching you Computer Studies this year."
He looked around the classroom.
"Some of you already know how to use a computer. Others may have barely touched one."
A few students laughed.
Mr. Mehta smiled.
"Don't worry. We'll start with the basics."
He began explaining the computer.
The monitor.
The keyboard.
The mouse.
Files.
Folders.
The operating system.
Vash listened carefully.
Then Mr. Mehta began explaining the internet and basic networks.
Vash looked at the diagram displayed on the screen.
There were computers connected to other computers.
Servers.
Routers.
Data moving from one place to another.
At first, it looked complicated.
Then something changed.
A familiar sensation appeared in Vash's mind.
His thoughts became sharper.
The diagram suddenly began making sense.
He could see the relationships between the different parts.
The system appeared.
---
[ADVANCED ANALYSIS ACTIVATED]
Subject: Computer Network
Analysis in Progress...
Structure Identified.
Data Flow Identified.
Basic Network Relationship Understood.
---
Vash stared at the screen.
"So that's how it works..."
Mr. Mehta noticed him.
"Vash?"
Vash looked up.
"Yes, sir?"
"Everything alright?"
"Yes."
The teacher smiled.
"Good. Then continue."
Vash returned his attention to the computer.
He began following the lesson.
He wasn't suddenly an expert.
He still had to learn.
But concepts that would normally take him a long time to understand were becoming easier to connect.
After the lesson, the teacher gave the students a simple exercise.
Vash completed it quickly.
A notification appeared.
---
[SKILL DEVELOPMENT DETECTED]
Computer Fundamentals — Acquired
Current Level: Basic
Learning Efficiency increased through Advanced Analysis.
---
Vash's eyes widened slightly.
Another skill.
He looked at the computer.
For the first time, he became genuinely interested.
---
After class, Vash stayed behind for a few minutes.
Mr. Mehta was arranging some papers.
Vash approached him.
"Sir."
"Yes?"
"Can I use the computer for a few more minutes?"
Mr. Mehta looked at him.
"Why?"
"I want to understand something."
The teacher smiled.
"Go ahead."
Vash sat down again.
He opened the browser.
He stared at the blank search page.
Then he typed his first search.
Modern technology.
The results appeared.
Vash's eyes slowly widened.
He searched again.
Smartphones.
Artificial intelligence.
Electric vehicles.
Modern medicine.
Space technology.
Online education.
Global businesses.
Digital payments.
He kept scrolling.
The more he searched, the stranger everything felt.
Technology had changed.
Not slightly.
A lot.
Vash leaned back.
"Two years..."
He whispered.
"It changed this much in two years?"
The system appeared again.
---
[KNOWLEDGE INDEX UPDATED]
Academic Knowledge: Improving
Business Knowledge: Improving
Technology Knowledge: Increased
General Knowledge: Increased
---
Vash continued browsing.
He discovered companies that operated across multiple countries.
He discovered how businesses raised money.
Investors.
Shareholders.
Business partnerships.
Expansion.
Funding.
Vash stopped scrolling.
"Investors..."
The word caught his attention.
He remembered Grandpa's restaurant.
The crowded tables.
The increasing orders.
The rising ingredient costs.
The limited space.
He started thinking.
What if Grandpa's Noodles could expand?
A larger kitchen.
More tables.
Better equipment.
More employees.
Maybe even another location someday.
But all of that required money.
Vash searched:
How do small businesses get investors?
The results filled the screen.
He began reading.
For the next several minutes, he didn't notice the time.
Then the system appeared.
---
[BUSINESS KNOWLEDGE DETECTED]
Business Planning — Beginner
Financial Analysis — Basic
Investment Concepts — Basic Understanding
---
Vash stared at the interface.
Then another notification appeared.
---
[NEW BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT FUNCTION]
Business Planning — Unlocked
Investment Planning — Partially Unlocked
Requirement for Full Access: Greater Business Knowledge
---
Vash smiled.
"So I have to actually learn it."
He liked that.
The system wasn't simply handing him everything.
It was forcing him to understand the world himself.
He continued reading until Mr. Mehta looked at the clock.
"Vash."
Vash looked up.
"Yes?"
"The period ended five minutes ago."
Vash froze.
"Oh."
Mr. Mehta laughed.
"You seem to like computers."
Vash smiled.
"Maybe I do."
---
After school, Vash returned home.
The restaurant was busy again.
He helped for a while before dinner.
But something was different in his mind.
The world suddenly seemed much larger.
After dinner, Vash helped his grandparents clean the restaurant.
Later, he noticed Grandpa using his old keypad phone.
Grandma had one too.
Both phones were old.
They could make calls.
They could send messages.
That was about it.
Vash remembered the smartphones he had seen online.
He looked at his grandparents.
They should have better phones.
He wanted to buy them new ones.
Then he remembered something.
He didn't have enough money.
He didn't want to ask Grandpa.
The restaurant already had enough expenses.
Vash returned to his room.
He sat on the bed and thought about it.
"I'll buy them myself."
He didn't know how yet.
But he would.
Then he remembered the restaurant.
Investors.
Business planning.
Technology.
His thoughts started connecting.
Maybe the restaurant could grow.
Maybe he could help Grandpa and Grandma without taking money from them.
Vash opened the system.
---
[ORDINARY SYSTEM]
Host: Vash
Age: 14
Level: 1
Physical Attributes
Strength: 6.0 / 10
Agility: 5.0 / 10
Endurance: 4.0 / 10
Reaction: 5.0 / 10
Mental Attributes
Intelligence: 6.0 / 10
Memory: 7.0 / 10
Comprehension: 6.0 / 10
Concentration: 4.0 / 10
Recovery Data
Rehabilitation Progress: 4.5 / 10
Walking Stability: 5.0 / 10
Balance: 4.8 / 10
Skills
Cooking: Basic
Mathematics: Basic
English: Basic
Science: Basic
Social Studies: Basic
Business Management: Beginner
Computer Fundamentals: Basic
Knowledge Index
Academic Knowledge: Developing
Business Knowledge: Developing
Technology Knowledge: Developing
General Knowledge: Developing
Business Development
Current Business: Grandpa's Noodles
Business Planning: Beginner
Financial Analysis: Basic
Investment Planning: Partially Unlocked
System Points
47 / 100
System Integrity
18%
Condition
Damaged
---
Vash stared at the interface.
The system looked different from when he had first awakened.
Not because the interface itself had changed.
Because he had changed.
There were more skills.
More knowledge.
More possibilities.
Vash looked at the words 47 / 100.
"Fifty-three more."
He remembered that reaching 100 points would unlock something.
He didn't know what.
But he would find out.
Vash closed the system.
He lay down and stared at the ceiling.
Today he had learned how computers worked.
He had discovered the internet.
He had seen how much the world had changed.
He had learned about business and investors.
And he had found another possible way to help his grandparents.
The world outside Grandpa's Noodles was much bigger than Vash had ever imagined.
But there was still something inside Grandpa's Noodles that he knew almost nothing about.
Something his grandmother had kept hidden for years.
A small, old recipe book.
It was somewhere inside the cupboard.
And Vash had no idea that the pages inside it contained the secret behind the restaurant's most special dish.
Golden Noodles.