Matt felt kinda awful that they had to lie so much, but it was for the quest, so he was going to do anything he could to finish it. Fen continued his spiel and Matt pretended to act like this was a genuine encounter.

"I follow you on all of your social media! I even bought a ticket to your next event! Hey man, can I get your autograph and a picture if it's not too much to ask!?"

Fen was really playing up the excited fan role. Matt didn't realize Fen would be so good at acting. He thought he really should think about pursuing it as a career. They went through the rounds and Fen started to leave and just as he did, Matt heard a notification.

__________

[Quest Complete]

Make a stranger believe you are a celebrity

Stat Unlock, +30xp [XP 78/144]

__________

[New Stat Unlocked: Charisma]

(Calculating Base)

(Adding points per level)

He made note of what just happened but wanted to finish what he was doing first. He looked over and saw the woman he was speaking to before was acting a little differently. Like a little bit more nervous or excited.

'I guess she really thinks I'm some sort of celebrity.'

He thought it was funny, but also felt a bit bad. But he talked to her a little bit more about the book.

"Well, I'll have to be going. It was good talking to you!"

Matt decided it would be best to leave quickly since he just wanted to remove himself from this situation. He wasn't actually a celebrity so he hoped she would just forget about all this.

He made his way onto the street where Fen was waiting.

"Hey, did you get her number?"

Matt didn't because that was never his real goal. Also, even if he did, she would eventually find out he wasn't a celebrity. It was just a recipe for disaster and would be mean.

"Yeah man, thanks for the help!"

They started talking and catching up more and Matt found out Fen was actually moving here for college.

"I'm going to be staying in the dorms here. Hey, Matt, I was thinking. I really missed hanging out with you after you left. What do you think about going to college with me?"

Matt blinked a few times. He had thought about this before but wasn't really sure. Now, Fen was even asking him.

"Why?"

"Come on man, it would just be like old times! And I know that you and your parents haven't been getting along, but do you really want to be stuck here working a low-paying job your whole life? Remember when we used to talk about being rich when we were older?"

Matt had always wanted to go to college, but he really didn't want to have to talk to his parents. And that was really the only way unless he wanted to go into debt. They had even left the offer open to pay for his college.

When he thought about it, he was planning on helping them once the system launched. They were family, he wasn't going to abandon them when there might be an actual apocalypse. He had to get over it and try to get along with them eventually.

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Not to mention, the college has tons of textbooks and classes where he could easily level his stats and learn new skills. It was a gold mine for him. He imagined it was basically inevitable for him to go anyway.

"Ok, Fen. I'll go. I probably just needed a few months to think. But now, I'm ready."

"Alright! Here, I'll tell you what dorm room I'm in. When you register, ask for that room. We can be roommates!"

They talked a bit more and then said goodbye. Matt was really wanting to check out what had happened after he completed the last quest.

'I unlocked charisma? There are unlockable attributes?'

He had noticed that after the notification, it felt like more eyes were on him. He wasn't sure if it was just a placebo or not, but he had a hunch that it was his new stat. So, he opened his stat screen.

__________

||Attributes||

[Str] - 21

[Con] - 14

[Agi] - 20

[Dex] - 13

[Int] - 17

[Luk] - 12

NEW [Cha] - 9 (+2)

[Stat Points]: 0

__________

He noticed the new stat, and he also noticed how it said +2. He was confused as to why 2 more points were added but then remembered what it said.

'Every time I level up, I get a point in all stats. I guess it adds those points every time I get a new stat?'

He thought it was very convenient. He would be worried about trying to unlock new stats before leveling up to get the most out of it, but they were just added anyway after.

'So if I got a new stat when I'm like level 100, I'll get so many points at once. That'll probably feel weird.'

He was curious about his new stat and if charisma had a more vague effect or if it was more physical. He was a little concerned, so he quickly found a window to see if he looked any different. He was a bit shocked at what he saw.

His skin looked a bit nicer and less unhealthy. The same could be said for his complexion. Even though his strength stat had made him look healthier, he was still a bit too pale, but now he looked more normal. After the points he had gotten, his face also seemed to become ever so slightly more symmetrical and a bit more appealing.

It wasn't a big difference at all, but he was concerned. If he increased his charisma stat too much, people might not recognize him. He was worried people would catch on that something was going on. It wasn't unfeasible for someone to change but it would take months for it to happen or surgery.

With the changes that happened, he imagined it wouldn't actually change how he looked. He would still look like him with 100 charisma, he would just look like a perfect, more attractive version of himself.

He sighed and decided that it wouldn't matter soon anyway. He would just have to come up with excuses for now, but he wouldn't stop increasing his stats just because he was scared of being found out. Also, he was probably just paranoid. People didn't actually get kidnapped by scientists like in those movies.

Matt looked at his XP and noticed he was basically halfway to leveling up again.

'The rest of the quests are a bit of a pain though.'

He also realized that for him to finish the level 5 quest, he would need to finish every quest he had, and then some. So he might need to rely on situational quests to finish it.

He started to head home, and as he did, his mind wandered back to college. If he was going to go, it would be better to do that sooner than later.

'I guess it's time for change.'

He decided since he would be too busy with classes, it would be best to quit his job. His parents would be paying for him anyway and he could make any extra money he needed using the system.

He quickly arrived at his apartment while he was thinking. Now that he thought about it since he was moving into a dorm, he would also need to leave his apartment, so this was a perfect time to pay his rent and then go. If he had still owed the landlord, that would've been tricky.

He was looking forward to college now. In high school, he had been bullied and never really got to experience the fun things about it. Now, he got to have another chance at a similar place and this time, he had an advantage. Not to mention no one could even mess with him now that he had high stats.

'Well, I guess that's it then. I'm going to min-max college.'

With that thought fresh in his mind, he headed to his bed and crashed, falling asleep within minutes.