《Mirror Mirror》 1. An emptiness after a dream. ¡°Double espresso¡± ¡°Would you like cream or some dessert along with it?¡± ¡°No thanks, there is no need to serve sugar either.¡± Turning away and walking towards the corner of the coffee house, I did not bother with the confused expression of the cashier or the hushed conversations of the people in the line behind me. Why double espresso? It is because I finally achieved something that rarely anyone of my age does. It came with sleepless nights, and multiple crying sessions in between work hours. Anyways, at the young age of 24, I have become one of the youngest professors in the medical university. It was a hard journey, joining the med school at 17, and going for post-graduation at 23. I don¡¯t remember taking any breaks ever since I was a little girl. I have always worked hard towards a singular goal and dumped everything irrelevant. Everything, except for my odd habit of recklessly buying weird things. Sitting at the corner of the caf¨¦, I could see couples on the street and the cheerful conversations of the people inside the elegantly decorated room. Jealous? Nope, I don¡¯t think jealousy has ever been a part of who I am. I was born into a very rich family, Both my parents being upper government officials and my elder sister being one of the most famous models and actresses in the country. Money, love, ambition, and a brain to back it up. Life has been relatively easy for me. Waiting for others was not part of my personality, the only people who could make me wait were my immediate family members. I took out my phone which was vibrating for a while now. ¡°Hey sis, I just got around in the parking lot, Do me a favor and get me a cappuccino.¡± came an exhausted voice. ¡°You were supposed to get here before me. What are you doing in the lot?¡± Even though I was visibly annoyed, I was already up and was making my way through the tables to reach the counter. ¡°Oh, please give us a minute more, your espresso will be ready soon.¡± said the cashier. ¡°Get me a cappuccino. Make it sweet.¡± I told him while I wrestled with my purse. My phone somehow still managing to hold on between my ears and shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t forget the cream!!¡± came another demand from the phone. ¡°Please add extra cream on the top and send it along with some cookies.¡± Handing him the card, I motioned him towards my table, Indicating that he can send my card there later. ¡°I love you! Did you order the cookies for me? Aah, You indeed know what I like the best!¡± My sister, although she has too much energy to spare, is still one of my closest friends. It¡¯s a very complicated love-hate relationship. ¡°Don¡¯t bother and get over here, or I am going to leave. I know that you are not in the parking lot yet. This is not the first time you are late.¡± ¡°Hehe, don¡¯t be mad babe, I¡¯ll be there in five. I¡¯m hanging up.¡± Today, by all means, was a special day because becoming a professor was my dream. However, The feeling of achievement never came to me. I was pretty disappointed in myself over this. I felt empty, it was like a reason to live had been taken away from me. A big question lingering in my head was,NOW WHAT? What do I want next in my life? Frankly, I don¡¯t know. All I remember is the smell of books and the splashes of ink on my hands. My youth was spent inside books, devoid of any romantic encounters, or anything remotely related to what youth of this era do. Parties sound fun, but I have never been to any parties. That being said, I don¡¯t think loud music and alcohol is my idea of fun. How about dancing, singing, and hanging out with friends? No, no, and nope. Friends are a luxury that I never had, and also, it was not easy to make friends with me because I would have rather spent that time studying. Luckily, I was rich and my family cared for me. Resulting in me never having to go through bullying or any other kind of abuse. My professors were also pretty good to me keeping in mind the identity of my parents. But, here I am sitting alone in the caf¨¦ feeling exhausted because in this life, I have achieved what I wanted but I lost the time to enjoy and experience everything else. This feeling of achievement, frankly, was not as sweet as I hoped it would be. ¡°Hey, hey, hey, Isn¡¯t this our youngest professor!¡± While I was lost in my thoughts, a drop-dead gorgeous lady made her way through the caf¨¦ crowd. She came over swinging her hips sideways, in one of the shortest figure-hugging black dress ever known to man. Oh, let¡¯s not forget the very characteristic sound of pencils heels when they strike the wooden floor. Yep, this lady feels offended if heads aren¡¯t turned for her beauty. Wrapping her arms around me, she gave me a deep hug. The smell of perfume, along with the fragrance of rose from her shampoo might be enough to entrance men and women alike. Luckily, I have been neutralized to this poison after spending my childhood with her. She took a seat in front of me and used both her hands to flip her waist-long blonde hair back and set them in place. It might not be an exaggeration to say that her face was sculpted by the gods themselves. An oval face, embedded with big, deep blue sparkling eyes reminiscent of a childhood naivety contrasted with full sexy lips. Gods were indeed sometimes unfair like that. Not long after, a few teenagers came over giggling and asked her if she was Ekaterina Petrovna. ¡°Yes! But, I am sorry, I am trying to talk to my sister here and It would be great if you all could give us some privacy. How about this? Let¡¯s take a selfie together before I leave?¡± she smiled. The group of people looked over to the uncharacteristic girl sitting on the other chair, a.k.a. me. I could see the judgment in their eyes. Of course, I was familiar with it because it was not the first time. The difference between my sister and me was day and night. One was the princess of the heavens and I could be compared to a vitamin deprived ghastly science nerd. It did not matter though. I was also thankful that despite everything, my sister was one of the people who would always be on my side- no matter what. ¡°Now, what are your plans Leysan? Finally, a professor huh? When does the job start? Are you going to teach foreigners? I heard that it¡¯s the first of its type. Is it true?¡± asked my sister enthusiastically. ¡°I have no plans. Yes, I am a professor. It starts two days later on Monday. Yes, it is a group of English-speaking students. Yes, it is still a small experimental class. Also, ask one question at a time.¡± ¡°Nice, nice, as expected of my smart sister. We should totally go shopping before you start teaching.¡± teased my sister. ¡°Sure. When are you free?¡± Fiddling around my purse again and taking out my phone, I opened the reminders app to make a schedule. Hearing no reply, I looked up to see my sister befuddled as her jaw was hanging and her eyeballs almost popping out from the sockets. How uncharacteristic from the nation¡¯s top actress. ¡°I am sorry, it¡¯s just. It¡¯s just I never expected you to go shopping with me. You always find ways to decline some quality time with me. Ah, your sister is in tears.¡± She pretended to wipe her tears as she gave a cunning smile. ¡°I have nothing to do anyways. Also, stop behaving like this. It¡¯s annoying.¡± We talked for a few more minutes and the waitress finally bought the coffee and cookies to our table. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°I still don¡¯t get it. How can you eat and drink so much sweet as an actress?¡± I asked. ¡°It¡¯s because I am with you, my cutie pie. It¡¯s a happy occasion why are you drinking espresso? Also, it gets tiring to be on a diet all year long. I save my cheat days for when I spend time with you. You should be thankful!¡± ¡°Whatever, I did not sleep for two days because I had to submit my thesis today. I am going to sleep early.¡± ¡°Ah, what a waste. Aren¡¯t you going to come home tonight? Dad was so happy that he said he is going to come home early today and cook for you. He never cooks for me, what a shame.¡± ¡°I am sorry Katya, I need to sleep.¡± I felt regretful. I have been ignoring my family for studies and work for quite some time now. Looking at my sad expression, my sister probably guessed what was on my mind. She flipped her thin arm and checked the time on her wristwatch. ¡°It¡¯s still 14:00, How about this, I drive and take you home. You can take a nap in the car and take a shower and sleep on at home. Dad said he will be back early, but that usually means 20:00 instead of the usual midnight. You will get your rest and can even spend the weekend with us.¡± To be honest, I was lucky to have a sister like her. I smiled silly and nodded. ¡°What about my car though? We have to take it to my apartment, and then we can go home.¡± I suggested. ¡°Leave it to my assistant. He will bring your car along home. It will be easy for you to come back to the city if you have the car. Traveling in the crowded metro sucks.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll leave it to you then.¡± I agreed. ¡°Ah, also mom told me that she bought you a gift. I begged her to tell me what it was, but she won¡¯t tell me. She says that I can¡¯t keep secrets and tell about it to you. How lame.¡± ¡°But you just told me about it.¡± ¡°Oops¡± She struck out her tongue. ¡°Whatever, let¡¯s finish this and get it over with.¡± Talking about the ongoings in our life, we left the caf¨¦ and found the group of youngsters waiting for that selfie. She told me to go get my car while she sorts this out. I was quite surprised by how her persona took a turn. Suddenly turning into a professional actress from the clumsy, joking sister. I handed the keys to my car to the young assistant and took the passenger seat. ¡°Let¡¯s go¡± I closed my eyes and was soon woken up as someone shook me. ¡°We¡¯re home, get up sleepyhead.¡± A kiss was planted on my cheek before I could react. ¡°What was that for?¡± I glared as I rubbed my cheek. ¡°You looked so cute. I couldn¡¯t control myself.¡± She gave a big smile which turned her eyes turning into a crescent. There is no fighting with her. She is the only one who can take such liberties with me. ¡°Ah, you should be thankful. The line of people would reach the next city if I say I am giving out kisses.¡± There is no debating her. I shook my head and got off the car. ¡°I am going to take a shower, then I¡¯ll go to sleep. Wake me up when mom and dad are back.