Chương 2: My First Copy Was an F-Rank Coffee Skill

"Then before you enter your first dungeon, there are a few things we need to discuss." Matt stared at the massive stack of digital files pulled up on the Director's tablet.

"Are we reading all of that right now?" The government liaison—who had introduced herself as Laura Bennett—stepped forward.

"Eventually. But there's something more important first."

"What?" Matt asked.

"We need to find out whether COPY actually does what the card says," Bennett replied, her tone perfectly even. Matt looked between her and the Director.

"That's more important than paperwork."

"Much more important," Bennett agreed.

"The System gave us a description. It didn't give us a user manual."

"So I'm the user manual."

"At the moment? Yes." They didn't move him to a clandestine underground bunker or a reinforced concrete cell. They just walked down the hall to a room labeled Unique Skill Verification. It looked remarkably like a standard corporate break room, complete with a table, some chairs, several padded mats on the floor, and a commercial coffee machine in the corner. Waiting for them by the coffee machine was Kevin Morales, the technician who had run Matt's initial assessment. He looked slightly nervous.

"Kevin volunteered," Bennett said.

"I was voluntold," Kevin muttered. Matt smiled faintly.

"That's more believable." Bennett gestured toward Kevin.

"Before we test anything potentially dangerous, we need a baseline. We need to confirm how COPY detects a Skill, what feedback you receive, whether copying requires an intentional decision, whether the restrictions on your Skill Card function as written, and whether the original holder is affected." Matt nodded.

"Fair." Bennett tapped her tablet, bringing up a projected System display on the wall.

"Kevin possesses an F-rank Unique Skill. It's harmless, easily verifiable, and produces an obvious result." Kevin folded his arms.

"I prefer 'practical.'"" Harmless and practical," Bennett amended. The display changed. PERFECT TEMPERATURE Rarity: Unique Skill — F Type: Active Skill / Utility Effect A beverage touched by the holder may be adjusted to the exact temperature the holder personally considers ideal for drinking. Once adjusted, the beverage maintains that temperature until it is finished or deliberately released from the effect. Flavor Text It won't change the world.

It only promises that the last sip will be just as perfect as the first. Matt read the card carefully. The Flavor Text was brief and simple, entirely lacking the grandiose, law-breaking arrogance of his own SSS-rank Skill Card. He looked at Kevin.

"Honestly? That's a pretty good F-rank." Kevin, who had immediately started looking defensive, visibly relaxed.

"Thank you." He even stood a little straighter. It was the expression of a man who had probably been told his Unique Skill was useless for fifteen years and had disagreed with every single person who said it.

"Alright," Bennett said.

"Let's test it." Kevin turned to the coffee machine and brewed a standard cup of black coffee. Then they waited. And waited. Matt checked the clock.

"Are we really spending ten minutes deliberately ruining coffee?"

"Science requires sacrifice," Kevin said. Eventually, Kevin pushed the mug toward Matt.

"Go ahead." Matt wrapped his hand around the ceramic. It was barely warm.

"Cold." Kevin nodded.

"Watch." He stepped forward and pressed one finger against the side of the mug. There was no flash of light or dramatic surge of mana, only a faint hum Matt might not have noticed if he hadn't been specifically watching for it. A thin wisp of steam rose from the coffee. At the exact same moment, a translucent blue window snapped into existence directly in front of Matt. It didn't block his physical vision; it simply existed over it.

UNIQUE SKILL OBSERVED Perfect Temperature — F Eligible for Copy Copy this Unique Skill? [YES] / [NO] Matt's breath caught. Reading his Skill Card had been one thing. Seeing COPY actually react to someone else's Unique Skill was something else entirely. For the first time, the absurdity of what he possessed became tangible.

"I got something." The room went still. Bennett stepped closer.

"What does it say?" Matt read the prompt aloud, word for word. When he finished, Bennett nodded.

"Select Yes." Matt didn't have to move a hand or touch the floating interface. He simply focused on the answer. Yes. The window disappeared. Another replaced it. COPY COMPLETE Perfect Temperature — F Stored Unique Skills: 1"It says stored," Matt reported. Bennett immediately started taking notes.

