The scent of roasted chicken and warm bread filled the small kitchen that evening.
Mateo sat across from his mother at the table, feeling like his body weighed twice as much after the brutal training.His muscles ached, his feet throbbed, but he forced himself to focus.
Helena placed two notebooks on the table — one for her, one for him — and smiled gently.
"Alright," she said. "First lesson: greetings."
Mateo nodded stiffly, picking up a pencil.
"Repeat after me," his mother said, speaking slowly and clearly.
"Guten Morgen."
"G-Gutten Morgennn," Mateo mumbled, his tongue stumbling over the unfamiliar sounds.
His mother chuckled softly. "Good try. Again."
They went through the basics — Guten Morgen (Good morning), Guten Abend (Good evening), Wie geht es dir? (How are you?), and Ich heiße Mateo (My name is Mateo).
Mateo struggled with the harsh consonants, the strange vowels, the rhythm so different from Spanish.It felt like trying to run while dragging heavy chains.
Again and again, his mother corrected him patiently.
"Guten Morgen."
"Guten Morg-... achh."
"Close! Better."
They spent an hour like that, and by the end, Mateo's brain hurt almost as much as his legs.
Still, when he finally collapsed onto his bed that night, staring up at the dark ceiling, he couldn't help but smile faintly.
It had been one of the hardest days of his life — and he knew the days ahead would only get harder.
Physical exhaustion, language barriers, loneliness, homesickness — all waiting for him every morning when he woke up.
But deep inside, he felt it: a tiny, stubborn flame refusing to die.
He turned onto his side, the sheets rustling around him.
"System," he whispered, still feeling slightly silly talking to the empty room. "Are you there?"
[System online. Command input ready.]
Mateo hesitated, then asked what had been burning in his mind all day.
"Can I see... my stats?"
There was a soft ding, and then a translucent panel unfolded before his eyes — like something out of a video game.
He stared in awe.
[Mateo González Schwarz]
Age: 12 years oldHeight: 1.48 metersWeight: 40 kgCondition: Healthy (Fatigued)Overall Fitness: Below Average (Growing Phase)
[Attributes]
Strength: 5
Speed: 6
Agility: 7
Endurance: 8 (+10% boost)
Vitality: 7
Intelligence: 6
Luck: 5
[Skill Trees]
Physical Development: [Unlocked]
Football Skills: [Locked] (Prerequisite: Physical Foundation)
Language Mastery: [Unlocked]
Daily Life Skills: [Unlocked]
[Active Skills]
Stamina Boost (Lv. 1)
[Language Progress]
Spanish: Native (Fluent)
German: Beginner (0%)
English: Basic School Level (10%)
Mateo's eyes widened as he absorbed the information.
He was like a character in an RPG — weak now, but full of potential.
He studied the trees carefully.The Physical Development tree had dozens of small nodes branching out — stamina, strength, speed drills, flexibility routines.The Football Skills tree was grayed out, locked for now, but it shimmered faintly, waiting.
The Language Mastery tree had a single flickering light under German, waiting to be nurtured.And the Daily Life Skills tree showed simple nodes like Cooking Basics, Social Interaction, and Mental Fortitude — little things that he hadn't even thought about yet.
A surge of excitement — and fear — ran through him.
There was so much work ahead.So much he needed to grow, to build, to learn.
He clenched his fists under the covers.
"I'll do it," he whispered fiercely. "I'll grow. Step by step."
The system responded softly:
[Acknowledged. Welcome to the journey, Mateo.]
The panel faded away, leaving only the soft hum of the night.
Mateo closed his eyes, his heart pounding — not from fear this time, but from determination.