"That was the third tonight." I noted with a stagnant expression hidden behind my helmet. Before me hung a Zompony impaled by steel stone knives and nailed to the wall of a building. My armor readied, I held my club and ram crest shield tightly in hooves and observed the catch.

A shrill wind traveled through the empty city of Canterlot, the nightmarish vortex hung low tonight but it was barely perceivable to feel the impending doom inch closer. For me, it was as if a glass visage was countling loudly of the sand corns rinsing down the hourglass.

Nightmare population in the middle layer of Canterlot: 1. The Game spoke as I trotted forward with slow steps, before stopping and inspecting the abomination clinging to this reality.

A steel stone dagger appeared there where my club once was. With a precise cut, the visible and barely stable innards of the Zompony were severed and spewed a smokey substance across the blighted stone. Its consistency was unlike fog, more akin to the mist of liquid nitrogen.

"Ghastly." I mumbled with dry, cracked lips while lowering myself and staring into the now empty chest cavity of the nightmare, revealing but an almost phantom-like space. It was neither an empty void, nor unlit cave below, but more so a space filled with dissonance. "No one's thinking about the inside of the zombie, so it doesn't exist, but their properties still remain." The spilled guts could spread disease, I experimented on a spider once and it- I wish to claim it rotted before my eyes -died after being subjected to the innards.

"That should be enough investigation, it's no use without a more diverse selection of ingredients." I said and summoned my club and shield once more.

I was not alone.

I turned around, my long hair sweeping through the wind like a whip, and held up a stone claw with the metal of my magic shield. A terrible sound emitted. The impact let out an echoing screech, and as the dreadful eyes of the challenging gargoyle met with mine, a swing of my club to his skull severed this moment. The beast recoiled with crumbling, rocky bits falling off, but I didn't wait for a retaliation from my insidious foe. I rushed forward to the staggered opponent and crashed into his body, sending the two of us stumbling once or twice, but penultimately I was on my feet first and ended this squabble by crushing the Gargoyle’s body into pieces.

I stared over the remains with a short-lived, quick breath and hopped over the withering remains of the petrified horror. I stopped for a second to think, realizing that with each ensuing battle the act of fighting was becoming more natural, and now the armor and shield barely held me down. Perhaps had another been placed in my state, they would've not been so amazed by this progress, but it was awfully comforting clinging to a sense of normality because it allowed me to waddle without the worry to cause destruction upon my lightest of touches.

You have improved greatly. The Game commented. I barely listened.

My shield and glove slid off my body and into my inventory, as my steps became a parade of clicks heading towards the captured, small prey.

With my right hoof infused by [Gentle Touch] the subject melted away into a misty substance soon to be erased from the realms. The higher my level became, the faster this ability became, or at least it became faster with lower-level monsters. Only one shard remained, but I quickly lost my hunger for them, they wouldn't advance my quest any further as of any further notice, so I stored them away for possible future use. These beautiful gems could cause so much destruction in the wrong hands, and concentrated jewels are able to increase stats, yes, these here only enabled little growth, but what of those that could increase stats by 50 or even a hundred points? Then even a few would be enough to create chaos beyond imagination.

You mistook my statement. My ears peaked up as I collected my tools of impalement from the wall. This type of stone, steel stone- I had doubted the material, but it proved to be invaluable for this endeavor. Before you were barely able to kill a Goblin through means of assassination, now you can effortlessly fight foes that are dangerous even to skilled fighters.

I stopped for a moment, looking upon the nightmarish blood that stained my leather armor slowly evaporating away. This day still laid heavy in my stomach, the goblin slaughter, and the ensuing battles. It was so weird, that in the moment of encounter, all moral, ethical and personal beliefs meant nothing. But afterward, they lingered and it left me wondering, if this was the reward, or punishment, for being the bearer of the grand Manipulator.

"We're going to the hideout, I want to see the progress of the poison. While you're at it, what's next on the bucket list?" I wondered, before looking at a far-off alley. A presence, a familiar one loomed menacingly like a phantom in the night. I threw a steel stone dagger at the empty space where I perceived the nightmare, but all I felt was the stone turn to ash, and the stalker vanishing like a gust of air. Although the curse that I unwillingly set upon myself had long since dissipated, this creature remained there, watching and guarding the lower parts of the city. It was a creature most dangerous, for upon its arrival, in the first hour of its presence it erased the previous guardian so swiftly, that the once soul-crushing roar howled only once more as a godless prayer. Perhaps there existed a sort of rivalry, if not outright primal instinct within the endless horde.

