Elaria, lying on the ice bed she made, could not immediately fall asleep. Too many things had happened today. The young human male kept surprising her again and again. A moment ago, his aura had suddenly intensified, a testament to his increased strength—she had never heard of anything like it in her long years. Not even exceptional genius could level up in one day. This is insane she thought.
Then, there was that subtle, fleeting sense of familiarity coming from him. She also felt Miles become charming all of a sudden, but it disappeared as quickly as it came, making her doubt if she was hallucinating. He kept staring into empty space, and she judged he must be doing something she couldn't see. She decided to wait calmly and let him finish. She wouldn't pry into his secret as she had her own.
After he was done, she asked about his world. She didn't really understood why she had asked this, maybe curiosity got better of her, still Miles happily described it, and it was so fascinating she truly wished to visit it one day. He promised they would, if it was ever possible. They decided on their future plans together.
Recalling all these events, she couldn't help but smile. Adventuring together would be fun; she was certain of it. For the first time in a long while, she was looking forward to the next day.
Elaria slowly drifted into sleep. Tonight, she wasn't afraid of having a nightmare. Tonight, for the first time in a long while, she would sleep peacefully.
•••
Golden threads of morning light transformed my night dreams into an ambient optimism.
I woke up feeling extremely energized. I walked out and bathed in the sunlight for a moment before deciding to go for a walk. I used [Echo] to guard against any unforeseen danger.
In the forest, I breathed in every way it is possible to expand: in lungs, in brain, in soul. There is a sense of kinship with the flora here, of an ancient soul that stretches into everything that lives. It is here, under the nascent rays of a sun born to rise each day, that I feel so very alive. How could I not love the forest? From a simple seed, with mud, water, and sun, comes all of this—these towering, gentle giants that are so anchoring to all that I am.
After feeling a bit philosophical, I continued my exploration for an hour and finally found a lake about five kilometers away. I was overjoyed and immediately headed back, finding Elaria outside stretching. I enjoyed the sight for a moment, wishing I could be behind her, helping her stretch. But I shook my head; the opportunity would come soon enough. There was no need to rush things.
"Good morning, Elaria. You look gorgeous today as well. Did you have a good night of sleep? I certainly did. With a beauty by my side, how could I not?" I declared honestly without batting an eyelid, I didn't forget to throw in a light joke to lighten the mood.
"You are such a smooth talker. Well, I won't lie; I had the best sleep I've had in a while," Elaria responded, stopping doing her stretches.
"Glad to hear that. Let's make sure that from now on, you always sleep well," I declared, as if stating an important mission. Elaria simply chuckled in response.
I didn't waste time announcing my discovery.
"I found a lake not far from here. Let's head over and set up a camp there."
"Sure, that's a good idea. I'd like to take a proper bath."
I immediately turned around to guide her to the location, and she followed closely behind. I decided to kill time by initiating a conversation.
"Can you tell me about the power system in this world? What I mean to ask is, how many ranks are there in total?"
Elaria didn't hesitate and shared what she knew. "I believe there are nine ranks in total. Upon reaching rank 5, you are considered to have passed the first stage of transcending humanity; you are called a Demigod. The second stage is after passing rank 8, where you can completely transcend and reach godhood in the final rank. Nobody has reached the last rank in centuries. Even reaching rank 8 is extremely hard nowadays. That's all I know. We will find out more as we adventure."
I smiled. Her explanation, especially the last part, warmed my heart. She seemed to have finally accepted my proposal from the bottom of her heart. As for the power system, I now had a general understanding and would research more later. My short-term goal would be to quickly reach the Demigod realm. With two demigods and the system powering me up, I could protect myself and my future wife.
"Thank you, that helps a lot. And what about the currency system here? Is it universal?" I asked right after, wanting to learn this as well, it was an essential information.
"Not completely. We elves have our own currency, same for the dwarves and other races. Only the human race has a universal currency, called the Imperial Coin. Twenty copper coins equal one Imperial Silver Coin, and ten Imperial Silver Coins equal one Imperial Gold. There is also a white coin, but I don't know much about it."
"I see," I nodded, taking in the information. I had 50 Imperial Silver Coins from the system reward, which meant I had 5 Imperial Gold on me. It wasn't a lot, but it was a good start.
After walking for a while, we arrived at our destination. I saw her smile as she saw the lake. I tactfully retreated to let her have a moment of privacy to bathe for as long as she wanted. «Honneur aux dames», as the French people say—it means to be a gentleman. I've traveled a lot, so I can speak a few languages, albeit not fluently.
As I disappeared to give Elaria some privacy, I had no idea that a group of knights and two mages were searching for us. However, they were looking in the wrong direction—the complete opposite of our current location.