"How do I cultivate?" Lucian asked.
"Same as Analyze—just focus your thoughts and the system will assist you automatically," Lysera replied.
"Oh." Lucian nodded and gave it a try.
Immediately, he felt a subtle shift within his body. It was as if an invisible force was gently drawing certain energies from the surroundings into him. His body grew warm and relaxed—it felt... pleasant.
"So this is cultivation? That means I could literally train while sleeping!" Lucian said with excitement.
"In theory, yes," Lysera said, "but passive cultivation is very slow. The real gains come when you're in a meditative state. If you also have a special technique or a magic circle aiding you, it becomes even faster."
"So how do I meditate?" Lucian asked.
"Clear your mind. Once you do that, you'll naturally enter a meditative state. But keep in mind, during meditation, your guard is completely down. Your awareness of your surroundings drops significantly."
Lucian nodded thoughtfully. "Then I'll wait a bit. Don't want the soup to boil dry."
Before long, the soup was ready. Lucian let it cool slightly before taking a sip straight from the pot.
"Whoa, that's amazing!" he exclaimed. But instead of diving in, he carried the pot over to Elvira Sol.
"You're not seriously thinking of feeding her, are you?" Lysera asked.
"Of course I am," Lucian replied. "Even mages need to eat, right?"
Lysera didn't argue.
Lucian gently lifted Elvira Sol's head and pried open her soft pink lips, slowly pouring the soup in, one small sip at a time.
As soon as the liquid touched her tongue, she reflexively swallowed.
"Hey hey, she's drinking!" Lucian beamed.
If she could take in soup, then at least he didn't have to worry about her starving to death any time soon.
Lysera remained silent. In truth, with a Sacred Rank mage's vitality, Elvira Sol could go without food or water for weeks without issue. And since she was both a mage and a warrior, her body was even more resilient. A month or two? No problem at all.
But she didn't say any of that—because watching Lucian carefully spoon-feed Elvira like this… he looked genuinely gentle.
Then, Lysera heard him muttering:
"Hehe, I'm being so nice to you. If you don't marry me when you wake up, I'll feel robbed."
"Come on, everyone knows the first beautiful girl you meet in another world is your destined heroine."
"So hang in there, Elvira Sol. Don't die on me, alright?"
Lysera: "..."
Lysera huffed, "By that logic, I'm the heroine!"
Lucian glanced at her and replied while feeding Elvira more soup: "You don't even have a banana… I mean, a body. Go play somewhere else."
Lysera: "..."
Ugh! Infuriating!
Lucian ignored her grumbling. After feeding Elvira the entire pot of soup and drinking the rest of the broth himself, he finally started on his own meal—cracking open Riverclaws and chewing mushrooms with satisfaction.
"This is way too good. Too bad you can't enjoy it," he said, glancing at the unconscious Elvira Sol.
He turned to Lysera. "Hey, want some?"
Lysera shook her head. "I'm just a projection, not my real body. I don't need to eat... even if I were, I still wouldn't need food."
Lucian nodded. "Ohhh. Wait—can other people see you?"
"No. And our conversations are blocked by the laws of this world. No one else can hear me."
"So to avoid people thinking I'm talking to myself like an idiot, I should speak to you with my thoughts?"
"Exactly."
"Got it. Here, Nobu—have some crab." Lucian passed another Riverclaw chunk to Nobu.
"Gujyu~"
After filling his belly, Lucian let out a satisfied burp. "Alright, time to train!"
He sat down cross-legged, shut his eyes, and began muttering, "Clear my mind… clear my mind…"
Lysera couldn't help but laugh. Meditation didn't require sitting like an anime monk, but if it made him happy, why stop him?
Lucian's breathing gradually slowed and deepened. Lysera could feel the ambient mana flowing faster into his body.
She blinked in surprise. "He actually entered a meditative state that quickly?"
Cultivating might sound easy, but it wasn't. Normally, beginners needed to sense the natural mana in their environment, draw it into themselves, refine it, and then integrate it into their bodies.
The system had removed the need for guiding and refining mana, but sensing it still had to be done on his own.
Most people took weeks or even months to do that. Some with poor talent might take years—or never manage it at all.
