One child had died. Mel Carlo and the others stopped running and returned to the back alleys of the imperial city, continuing to live under the gang's control.
The original gang leader was already dead. A month had passed, yet Anke had not gained power. Instead, he had been locked up, and the gang's higher-ups had sent someone new.
Mel Carlo felt somewhat uneasy about everything that had suddenly happened because he did not know what was going on. This was different from the original plan.
He begged and stole as usual. During his second month in this other world, he successfully stole ten times, and the system finally responded: Complete 10 thefts. Skill [Theft] acquired.
His long-dormant heart finally stirred. This was the cheat-like advantage he had been waiting for, the kind of hack every transmigrator ought to have.
The only skill, [Theft], could now be seen on the Skill Panel. By the game's classifications, it belonged to the thief class and could be learned at level one. Yet he had only obtained it after successfully stealing ten times.
On the eleventh attempt, he tried the skill. Its activation range was about the same as in the game. Because his proficiency was low, there was a high chance that the stolen item would deviate from what he intended—in other words, it was random. It could also easily fail and alert the target.
Watching the man passing in front of him, Mel Carlo chose to test his skill. [Out of range.]
Transparent words appeared before his eyes. The skill was out of range. Maybe he needed to get closer, within three meters or one meter, just like in the game. The skill should be able to improve along with proficiency.
Mel Carlo moved closer and activated the skill again. His thoughts shifted, and the skill activated successfully. Then a notification came: [Detected. Theft failed.]
The man Mel Carlo had targeted suddenly turned around and glared at him furiously before throwing a punch straight into his face.
Mel Carlo was knocked to the ground, but he wore a smile. [Theft Proficiency +1. Current Proficiency: 1/10000.] [Effort Value +1.]
This was different from the game's five skill points per level. In the game, skills maxed out at thirty points, and it was impossible to max every skill. But the proficiency system gave him that possibility.
He could respec and redistribute points at any time anyway. They were not permanent points that vanished once used.
It was finally here—his own cheat. Looks like this system was somewhat useful after all. I'm going to become an all-class reincarnator.
Anyone who had been beaten up knew that when there was an overwhelming gap in strength, they should curl up, use their back to take the blows as much as possible, and make sure to protect their head with both hands.
Getting caught stealing and then beaten up was normal. Before being reincarnated into another world, he had been beaten like this too. He had probably been about this age back then.
It still hurt like hell, damn it.
Mel Carlo desperately held his head and curled up. His first skill was [Theft]. It really was useless. If he wanted to grind its proficiency to the max, he would probably be beaten to death first.
But this incident gave him an idea. Perhaps if he successfully performed certain actions enough times, he could unlock skills. It was only more troublesome than in the game, since there was no Skill Tree.
Level 1 skills:
Warrior: [Mighty Slash], [Back Hop]. Mage: [Fireball], [Staff]. Thief: [Theft], [Flying Blade], [Cut]. Priest: [Grapple Throw], [Empty Strike]. Knight: [Mighty Kick], [Shield Bash]. Lancer: [Thrust], [Rising Uppercut]. Archer: [Dagger Attack], [Arrow Shot]. The extra class, Fighter: [Upper Kick], [Middle Kick], [Low Kick]. The hidden class, Gunner, had no skills available at level one.
Now that he had obtained [Theft], if he wanted to try other skills, he had to attempt the actions or behaviors associated with them.
Many skills required weapons, so he had no way to learn them right now. Some fighting techniques also required physical ability, and he definitely could not achieve very good results with them at present.
The universal skill [Back Hop], along with thief-class skills, might be good choices for him right now. If Anke was willing to teach him, perhaps it would be easier.
The level restrictions severely limited his choices. There were not many options he could pick.
Thinking helped distract him from the pain, but pain was still pain. The man whose belongings he had tried to steal was kicking him, cursing as he did so, "You filthy rats!"
From the shadows, Chubby watched Mel Carlo get beaten, but he could not step forward. If he did, the man would take his anger out on him too. He could only wait until the man's rage subsided before checking on Mel Carlo.
Before long, the man grew tired of hitting him. Mel Carlo lay on the ground covered in wounds, with no desire to move at all.
He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and slowly wiped away his nosebleed, a smile gradually appearing on his lips.
Chubby hurried over to Mel Carlo. "Mel, are you okay?"
"Haha, I'm not dead yet." Mel was still happy over discovering how to use his cheat, and the pain in his body seemed insignificant. At least it was not fatal. He would be fine after resting for a while.
"You don't look very good. Are you really okay? Did they beat your head stupid?"
"I'm fine, Chubby. I'm a little hungry. Is there any leftover food today?" Supported by Chubby, Mel Carlo staggered to his feet.
It really was a painful lesson. He had thought that even if the theft failed, he would not be discovered, and he could hide the item in the system space afterward. But it seemed low-proficiency skills were not that useful. It would have been better to steal with his own hands.
Chubby carried Mel Carlo on his back as they headed toward another street beneath the setting sun. Akai and Lily had done fairly well today. Someone had given them thirty Aurens. It was not much, but at least they were less likely to be beaten to death.
"Mel, are you okay?" Lily's eyes were full of worry.
"Sigh." Akai held the copper coins in his hand, looking equally helpless. He did not know whether he should comfort Mel, because Mel did not seem like someone who needed comforting.
He could sense the adult-like maturity in Mel, and he did not want to steal.
"Akai, don't worry. I won't die, but don't ever imitate me. This is what happens when you get caught stealing. Not getting beaten to death already counts as good luck." Mel Carlo climbed down from Chubby's back, and the four of them headed toward the alley behind the restaurant.
He really was hungry today, and he had wanted to change clothes for a long time. His whole body felt sticky and filthy. He had gradually gotten used to it, but now there was something he desperately wanted: paper and a pen. He needed to write down all the skills from the game. Even though he remembered them clearly now, human memory was unreliable in the end.
As time passed, he would remain in this world longer and longer. Perhaps the things he once knew so well would gradually become blurry. Something he had spent more than a decade repeatedly memorizing would also require the same amount of time to forget. He had played that game for so long that its skills felt carved into his blood. He would not forget them over a short time, but time always moved forward.
"Eat, Mel." Chubby dug an unfinished chicken leg out of the kitchen waste bin. Normally, he would definitely have stuffed such a delicacy into his own mouth, but Mel was injured today.
After finishing dinner beside the slop bucket, the group prepared to return to the gang's courtyard.
Before you continue