¡± I said as I entered the mansion. I did not see the naughty smile my sister gave behind my back. Closing the door after me, I just slumped in the bed. The room smelled fresh as if it has been cleaned recently. The covers were clean and had the faint smell of jasmine, A very specific scent that my mom prefers to use as a room freshener. Turns out that everyone was expecting me today. It made me giddy-up and flail my legs There was a faint smile on my face without me knowing it. Small things like these are what make life worth living. Now, the only issue in this beautiful room was me. Lifting my arms and sniffing a little under my arms felt worse than getting hit by a truck. No matter what, a shower was necessary, and so I got to my work. Propping myself up, I opened my wardrobe, which was sparkling clean for something that had not been used for months. It was pretty empty, since everything had been moved to my apartment which was closer to the university. Grabbing a blue jean, a black shirt, undergarments, and a towel, I headed straight to the attached bathroom. I could have, of course removed my clothes in the room. But, I am a very shy person, and hence I entered the bathroom fully clothed. To be honest, the one thing I have missed while living in the apartment has to be this bathroom. No matter what, the space in an apartment is limited and there is only so much you can fit into the bathroom. Unlike this place, which is almost as big as my apartment¡¯s bedroom. The walls were lined with white marble, and a pitch-black and white zebra styled soft carpet covered the floor. On the corner was a huge jacuzzi styled bathtub that had blue lights inside it when full. Let us not forget the full wall-sized glass window which gave a clear view of the estate gardens. Regardless of the beauty, multiple nights have been spent in this bathroom as a high schooler because of the good view. I preferred to study in the bathroom, which was more glamorous than my apartment, thanks to my very picky mom. I would talk more about how majestic this bathroom is, but since I was so tired, I decided to quickly take a bath and go to sleep. Undressing from my baggy pants and a suit shirt, I glanced at the full-body sized mirror. ¡°Well, Clearly, I am not a looker.¡± I mused. My breasts were massive for the thin body that I had. Standing at approximately 175 cm, my weight was around 55kgs, clearly bordering on the limits of going underweight, thanks to the rigorous schedule of the med school. My 34D breasts were not helping my life. They are sure a genetic blessing for my sister, but for me, they are a nuisance. Contrary to what people might think, I am quite influenced by my mother, and sadly, not in a good way. Waist-length hair is a chore to maintain, but I have been forced to keep my hair long because of my mom, who believes girls should have long hair. A shower isn¡¯t complete without good music. Turning on some good jazz, I dropped my undergarments and took a step into the shower. The cold water flowed down my body giving me goosebumps. It felt so good, that I was reluctant to get out. Deciding to stay for a while longer, I just stood there under the shower thinking about life, letting the water run through my body. Just as I was about to finish, a pair of hands came in and grabbed my breasts from behind. ¡°Aah¡­. What!!??¡± I jumped and exclaimed, almost slipping and falling. ¡°Hehe, I just wanted to shower with my sister¡­ Is it so wrong?¡± An annoying person had made their way in. Facepalming, I realized that I forgot to lock the doors, A bad habit you pick up once you start living alone. ¡°GET OUT RIGHT NOW!¡± I exclaimed, trying to cover myself up. It¡¯s not like we have never seen each other naked, it¡¯s just that it was back when we were kids, and we used to hang out in the sauna in the backyard. My sister, who was as shameless as anyone can be, totally ignored my pleas, strutted forward, held my chin with her left hand, and using her right hand, tucked my hair securely behind the ears. Before I could react to any of the multiple new experiences, a soft and plump pair of lips were planted on mine. Now, for those who might not know, I am a virgin, even in the department of kissing. Surely, my sister has kissed me full on the lips before, but there was an enchanting and unsettling atmosphere to this particular instance. A feeling as if seasons were changing, bringing in the spring and the taste of lychees. Wait! Lychee??? Coming back to my senses, I pushed her back. She did not resist, but there was an expression of victory on her face- An expression which should have made me mad, very mad. However, I found myself in an emotional state I never thought I would be. I was not angry, neither was I happy, I just stood there in a confused emotional state, forgetting to cover my lady parts. ¡°Don¡¯t be mad¡­ I was just having fun¡­ It has been so long that we took a bath together. You have been too hard on yourself, and you have been hard on me too. Did you know that I have no friends? The only person I freely talk to is you, and you totally abandoned me. This was revenge.¡± I was speechless at her face full of grievances. How can someone be so shameless? My eyes stopped just for a fraction of a second on her lips, reminding me of a certain taste. Is that her lipstick? ¡°Your revenge is to molest people?¡± My heart was pacing into dangerously high speeds. I took a deep breath, and lifted my arm to motion her to leave. ¡°Leave, while I am being nice.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you scary? Anyways, I knew you were working hard all these years, But now, you have a stable life. You are starting a new journey. How about doing a makeover?¡± Katya had entered her model professional persona. It¡¯s amazing how she switches back and forth. ¡°What makeover? Aren¡¯t we going shopping tomorrow?¡± I replied in annoyance. ¡°Look at you. You have a forest growing down there. You even forgot to shave your underarms. Are you going to become a naturist? What was the last time you shaved? Your legs can get some work too. You are also so pale staying indoors all day long. We should totally go for sunbathing on Sunday. Ah, while we are shopping tomorrow, we can totally get some new makeup, There is a new brand of makeup from South Korea and your sister is the brand ambassador. We should totally go and try some out, I know you hate putting on makeup, but since you are starting a job, a bit of presentation hurts nobody. You know what? Imma call my makeup assistant right now and ask her to join us tomorrow... Tell you what, she is so good! I am sure she can get you the best stuff. Ah, we should totally get a family photo with mom and dad after you dress up tomorrow. Oh! How can I forget? I need to go get my hair done too. Why don¡¯t we go to the saloon tomorrow evening after shopping, we can get some good hair cut and the place has amazing ah the nail technicians there are so good! We should also get our nails done¡­.¡± ¡°Stop, just stop,¡± I said and let out a deep sigh. Letting her go unchecked was my mistake, I should have known better. Taking a look at her, I was made aware of the fact of how different we were despite being sisters. Even though we were almost the same physically, She had maintained herself pretty well, and I have probably lived like a person not giving a damn about looks. Her smooth and soft skin, supple and soft pair of breasts, clean shaved body, and a perfect tan, as compared to my body was making me a little ashamed. There were multiple lines of thoughts running through my mind. First, I have never been the person to care about such things, so why am I feeling anxious now? Is it because I was relieved of my burden that I am experiencing these new feelings? Secondly, How nice would I look if I took as much care of myself as my sister? I wanted to get an MRI of my brain to make sure how the second thought which was not even in my list of concerns till yesterday was the priority in my life right now. ¡°What are you thinking? I am sorry I said such things. I know that you don¡¯t like to dress up. Either way, I love you, no matter what, you will always be my little sis. You don¡¯t have to force yourself¡± She pouted and hugged me. This time, she was not playing around, clearly aware of her boundaries. She exited the shower without another word, grabbed her towel, and started washing herself off. I decided to stay in the shower because I was feeling shy, and a few other emotions that I might not know how to classify. This feeling of excitement and warmth was nice. Katya was done washing off, and just when she was heading towards the door, I finally gathered the courage to just utter one sentence. ¡°I¡¯ll think about it.¡± It was so slow that I did not expect her to hear it. My heart almost stopped as she turned her head said ¡°What?¡± Taking a deep breath, I finally said something I never thought I would in my life. ¡°I said, I will think about it. Let¡¯s do those things, one at a time.¡± My head was down, almost digging through the floor, I had no courage to look up and face her, so I kept my back towards her. ¡°Alright, I am happy as long as you are.