I noticed light entering the window, indicating that a new dawn has been born.

Tonight, I did not sleep. My urges were strong enough that I could not sleep them off. They would invade my mind whenever I wasn't prepared, to the point of almost controlling my body. Therefore, to keep bad thoughts away, I meditated all night.

Meditation is the simplest and most inexpensive way of increasing size, density, regeneration and by consequence, control, by manipulating energy inside one's body.

To manipulate energy takes focus. Focus that I absolutely needed this night. So, I put myself in a comfortable position and manipulated my energy, making whirlpools upon whirlpools of energy. Making sure that they aid each other like cogs in a machine and moved them around my body. I kept increasing the difficulty of maintaining the stability of the whirlpools.

And that is how I spent the night. I did not sleep a wink and for someone who enjoys sleeping, such a thing is torture.

I woke up my body that fell asleep from staying in the same position for hours. I ignored as best I could the crawling ants like feeling spreading. I got up from the bed and stretched my body for like 5 minutes. I felt some bones pop up and with them, I was feeling quite energetic.

I took a deep breath and opened the door for the corridor. By coincidence, Yukiria's bedroom door also opened.

"Good morning." I greeted her

Yukiria looked at me with a wary eye 'Did she forget about me again?' "Pervert."

"What!?" I was surprised twofold

"What do you mean "What!?"!?" she asked angrily

"Well, I did not expect you to remember me." 'I cannot deny the pervert part'

"Who wouldn't after you did something like that!" 'Will she remember me as someone who almost sexually assault her?'

"Well. I've known you for years and this is the first time you actually remembered me."

"Heh! Really!?"

"Yup." 'It is kind of sad'

"Well…" she seemed lost in what to say to that

"Anyways, I am sorry." I bowed and gave her my utmost apologies

"You should be!?" her anger returned like a tornado

"I could not help it. You were just too seductive." I tried to bootlick her

"You just can't escape by praising me!" 'Why are you puffing your chest out then?'

"Then what do you want me to do?" I compromised

"Huh…" 'She did not think so far'

I sighed since I knew that this might bite me back later "How about this? I will owe you once and whenever you feel like it, you can request something from me and I will try my best to complete it." My voice changed and I looked straight in the eyes "That is, however, if it's in the limits. If you want me to do something completely unreasonable, I will tell you now that I won't accept it."

She seemed to have been taken back by the change of my personality for a moment, but she composed herself "That's fine by me. Furthermore, you are to never, ever, do that again."

"I promise." 'As long as my reason lasts'

"Then, let's move on with our lives."

"Okay. Just a random question for you?"

"What is it?" she asked dryly

"Did you have your period yet?"

She choked and after she caught up with herself, she yelled "What are you asking!?"

"I mean I did not have mine yet. So, I was wondering if other people did."

"Well. Now that you mentioned it." She frowned "I don't think I did…" 'Topic successfully changed'

"Does that mean that there are no menstruations here?"

Once my theory sank in, Yukiria gradually started to smile and screamed "Hell yeah!!"

I was quite surprised by her outburst "Are you okay?" I asked uncertain

"Oh! I am more than okay! Do you know the pain it brought me every single month throughout my life? Do you!?" she said as she approached 'she's actually pretty intimidating'

I backed away from her "No. I mean, I have been a woman for three weeks only."

That made her stop in place and think "Oh yeah. You did say something about that once, didn't you?"

I nodded.

"Good for you. Thankfully you won't have to go through that vile thing."

'Was it really that bad?' is something I could not ask because I was afraid of the answer. "By the way, here's the tools." I decided to take her mind off the subject

"Thank you! Now I can finally go to work and you won't bother me anymore!"

"What? Who said that?" I asked confused

"You did."

"I did not."

"Yes, you did. Just now."

I thought about it for a moment and realized what she was talking about "Do you mean my promise to never do that again?"

"Yes!"

'She was talking about bothering her while she worked on her inventions! My heartful apology went to that!'

I took a deep breath to calm down my emotions. 'inhale and exhale'

"Are you sure you want me to promise you that?"

"100% sure!"

"… Okay. I won't bother you while you are working, unless I see you ruining your health."

