Port Town was a large village by my standards. It was built along a large cliff with a path leading from the village down to a dock with massive and heavily fortified wooden ships. The dock itself was massive, easily larger than the biggest buildings in the village, looking in some ways more like a castle built into the ocean. The town itself was mainly constructed of wooden single-family homes, but a quarter or so were unoccupied, with large portions of the population spending weeks to months at a time out at sea.

  Mom’s orphanage was the second largest building in the village after the docks, as a large multi-floored wooden apartment-like complex. Apparently, unlike Earth, where people frequently disregard orphans, Port Town is such a dangerous place that the orphanage is more like life insurance and often receives a portion of money from most families who care about the futures of their children.

  Other features I found around the town are the butchery, which seemed to be more like a factory with gargantuan fish being cut apart and preserved with cartoonish ease. Then there was the inner forest, which was a region inside the fortifications where trees were encircled, giving people a safe area to practice woodland-based skills. Among all the places I found, I think my favorite was the great waterfall, which was where the cliff met the great river the town was built alongside. Technically it was outside the walls, but it was a short distance from the port and was regularly patrolled for dangerous creatures.

  It turns out the outdoors aren’t forbidden to anyone, but for anyone not specialized in survival skills, travelling between cities is a risky venture. It is even more risky to travel with people not specialized in physical stats, which the caravan had been intended to escort. While a large portion of people followed the path of the warrior, and it was even encouraged and supported by all levels of society, most who overestimated themselves didn't survive.

  Dad was one of the Knights stationed in the town; he and three others rotated in jobs: one to escort our fishing vessels, one to guard the town, one for clearing dangerous monsters in the village's proximity, and one getting to be on break. Dad was currently guarding the town, and in a month's time he would begin his break. So after getting to spend some time with his newly arrived family, he was quickly drawn away to deal with what people were calling a ‘Lesser Spore Hive.’

  Hive mind monsters are weird in that they all share the core’s skills, and all can improve that skill, but if you kill the hive core, the others lose access to those levels and have to start from scratch.

  Not that it made dealing with them any easier because they are one of the most prominent monsters in the forest, often killing the weaker monsters that enter the woodlands. In the forest there were considered four types of monsters among the lower level. Hive spore monsters, stealth ambush monsters, ancient tree/plant monsters, and rapid breeding monsters.

  These were just the basic understandings I had learned from the locals. A day in the life of a child could go one of several different ways. Often, as soon as children could communicate their existing skills, parents or caretakers would begin guiding them into mastering what was often the foundation for their future careers.

  If a child learned Run and Punch, they would be taught foundational skills for fighting, or if a child had mathematics, they would be pushed into an accounting or mercantile-type role. That’s not to say there was nobody who disregarded “infant skills,” and such skills sometimes contradicted things like having Run and Charm both as foundational skills but being naturally inclined to different paths. For those who succeed often, they find ways to build divergent skills into their specialty.

  Another two years go by as Callia and I get to enjoy life as children. Most days were spent with a mix of playing with the orphans or training skills with Grandpa. Then on our fifth birthday, Grandpa called me, Callia, and Mom for a discussion.

  “Cal, Lia, come over here and sit with Grandpa. It’s time we had a discussion about your futures.” Grandpa pulled us both onto his lap, and Mom sat down nearby, smiling encouragingly. “By now I think both of you have some understanding of skills and how important they are to your future, especially with all the questions little Cal has, so it's time to teach both of you one of the most dangerous functions of the system.” He sits still and holds out a hand. “System Display Status.”

  “Now notice how most of Grandpa’s skills involve fighting. It’s because Grandpa once protected this town like your father does.” Grandpa takes the opportunity to show off before he gets serious again.

  “Remember this: never show your status to anyone except family. This kind of information is very important because it tells anyone who would want to hurt you how to hurt you.” Grandpa pauses briefly before closing his status and changing from his serious demeanor.

  “Now Grandpa has shown you his status. I would like you to show Grandpa yours.” Mom reaches over, holding my and Callia’s hands reassuringly.

  “Don’t worry too much, Cal and Lia; Grandpa’s warning is for after you’ve grown up a bit more so you don’t accidentally show off an important skill. But if you don’t like it, we won’t force you. We just want to be able to help you fulfill your potential.” With Mom’s piece finished, Callia and I look at each other, silently reaching an agreement. We could try to hide the unique nature of our traits, but this was family, and we wanted to trust them.

  “System Display Status,” we intoned in sync.