¡± I heard her say as she closed the door. I could hear the sounds of humming, clearly from my sister who was pleased with her efforts. I got out of the shower as soon as Katya left and pranced around the bathroom to pick up another towel from the closet. Quickly drying myself, I applied a fair amount of almond body lotion. Looking again in the mirror, I tried to see myself as a woman for the first time.I guess it might not be bad to doll up once in a while, I haven¡¯t done anything like it before anyways.I thought. Turning around, I found that my fresh clothes were missing, and the only thing on the floor was a pair of dirty clothes, my sister¡¯s and mine. Taking a moment to curse her, I decided not to wear the old clothes. I wrapped the towel around myself and headed out of the bathroom. There was no one in the room, and yet I was startled because of the open door. The only people in the house except us were two other housekeepers, and I did not want them to see me in this situation. However, something had been ingrained in my brain today, something that kept telling me to do things differently. With a little tinge of excitement, I fastened the surrounding towel to make sure there will be no wardrobe malfunctions. I tip-toed around the walls and hid near the wardrobe, peeking out to make sure that there was no one around, I decided to make a run for the door and close it. This small event made me realize a few things, Firstly, that small things like these make my heart race almost as fast as scoring good grades. Secondly, that perhaps, I was living under a tunnel because I was a fool to not experience such a state of arousal before. If anyone is thinking about why I am not more befuddled, I would like to remind that I am a doctor, I am educated and I know about the world. Not experiencing love does not mean that I do not know what love is. Not flirting with others does not mean that I do not know what flirting looks like. What was new, were the reactions of my body. I knew about everything in theory, but putting something in practice, that is something new! Opening the wardrobe, I found a new set of undergarments and a light frilled ankle-length skirt. Pairing it off with a full-sleeved sweater, I felt snugly comfortable. Sure, the last few minutes of my life were out of earth experiences, but I did not plan to die of heart issues at such a young age Lying on the bed, I finally thought about the events till now. Maybe, It was a blessing that I have finally left behind my past and I can start enjoying my life now, albeit a little late, but it¡¯s still better than never. For the first time in my life, I was thinking about things other than studying. Going shopping for new clothes with my sister made me excited. I wanted to style my hair like her, and look pretty. Perhaps I wanted people to turn their heads and look at me when I walk by too. It¡¯s amazing how I never thought about such things before, but suddenly my thoughts are preoccupied with such ideas and fantasies. Lost in my thoughts, I have no idea when I drifted off to sleep. 2. A Quaint Gift I was woken up by the knocking on the door. Rubbing my eyes, I took small steps towards the door and unlocked it. A huge figure appeared before me and I was taken into a hug before I could even utter a word. ¡°Congratulations sweetie! Dad is so proud of you. I am sorry for coming home late. How about we order something for tonight and I will cook you a nice meal on Sunday?¡± Looking up, I found the familiar looking face of my dad, which showed subtle signs of aging, and yet was full of enthusiasm and vigor. ¡°Thanks dad, was there too much work in the office? You shouldn¡¯t have rushed over since I was planning to stay over the weekend anyway.¡± I replied after being released from the hug. ¡°Nonsense, how can I not come home when you have come after so long. I missed you so much. You don¡¯t even pick up the calls.¡± he complained. ¡°Alright, is mom back with you? I am going to freshen up and meet you in the lobby, You can order whatever you like, just make sure to get me a dessert.¡± ¡°I will leave you to it.¡± He turned around and walked off shouting in the distance ¡°Honey, we are having chicken tonight, should we also order some ice-cream.¡± A voice came from the lobby scolding my dad ¡°Shut up, Why are you still dreaming about ice creams when you are diabetic. No ice-creams in my house.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s a special occasion, it¡¯s going to be worth it¡± he replied, not willing to lose. I shook my head and decided to leave these quarreling lovebirds in their world. After brushing my teeth and washing my face, I applied some body-lotion, picked up my phone, slid my glasses back on, and headed over to the lobby. I found my sister lying on the couch, teasing Ruby, our cat. She was wearing a face mask and wearing a light blue tank top and small pink shorts, the kind of shorts that have a small cut up on the sides. ¡°Hey, join me on the daily skincare routine¡± She said in an inviting tone. ¡°No thanks, I just finished my skincare.¡± I bluntly replied. Startled, she asked ¡°What kind of skincare is so quick? Is this magic?¡± obviously, talking to my sister is a chore because of her exaggerated expressions. ¡°Body-lotion¡± I struck out a tongue and took a seat on the other couch next to my father, clearly not bothering to reply to any of her pleas. It was about 23:00, My dad was busy watching football. His grumpy expression a clear indicator that my mom had won today¡¯s battle and there would be no ice-cream today. He looked at me and took my hands into his and whispered in my ears, ¡°Since your mother will be busy with your sister in the beauty regimen, Let¡¯s sneak out later after dinner for ice-cream.¡± His eyes glistened with mischief as he planned the whole incognito operation behind mom¡¯s back. Tak tak tak. Before I could reply, I heard the rhythmic sound of heels hitting the floor, followed up with the appearance of my mother. A middle-aged woman wearing a knee-length figure-hugging office dress. If my sister was beautiful, then my mother was graceful. Her facial features were pretty similar to ours. It would not be wrong to say that my sister and I took after our mother. She was approaching fifty and the wheel of time made her look more mature and graceful as the years passed. She had straight long blonde hair, her makeup looks professional, her attire is matched perfectly to any occasion, and she still has time left on her hands to excel at her job. In short, she is perfect. She believes that women should be beautiful and the men should be chivalrous. My family was blessed with the genes of my mom. Throwing the phone on the table lightly, She sat down opposite to me, near my sister. She elegantly crossed her legs and kneaded her forehead. ¡°If we were going to order food, Why did we not just order food before reaching home? We could even have picked food up before coming home. You said you were going to cook for Leysan today. It¡¯s okay if we dine late, But at least think about the drivers and the housemaids.¡± My father conceded. ¡°My bad, give them some money and tell them to eat out or order some food, whatever they like.¡± ¡°I already did that, they left just now. So you are going to pick up the food when the delivery comes over. Don¡¯t bother us girls.¡± My dad raised his hands in defeat as he decided not to speak anymore and focus on the football match on the T.V. I turned to my mom, watching her bask in the glory of victory over my dad. ¡°Mom! Mom!¡± My sister used her feet to poke my mom and instantly got a slap back on the leg. ¡°Ouch. Mom!¡± She pretended to be in pain as she rolled on the couch. I could not find any difference between my sister and the football player rolling on the ground. My sister has truly mastered the arts of overacting. ¡°Stop screaming and go wash your face. Food will be here soon.¡± My mother ordered. ¡°Yes, yes. Mom, by the way, are you free tomorrow? We are going shopping, do you want to join us?¡± asked my sister with sparkling eyes. ¡°We?¡± ¡°Leysan and I¡± My mother turned to me and looked at me with pity, ¡°Are you sure you want to make that horrible decision? I thought you were the smart one.¡± ¡°Moommmmm!!¡± screamed Katya, unwilling to accept the remark. ¡°I have nothing better to do, and I thought it would be nice to have some fun once in a while. Although, now that you have said it, I am regretting my decision¡± I smirked. ¡°A promise is a promise. You can¡¯t back out now. WE. ARE. GOING!¡± She said in a coaxing tone as she came over and linked her arms into mine. ¡°You girls have fun, I have to go back to the office early morning tomorrow. I won¡¯t be able to join you. Here, take my card and buy what you want.¡± she opened her shiny wallet and handed me her card. ¡°Thanks.¡± I smiled. ¡°What is the job in the university about, I am sure no one at your age makes professor in the University. What is going on?¡± my mother asked curiously. ¡°It is a little different, Since I am still doing my residency, I cannot be a professor in the real terms. However, my university is starting to accept foreign students. These people speak in English and most of our senior professors only speak Russian, the dean made interim professors out of those who knew how to speak English properly. My job involves non-traditional ways of teaching the students. It means that I will act like a home-room teacher to the group of undergrad students and teach them everything.¡± I tried to explain the specifics of my job. ¡°I see¡­ I know you are smart, But is it really okay for a resident to teach undergrad students? I mean you still only have a limited practical experience.¡± ¡°Obviously, I am not allowed to teach them practical skills. I am only going to be teaching them the preclinical subjects such as physiology, pharmacology, anatomy, microbiology, history etcetera. I am also going to teach them the theoretical parts of clinical subjects and then take them to the practical classes where they will work under the professors with me assisting them.¡± ¡°Sounds like a tough job. Make sure you do your job properly. Teaching others is a very difficult job, and also a very important one. Since those future doctors will be in your care. Don¡¯t mess it up.¡± ¡°Yes, I will try my best.¡± I do have to mention that in my family, My older sister, Katya took after my father. Both of them are mischievous and super energetic individuals who are equally good when it comes to their work. I take after my mother, we are both very serious, goal-oriented people. We don¡¯t joke around and can maintain a poker face even in the comedy club. However, I am different from my mother in the sense that my mother is a model woman. She believes in beauty, propriety, values and wants her children to look beautiful and pristine like her. My sister has fulfilled her dreams, and I know that I have been a disappointment to her. Nothing can be done though, after all, I don¡¯t care, or at least I have not cared so far. The bell rang and my father got up to pick the food. He came back with bags of packed food which he served in the bowls and plates and set them on the dining table. We got up from the couch and followed him for the family dinner. ¡°It¡¯s so nice to have dinner like this. We should totally do this all the time.¡± my sister said grabbing a spoon and digging into the pie. ¡°We can do that on weekends since my job is a lot easier now,¡± I replied and took a piece of roasted chicken. ¡°Leysan, your father and I prepared a gift for you. It is a fascinating object.¡±Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. I glanced up and met his eyes, ¡°What is it?