Euler was back in the training hall, trying to figure out how to use her Aspect ability.
She had already realized that it worked on strong emotional desire and helped in a very specific,sometimes even counterproductive, way.
During one test,her hand had caught fire: in a fit of pique, she had wished for her food to heat up faster, and then flames shot from her hand, burning the food and setting her ablaze. If not for her "magical" gloves, she would have been burned.
However,thanks to them, she managed to shove her hand into water, after which she had to change clothes while waiting for the Memory to return to normal.
"So you,you damned piece of shit, are just mocking me? Why does everyone else get close combat mastery or metal control, and I get this nightmare?"
As if in response to the emotions boiling inside her,a new mannequin simply shattered into pieces, as if hit by something heavy.
Enraged,Euler kicked the flying mannequin head, sending it into the wall, and headed to the kitchen to eat her sorrows away.
But there,she was careful and tried to calm down.
She could endure many things,but losing another portion of waffles was not one of them. So, only after calming down, she carefully took out the waffles, sat down at the table, and began thinking out loud.
"So,I have one useless Memory that works in an unknown way, and an uncontrollable power that seems intent on destroying everything around me according to my wishes, but does so in a very, very strange way. And it mocks me on top of it all!"
Now Euler wondered if the Spell itself was mocking her?
But it supposedly had no mind and worked automatically?
Or did it?
Too bad she wouldn't find out.So, yawning, Euler got up from the chair and headed for the door.
She had one more thing to take care of.
Leaving the house and locking it,she moved a bit further from the city center, closer to the outskirts.
She needed to go to the police station.
After another turn,she saw the police station. It stood somewhat apart from residential buildings and streets, so that any escaped Abominations couldn't reach ordinary people and could be destroyed without consequences.
Approaching one of the smoking policemen,she said:
"Good afternoon,I'd like to report that I've passed my first Nightmare."
He looked at her for a few seconds,the gears turning in his head, then asked:
"Perhaps you meant you areinfected by a Nightmare?"
Euler shook her head.
"No,no, I've already passed it. It just so happened that I didn't notice I was infected and fell asleep at home, but everything worked out, and I'm back in the waking world."
The policeman breathed a sigh of relief.
"Well,if there's no problem, then... You need to come with me and register as being Awakened now."
He turned around and had even taken the first step when Euler asked:
"Aren't you afraid I might be a disguised Abomination that came to slaughter you all?"
The policeman flinched,turned back, and asked:
"Are you an Abomination?"
Euler answered sincerely:
"No."
"Well,that's good then. Let's go... miss."
Euler was sitting on a chair in an interrogation room.
Of course,she wasn't a suspect, and no one was trying to frame her. No, it was simpler—there was no other room available for a conversation with a psychologist.
Or rather,no other suitable room, so they gave her this one.
And she sat there,waiting for him to arrive.
She had a rough idea of what they would ask and want from her,and she absolutely did not plan to reveal what she could do or how, because otherwise, she would have a lot of problems with the great clans and the government.
She also had to somehow talk her way through this by pretending to be someone,since now she had no identity and had seemingly appeared out of nowhere.
Because of this,she would have to pretend to be someone from the outskirts.
Suddenly,her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door handle turning.
She turned her head and saw a calm,dark-haired man in a police uniform enter, holding a folder.
Closing the door behind him,he walked to the table and sat down opposite her.
Opening the folder and taking out a pen,he asked in a neutral tone:
"So,you claim to have passed your first Nightmare. Your name is Euler, and you're from the outskirts. Am I understanding correctly?"
Euler nodded lazily.
"Yep."
The man nodded.
"Excellent.My name is Jerry. I've also passed a Nightmare and returned to reality and am now Awakened. I'm here to find out how we can help you, as there are only 3 days left until the winter solstice, or 2 if we don't count today. So, I'd like to ask you to tell me what you can do and what your Flaws are."
Euler lazily shifted her gaze to him.
"I can't be bothered."
The man raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"Excuse me?"
Euler repeated with a sigh.
"I can't be bothered to say anything.That's probably my Flaw. Clear?"
She wasn't even lying,just omitting that this was one of her new "Flaws."
"Hm...Understood," the man said thoughtfully, writing something in the folder.
Then he asked again:
"So,you can't even be bothered to try to survive?"
"I can't be bothered,"Euler replied.
And again,her answer wasn't entirely accurate: she simply stated that she really was lazy, but she didn't specify what she was too lazy for.
She understood this man might have an ability to detect truth or lies.
So the best way out was to speak a kind of truth without explaining which question it answered.
After that,the man fell silent for a few minutes.
Then he said:
"Well...If that's the case, I won't detain you. Go to the main hall, sign all the documents there, and you can leave. It's entirely your choice."
Euler nodded lazily,and just as the man was leaving, he suddenly remembered something and turned his head without turning his body.
"Ah,yes. Forgot to ask. Since you are Awakened and only 19 years old, I can offer you a place at the Academy, where you can stay until the winter solstice begins, after which they will take care of you there. Would you like that?"
Euler thought about it.On the one hand, it was an undeniable plus: she would be in a protected place where she would be taken care of while she was in the Nightmare.
Plus,there was free food and lodging, and she could just study a bit in the last few days.
On the other hand,she would be very limited in what she could say and do and would be under constant surveillance.
In the end,after a bit of thought, Euler declined, and the man shrugged and left.
And Euler,after half an hour, having signed all the papers and completed the registration, left and headed home.
***
Well, that's how it is. I don't argue, I'm not the best writer.
But I tried, even correcting mistakes and double-checking the text. Honestly, I came up with this idea spontaneously, and I made it a reality.
I think it turned out pretty well.