"Hey!"

"What? I did promise." I feigned ignorance

She pouted.

"Anyways." I changed the subject "Do you need me for something today?"

Her previous vexation forgotten she started thinking "No, not really… Maybe there is something, but that is for later."

"When do you think that is?"

"Maybe two days…? Sooner, if I focus on building it."

"Well, take your time. I will come back in two days." I cleared my throat and slightly bowed "Thank you for letting me sleep here for two days straight."

"How stiff! It's fine, really." She waved her hand to dismiss it

I shrugged "Some things need to be said. Goodbye." I started descending the stairs

"Yeah, goodbye. See you later." I heard her saying

I exited the shop and took a deep breath to refresh my mind. The commercial district also started to waking up as people made their preparations to open the shops.

Before meeting Nova at the usual stop, I decided to go to the architect first. Hoping that he is open at this time to show him the permit.

I started walking and enjoying the view of the town waking up and the sun rising. It is quite relaxing and beautiful. Seeing the sky going from a red hue to the blue we see every day. The birds also waking up and chirping their way out of their nest. 'Quite enchanting, indeed'

I entered the building and climbed the floors up to the architect office. I knocked on the door and heard a muffled "Come in.". I entered and saw the architect sitting on his chair.

"Good morning."

"Good morning to you too, Miss Craven. To what I owe the pleasure?"

"I just got the building permit yesterday, so I came here to continue our discussion."

"Already?" he opened his eyes slightly "Then, may I ask you to show it to me?"

"Of course." I took out the permit and passed it to him

"Hmm." He started reading it. I waited for him to finish. At the end, he took his notebook out flipped to what I guessed to be his previous notes for my house and wrote some more.

"I have good news for you." He started "The permit states that your propriety will cover more ground than I previously predicted. What do you want to do? Do you want to increase the size of the house or do you want to use that space for something else?"

I thought for second "Is it possible to have a garden there?"

He thought about it for a moment "I can see it. However, I believe it won't be enough to have a good garden."

"I see. Then, how about this? We'll have the house cover the entire property and we'll have a garden on the top of the roof."

"A garden on the top of the roof?" he asked with an incredulous voice

"Yes."

"I'm sorry. Can you explain to me how you would do that?"

"You're right. The house would need quite a strong foundation. Perhaps have one main, strong pillar at the center and five secondary ones on the edges."

He rubbed his beard "That seems okay for the foundation. The problem here is: How would you protect the garden from the sun and the wind? Because, they are not exactly covered by anything really."

He was right. "What if we make the roof to be like a forest?"

"Care to develop?"

"Let's make the garden a third floor. Then let's have the pillars from the foundation go higher than this floor and connect themselves in the middle to create an actual roof. The roof will start from the bottom of the third floor and it will have holes in it that will allow some wind and sunlight pass."

"Now I understand by what you mean by forest. In other words: Have the pillars act as protection for the garden without cutting the supply of sunlight and wind."

"That's it." I nodded

"You want a forest environment, eh… And your inscription pillar is shaped like a tree…" he rubbed his beard 'Did his eyes just shine for a moment?' "Miss Craven, this may be rude question: How much money are you willing to put in this project?"

"Quite a bit. However, you have to give me a more specific number."

"How about, at least, 20 million crystals?" he probed 'That does not seem much compared to my total wealth. But I feel that I have been spending so much money these days. I should keep in mind that I should not just expend all in one place'

"I'm willing to go higher." 'I want a good home after all'

"Is that so? Then, good. I may have an idea in what to do that you will most likely enjoy."

"I will leave it to you, the expert."

"For now, I need information to continue. Oh right! I almost forgot." He slapped his forehead "The permit says that you can build the house wherever you want if the place isn't already owned, as you stated yesterday. Do you have somewhere in mind?"

"No, not really. I'm open to suggestions."

"Do you mind if it is further away from town?"

"I wish to say I don't mind. However, I have a kid with me. Therefore, it can't be too far."

"That is okay. As I said before, I need some information to continue and probably contact some people who are experts on plants to help me…" he started grumbling "In any case. This will be quite a challenge and I cannot wait to start." He said with a shine in his eyes that looked quite familiar with me

"I await good results."

