Lukan carefully navigated the kitchen, ducking under the low beams and squeezing himself between the tables and the cupboards while searching for ingredients to make dinner. He tiptoed around Nora, who still seemed deeply immersed in her experience. The woman sat motionless on a wooden chair by the window. She didn't even notice Lukan's fur brushing against her body when he moved around. She's been there since the moment they left the trial grounds and came to this cottage to have some food.

  The experience of both challenges was overwhelming, even for Lukan. And that's while he didn't have the capabilities to sense the full onslaught of the dreamscape and the beings that inhabited it. For Lukan, it was only wisps of emotions and sensations.

  Of course, he could see the things that manifested visually, like in the first part of the trial. Watching Nora's sensual moments and dreams being recreated in such a vivid way was a powerful experience. A bit disturbing. But he could only imagine what it meant for her. The second challenge was different in so many ways, but Lukan could see how much effort and will it took Nora to brave through it. To go through the skills one by one and finally find the right pair.

  Now, he watched Nora with concerned eyes, trying to understand if there was a way to help her get through this introspection. Of course, he was there with Nora for the trials. But so much obviously happened within her mind and soul. He had an opportunity to glimpse only small bits and fragments of the woman's internal challenges.

  Nora remained lost in her own thoughts. Still not responding to his gentle inquiries.

  To this moment, the whole experience was bizarre. Lukan showed Nora his brave face, but the moment fire first touched his fur, Lukan was almost ready to run. Only the fact that he held Nora's hand at that moment made him stay. Grounded him. Reminded that they are there to support each other.

  Just a few days ago, Lukan was minding his business, moving between gigs, traveling between towns. As a builder, he didn't have the choice to settle down in one place. When one contract ended, he had to find another. A new place to earn money, a new project to fulfill. Never even considering putting roots down.

  But now, he was taken… or abducted by unknown forces. He met this strange woman who knew so much and, strangely, so little about everyday life. Was it fate? Divine intervention?

  Lukan knew about magic. Well, he knew about magic existing in his world. But rarely experienced it besides interactions with herbalists or healers. That was usually the most one could expect to see in the countryside. Proper magic was for the large cities, high politics, and legendary battles.

  Nora… She excited Lukan on some unexpected level. She felt different, as if she didn't belong here. Not only to this magical construct, but… here. It was hard to pinpoint that feeling. Put it to words. And she seemed to overturn all his expectations.

  What was apparent was that Nora was ready to go through any challenges the magic of this place wanted to throw at her. She mentioned that she had ten skills, a bizarre number as everyone knew that Apprentices always had only four skills. Earlier, Lukan didn't even believe Nora's words. But now, when the four challenges were done, and Nora used four different skills, it didn't feel like they were leaving the trial grounds any time soon. There had to be more challenges awaiting them and more skills Nora had to use.

  ***

  As she sat at the wooden table in the cottage they had designated as the kitchen, Nora's mind continued to spin with emotions, thoughts, and doubts from the second trial. She absentmindedly stirred a spoonful of honey into her hot herbal tea, feeling its soothing warmth spread through her body. The scent of pine wafted in through the open window, and Nora took a deep breath, finding a small sense of peace in this cozy retreat.

  "That was… a lot," she finally said, glancing at Lukan. "What do you think?"

  "I can see that you were overwhelmed," said Lukan with a smile. "I tried to start a conversation with you for half an hour already. I even went away to check the area once again."

  "Huh? Did you find anything interesting?" asked Nora.

  "As a matter of fact, I did," said Lukan, his excitement showing. "Someone—or something—has been here while we were gone."

  Lukan set down a loaf of bread he was preparing to bite, his ears flicking toward the window. The fur on his arms bristled slightly as he looked without. But the only movement is the swaying of the pines in the wind.

  "Oh, there's nothing there…" he muttered.

  "That's… I don't know if that's unsettling or comforting," Nora said with a sigh. "So, how did you figure that out?"

  "The food's been replaced," Lukan answered, gesturing toward several crates and baskets. "But there's still no sign of anyone. How is that possible?"

  Nora nodded, her gaze falling on a small stack of food crates that hadn't been there before. The supplies they used earlier had been replenished, and the unknown benefactor even considered their tastes. Fresh bread, fruits, and even some meat were piled in a neat arrangement, as though an unseen hand had ensured their comfort during the trials.

  "So, we are obviously watched here," said Nora. "If they brought the things we enjoyed more. It starts to feel like a reality show."

  "I wouldn't even ask," said Lukan, grinning. "You love using strange phrases and words. I hope you'll tell me more about all of that in the future, though."

  "So, how was it?" asked Lukan after a brief pause. "Did anything change for you after the trial ended?"

  Nora's hand trembled slightly as she stirred her tea. Her gaze lingered on the steam curling upward, as though searching for answers in its delicate spirals.

  "All this magic…" Nora said. "All these skills. There were some changes there. It follows the same pattern as the last time."

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  She brought up the System menu in front of her eyes once again.

  ========== Updated Skills ==========

  Dream Manipulation: 5.0% (+5.0%)

  Telepathic Communication: 5.0% (+5.0%)

  ========== Skills ==========

  Aura Defences: 5.0%

  Dream Manipulation: 5.0%

  Emotional Influence: 0.0%

  Empathic Sensing: 0.0%

  Energy Sharing: 0.0%

  Enhanced Physical Strength: 5.0%

  Healing: 0.0%

  Sensory Enhancement: 0.0%

  Sexual Magic: 0.0%

  Telepathic Communication: 5.0%

  "This time, I had Dream Manipulation and Telepathic Communication both bumped by five percent," Nora said. "Six skills left."

