“Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world System.”

~Albert Einstein

POV - TAD

I slowly merged into my [Advanced Meditation]. I would [Delve] deeply into the question of hidden Stats. And not just the kiddos' hidden Stats. No. I was absolutely convinced there were hidden Stats all over the show.

I had already remarked on the obscureness of [Recovery]. The recovery of HP and of STA was not expressly quantified anywhere. And I had yet to really spend any MP yet so I did not even have an inkling of how long or short this would be to replenish itself. From what I could ascertain, Essence did not replenish by itself at all. It had to be refilled. And when I looted the [Clam Warrior] there had been no [Essence] mote to snaffle up. So there must be another way of claiming fresh Essence. As per normal this was yet another question which I needed more time to consider and given there was no handy [Guru] to quiz, I would need to formulate my own answer. This was fine. Except it was sidetracking me.

Hidden Stats. I refocused and drilled down.

Where was [Willpower]? And [Resistance]? And [Defence]? And that was just off the top of my head.

I already knew my SPI related closely to my [Intuition], my [Self Identity] and my [Perception]. These felt like a deeper layer of Stats that nestled within my Soul under my Spirit Stat. Did each of my Stats have a third layer? A third triumvirate that together combined and governed each Soul Stat? That resonated. And I was convinced that of all my Stats, it was my Spirit that was the cornerstone of my build. Nige had hinted that there was a Stat he considered to be the most important. But he hadn’t expressly said which one it was. Maybe he was limited in the guidance he could give?

Yes.

He was totally restricted. There was no doubt at all in my mind. I remembered the warning System had interrupted its own notification when I had unlocked my [Concept]. And now I realised that this had been way out of sequence. And it had been brought about by leaning on my [Intuition] and my [Perception], both concerning myself and also the System. The clarity of that epiphany had guided me ever since.

And I was not so limited.

This was part of my [Exemplar] title. As long as my disciples matched my level I could share my insights. This was beyond strange. Normally you would expect the [Disciples] to be a lower level than the [Teacher]. That was logical. But logic was not a Soul trait. Logic was a Mind trait. Yes that slotted in under [Intelligence].

But I was getting sidetracked. [Advanced Mediation] was great. It was a keystone Skill. But I needed to be disciplined. To be focused and dagger sharp. I honed in on the question of the kits' hidden Stats.

Stats were the System’s tool. Well, at least they were one of the System’s tools. And they had been granted to us as part of our uplift into the Tiers. They measured and quantified our attributes and put them in context. And the whole point of the matter was to grow. To ascend. And the System also had some underlying motive. Some reason that it was investing in us. And this was hidden too. But it was there. I knew it. Like I knew the shape of my own face. And this unknown reason was so apparent. A known unknown, even from the very first of the communications from the System.

I cast my Memory back. Memory which had its three sub Stats of [Encoding], [Storage] and [Recall]. Huh, that was super definitive. And yet I was totally confident that this was right. I retrieved my impression of that Message from my mental archives.

The betterment of the universe is, at its most basic, a self-interested pursuit of survival, of growth and advancement.

Huh, it came with its own [Blue Box]. That was cool. My memory was as authoritative as a System notification. And it was that phrase; the ‘self-interested pursuit’ that had triggered my enquiry into the System’s motivations. If this was a truism then surely it applied to the System itself as well as its subjects?

And yet the System, for all its power, its capabilities and its knowledge, seemed strangely oblivious to this situation, that of its own monsters becoming sapient. It was a perturbing thought. What was the System searching for? Why did it need [Volunteers]? Why did it need us, the [Participants] in this grand ascension?

And [Monsters] were treated differently to participants. I had already discovered that they levelled up differently. That they gained Stats, yes. That they grew and increased in Level, yes. That XP was much more direct and effective. But were the Ottos different from normal non-sapient [Monsters]? And what was that difference?

My [Intuition] was pointing me at these free Stats. Stats which could be distributed as they saw fit. Stats that required a level of sapience to be allocated. Would [Monsters] get free Stats?

