Late at night, at 19 Tibber Avenue, the light in the second-floor window was still on.
Albert was rapidly reading his new books. He had just used his saved-up experience to upgrade his "Quick Memory" skill to Level 2, and his retention was already significantly stronger. This was not a skill normal people had; at least, their memory was nowhere near his.
Just a moment ago, Albert noticed a new skill had appeared on his panel: Wizard Bloodline (Level 0).
This skill couldn't be upgraded with normal EXP; it required skill points. This was the first time he'd seen such a requirement. After a moment of hesitation, Albert invested one point, raising it to Level 1.
He immediately felt a change. His efficiency at learning magic—or perhaps his raw magical power—had increased. His mastery over the Lumos charm accelerated. After just ten more minutes of practice, the skill hit Level 1. This meant he had a basic grasp of the spell and could cast it easily, even without intense concentration.
Should I invest all my skill points?
He hesitated. Skill points were incredibly hard to come by, and he wanted to keep some in reserve.
But, after weighing his options, he decided to invest his remaining 2 skill points. To his dismay, the System informed him that upgrading to Level 2... also cost 2 points.
What a rip-off!
After upgrading "Wizard Bloodline" to Level 2, he didn't feel any other immediate changes.
Is it just a passive skill?
Albert was a little frustrated but didn't regret the decision. He left his room and decided to try the Unlocking Charm.
He held his wand in one hand and The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1 in the other. Following the book's diagram, he tried the wand movement—a flick and a swish, like a backward 'S'. It felt awkward.
After a few practice motions, Albert locked his bedroom door and pointed his wand at the handle. "Alohomora!"
He tried the knob. It was still locked.
It had failed.
While he expected to fail, there was good news: the "Unlocking Charm" had appeared on his skill panel. This time, however, he hadn't gained any experience from the attempt.
"Albert, what are you doing?"
A girl's voice came from behind him. Nia, in her pajamas, was standing at the end of the hall. Albert turned to look at his sister, who wore the exact expression of someone who had just caught a thief sneaking snacks from the pantry.
"Why aren't you in bed?" Albert asked.
"Can't sleep!" Nia complained. "You're so sneaky! You are practicing magic in secret!"
Albert felt awkward. It was true. He felt a little guilty, just like he'd been caught stealing... well, stealing snacks.
"I want to play!" Nia said, her eyes fixed on the wand in his hand.
"This isn't a toy," Albert said, shaking his head. He was not about to let his little sister use this wand. Children had no self-control; they just did what they wanted. There was no telling what kind of trouble she could get into.
This was assuming, of course, that Nia was also a witch. Given that he was one, the probability was high. Which was exactly why he wouldn't let her try, at least not now.
"So sneaky. You're the one playing with it in secret," Nia whined, like a child who'd had her toy taken.
"Why don't you go back to bed?" Albert tried to change the subject.
"No! I can't sleep."
"Fine, I'll tell you a story." Albert sighed. He pocketed his wand and, in a much less magical fashion, pulled his house key from his pocket and unlocked the door.
"Albert is so sneaky," Nia grumbled, but she picked up Tom and followed him into his room.
Tom immediately began sniffing around, clearly looking for the owl. He seemed to take great offense at the empty cage by the window.
"It's okay, Tom. Shera is out hunting," Albert said, picking up the cat and scratching its belly. He then, very deliberately, put his wand in his desk drawer, locked it, and put the key in his pocket. He was guarding it as if from a thief, because he knew his sister's personality all too well.
"Hey! Do you really have to guard it like I'm a thief?" Nia pouted.
"I know you," Albert rolled his eyes. "If you got your hands on that wand, you'd probably blow up the house, wouldn't you?"
"I would not!" she said stubbornly.
"How do you know? Don't you remember how you got that scratch on your arm?" Albert said, his tone serious. "I'm not taking that risk. Don't make promises. I really don't want you to suddenly lose an arm, or worse, get yourself killed."
"That won't happen," Nia said, though she sounded far less confident.
She remembered. It was a similar situation, just after they had gotten Tom. She had been too rough with the cat, and it had scratched her badly. She still remembered Albert getting furious and yelling at her.
It was the first time Nia had ever seen her brother truly angry.
"Don't forget the lesson," Albert said. "Now, do you want to hear a story or not?"
"Fine!" Nia relented. She leaned back against the cushions, stroking Tom's fur, and listened quietly as Albert told her a fairy tale. He was very good at it. He used to practice telling stories to improve his spoken English and accent. After all, his "core" wasn't originally British. Although he'd grown up surrounded by the language, he still felt he had a slight gap to close.
It was worth noting he had also used his System to master another language: French, which he had leveled to 1 with EXP. There was a reason everyone thought Albert was a genius.
"Albert," Nia asked suddenly, her voice small. "Do you think... do you think I'll be able to use magic?"
"Probably," Albert said, comforting her. "If I can, you should be able to, too."
"That's just because you're a genius. You learn everything fast."
"I don't think it has anything to do with being a genius," he said, exasperated. "We're brother and sister. If I can, you can."
"But Grandfather can't. He said his family could, but he couldn't," Nia muttered. "And Dad can't, either."
Poor Herb, catching a stray bullet like that.
"Even if you can't use magic, you can still do lots of other amazing things," Albert said.
"So sneaky! You can already do magic, and you're saying that to comfort me! Tom, get him!" Nia grabbed Tom's paw and playfully tapped it against Albert's face.
The night deepened. Before long, Nia had fallen fast asleep.
The door creaked open, and Daisy and Herb, both in pajamas, walked in, looking fondly at their sleeping daughter.
"Finally asleep," Herb whispered. He gently picked Nia up to carry her back to her own room.
"Goodnight, Albert. Get some rest. Don't stay up all night; the books will be there tomorrow." Daisy leaned down and kissed his cheek. "And Albert... your father and I won't oppose your decision."
"Goodnight," Albert replied, muffling a yawn. He nudged Tom, but the cat just rolled over lazily, refusing to move.
"Fine. Goodnight, Tom." Albert pushed the cat to the side, fluffed his pillow, and found a comfortable position. He was exhausted, too.
Still, he thought as he drifted off, magic... magic really is an amazing thing.