Time passed very slowly, as if the hands of the clock were walking on tiptoes, hesitant to take the next step. Nothing special happened at all. Early waking, exhausting work, warm food, heavy sleep. The same routine repeated mercilessly, until I began to feel the days melting into each other like drops of water on glass under the rain.
Still, not everything was completely fixed.
I started to feel myself getting closer day by day to Aunt Melissa, the woman who never once spared me a smile or a warm word. I felt the warmth of motherhood slipping through her voice, a tenderness I never expected to find in this strange world. Liana too... the little bundle of life, filled the place with her vitality and constant laughter, jumping toward me every evening as if I were a legendary hero returning from battle. I began to see her as a tiny ray of light coloring my gray days.
At work, I occasionally started talking with Knox, the silent worker who at first seemed like a wall of calm. We never had deep conversations or shared secrets, but just exchanging a few words about organizing boxes or cleaning weapons was enough to make me feel I wasn't alone here.
As for Luxian... he's a whole other chapter in this daily story. He always insists on telling his silly jokes as if he were a comedian trapped in a warrior's body. Once, he told me he had defeated a dragon with a single blow, and he was very serious about it. I just stared at him silently, then shook my head and said, "If you said you defeated a cat, maybe I would've believed you."
He laughed, and I laughed too—perhaps for the first time without thinking. I didn't know if he was exaggerating on purpose or just trying to entertain, but I started to appreciate his presence, in his own chaotic way.
None of this distracted me from what I was truly waiting for: the second week. I was counting days, hours, even minutes sometimes, waiting for the moment when something would change, when I would get the next ability.
Strangely, I had never felt this kind of tension before. Before the "Status Window" appeared, I lived my days as they were—no expectations, no excessive excitement. But now? I felt like a part of me was constantly running toward the unknown, thirsty to know what awaited me next week.
Is this the excitement people always talk about? The feeling that time isn't moving fast enough, and that your heart is racing ahead of the world?
I felt like I was waiting for years... even though it had only been seven days.
And finally... the second week came.
...
I woke on its first day as if a new spirit had been breathed into my chest. For a moment, I opened my eyes quickly, and my head filled with an inner scream almost escaping my mouth: "Status Window!" But I didn't say it... not yet.
I pulled myself together with difficulty, as if trying to slow down an important scene in a drama film so I could savor every second of it. I wanted to be fully conscious when I said that sentence. I wanted to be ready with all my senses, to examine every letter of that new ability, to live the experience as if it were a sacred moment.
So... I got out of bed, fixed my hair with my hand, washed my face, and went out to work.
Work was as usual: lifting, carrying, cleaning, organizing. Long hours passed like stones slowly rolling inside my chest. No one knew what was going on inside me, no one knew that all I was doing now was passing time. Every minute brought me closer to the end of the day... and to the moment of revelation.
When work finally ended, I didn't wait long.
As soon as I handed over the last piece of goods, I ran out of the yard like a child who found a treasure map. I didn't greet anyone, didn't look back—I just ran.
I ran until I reached the inn, my heart pounding like war drums. I climbed the stairs lightly, pushed the door open, and entered the room. I closed the door behind me, then sat on the bed... no, stood up... no, sat down again.
"Well..." I whispered to myself.
I knew the new ability might be trivial or weak. It might be something unremarkable, useless, or unhelpful. But what can I say... it's fun.
Yes... fun in a way I can't explain.
The sun began to slowly sink behind the distant mountains, painting the sky with shades of orange and purple as if it were drawing a farewell painting for another day. The evening breeze gently slipped through the wooden windows, refreshing the air with the scent of trees and warm dust.
I sat in the small corner of the room, the same spot I used to sit after work. I put the bag on the floor, then whispered softly:
"Status Window."
The reply appeared quickly, in the same usual mechanical tone, without emotions:
[ Yes, User. ]
I hesitated for a moment, then continued:
"Superpower… display."
As soon as I uttered the words, that shiny card appeared before me... a card whose color was unlike any color I had ever seen in my life. It wasn't purely gold, but like a blend of gold and light, glowing with a soft aura that's hard to describe in words. Its beauty wasn't ordinary; it was something you feel in your heart before your eyes see it.
I reached out and touched it, as if waking something asleep.
[ Category: C ]
[ Ability: Refreshing Breath ]
[ Description: When breathing very slowly, focus is restored and tension is reduced by 10%. ]
[ Usage: Useful in critical moments requiring focus, such as combat or puzzle solving. ]
[ Conditions: Eyes must be closed to activate the ability, and it can only be used once per week. ]
I read the words one by one, slowly.
Category C...?
Wait... just wait... Category C?
I blinked, as if I couldn't believe what I had just read.
Is this real?!
I never expected to reach this category so quickly. I thought the path was long, and I'd be stuck at the first levels for months... but here it was before me. As if this world decided, just once, to smile at me.
I smiled involuntarily, maybe from the surprise, or maybe because something inside me felt proud.
But the joy dimmed a little when I read the ability's name:
"Refreshing Breath."
I raised my eyebrows slowly; the name sounded strange, even too simple. Like I had gotten a breathing technique, not a superpower.
Then I moved on to the description... "When breathing very slowly, focus is restored and tension is reduced by 10%"...
10%...?
I paused for a moment.
Is that a lot? Or a little?
I'm not good with numbers, let's say it's the worst subject I've ever known... so I don't know whether to be happy or worried.
But... the idea sounded nice. The ability to regain calm in a moment of panic? Maybe it's not a power that changes battles, but it's not useless either.
I kept reading.
"Useful in critical moments requiring focus, such as combat or puzzle solving."
I chuckled quietly.
Combat? Puzzles?
I can barely carry boxes all day without dropping them. And I haven't tried solving a single puzzle since I found that paper puzzle in a juice box years ago and didn't understand it.
Should I consider myself a "decisive" person all of a sudden?
I laughed again... not mockingly, but because the situation itself seemed comical.
Then I reached the conditions:
"Eyes must be closed... and it can only be used once per week."
I nodded slowly to myself.
Not difficult conditions, but it means the ability won't be part of my everyday life. Maybe I don't need it now, but who knows? I might be in a tough spot, at a critical moment, close my eyes, breathe... and feel calm amid the chaos.
I closed the card and looked back at the sunset.
The sky was starting to lean more toward purple, and the village was quiet except for the faint distant sound of a cart moving along the stone road.
Although the ability wasn't what I imagined, I felt satisfied.
Not a striking power... but a beginning.
And beginnings aren't measured by greatness, but by your sincerity when you receive them.