¡± Who doesn¡¯t love gifts in this world? ¡°Well, it came in from the archaeological department and was supposed to be auctioned off to private museums. I thought that since you like collecting things, you might be interested. I just asked them about it, and they said it was a two-way hand mirror excavated from the ruins in Egypt. Since it was not something unique, they agreed to give it to me. Here, it¡¯s in this.¡± he stretched his hands and handed me a parcel. I was excited and was about to open the parcel when my mother coughed and asked us to eat dinner before we start making a mess on the table. We could only reluctantly agree. At this point, I was not interested in the food anymore. We finished eating and since it was almost midnight, everyone decided to head to bed. I picked up the parcel and happily entered my room, making sure that I had closed the door behind me. I turned on the dim orange lights and closed the curtains. Since I had already slept, I decided to stay up for a while. I undressed completely and put on the pajamas. Nothing better than letting your girls let loose at night. Finally, it was time to open the parcel. I put the package on the bed and decided to wash my hands again before opening it. I went into the bathroom and was acutely reminded of the events that took place here earlier in the afternoon. Since it had been a few hours, I had plenty of time to make up my mind. I had decided that there was a need to bring change into my life as I was enjoying thinking about myself more. The only thing was how? I was too shy to do anything about it. Still thinking about the things that happened and the things that might happen in the future, I subconsciously opened the parcel. Amazing how some hormones can take over your body in such a way that you forget to take pleasure in your favorite hobbies. I took the rusty, golden-colored mirror which was more like a big concave glass because you could see the other side. I closed one eye and tried to look through the dirty glass. Suddenly, there was a bright light in the dimly lit room, the light which was almost blinding to the eyes flashed around for a few seconds and suddenly disappeared. I heard a cracking sound, as the mirror in my hand started to crack. I suddenly screamed and threw the ancient-looking golden mirror to the edge of the bed. Taking a few seconds to calm my thumping heart, I got off the bed and slowly crawled over to the edge. Taking a peek at the mirror astounded me because the mirror was no longer transparent and two-sided but a normal reflecting hand mirror with obvious cracks on the surface. Before I could even fathom what was happening, I could feel the world spinning around me. I was falling on the floor as my body could not muster up any strength. The only thing that I could hear with the piercing tinnitus were a few incoherent sentences. <> <> <> *Thud* I fainted, as my body collapsed on the soft carpet floor. After an unknown amount of time, I woke up with a throbbing headache. Unable to muster any energy to sit up, I kept lying on the floor rubbing my forehead and trying to remember what happened. I could not specify how it happened because while I was opening the parcel, my mind was preoccupied with other thoughts. But, I did remember a few things, there was definitely a blinding light followed up with the mirror cracking. Yes! The mirror cracked and changed! But, that¡¯s just dumb. Things like that do not happen in real life. Anyways, I had to make sure, and the best way to do it was to check the evidences. Propping myself up from the floor, I checked my body for any bruises or injuries. There were none. As usual, a doctor¡¯s instincts kicked in and I called out my name, and the day. My memory was fine since I could recall the events before I fainted. I sat on the edge of the bed and nervously picked up the ominous gold mirror again. I was shocked as a combination of fear and intrigue washed over me. Flipping the mirror back and forth I realized that it had indeed cracked and changed into a normal one-sided mirror. What is going on? I was confused with the turn of events. Unsure of what was going on, I decided to wrap the mirror in a cotton cloth and put it on the nightstand. Since my head was still throbbing, I decided to wrap myself up in the quilt and go to sleep. However, how can one sleep in such circumstances? I kept flipping open the cloth to check on the mirror infinite times before I eventually fell asleep. <> <> I woke up with a ringing sound in my ears. Looking around, I found myself alone in the room which was lit brightly with the early morning sunlight. The hands of the clock made a straight vertical line indicating it was exactly 06:00. Probably some dream. Weird things are happening since yesterday. I mused. Since the sun was already up, I decided to finish my morning routine and read a book before I head over for breakfast. Mom and Dad usually leave around 7 so there was plenty of time. Before I could stand up and make my way into the bathroom, another string of sentences clouded my eyes followed by the ringing of bells. Just like any normal human being, my first reaction was to rub my eyes and slowly opening them again hoping that what happened was just a misconception. But, reality seemed to disagree quite frequently with me today as I could still see the words. At this point, my heart was already beating fast, and I was in a mode of panic. Closing my eyes and running towards the bathroom, I splashed my face with water and prayed for this nightmare to end. Unfortunately, the string of words were still there. However, I noticed how they did not cloud my vision, It was just like a transparent notification box which was always at the same position no matter how I moved my eyes. Perhaps some kind of lenses. I thought. My brain was running at full power and the sympathetic system in my body was fully activated. I pulled my eyelids down and moved my face closer to the mirror. There was nothing. Absolutely NOTHING. Frustrated, I decided to wave my right hand in front of my eyes. **DING** This time, I heard an ancient-sounding voice, followed up with some text in front of my eyes. <> <> (Text) (Voice) (Text and Voice) What is going on? I wiped my face with a towel and headed back to the room. This was getting scary and I have never heard of anything like it before. I felt my stomach churning as the fear of unknown took root in my heart, sending shivers down my spine. Taking deep breaths, I tried to calm my galloping heart. Let¡¯s approach this with a calm mind. I thought. Not sure how it works, I decided to just choose text since I did not know if others could hear the voice or not. Ending up as a research subject at such a young age was not part of my plan. Hesitating a bit on how things work, I said in a muffled voice, almost like a whisper, ¡°Just text please.¡± *DING* <> <> (Transparent) (Solid) (Opaque) Should I go with transparent? Before I could even answer, I heard the ding again! *DING* <> <> (Voice) (Thought) (Voice and Thought) [Currently active] Since I did not plan to be labeled as a mentally ill person yet, I choose ¡®Thought¡¯. Obviously, ¡®yet¡¯ because considering my current situation, going to a psychiatrist would be the best course of action. *DING* <> <3¡­> <2¡­> <1...> < > << Profile>> [Name: Leysan Petrovna] [Age: 24yrs] [Height: 175 cm] [Weight: 55 kg] [Physique: Slim] [BWH: 90-65-88] [Hair: Long, waist-length] [Hair color: Blonde] < > [Confidence: 21] [Inhibition: 95] [Attractiveness: 18] [Exposure: 4] [Intelligence: 91] (Remaining parameters locked) (You can choose a parameter to learn more about it.) <> [Welcome to Tutorial] [Week: 0] [Weekly quest locked. Initiating daily quest] [Daily Quest] [Mission description: To learn and understand the system]
  1. Finish the system configuration: Done
  2. Generate player profile: Done
  3. Read and understand the system manual: X
Returning to my senses after the massive influx of information inside my head, I gulped down a glass of water. Multiple incoherent and absurd ideas ran through my mind. What is the system, When did I ever sign up for this? Am I still hallucinating or is this some supernatural effect? Am I really that unattractive, what is up with that evaluation of 18 points? Anyways, It showed some missions, and I am pretty sure I could understand what it was talking about since I did configure the settings and could see my profile. The next thing remaining on the checklist was to read some kind of manual. Not sure about how it works, I decided to think about it. After all, it was me who set the settings to ¡®thought¡¯. Open manual *DING* I am pretty sure that I had found a newfound hatred towards this ding sound. [Welcome to the Mirror World. This world as the name says, is a mirror world. However, it does not mean that this is a false world. Everything here exists like it does in the other world. This world exists for the whims and fantasies of the player. As such, whatever the player chooses to do in this world will not affect the other world. There are different methods to switch back and forth between the two worlds. But, the main criterion is to finish the main quest-line. The quest-line is personalized for every player based on their wishes and deep-rooted desires. A resonating desire with the system is also the primary requirement to enter the mirror world. If the main quest-line is finished, the player is given the access to freely move between the worlds. The rules of the system are not explicitly explained and are left for the player to explore and understand on their own. Some points to remember are.
  1. Weekly quests are given to each player. The completion of these quests gives major rewards and progresses the main quest-line.
  2. Daily quests are sub-part of the weekly quest and are given every day. Completing the daily quests leads to the completion of a weekly quest.
  3. There may be special quests occasionally. They may be mandatory, or optional, however, the rewards are unique.
  4. Failing mandatory special quests and daily quests will lead to punishment. Failing weekly quest will lead to punishment, and a significantly harder upcoming week.
  5. The player can increase their rewards and playing experience with side quests. These quests do not affect the quest-line, however, rewards might be given out if the side-quest is related to the main quest.
  6. A single quest can have multiple missions. A quest can be marked completed if 75% of the missions are completed. There are better rewards for a higher degree of completion.
