The training was just as vicious as the last time.
Even without stepping outside, the system forced her through every movement inside her home. Muscles burned, lungs strained, and sleep—the best she had tasted in years—was torn away from her.
By the time it ended, her body ached terribly only to ease when the message appeared.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
Training Completed
• Status: Success
• Timer: Halted
• Penalty: Avoided
• Condition: Satisfied
[RESULT]
• Endurance: Improved
• Strength: Increased
• Discipline: Reinforced
> > System standing by for next quest.
Sora stretched slowly, a soft groan escaping her lips. Sleep was no longer an option as soreness spread through her limbs.
The system appeared again.
[STATUS IMPROVED]
Physical Amplification (PA): 66
Chaos Output (CO): 46
Adaptation (ADT): 57
Entropy Control (EC): 54
Stability (STB): 57
Mental Resistance: 43 / 55
'Maybe a walk wouldn't hurt' she thought. 'I wonder what Eldermere has for me'
After dressing in the best and most comfortable attire she could find, Sora stepped out of her newly assigned home and into the quiet streets of Eldermere.
Night still held the city, though a few elves moved through the roads. As she passed, many turned their heads, their gazes lingering on her.
Some looked impressed. Others… less pleased.
The attention bothered her, but Titan Forge had taught her something valuable. In a place where eyes constantly watched, ignorance was a blessing.
It had worked for her every time.
Lost in thought, she wandered through the city until the towering silhouette of the citadel rose before her, empty with no single soul caught on sight.
Sora stopped. For some minutes, she hadn't even realized how far she had walked.
"Finally here," she muttered under her breath.
Strangely, the guards who were supposed to be diligent and focused were nowhere to be seen.
That alone was unusual. Well, as long as it didn't bother her. As Sora stepped forward, the sharp clang of metal rang through the cold night.
Her ears twitched at the sound.
"Who could that be?" she muttered, turning toward the source of the metallic rhythm.
The noise led her to the far side of the citadel. There, tucked behind its towering walls, lay a training ground she had never noticed before. Trees with autumn leaves surrounded it, their branches swaying softly in the night breeze.
Sora slowed, eyes narrowing.
She was certain this place hadn't been there before. It was almost as if the training ground had appeared out of nowhere.
The training ground itself wasn't what shocked her the most. It was what occurred in the middle.
In the middle, two elves were locked in battle. Possibly a spar.
One wore gleaming golden armor—a citadel guard. The other looked strange, though he wasn't clad in anything.
Sora squinted, trying to see him more clearly, but the distance only allowed fragments of his appearance.
Red locks of hair and a massive, almost monstrous frame.
A man.
He was tall, his presence overwhelming and from what she could see, he was dominating this friendly battle.
Steel clashed again and again, the sharp rhythm echoing through the clearing. Their movements were swift, precise—blades flashing beneath the dim light as they circled and struck.
Sora found herself drawn in. For the first time, she could actually see some real action. She leaned slightly forward, trying to catch a clearer look.
Then the man stopped and in one smooth motion, he halted the guard's attack and turned.
Strange purple eyes locked directly onto Sora's forcing her to quickly hide behind the wall she peeked from.
The footsteps from the strange man were heavy, leaving Sora in a state of fear that she couldn't imagine.
She could feel an impending structure of immesurable doom approaching her, but she chose to stay calm.
Then—the footsteps stopped. The man was distracted and soon, he continued, walking back.
Sora could hear the footsteps dying down.
She let out a soft sigh of relief, her beating heart slowing down. Now it was the right time to return to her home.
'I don't think I want trouble anymore,' she thought.
Then she felt it, a strong aura, hot and at the same time cold right behind her bare back. She turned to face what she thought was an elf looming over her.
Then she turned only to be met with a pair of legs then a torso as she raised her head and finally, a face obscured by darkness with purple eyes gazing into her soul.
The man was before her and the system was too slow to even catch a glimpse of him before he arrived.
[Warning: A potential hostile presence has emerged within range]
With her heightened physical prowess, she leaped back, drawing out her weapon from the system.
[Common Halberd Equipped]
'What? How did he appear before me?'
Sora was left shaken by this. Not only was he standing at a superior height, but his aura was strange, twisted too and she didn't know why she could feel it so intensely.
The man finally spoke, his tone cold and deep, "State your business here. What is a lone elf doing in these parts?" he asked intently.
'He's asking me a question? I thought he knew of me. Could it be that he's not a Knight?' she thought.
Though Sora's mind spoke for her. The elf before couldn't read thoughts, "Can't speak, huh?" he said, "Do you wish for me to carve it out of you?"
Sora was lost for words to say, but if she didn't speak anytime soon, she would face the wrath of this person, "I-I'm a knight of the Night Aegis," she said, "What are you doing here?"
"Night Aegis?" the mysterious elf said, confused by her words, "Lady Ravessa never mentioned you. You must be lying."
"Hm?! Lying! Why would I-" she said but her breath was caught in her throat, "Why should I be questioned by you. I do not even know who you are!"
"I believe I asked you a question. Or do you wish for me to carve you into pieces," the mysterious elven man asked.
He stretched forth his hand and in it, a blade emerged with purple light. Then, he stopped forward, the moon illuminating his face and his entire form was revealed unto her.
He looked cold. Handsome. With purple eyes glaring into Sora's soul.
Who could this man be? What was his business here? Could he be a knight as well or a monster ready to claim its prey?
The system showed no rules. No basic runes to read and follow. Just nothing.
She could only access it. Did that mean that this was just a figment of her imagination?
No. It couldn't be. Everything about this elven man seemed real.
Now she was certain that she wasn't dreaming, Sora took in a long and thoughtful breath and breathed it out. She gazed up at the elven man, mirroring his stern expression.
She stood defensively, almost as if she was ready to fight him. The elven man was ready as well, clutching his blade.
Then—suddenly with swift and precise motion, Sora made a run for it. Whatever the system was showing her was no joke, she too could feel the immense pressure of this man's energy all around her.
Ravessa wasn't this dangerous when they first met.
As she made her way to her home, Sora turned back to see if the man was behind her.
He wasn't. Not even far from her, like he didn't bother himself with her.
'He's not behind me. That's good,' so she thought.
She turned back to the road and there he was, inches from her, his blade raised as he was ready to cut her down seeing that she could be a threat herself.