You wished to know how the corrupted abilities work. I shuddered when I heard those words, having hoped these topics would've sunk much lower on the list than this. It's been two years, at this point you should be quite eager to know more about your body.

"First eww, second bad Discoball, last, those things are creepy as fuck and in retrospective are not worth the trouble, you hear me." I said sternly with my grimace hidden. The stacks of corruption and their 'buffs' would decay with time, one point per day to be exact, and if the threshold upon which an effect was gained is breached, then that disappears as well. So, not permanent, but still a death trap.

The world warped and twisted around me, from the city of Canterlot I was warped to the former Goblin Hideout, now, it was my workshop. My presence caused this place to shudder, perhaps the Game's makers had not assumed I'd waste my time in this place after completion and made it only durable enough to contain my low-leveled state or maybe there was more to this space of stone.

With a torch in my magic grip I traversed the stone halls, those which I had cleaned of all blood stains and bone dust that littered this dungeon. It was by no means 'homely' or 'comfortable' per se, however, I claim that functionality is superior to decoration. Nevertheless my main chamber was a tad more pleasant than the pathway.

Finally arriving in the empty throne room I darted towards a particular piece of wall tapestry, a great map of Equestria painted across a 6 by 3 meters large canvas. It was only possible to acquire the material this size by cutting the edges of cloth and putting them against similarly damaged pieces, forming one greater one. A unique trait of the game, one only possible with objects 'untainted' by thoughts and emotions.

Although most parts of my being are made from 'aether alloys' in other words, highly purified aspects of matter contained in a sort of bubble within and yet outside of the realms of existence, only connected by the anchor point that is my being, there are exceptions to this rule. I sucked in a steady stream of air, before walking towards a wall on the other end of the room.

Behind the piece of art was revealed a secret staircase leading down a spiral. Unlike the rest of the dungeon, this place was smooth and made with care, my care and attention, to create a space worthy of holding my temporary base of operations. The Dreamer’s Realm was unique in the sense that it was ever-and-ever changing upon my slightest desire, but time didn't pass there, and any construct I placed would decrease my inventory space, in other words, making production and storing problematic.

My workshop was... humble one might claim, and I'd be forced to agree. It bore basic furniture built by me, it wasn't lavish, but adequate. Shelves were carved from the stone, just like a makeshift bed. There was a little kitchenette only lacking flowing water, but I could easily purify the dirty fluids, stained material and if nothing worked, my spirits would be of aid to me. A grindstone, a table with a rack of tools, and item holders stood in a side room. I also had something akin to a crafting table, a stone working table, and a weapon station... which in essence was just another table. Perhaps I should've leveled the crafter job class with a more diverse set of items, instead of mass-producing tables, but it proved to be quite effective as each was unique, thus not halting, slowing, or dwindling down my progress and nerves.

In the middle of the main room stood a fireplace crafted from spongestone bricks, and upon it hung a kettle brewing a tub of laksa. I could not savor many delicacies in my previous life, but I had learned that there were certain companies that would be more than willing to hold negotiation at buffets with the carriers present to guard the payload.

For the process to work entirely, elements of the nightmare spawn had to be incorporated. The discovery that nightmares are made from our very negative imprint led to certain unethical experiments and ultimately leading to the creation of what you might call shackled, or even artificial nightmares.

I stopped for a second, pushing all my items into my inventory and held a hoof to my heart. Holding it very tightly in place. "What has been implanted in me?" I whispered after a moment of silence. "Since when do you know so much shit?"

I learned a great amount of information from the time I was put out of use, though to this very second I am still encoding great deals of data. Switching the topic. You have been made familiar with the saying that 'the eye is the gate to the soul', I assume? In this case, it is literal, after all, an aether core is nothing more than a soul. In our core lies most components, such as the maw and eyes you've seen when you used the abilities. For safety these 'parts' are only used when necessary, and even then at a very low capped level of power for the process of harvesting the aether and erasing the memory of the nightmares from the world. However these 'corrupted abilities' allow you to use their full potential, but letting a nightmare take more estate in our form causes problems you call corruption.

I closed my eyes tightly, letting my limbs hang loosely, I counted to ten, and spoke. "I am going to see a therapist at one point in the future, you know, I probably won't even need Celly poking me with a pitchfork to make me go."