*DING* <> *DING* <> <> The following rewards have been deposited. [Rewards]
  1. 500 coins
[Player has unlocked Virtual purse] [Player has unlocked the Shop] I was feeling dizzy after all the DINGS inside my head. As a citizen of modern society, I was very open to new experiences. I was not hit as hard as someone from the ancient era would have, but still, everything felt surreal. It is hard for an educated person to accept the current circumstances¡­ There were chances that there was something wrong with my brain. However, I threw the idea that I was delusional and hallucinating because I was still able to make sound judgment. Hallucinating and delusional people are very firm in their belief, so I was in the clear. That leaves me with a very perplexing and unsettling answer. What if all of this is real? *knock knock* I gasped and covered my mouth in surprise. ¡°Are you okay Leysan?¡± same my sister¡¯s concerned voice. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine. Come on in¡± ¡°Nah, I am going for a run. I just came to say that we will go to the mall in the morning to avoid crowds. Let¡¯s leave around 11:00.¡± she said and ran off without waiting for my reply. <> <> [Description: Run 2 km to get a better physique] [Rewards: Gold +10, unlock stat ¡®physique¡¯] Wait, What!!?? 3. A Pink Petal <> <> [Description: Run 2 km to get a better physique] [Rewards: Gold +10, unlock stat ¡®physique¡¯] Wait, What is this??? Remembering the quest scenarios that were introduced, I was reasonably convinced that this was one of those quests. Looking over the quest, my focus stopped over the word ''mandatory''. From what I remembered, there were punishments for not completing the mandatory quests. Going out for a jog isn''t so bad. I have plenty of time, and I should probably start exercising. I thought and decided to head over to the bathroom to quickly freshen up. Since most of my clothes were not here, I just found an old pajama pant and an old baggy t-shirt and headed over to the lawn. Living in a rich neighborhood came with its perks- one of them being a community playground just around the corner. I was fairly confident in my physical abilities. I do not know where I got that confidence from, but there was no doubt about it in my mind. However, reality is often harsh. I was panting within minutes. Sweat drizzled down my forehead, flowing into my eyes, making me unable to keep them open. Usually, I am not the one to care about how I look and what people think. But, I was a little ashamed of myself. I might be because my self-confidence was broken or multitudes of other reasons, but right now I just wanted to stop. Unable to keep it up, I just collapsed with my back to the ground. "This is harder than I thought.'' I mumbled while still panting. My other reason for the pain was the text which was still covering my eyes. [Progress: 668/2000 m] I apologize if I don''t get this right, But are you frigging telling me that I ONLY ran 668 meters so far? It was like I was slapped on my face with a flower still in the pot. Reality is harsh, and crying over it is not what I do. Taking a moment to catch my breath, I pulled myself up again and motivated myself by giving a quick slap on the cheeks and wiping all the unnecessary sweat with the sleeve of my t-shirt. I should bring a towel with me next time. I thought, clearly ignoring the fact that I was thinking of ''next time'' without even realizing it. Just as I was about to start running again, I heard someone calling my name loudly, and yes, you guessed it right. It was my sister coming over waving her hand frantically at me. She was wearing a sleeveless black hoodie which came over to her upper thighs, and a pink sports short that was barely peeking through. "Why did you not tell me that you were coming too? I would have waited for you." She said unhurriedly. I was astonished a little about how comfortable she was after running. Steady breaths, not much trace of sweat, and still jumping up and down on the spot. The little remnants of my confidence took a dive. I decided that no matter what, I am going to be the best runner. Maybe I should even sign up for a marathon in the upcoming month. If I run daily, I will probably run faster and longer. There is no way that I am THAT weak. Pushing down my galloping thoughts, I said "I wasn''t going to, but I was bored, so I just decided to come over." No way I''m telling anyone about quests, lest they take me for a madwoman. "Alright, let''s go for a run together. Come on!" She said enthusiastically." "No, no. You go ahead. I am going to just walk around." Even though I said that, the reason why I wished she would just go and leave me alone was because I was embarrassed. She smiled, pulled my arms, and dragged me along. Just when I was going to say something, she shushed me, "Nonsense! Since we are here, we are going to run together... Let''s take a few breaks in between." I guess she already knew about my condition. I smiled and followed after her. We ran for a while, when I stopped for breaks, she did some exercises, and eventually the counter filled up. [Progress: 2123/2000 m] [Mandatory Instant Quest: Go for a jog complete] <> The following rewards have been deposited. [Rewards]
  1. 50 coins
  2. ''Physique'' unlocked
Out of breath, I called out to her and told her that I was done for the day. I am pretty sure that she exercises more, but she nodded and decided to follow me home. I was in no condition to run so we decided to slowly walk home. I am not sure what to anticipate, but there were no new notifications on the system, and my vision was clear. It was a refreshing feeling. We were greeted by our bickering parents in the kitchen as soon as we entered the house. The reason for fight allegedly being the choice of jams with pancakes. "Leysan sweetie, did you like the gift?" My dad turned over and asked me while shooing away at my mother with his other hand. Recollecting the events that took place last night and the possible connection of the system with the mirror, I decided to just stay quiet and figure out the situation before I involved others. However, I still needed more information about it.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. I smiled and nodded, "Yes, it was very beautiful. I have never seen such a beautiful and unique carving. I was actually curious about it. Can you help me get any research or information about the mirror?" My dad laughed and nodded, "Sure, I will ask my friend for any information." He stopped, took a sip of juice, and continued eating. "You should also go and get a bath. Your dad and I will be leaving soon. I have asked Elena to make breakfast for you, make sure you eat it before you are dragged along with Katya." Elena was a maid in our house, She was the wife of my dad''s driver. Both of them used to live behind the mansion in the quarters. I have known Elena for a long time because she was the one who used to look after me when I was young. I have been given baths, fed, and even sent to sleep by her. Closing the door behind me, I was welcomed by the fresh smell of jasmine. Apparently, the room had been cleaned while I was out. Gulping down two glasses of water, I headed straight to the bathroom. I was so tired that I actually wanted to go lie in the bed for the rest of the day but I figured that was not a possibility unless I wanted a buzzing bee on my head for the rest of the day. Quickly undressing, I hopped into the warm shower. Since we were going out, I decided to shampoo. Getting out of the shower, I realized that I forgot the bring in a fresh change of clothes. My progressing lack of awareness was concerning, but I blamed it on fatigue, wiped myself with a towel, wrapped it around myself, and headed out. I just put on a comfortable pair of t-shirt and pajama and went out to satisfy my hunger. My body was sore all over, but it was not a bad feeling. I felt fresh and energetic. This was a new feeling and I was totally digging it. Elena saw me coming and smiled. She started preparing breakfast and poured me a cup of tea. I was startled as a message appeared in front of my eyes again just when I took the first sip. [Daily calorie intake: 0/2000 ] [This is not a quest, but a lifestyle modification according to the desires and needs of the player.] I know better than you how many calories I need to take you jerk. I snapped back in my mind. Still, I knew better than anyone that my diet was all over the place. Some of the days, I ate too much, and somedays, nothing. A visual reminder was nice, even though it was particularly annoying if it was going to stay in my field of vision the entire time. I don''t want to see this. Just as I thought, the calorie counter disappeared and a new message popped up. [Calorie counter has been hidden from view. You like to set an alarm if you are about to go over or under the limit?] Sure, whatever. Do what you please, but keep it hidden. I was losing patience over this system''s nagging. Soon Katya came over and joined me. We were served jam and pancakes. Since I was still feeling hungry, which was unusual for me. Elena prepared a bowl of Vareniki which I finished at an astonishing speed. Elena laughed, "I have never seen you eat so much. You should go for a run daily if it increases your appetite." I made a sour teasing face and decided not to follow up on that comment. Elena returned to her work, leaving Katya and me alone in the dining room. "What are you going to wear? Do you even have any clothes left here to go out in?" She inquired. "I went through the wardrobe earlier. I found my jeans and a blouse. I think I am set." Katya blinked a few times, "No, no no no no. Sister, my dear dear sister. I love you but let''s wear something nice. I have a reputation to keep." She pleaded. Even though I was annoyed, I could only agree since this was a part of her job. That being said, I had already decided that I am going to change. Even though I did not show it, I was suspiciously excited about wearing some nice clothes. I raised my hand in defeat. "I don''t have anything else to wear. We can go to my apartment and change there." "I don''t trust your fashion sense. Plus, I already know what your wardrobe looks like. Just come to my room later and I will pick a dress for you." I was about to say when I shushed the second time today. "No arguments, You already said you want to try new things last night. Might as well start now." We finished our breakfast and went to our rooms. I picked up my phone and started checking my emails. I found the certificate of teaching and the letter from the university dean. He had sent me a list of students that would be joining later. I spent some time reading about the methods of teaching and a few videos on how to maintain charisma as a professor. Pretty standard for anyone taking up a new position, the anxiety was natural. It was about 10:00, and I decided to head over to my sister''s room. I was dragged inside and made to sit on her bed and as she went over to the wardrobe muttering to herself. She handed me a pink-colored pleated skirt that reached down to my knees and a blue full-sleeved striped blouse that had frills down my right and left shoulder. She looked me up and down, nodded, and wrestled with her wardrobe a few more minutes before handing me a new pack of stockings and a pair of pink heels. "I am not wearing heels. They are uncomfortable and I swear to god I am going to fall in those." I exclaimed. The dress looked pretty, and I had never worn anything like it before, but I was pretty excited about wearing it. However, the heels! I don''t think I can walk straight in those heels. Thinking it over, she went back and brought me another pair of heels, which were smaller and had thicker heel unlike the previous one. "These are 3'' heel, and should be fairly comfortable. Since you have not shaved your leg, remember to wear your stockings. Don''t go around without them in skirts." She explained seriously. Unable to calm my mind which was super excited about wearing the new dress, I smashed the door behind me and undressed quickly. Searching in the wardrobe, I found an old set of bra and panties which had only been worn once before. The bra was a size smaller and was from the time when I wore it for the graduation last year. Pulling it over my breasts, I adjusted the bra to find it a little tight and snug It wasn''t as uncomfortable as I expected it would be, but it sure made a point of pushing my breasts up and acting like a push-up and creating a cleavage of sorts. I was amazed with myself because I did