"Hm!" he nodded "Now, if you excuse me Miss Craven. I need get to work."

"Okay. Goodbye." I left the office and started making my way to the usual spot to meet Nova.

.

.

"You're late." Is the first thing I heard from Nova when I got here

"I'm sorry for being late to our date." I sincerely apologized

"Who's dating you!?"

"We aren't?"

"No!"

I chuckled and patted her head "How are you?"

"Tired." She grumbled

"Did you not sleep well?"

"No. It's because of you!"

"Is that so. Well then, shall I guide you on our date." I said as I presented my hand to her

"Like I said: Who's dating you!? And I don't want your hold your hand."

"Do you prefer being carried?"

She quickly grabbed my hand "Where are we going?"

I started walking slowly so that she can keep up "I understand that your common sense is a little… odd. Therefore, I'll show you something."

"I can't deny the part of my common sense…" she said with a weird expression "But, what will you show me?"

"You'll see." 'I don't know if it will be open'

We walked through the commercial area.

"That store over there is where my acquaintance is working on the robot." I said as we passed Yukiria's shop

"Is that so."

"The shopkeeper is pretty interesting but don't expect her to remember you."

"Her? She's a woman? Is that because you are going there? Is she cute." she teased

"It is one of the reasons." I admitted

"Oh oh!"

"Don't let that thought go any further. She's not interested in women."

"Too bad."

"Why is that too bad for you?"

"That way you would focus all your teasing on her."

"Oh please. Even if I get a girlfriend, I will always leave some for you."

She sighed.

"Anyway. We'll enter the more crafter-based area. I think this is where alchemists and enchanters are."

"Are we going to see them working?"

"Maybe another day. Although, it will be quite difficult to see a crafter working on their shop."

"They do not?"

"No. They leave the selling to other people, more experienced with selling, in other words, Locals, while they work on their workshop."

"I did not know about that."

"They need to keep the supply up somehow."

"Hmm~. I get that there is a lot I do not know about yet."

I chuckled "We'll take it step by step."

"You say it as if you know everything."

"I don't know everything. Just more than you."

"Can you not be like that?"

"Nope~."

The sound of metal hitting metal seemed to reverberate in this part of town. It told us of our arrival at the blacksmiths area.

"Why are there so many blacksmiths?"

"Blacksmith is a general designation for them. However, each of them has their own specialization. Swords, hammers, bows, halberds and even punching blades. There are so many types of weapons. Then there are armors from light to heavy and they have even more variety than that."

"So, here?" asked Nova

"Not here."

"Can you give me a hint?"

"Further down."

"Is it the training grounds?"

"Yes."

"Aren't they closed?"

"We'll see."

"What if they are closed?"

"Then we'll just have to find another place to do it."

We kept walking until we arrived at a place surrounded by a wall. The gate was open so we just entered. Me and Nova looked around. It was probably the largest building in town, it was similar to a dojo in aesthetic but different. It was larger in scale yet its purpose remains the same.

We found someone wandering around, so I decided to approach her.

"Excuse me."

"Yes."

"Are the training grounds open yet?"

"Most of our facilities are ready to be used. However, it will take some time to finish the rest."

"Then, can I use the open field?"

"I'm sorry. But, until the training grounds are complete, no one is allowed to use them. The main reason being that the shield inscription is not yet complete."

"So, it is a security thing?"

"Indeed."

"And I don't think you will make an exception."

"I'm sorry. But, no."

"Oh well. Then we have to find another place. Thank you for the information."

"No problem."

We exited the training grounds.

"Well, that was a waste of time." Said Nova

"You think so? We did have a nice walk, didn't we?"

"I guess." She said with mixed emotions

I let go Nova's hand and opened my arms to her "Then, shall we go?"

"Did you plan this all along?" she asked as I picked her up

"No. Who do you think I am?"

"A pervert who enjoys playing with little girl's hearts."

"… Nova. Where did you learn such vile words?"

"Around."

"First of all, I don't play with the hearts of little girls. Just yours."

"Is that so… Are we going?"

"We should."

I started running around town.

