This time, it only took a moment for Aira to grasp the e. Once again, she sensed how much the System had ged the whole reality for her. The level boosts for her base stats were there again, influeng every aspect of her being. Energized, she jumped to her feet and, iep, approached Li. The green-haired woman looked i her, raising her hands to protect her head.

  But all Aira did was hug Li again. With a soft growl, of course.

  Then, she moved her chair closer to Li and pced the tablet before them.

  ========== Character Status and Skill Overview ==========Name: AiraRace: UndeadCss: NecrokiiforcerLevel: 100

  Strength: ??? [(Base Stat + Level) 1.5]Agility: ??? [(Base Stat + Level) / 3]Intelligence: ??? [(Base Stat + Level) / 2]Endurance: ??? [(Base Stat + Level) 1.5]

  --- Skills ---1. Mana Energy Manipution (Level 9 / 3000 SP to upgrade to Level 10)- Description: Allows the user to trol and manipute raw mana for various effects, including enhang physical attacks, creating barriers, and eling spells.- Current effects influenced by the System of this world.- Ambient Energy: Manipute ambient energy for advanced offensive and defensive purposes- Boost Agility: Enhance agility and other energy-reted attributes of a target.- Deted interpret energy signatures from vast distances.Maximum distance: [1.5 km x Character Level] = 150Maximum number of targets: [Skill Level x Character Level] = 900Mana Cost: ??? / Varies

  --- New Skill(s) Avaible ---[None]

  --- Current Status ---Health: 103/555Mana: ???/???SP Used: 61,694SP Avaible: 5,657XP: 67,351,000 / 69,141,000 ( Level: 101, Legendary)

  --- Active Quests ---1. ???2. ???

  Aira's firembled as she navigated the interface, taking iark ges. She had to accept her new reality. At least for now. But the mere accessibility of the System menu provided some hope. It even hihat the quest subroutiill worked. In a way.

  ***

  "What does it say?" asked Li, looking at the tablet. "I 't uand a thing."

  Aira grabbed the so familiar steboard. "I've been studying yuage for quite a while now," she wrote. "Maybe it's time for you to study mine?"

  "Stars above, you really didn't speak uage in the beginning? You mean to say you really had no idea what anyone was jabbering about at first?" asked Li.

  "Did you think I was just trying to mislead you?" replied Aira. "No, I really am from far away. Far far away."

  "But how did you end up here?" asked Li.

  "I'd like to know that too..." wrote Aira. "But that's a long story. It's hard for me to write for too long."

  "Anyway, you evaded my question. What does it say?" asked Li.

  "It shows me information about my abilities," wrote Aira. "Including some numbers. You see, these are the digits. Here's 100, that's my level. And that's 555, it's my maximum health. You should probably learn the numbers first. It has to be easier."

  "Oh, wow!" said Li. "Did you notice that you wrote much faster than before? hought I'd say it, but pen and paper might be for you. Maximum health, though? What in all the nds does that even mean? Who thinks of health like it's a bucket of apples?"

  "Do you have paper and a pen? Maybe a bnk journal I could use?" asked Aira. "And while you are looking for them, I'll write an expnation."

  "Don't freak out. I use magic," she tinued while Li checked her shelves for a bnk notebook. "I guess it should sound bizarre for a person in a world where magic does. Or, at least, in a unity that doesn't have access to magic. However, one of the aspey are powers is that they mao me and es through the System. As you see on this tablet, I access information about my progress and current status. At least, I was able to see it before. Now, it's limited and garbled. And not all of my skills seem to be there. But that's the short expnation."

  After Li read everything, Aira wiped the text and wrote another line: "And I guess it would be safer for us not to keep this information for anyone else to see."

  "But you didn't have these... powers when we found yht?" asked Li. "Otherwise, you'd just kill all of us on the spht?"

  Aira spread her hands and then shrugged as if to say it could be a reasonable sideration.

  "Yeah, I saw you this m," said Li grimly. "Our small patrol wouldn't have a ce. Even if some of us had guns."

  She took a moment to think. "So, what has ged?" she asked. "You didn't have your... magic before. But you have it now. And you obviously had your powers earlier today. What is different?"

  "I sense something within this tablet... this gadget," wrote Aira. "I ect with it."

  Li stood up abruptly and started pag around her kit. "This is insane. I'm just going mad," she excimed. "Magic, you say? Well, bite my boots!" she spped herself on the forehead. "And here I was thinking 'undead' and 'fairy tales' went hand in hand. , you'll be telling me all of you fly sihe Fall."

  "Sorry, I don't know anything about the other undead," wrote Aira. "I told you, I'm... not from this area."

  "Are the undead different in that pce where you came from?" asked Li. "Where is that pce, anyway?"

  "It is far away," wrote Aira. "Really far away. It's hard to expin. And it will demand a lot of writing to tell you the full story. Let's table it for now, OK?"

  "We still don't have a real answer about yic," said Li. "If you do magily when you have this tablet in your hands, how did you attack Garrick this m? By the way, you show me some of yic? But not the killing sort, if that's even an option!"

