Arjun ate the paratha in silence, his mind racing. Thirty thousand rupees. He couldn't earn it as a 12-year-old. He couldn't ask for it. He had to create it.
"System," he thought, "what is my Personal Prana gain for knowledge I already have?"
[Scanning Host's 2025 Knowledge Base... Error. Knowledge is latent. It must be actively 're-learned' and integrated with this world's context to generate Prana.]
He was starting from scratch. But he had a 34-year-old's mind and a System.
He looked at the small stack of schoolbooks on his desk. He focused his gaze on one.
"System, [Scan]."
-[8th Standard Mathematics Textbook]-
[Status: Unread]
[Knowledge Value: Grants 5 PP upon completion of learning.]
He scanned another.
-[10th Standard Physics Textbook (Advanced)]-
[Status: Unread]
[Knowledge Value: Grants 8 PP upon completion of learning.]
He smiled. It was a "grind," but he could do it. He spent the rest of the day in a flurry of activity, telling his worried mother he was "just catching up on homework." He read his 8th-grade math book, cover to cover. As he read, the text seemed to glow and dissolve into his mind.
[8th Standard Mathematics mastered. +5 PP. Total PP: 105/105.]
He tore through his 9th and 10th-grade books. By midnight, he was exhausted, but his status bar read PP: 150/150. He had new knowledge, and the "energy" to use it.
He sat on his cot, the moonlight streaming in. "System," he commanded, his voice firm.
"Use [Path of Least Resistance].
Goal: Acquire ₹30,000 within three months, using only available resources."
[...Calculating... Cost: 50 PP. Confirm?]
"Confirm."
His PP bar dropped to 100/150. A wave of information, a perfect, crystalline plan, downloaded directly into his brain.
[Path Calculated: Knowledge Arbitrage]
[Step 1: Utilize 2025 knowledge in a high-value 1991 market.]
[Step 2: Recommended Skill: Computer Programming (Language: BASIC & C).]
[Step 3: Recommended Field: Data Compression. (Existing 1991 algorithms are inefficient. A 2025-era algorithm will be revolutionary).]
[Step 4: Target 'Bharat-Tech,' a struggling local software company. (Scan shows CEO is honest, desperate, and B-Rank in Talent).]
[Step 5: Anonymously provide a solution. Negotiate for equity/cash.]
It was perfect. It was ruthless. It was a plan a 12-year-old could never devise, but could, with the System, execute.
He found his old school bag. Tucked in the bottom was a thin manual. His school had recently received three "BBC Micro" computers. His mother, being a teacher, had brought the manual home.
[A Beginner's Guide to BASIC Programming]
He placed his hand on the cover. "System," he commanded, his voice shaking with anticipation. "Activate [Accelerated Learning]."
[Activating. Cost: 10 PP per hour. Remaining Prana: 90/150.]
A jolt, like a cool electric shock, ran up his spine. The world faded. The book in his hands lit up, and the pages began to turn as if moved by a ghost, their contents flooding his mind, being absorbed, categorized, and mastered at an impossible speed.
He had three months. The game had begun.