May 1980.
It has been a month since Joseph Kennedy Sr. took the position of President in James' label called "Sub Pop Inc.". And after a few days, Joseph Kennedy Sr updated him about the status of their registration of the company from the government agency.
Joseph Kennedy Sr. said the registration passed and he got the certification that said "Sub Pop Inc. is an official company in 1980.".
James was also elated by the good news and when he dropped the phone call, he heard his system talk again.
[CONGRATULATIONS ON ESTABLISHING YOUR FIRST COMPANY!]
[YOU HAVE BEEN AWARDED A 1-STAR (GROWTH) SKILL]
'Wow, this time it is a skill reward!'
A dim bronze colored card appeared in his front, and it was floating. Worried, he quickly grabbed it from the space it was floating at and pocketed it instantly.
He looked around to check if someone saw it. After a few checks and re-checks, he sighed and his worry became nothing but just being self alarmist.
'God fucking damn it, that was close!'
He cursed and then quickly ran off to his room.
When he closed the door and locked it, he sat on his bed and pulled the dim bronze colored card out from his pocket. He looked at it closely first and then said the magic word, "Activate".
The card faded into existence, just like the gold card before. And then, a hologram appeared in his front, he was shocked as this was like an Ironman type of technology!
'Damn, this is cool, 1980 and I am experiencing a comic hero-like technology up front!'
He inhaled and exhaled and then tapped the [OPEN] option in the hologram.
The hologram changed what it was showing and turned into a skill description.
[ENDURANCE (Passive Skill)]
[Max Level: 5]
[Effect: Boosts stamina, physical resilience, recovery rate, and mental stress tolerance. Applies to all actions requiring sustained effort.]
[Level 1] [UNLOCKED] [USE COUNT: 0/50]
[+10 Endurance]
[+5% Stamina Capacity]
[+3% Recovery Speed]
[+2% Stress Resistance]
[Effect: Additional light exertion power from 10 minutes to 15 minutes. 5 minutes cooldown during rest.]
'I was surprised by the effect of this skill, wow, so I can have additional endurance in physical activities huh?'
He turned to the next page.
[Level 2] [LOCKED]
[+25 Endurance]
[+12% Stamina Capacity]
[+8% Recovery Speed]
[+6% Stress Resistance]
[Effect: Additional moderate exertion power from 20 minutes up to 30 minutes. 20 minutes cooldown during rest.]
'This is nice! It is additive and stacks up!'
Excited, he turned to the next page to see the next few levels.
[Level 3] [LOCKED]
[+45 Endurance]
[+20% Stamina Capacity]
[+15% Recovery Speed]
[+12% Stress Resistance]
[Effect: Additional intense exertion power for 45 minutes up to 1 hour. 30 minutes cooldown during rest.]
'God damn, this is overpowered!'
He turned to the next page again.
[Level 4] [LOCKED]
[+70 Endurance]
[+30% Stamina Capacity]
[+25% Recovery Speed]
[+20% Stress Resistance]
[Effect: Additional long exertion power for 2 hours up to 3 hours. Minimal fatigue, and keeps mental clarity under pressure. 1 hour cooldown during rest.]
'Now I can play music for extended hours, if I tour or had emergencies, I have enough endurance to last for quite a long period of time!'
And for the last page [5/5].
[Level 5] [LOCKED]
[+100 Endurance]
[+50% Stamina Capacity]
[+40% Recovery Speed]
[+35% Stress Resistance]
[Effect: Super peak performer. Handles 2-days work, high stress, minimal rest. Great for frontmen, athletes, or leaders under constant pressure. 12 hour cooldown during rest.]
'Fuck! That is GOD damn OP! 48 hours of non-stop working, laughing my ass off! This is great! No, very very GREAT! Godlike even!'
'But to unlock these levels, I have to do some light endurance training. As the system requires, one endurance training is equal to 1 usage count, right?'
'I can already imagine the use count for the next levels, and they would be god damn high! Then, it means I have to work my butt off!'
—--------------------------------------NEXT SCENE--------------------------------------------------------
After another month, June 1980.
James' use count for level 1 endurance skill has reached 40 out of 50 counts. What he did was, he exercised and played instruments, one session in the morning, and another in the evening.
He felt the difference in his first use and since then, he became addicted to the feeling of not getting tired that easily!
'This skill is great! I can last longer than before!'
As for Joseph Kennedy Sr., he updated James for Sub Pop Inc.'s progress, he updated that he had rented an office, and hired the necessary staff. He took care of all this mundane work, and the only thing left to do is scout for talent. And that talent was Christopher John Boyle. As per the investigators, he was living with his mother and siblings after his parents divorced, and currently in a cover band named "Face to Face". He was also reported to be doing illegal drugs.
'Ah, Chris, he was already an addict this early, I pity the guy, but in this timeline, let me help you a bit and become a rock star as early as possible but also help you endure the long years of your future addictions with health and exercise!'
'I will add that to the contract when he signs one soon!'
'For now, let me polish the Ultra Mega OK songs so he could learn everything fast.'
And so, he kept polishing the songs through cassette tape recordings.