"Can you access it?" Matt focused on the strange new sense sitting somewhere behind his thoughts. The System responded almost immediately, presenting his two active COPY slots. He selected Perfect Temperature and equipped it in the first.

"Alright," Matt said.

"It's equipped." Director Warren had remained near the back of the room throughout the entire process. Now he leaned forward.

"Let's test the replication." Kevin brewed another coffee. This time he added enough cold water to make the result intentionally unpleasant, then slid it across the table on a folded paper towel, careful not to let his skin touch the ceramic. Matt picked it up and took a small sip. Lukewarm. Terrible. He had never used a magical Skill, channeled mana, or trained any supernatural technique before, but the copied ability was simply there, waiting as naturally as knowing how to move a finger. Matt triggered it.

The change was instantaneous. Warmth spread through the mug—not scorching, not merely hot, but exactly right. Matt raised the cup and took another sip.

"Oh." Kevin smiled.

"Good?" Matt took a second sip.

"That's actually really good."

"I've been telling people that for fifteen years." They waited several minutes. Matt took another sip, and the coffee remained at precisely the same temperature. The Flavor Text had not exaggerated. The last sip really would be as good as the first. Bennett turned to Kevin.

"Any change on your end?" Kevin touched the first mug and activated Perfect Temperature again. Steam immediately rose from it.

"Nothing. Works normally." That settled one of the most important questions. COPY had reproduced the Skill without weakening or removing Kevin's original. Matt remembered the words from his own Flavor Text. He does not steal the gift.

"So I didn't steal it."

"No," Bennett confirmed.

"Which I'm personally very happy about," Kevin added. Matt looked at his coffee, then at the glowing SSS rank attached to COPY in his Status.

"My first use of an SSS-rank Unique Skill was fixing a cup of coffee." Kevin nodded solemnly. The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"History will remember this day."

"I hope it doesn't." Bennett tapped her tablet.

"Phase one complete. Now we test the ceiling." The door opened. A woman in her early thirties stepped inside wearing the dark, practical uniform of the center's security staff. She was fit, calm, and completely unfazed by the small crowd gathered around a cup of magically perfect coffee.

"Rachel Kim," Bennett said.

"Center security. C-rank Unique Skill." The wall display updated. ANCHORED STEP Rarity: Unique Skill — C Type: Toggle Skill / Defensive / Mobility Effect While the holder has at least one foot in firm contact with a stable surface, resistance to involuntary movement, loss of balance, slipping, and knockback is greatly increased. The effect may be consciously enabled or disabled. Flavor Text The world is under no obligation to remain beneath your feet. This Skill simply makes the disagreement mutual.

Matt read the Flavor Text twice.

"Alright. That one's a little more dramatic." Rachel shrugged.

"C-rank privilege." Kevin looked offended.

"My coffee has dignity." Rachel stepped onto the padded floor and planted her boots shoulder-width apart.

"Ready." Director Warren walked over beside her. Matt glanced at him.

"You're doing the pushing?"

"I've done this test before." Warren was broader beneath his suit than Matt had initially realized. Rachel took a breath. A dense ripple of mana settled around her lower body. Nothing visibly bound her to the floor, but the way she stood changed; she suddenly looked less like a person balancing on two feet and more like part of the room's foundation. Warren shoved her. Hard. A normal person would have stumbled several steps. Rachel didn't move. Her boots did not slide, and her body barely shifted.

At the same moment, Matt's interface appeared. UNIQUE SKILL OBSERVED Anchored Step — C Eligible for Copy Copy? [YES] / [NO] Matt selected Yes immediately. COPY COMPLETE Anchored Step — C Stored Unique Skills: 2 Matt equipped Anchored Step in his remaining active slot and stepped onto the same padded section of floor. He planted his feet and activated the Skill. The sensation was bizarre. He did not become heavier, and gravity did not change.

Instead, the floor beneath his boots felt less like a surface he happened to stand on and more like an anchor point fixed directly to his body. The effect was subtle, but absolute.