  "You know, I didn't really believe you in the beginning," said Lukan. "When you mentioned that you only got your first magical skills, but already have ten of them."

  "How so?" said Nora. "But… I guess… Sumi was also surprised."

  "Well, where I come from, every child knows you first get only four skills," said Lukan. "And only after you progress and learn more, you get additional magical skills. I don't know about that, though. It's hard to find anyone beyond the Apprentice level. Especially someone who'd want to talk about that to people without magic."

  "So, do you know anything about the initial progress?" asked Nora. "Does it always happen like this? With a 5% increase each time? Or is it different for every skill?"

  She turned to Lukan, hoping he could shed some light on the matter.

  "I'm sorry, Nora," he said. "I can't tell you much beyond what you already know. The aspects of magical skills are rarely discussed with non-practitioners. It's mostly just rumors and legends."

  "And I thought every child knows these things," said Nora with a chuckle, softly punching Lukan's shoulder.

  Lukan smiled, but then his brows furrowed in concentration.

  "I've never heard of such detailed knowledge of skills and their statuses before," he said. "I've only heard people talking about it as vague feelings that allowed them to use the skills intuitively, but not to tell exactly their uses and limitations."

  Nora's eyes widened in surprise. "Really? So, I'm special?" Nora said smiling. "We should keep that in mind for future experiments then."

  She continued reading the System information, where more of the quest description was revealed. "Looks like we're making progress," she remarked with a small smile. "I have more information about the quest revealed. "

  Lukan stood up and began pacing around the kitchen. He touched the pot with tea and then returned it to the stove. As Lukan moved to clear the table, he paused, carefully nudging Nora's cup to a safer spot when her absentminded stirring sent ripples to the rim. She glanced up, catching his small act of care, and smiled faintly.

  "Sorry, Nora, but what is a quest?" Lukan said, visibly losing his composure. "You are so… not fitting everything I knew about life, about how everything works. I was startled by being pushed into this place with you. But you sort of grow up thinking that magical things will eventually happen to you. Even if the probability isn't very high."

  "Oh, I can feel you. It's all quite overwhelming," Nora sighed, warming hands with her mug of herbal tea. "How to explain that…? Sumi mentioned that what I have is different. I have more skills, and I have some other things… Including quests. And I'm as lost as you are. I don't know why it works differently for me."

  Nora called out the relevant System menu.

  "Among other things, I have some notion of the goals I need to achieve in the future," she said. "They are called quests. Did you ever hear about anything like that?"

  "No, I never heard about any quests…" said Lukan. "Maybe people get them at higher levels?"

  "Maybe… How would I know…?" said Nora, pouting.

  "So, you have a quest?" asked Lukan. "What does it say to you?"

  "One of them is related to these trials," said Lukan. "It hints that there are five of them, ten challenges in total. The name of the quest is pretty telling. Also, I know that we have completed 40% of the trials. And that tracks, as we have just finished our second challenge here."

  She read the description of the quest aloud.

  ========== Quest: Overcome the Five Trials ==========

  The Guardian has set you on the Path of Five Trials.

  Each trial will help you to use two skills and improve them.

  To pass each of the trials, you will have to find a balance between these two skills.

  So, choose wisely.

  Rewards: A mate???

  Completion: 40%

  "Oh, so it changed a bit," said Nora. "Now I have more info!"

  "What did it say before?" asked Lukan.

  "There were more parts left out," Nora explained. "Like this part with the 'mate.' I still don't know what it means."

  "But it sort of confirms what we had already figured out," said Lukan. "That you have to find pairs of the skills. And, yes, you get them improved."

  Lukan stopped pacing and sat across the table from Nora.

  "So, you have to figure out things to get your quests revealed in full," said Lukan. "That's neat. But also, the guidance of this quest system seems very limited."

  "At least it gives me the entry point," sighed Nora. "It's much more than what I had in my previous life, before magic."

  "That's how I feel on a daily basis," said Lukan with a smile. "So, you mentioned there are two quests?"

  "Yes," said Nora. "And the other one isn't less cryptic."

  ========== Quest: Unite the world with Love ==========

  The Goddess of Love has made you the Chosen One.

  To ??? you need to ??? and ???.

  Rewards: ???

  "What the fuck!?" Lukan exclaimed, his voice full of incredulous surprise. "A Chosen One? Seriously? I mean, come on! I was hoping your explanation would clear things up, not make them ten times more confusing. How the hell did you end up as a Chosen One of all things?"

  "I wish I knew," said Nora.

  "Well, it could explain your additional abilities," said Lukan. "Being a Chosen One isn't unheard of. But it's something out of legends. Or rumors."

  "So, do you know anything about it?" asked Nora.

  "It's even harder to separate truth from myth with the Chosen Ones," said Lukan. "It's not like you meet them every day. Sometimes a few generations pass between two people who were chosen by a god or a goddess. At least if we expect all of them to be known to the public."

  "I guess I'll have to figure it out on my own…" said Nora. "At least I'm on an almost even field with most of people."

  "I can be there for you," said Lukan. "If you let me. I saw you handling four challenges already. And I'm sure you'll figure out the other six in no time!"

  "Thank you for your vote of confidence, Lukan," said Nora. "It means a lot. And I'd be happy to discuss that with you… after we finish the trials."

  "So, tonight we rest," said Lukan. "What's the plan for tomorrow?"

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