not find it bad, rather I was finding it sexy. I slipped on the matching panties and turned towards the mirror and did some poses. My pale skin against the soothing pink undergarment looked surprisingly hot. I felt a blush creep up my face as I shyly picked up my phone and to take some pictures of myself in the underwear. To those who don''t know, my phone''s gallery is 90% full of notes and research papers, while the 10% is full of my sister''s selfies that she tends to keep sending me. Personally, I have never been a fan of taking photos, but today I was feeling a little special. Using the mirror, I took photos of myself. Realizing what I was doing made me weirdly excited and my stomach was full of butterflies. Turning around to look in my mirror, I saw my panty-clad butt. A shiver ran through me as the hair on my body stood on the edges. Getting goosebumps from looking at myself was a new experience. Deciding to calm down, I quickly pulled up the stockings followed up by the skirt. I looked again in the mirror to be blessed by a sight I never thought I''d see. I was a little shy at the sight of a bra clad upper body and a fulled dressed lower body created a distinct harmony in my mind. By now, my face was flushing red and I decided to take a few more pictures. I did not know which demon had taken over me, but for the first time in my life, I was excited at wearing something so scandalous. It was not that I was uncomfortable with my body, but more like all these years, I had never really really cared about such things as which clothes to wear and how I look. Finally, picking up the top, I realized that only the top of the blouse had a button and the remaining part was made to stick with a velcro of sorts to avoid endowed women peeks from between the buttons. The chances of mishap seemed low as the quality of dresses was no doubt the best. Putting on my heels, I picked up my purse and headed out to the living room where I found my sister sitting in a grey-pink colored dress. She was looking cute to say the least. "Did you put on the makeup or are you all shy wearing the dress?" She teased my blushed face. She ruffled through her purse and picked out a lipstick, "Come here, put on this lipstick." I pouted in annoyance but still allowed her to put on a pink lipstick on me. "Let''s go" she bellowed as we headed out. 4. A French Boutique A Black Benz waited for us right outside the mansion on the stony pavement. Anton, my sister''s assistant was waiting for us outside the car. He got us into the backseats and took over the job to drive us to the mall. A few minutes later we took a turn and entered the highway. The weather was warm as the sun played hide and seek with the blue clouds. Entranced by the beautiful sight, I lowered the windowpane to let in some fresh air and beamed in the anticipation of the future. Lost in my thoughts, I pondered over the things that happened in the last few hours. I was unsure what exactly the system was or how it worked. The system was lacking a purpose, and it was important for me to find out if I was indeed in the mirror world as claimed or this was just my mind playing tricks. Another perplexing matter being, If I am in the mirror world, then who is in the real world? Damn your system and the quest-line. I don''t care about your system. You can go shut down for all I care. How about we make a deal to not bother each other. I must have been visibly fuming because I felt the soft touch of Katya''s hand on my thighs. She bought her blossoming face near mine and whispered as warm air tickled my ears, "You might want to keep your legs together unless you want to give Anton a view of your thighs." She smiled as she calmly and unhurriedly pushed my legs together. For someone like me who was used to wearing jeans and pants, the policies and intricacies of wearing a skirt were still foreign. I gasped at the thought of the mishap that might have transpired, and took a glance at Anton from the corner of my eyes. His eyes were on the road, so I was unsure if he was even aware of what was happening. I turned to face Katya with an anxious expression as I pushed my skirt down. She blinked at me and said, "How cute! You were daydreaming so I was just teasing you." trying to assure me that nothing had transpired. For good or for worse, I became conscious of the way I was dressed, fidgeting all the way to make sure my dress stayed in place much to the amusement of my sister. We soon reached the city center as we were greeted by the scenic beauty of the St. Petersburg city. The Baroque-style buildings enhanced with the sporadic Neoclassical soviet-style architecture made the city a refreshing change to the sky-piercing modern cities around the world. Our car parked near a mall, which was pretty small compared to the mall I was expecting us to be visiting. "Are we not going to Galeria?" I inquired. "I am crazy, but not enough to go to such a crowded place. Those shops sell tacky clothes and are a fashion disaster anyways. Now this place, on the other hand, is small but has the best and latest trends in fashion." Before I could even ask, I was handed the answer. "Because the people here are the ones who set the trends." I shuffled behind her like the ugly duckling following her mama to a whole new world- amazed at the glamorous world she was unaware of. The shops were like palaces of glass and the floors were covered with carpet. Colorful flowers were neatly lined in pots in the center of the corridor. It felt like I was exposed to a whole new side of the fashion industry. There were all kinds of apparel on the pedestals glistening under the warm lights of the stores. The mannequins were so real that they put dummies in the university to disgrace. The whole place smelled foreign and I felt suffocated in the exquisiteness and grandeur of the place. ''I do not belong here'' is all I could think of. Katya came over and linked her arms into mine and dragged me along with her. We stopped near a shop that seemed to specialize in women''s clothing. Two girls greeted us by the entrance and showed us the way in. The inside of the store was empty and relatively warm, and there were numerous mannequins dressed in elegant dresses and a glass showcase exhibiting various footwear, mostly sandals and heels. There was a comfortable couch that seemed really inviting to me, so I decided to do head over and take a seat, remembering to keep my legs together. "Where is Enzo?" Katya inquired rolling her hand through a dress on display. "Enzo Jean-Pierre at your service." A raucous voice came from behind me. I was greeted to a sight of a taut square-faced man with a horseshoe mustache. He was wearing clothes that could only be described as a mystery because I had never seen anything like it before. His pants were tucked inside the knee-high socks and his shirt seemed to have more frills than my own? I was clearly amused at the sight and a chuckle escaped my lips. "Greetings Miss. Ekaterina, always a pleasure to accompany you." He bowed a little and then turned to me, "And this mademoiselle is?" examining me with his small brown eyes. "She is my younger sister," she replied nonchalantly and continued browsing through the dresses on display. "I see, It looks like your family is blessed by Aphrodite herself. Your sister is also very beautiful, but has a very different demeanor than you." he expressed as while instructing his assistants to go look for something.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. "Yeah she is pretty alright. Don''t try anything funny with her like you did to me though. Unless you want me to hunt you down." threatened Katya as she finally turned to face Enzo. "Surely you jest. I am an honorable man, I only do things that people have consented to." "Mhm, I trust you alright. Now, back to business, is my gown ready? I had absolutely no idea what these two were talking about. Yet, I was certain that a lot of words were exchanged between them without being spoken. "How can I dare delay the dress that the princess herself requested. I still wish to make a name for myself in this industry." My sister sighed and finally succumbed "Enzo, there is no need to behave like that. We have known each other for so long, stop being so pretentious." Before Enzo could even reply, she continued, "Just... okay? Just stop. It''s giving me a headache." I just sat there quietly trying to understand the courtroom proceedings of this garment shop. It felt like the lady held more power in this court than the master himself. I was not judging anyone, but rather, peacefully appreciating the show. "I understand, is there anything else you would like my help with?" Enzo now clearly out of his character spoke in precise Russian. "Leysan is also looking for a dress. Do you have any casual outfits? Something for daily wear." She blinked at Enzo, waiting for his reply. "Since you are asking me with those puppy eyes, I will help you out. The fall collection I was working on is almost finished. I will personally pick one out that suits her the best." he raised his hands in defeat. The short female assistant came over and whispered something in Enzo''s ear. He nodded and told Katya to go in the first dressing room to try out her outfit. She looked at me with her glittering eyes, "I am going to try the outfit. Go with him and see if you like anything for yourself." and left me behind with those words as she darted away behind curtains with the assistant. "Shall we go too?" asked Enzo courteously and extended his hand. Since it was just the two of us left, I nodded and got up, ignoring the hand he had extended to help me. Enzo apparently was frozen in the space as he was still glued to the same position with extended hand. "Let''s go." "Ah! yes, my bad. Please follow me." He got out of his shocked expression, gave me a painful smile, and walked towards the other dressing room. My jaw almost dropped to the floor as I entered the dressing room. What the hell? Is this a dressing room? This is almost as big as the shop outside. It''s good that I had developed a resistance to bizarre things or I would have uttered those words out creating a very awkward scene. The so-called ''dressing room'' was huge. It had even more panels on the walls and even more clothing on the hanging displays while the other wall had four wardrobes. There was a circular two-stage pedestal in the center with the lights converging in the middle. The top pedestal about two meters in diameter and the one below it a size bigger than that. There were a pair of couch on the left side facing each other and a tea table in the middle. I was brought back to the mortal realm by Enzo''s interruption. "What kind of dress would you like?" "I am not sure, Do you have something that can be worn casually or just simply while going around the town?" I just blurted out random words hoping that they made sense. "Sure, would you like to look around yourself, or should I suggest something to you?" He asked with the same plastered smile. I did not want to embarrass myself any further by pretending to be knowledgeable about something that I was clearly not. The only person left in the room after being abandoned by my sister was this man in front of me. Although, he did not seem reliable due to his patented plastered smile, he was still the owner of the shop, and probably more insightful about the matter at hand. I was feeling a little confident today, and for some very strange reason, I did not want to lose to him. What reason? I don''t know that myself, What I did know that I was not willing to back even an inch in front of this man. "Sure, surprise me," I replied pridefully. I am pretty sure that his eyes were trying to shoot lasers at me, however, his mouth was still curved up in a smile. He nodded and motioned towards the couch for me to take a seat. It took him about five minutes to pick out three dresses for me. He hung them on the moving clothes rack for display. The first one was a sky blue dress with white pearly adornments, it had a puffy half sleeve and a bottom part that fanned out from below the chest. "This is a babydoll dress, the sky blue color creates a beautiful harmony with the summer season and the shades of orange in fall brings out the beauty. It is a light dress and is made of pure cotton for the comfort of the person wearing it. You can pair it with a leather or denim jacket in the fall to complete the pairing." "Moving on to the next one, this is a suit dress and is made to complement women with good figures. It hugs the body tightly to showcase the feminine