"Ready." Warren shoved him. The impact hit Matt square in the chest. His upper body absorbed the force, his shirt shifted, and his shoulders moved slightly. His feet did not. Matt stayed exactly where he was. He looked down.

"…Okay." Then back at Warren.

"That's useful." The mood in the room had changed. Perfect Temperature had been funny; Anchored Step made the implications much harder to ignore. Matt had watched Rachel use the C-rank Skill once, and now he could reproduce the same effect himself without any apparent loss in performance. Bennett stared at the readings on her tablet.

"Total replication." Rachel looked at Matt's boots.

"You didn't slide at all."

"Felt like the floor was holding onto me." Matt switched the Skill off, and the strange connection disappeared immediately. Bennett cleared her throat.

"Final test." Matt looked at her.

"You have a B-rank?"

"I do."

"And you work in an office?"

"Most of my job is still paperwork."

"That's depressing." The corner of Bennett's mouth moved.

"Pay attention." The wall shifted to a new card. BLINK STEP Rarity: Unique Skill — B Type: Active Skill / Spatial / Mobility Effect The holder may instantaneously relocate to an unobstructed position within a short distance that they can directly perceive. Repeated use is limited by a brief recovery interval. Flavor Text Distance is an inconvenience measured by those who must cross it. Some simply choose not to. Matt read it. The difference in tone between ranks was becoming increasingly obvious.

Perfect Temperature promised a good final sip, Anchored Step argued with the world, and Blink Step simply declared distance optional. Bennett walked to the edge of the padded mat and looked toward the coffee machine roughly twenty feet away. There was no stance, wind-up, or visible buildup. One moment she was standing beside Matt. A sharp crack of displaced air snapped through the room. The next moment she was beside the coffee machine. Matt stared. His interface appeared.

This time, the window carried a harsh amber border. UNIQUE SKILL OBSERVED Blink Step — B COPY FAILED Reason: Target Unique Skill exceeds current Maximum Copy Rank. Current Maximum Copy Rank: C Matt slowly exhaled.

"There it is." Oddly, he wasn't particularly disappointed. If anything, seeing COPY actually hit a wall was reassuring. SSS or not, it had rules. For now. Bennett walked back normally.

"Did the Skill enter your storage?" Matt checked.

"No."

"Nothing?"

"Nothing. It recognized the Skill, told me it was too high rank, and rejected it."

"So observation alone isn't enough to store an unavailable Skill."

"Apparently not." Matt looked at her.

"When I unlock B…"

"You'll presumably be able to copy it."

"I'll remember that."

"I suspected you might." ◆ They returned to the secure conference room. Matt brought his coffee with him. It was still perfect. Bennett projected a summary onto the wall.

"Let's formally record what we've confirmed." COPY — VERIFIED PARAMETERS Observation Required — Target Unique Skill must be directly witnessed during activation. Conscious Choice — COPY does not activate automatically. Matthew Hayes must intentionally confirm the copy. Current Rank Limit — C. B-rank and above are rejected and do not enter storage. Replication Quality — Complete. No detectable degradation. Original Holder Impact — None detected. Storage — Multiple Unique Skills confirmed.

Skill Card states Unlimited. Active Copy Slots — 2. Modularity — Copied Skills may be equipped or removed without deleting the stored copy. Matt looked over the list.

"So basically, I'm collecting them."

"That's one way of putting it," Bennett said.

"It's the accurate way of putting it." And now that he'd actually done it, Matt understood something the Skill Card hadn't been able to communicate. Collecting Unique Skills was fun. He already wanted another one, not because Perfect Temperature was powerful or Anchored Step had suddenly made him an elite combatant, but because he wanted to know what else was out there. There were billions of people in the world, each with their own effects, ranks, rules, and Flavor Text. Matt had two.

That suddenly felt like an embarrassingly small number. Director Warren interrupted the thought.

"Since testing is complete, we can process your official Dungeon System registration here, assuming you still intend to become a delver." Matt looked at the two copied Skills floating in his mental Archive.

