Ayna remained silent as she continued to follow, not wanting to appear out of sorts.

  She had no idea what Dr Xavier wanted to achieve, but from what she had seen, he was rather bizarre and unstable. From the way he examined her after showing her the horrific sight of Ember hanging lifeless from the botanic garden, it seemed to be on purpose, as if he was gauging, seeking a reaction of sorts from her.

  He may have intended to target Stormflash like he said, but the way he dragged her out and brought her along, it was as if it were a dramatic play that was directed at her.

  Examining the quest she received from the system hinted at just that.

  New Quest: [The Secret of Thaumavore]

  You found yourself awakened in a facility, deceived from the moment you awakened. What is truly real? He is watching. He is waiting. He hungers.

  You run out of time. He is struggling to hold back.

  Objective: Escape Research Facility Odyssey.

  Reward: Experience. Skill Points x2. Attribute Points x2. +1 Ability Slot for Esper power, Ability Absorption.

  Thaumovore was Subject Zero, the name by which he was known. Project Odyssey succeeded in giving him the Esper power Ability Absorption as intended, but left his DNA constantly unstable. He had many powerful abilities, but his body continually broke apart under the strain of the unorganised and chaotic genomes.

  It required him to drain and devour the life force of things constantly to keep himself alive. At first, he sustained himself on small life forms, but as his power grew substantially, that was no longer enough, and Thaumovore became a feared calamity in the Universe, known as the Devourer of Worlds.

  Thaumovore was beyond the A grade and was a transcendent life form, surpassing the S grade.

  The S grade was the pinnacle of powered beings, with power levels so outrageous that they could not be accurately measured.

  Thaumovore was feared. The Luxonary Federation, the Kaxos Empire, and the Metahuman Alliance, three prominent S-grade powers in the Universe, have sent numerous S-grade forces to deal with Thaumovore; yet, his numerous powers made him almost impossible to catch and contain.

  Ember, the victim of her first use of power absorption, was likely sent by The Luxonary Federation to investigate if Dr Xavier had more of a connection to Subject Zero than it seemed. The three S-grade powers were running out of options and needed results as Thaumovore continued to devour worlds, evading the S grades sent to deal with him.

  It made sense for Dr Xavier to be thought of as a way to lure him to a place where they can confront Thaumovore.

  Ayna even thought that Dr Xavier remained alive because of this, with him able to continue the same experiment that had caused Subject Zero constant torment, despite Thaumovore being more than powerful enough to exact revenge.

  ‘Just who is Dr Xavier?’ She thought as she eyed the man who was whistling cheerfully, if he had not just a moment ago, was the cause of the dead woman in front of them.

  Stormflash had a neutral expression, yet even Ayna noticed his fists were clenched.

  Dr Xavier seemed to be almost daring him to act.

  Before, Ayna might have thought Dr Xavier was merely punishing a rebellious lackey who stepped out of line, but she began to wonder: Are Dr Xavier and Thaumavore genuine enemies?

  Is this Dr Xavier actually not targeting Stormflash, but the Luxonary Federation itself, who had been causing Thaumavore trouble?

  Ayna had no idea what game was going on in front of her. She was not strong enough to understand.

  It meant she had work to do. For now, all she could do was continue to train and search for opportunities to escape.

  Time went by quickly.

  After absorbing her first ability, Ayna had a few days of routine. Stormflash would continue with [Unarmed Combat], and Major would teach her [Basic Shooting]. On the second day, she had learned both skills, achieving Level 1 in both general skills.

  Ayna decided to place both of her unassigned attributes into Willpower and Charm since she was not lacking in Intelligence.

  Additionally, having the two general skills [Unarmed Combat] and [Basic Shooting] had unlocked the [Soldier (Novice)] Sub-Class.

  After some thought, Ayna decided to assign it as her subclass. Soldier was rather basic, but it led to many advancements in strong combat sub-classes. Right now, she needed a class that actively bolstered her physical stats that would lag with her being an Esper, and Soldier would serve that purpose well.

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  In a more peaceful environment, perhaps she would have chosen a crafting subclass; yet Ayna knew she needed to be combat-oriented if she wanted to survive. Not to mention, when she advanced, she would gain further such opportunities anyway. For now, she accepted the Soldier subclass and enjoyed the warmth provided by the new attribute boosts.

  The notification from the interface read as follows.

  You have unlocked the sub-profession [Soldier (Novice)]

  You have assigned Sub-Profession [Soldier (Novice)] as your Sub-Class.

  STR +2 DEX +2 CONS + 2 END +2

  You have unlocked the sub-class skills: Weapons Proficiency

  Armour Proficiency

  Athletics

  The ability descriptions read as follows.