"Where are we going?"

"Up the mountain. I don't know much about the surrounding area but all I've seen until now is a dense forest. Hopefully we will be able to see one from up there."

"Is that so? What was she talking about when she mentioned shield inscription?"

"It is the whole reason why the training grounds exist. It assures the safety against attacks."

"What? So, you can't attack in the training grounds?" she asked confused

"I'm sorry. I should have been clearer with it. You see, before the training grounds people who wanted to train had travel somewhere far enough so that they do not hit passersby 'also for secrecy'. It was okay for a time but then more and more people wanted to train. I think it was the beginning of the time when spells were being developed nonstop."

"You sound really old when you say it like that. How old are you?"

"It has been a decade since I left the orphanage." 'or since I started playing'

"A decade?"

"Ten years."

"So, you're like… 25." 'I was 15 when I left the orphanage? Is 15 the adult age?'

"Maybe. Anyways, more people wanted to train making those solitary spots become scarcer and that is where the training grounds came in. By having the shield inscription, it was possible to train and have duels near a town with no fear of stray attacks."

"You could have just said that last bit."

"And missing the opportunity of giving you a history lesson. No thank you. In any case, have you seen a clearing somewhere?"

"I did saw that weird mount of dirt…"

"Oh that. That is a protection against landslides. A rather rushed one but a protection nonetheless and we should not mess with it. Maybe there will be something upper the mountain."

"How can you be so sure?"

"I'm not. However, the surrounding area is mostly a dense forest. Perhaps the mountain will tell a different story."

"Is there a reason why we cannot just go to the forest?"

"I don't like destroying nature if I can help it."

"Is that so?"

I did not see an open place, so I just gave up looking for somewhere nearby and decided to aim for the top of the mountain.

"Yes. Now close your mouth, so you don't bite your tongue. I'm going to increase our speed."

"Okaaaay!?"

I started sprinting to reach the top faster. I felt Nova hug me closer. The mountain became more and more steep making me have to do big jumps to scale it. Sometimes there were climbs were so vertical that I had to use [Soul hold] on my feet to keep going.

[Soul connection] allows me to glue myself to a single large soul without burdening it too much. The earth, however, is made by a collective of multiple miniscule sediments and each one of them possesses a soul, making [Soul connection] useless when one wants a good foothold to the earth.

"And there we go." The mountain was bigger than expected but it did not take long to reach the top and thankfully it was mostly barren of nature.

"Have a look Nova, at this nice view." It was a different feeling seeing the scenery from up a mountain after scaling it than just flying 'Not that I will do this often. Too bothersome'.

Hearing no response from Nova I looked at her "Nova?". She was completely glued to me and did not budge.

"… I'm fine… It's just that… was… a new experience…" She weakly responded to me

"I'm sorry, dear. I should have taken your weak heart in account. I wonder if a kiss will help you get back on your feet?" My lips came closer to her

"No!" she put her hand between my head and hers

"There we go~." I smiled "Welcome back, Nova. Are you okay now?"

"All thanks to your harassment."

"Nova. I really wonder where you learned that kind of vocabulary."

"Like I said: around. Will you put me down already?"

"If you ask nicely."

"Will you PLEASE put me down?"

"Okay~." I slowly put her down, but I did not let go of her hand and seeing how weak she was on her legs, it was a good decision. "Can you walk?"

"I think I can." She started taking small steps forward while I guided her to a relatively comfortable rock where she could sit. Once she sat, she sighed.

"Was it that scary?"

"… A bit."

I crouched down in front of her, hugged her and caressed her back slowly to help her relax. "Breathe in and breathe out." She followed my instructions

A few minutes later "I'm fine now." I noticed that her eyes were watery

"Was it really that scary?" I asked incredulous

"No… It's just…" her face went red "I felt relaxed… with your hug… and they just… fell off..."

I smiled "Well. It makes me happy that you feel that way about me." I ruffled her hair

"Please do not say it like that and stop messing with my hair!"

"But don't you love me~."

"I've never said that!"

"However, you did say that you feel relaxed with me. Is it not the same as love?"

She jumped from her sit and screamed "NO!"