  "That, I don't know," wrote Aira. "About Garrick, I mean. As for the magic, let me think what I do. It's different here, in this world. I may o improvise."

  "This world?!?" shouted Li, turning on the spot. "Elder's beard! Are you seriht now?!? By starlight, don't tell me there's a whole realm full of folk like you brewing tea with magic powers."

  ***

  It took Aira some time to calm Li down. Especially as, for some reason, the woman didn't accept her soft growls as soothing sounds. Eventually, they sat back at the table o each other and picked up their already cold cups of tea.

  Aira took the tablet in one hand and tried to sehe energy paths around them, like she did in the m, during the execution. The whole process reminded her of mana manipution in some minute ways. However, simultaneously, it was different, and she had to relearn the delicate operation of the skill from scratch.

  She sensed plenty of sources of energy around her, from their bodies to a pnt that grew on one of the window sills of Li's house to the street mps that were lighted when the darkness bhe town.

  Slowly, Aira pulled the power from the street lights and some more from the pnt, trying to see what came easier and probing where to apply it .

  The energy flowed towards her and demanded an outlet. So, Aira pushed it towards the first thing she saw in front of her: the cup Li held in her hands. Slowly warming it up.

  Li yelped, almost dropping the vessel out of her hands and grasping it tight only at the st moment. Still, at least half of the warmed-up tea spilled out oable and Li's clothes.

  Aira grabbed the journal Li found for her and scribbled: "Sorry! But you asked me to show you my magic."

  "Alrighty! So, I walked into that one!" said Li with a weak smile. "Do you care to expin?"

  "How did I warm up your tea?" wrote Aira. "It's magid we'll have to burn this page from your notebook to protect this secret."

  "No, stupid!" said Li. "The fact that the magic is different in this world. Does that mean that you are from a different world?"

  "Ah, this..." wrote Aira. "Yes, it was a surprise for me as well. I didn't know about other worlds before I was transported here. I don't know how. I don't know why. It just happened one day. When I was ready to celebrate a major achievement, by the way. But again, it's a long story. Right now, we o figure out what to do ."

  "Arrrgh..." growled Li. "I have so many questions, and I'm not getting enough answers!"

  "You tell me!" wrote Aira, drawing a smiley face beside her text. "That's my life sihe day you found me."

  "Never mind, you are right," said Li. "We o get out of the town. You told me this gadget gives you your power. Did you have a ce to test the adgets? Do they have the same effe you?"

  "No, I haven't tried," wrote Aira. "I passed out if you remember."

  Li threw a wristband gadget to Aira. "All of us rangers use them," she said. "They allow us simple unication and store some of the information we need on patrols. Like schedule or our routes. And you even got a couple of spares from Garrick, that bastard! Try it on."

  Aira caught the devid put it on her wrist. And even after she put the tablet aside, she felt the same energy pulsing within the new gadget. She didn't lose the e!

  Aira pushed her senses deeper, fog on the small appliahere was something else there, hidden inside. She closed her eyes as if she reparing for her meditation. And there they were, the glowiers appeared in the darkness before her.

  --- Current Status ---Health: 273/555Mana: ???/???SP Used: 61,694SP Avaible: 5,657XP: 67,351,000 / 69,141,000 ( Level: 101, Legendary)

  Aira opened her eyes, and the text remained where it should be, floating right in front of her in her vision. It was as if Aira had never left her homeworld, and nothing had ged. However, as soon as she removed the gadget from her wrist, the letters disappeared.

  "So?..." asked Li.

  "It works," Aira wrote. "It gives me the same access as the tablet. Maybe even more. Please give me a moment to explore it."

  Aira put the wristband ba her hand, closed her eyes again, and focused on the e. The System was there. As soon as she had one of these gadgets on her body, she could feel her power returning, improving all of her stats. Even if they weren't shown to her explicitly at the moment, the difference was undeniable.

  Still, why the question marks? And what was happening with the hiddes? Without guidance, how would she even know what to do and where to go?

  But the worst part wasn't even the hidden stats or quests. She had only one skill left!

  Aira spent years gaining levels. That was the source of the een out of her thirty skills. The huh level should have provided another one for her, the tweh. But this opportunity was obviously lost in transit.

  The other eleven skills? She had to pay dear for them with her moime, and blood. Finding a quest that provided a skill as a reward, not just mere XP, was rare. But she did that because she was so focused oing to the Legendary level as soon as possible.

  And now everything was lost!

  Moreover, her Mana Manipution somehow transformed into what...? Energy Manipution? That was obviously the reason she had these new sensations. That's why she was quite literally able to py with fire. And the e to these gadgets also had to be reted to that skill.

  Li realized that Aira needed some spad went to wash the cups. Aira had to touch her t her attention to her notepad.

  "Bones and Bark!" Li excimed. "You spooked me!"

  "Before we do anything," Aira's text said, "I have one more question for you. Why do you even sider helping me? A filthy undead? Or how else have Garrid your fellow townsfolk called me this m?"