The flash of light dissipates; I’ve been transported to a plain. Even though we were holding hands, Ashley isn’t with me. Is it because I didn’t wish to go back? I feel disappointed; I wanted this moment to last.

I look around me; I see two castles far from here. One is black, and the other is white. Since the terrain is flat, I can see the border of this floor; it’s a giant wall, similar to the one at the station. I lay on the short grass and rest for a while. The temperature is suitable; I can feel the sun on my skin. I think about Ashley, then stand up. I walk for a time until I stumble upon something; that’s a bunch of sheep. I approach the creatures, and they ignore me. I notice a barn not too far away. It takes me a few minutes to get there. Inside are some haystacks and a bunch of farmer tools. I explore the surroundings and decide to spend the night at the barn. I prepare myself a bed with a survival blanket I bought at the camping store.

I sit outside to check my wrist. It has a new holographic display mode; its screen appears in front of me thanks to the augmented vision I unlocked. I can navigate the screen with my hand. While running through my apps, I notice that a new one has appeared: a map. To my fascination, it cartographies everywhere I go, and it even lets me place landmarks. I select the inventory app; it only contains the armor I picked up earlier. Fortunately, I have taken the books I borrowed with me. I pick up the “Assisted Combat System” guide and look for an inventory chapter. I learn that the inventory size increases each time a new floor is reached. Putting an object in or out drains our outer mana pool, and when enemies are nearby, we can’t do it. I put the armor out and try to equip it, but I can’t even lift the chest plate. It is made from a strange material, between steel and stone. It is more of a very dark blue than pure black. My new goal is to double my effort at the gym so I can equip this armor. The sun is starting to set, and I decide to eat. I only have one day of provision left; I will need to find food tomorrow. I finish my soup and go to bed. That night is cold and lonely.

A sunbeam hitting my face wakes me up. I take my breakfast outside. During my meal, I notice something; a tiny creature staring at me from behind a fence. It looks like a child, except it has pale purple skin and large yellow eyes. I immediately pick up my ax. The creature sees that and runs away. I stand up and watch him go through the wheat in a direction I had not explored yet. I finish my breakfast while staying alert. I realize that I could put my backpack into my inventory; I gather my stuff, opens the interface, and press the pick-up option. I then head in the direction the creature took. After passing a small grove, I discover a small village. While approaching, I realize that tiny creatures are hiding from me. They seem to be friends of the one I saw earlier. I keep my hand on my ax, but they do not seem aggressive. One of them passes close enough for the augmented vision to display something; Meadow Elf – Passive Mob. I relax a bit, knowing that they’re not a threat.

I visit their village; to my surprise, every building is human-sized; the doors seem unnecessarily large for these tiny folks. I pass upon a few shops mainly selling food. Thanks to my augmented vision, I can read their signs and see the price of each item. I also notice that they use copper and silver coins; my credits are useless here. I pass near a message board, and a few quests are displayed. One of them states: “help needed at the farm, good pay.” I pick up the paper and head for the listed farm. I follow the indications to the farm.

Here I encounter an Elf dressed as a farmer. I approach him and hand him the paper. The little men assign me a task; making hay bales; he takes some time to show me how it’s done. Once I manage to do it, he leads me to what my work is about; Cutting the hay of this field, making it into bales, and moving them into the barn. I proceed to do my task for the rest of the day, only taking a quick break to eat my lunch. Before the sun starts to set, the farmer comes to pay me 12 silver coins and gestures to me that it is time to go. I return to the village and find an inn. One night here is about 5 silver coins, and the supper is 2 silver coins. I take both services and sit at a table. There are not many people there, except for a few drunken Elves. Those creatures never seem to talk, and none of them has been bothered by my presence yet. A little waitress arrives; she uses a stool to bring me my plate, a sheep steak with roasted potatoes. I even get a cool glass of water. The meal is pretty good and fills my stomach. I go up the stair and find a pretty room. Joy fills me as I see the comfy bed that awaits me. I find a bucket of water, some soap, and a few towels. I use these to clean my tired body, lock the door, and put myself under the sheets.

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I wake up. This night was one of the best I have had since we’ve been trapped here. I finish my provision by taking breakfast. I decide to go to the market to buy some food. I buy apples, dried meat, whole wheat bread, and sheep milk cheese. I learn that a silver coin equals 10 copper coins; I only have 2 silver coins left after shopping. I decide to work at the farm today, but only this morning. I meet the peasant Elf, which gives me the same task as yesterday. I view this as good physical training. Once I am done, the little man rewards me with 6 silver coins. I decide to explore the area and find a nice spot to eat. Once I’m done, I choose to approach the castle I saw the day I arrived. I head for the black court, which is the closest. It takes me about an hour to get there.

As I approach, I notice some movement upon the castle walls. Suddenly, an arrow lands right next to me. I immediately step back since this could’ve killed me. As I distance myself from the castle, its gates open. Many armored humanoids, mounting abnormally large boars, are galloping toward me. They’re armed to the teeth, and I don’t stand a chance against them. I immediately start to run away. Fortunately, they do not pursue me for long and turn back when they see me reach a cornfield to hide. I return to the village, where I feel safer.

I decide to read a little to find out about this castle. The “Station Operating Manual” has no info about them but does mention something interesting. Apparently, every floor has one more boss than its predecessor, meaning that this level has two bosses. I guess that I must defeat the guardian of each castle to climb up. The task appears impossible to me. I remember seeing some weapons at the village’s market, but I’m not so good at combat. I decide to explore the options magic could give me and practice for the rest of the day. I take out the “Magic for Beginners” book and try every spell it lists, and the result isn’t encouraging. I try the illusion and deceiving spells on the sheep with very little success. By debugging the code of each sorcery, I figure out what is wrong. The only magic I can perform decently involves temperature or movement, but my casting distance is minimal. Each spell's range function decreases its power by a huge factor, which means casting more than one meter away has practically no effect. It also appears that the duration of my spells diminishes with the distance. If I try to throw a fireball, it immediately disappears when leaving proximity. It seems to be due to affinities I don’t have; I can’t project my mana very far. I take a short break and lie on the grass. I curse the system and wonder what to do with these.

I experiment a little bit more and find out something. If the spells perform poorly at a distance, it is incredibly more potent when cast at contact. I am immediately burned if I try to heat a stone by touching it. I get an idea and write a new spell. A fantastic holographic keyboard is displayed to me as I try to edit my creation. I combine some of the fireball’s code with a cold charm. I maintain the temperature of my hand while heating just a millimeter away. It works perfectly; my hand can burn everything it touches. I almost start a fire while playing with my new conjuration. I spend the rest of the day emptying my outer mana pool for training. I eat dinner and take another room at the inn. I quickly fall asleep.