"See ya, Shinka! I'll call you once my parents are gone," said Hiro, adjusting the strap of his backpack.
"Take care, Hiro, Tomo. See you tomorrow," Shinka replied, raising a hand in a tired but affectionate gesture before turning and heading in the opposite direction.
'It's a shame we don't live on the same street.' A slight weight of loneliness settled on his chest as he watched the silhouettes of his friends recede, blending into the torrent of uniforms pouring from the school gates.
The energy was palpable.
Spring break was starting right that instant, and for Shinka, the combination of free time and his newly discovered tool was like finding the perfect video to accompany a good lunch.
With a thought, the familiar bluish window materialized the tangible proof of his harvest day.
[Status.]
[Name: Shinka Kusaka.]
[Race: Human.]
[Titles: None.]
[Health: 50/50]
[Mana: 1/1]
[Attack: Low. (Human)]
[Defense: Low. (Human)]
[Speed: Low. (Human)]
[Number of skills: 5.]
[Skills: Mathematics Lv.8, Rationality Lv.7, Speed Reading Lv.9, Accelerated Thinking Lv.2, Linguistic Proficiency Lv.8]
He had squeezed every minute of class, turning monotony into experience points. A smile of genuine satisfaction lit up his youthful face, fresh from childhood, momentarily wiping away the fatigue that inhabited it.
He was decent at languages, so the skill went directly to level 8; rationality, mathematics, and accelerated thinking were boosted thanks to arithmetic classes.
'I've gotten smarter, that's undeniable.'
He raised his eyes to the clear afternoon sky, and his expression softened. A warm glimmer, foreign to the cold blue of the system, appeared in his eyes.
'I'll be going to Kuoh soon to visit my sister. It's been a year since we last spoke... I miss her a lot.'
'I wonder how she's doing with grandma.'
A passing cloud hid the sun, casting a fleeting shadow over him. Even then, the faint blue reflection of the system in his lenses remained, constant.
'Is this what cigarette addicts feel? I can't help but think my paranoia has also grown as I obtain and strengthen more mental skills.'
Opening and closing the system had become a nervous tic, a ritual to reassure himself it wasn't a prolonged lucid dream.
The fear that an antipsychotic could erase it was absurd, but for some reason, it existed.
He kept the window open in a corner of his peripheral vision as he walked, dividing his attention between the pavement and the floating data.
[Divided Concentration Lv.1 acquired.]
The smile returned, wider. At least the anxiety bore fruit too.
Finally, he stopped in front of a vacant lot on the outskirts of the neighborhood, an urban wasteland dotted with tall weeds, rubble, and some young trees. 'Yesterday my mind wasn't clear enough to experiment, nor did I have the time. But now... now it's different.'
'My mind is much clearer than ever!'
He ventured into the undergrowth while continuing to scheme internally.
'The system looks like what you'd expect to see if you searched for an RPG system in some classic game. The most interesting parts are certainly the skills section and the mana section.'
'It makes it quite clear that even though I can't yet, perhaps at some point I'll be able to use mana.'
He shivered like a fangirl seeing her favorite boyband at a concert.
He could only imagine creating an explosion spell and destroying a huge mountain with a staff and a wizard's hat, while some strange reincarnated guy named Kazuma carried him on his back.
But he shook his head to clear his thoughts.
'Although, I wouldn't know if it's just for me, or if it's something accessible to the entire population who meets some basic requirements. Which makes it a bit worrying! And it only leaves me wondering...'
'Am I the only person with one, or are there more? The possibility that only I have the system is as optimistic as the possibility that I'm not the only person with one.' The thought chilled his blood slightly.
What if there were someone with the system, who was taking insane advantage of it?
'There's no way to corroborate the information, but I can't be so egocentric as to think I'm the only one.'
A determined look formed on his face.
He would take advantage of this gift no matter what!
He observed what was in front of him.
The place was perfect: isolated, no witnesses.
Ideal for a crime... Or for a discreet training session.
He carefully placed his backpack on the ground and rolled up his uniform shirt sleeves. He began with warm-up exercises under the slanting afternoon light: jumping jacks, arm circles, stretches to wake up lazy muscles.
Then, he planted himself in front of a young tree with rough bark. With a clumsy jump, his hands grasped a low branch. His thin arms trembled under the strain as he attempted a pull-up.
"Huff!" A groan escaped his lips. The pain was sharp, real.
[Skill 'Physical Training' Lv.1 acquired.]
[Skill 'Strength' Lv.1 acquired.]
'E-Eureka!'
He continued, moving on to push-ups on the dry earth, each repetition a battle. Then, he searched among the stones and found a rock the size of a melon.
He lifted it with both hands, performing slow, controlled lifts, feeling his muscles burn.
To finish, he dedicated himself to running in circles around the perimeter of the lot, his school shoes kicking up dust, increasing the pace until the air burned his lungs.
. . .
The sun, now an orange disc about to sink below the horizon, painted long shadows across the vacant lot.
Under a tree, Shinka, soaked in sweat and with his uniform stained with dirt, panted. Bruises and scrapes decorated his arms. But his gaze was fixed on the floating victory before him.
[Because the skill 'Strength' has reached Level 5, your 'Attack' parameter has risen in rank.]
[Attack: Medium. (Human)]
Shinka fell silent, observing the lines of text. Brutal fatigue mingled with intoxicating euphoria.
'I can become incredibly strong. Not just smart. If this is the "Perfection System, it must cover everything. Perhaps other people have other systems, so I shouldn't hold back. I have to abuse it!'
With a stifled groan, he stood up. Every muscle protested.
[Pain Resistance Lv.1 acquired.]
'The Perfection System... it's based on repetition, on constant effort. So for Defense... it probably requires taking hits.' He shuddered at the thought.
He simply decided to let everything flow.
As he dusted himself off, a thought came to his mind.
"Maybe... I should try to improve my stamina by running home," he murmured to himself in a hoarse voice.
His body was one single throb of dull pain and needles; he pressed his stomach with some nausea.
'I don't know if I need to poop or if my stomach just hurts.'
He picked up his backpack, which now seemed to weigh a ton, and began a wobbly jog towards the road.
His face was flushed, and several people shot him amused or pitying looks as they saw his zombie-like death march.
He tried to ignore them, but in the end, dignity won out over training.