The next morning, Vash stood beside his bed and stretched his arms.
The restaurant was still being repaired.
The smell of fresh wood and paint had been drifting through the back room since yesterday, and every time Vash heard the workers outside, he was reminded of how much had changed in such a short time.
He looked toward the window.
Then he took a breath and began his exercises.
One movement at a time.
Slowly.
Carefully.
His legs no longer felt as heavy as they once had.
His balance was almost natural now.
He could stand without thinking about every step.
He could walk across the room without holding onto anything.
After finishing his exercises, Vash wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"System."
The familiar blue interface appeared.
[RECOVERY STATUS]
Rehabilitation Progress: 9.8 / 10
Walking Stability: 9.7 / 10
Balance: 9.8 / 10
Overall Recovery: 97.7%
Status:
NEAR COMPLETION
Vash stared at the numbers.
"97.7%..."
A smile slowly appeared on his face.
So close.
He remembered the first days after waking up.
Back then, even standing for a short time had been difficult.
Now he could walk.
He could work.
He could go to school.
He could even spend hours moving around the restaurant without feeling like his body would give up.
And according to the System...
Tomorrow might be the final step.
"Maybe tomorrow I'll finally reach 100%."
The thought made him strangely excited.
Not because he expected some supernatural transformation.
He simply wanted to know what it felt like to have his body completely recovered.
Vash closed the interface.
Then his expression changed.
The restaurant.
His excitement disappeared slightly.
The broken tables.
The damaged chairs.
The destroyed signboard.
The gate.
The plates and utensils that had to be replaced.
Even after the repairs were finished, the money spent would remain.
He remembered the financial calculation from the previous days.
The restaurant repairs alone had cost around $1,600.
Then there were his school expenses.
Uniform.
Shoes.
Supplies.
School bag.
Another $205.
And all of that came after the $799 phone his grandparents had bought for him.
The money had been spent for good reasons.
But money didn't become less valuable just because the reason for spending it was important.
Vash sat quietly on the edge of his bed.
They still had savings.
But not as much as before.
That bothered him.
His grandparents had already sacrificed almost everything once.
After his accident, they had sold their house and possessions to keep him alive.
Vash didn't want their future to depend on luck.
He looked down at his hands.
"Maybe I should find some way to earn money."
The thought appeared naturally.
A part-time job.
Something simple.
Maybe helping somewhere after school.
But Vash quickly shook his head.
"School."
Then he remembered his recovery.
"Training."
And finally...
"AI."
The mission interface appeared in his mind.
Three years.
Create a functioning artificial intelligence.
Ten thousand System Points.
And failure meant System Shutdown Mode.
Vash sighed.
"I'm fourteen. I can't do everything at once."
For now, getting a job wasn't the answer.
He needed to become capable first.
If he wanted to help his grandparents properly, he needed something more valuable than a few dollars earned after school.
He needed knowledge.
He needed skills.
And he needed a plan.
Vash picked up his school bag.
The restaurant was still under repair, so there wasn't much he could do there.
That gave him another idea.
"I'll study at school."
---
The school library was quieter than usual.
Vash sat at one of the tables with a notebook open in front of him.
His phone remained at home.
Students through Class 10 weren't allowed to bring smartphones to school, and Vash had no intention of breaking the rule.
Instead, he had written down the subjects he needed to study.
Programming fundamentals.
Data structures.
Algorithms.
Data processing.
Machine learning.
Neural networks.
Artificial intelligence.
He stared at the list.
It looked less like a study plan and more like a mountain.
"I don't even know where to start."
He walked between the shelves.
Programming books were easy enough to find.
There were books about basic computers, programming languages, databases, and software development.
But artificial intelligence?
Very little.
Vash checked another shelf.
Then another.
Nothing useful.
He finally carried two books back to his table, but neither was really about what he needed.
He looked around.
The library suddenly felt much smaller than before.
Vash stood up and approached the librarian's desk.
"Excuse me."
The librarian looked up from her computer.
"Yes?"
"Do we have any books about artificial intelligence?"
The librarian thought for a moment.
"A few introductory ones, but not many. Most of our technology collection is focused on basic computer science."
Vash nodded.
"Is there somewhere else I can find more?"
"There is."
That caught his attention.
"Where?"
"City Centre Library."
Vash waited.
The librarian continued.
"It's much larger than this library. Their science and technology section is considerably bigger."
"How big is it?"
"Eight floors."
Vash blinked.
"Eight?"
She smiled.
"Yes. You could probably spend an entire day there."
