Aira surveyed the , noting the scattered items. Rusty tools, small objects of unknown use, brittle sheets of a paper, and remnants of a firepce filled with petrified ashes, all of that was mixed with dust and dirt. With all her tools gone, she had to rely on whatever she could find in this forsaken pce.

  She moved around slowly, hoping to find something she could use to start a fire. After a few moments, Aira saw a flint and a pieetal hiddeh a pile of debris.

  "At least some luck remains with me," she thought. "And some things remain stant no matter the world."

  Aira sat down with a groan. Or maybe it sounded more like a growl. But there was no ohere to judge. Her whole body protested to that simple movement.

  She stroke flint against metal. Sparks flew, and after several attempts with her clumsy and unresponsive hands, she ignited a small fme. That muion was very f. It made her believe that no matter which circumstance she found herself in, with magic or without, she could find a way to survive and maybe even thrive. Well, the tter was still a bit questionable.

  "Ah… Small wins," thought Aira, smiling.

  She carefully fed the bone-dry remnants of the a furniture to the fire, making it fre up and provide a weling glow. Some warmth. The heat spread around Aira, creating a f aura. It almost made her believe the situation wasn't as dire as it seemed. Now, more than ever, she hat optimism.

  "Alright, Aira, it isn't that bad," she thought. "Well, it is. But you are alive. That's a plus. Magic alone shouldn't define you. There are plenty of things that make you who you are. All your knowledge and experience isn't lost. And there's a whole new world to explore."

  She grasped her head with her hands. "What am I even thinking about? How I survive without magic?"

  Aira took a couple of deep breaths, trying to settle her emotions. "Don't overthink that. If there are people in this world, you fight. You are a trained warrior. You teach them battle strategy, or whatever. And even that sluggish body shouldn't stop you!"

  The thought sparked curiosity amidst despair. This pce held mysteries waiting to be unraveled. But were there even any living souls in this world? Humans... or somebody else? Her transformation, though scary, might offer new possibilities she wouldn't even sider otherwise. She just o make an effort to figure them out.

  Aira winced as she tried to flex her stiff fingers, feeling the sharp twinge of pain in her joints. The warmth from the fire provided a bit of relief but didn't bring her any closer to her old self.

  "It would be o have less stiff hands and legs," she thought.

  The crag of the fire reminded Aira of all the past camps she shared with her friends and rades. Friends, allies, mentors—all oblivious to her predit. Would they mourn her as dead or fruitlessly search for her, hoping t her back?

  Before entering that cursed dungeon, she had boldly announced her pns to reach the 100th level in just a few days. But everyone knows the dahat lurked within. It wasn't unon for adveo meet their demise inside. And there wouldn't even be a body to recover in that case.

  Perhaps that's how the others would remember her—as another overfident dungeon crawler who didn't pn well enough.

  These depressing thoughts wouldn't help her, though. To dissolve them, or at least to get distracted, she stood up and began a more thh exploration of the . The structure was small and simple, but even the most b item may be an essential clue in a new world. Every Aira's movement was slow, and she could almost hear her joints creaking as she rummaged through the broken furniture and dusty shelves, finding little more than cobwebs and decayed remnants of the past.

  In the farthest er, she discovered a small chest, its wooden surface worn and hinges rusted. Slowly, she pried it open, revealing a few items that had survived the passing of time: small tris she didn't reize, a rusted knife, and a small leather-bound journal. The bde was dull, but it was at least a oer than nothing. Aira pocketed it and picked up the journal.

  She returo the fire pit and curled up o the crag fire, trag the lines on the cover with her fingers. In her old world, she'd expect to feel something more than the bare sensation of touch. But here, she had to get used to having no response from objects.

  Aira opehe book carefully, sing the handwriting with her eyes. However, the words were utterly inprehensible. A wave of frustration washed over her, but she tried to suppress it. At least there was a nguage. That meant there should be a way to learn it, unicate with people, and find out more about this world.

  That almost sounded like a pn!

  If there were any people left alive in this world.

  Even if attempting to read the texts was a plete failure, Aira felt a renewed hope. She might have lost all of her former power and skills. She didn't even know the exact pce where she appeared in this unfamiliar world. But she was still herself. A powerful woman and a warrior who found a way to survive in so many dire situations. Yes, none of them were as insane and desperate as this one. But there's first time for everything, right?

  Finally, she had some sense of dire and allowed herself to rex. The gentle warmth of the fire calmed her nerves, and fatigue bed her. Aira curled tighter as she stared into the dang fmes a her thoughts drift.