I possess various methods to cope with the mental burden of the host.

'Put it in the bucket list.'

I darted past all of it and into a secondary side room, a place for experimentation, writing, and testing, it was the opposite of my tiny atelier in which I carved and drew, but of them were a little bit of heaven to me. This room in particular, however, was nothing like the grand laboratories or libraries like those in the school for gifted ~~pricks~~ unicorns, but it was mine. Was it smart to put a sofa and all my books in the same room where I build bombs? Maybe not, but I could repair any broken stuff, and if not, I'd still have all the information in my head... and it can't be that hard to find another comfy seat in the trash.

I stopped and overlooked a great wooden table, it was so far my most 'unique' creation with the 'crafter' job, it being a solid wood table, sure it was not as useful as my throwing knives, but beautiful nonetheless. On the right side was a self-made bunsen burner, in essence it was just a flask holder with a candle below, while in the middle laid a big book documenting my experiences, and thankfully it could be expanded by shoving and fusing more pages in it.

My Nightmarepedia.

---The caverns--
--The Goblin Hideout is much grander than the two rooms being connected by a single stone passage. When digging into the rock much can be found, much more than just debris or the occasional chunk of nitorium. Deeper layers promise resources like spongestone, a porous rock able to house surprising quantities of gas and liquids in addition to moss and singular celled organisms of unknown variety. Steel rock, graphite, hard-sludge, coal, copper and something I named onyx are also able to be found up to twenty meters below the starting area.

However onyx, despite its all rounding and incredibly useful attributes, is rare, only one 'gem' has been found so far. Surprisingly there are neither iron, nor aluminum veins. In terms of crystals and jewelry there is a slim variety, with most of it being nitorium, but Glow Gems, Heat Crystal Powder, and Water Diamonds are present. Heat Powder is a fragile gem that shatters into dust when unearthed even by the most gentle care. Water Diamonds are gems infused with the water element and are not only able to conjure water, but could also find use in crafting. However, the Game did note that water created by these rocks is only temporary, unlike that of Spirits, making consumption possible dangerous, but acceptable for cleaning.

--Cave inhabitants--

I swayed my eyes from the pages that brought back the sweet and calm hours of swinging my goblin pickaxe through the stone, and turned my attention to a tiny kettle in which a deep purple liquid simmered.

How strange, it was green when I first crushed the thorns. I thought to myself and held a thick piece of cloth before my muzzle. Creating Vile Thornes was an interesting experience, to say the least, for they would be created under my skin and burst out of it upon command. It wasn't as brutal as I described it for the needles are very thin and not long, making them useless for armor in most cases, but deadly in enhancing my melee damage.

Concentrated Vilethorne poison
Level 57 Item
A concentrated version of the already deadly and devious venom of the semi-intelligent plant called 'Vilethorne.' Although this substance's refinement process destroyed the reproductive and torturous aspects of the raw material, it now is severely more dangerous and faster. The poisoning effect has been severely reduced due to contact with heat.
*Applies 50 poison damage per second to the target for 2 minutes.
*Damage may increase or decrease depending on target's poison resistance.

"Fascinating, but useless for now. Zombies and Gargoyles have no functioning circulatory system, and I can't quite test out how effective poison is to creatures that don't really have a comprehensible set of organs." I mumbled and noted down my newest discoveries and thoughts on a loose slip of paper to collect my thoughts, right under the schematic of the steel rock daggers. Steel rock was not the same as steel stone, it was in essence steel stone that underwent continuous heating and cooling, transferring some of the original material’s hardness into toughness. I had no idea how it worked exactly, but hope remained that I could maybe make weapons or armor out of it one day.

Should you believe that they can be poisoned, then it will corrode even nightmares. The Game spoke in my right ear, why not the left ear, I had no idea.

"Oh yeah, could I also believe strong enough that a skeleton could bleed out if I stab it between its ribs?" I mused with a snarky tone. Now, while on the topic of progress, the dragon egg project was proceeding well, advancements and discoveries became regular and it felt like I could actually achieve progress despite having sacrificed six years for saving Sugar Drop. A trade I don’t exactly regret, but it was still noteworthy.