That sounded perfect.
But another problem came to his mind.
"Can I enter?"
"Of course."
"Do I need money?"
The librarian shook her head.
"Not necessarily. As a student, you can enter using your school library card."
Vash looked relieved.
"But can I borrow books?"
"That's different."
She pointed toward his school library card.
"With that card, you'll have ground-floor access. The upper floors require additional membership or access."
Vash nodded slowly.
"Ground floor is enough to start."
"Exactly."
He returned to his table.
For the first time since receiving the AI mission, the task didn't feel completely impossible.
He still had no idea how to create an AI.
But he had found somewhere to learn.
That was enough for now.
Vash opened his notebook and wrote:
AI Research Plan
1. Programming Fundamentals
2. Data Structures
3. Algorithms
4. Data Processing
5. Machine Learning
6. Neural Networks
7. AI Systems
He looked at the list again.
Then he added another line.
Start from the beginning.
He underlined it.
---
By the time school ended, Vash had already decided what he would do.
He would visit City Centre Library.
Not today.
He still had responsibilities at home.
But soon.
As he walked back, his thoughts returned to the restaurant.
The repairs were progressing.
The damage was slowly disappearing.
But the financial pressure remained.
Vash wanted to help.
He just didn't know how yet.
When he reached home, he found Grandpa checking the repair work.
The new tables were beginning to take shape.
Grandma was organizing the kitchen supplies.
Vash helped where he could.
He carried small items.
Cleaned a few shelves.
Checked the new utensils.
Nothing extraordinary.
Just ordinary work.
But Vash didn't mind.
He was beginning to understand something.
Progress wasn't always about doing something huge.
Sometimes it was simply making sure tomorrow was a little better than today.
---
That evening, after finishing his responsibilities, Vash sat down with his new phone.
He opened the System.
He hadn't checked the complete interface for several days.
There had simply been too much happening.
School.
Repairs.
Studying.
Exercises.
Daily Tasks.
Restaurant work.
He had been completing his Daily Tasks every day, but he hadn't really stopped to calculate how much those small rewards had added up.
Vash opened the System Point section.
A notification appeared.
[ORDINARY SYSTEM]
System Points:
98 / 100
Vash froze.
"98?"
He stared at the number.
"When did I get this close?"
He thought back.
Every day.
Three System Points.
Three points for completing all five Daily Tasks.
He hadn't paid much attention to the total because the restaurant problem had occupied his mind.
But the small rewards had continued accumulating.
Day after day.
One routine after another.
83...
86...
89...
92...
95...
98.
Vash leaned back.
"So I'm only two points away."
His eyes moved to the System information.
[THRESHOLD STATUS]
Required:
100 System Points
Current:
98 System Points
Remaining:
2 Points
His heartbeat quickened.
Two points.
Just two.
He remembered what had happened the last time he reached 100.
New functions had become available.
But this time...
The System interface looked different.
A faint notification appeared.
[UPGRADE REQUIREMENT]
System Points: 100
Current Progress:
98 / 100
Remaining:
2 Points
Vash stared at it.
"So when I reach 100..."
He didn't finish the sentence.
He didn't need to.
Something was waiting beyond that number.
An upgrade.
A new stage.
Maybe new functions.
Maybe a stronger System.
Maybe answers.
He didn't know.
And for once, he wasn't impatient.
He could wait two more points.
Tomorrow's Daily Task reward alone would move him closer.
Vash closed the interface.
Then he remembered his recovery.
He opened it again.
[RECOVERY STATUS]
Rehabilitation Progress: 9.8 / 10
Walking Stability: 9.7 / 10
Balance: 9.8 / 10
Overall Recovery: 97.7%
Status:
NEAR COMPLETION
Vash smiled.
"Tomorrow."
Two things seemed to be approaching at the same time.
His body was almost fully recovered.
And his System was almost ready for its next stage.
But Vash didn't know which one would happen first.
He placed the phone beside him.
Tomorrow, he would complete his exercises.
Tomorrow, he would complete his Daily Tasks.
And tomorrow, he might finally reach 100 System Points.
For now, there was only one thing left to do.
Sleep.
Because the next day might be the beginning of something much bigger.
And Vash had no idea what the System was preparing to show him.
[ORDINARY SYSTEM]
System Points: 98 / 100
System Integrity: 18%
Condition: Damaged
Recovery:
97.7%
Next Milestone:
100 System Points
The screen disappeared.
Vash looked toward the ceiling.
"Two more points."
Then he closed his eyes.