"Let's condense the information for now," I told Emy. "Just bring up the categories first."
[Yes, sir.]
…
Knowledge Skill Trees:
[Gain knowledge on any topic.]
{Science}
{History}
{Language}
{Engineering}
{Art}
{Communication}
{Battle Tactics}
{Politics}
{Assassination}
{Sports}
{Culture}
{Geography}
{Survival}
{Craftsmanship}
{Cooking}
{Agriculture}
{Coercion}
{Sailing}
{Observational Techniques}
{Philosophy}
{Education}
{Espionage and Information Gathering}
…
I whistled while looking at all the categories.
"Man, that's a lot of knowledge. I'm guessing they also require skill points?"
[Yes, sir. All first tiers of each category cost one skill point.]
"Guess I've got to level up again. Is there anything else I unlocked after upgrading all the mind skills?"
[Yes, the Magic Arts skill trees have been unlocked as well.]
"Finally! I can become a mage! Bring it up!"
The screen shifted again and a new list formed.
…
Magic Arts:
Mana Capacity: N/A
[Amount of mana the body can hold]
Mana Control: N/A
[Precision and speed of mana control in the body.]
{Spell Skill Trees} [Locked]
…
[Again, the two skills will require one skill point to upgrade to tier one.]
"Alright! Time to get to work!"
I sprung off my bed and took off out of the house and towards the guest house's training room.
"Now, I can finally start using the weights!"
On a rack were several dumbbells of varying weights. I grabbed the closest two marked with 15 pounds and started curling them.
"I think–haah–I think my body is around the same strength as it was back on Earth now. This was what I usually curled with. I'm still surprised how quickly I'm growing."
After 15 minutes, I racked the dumbbells and sat on a machine with a bar hanging over my head. I bent over and set the weight to 50 pounds to test it and pulled the bar down. After adjusting the weight more, I settled on 75 pounds and began to do reps.
The rest of the night passed in a blur as I used all the different equipment in the training room. There was a chest press, a bench press, an elliptical, and even a non-electrical treadmill. How'd they get that to work?
In the middle of the night, I couldn't even move. I collapsed off of the elliptical and lay on the floor, panting heavily.
"I went for almost four hours this time–hahh. And I didn't even take any breaks. This is nuts!"
[As you were exercising, the system was constantly healing your muscles as you strained them, so progress was evident as you were working out.]
"Hah, I bet every gym bro on Earth is pissed. I maxed out on the bench press earlier at 215 pounds! I could only lift a pillow before I got the system. *Yawn* Emy wake me up when someone is on their way to the training room."
[Yes, master.]
I shut my eyes with a bright smile on my face. Tomorrow couldn't come sooner!
…
My eyes opened the next morning. The bright, golden sun was beaming through the windows of the training room. I could hear the familiar footsteps of Mr. Davis nearing me, so I got up and stretched.
The door opened and the butler walked in with a plate of fresh fruit and sausage patties with a cup of orange juice.
"Did you have a good training session, sir?" He asked.
"It was amazing. Thanks for the breakfast, Mr. Davis."
"Of course, sir. Your bath is being prepared at the moment, so when you are finished eating, you can head back to your bathroom and wash yourself."
He handed me the plate of aromatic food and turned to leave.
"Alright, I'll be there in a second," I said.
When he left, I took the fork on the plate and tasted the fruit.
"Mhmm. Watermelon is the best."
[I'm surprised you didn't manhandle the food this time, master.]
"Hmm? Oh, that might be the acuity upgrade, right? It said I could disregard impulses. I didn't notice the effects until now."
I continued to eat slowly, savoring every bite of the heavenly food.
[Oh, master. You managed to level up while you were sleeping. It seems your hard work last night was rewarded.]
The main system page appeared.
…
Name: Kaiser Raijin
Level: 4
XP: 5 / 250
Skill Points: 4
Status:
Health: 100%
Stamina: 100%
Mana: N/A
{Skill Trees}
…
"Nice, now I can upgrade my mana capacity and mana control. But I'll save that until tomorrow. That leaves me with two upgrades left."
I stroked my chin in thought. "Hmm. I can either upgrade something from body or chose one of the knowledge skill trees."
[I would recommend something from the knowledge skill trees. Since you are improving so much on your body, it would be a waste to dampen further improvement.]
"Hmm. I mean, I don't really need to choose right now. Since I don't know what I'll need in the future for the mana realm, I'll just save my points for when I'm sure of what I want."
