Chapter 238: Future Plans

Jniml Block.

2/09.

Famin reached his home at nine. Technically speaking, it wasn't 'his' home. It was a 'community place' for people of Yvadian ethnicity to come and stay. Every house is the same as the other. It's two-story, has two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, a living room, and a balcony. There was even a small garage.

The floors were made up of smooth marble-like stones. The walls were polished and clean, and the glasses in the windows were of good quality. Overall, it was a good house to live in.

He was surprised by the nature of the house he was granted. Initially, he expected to get a small apartment or at most, a house with just barely enough for a person to live but it was way better than he had initially expected.

'Let's take a shower. I'm tired.'

Famin directly went to the bathroom and took a refreshing shower.

[So… what are your future plans?]

'My future plans? Anything to make my life better.'

Famin was a simple person. Growing up, he had faced most kinds of obstacles in his life. That influenced and shaped the person he is today – someone with very little ambitions. Now, having little ambitions doesn't mean he would reject the opportunity to become a King if he was given so but rather, he wouldn't try to become a King if he had to 'fight' to become one.

He was sure that in the future, he would get many opportunities with the system he got a while ago. He was also sure that he would certainly change if power comes to his hand but for right now, he just wants to make his life better.

[Hmm… that's not enough!]

'I don't understand what you mean.'

[Oh my God! You are so slow! What I'm telling you is that you need to have a detailed and reasonable set of goals – both short-term and long-term. With the happy-go-lucky attitude of – 'Oh! I'll live a better life!' wouldn't get you anywhere. You don't need to think big. Think sophistically.]

'Calm down. It's nothing serious. I'll see what I can think of.' Famin got the general idea of what Mii was trying to say and he agreed for the most part. Indeed. Having small goals and trying to achieve them is not a bad thing. What is bad is having a vague goal, no matter if it's big or small.

'How about I write down my future plans and see what I can do? It would be easier for me to understand and achieve the targets.'

[Yes! That's the way!]

Hearing the enthusiasm in her voice, Famin felt that his intelligence was increasing.

***

Bedroom.

Sitting on the bed with a notebook on his lap, he looked at the system interface. Holding a pen in his right hand, he started writing in his notebook.

'First things first. The first and the most primary objective should be to complete the [Becoming a Mage] mission. For that, I need to increase my mana storage capacity to 100. Currently, it's 86. I went to the academy for… let's see… twelve days? Yes, it should be twelve days. So, if I were to divide my current mana storage with the total number of days I went to the academy to increase my mana storage capacity, it should be…

'Around seven. So, every day my mana storage increased by seven. I think it's not bad? Right. It shouldn't be bad. Following simple mathematics, I would need two more days to become a Rank 0 Mage.'

Famin paused, took a sip of water from the bottle beside the bed.

'Primary objective, completed. Theoretically.'

'The next mission I have is – [Becoming a Martial Artist]. Hm, this is tough. How can I be a [Martial Artist]?'

He thought about it for a moment, then got out of his bed and went through the books to see if there's some information about [Martial Artists] given.

The search ended in failure.

'Sigh, what did I even think? How would I get information about [Martial Artists] in books related to the [Mage] path? What should I do now? Ah, I could visit the library tomorrow. Hm. It's decided---'

[Wait. Wait. Wait! You have other options on your hand. Think. Famin. Think.]

'Other options? I searched for books… I think I get what you mean.' Famin looked at the smartphone lying beside his bed.

The most efficient way of learning something is undoubtedly the internet. If one were to think about it, books have lost their primary purpose. One can't have books on their hands every time but the internet could help a person in any situation and in any part of the world.

Famin felt ashamed figuring out that his common sense was negative.

Browsing the internet, he got enough information about [Martial Artists].

"Oh? That's interesting."

It's way simpler to become a [Martial Artist] than it is to become a [Mage].

Why?

If one is a normal eighteen-year-old who went to middle school and high school, he/she is already half a [Martial Artist]. To equip themselves for the future, young teens are introduced to the horrors and fragility of violence. It was only possible through V-Space.

Famin went to middle school and developed severe PTSD upon getting killed in the V-Space. The PTSD lasted for seven months but he has yet to score a single win in V-Space. He was home-schooled in high school but he couldn't abandon fighting in the V-Space. For people who opt to be homeschooled, they must attend the public V-Space programs which are held once a week.

The regime was compulsory.

Needless to say, millions of people have complained about it since the introduction of the regime which was about seven hundred and forty years ago.

The Central Government, i.e., the Council of Ministers in the King's Cabinet were strong in its stance. No matter where the complaints came from, be it from the Marquis' daughter or their own nephew, they remained unwavering.

Gradually, people were forced to accept it.

Anyone who goes through six years of 'training' in V-Space is already half a step into being a [Martial Artist].

That is because the strength and physique acquired after going through the 'training' are enough for a person to qualify to become a [Martial Artist]. The only other thing that is necessary is – proper martial art.

Not necessarily a technique.

Only a form.

It could be self-made or copied.

'I see… To become a [Martial Artist], the only thing I need to do now is either create a form of martial arts or copy from the existing sets. When I become proficient enough in mastering the form, I would be recognized as a [Martial Artist]. This is interesting and also… kind of exciting.'

Being proficient in mastering a form of martial art is the first step in becoming a [Martial Artist].

The prospect of creating his own form of martial arts sounded very exciting to Famin but when he dug deeper on how to create, he realized that he shouldn't bite off more than he could chew.

Creating a form of martial arts isn't something anyone could do. It needs to have a proper set of rules and restrictions which is beyond the capabilities of a person who couldn't even fight.

'In other words, the only option left for me is to choose a form of martial arts. I think they should be priced… Indeed. The prices are beyond my expenses. Let's see if I can pirate. It should be just a set of moves, right? I'm sure I can easily get them on one of the pirated websites.'

With that, he started browsing through the internet searching for pirated copies of highly-priced forms of martial arts.

Twenty minutes later.

[Idiot! Idiot! Idiot! Use your head! If they were so easily available, why would they bother selling? They aren't simply other things that you could pirate. For fuck's sake, they are highly-priced! The one you are searching for is thirty million! If I were to sell you a million times, I still wouldn't have that much sum.]

'Hey, that's rude. I'm not worth that low.'

Famin rebutted. Inwardly, he was again ashamed of his 'high' intelligence.

'Sigh, let's see if there is free stuff. It says that although it's not recommended to do so, I could change the form of martial arts anytime in the future.'

He went to some legitimate sites and searched for extremely-low priced martial arts.

Surprisingly or unsurprisingly, there were indeed forms of martial arts which were sold for free. Being the person that he is, he started looking for the martial arts that looked the most attractive to him.

Five minutes later, he still couldn't decide what he should choose between them.

[Why don't you choose all of them and then try to narrow it down?]

Famin shook his head. 'According to the terms and service, I can only choose one of them.'

[Why not make another account and pick another one?]