Level Up!

A surge of energy coursed through Robert as he stepped through the portal, the familiar level-up notification flashing before his eyes. But his triumph was short-lived. A pair of tiny arms wrapped around his legs, and a cheerful voice cried out, "Daddy, you're back!"

"My little princess," Robert chuckled, ruffling Stacey's hair. "I'm back, and I'm alright. Where's everyone else?"

"Mommy's in the shower, and the boys are..." Stacey's voice trailed off as John and his brother burst into the room. "Dad, you're really back!" John exclaimed.

"Yes, I'm back," Robert confirmed, his voice steady. "I've finished the first floor. Let's wait for your mother, and then we can talk about it."

Robert headed to the bathroom suite, his heart filled with relief. "Honey, I’m back," he called out to Sara. "Give me a minute," Sara replied, her voice muffled by the shower.

Turning around to return to the bedroom, Robert only took a few steps before he was enveloped in a tight hug from Sara. "You made it back," she whispered, her voice trembling slightly.

A warm smile spread across Robert's face. "Yes, I did. But we should probably get out of the bathroom. The kids are waiting."

“The kids will wait a minute,” Sara murmured, pulling Robert into a passionate kiss. As she pulled away, her eyes, filled with a mix of relief and worry, softened. “I was so worried.”

After a much-needed moment with Sara, Robert returned to the living room to find the kids excitedly chattering. He sat down on the couch. "So, what do you want to talk about kids?" he asked, a playful twinkle in his eye.

John, ever the eager one, immediately piped up. “So, what did you see? What did you do? What did you fight?”

Robert began to recount his tale, painting a vivid picture of the dungeon floor he had just explored. He described the monstrous creatures he had encountered and the perilous challenges he had faced. As he spoke, he could see the wonder and fear reflected in their eyes.

When he finished, the kids were abuzz with questions. “You fought rats? Even I could fight rats! Did you find any loot?” John asked, a bit disappointed.

“Yes, rats,” Robert replied, “but rats the size of small dogs. And lots of them, all at once.”

“Gross, no more talk about rats,” Stacey exclaimed.

“As for loot, just coins,” Robert said, pulling out a handful of copper coins. “Not much value here, but I did find a chest at the end. Inside was a skill book.”

“What does it do?” Richard asked. “It teaches me Aikido,” Robert answered. “What’s Aikido?” Stacey asked.

“It’s a type of martial arts,” Robert explained. “I’ll probably learn it and teach you all. I also got a few more Skill Points, so I might be able to level up my teaching skill to Tier 3.”

With that, Robert spent the rest of the day just relaxing with his family.

The following morning, Robert woke up early, eager to delve into his new skill book. He retreated to his home office, a quiet space where he could focus. As he opened the book he received a prompt asking him if he wanted to spend a skill point learning the skill. He selected yes and a surge of knowledge flooded his mind. Images of graceful movements, precise strikes, and effective defenses filled his vision. Aikido, he realized, was more than just a martial art. It was a philosophy, a way of life. It emphasized harmony, balance, and the use of an opponent's force against them.

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General Skill - Martial Arts Unlocked, Subskill Aikido Learned.

He headed out to the backyard, eager to put his new skills to the test. As he practiced the graceful movements of Aikido, he felt a sense of peace and power.

His family watched from the window, a mix of amusement and admiration on their faces. "Honey, that was... impressive," Sara said, a twinkle in her eye.

John and Stacey just rolled their eyes. "Mom, really?" John groaned. "Sorry, kids," Sara chuckled. "Just a little too much excitement."

Robert laughed as he headed back inside. "Thanks, honey. Later, I'll show you some more moves."

"Gross!" the kids chorused, their faces scrunched up in disgust. While continuing to laugh, Robert told them he was headed back into his office to look into using his stat points from his level up.

He decided to allocate one stat point to Intelligence, matching his Wisdom, and another to Dexterity, to enhance his martial arts prowess. Finishing that up he looked at his Skill Points and saw he had three basic and four Unlocked points, which would be enough to get his teaching up, so he decided to add the points so he could continue his plan.

making his decision, he focused on upgrading his Teaching skill. He invested three points, elevating it to Tier 3, Level 4.

Robert took a deep breath, his fingers drumming on the desk. He'd leveled up his Teaching skill, and now came the true test. "Hal," he asked his AI companion, "how do I use this on John?"

Think about the knowledge you want to transfer. Call him in, and I'll guide you through it.

A knot formed in Robert's stomach. This wasn't just teaching anymore. This was rewriting his son's mind. "John, can you come here for a second?" he called out.

John entered, his usual carefree demeanor replaced by a flicker of curiosity. "Yeah, Dad?"

Go ahead and place one of your hands on John's head. Once you are ready focus on teaching him the skill. Let John know it will feel strange and will probably give him a headache.

Repeating what Hal had said Robert placed a hand on John's head, the touch feeling strangely unnatural. "Just relax and focus. It might feel a little...strange," he warned.

John closed his eyes, a trusting smile on his face. Robert took a deep breath and channeled the knowledge, picturing equations and formulas flowing into his son.

You are attempting to grant the Subskill Algebra to a Non-System User. This is not recommended. Repeated use of this ability can cause harm to the recipient.

Do you wish to continue (Yes/No)?

He gritted his teeth and pressed "Yes." and nothing seemed to happen for a moment and then John suddenly tensed up. After a moment John started to shake and a tear formed in his eye.

Transfer complete, Non-System User John Williams has been given the Skill Mathematics at Tier 1 Level 3 and the Subskill Algebra at Level 3.

Robert took his hand off John's head and John slumped to the ground, his face pale. "John? Are you alright?" Robert asked, his voice laced with worry. John opened his eyes, a grimace forming on his face. "Yeah, I think so. But...wow. That felt like someone crammed an entire textbook into my head."

That should be the worst time for him. The issue was you imparted a skill and a subskill, he was hit twice as hard. I'd give him at least 3 weeks before you try another one.

"It seems I made a mistake," Robert admitted. "I should've just transferred the Math skill. By going straight for Algebra, the system had to grant the general Math skill first. That was a bit much, all at once." He turned to John. "Hal says we need to wait at least three weeks before attempting another skill transfer. For your brother and sister, we'll start with basic Math today, and we'll revisit Algebra in a couple of weeks."

Later that day, Robert repeated the process with Richard, Stacey, and Sara, transferring the general Math skill to each of them. While they experienced some discomfort, it was nowhere near as intense as John's reaction. Exhausted from the intense mental exertion, the family decided to call it a night and retire early.