Lucian, on the other hand, managed it in under a minute.
Even the top-tier geniuses in this world typically needed hours or days to reach that state.
But after her initial surprise, Lysera just smiled.
He was chosen by the world, after all. It made sense that his talent would be extraordinary.
Lucian's body was now absorbing mana like a vortex, pulling it in faster and faster. He seemed to have completely lost himself in the process—no concept of time, no awareness of anything else.
When he finally opened his eyes, dawn was breaking.
"I was meditating all night?" Lucian asked, surprised as he stared at the gradually brightening sky.
He'd thought only a little time had passed.
And with that surprise came a sense of unease. He hadn't been aware of anything around him during cultivation. If a monster had shown up, he'd be dead meat.
Luckily, Elvira Sol's magical aura kept any threats far away.
Lucian stood and stretched, marveling at how good he felt.
After sitting cross-legged all night, his body didn't ache at all. In fact, he felt refreshed, full of energy and vigor.
"Mmm. I feel great—time to take a leak."
He returned a few minutes later, adjusting his belt and looking thoughtful.
He could feel something flowing inside him now—an unfamiliar yet controllable energy. It had to be mana.
He raised his hand, and a faint glow emerged from his palm. The mana had answered his call.
"Whoa…" Lucian whispered, eyes wide. "So this means I'm officially a mage now, right?"
Lysera crossed her arms. "Not even close."
"Most people in this world can do that much. All you've done is step through the doorway. You won't be a real mage until you can actually cast a proper Tier-1 spell."
"Cast a spell, huh…" Lucian scratched his head.
Sure, he had mana now. But aside from making his body glow like a glowstick, he couldn't really do anything yet.
Well… maybe it'd be useful at night. At least he wouldn't pee on his foot anymore.
Looks like it was time to learn magic.
But how?
According to Lysera, as long as someone cast a spell near him, he could use Analyze to break it down—and once the analysis was complete, he'd be able to learn the spell himself. So all he needed was someone to teach him.
His gaze shifted toward the still-unconscious Elvira Sol.
He sighed.
Still out cold. And with no signs of civilization nearby, it looked like he had no choice but to wait.
Still, he wasn't discouraged. "Alright then—let's go find some food!"
Lucian headed back into the forest and managed to scavenge a few edible plants. He also returned to the river and caught several Riverclaws. To his surprise, he even managed to snag a fish.
[Broodburst Fish: Female variant. In moments of danger, it ejects unfertilized eggs to distract predators. This species possesses no magic. Flesh is tender and edible. The male variant is known as…]
"Wait a sec—this fish is kinda weird." Lucian stared at the fish that looked suspiciously like a catfish with ovaries. He wrinkled his nose in mild disgust, but hunger won out.
Weird or not, food was food.
There wasn't much else around. Maybe it was because of the magical pressure Elvira Sol unconsciously emitted—no beasts or monsters dared come near. For now, his only food sources were edible plants from the forest and freshwater creatures from the river.
He didn't dare venture too far either.
Lysera had explained that even though he now had mana, he was still classified as Tier-0. His magic was only strong enough to make his hand glow and give him a minor physical boost—barely useful in a fight. Even a single Tier-1 monster would be too much for him to handle.
Satisfied with his haul, Lucian returned to the cave. He tossed mushrooms and wild greens into the pot with his river catch and brewed a hearty soup. As usual, he brought a bowl to Elvira Sol first.
As he gently fed her, he muttered, "Man, she's had so much soup… is she gonna need to pee soon?"
"She's not gonna wet herself, right?"
Lysera: "…"
Why is that your biggest concern?
"You don't need to worry about that. Mages of her level use mana to break down food waste internally. The stronger the mage, the less they need to… you know, go."
"So you mean… they eat but don't poop? That's insanely overpowered!" Lucian exclaimed.
Lysera: "…"
Once Elvira was fed, Lucian filled his own belly and shared a few bites with Nobu, who was happily nibbling away as always. Then, Lucian returned to his cultivation.
He needed to reach Tier-1 as soon as possible. Once he did, he'd be able to form his first proper spell—Mana Bolt—which meant he'd finally have a way to defend himself.