What also laid heavy in my stomach was that Cel-Mother had another of her surprises in her non-existent sleeves that she wishes to reveal to me tomorrow. It's been about one year since I got the dragon egg, which's name I have yet to decide, and the cat. I am not a cat person, but that creature could sleep on spikes and still be comfortable, but still refused a comfy bed. On the other hand, I enjoyed hugging the egg at night, not sure if it was because I treated it like a baby, or because it helped with my joints cause ponies were not meant to spread their hooves out while sleeping, unlike humans.

If you could believe strongly enough, then yes, but I doubt you could fool yourself into thinking that. One cannot just replace a part of their instinct they've been possessing for their entire life.

Canterlot Castle - Equestria

"Come on, Miss Inkwell, there has to be something I could do to make it up." My tone came off as whining, but I was to a certain point, with no exaggerations, at my nerves' end. "And please don't tell me again that you're 'fine.' Nopony who says they're fine is actually 'fine'!"

She gave a tired exhale "Please, your highness, I am very much so pleased with my circumstances." Raven Inkwell spoke, and I had to physically restrain my lips from asking if my mother was ordering her to not engage with this topic. "Now, it's time for your violin lessons." She spoke with a small smile as she bent down to grasp my instrument case. "Now, I must say you have become quite adept, maybe I'll hear you playing at the next grand galloping gala or your co-ro-ouch." Raven was trying to switch the topic while inspecting the well-taken care of violin before she let out a pained hiss.

"You know, I've picked up a thing or two at the masseuse, mayhaps I might be of use?" I asked with a faint shy tone with a dull glimmer in my eyes. Call me shameless, but I've decided, like, five minutes ago that being an opportunist is much more valuable in my career choice than being a pessimist.

Raven stared at the instrument for a second, before kneeling down, albeit slowly, and picked it up before bringing it to me. "I will not ask nor demand anything of you my highness, though I am free this evening." She spoke shortly, before flipping through a small notebook, looking for the violin version, or rather, part of the equestrian anthem. This country had an anthem, and I am surprised it wasn't purely about rainbows.

"Ah, Miss Inkwell, I was looking for you." I turned around and saw Celestia slowly opening her door to the point her neck peeked through. "Would you please guide Blueblood the twenty-fourth and his colt through the documents? I'd like to spend a bit of time with Star's studies today."

The mare didn't hesitate, as it was her duty. "Of course, I'll try not to cause disruptions." Raven spoke with an unusual uncertainty. I wonder why that order seemed to discourage her so much.

The second that Raven Inkwell was gone, Celestia gave a smile when she looked at me. "Greetings Star, I see you are progressing quite well with your violin lessons?" Unsure how to answer, I merely nodded with lips sealed tightly. "There's no need to be shy, I've heard that the guards seem to be quite amazed by your playing. While on the topic of art, some maids have accidentally set hoof into your art room. They claim to have seen a statue of untold beauty, I can't wait to see it with my own two eyes, but please, no rush, I wouldn't wish you to reveal it unless you say it's ready."

Of course, Mother knew of my desire in art, not the full extent of it of course, but well enough. It wouldn't be easy to gain marble in another way, and besides, it gave me an excuse to spend time away from prying eyes.

A small smile crept across my muzzle. Things have improved between Mother and me to an extent, I cannot claim that they are as flowery as they were when I was six, but most certainly they are better now. Of course, the events with Sunset laid heavily on my mind, and it doesn't help given my photographic memory, however, I am not one to hold grudges, after all, it was very advantageous in the business world to put money above feelings. The fact that the mortal sun herself was making an effort and showing a sense of inclusion beyond royal duties helped me swallow my anger and let me enjoy my time at least a bit.

My mommy on the other hand seemed indifferent to Celestia, sure enough, the warmer sensation between them had all but extinguished, it is now lukewarm, their relationship, that is. While on the topic, Gentle has taken some time to spend on herself away lately, I do not know if it is to catch up with Summer Breeze, the pegasus with orange hair and azure mane. I have probably only seen her a hoof-full of times, but she seems to get along with Mommy, well, she and her husband that is. Heard they are trying to get a foal as of late, I could only wish them good luck, they seem like a nice bunch.

On the other hoof, I did notice Mommy putting on a bit more perfume, perhaps there's more going on?

Back to the topic of music, Lemon Tart was quite fond of the sound of violin tunes, though Puff Pastry would sometimes complain she'd get sleepy if I choose too peaceful tunes. I don't see her as often anymore, but then again, she has become very old. I'd wish I knew where she lived, 'cause I'd love to visit her outside of duty.