[Great choice, master. I didn't think of that.]
"I am very tempted to test out the knowledge skills, but I don't want to be too hasty. Well, that's that. I'm gonna go take my bath, I haven't washed for a couple of days and I'm starting to smell like a horse. No offense Otis."
I went back to the main house to my bedroom. Steam was wafting inside from the bathroom and I quickly went in and took off all my clothes and hopped into the steaming waters.
"This feels like lava!"
With my enhanced sensitivity, the warm waters felt extremely hot. But I gritted my teeth and endured until my body was used to it.
"I guess this is what endurance is for, huh? I don't think I can live my whole life being scared of mildly hot bathtubs. Emy, what would be the extent of the first tier of endurance?" I asked.
[The first tier of endurance will bring a lot of benefits to your body. Things like sickness and ailments will disappear and your body's tolerance for outside forces will go up a significant amount.]
"It's tempting. But, I'll just wait. No need to rush. This is just the start of everything."
…
Later that day, I was back in the training room, trying to earn as much XP before I left the next day.
"Holy crap, I just benched 400 pounds!" I exclaimed as I racked the bar.
[The levels of your strength have increased by a significant amount. They are on par with how effective the first tier of strength would have been if it were your first upgrade when you gained the system.]
"Is the strength upgrade just a multiplier, then?"
I sat up from the bench and grabbed a towel that was hanging to my left and wiped my face.
[Yes. Or to be more accurate, with each tier unlocked, your body is able to produce a lot more kinetic energy than before.]
"I love a good Kaio-ken."
At that time, footsteps echoed through the hall of the guest house.
I smiled. "Dinner time. I wonder what magical dish he made today?"
The door opened to the training room and the butler came in empty-handed.
I tilted my head in confusion.
Seeing my confusion, Mr. Davis smiled. "Dinner today will be served in the main house's dining room."
"Oh, okay," I said. I put down the towel and got up from the bench. "Lead the way."
I followed the man in the tux through the pathways around the property and through the main house. Mr. Davis' smile didn't falter a single time as we walked, making me suspicious of what I was heading into.
But my worries were unnecessary. As he opened the wide double doors to the main dining hall, loud pops went off with confetti streaming down everywhere.
If I hadn't upgraded my acuity, I would have jumped right out of my socks and shoes.
'These people really like to scare me don't they?'
"Suprise!" Everyone in the dining hall exclaimed together.
Around the room stood all the workers of the mansion, who Kaiser got to know over the years.
Mr. Davis turned around, his smile as bright as ever. "Happy Birthday, young master."
I chuckled. "I thought my birthday was tomorrow, Mr. Davis?"
"Well, we don't know when you might awaken, sir. It could be anytime after midnight so we prepared the celebration for tonight."
Even though I knew I had control over when I would ascend, I didn't correct him.
A smile broke out on my face as I turned to look at everyone gathered.
"Thank you all so much. These past 18 years have been amazing. I commend all of you for your hard work and dedication. Now, let's have a great time."
All the people gathered applauded and the festivities started. The entire dining room table was covered end to end in foods of all kinds and a live orchestra was hired to liven the atmosphere.
Throughout the night, I talked with everyone I was familiar with and met new people that were being hired. There was a lot of laughter and stories of the past were being shared. The most memorable one amongst the staff was when Martha was changing my diaper and got pee all over her maid's dress. As Mr. Davis was telling it, he was tearing up and laughing so hard he almost fell out of his chair.
"The look you had on your face was priceless! HAA HA–"
Martha got up from her chair and ambushed Mr. Davis before he could laugh anymore.
I couldn't help but laugh as well when they started to wrestle on the ground with each other.
"You old bastard!" She yelled. "Stop embarrassing me in front of the young master!"
Mr. Davis' laughter didn't stop as they tumbled with each other.
One of the guards leaned over and whispered into my ear.
"Are they really married?" He asked me.
"Ha ha ha. I know it seems like they're mortal enemies but they are indeed married."
As the night grew long, people left one by one leaving just Me, Martha, and Mr. Davis sitting at the dining room table.
The wedded couple hadn't touched a single drop of alcohol tonight, which puzzled me.
"You guys didn't want any of the champagne?" I asked.
Mr. Davis perked up at the mention of alcohol and walked over to a counter at the edge of the room, returning with a bottle of amber fluid.
He set it on the table with three cups. "I've been keeping this bottle for a long time. It's a 75-year-old scotch that my father gave me. Ever since then, I've drank a glass with every Raijin family member on their last day in the mortal realm. It would be my honor if I were to share the young master's first taste of alcohol."