  ***

  She ulled out of her slumber unceremoniously by an abrupt noise. Her eyes snapped open, her senses on high alert. However, while her mind was ready to react, she still had the same sluggish body that wasn't ready to move at first and.

  While she was sleeping, the fire had buro embers, and the night turned into predawn twilight. More faint sounds came from outside the : footsteps and hushed voices.

  The door ulled open with a bang from the outside. The figures that stormed in moved with precision and brought blinding light. They sed the room with practiced effid Aira reized that kind of people. She was that kind of person herself. It had to be some sort of patrol or militia, and she wasn't yet sure how friendly they would be toward a suspicious person. But at least their presence firmed that there were se beings in this world.

  Aira tried to rise, but her stiff limbs betrayed her once again, making the movements slow and sluggish. At the same time, the intruders were quid precise, their ons draoi her. The first human to the building shouted something at either her or his buddies. But Aira didn't uand a word.

  "Look, I just need some help!..." It was only her sed attempt to speak since she appeared in this world. But instead of her voice, there still was that unfamiliar growl. And it definitely sounded nothing like the words she heard from the intruders. And they... not only did they not uand her, but the guttural sounds she produced made them even more apprehensive.

  That crushed Aira's hopes. Before that, she tried to persuade herself that her st day's growls were just some form of speeative to this world. Wouldn't it be o be able to learn an unknown nguage without effort, thanks to some are force? But no, she obviously fot that there was no magic here.

  Still, despite being sure that these warriors would not uand her, Aira had an overwhelming urge to expihing. She gestured frantically towards the fire and the journal beside her, hoping they would uand.

  One of the intruders, a woman with green hair, attracted Aira's attention more thahers. She stepped closer, her curiosity visibly piqued. Evee Aira's growling, she didn't seem to be afraid. On the trary, she was intrigued and followed Aira's gestures with her sharp eyes.

  Though she kept her distanitially, she slowly closed the gap between them until she squatted not far from Aira. Green hair threw Aira off a bit. In her world, it wasn't a thing. Unless somebody decided to use dyes ic. But that was another firmation that she truly wasn't home anymore. The other people from the group boasted various shades of hair and skin. Many of them quite peculiar to Aira's fill, in every other way, they looked as human as any of Aira's friends and acquaintances.

  Aira perked up at the woman's voice as she spoke. But again, it was utterly unfamiliar to her. The nguage was indistinguishable, words blending together in a meaningless stream. Promptly uanding that her message wasn't ing through, the woman removed a strand of her green hair from in front of her eyes and switched to gestures, attempting te the unication barrier in any ossible. It wasn't much better, but Aira was grateful for the effort. At least it meant there was a ce for her to survive another day in this unknown world. The intruders were ready to spend time making tact.

  It seemed that the woman was being Aira somewhere. To go with her to a different pd leave the fleeting safety of this . In a way, it was what Aira asked for: se beings whose nguage she would probably be able to learn. Going with them wouldn't put her in much more dahan staying here without food, water, or ons. If she survived, she might even gather more information about this pce, its rules, and the bance of power.

  The humans had a brief but spirited debate, pointing at her and somewhere outside of the . The woman who caught Aira's attention was the most animated during these talks, even grabbing another man's hand as if trying to persuade him of something. Ultimately, the leader nodded, his expressioical but intrigued, and motioned for his team to prepare the captive.

  She approached Aira again, seemingly trying to calm her down and show she shouldn't resist. What happened expihe warning: two men searched her, removed the knife, and bound her hands a with high efficy. Aira didn't resist. She knew she had to learn to unicate with them before even gaining trust. And in her current state, she wasn't in a position to fight her captors anyway. Cooperation seemed to be the best approach, at least for now.

  Whehing was dohey put her onto a makeshift stretcher, their movements practiced and coordinated. It didn't seem like the intruders even sidered her to walk on her own. They were prepared to carry her wherever they po go .

  As they started their jourhe first light of the m sun illumihe area around the dipidated . Aira didn't even notice as the night passed by. She made an effort to closely observe the people surrounding her. Finally, she had some opportuo gather information about her captors. Find things that were different and simir between the worlds.

  "They are humans, alright," she thought. "But they aren't like me. They aren't slow. Still, they were prepare to deal with somebody like me. The speed and the decisiveness with which they prepared the stretcher meant they were prepared. Does that mean I'm not the only one?"