"All right." I motioned her to seat "I understand you may not love me." I put my head beside hers "But know that I do."

"Hmph!" Was her response to my feelings 'Tsundere much?'

I shrugged "In any case. Do you know the purpose of this morning?"

"Yup. You wanted to show me people training."

"Something along those lines. However, do you know why?"

"You've said before that it has something to do with my common sense."

"That is correct. Since you've been with me, you've been surprised about… pretty much everything."

"I can't deny what you've said about my common sense. However, I feel that your common sense is also different from normal."

"How so?"

"I asked Uncle Zane about it and he told me to not trust in your common sense."

"Oh please. Who will you trust? That senile old man Zane or me, your lovely mother?"

"100% Uncle Zane." 'Damn it!'

"… Anyways, just sit there and whatever you do, do not move from that spot, ok? It's for precaution."

"You don't have to say that to me as if I was a child." She rebutted unsatisfied

"You are a child."

"… Compared to you, I might be."

"I am happy that you have some self-awareness." I parried her jab "Anyways, just sit there tight. Also, I won't be able to supervise you directly. If you are in danger, don't hesitate to raise your voice."

"Ok ok. Just start already." She said fed up

I shook my head at her antics and psyched myself. The main reason for why I wanted to this is because I wanted to move my body. To know what I can and can't do. To check my limits 'Also, to forget the fire in my abdomen'.

To do that I chose to wear my war set which is a mainly dark clothe armor in a martial artist style that is mostly tight to not get in the way but also loose in some parts to allow movement. For the sake of not being just dark, it has some simple matte decorations on the edges, sides and back and a large rectangular cloth hanging from my waist that sways as I move. The cloth is strong and it conceals light metal plates protecting my organs but that is it concerning protection which brings its most important trait: its energy circuitry.

Energy circuitry is something that most armors have. Simply put, it is gems hidden in the armor which the user can connect pathways to it and use it either to supply energy to inscriptions or simply to make it a separate energy pool. However, connecting a pathway to the circuitry means that the user will have to sacrifice a part of their energy regeneration 'something that game masters don't have to worry about' and there is also the danger of the circuitry becoming damaged during a fight rendering it useless or in the worst case scenarios unstable.

In my armor's case, the cloth has high-tiered gems shaped as threads mixed. There are four kinds of circuitry in the armor: one for the two inscriptions that are located in the soles of my shoes and they are [Soul hold] and [Flash movement]; one is for my mask that can cover up to my nose with the inscriptions of [Soul hold] and [Breath of air];the other two are the biggest and they are nearly identical however one occupies my left side whereas the other the right side.

I created the three [Nodes] and I made each of them a different element: Earth, Water and Fire respectively. I connected my soul energy pool to the inscriptions circuitries then I started to create a tree shaped and an inverted tree whose roots were the [Nodes] and my soul energy pool and the branches, the other circuitries. The "trunks" have the purpose of concentrating the energy received from the [Nodes], whereas the one connected to my soul pool transforms the energy into elemental energy and concentrates it before transferring it to the "branches". It is akin to having another blood vessel system but with the [Nodes] as the hearts. Furthermore, the "roots" can be switched on and off and the "trunks" can transfer the energy to either side or both.

I activated my buffs: [Body enhancement] and [Mind sharpening]. Thus, I was ready to start.

What about a weapon? I decided long ago to forsake weapons and just use my body. The reason for that was because at the time when I was called Hydra and I understood that my combat style with swords was not working for me, therefore, I started looking for another solution. For that reason, I contacted many masters in their own arts in the game and the answer I got from everybody is that I had no talent whatsoever. Be it melee weapons, ranged weapons or even just using a spell gun. When asked, they informed me that my movements were too mechanical and lacked heart 'whatever that means'.

The result from that was a depression that only lasted a week because I had found another way. During my depression, by a whim, I watched a robot fight which frankly just made it worse because it reminded me of the cause of my depression, however, I ended up finishing the video. For me, it was a boring fight of robots just hitting each other back and forth until one remained standing and yet I was surprised by the conclusion. I had believed that the meanest one would win which prompted me to ask in a comment why the other one won, one I did not expect an answer 'or at least a good one, knowing the internet community' yet fate thought about it otherwise.

