Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
Vash opened his eyes.
The ceiling was still blurry.
White lights.
A hospital room.
The smell of medicine.
He blinked several times before his vision slowly became clear.
Then he saw her.
"Grandma..."
His voice was barely a whisper.
His grandmother froze.
For a moment, she simply stared at him.
Then tears filled her eyes.
"Vash?"
She grabbed his hand.
"Vash! You're awake!"
Vash looked at her.
Something felt strange.
She looked older.
Much older than he remembered.
"Grandma..."
He swallowed.
"Why are you crying?"
She laughed while wiping her tears.
"Because you finally woke up, you idiot."
Vash smiled weakly.
Then a memory struck him.
A truck.
A horn.
Priya.
His eyes widened.
"Priya..."
His grandmother's smile disappeared.
"You remember her?"
Vash closed his eyes.
The memories came rushing back.
Walking home.
Rohan laughing.
Priya stepping toward the road.
The truck.
His hands pushing her away.
Then—
impact.
Darkness.
Vash's heart began beating faster.
The monitor beside him responded immediately.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
"Vash, calm down!"
His grandmother held his hand.
"You're safe."
Vash opened his eyes.
"How long?"
His grandmother didn't answer.
"Grandma... how long was I asleep?"
She looked toward the floor.
"Two years."
Vash stared at her.
Two years.
The words didn't make sense.
He had closed his eyes.
Then opened them.
How could two years have passed?
Before he could ask another question, something appeared in front of his eyes.
A transparent screen.
Vash froze.
It floated in the air.
But his grandmother didn't react.
[Consciousness restored.]
Vash stared at it.
What is this?
The screen changed.
[Host detected.]
[Beginning system initialization.]
Vash's heart skipped.
System?
The word sounded familiar.
He had read stories about systems before.
But those were stories.
This couldn't be real.
Another message appeared.
[Initialization: 87%]
Vash stared.
The number increased.
[91%]
[94%]
[97%]
[100%]
A final notification appeared.
[System initialization complete.]
Then the interface changed.
---
[ORDINARY SYSTEM]
Host: Vash
Age: 14
Level: 1
Physical Attributes
Strength: 6/10
Agility: 5/10
Endurance: 4/10
Reaction: 5/10
Mental Attributes
Intelligence: 6/10
Memory: 7/10
Comprehension: 6/10
Concentration: 4/10
System Points: 0
---
Vash stared at the numbers.
What does ten mean?
A message appeared.
[10 represents the average healthy human standard for the host's age.]
Vash looked at his strength.
Six.
So I'm weaker than an ordinary person?
[Correct.]
Because of the accident?
[Primary cause: prolonged physical inactivity.]
Vash looked down at his thin arms.
Two years.
He had spent two years lying in a hospital bed.
It suddenly made sense.
Can I become stronger?
[Yes.]
Vash's eyes narrowed.
How?
The interface changed.
[Training.]
He waited.
Nothing else appeared.
Vash frowned.
That's it?
[The system does not create strength.]
[The system measures, analyzes, and assists development.]
Vash stared at those words.
It wasn't a system that simply handed him power.
It was a system that showed him how to improve.
A second window appeared.
---
[SKILLS]
Cooking — Basic
Mathematics — Basic
English — Basic
Observation — Basic
Physical Rehabilitation — Beginner
---
Vash blinked.
Cooking?
[Skill detected.]
Why?
[Host possesses practical experience in cooking.]
Vash remembered spending years in his grandparents' restaurant.
Cutting vegetables.
Preparing ingredients.
Helping his grandmother.
Stealing chicken.
He almost smiled.
So the system knows what I already know?
[Correct.]
And if I learn something new?
[The system will record the skill.]
Another window appeared.
---
[SKILL DEVELOPMENT]
Knowledge → Understanding → Practice → Improvement
Current learning efficiency: Normal
---
Vash looked at it carefully.
Can my learning efficiency increase?
There was a brief pause.
[Yes.]
How?
[Improve comprehension, memory, concentration, and related abilities.]
Vash became silent.
For the first time since waking up, he felt something other than fear.
Hope.
Not because the system promised to make him powerful.
It hadn't.
It had promised something much simpler.
A chance to improve.
The door opened.
A doctor walked inside with two nurses.
"Vash."
The doctor smiled.
"Welcome back."
Vash looked at him.
"Doctor..."
"Yes?"
"Can I walk?"
The doctor hesitated.
"You've been unconscious for two years. Your body has suffered severe muscle loss. You'll need rehabilitation."
Vash looked at the system.
Strength: 6/10
Agility: 5/10
Endurance: 4/10
He slowly moved his fingers.
Then his arm.
His muscles trembled.
But they moved.
The system displayed a notification.
[New objective detected.]
---
[Rebuild]
Objective: Restore your body.
Requirements:
- Begin physical rehabilitation
- Develop basic mobility
- Reach Strength 7/10
Reward: 1 System Point
Failure: None
---
Vash stared at the objective.
Then he smiled.
He had lost two years.
He couldn't get them back.
But perhaps he could make sure the next two years weren't wasted.
He looked toward his grandmother.
"Grandma."
"Yes?"
"I want to walk again."
She smiled through her tears.
"Then we will make you walk."
Vash looked at the transparent screen one last time.
[ORDINARY SYSTEM]
It wasn't giving him strength.
It wasn't making him a genius.
It wasn't turning him into a monster.
It was simply showing him what he was—
and what he could become.
For now, that was enough.
[System active.]