'Where should I start first?' Daniel thought, scanning the small room cluttered with books. The shelves stretched from floor to ceiling, their spines filled with a dizzying array of titles. As his eyes drifted across the space, something caught his attention. 'Wait... are some of these books glowing?' he thought, a flicker of suspicion creeping into his mind.

"What the hell..." he muttered, leaning in to get a closer look. One of the glowing books seemed to pulse with a strange energy. He picked it up carefully, his fingers brushing against the title, Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. 'So... a meditation book?' he thought, curiosity piqued as he opened the book. But just as he did, a system window appeared in front of him.

[Would you like to learn the skill [Meditation (Active/Passive) Lvl 1] ?]

[Yes / No]

He stared at the window for a long moment, the weight of the decision hanging in the air. He almost clicked "Yes" right away, but something stopped him. Instead, he decided to use his Observe skill on the book.

[Meditations by Marcus Aurelius]

[A timeless philosophical guide on Stoicism, self-discipline, resilience, and wisdom from a Roman emperor.]

After reading the description, Daniel felt a surge of excitement. 'This is... actually a great skill to learn!' he thought eagerly. Without hesitation, he clicked "Yes." The glowing particles surrounding the book vanished in an instant, and a sudden rush of knowledge hit him like a tidal wave. His mind struggled to process the flood of information, but just as quickly as it had come, the rush stopped. Daniel blinked, only to find that it was over. No lingering dizziness. No overwhelming sensations. Just... calm.

[Congratulations on learning the skill [Meditation (Active/Passive) Lvl 1] ]

His heart raced with a mix of excitement and curiosity. He wanted to keep searching for more skill books, but he decided to take a moment to check the details of his newly acquired skill.

[Meditation (Active/Passive) Lvl 1]

[Active:

- Grants a +5% boost to the Wisdom stat.

- Increases MP Regeneration by 5%.

Passive:

- Helps the user stay calm more easily.

- Increases MP Regeneration by 0.5%.]

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"Wow..." Daniel's mind raced. 'A passive mana regeneration boost, and when active, it gets a huge boost along with wisdom... and it's only level 1?' He grinned, already picturing how useful this could be. But then, his thoughts shifted. 'The passive to stay calm... eh, I guess it's useful? Though it's kinda redundant with my Gamer's Mind skill.'

He started looking around for more glowing books, eager to find others he could learn from. But as he touched another book without even glancing at the title, he opened it and was met with another message:

[Insufficient stats for learning the skill]

"What?" he muttered, bewildered. He closed the book and finally looked at its title: Algebraic Geometry by Robin Hartshorne. He couldn't help but frown, so he used Observe on the book.

[Algebraic Geometry by Robin Hartshorne]

[A rigorous introduction to algebraic geometry, covering schemes, varieties, cohomology, and modern mathematical foundations.]

'So, that's why...' he thought. He could tell just by looking at the description that this was far beyond his current capabilities.

Daniel spent the next hour methodically sifting through the remaining glowing books. After much searching, he found two he could actually learn:

[Waistline and Lifeline Cookbook by Robert Haskell]

[The Art of Self Defense]

He sat down at the small table in the corner, laying the two books before him. He opened them, already knowing what to expect this time. The rush of knowledge wasn't as jarring, and it was over before he knew it. Two new skills had been added to his repertoire.

[Cooking (Active) Lvl 1]

[- The food you prepare is more delicious.

- The food you prepare gives 1% more stat boosts.]

[Martial Arts (Active) Lvl 1]

[- Improves your fighting techniques.

- Increases damage dealt with martial arts moves by 2%.]

'Solid skills,' Daniel thought, a grin creeping onto his face. The martial arts skill especially had him excited. He could already imagine how useful it would be. But as much as he wanted to test it out, he knew better than to rush. There were still so many questions about the world he had been thrust into.

With a sigh, he looked around, trying to make sense of it all. "I guess I should see if I can learn anything about this world," he muttered.

He began to sift through the books that seemed most likely to give him answers: The World's History, Britain's History, and Technology Advancements. The books were thick, their covers worn with age. He carefully arranged them on the table, his mind already racing as he opened the first book: The World's History.

Hours passed. By the time he reached the cafeteria for dinner, Daniel's patience was wearing thin. "No difference," he muttered under his breath. He had read through half the book, and there was no difference between this world and his previous one.

He sat at his usual table, shoveling food into his mouth absently as his mind churned. 'Is this... really some parallel version of Earth? Or maybe I just time-traveled to the 90s?' He chuckled bitterly, the thought feeling ridiculous. But he didn't want to give up just yet. The next few days became a blur of eating, sleeping, and reading. He studied every book he could get his hands on, hoping for something, anything, that might offer a clue.

Finally, after three days of relentless searching, Daniel came to a conclusion.

Nothing had changed. The history, the technology, the world itself, it was all the same. The only difference was the date: it was 1991. He had read all the books about history available in the orphanage, but if he wanted to be 100% sure it was a normal Earth, he needed to check a bigger library.

'It's time to go outside', he thought, determination setting in.