The answer I received came from someone quite into robot fights as I was unable to comprehend two thirds of it. But I was able to understand that it was something along the lines of design and power, but what was more important, is that it made me think of my situation 'something that depression does not allow to'. It made ponder that what I needed was not a weapon to defeat my opponents. A weapon was means to the end. If I was able to just defeat my enemies then there would be no need for a weapon but how could I do it? There was almost nothing that made me exceptional if compared to normal players. Almost being the keyword that gave me the solution to my problem which was the [Node] spell.

In its pre-nerfed state, the spell gave me infinite energy with no strings attached thus the first party that challenged me was met with a giant tornado. One created not of the storm element but out of air element. It was supposed to be just a wind blade cyclone but I kept adding more and more to it until it just became a tornado with razor sharp winds that cleaved through not only the party but also the spectators were dragged into it. The result from that battle was a large deep circumference on the earth from being gouged out and barren surroundings. Only the eye of the storm, the center where I stood, was spared from total destruction. Thus, I was dubbed Tornado.

Thanks to that event and the outcries of indignation from the players, Creo heavily nerfed the spell and made it have a hard limit of three [Nodes] at a time or else the body would not be intact. I was too stubborn to give up such power, therefore, I tried to go around the rules by making the [Nodes] outside my body, hidden in my hair which made my hair look like a starry night sky 'a bit way too sparkly for my taste' which, obviously, only lasted for another battle. Then Creo, who was pretty serious about balance, added the rule that [Nodes] can only exist inside one's body.

The nerf rendered my fighting prowess to its lowest. Back then, I preferred air energy, therefore, when I went to battle with the same tactics I employed before, after some time because of my infamy from the previous battles, I was able to barely win. As a result, my label changed from tornado to whirlwind 'it was also the time when people stopped giving others names and they never updated it henceforth' and I knew that I would not be able to win against a party that was ready to deal with me, else they would definitely use elemental advantage against me. Thus, I decided to enter closed doors training to brainstorm another way, hence my current fighting style was born through trial and error.

"So, do I look cool?" I asked Nova as I posed

"Hmph! You look goofy."

"Not being honest is bad~."

"Why do you even have to look cool when you are fighting?"

"You're still young, so you might not understand. What is the point of fighting if you are not looking cool while doing it?"

She shook her head "I don't get it."

"Oh well." I shrugged "Anyways, just sit on tight and don't move from there, okay?"

"Okay~." She lazily answered

I put my mask on and walked away from her. The mask is a precaution mostly against poisons and thanks to its inscriptions I did not have to worry about involuntary breathing them or having it fall off since it is glued with [Soul hold] to my face.

Once I felt I was a safe distance away from her while giving clear a view of what I was doing I stopped. Then, I used earth energy to rise multiple pillars out of the ground which would be my targets and I made sure to give them enough energy to be tough and last.

I activated the spell [Soul Domain] which is basically a short-ranged soul energy pulse for combat purposes. The normal pulses work as radars, however, domain, though short-ranged to not overwhelm the user with information, bathes the area with energy and gives real time much needed information of the surroundings. Something that is perfect for when fighting multiple opponents and avoid getting stabbed in the back. Yet, no spell is perfect and this one is the same as it possesses its own weaknesses.

All the preparations were done. 'Let's go with air first' I turned the air "roots" on and let it flow and quickly fill the pathways. Pathways are like roads to energy, but that does not mean that it cannot go off the road.

Air energy filled my body completely both on the inside and the outside as a greyish-blue transparent aura, the color of air energy, surrounded it. It was much more pronounced in my arms and legs. The energy was akin to fog being blown against my limbs which was much denser at my hands and feet.

This was my answer to obtaining victory in battles: To clad myself in elemental energy. The energy will be constantly supplied by my regeneration while giving me power and protection and the benefits of the chosen element akin to be infused with said element yet stronger. Air gives sharpness and nimbleness. Water gives versatility and cold. Earth gives protection and weight. Finally, Fire, being the most straightforward of all, gives firepower and heat.

I psyched myself and whispered to myself "Let's go."