I picked up the glass and raised it towards him. "Of course. Martha, you get in on this too."
Martha's lips had a slight smile. "I'd be happy to, young master." She grabbed the glass and also held it up to Mr. Davis.
He filled the glasses halfway with the scotch as well as his own glass. He then held up his glass.
"To the young master, Kaiser Raijin. May your journey in the mana realm be a legendary one."
Martha raised her glass as well. "To the young master," She said.
I raised my glass as well and all three of us downed the contents of the glass in one go.
It was like drinking molten rock. My throat was on fire and as soon as I got the whole thing down, I slammed the cup to the table and gasped at the strong flavor.
"God damn! That's strong!" I exclaimed.
Back on Earth, I had drank before, but nothing this strong!
The couple next to me also slammed the cups to the table and gasped.
"Never gets old," Martha said.
"Your father almost passed out when he drank this scotch," Mr. Davis said to me with a chuckle. "You've got guts, young master."
I chuckled as well. I wonder what my father is like. Is he strong? My mother is smokin', so he must have done something right.
…
The three of us conversed long into the night about plenty of different things. We only had that one glass of scotch but that didn't mean the champagne went untouched.
When the clock's hour hand was after 11 and the minute hand was at 50, Mr. Davis got up from the table with Martha's arm over his shoulders.
"Thank you, young master, for everything. I had an amazing time raising you into the young man you are now. I know Martha feels the same," He said.
Martha was half passed out and her cheeks were dyed red from the alcohol.
I smiled as I sipped the glass of champagne that was nearing its last drop. "I don't know what you are thanking me for. All the praise should go to you two and the rest of the staff here. There was never a day when I wished to be anywhere else."
"I'm glad to hear that, young master." He bowed. "It was an honor being your mentor these past years. I hope you have a great time in the mana realm. Your father probably won't sleep until you arrive."
I looked up into his eyes. We stayed silent for a bit but we soon both smiled.
"I'll see you again, Mr. Davis. While I'm gone, make sure Martha doesn't get into any of the champagne."
He chuckled and looked over at his wife's already asleep face. "I'll make a note of that, sir. And I will await your arrival."
He bowed a final time and left the dining room, dragging Martha with him and leaving me alone to wallow in my thoughts.
After a few minutes, the clock on the wall struck twelve, and a soft, deep ring permeated through the room.
"Are you ready, Emy?"
[I am awaiting your orders, sir.]
I got up from my chair and walked out of the room and out of the house. In the darkness of midnight, the trees of the forest swayed in the cool breeze and the crickets and grasshoppers were buzzing.
I walked along the concrete pathways around the house, committing every part of the estate to memory.
I rounded a corner and came upon the stables. There, the horses were asleep but my footsteps awoke them. I reached the stable in the middle where a beautiful, pearl-white horse was standing. His dark eyes which seemed as deep as the ocean gazed into mine.
I rested my hand on his head and he closed his eyes and pushed into my palm.
"Goodbye, Otis," I said softly.
The horse neighed in sadness, pushing harder against my hand, trying to feel me as much as possible.
"This isn't the last goodbye. I'll be back someday. Wait for me, okay boy?"
He heavily exhaled in resignation and I smiled.
"Emy, upgrade my mana capacity."
[Yes, master. Commencing upgrade of Mana Capacity at the cost of one skill point.]
Suddenly, everything around me began to sink down into darkness.
'This feels like the opposite of what happened when Kaiser was born.'
My hand slipped from Otis' head and the horse looked up at me from below with sad eyes.
I waved one last time and looked up.
Above me, a bright light spread through my vision and I was pulled further upwards.
The light completely surrounded me for a brief moment before fading away, revealing a large, white platform with golden accents tracing around the surface, making intricate patterns.
I was in a round room with multiple windows ahead of me, letting in the bright, early morning sun.
As I was marveling at the intricacies of the room, a sudden force hit me from behind.
'Ooh, very soft! Wait! How did I not hear anything?!'
"Welcome home."
The voice of an angel flew into my ears. Even if it was magnified by my perception upgrade, it didn't hurt my ears at all. The only feeling I got from the voice was incredible warmth.
I turned my head and looked down. A beautiful woman with light brown hair was hugging me from behind. She lifted her head and met my gaze with her brilliant, golden eyes with dark pupils.
"It's been a while, hasn't it Kaiser?" She remarked.