curves. It is internally lined with silk and is very comfortable. This is one of the most popular dressing styles currently among working women." "Lastly, this is a light cotton blouse, with short pants. A white top never goes out of fashion. It is made of a thin material and can be paired with dark-colored brassiere " The second dress was a little raunchy for me, and I would not be comfortable wearing it yet. The last dress had pretty small pants and I was not going to wear something so small anytime soon. The top had no buttons but a cut till the end of the sternum. Although, I did have to concede to the fact that both of these outfits looked pretty good and I definitely wondered what I''d look like in them, I was not bold enough to wear something like that yet. I stood up and went over to look at the first dress that had caught my attention. Turning it over, I found that it was a knot it up in the back and exposed a fair amount of skin. I looked at Enzo who was nodding as he was satisfied with his choices. <> <> [Description: Try two out of the three outfits] [Rewards: Gold +10, unlock stat ¡®fashion¡¯] This again? Hide this right now. I grimaced as if I had swallowed a mosquito down my throat. Standing there, I considered the three dresses in front of me. Lost in the thoughts of the system suddenly making a move, I ignored one very simple fact. Call it panic or name it what you will, but I still forgot the fact that this was not a mandatory quest. This was my first mistake. I can try this blue dress. It''s not bad, but these other two dresses are a nightmare. Screaming internally, I had to choose one of the two evils. Ultimately, I decided to go with the black suit dress because the white blouse looked scandalous and not something I wanted to wear with my small bra. This, arguably was my second mistake in the span of a few seconds... Motioning towards the first and the second dresses, I spoke in a tone befitting a calm a collected woman, "May I try these two outfits?" "Sure, over there is the trial room" <> I nodded and moved towards the changing room ignoring and hiding the system messages, unaware of the tickling bomb that I had set on myself and the stupid system that clearly had issues with interpretation. 5. A Price To Pay The changing room had full-sized mirrors on three sides and a curtain to cover the entrance. Pulling the thick curtains after me, I decided to get on with the job at hand. The Babydoll dress was the only thing I wanted to try right now as I was enamored with it. It was a good looking dress, and I quickly put it on. The dress reached mid-thighs and was rather light. Taking a spin and swinging my shoulders left and right, I found that my bra straps were exposed in the back. It was not deal-breaking and I did not mind it much as I was still sheepishly happy with the way I looked from the front. The dress had a rather deep square neckline and it was a style that had never worn before. I was not sure of why or when, but recently I had picked up a weird habit of taking photos of myself. I realized that my purse was still on the couch and I had forgotten to bring it with me. "Hey Enzo, can you pass me my purse please?" I peeked out from the curtains and asked. There was no reply so I shouted again, this time a little louder, "Hello, anyone there?" I wasn''t sure if I wanted others to see me in this dress. Sure, it looked good, but just because it looked and felt nice does not mean that it can be worn out. Probing around, I realized that Enzo had left the room. Deciding between taking a photo in the dress or just engraving it in my memory, I decided on the first and tip-toed around to quicky grab my purse and make a run for it. However, the fact that heavens have relinquished me has been acknowledged and for things to go my way would be challenging its authority. "Why are you running? Come over here, look at my dress!" can an urgent voice of my sister. Shoving the stone in my throat down, I picked up my emotional state that was in shambles. I straightened my back and lifted my slouching shoulders and turned around with a smile. Katya was wearing a gorgeous light cream-colored sleeveless gown. It had thin straps that went over her shoulders to keep the dress in place. Noticing my eyes on her, she quickly smiled, held her dress up, and quickly gave a twirl. WHY IS THERE NOTHING IN THE BACK? IS THIS SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE THIS? ALSO, WHERE IS HER BRA? ARE YOU TELLING ME SHE IS NOT WEARING ONE??? My mind was screaming and I did my best to make sure none of it reflected on my face. My sister loved taking photos, and I had seen her wearing far less, but this was on a totally different level. Wearing a bikini is inherently sexy and it is a clothing that is supposed to show off your body. This gown however only and exclusively exposed her back and arms to create a such a stunning picture. Satisfied by my gawking expression, she quickly came over to me and took out her phone. "Do you like my sweetheart spaghetti-strap dress?" Oh! It has a name too... I made a point to investigate more about what different dresses were called in the future. "You look really beautiful!" I said and bought my face near her to ask in a whispering tone, "Are you comfortable without wearing a bra?" My sister looked at me if I was an idiot, opened her mouth to say something but eventually nothing came out, and she gave up. She held me by my arms and pulled along to the changing room. "Remove your bra. You are not supposed to wear one with the dress you are currently wearing." I wanted to reply, but I had noticed the disharmony in my outfit too. I was debating over her suggestion when I was alarmed by the silent system again. <> <> <> I was getting furious over this mirror now. Dealing with both my sister and the system together was difficult, so I just went inside the changing room and pulled the curtains behind me. I was about to erupt with anger, but I knew that it would be useless, so I took deep breaths and repeated word by word in my mind. I am done with this mirror and its shenanigans. You can do whatever you want. Please don''t bother me anymore. <> [Note: Punishment will be initiated if you do] I have never been scared of anyone in my life, so there was no quarter for fear at this moment either. Yes, I am abandoning it. Now, If you will, I have better things to do. <> <> < > Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Just what did you say? You will do what? [Since the player is in the tutorial, a grace period of 10 seconds has been granted before the punishment is system is activated] [10] [9] ... [3] [2] [1]This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it I was gripped by fear as I felt my bra disappearing into thin air. I screamed and crouched on the floor holding covering my chest with my arms. I did not care about anything right now as my world had been turned upside down. So far, I had not been taking the mirror and the system seriously, and just going along with it. But for the first time, I understood that this was something very real and something that was not to be trifled with. Alarmed by my scream, Katya quickly drew open the curtains and crouched beside me asking if I was okay. She was genuinely concerned about me and all I could do was nod. "Sweetie why are you crying?" She asked as she rubbed my back. Her fingers touching my naked back was the reason why tears started pouring out faster from my eyes. I quickly shook my head and opened my bag to take out tissues and wipe my face. I am a strong girl, I can deal with this properly. Creating a scene here would just invite trouble so I consoled myself. However, my body was unwilling to listen as my thin legs did not stop shivering as I stood up. "You okay? It''s okay if you did not want to remove the bra. I am sorry for forcing you." She said apologetically, apparently she was feeling bad about forcing myself. The sad thing was that she did not even know the crux of the situation and I just wanted everyone around me to stop speaking, lest it trigger another quest. I gathered my spirits and smiled trying to do my best to keep up the appearance that everything was okay. My body was betraying me, and my mind was in shambles. But, a smiling face can do wonders for the people nearby. Watching me stand up and smile, Katya nodded and gave a bright smile and patted my shoulders. "You look pretty, and there is nothing to be ashamed of. I am not wearing a bra either. Plus it''s not like you are naked. I can''t even tell if you are wearing one or not from the front. That being said, there is no one here. You don''t have to be shy. It''s just me and Enzo is gay anyways." She tried to calm me down. "Let''s take a quick photo before I change. Let''s go home early since I got my dress and that was the whole point of the trip anyway." She slid her hands around my neck and passed her phone to Enzo who took a few photos. Soon, I was left alone in the changing room as my sister promised me that she will be back soon after removing her dress. I closed the curtains and stood there in a daze. Now what? What happened should not have happened under any circumstance. The elements of my beliefs were breaking apart piece by piece and I felt like someone left me in the middle of the desert. I did not know what to do next and was scared to move forward because one wrong step might lead to disastrous results. This particular instance was a perfect reminder that I was dealing with something beyond me, something supernatural. I was proud of my calm and collected mind, which never bowed down to any adversity. This was a basic minimum requirement to make it through med school. So, even though my mind was shaken, it was far from breaking down and was quickly planning on the next steps. There was still the issue of another quest which was still ongoing and struck halfway. <> [Description: Try two out of the three outfits. (1/2 completed)] [Rewards: Gold +10, unlock stat ¡®fashion¡¯] I did not want to end up in a worse situation, so I decided to pick up the pace and get it over with. My 34D breasts spilled over as I pulled the dress over my top. Standing there in the changing room made my body quiver. My whole body was covered in goosebumps and my quarter-sized pink nipples decided to just turn rock hard and stood upright. I took a look in the mirror and found a thin girl with a huge bosom standing topless in panties and stockings. I did not notice how my nipples started to become even more prominent as I stood there staring at myself. There were a lot of emotions going through me and I could not explain it in words even if I had to. Picking up the suit-dress, I pulled my arms through the armholes and pulled the suit up. Tying the belt snugly around my waist, I looked in the mirror. Even though the big boobs were really prominent in the figure-hugging suit, the multiple layers prevented any kind of exposure. It would be hard to tell if I was wearing anything underneath it. It was my first time wearing a female suit-dress. I have worn a lot of suits, but they were usually the usual pants, blouse, and blazer. I felt weird as my arms and legs were exposed, yet I could feel that this dress was something that could be worn comfortably in an office setting. The velvety inner lining of silk rubbing around my breasts gave a unique sense of touch and comfort. I was waiting for the quest to update and for me to get out of this nightmare. Waiting for a while, I realized that the quest still did not complete. Why is the quest not completing? I tried to probe. [Would you like a hint on the quest progression?] Unsure of what to expect, I just replied with a ''yes''. [Deducting 100 gold] [You must go outside to check the dress in a full mirror] Even though it was absurd, I still nodded and decided to go out. Enzo was waiting for me outside sitting on the couch and sipping on a cup of tea. "You look radiating. I liked the other dress better since it resonated with your cute looks better." He said summing up his thoughts on both of my dresses. I had decided to throw all the emotions out the window and had taken up the stance of ''what can be the worst thing that can happen anymore anyways''. Deciding to be bold and decisive, I nodded and turned around to go back to the changing room as I sighed in relief that the quest was finally complete. <> [Description: Try two out of the three outfits. (2/2 completed)] [Rewards: Gold +10, unlock stat ¡®fashion¡¯] <> [The following rewards have been deposited. ] [Rewards]
  1. 500 coins
  2. ''Fashion'' unlocked.
