Rukiyo finally touched down onto the soft earth, her wings folding neatly behind her as she scanned the surroundings.
Her search leads her to the mouth of a cave— dark, slightly foreboding, but well-hidden enough to offer shelter for the night.
She hesitated at the entrance, peering into the shadows.
Well.. It's not perfect, but it's better than wandering aimlessly through unfamiliar woods and possibly getting caught by humans.
Yeah.. It's better to hide here for now. Rukiyo thought and with a steadying breath, she stepped inside, letting her eyes adjust to the dimness of the cave.
As Rukiyo ventured further into the cave, she was quite surprised to find out that her eyesight adjusted quickly to the low light.
Instead of the complete darkness she had expected, she can make out the rough outlines of the cave's interior and rock location all over the place.
It's an odd observation— as if her eyes had some innate ability to see better in the dark.
She mentally added that to the growing list of strange things about my new body and moved forward cautiously, all the while feeling her way along the wall just in case.
Rukiyo walked deeper into the cave, her footsteps echoing softly against the stone walls.
The space isn't massive, just deep enough to provide decent shelter, but it led into a secluded back area that felt like a hidden base.
She nodded to herself. Perfect. This will do for now.
It's somewhere to rest, gather her thoughts, and figure out her next move without worrying about being spotted.
Rukiyo let out a sigh and she settled onto the cave floor, wings folding tightly against her back, and exhaled deeply, her shoulders relaxing after a long day of wandering aimlessly in the air.
Unfortunately, Rukiyo barely has a chance to relax when—
PING!
A sharp, digital chime rang in her head like a notification sound and before she could react, a glowing holographic screen flickered into existence right in front of her eyes.
It's transparent, tinted blue, and filled with lines of text— like some kind of system interface.
>> WELCOME, DRAGONESS RYUKIYO.
>> SYSTEM INITIALIZATION COMPLETE.
>> WOULD YOU LIKE TO ACTIVATE TUTORIAL MODE? YES / NO
Rukiyo stares at the floating screen, mouth slightly agape. What the hell—?
She swallowed hard, glancing around the cave frantically to check if the thing could be seen by others.
The holographic screen remained stubbornly in place, unaffected by her movements— no flicker, no change in position, and to her relief, the cave itself is just as dim as before, with no strange glow reflecting off the walls.
Okay.. This.. This thing is only visible to her.
Her fingers twitched as she hesitated, then slowly lifted a trembling hand toward the floating text.
If this is some kind of interface, does that mean..
".. Yes?" She whispered, voice hoarse.
The screen glitches violently— static rippling across the text before abruptly updating with new, ominous words.
>> TUTORIAL COMBAT MODE ACTIVATED.
>> INITIATING COMBAT MODE.
Rukiyo barely has time to process what that means before a thunderous THUD shook the entire cave.
Her head whipped toward the entrance, just in time to see it blocked by hulking, green-skinned figures that made her heart race.
Orcs.
Massive, snarling, armed to the teeth.. And their beady eyes were already locked onto her, their weapons raised.
Rukiyo's blood ran cold. "Oh my god, you've got to be kidding me—"
Rukiyo barely had the time to scream her heart out before the orcs charged, their massive forms barreling toward her with terrifying speed.
"OH GOD, NO, PLEASE—" She let out a panicked shriek, her voice bouncing off the stone wall of the cave, but her scream was interrupted when the holographic screen blared another sharp chime.
>> TO SEE YOUR SKILLS, OPEN SKILL TAB.
Her instincts kicked in. She doesn't have enough time to think.
She just reacted, and with a frantic swipe at the air, Rukiyo screamed at the top of her lungs, "SKILL TAB! NOW!"
The screen flickered, then updated rapidly, listing abilities she doesn't remember having— but right now, she'll take anything.
Rukiyo's eyes darted across the glowing text as the orcs closed in, every second counting.
>> AVAILABLE SKILLS:
— DRAGON'S ROAR
Stuns enemies within a 10m radius.
— SHADOW FLARE
Unleashes dark fire in a targeted cone.
— WINGBLADE ASSAULT
Slashes with razor-sharp wing edges.
— STORM TERROR
Unleashes a magic circle at the targeted area and summon terrible downpour with strong lightning.
Rukiyo's breath hitched. These are the abilities she gave Ryukiyo in her story— ones she made up on a whim during late-night writing sessions and now they're real.
The nearest orc raised a club, her heart pounding wildly in her throat as she frantically scanned the list of her skills.
The first option is the only thing she recognizes, Dragon's Roar, because that's the skill she gave Ryukiyo for crowd control, so it should work on the monsters.
With a deep, shuddering breath, Rukiyo mentally selected [DRAGON'S ROAR] and silently hoped the damn thing actually works.
She gritted her teeth, heart pounding in her throat, and internally screams—
>> DRAGON'S ROAR.
A deep, primal sound resonates from Rukiyo's chest, like a roar that doesn't belong to a girl, her mouth snapping open.
ROAAAAAAAR!
The moment the Dragon's Roar erupts from Rukiyo's throat, the sound rips through the cave like a shockwave, causing the charging orcs to stagger mid-step and clutching their ears as if physically struck.
They were stunned, and Rukiyo didn't waste a second.
"Shadow Flare!" She gasped out, her voice still raw from the roar, not bothering to double check the skill list.
Instantly, a magic circle formed in front of her mouth as black flames started to coil at the back of her throat and expanded in size before exploding outward in a twisting torrent of dark fire, darting towards the green monsters.
The black inferno engulfed the front line of orcs, their guttural screams filling the cave as the fire licked at their green hides.
She can feel the heat radiating from her own magic— the terrifying power of it.
"Holy shit." She breathed out, eyes wide.
The fire finally sputtered out, leaving behind a sickening stench of burnt flesh and a gruesome sight.
What remained of the orcs were nothing more than smoldering piles of goo and blackened hides— the previously menacing monsters have been reduced to nothing, leaving behind a nauseating stench in the cave.
Rukiyo stared at the grisly remains with disbelief and horror, her chest heaving— part from adrenaline, part from the reality that she just killed those things.
Rukiyo collapsed onto the cave floor, chest heaving with ragged breaths.
The adrenaline is starting to fade, replaced by a bone-deep exhaustion as she stared at her trembling hands, trying to process everything that happened.
She just fought those orcs.. With powers straight out of a story she created.. And she won.
The realization is both overwhelming and terrifying.
But there's one thing bothering her more than the fighting— it's the ridiculous way to activate her skills.
It's all so.. Cringeworthy.
Rukiyo let out a long, suffering groan and promptly buried her face in her hands.
The embarrassment is physical— a full-body cringe that makes her toes curl inside her shoes or whatever footwear she's wearing right now.
She just had to shout her attack names like some anime protagonists..
The humiliation burned worse than the shadow flare ever could and if she had any dignity left earlier, well, it's definitely gone now.
>> CONGRATULATIONS! TUTORIAL COMBAT ENDED.
The holographic screen cheerfully blinked at her, making her peek through her fingers to look at it and send a glare its way.
"Shut up."