"I know you don't like flattery and probably wish me to get to the conclusion." Celestia said as she walked in with the door opening slowly, revealing to me... "So I've come to you today to reveal somepony to you. My new student." My jaw opened with a silent pop and the violin in my magic grip nearly dropped.

It was a filly, I'd guess about six years of age, but the magic she oozed just by her mere presence was as impressive as it was daunting. Purple fur coated her thin body, with two streaks of purple cutting through her mane, but there was no cutie mark to be seen. Her eyes gleamed with such anxiety and yet determination, it was admirable. and yet... I shuddered mentally at the thought of how a boost from a cutie mark would make the numbers explode.

Twilight Sparkle - Protege
Level - 7
Class - Arcanist- level 7
Race - Unicorn
HP (Health Points) - 250
MP (Mana Points) - 30000
SP (Stamina Points) - 250
STR (Strength) - 21
END (Endurance) - 25
DEX (Dexterity) - 64
INT (Intelligence) - 250
WIS (Wisdom) - 300
CHA (Charisma) - 14
LCK (Luck) - 19

Titles

[Protege]
*Increased experience gain by 100% through lessons

Perks

[Perfect Unicorn Heritage]
*Intelligence multiplied by 5*
*Wisdom multiplied by 5*
*Understanding of Magic greatly increased*

[Grand mage ancestry]
*Mana capacity is increased by 1000%*

Abilities

[Magic Manipulation] lv 7 (Active/Passive)
This is a rare and legendary skill obtained through incredibly unlikely circumstances otherwise reserved to magic spirits. It allows the user to cast any spell they desire without any restriction as long as the caster has the resources, knowledge, and understanding to cast the spell.

D:

I nearly lost my marbles...

The Game took control over my body, acting akin to how I would've reasoned in the next few moments, but these numbers left me... speechless for a second, outclassed by someone lucky enough to be born in the right family. It left me bitter and questioning how someone like her could shape the world.

"Well hello there young filly, I believe we'll get along splendidly." The Game spoke, with a tad too much polite British in him. And I had a sudden desire to climb a ladder.

...

"Go ahead, there is no need to be shy, my Star is quite the nice colt." Celestia urged the shaking filly, she was so nervous, so much so that the pile of books she carried around with her was rubbing against each other and making a sound similar to grating cheese.

"H-h-hello your highness, my n-name is Sparkle Twilight, I mean Twinkle Sparklight, I mean-."

"Twilight Sparkle, a lovely name. I'm looking forward to learning with you." The Game spoke, thought personally... 'Oi, there's a small difference between being nice and drowning someone, and I think you've stepped into the latter's territory.'

Celestia opened her mouth, smiling at the seemingly well-gone introduction, but was interrupted by a tap of a red and... wet hoof? "Oh Raven goodness, was it that bad?/Do no worry, the crown will pay for the cleaning." Celestia quickly turned her head to me again. "Star, please watch Twilight while I am gone for a moment, there has been an urgent situation with Sir Blueblood's patience."

Celestia vanished with a blinding light, leaving only Twilight and me in the room. I stared, although I didn't want to.

"Hehe, I'll just be going over here and practicing a bit." The small, but absurdly mana-loaded filly spoke with a shaking voice, before sitting down on a cushion that once was reserved for Sunset on the other side of the room.

A bit of advice, please do not put your distaste of past events on a pony of... lesser level, it might just cause unforeseen circumstances for them. The Game spoke carefully, dodging direct words. Now I was wondering if he expected me to do less-nice things with the newcomer, or that I could, what should I know, curse them?

If it was the first, I'd be insulted, but who knew?

I shook my head and looked back at the notes, well, after having wrangled back control of this body at least. I have become more adept with music, even without the help of the game, the perks of my position allowed me to copy the sound perfectly, however to this day I still haven't received a class for it, but then again, I hadn't really tried to put my heart into the songs so far. It was quite hard to play the violin while zombies are on the lawn trying to eat my brains. Especially when the buffs are too minuscule without having the musician class.

I did not need a skill or class to perform every action, after all, there wasn't a skill for eating or drinking, and the same went for things that did have a skill, I could cast a spell without having the skill, but it would be severely inefficient in the long run. For example, there is a skill to create an illuminating orb of light, I don't have it, but I'm able to cast the spell, but it's enough to light a room, the Game however, claims that with the skill It'd be powerful enough to create a flashbang.