I was asking myself questions I could not rationally answer. Where my [Logic] and [Knowledge] could only shrug and admit defeat. Where my [Comprehension] simply struggled to get to grips with all the complexities involved. My [Intelligence] was simply not Levelled up enough. But my [Intuition], that was saying no. [Monsters] were monstrous. And they would act in accordance with those monstrous characteristics. Free stats implied a sense of self determination, of agency, of personality. Yes, free Stats had imbued that presence that I had sensed in Ssrah. Distinct and different to that of a [Monster].

And then there was this [Random] Stat. That was also a conundrum. This was even distributed by the System, yet not necessarily to those base visible Stats. And so it reverb’d that Monsters also did have hidden Stats. Hidden and non-dominant. And it would be these hidden Stats which would make higher Level [Monsters] so much more dangerous.

As I considered Dozer and Scrabble more closely, I realised that they, as sapient beings, even though unrecognised by the System as of yet, would likely have comparative Stats to me. To Humans. Yes. There would be commonalities. Maybe even great similarities. Body, Mind, Soul. These were Humanity’s base Stat groupings. They seemed somewhat fundamental for any sapient being. And of the three categories, the one that absolutely stood out as being completely critical for sapience was the Soul. The sense of self. Of identity. Of perception of all that was other. If there was but one test for being [Monstrous] it would be a test of the Soul.

So yes, the kits most definitely had a Soul. There was no doubt at all in me. And of the Soul Stats it was my Spirit that was the critical central Stat. It was my [Self], my [Perception] and my [Intuition].

I pulled up both Kits’ [Identify] reports. It wasn’t as good as seeing their Character Sheets. But as I drilled down, I felt them both turn to regard me.

They both had the same number of Stats. I couldn’t distinguish the individual numbers but Dozer felt stronger and Scrabble felt faster. It was just the slightest of all flavours. I posited a theory for consideration. Dozer had received a RAN stat allocation to her STR while for Scrabble, it had been allocated to her AGI. And being Level 6, there were another five RAN Stats that had been already allocated to their hidden Stats.

And they were cute so I was pretty sure they had some points in CHA already. And as hunters, surely [Perception] was a crucial trait. Yes, that resonated.

I was making progress.

But, was I wrong in pushing them down my path? They were different from me. A totally different species even. I needed to play to their strengths. And I had no idea whether they also had Level caps, and Stat caps. This would change once they became [Participants] but now… Hmmmm. Now they did not have Stat caps. Even just the normal allocated AGI Stats would have exceeded a Level 6 Stat cap. And so trying to max out one Stat category right now was pointless.

It was highly likely that most Ottos would have allocated their free stats to the visible base Stats rather than the concealed unknown Stats. In fact the fact that the Kits had defeated those level 3 and 4 Ottos was much more outstanding than I had at first imagined. No wonder the [Matriarch] had totally trounced them.

I roused myself from my [Meditation].

“Dozer, Scrabble, can you recite your visible Stats to me please?”

~14 STR, 25 AGI, 7STA.~ Dozer didn’t even hesitate. She knew them. There was no need to look them up.

~13 STR, 26 AGI, 7STA.~ Scrabble echoed her barely a second later.

Hmmmm. I considered them again. I should have asked this before my [Meditations] darnit.

But I was correct. Dozer was stronger and Scrabble faster. Ha, I’m good. And it looked like they had a base Stat of one in all three attributes as a Level 0. And Agility was their key Body Stat.

And I felt confident that they also would have a base Stat of one in each of their hidden Stats as well. And then there would be the Random Stats as well. Given how the two RAN stats had been allocated in accordance with their traits, I wouldn’t be surprised if they were allocated a little less randomly but maybe more as a floating stat which was placed in accordance with their actions.

Or were their actions more a reflection of how their Stats had been allocated? Anyway I was picking that they had received at least one CHA, maybe two, and at least one SPI, hopefully more. Huh, whatever. I needed to come to a decision.

And I still thought SPI with its boosts to [Perception] and [Intuition] were a good risk. And while Agility was clearly the Otto’s dominant trait. I could see STA was also going to be critical, especially with the possibility of longer fights.