"Might as well." The actual registration was disappointingly mundane. There was no glowing ritual circle, sacred oath, or ancient dungeon altar. Warren handed him a thick glass tablet fitted with a biometric reader. Matt pressed his thumb against it. The device flashed. A pulse of mana moved through him as the registration synced him to the Dungeon System. Then a much larger interface opened in his vision. For the first time, Matt saw his complete registered Status.

MATTHEW HAYES Level: 1 Life: 61 / 61 Attributes STR: 14 DEX: 14 INT: 14 Native Unique Skill COPY — SSS Copied Unique Skills Perfect Temperature — F Anchored Step — C Active Copy Slots 2 / 2 Skill Gem Slot LOCKED Unlock Condition: Reach Level 2 Matt's attention immediately dropped to the final section.

"Skill Gems unlock at Level Two?"

"Yes," Bennett said.

"Level One delvers haven't developed enough System capacity to use a Skill Gem safely. The first slot opens at Level Two."

"So I only need one level." One level. Then he could finally start interacting with the part of delving that appeared in almost every build video he'd watched. Skill Gems. Matt had spent enough of the previous evening reading to understand the basics. A Unique Skill was personal and fixed, something a person was born with—or manifested into. Skill Gems were different: they dropped, could be traded, supported, replaced, combined with equipment, and built around.

Level Two suddenly looked much more interesting than it had five seconds earlier. Director Warren leaned forward.

"Mr. Hayes, because of your SSS classification, you have options that would not normally be offered to a new Level One delver." Matt looked up.

"Here it comes."

"We can arrange private instructors, introductions to established high-rank exploration companies, access to secure government-controlled training dungeons, and specialized instruction programs." Bennett added, "If you want, you do not need to begin in a normal public F-rank dungeon." Matt took a sip of his coffee.

"Why wouldn't I?" Bennett looked at him.

"Because you possess an SSS-rank Unique Skill."

"I'm also Level One. Yesterday I worked in logistics, I've never fought a monster, and I don't own a dungeon weapon." He pointed at his Status.

"My Skill Gem slot is literally locked." Bennett glanced at the display.

"Yes."

"So wouldn't it make sense to send me to a beginner dungeon? The ones designed for people who've never fought a monster?" There was a short silence. Director Warren leaned back.

"Most SSS holders do not begin quite this normally."

"Most SSS holders probably knew they were SSS before deciding they were bored." Warren laughed. Bennett crossed her arms.

"If you insist on using public F-rank dungeons, I would at least recommend choosing a lower-population Instance whenever possible."

"Why?"

"Less competition. Cleaner hunting routes. Better loot distribution. Fewer inexperienced delvers getting in each other's way." Matt nodded slowly. For an ordinary beginner, that made perfect sense: fewer people meant cleaner routes, more monsters, better Boss odds, and a larger share of the loot. Then he remembered why COPY worked. Direct observation. Not videos, recordings, or Skill Cards. He had to see another person actually activate their Unique Skill.

Matt looked at the two Skills already stored in his Archive. Two collected. Billions remaining.

"Actually…" Bennett noticed his expression.

"What?"

"I think I want the crowded ones." Her brow furrowed.

"…Why?" Matt tapped his temple. Bennett stared at him, then at the glowing COPY — SSS field. Understanding slowly appeared on her face.

"…Right." Matt smiled.

"The collection." Bennett exhaled.

"Yes. The collection." For a normal delver, a crowded Instance meant competition. For Matt, it meant dozens of other delvers using Unique Skills within sight. His ideal dungeon population might be completely different from everyone else's. That thought made him smile.

"Have you decided whether you're going public with the assessment?" Bennett asked. Matt looked at her.

"No."

"No, you haven't decided?"

"No. I mean I'm not going public."

"At least for now?"

"At least for now." Bennett nodded.

"If you change your mind, contact me before making the announcement."

"Why?"

"So I can turn my phone off." Matt laughed, then shook his head.

"I quit one job because I wanted some time off. Starting a corporation the next day feels counterproductive."

