On the outskirts of the golden wheat village is a small field where golden wheat was grown; in the middle of the field is a small ramshackle hut that seemed to have had better days. This was home to the couple Helice and Amis; Amis had especially chosen this place as it was the farthest from the village. There was not a single house in sight for another few minutes of walking.
It was nighttime, and the entire world seemed to have been plunged into darkness. This was another peculiar thing Helice noticed: when night fell, you would think that there would be some semblance of light, but it was completely pitch black.
In fact, during nighttime, it would become so black that it would become incredibly difficult for one to even see their own hands.
But that would not be a problem, though, because inside the house, it was dimly lit, as both couples had a quiet breakfast. After an entire day of work, Amis seemed especially famished, as he wolfed down the stew with macabre glee.
Helice, on the other hand, was staring blankly at the darkness outside the window; the orange glow of the candle seemed to cast an ethereal glow on her face, making her look especially stunning, and on the other end of the table, Amis skimmed through the food like a hungry lion.
The sound of his grumble echoed through the room, disrupting the very air itself, but Helice was too preoccupied in her thoughts to care; her eyes stared blankly at the open air.
While Amis ate, Helice was lost in thought; she would occasionally maul down a spoonful but at a much slower pace than Amis.
After their little talk at the barn, Helice now had a lot to think about. From what Amis said, she knew she had a psychic scaling of at least 3; to increase it, she would need to have at least six.
Evidently, from when Amis said Snake Face had a psychic rating double that of ordinary humans, it meant she needed at least a psychic scaling of 6 as well as mastering a few mind runes. As for how many are required, she didn't know; she would have to fly blind for now.
And she still didn't know what a mental rune was. The frustration was enough to make her claw out her hair, but she managed to remain calm as she took in another spoonful, this time taking a chunk of meat to go along with it.
The savory taste ravaged through her taste buds; she had to admit Amis was indeed a great cook. The meat was so well prepared, and every taste was a sensation, although there wasn't a variety of food, as she had noticed in her stay in the last two months, but they were great, of course—compliments to the chef, she thought to herself.
Speaking of the chef, Helice took a look at Amis, who was currently preoccupied with his cooking; his grumbles and hushed breaths filled the air as he took in mouth after mouth.
She had to admit when it came to this man, she indeed had mixed feelings; while she might have accepted her new life as Helice, she knew exactly how much the original Helice loved and adored this man, for her, however, remaining as his wife was a different matter entirely.
This new world had a lot to offer; she wouldn't just waste away and grow old as someone's wife, and Amis might have given up on his journey, but hers hadn't even begun yet.
And her mind was already made up; she would increase her psychic power and become a magi one way or the other.
A determined grin washed through her eyes as she clenched her fist; as of this moment, the mad scientist, personally, her real personality was beginning to surface.
So much so that the very air itself seemed to shift, so much so that Amis felt the change, making him pause his action. He looked at Helice, who was beginning to eat more, seemingly enjoying the meal.
"I wonder if there are any shortcuts." Helice suddenly muttered out loud.
"What's that?"
Amis seemed to have heard something and inquired, but Helice just shrugged as both of them continued their food.
Helice thought that there had to be a shortcut to increasing psychic power; it would only make sense. There have to be impatient people out here.
….
A golden stream of sunlight shifted through the open window; it was morning. Helice woke up to an empty bed; Amis had already begun his daily chores. Still thinking of giving her the room she needed to recover, he never thought to wake her up, so Helice has slept in.
Helice thought of something and began observing the room. Their bedroom was not very large, and the bed alone had almost taken all of the livable space; even so, it was barely big enough for both of them.
Helice got up and began searching; after a few minutes, she found a large wooden compartment under the bed, obviously left by Amis.
Amis was a rank 1 acolyte; in fact, she was his slave when he was in the magi tower, when he became gravely injured. They had opted to live in this place, far away from any magi conflict.
The old Helice was only a pillar of support when he was at his lowest; love had bloomed between them as time passed. Although she didn't know the true extent of his injuries, she knew he no longer had any hope of becoming a magus
Helice was thinking maybe he had kept any of his old stuff, and she was right; the door to the cellar looked old and dusty, as though it hadn't been opened in a long time.
Helice struggled for a bit, but eventually she was able to push the bed aside, revealing a small cellar; it was not locked.
Amis wasn't going to any length to conceal this; it was as though he didn't care if it was stolen or wasn't expecting anyone to come here.
So with little to no effort, Helice opened it, revealing a large box made from a strange black wood. The box had some engravings carved on it; it looked as though they were done by a professional.
When she opened it, she was met with a black robe neatly folded. Helice recognized it to be an acolyte robe, probably the one Amis had worn when he was still an acolyte.
Aside from the robe, there seemed to be nothing else inside the box, or so it seemed, but Helice wasn't stupid. The interior of the box was too hollow and could hold more items.
The first section was only a front meant to deter stupid people, really stupid people. Helice tossed the robe aside and gave the supposed base of the box a gentle knock, and a slight echo could be heard.
She then broke it off using a budget, revealing a wider section; here she found a really old book, a small crystal plaque, and a few empty glass bottles. Helice instantly knew this is used by alchemy to store potions. Next to them were two scrolls.