One Big Step For Man
A good night's sleep really makes a difference. But sleeping and waking up next to someone as cute as Ophis brings total motivation to Mateus, who prepares to get up and shine for another day.
Upon actually waking up and being awake, Mateus once again feels like a new man, with a new mindset, but the same goals.
Awake, Mateus starts his morning routine, preparing for school. Starting with a good breakfast, Mateus begins his morning well. And after preparing his lunch for later, Mateus is ready. Calling for Ophis, they both enjoy a good breakfast.
Wearing his uniform and heading to school, Mateus bids farewell to Ophis. After closing the door of his apartment, Mateus comes across a familiar person. His neighbor Mahiru Shiina. Thinking it's a good coincidence that they're both leaving at the same time, Mateus believes that today will be a good day, if not an excellent one.
Greeting his neighbor, Mateus says, "Good morning, Shiina-san."
"Good morning, Mateus." With simple greetings, they meet in the morning. Mateus then says, "What a coincidence to run into you at the same time I'm leaving for school. How about we take this chance and go together?" Being assertive, Mateus expresses his intention to Mahiru.
Many might think he's just being hasty, but in reality, ever since he first encountered Mahiru in this world, Mateus felt she was the right girl. It might be his selfishness, but he genuinely wants this girl for himself. After reflecting on his actions from a few days ago, Mateus believes he needs to be clearer, more assertive, and genuinely show what he wants.
If he doesn't act, who will fulfill his dream of meeting great women and having a harem? For everything to happen, taking the first step is necessary. That's what Mateus is doing, taking his first steps in pursuit of his harem.
He feels that the girl walking cheerfully beside him is a perfect person to have in his life. And precisely for that reason, he shows genuine interest in the girl who radiantly converses with him.
So taking advantage of this opportunity, Mateus wastes no time and tries to get to know Mahiru better. While having good conversations on the way to school, they reach their destination, and therefore, they need to go their separate ways. But before that, Mateus asks, "Want to have lunch with me today?"
To which, joyfully, Mahiru responds, "Of course, it would be a pleasure!" Hearing this angel speak so cheerfully warms Mateus's heart. So, agreeing on where to meet during the break, they decide to have lunch again under the tree where they first had lunch together.
Heading his way with Mahiru, Mateus goes to his class and takes the opportunity to chat with some of his classmates before the morning classes begin. Seeing that his classes are about to start, Mateus already has in mind what to do during the lessons. Thanks to the academic knowledge gained from his system, Mateus doesn't need to pay attention to school classes. Instead, he can simply create skills he desires with his All Creation skill.
Before starting to create skills, Mateus decides to see what he already has. So, checking his stats, Mateus sees:
**Mateus Santos, 17 years old**
- Intelligence: 15
- Charisma: ∞
- Beauty: ∞
- Strength: 8
- Agility: ∞
- Vitality: 9
- Magic Capacity: ∞
**Passive Abilities:**
- Accelerated Development.
- Omni-Energy Manipulation.
- Max Skill Growth.
**Active Abilities:**
- God's Senses - Mastery 10
- Absolute Speed - Mastery 10
- Body Reinforcement - Mastery 10
- Teleportation - Mastery 10
- Fire Magic - Mastery 10
- Water Magic - Mastery 10
- Healing Magic - Mastery 10
- Wind Magic - Mastery 10
- Telekinesis - Mastery 10
- Singing - Mastery 10
- Bath - Mastery 10
- Night Vision
- World Travel
- Black Hole - Mastery 10
- Inventory
- Gluttony - Mastery 10
- All Creation
Seeing that his stats are quite extensive, Mateus decides to start with a simple change that will unify his magical skills. Thinking about the best way to do this, Mateus obtains the perfect skill for the task.
[You've learned the skill Absolute Magic. This skill will unify all your other magical skills. It also grants you the ability to know all existing magics and to create any magic or make your dreams come true.]
'Wow!' This skill turned out to be stronger than Mateus expected. Now, Mateus can use any magic he desires. Remembering his thoughts before going to sleep the previous night, Mateus recalls, 'If I'm going to be the strongest, let it be truly the strongest.' Not caring anymore, Mateus starts thinking about a way to have strong close combat skills, something like martial arts. That's when Mateus hears his system talk about the skill he created and its description.
[You've created the skill Martial Arts Unification. This skill allows you to know all forms of combat using your body, from a fighting style like Taekwondo to combat with weapons like swords and spears.]
'...' Even Mateus's thoughts fall silent now. But he quickly recovers and relatively easily accepts the fact that there is no form of combat he doesn't know.
Mateus once again decides to check his stats and see how they've changed after these adjustments.
**Mateus Santos, 17 years old**
- Intelligence: 15
- Charisma: ∞
- Beauty: ∞
- Strength: 8
- Agility: ∞
- Vitality: 9
- Magic Capacity: ∞
**Passive Abilities:**
- Accelerated Development.
- Omni-Energy Manipulation.
- Max Skill Growth.