  Sub Class skills:

  Weapons Proficiency {Lvl 1}: You naturally learn weapon-related general skills faster and have a natural advantage in their utilisation.

  Armour Proficiency {Lvl 1}: You learn armour-related general skills faster, and your handling of armour improves.

  Athletics {Lvl 1}: Your movements are more coordinated, and your utilisation of your general physical prowess is enhanced.

  The Soldier Sub Class skills were relatively simple, yet valuable, especially in her circumstances. If she could level them up, it would make her current circumstances even better, as she would pick up the combat skills faster.

  After the third day of training, Ayna experienced another change. Dr Xavier finally decided to act on her stolen ability.

  Ayna had been nervous up to this, wary of what he had planned, yet it was simple. Dr Xavier took her to a secure training room and instructed her to practice her Esper Skills.

  The secure training room was highly protected, with durable and resistant materials designed to withstand high heat and potent Esper abilities.

  It allowed Ayna to go all out in testing her newfound ability without the concern of holding back.

  Though first she did exercises, Ayna found out the physical training actually assisted this, as the use of Energy Manipulation felt taxing, Ayna needed to use this as with practice it allowed the effiency of her power to improve, Ability Absorption made her energy malleable to change, allowing it to change properties for each new ability she gained, Pyrokinesis was no different and at first Ayna was inefficient and expanded absurds amount of her energy to produce small flames.

  She knew this was partly because she was ranked F and was weak at this stage.

  Despite this, Ayna felt embarrassed when her first attempt, made with great exertion, resulted in flickering flames that resembled a candle on the verge of blowing out.

  In comparison to her physical training, Dr Xavier personally took charge of her Esper Training, making her more nervous.

  His blank stare as he watched her attempt was unnerving until he said, “Decent. What? Are you surprised? You forget you had no formal training… and though stolen, this ability is not natural to you, it is the one of the flaws of the power, whilst an Espers natural ability flows like they were born to utilise it, you must push, and learn to manipulate your energy more advanced than an Esper with the same ability to get a similar result. Eventually, you will surpass them, but for now, you must learn. Controlling energy is a must; your ability will exert more energy too, but as your control improves, so will everything else.”

  Despite his manic actions a few days prior, Dr Xavier was a good teacher. He seemed to know exactly what words to input to her as if he was drawing from his own experiences.

  Ayna was surprised when she saw Dr Xavier's level in the notification.

  Dr Xavier {Lvl 32} has taught you the Esper Abilities Basic Energy Manipulation and Basic Energy Absorption.

  Progress to Lvl 2: 25%

  Dr Xavier's level was relatively low in comparison to Stormflash, making her wonder why he allowed him to get away with treating him like that.

  Yet, when Dr Xavier explained the concept of energy manipulation and absorption, she began to wonder if that was his proper level, as he seemed to be beyond that level of power indicated on the interface.

  Though Ayna felt it was unlikely that she could be deceived, she had no idea if this universe was as identical to the game as she thought. Perhaps the interface was not as faultless as she thought it was.

  Either way, taking on Dr Xavier's advice allowed her to make better attempts at utilising Pyrokinesis.

  Similar to her physical skills, they spent hours practising, and she would exhaust her energy reserves only to recuperate using [Energy Absorption], then repeat the process. It left her as exhausted as training with Stormflash, and she felt she needed another time of recuperation in the recovery vats afterwards.

  Utilising Pyrokinesis was still tough, and she could not yet manipulate much beyond small flames. Yet, it grew stronger swiftly, and Dr Xavier wanted her to practice releasing fire from her palms eventually.

  Her new main class skill also helped.

  The interface reads as it is.

  Main class skills:

  Fire Affinity {1}: You are resistant to your own flames and have natural resistance against heat. You have enhanced control and potency whilst utilising flames.

  It is as likely that Ember naturally had, as Espers usually have unique advantages, holding abilities such as this, over, say, a Fire Mage. Their flames seemed naturally more potent than those of a Mage who conjures them. However, a Mage usually had versatility; an Esper who awakened a superpower usually had more power.

  Ayna felt its usefulness and knew it would only continue to grow as it levelled.

  After Esper's training with Dr Xavier, she recuperated, and although she was no closer to finding a way out, her growth in power took a clear step forward. She now had a clear path for improvement as she continued to bide her time.

  Ayna knew then, she would continue her growth in power silently; she had to make a gamble eventually, the warning of the quest ever present in her mind, if she did not want to end up like Ember she had to make a move, though her instincts as a gamer knew she needed to grind her skill and power as much as possible whilst she had the chance.