I licked the strings with my bow gently, tunes emitted of gentle nature but not those I required for this melody. A bit of fiddling solved the problem, but even when my hooves left the tuning pegs in peace, I still heard a humming. I looked at my instrument with confusion, tapping the wood and shaking it gently to see if the cat hadn't left another toy in it. I had no idea how the furred arse managed to push a squeaky mouse through the strings into the hollow interior, but he managed it just fine. To this day I question where he gets them, I most certainly didn't buy them.

Entity Twilight Sparkle is the source of the noise and concerning levels of stress. The Game's voice interrupted me and beckoned me to look at the replacement for the fiery mare I called my friend.

'Huh, almost reminds me a bit of me when I tried to get my degree, sadly the slip of paper didn't get me anywhere good.' I thought sourly as I watched the filly- Twilight -stare so hard at a round piece of clay I wondered if her horn would jump off like a pop-it fidget toy. Sweat started to pour down her forehead while a magic formula book was floating right next to her eyes. I was pretty sure she just cracked that new chapter open, so it did leave me to wonder why she was putting this much energy in her first try, the literal first minute.

I took a short breath, deciding that she could maybe try it a bit longer before I'd intervene. With a pleasant thrust, the bow glided across the string and emitted a soothing tune, but the music was quickly overshadowed when the filly started to grunt and her emotions started to fucking poison the room.

'Uhg, iehh, damn does anxiety stink like sour, spoiled dough, urh, nope, I'm ending this now.' I scrunched my face with annoyance and looked at the matrix she was trying to create for the spell. [Spirit Senses] was helpful, for it enhanced what I already had, though I was nowhere near comfortable enough to use it in battle yet, my senses would just get overpowered. In a second I realized that she was attempting to create a sort of net around the object, basically an intensified version of the levitation spell, but instead of using vague pull and push forces, you're applying an undetermined amount of tethers into the material, and shaping it this way.

However I learned that thing literally two years ago at the age of almost ten, and I am pretty much ahead of all foal's learning in my mother's school, the fuck does she put herself through. It's not even like she's trying to compress the clay, but going further attempting to pull and shape it into a freaking square. In human terms, that's like for an amateur to attempt a double backflip.

With a crude notion, I initiated a motion that would lead to every music lover in earshot wishing for my head. I pulled the bow sharply across all strings, creating an eardrum shredding noise and canceling the futile attempts of my 'study partner.' Perhaps also scarring her music taste for generations to come.

"You seriously need to relax a little bit, ya know." I said with a chill tone, very un-prince-like, I know, but certainly more approachable than 'Halt thou offender of peace, destroyer of my patience and poisoner of mood, I shall condemn you to pause and stilled relaxation on the behalf of all pony nations.'

"Relax?" Twilight Sparkle said dumbfoundingly, letting her book drop to the floor and her magic fizzle out. "Relax??" She repeated with a stare matching a deer watching a two-ton wagon of metal rush towards it. Her chest started to rise and fall unnaturally and the coloration on her face turned slightly pale. "I forgot to relax!" Twilight shouted with a shrill voice, clutching her head with her hoof, before pushing a notebook towards her from the pile of her belongings. "List, where’s the list? The list! First, wake up, make your bed, check-up aforementioned points, go have breakfast, brush teeth, check checklist, pack your bag, check the list again."

Twilight didn't notice me approaching her, even when my form was looming over her with a concerned look on my face. It was hard to overlook me, given that I had grown to the size of most teens, despite being still a year or two away from puberty. That was one of the effects of possessing more endurance and strength than an adult unicorn. I gently put my hoof on her head and used [Gentle Touch] on the filly.

I hated to use this ability on people, hell, it pained me enough to use it on the cat so that I could draw it, but I didn't wish to call a doctor now, given that today was my mother's day off and I had no idea who was available right now. Looking back, I even disliked using any skill on ponies with the exception of healing miracles, it was just unfair in my opinion to use means used for... 'extermination’ on people for my own gain.

I pulled my hoof back after having used just enough calmness to balance out the anxiety and looked at the filly with a pleasant smile, not the forced default one, but a genuine one. Well, after swallowing the disgust for using manipulation on a child, but the fear of her blowing a fuse was superior. "I know you want to be really good at magic, but if you ask me, there's a better way."

"Really, what is it?" Twilight asked with interest, jumping on her hind legs and pulling herself uncomfortably close to my face. Well, that was until I picked her up and planted her on a pile of cushions with [Levitation].

