“What?” I say, almost screaming.

“You want to pass me your skills, Roy?”

It must be known that obtaining skills is only possible if you are part of a major family or institution. So, someone trying to give you any skill, even a third-tier one, is unheard of.

But here was Roy saying just that, not just one, but two!

“Yeah, kid, I want to see you make it in this life. I feel you will do great things if given the chance.”

“So now, quit being a little girl and sit down so I can transplant the two sequences into your brain. I know it's still early, but if you practice the TGene sequences daily, you will have a better chance of using them by the time you awaken.”

I don’t know what to think. I’m excited and afraid at the same time. As far as I know, neither Elizabeth, the older daughter of Lord Ethian, nor his first-born son Brandon has gotten any skills yet.

I’m stunned stiff as they say by Roy's words.

“Hey, dumb ass, are you going to sit down so we can get this done, or do I have to knock you down again?” he says while grinning at me.

After a few seconds, I came back to reality.

“Yeah, hold your horses, Roy. Man, are you sure you want to pass me those skills? I mean, won't your family be upset you gave them away so freely?” I say.

Roy looks at me and smiles. He turns his head left and then right.

“Do you see anyone from my family here?”

“No, but that does not mean they can’t be lurking around the corner,” I say while looking around the store.

My situational awareness has dramatically increased since I started about six months ago. This was partly due to all the hunting and trapping I was doing. I had to decipher countless situations out in the jungle on the spot, which caused my mental understanding to grow by leaps and bounds.

“They're not around the corner, Khy. I haven’t seen my family in quite a few years.” As he says this, he starts pushing some buttons on the DNA Sequencer in his hand.

The thing is metallic grey, with a round dome and a transparent display panel on the front that angles around your face. It has a headrest that separates at the top of the dome to allow for adjustment to fit any head. A control display box for programming is on the dome's right side.

“But even if they were here, do you think they would care about a few third-tier skills? These skills can be found in almost any family, so I don’t think my family would think or say anything,” he continues.

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This is my first time encountering this situation, but what Roy said made sense. The few times I have seen any skills were either by Lord Ethian practicing, which was only from afar, or in the Holographic Displays used for communication and entertainment feeds.

Brandon and I liked to watch the world power matches. These competitions brought out some insane players with incredible abilities. They were the cream of the crop—top competitors like Demos from the Royal Family in the Astren group, Ryze from the Zigmis Group, and the up-and-coming female warrior Vilis from Clan Daisuke.

Thinking of this, I calmed down and sat in the chair beside Roy.

“This isn’t going to fry my brain, right Roy? I don’t know much, but I have never heard of anyone trying to learn skills before they awaken,” I say to Roy as I watch him fumble with the sequencer. “Do you even know how to work that!”

“Of course I do you, so shut the hell up,” he says, visibly frustrated.

“Ah, there it is. It works good now,” “Nothing a little tinkering can’t fix,” he says after another few minutes of playing with the sequencer.

I watch him out of the corner of my eye.

I’m thinking, “Do I want to do this? It would be great if I could learn the skills, but what if something goes wrong.”

I’m lost in thought and fail to realize that Roy has already put the sequencer on my head. The next thing I knew, I saw a bright light and a DNA sequence flashed before me. I’m a little lost as the sequence seems to linger in my eyes. After a few seconds, it disappears.

Then, another flash of light and, again, another DNA sequence. Mesmerized again, I stared at this sequence. After a few seconds, it disappeared like the first one.

After about a minute of silence, Roy takes off the sequencer.

“Sorry, Khy, it seems this piece of crap sequencer is not working. I did want to give you these skills to help you better yourself but it looks like we will have to wait a bit”, he says while tossing the sequencer into an empty box by his feet.

I looked at him, confused. “Are you sure, Roy? I saw two sequences flashed before me just a minute ago. I want to say it worked.”

“Hmm..it turned on for a second or two but then shut down. If I recall correctly, using this thing takes 5 to 10 minutes for each sequence, which are the third-tier skills. Higher skills take longer,” he says.

I’m surprised by his words, but then I feel down. I had the chance to get two skills, but this piece of crap sequencer just crapped out. Well, as the old saying goes, no harm, no foul.

Disappointed, I get up and head for the door, “I have to go, Roy. I have class exams starting next week, so I might not return for a week or two. Maybe you can fix or get a new sequencer by then.”

He looks at me and sighs, “Do you think sequencers are cheap? Do you think I buy them 3 for one at the local technology store, brat?”

“If you don’t know, this kind of technology is controlled very meticulously by the different powers. I only got this one, thanks to my Dad.”

“Really?” With a weird look, I say, “I thought you rich folk had these things in your house.”

“Rich?” says Roy, now a little worked up, “Do you think I crap out money?”

“You know what? Get eh hell out of here before I kick you out for being a smart ass with me, kid.” “I'll let you know what I find when you get back in a few weeks,”

After I walk out, I see Roy shut down his shop for the night.

Walking back to the Estate and into my guestroom, I can't help but think, “I know I did not imagine those sequences, or did I? Maybe I was too excited, and my head started playing tricks on me.”

I don’t know what to think at this point.

I know I have exams next week, so I need to study for them if I want to pass. I don’t want the Madam bitching at me again.