I mulled boosting AGI to 30, STR to 15, and STA to 12. That left ten points to assign to SPI. Was [Perception] worth being that much weaker, slower and less durable than their peers? Hmmm. Clarity of Spirit had been of immense value to me. The increased insight and improved intuition would also be of considerable worth when it came to battle. Smart fighting over brawling. And we had the benefits of buffed ammo. Hmmm I dropped a point from STR, two from STA and even though I hated it, one from SPI. Speed was their strength, with a boost in [Perception] for the win.

So the final breakdown would be 35AGI, 14STR, 10STA and between 10 and 12SPI.

Yes. I felt happy with this. It wasn’t perfect. But it was the best I could come up with, and with the advantages the various [Darts] gave us, I was completely and utterly sure that SPI was crucial.

This would give them a massive advantage over their peers and at the same time keep them within spitting distance of the speed of the [Matriarch] who would have 15 additional Stats by virtue of her higher Level.

It was time to test trying to allocate a free point to a hidden Stat.

“Hey guys,” I drew their attention. “I want you to try and allocate a free Stat to your SPI. I know you can’t see it but it is there. Just listen and let this wash over you and resonate in your Souls.”

“Your [Spirit] is where your knowledge of your [Self] is kept. Of who you are, of what makes you, you.” ~Know yourself.~

“Your [Spirit] is also your [Perception]. Not only the way you perceive yourself, but also the way you see the System, the Plane of Oreol. ~See yourself.~ It is the [Hunter’s] gaze, the [Fighter’s] focus and the [Leader’s] vision.”

“And your [Spirit] is your [Intuition]. The way you navigate the unseen and the unknown. It is that [Clarity] of [Spirit] that will guide you when all else is lost. ~Trust yourself.~ It is the insight into the very bedrock of your being.”

“Let this resonate in your innermost beings. In your Souls. Focus within. This is you. And you are building you up. And slot that point in your SPI.”

And as I coached them, encouraging them with a low even tone of [Meditation], I saw first Scrabble and then Dozer start with amazement. They had unlocked their SPI Stat. Most excellent.

~Wonder.~

~Thrills.~

~Bonus rewards.~

~Powerful good~

Ohho. That was unexpected. A bonus reward. That was excellent. I wanted to…

And I didn’t even need to ask. The kiddos sensed my intense curiosity.

~Stat point each level up granted.~

~Extra SPI Stat.~

They chimed together.

Oh. That was fantastic. I was beginning to think I should adjust the allocation. Unlocking more hidden Stats would drastically improve future growth. But at the same time it would dilute the effectiveness of their [Spirits]. Hmmmm. I scrunched up my nose. They scrunched up theirs. We all looked very silly.

“What is your SPI now?” I asked hoping it was at least three, maybe even four.

~10SPI.~ They answered together.

Huh? That did not add up. Unless they already started off at Level 0 with more than one SPI Stat point. This threw me. My calculations were out by six at the least. And if my [Intuition] had led me this far wrong I would need to…

I ground my whirling thoughts to a halt. I re-parsed their answer. Their reward had been back dated. They had received an extra Stat point for each of the Levels they had already achieved. That was massive. And going forward they would receive nine Stat points per level plus the free points. And we could boost that further. Potentially 14 Stats plus the free points.

Oh.

Oh boy. Yes, we were replanning the allocation.

This was too big to let go.

Huh. Somehow I needed to talk them through opening up the rest of the hidden Stats.

This was going to be hard. SPI was the one that resonated the most with me. CHA not so much.

Hmmm. We still had 20 unallocated Stats. We needed five to unlock the three Mind Stats and two other Soul Stats. That left 15 of which I had earmarked 12 for the Body Stats. So potentially I could get them to add three more to SPI and get the benefit of their own increased intuition and perception to unlock their other stats.

That sounded like a plan.

But first let’s try it without committing them. That could be the back-up plan. Afterall 10SPI was a big jump up already. And keeping them to close the AGI gap would be fabulous.

Holygamoley. I took a deep breath.

These kiddos were going to be monsters.

I shook my head. Rephrase Taddo.

That was culturally insensitive.

These kiddos were going to be giants.

~Absolute Champions.~

~Bestest Superstar-iest.~

Huh, that was a great ABCs acronym.

And enough dillydallying. Let's get cracking.