"Oh, I'll get to that in a bit, but first let me help you experience magic." I was scared in my skull that I might’ve sounded creepy if I was being honest, like, if a stranger talked to Amber like that they'd be lucky if they didn't lose some teeth before they experience the magic of morphine in the hospital.

"Experience magic? You're going to show me how to cast the spell."

"Nope, I'm going to show you magic."

"But why, I already know. It's a fuel for spells that come in various forms and compositions, sometimes referred to as affinities or colors that-" I cut her off before she went on how basic magic is cast... Wait, did she know Glimmers guide for magic beginners, 12th edition from memory?

"Nope, neither that, and for your information, those dusty books might show you how to become a good magician, but not a great mage. I'm going to show you what magic really is, I'll show you a glimpse of how I see the world." I said with a grin and sat down next to the filly. I lowered my horn and touched her's, and here, through the use of [Spirit Sense], a little Aether, and the support of the Game, I allowed her to see the magic that flowed through the world, the lifeblood of realms.

The room appeared almost exactly how it was before, but when little Twilight looked through the doors of the balcony, she witnessed one of the sweetest sights this world had to offer and one I myself had not long ago discovered. The heavens were an ocean of colors, through which rivers of concentrated hues flowed, pulsating and granting magic all across the world. Like a fresh oil painting, an illuminated prism inside a pond. And it just so happened that several ley lines cross over this very mountain, creating something similar to a rainbow weave.

It was the opposite of the first sight of the Beast World's appearance. A place of absolute beauty, housing not an ounce of horror or pain, just a feeling of contentment.

"Wow." Twilight mumbled, the first mortal to have ever been graced with something that could otherwise only be faintly sensed through heavy and expensive equipment. But what was to be expected of a creation of the magnitude of the Game, other than the best.

"Magic flows through this world, through every stick and stone, cloud and tree, mountain and city, and you and me. It is the life of this world, and just as alive as every other thinking creature. It isn't just a resource for our spending, it’s something deserving of our respect and care. Treat it well, and it will do the same with you." I spoke gently, slowly, with as much emphasis and nostalgia to the nights I would read stories to Amber, I couldn't wait to show her this world one day. I couldn't wait for the reunion and just enjoyed the moment.

"That… I've never read about this in any book." Twilight said slowly while parting her eyes from the sky. The spell wouldn't last long after separating my horn from hers.

"Well, if you could experience everything life had to cover through books, they most certainly wouldn't’ve built parks." I joke faintly, before picking up the book once more and sitting down. Twilight joined me a moment later. "Now, let's show you how I learned-nevermind, I'll teach you my way, probably is a tad nice after all." The old Owl maybe was efficient, but he most certainly wasn’t nice regarding failure.

But the moment I took a deep breath, I noticed Celestia in the doorframe holding a camera, before a flash of light blinded me momentarily, and all I heard were two distinct voices.

"My colt and student, already getting along, and I was worried but now I fear my role has been taken." Celestia chucked while waving the picture through the air.

and there was also...

Retina damage: severe

Miss Inwell's Room

"Uhhh, yes, deeper, mhm, yes, come on give it your all, yes yes yes." Raven panted and demanded ferociously, begging for me to go further beyond with every motion, ramping the pleasure to even higher heights than the second before. Her back was a mess, if I may say so without any politeness. Knots and kinks littered her back and it's overflowing with stress that it was hard to help it. Like, it was almost like those problems were literally holding her body together. I originally didn't want to use any Aether to heal her because of raising suspicion, but now I was practically bound to, besides, even a normal massage would have made her younger at this point.

"Is the massage to your satisfaction?" I asked sweetly while twisting my right hoof slowly, releasing a plethora of pops and cracks. It had something oddly satisfying to it, and not only because good deeds raise my stats, but simply for the fun of it. While on the topic of fun, I could practically feel the blushes of the guards on the other side of the door. Wincing to the sweet noises of progress and rejuvenation.

I never knew you were a sadist.

'Oh shush it.'

"Ohh, hngh, yesshh..." Raven sighed into her pillow while I massaged her into her bed. I'm going to buy her a new mattress for Hearth’s Warming Eve, or as I like to call it, pre-mega-capitalist Christmas.

All in all, as I delved into my thoughts and looked over today and silenced the moans, I could claim this to have been a productive day.

Author's Note

This is the last side entry, before Chapter four.