**Active Abilities:**
- God's Senses - Mastery 10
- Absolute Speed - Mastery 10
- Singing - Mastery 10
- Bath - Mastery 10
- Night Vision
- All Creation
- Absolute Magic
- Martial Arts Unification
'This is much better.' Satisfied with his stats, Mateus doesn't have much to comment on, except the fact that he is relatively physically weak, something that can be fixed using body reinforcement magic.
With stats like these, Mateus could become the ruler of this world, but he's too lazy for that. All he wants is to relax with those he holds dear. This strength is just to protect himself, his loved ones, and to have fun when he's bored.
Contemplating what else he can improve, Mateus spends the entire morning period without paying attention to the classes.
— — —
Time passes, and lunch break arrives. Mateus has only a few brief conversations with his classmates before heading to the meeting point he arranged with Mahiru. Having lunch together and spending more time with her will allow him to be bolder and try new things.
Arriving there, he finds exactly the person he wanted to see, Mahiru. Sitting next to her, Mateus apologizes, "Sorry for keeping you waiting." As people say, it's a gentleman's duty to arrive early; Mateus apologizes not for that but for taking a bit longer than expected.
"No need to apologize, I just got here too." Smiling, Mahiru explains to Mateus.
Mateus is enchanted by the girl's smile. 'Maybe that's why people call her an angel.' She can only be an angel in front of Mateus, a girl so beautiful, with such a lovely smile and a kind heart, inevitably making Mateus fall in love. (Sorry for doing this in such a hasty manner, but I think it's best for the story.)
"You're an angel, Shiina-san." Just saying that, Mateus gives an affectionate smile to Mahiru, who blushes upon seeing the smile from the person in front of her.
'He's so handsome.' Thinking this way, Mahiru realizes that her thoughts about her neighbor might be changing rapidly.
Having lunch together and enjoying each other's company, they have a good meal. Not only is the break long, but it also provides them with good opportunities to continue their conversation.
Mateus, who is not one to hold back, acts assertively and relatively aggressively for the residents of this country. Mateus speaks directly to Mahiru.
"Shiina-san, ever since I moved to this country and started attending this school, all I wanted was a fresh start. And since I arrived, you were one of the first people I spoke to. So, you're certainly someone important to me. And to be honest, I'm really interested in you. I can't say I love you, but I really like you. So, I wanted to invite you on a date, what do you think?"
Caught off guard by the confession, Mahiru doesn't know how to respond. She takes a moment to think about Mateus' proposal. 'I can't say I love him either, but I certainly like him. He's also my type, and we have similar tastes. So, I guess I'll accept...' Lost in her thoughts, Mahiru gets a bit carried away. But shortly after, she quickly returns to reality and responds to Mateus.
"Sure, why not?" Blushing a bit, Mahiru gives her answer, making Mateus happy, and he gives another beautiful smile.
Planning with Mahiru for the date, Mateus decides, "So, this Saturday afternoon, I'll stop by your house, and we'll go out, okay?"
Agreed on the date, Mateus and Mahiru decide when the date will be. It would be an understatement to say that Mateus isn't happy. Since he decided to be more assertive, things have been getting better and better. So, he is genuinely happy.
Not only is he happy, but Mahiru, who just scored a date with the guy she has a crush on, is also very happy. But to put an end to the good mood between these two, the bell rings, indicating that the break is over, and afternoon classes are about to begin. But it's not just a bell that will be able to overshadow the significant step Mateus took today.
Bidding farewell, Mateus and Mahiru return to their respective classes and start the afternoon lessons.
— — —
Classes are as boring as ever, and Mateus completely loses his good mood from earlier. But he quickly recovers some of that good humor.
As far as he remembers, the student council elections at this school are about to begin. It's a great opportunity to secure his spot in that room. He wants to be part of the student council just to have a nice room to stay in and enjoy the comedy that will surely be guaranteed in there. Surely, that's the only reason he wants to go there. Not that he wants a certain girl with pink hair or a girl with brown hair and loose braids. Definitely not for that.
But there are still a few days left until the school's election campaigns begin, so Mateus has to be patient and wait until the current president is convinced to run again.
While that doesn't happen, Mateus will just enjoy his days in peace, now with Mahiru. By the way, Mateus is already thinking, 'What could be nice for us to do on this date?'
Taking advantage of the two days left until his date, Mateus decides it might be a good idea to ask for advice from his less experienced friends, Miyuki Shirogane and Yu Ishigami.
With a strange smile, Mateus has these thoughts and prepares to put them into action. But not before his phone vibrates, and he sees the message from a new contact he acquired yesterday.
— — —
"So, Sirzechs, if you want to get in touch with me, just send a message to this number. Consider it a way to show my good intentions." Handing a paper to Sirzechs, Mateus receives back a contact to communicate with the leader of the devils.
— — —
Sirzechs - "I need a favor from you."
Seeing only this message, Mateus already imagines what it might be about. But he decides to respond after classes end.
However, with this single message, Mateus doesn't feel as excited anymore. So he just goes with the flow until classes finish.