"Fair." Eventually, the paperwork ended. Or, more accurately, Bennett decided that the rest of it could be sent to him electronically. ◆ By the time Matt stepped through the front doors of the assessment center, the sun was high overhead. He stopped in the parking lot. Same building. Same car. Same world. Three hours earlier, he had walked inside as an unemployed former logistics coordinator who thought dungeon camping looked fun. Now he walked out with an SSS classification and two copied Unique Skills.

Matt looked down at the coffee he had carried out of the center and activated Perfect Temperature. He took a sip. Perfect.

"Okay." He nodded once.

"This one stays." ◆ An hour later, Matt was back at his apartment. This time, he wasn't watching dungeon videos for entertainment. He was choosing where to go. Matt opened the National Delver Database. FILTERS Rank: F Beginner Friendly: Yes Dungeon Camp: Required Travel Trailer Hookups: Required He hesitated, then added one more condition. Population: High The results changed. Matt skipped isolated gates in rural wilderness areas and small local dungeons with barely enough traffic to sustain a campground.

He wanted people. Lots of them. One listing caught his attention. BLACK HOLLOW MINE Location: West Virginia Dungeon Rank: F Recommended Level: 1–10 Beginner Rating: 4.

8 / 5 Camp Facilities: Large / Full Hookups Available Average Monthly Site: $950 Population: High Boss Competition: High Recent Fatalities: 0 — Last 4 Years Major Monster Types Cave Rat Tunnel Crawler Goblin Miner Stone Beetle Instance Boss The Old Foreman General Drop Tendencies Physical Equipment Beginner Weapons Mining Materials Skill Gems Matt leaned closer. Zero fatalities in four years, plenty of beginners and other delvers, a good camp, and loot that didn't look terrible. Then he opened the reviews.

★★★★★ Best first dungeon on the East Coast. Good loot tables. Another. ★★★★★ Easy layout. Good camp. Lots of people around if something goes wrong. Another. ★★★★☆ Great dungeon. Terrible Boss competition on weekends. Too crowded. Matt smiled. Too crowded sounded increasingly like a recommendation. Then— ★★☆☆☆ A goblin stole my sandwich. Matt stopped scrolling.

"How does that affect the dungeon rating?" There was an update beneath the review. Update: got the sandwich back. Four stars. Matt stared at it.

"… Fair enough." He bookmarked Black Hollow Mine. Destination chosen. Now he needed somewhere to live and something capable of towing it. Matt opened two more browser tabs: used pickups and travel trailers. He had no interest in a luxury motorhome. He'd seen the prices. Absolutely not. If he hated delving three months from now, he didn't want to discover that he had celebrated quitting his job by spending several hundred thousand dollars on a house with wheels.

He wanted practical: a reliable pickup with enough towing capacity and cargo space for equipment, and a trailer with a bed, small kitchen, bathroom, shower, good internet, desk space, and enough storage for Gear and loot. Nothing fancy. Matt filtered through listings. Eventually he found a 2021 heavy-duty pickup with good mileage, a clean history, and more towing capacity than he needed. $35, 000"Not terrible."

Then he found a twenty-foot travel trailer with one previous owner, a reinforced chassis, a compact kitchen, a bathroom, and enough interior storage that he wouldn't have to sleep next to a sword rack unless he chose to. $22, 000 Matt opened his calculator. Even after the truck and trailer, insurance, registration, starter Gear, and his first month at Black Hollow, he would still have more than forty thousand dollars of the severance package left. More when his existing savings were included.

If this turned out to be the stupidest decision he had ever made, he could still sell both. Matt scheduled viewing appointments for nine the next morning. Then he leaned back. Three monitors sat in front of him: the pickup on the left, the travel trailer in the center, and BLACK HOLLOW MINE — WEST VIRGINIA on the right. A few days ago, Matt had been planning to sleep late, play video games, and eventually start looking for another job.

Now he was preparing to live out of a trailer and travel around the country fighting monsters. His first copied Skill wasn't going to kill a dragon, make him rich, or even help him clear an F-rank dungeon. Matt picked up his coffee. Perfect Temperature activated with barely a thought. He took a sip. Perfect. His eyes returned to the Black Hollow Mine page. Two Skills down. An entire country to go.