I took a deep breath and changed back into the blue and white striped full blouse and pink skirt. I still did not have a bra and I could feel my breasts straining against the fabric of the blouse. Luckily, the blouse was of good quality. I checked in the mirror and made sure that my nipples were not noticeable. Brushing the dress down and making sure I looked proper before heading out. Enzo came over and asked me if I was interested in any of the dresses that I tried. "Since I could not be bothered to deal with my sister who will nag me if I did not purchase anything, just pack the two dresses I tried." I shifted the blame to my sister shamelessly, burying my own desire to purchase them deep in my heart. He nodded and went to pick up the dress I left behind in the changing room. "Please come up here on the pedestal, I need to measure your body to make them fit perfectly." He said and motioned towards the circular pedestal in the center. "You don''t have to bother, they fit me fine. Just pack them as is." I replied anxiously hoping for no new quests to be triggered. He frowned, "I know you look down on me, laughing at my dressing style and ignoring me all along today. I get it, you don''t like me. It is fine. But this is my job and I take it very seriously. All these dresses are custom-made and hand-tailored for every single patron. It would be embarrassing and damaging to my reputation if I just gave out a dress without proper fitting. So, if you want to buy the dresses, you have to come and get them properly fitted." and said emotionally. I had already decided to not shy away and face the system head-on for now. So despite my lacking bra, I nodded, dropped my heels, and went over to stand in the middle of the pedestal. Enzo came over with a measuring tape and started measuring. Getting to my breasts which were obviously wobbling around due to the lack of bra. He met my eyes as I felt his hand coming in contact with my naked breasts which were now separated by a single piece of clothing. "Did you drop the bra entirely?" I stayed silent to his comment, so he continued, "To be honest, that bra did not do justice to you anyways. Pushups might suit you better, and If you are looking for comfortable, I can always find one that works the best for you. I can also help you with your custom wardrobe. You can find me whenever you want. I am not saying that I am the best designer around, but I am definitely one of the best." he said proudly. He finished measuring my bust, the underbust, the arm circumference, the shoulders length, and several measurements that I am not sure how or why they were needed. But, I had to commend him that he never tried to do anything funny. Even though he came in contact with my breasts, lifted, and moved them around for various measurements, one thing he never did was be inappropriate. He was very vocal about what he was going to do next and was very professional and fast with the measurements making me think of him in a new light. He then kneeled and took the measurements of the waist and thighs. I was uncomfortable, but his sturdy confidence helped me a lot. After we were done, I got down. He picked up the clothes and told me that he will send them to my place on Wednesday. If I wanted the suit dress, I could pick it up tomorrow or he can get it delivered. However he would be making the babydoll dress from scratch because of my big breasts. "I am sorry if it makes you comfortable but I just had to say that I could not help but notice that your nipples are erect. If you are planning on going without a bra, you can consider pasties. Of course, you can go without them and I prefer my models without them anyways." He dropped a bombshell on me and left. I picked up my purse and followed him. 6. A Mirror (End of part ONE) My sister was waiting for me in the lobby. "Did you choose the dresses?" She asked shifting glances between Enzo and me. I nodded, and took a seat on the couch. My mind was preoccupied with a lot of things and the dresses were the least of my concerns. "I am going to pay for it, it''s my congratulatory gift." "Thanks," I replied without thinking much. We left the shop and decided to return home. The shopping trip was aborted halfway because of the incident earlier and my obvious bad mood which cannot be hidden from my very perceptive sister. The ride home was uneventful, we talked a little about random things in our daily lives and the future. I am not sure if she noticed my lack of bra or not. But, it was not mentioned once, and I was content with that outcome. There were a lot of things that needed to be done, but now that I was sure of the fact that I was not hallucinating and this system was as the real deal. Everything else took a backseat. The first order of priority was to learn and understand about whatever case scenario was I was part of and how to make sure that it does not affect my life any longer. Elena was waiting for us and offered to cook anything of my liking. I politely declined her gracious offer and took an apple and a bottle of juice to my room. Securing the locks on the door and closing the curtains, I made sure that everything was in place and I would not be interrupted. I took out an old notebook and a pen and made myself comfortable on the bed. It took me a while to understand how to record voice on the phone but eventually I got there- the recording was on. It was time to get to the crux of the matter. I took the mirror covered in the cloth and set it in front of me. ''System'' let''s talk, one on one. My heart was about to come out of my throat as I waited in anticipation. Sweat trickled down the sides of my temple as a notification came up. <> [This decision is irreversible. Please think carefully.] Thinking about the pros and cons for a while, I decided that uncovering the secrets of the Mirror was far more important than anything that might happen because of abandoning the tutorial. That being said, I had prepared well enough for unforeseen events. Yes. I rubbed my hands in anxiety waiting for something to happen. A few seconds passed and the mirror in front of me started to shake vigorously. I jumped in fright and for reasons unknown decided to just stop it for shaking anymore by pressing down on it. The temperature in the room dropped, or maybe it was my fright, but my hairs stood on the end as mist engulfed the room. The mirror started shining brightly again like it did last night. However, it did not stop but continued shining for a few seconds. I closed my eyes because of the blinding light. After a while, the lights stopped and I opened my eyes to see a person sitting in front of me. It took me a moment for my eyes to adjust. When I saw the person in front of me, I almost got a heart attack. The person in front of me was, me! The face, the clothes, the body, everything was just as same as me. It was like I was looking into a mirror. Multiple questions flooded my mind as I sat there looking at a person who was just a mirror image of me. "Who...Who are you?" I asked fearfully. "Me? I am you." came a cold piercing voice. However, it sounded exactly like me. "What is going on here? Stop playing jokes and go back to your original form." I thought that it was some sort of supernatural thing playing tricks on me. "I am you, and you are me. We are the same people. If you are real, then so am I." Flabbergasted, I tried to touch the other me. Just as I was about to touch the skin, my hands went through it. It was like air, cold, but non-existent. The shadow laughed and looked at me with an amused expression. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon."I am the you in the mirror oh fool! I am what you tried to repress. I am what you wanted but you never achieved. I am a part of you, and without me, you would not exist, just like without you, I won''t." She said as a matter of fact. "I have no idea what you are talking about." Everything felt something straight out of a horror science fiction movie. I took a peek at my mobile making sure that it was still recording everything. "Go ahead, check if it is still recording. We can take selfies too if you want." I was terrified oh how confident of things this other me was. "Shall we talk or are you going to keep being a scared little girl?" she asked seriously. I gulped and nodded. I wanted answers, and If this thing in front of me can give them, then so be it. The shadow smiled and continued, "You should remember this well since this is the only time we are separated. I don''t know when we will get this chance again or what will become of me, after all, I am a physical form of your desires. If your desires change, so will I." Looking at my confused expression, she continued, "This mirror, I don''t know where you got it from, or what it is. What I know, is that I am a part of you, so I won''t harm you. I am just a representation of your desires and needs. From what I understand, I was separated from you last night for a moment and I learned about some things. This place is a mirror copy of our real world. This world exists inside this mirror and there is a fundamental rule governing this world." She gave me a moment to take all of that information and process it. "Please continue." I requested of her. "The Mirror world is governed by the rule that whoever enters this place must realize their deepest rooted desires. These desires might be anything, from getting rich, to getting married. From becoming a celebrity to turning into a detective. Anything is possible because the rules inside the mirror force upon you to achieve them." "How is making me go on a run, and asking me to take off my bra completing my desires?" I asked. "I know it and so do you. You wanted to be like your sister. Pretty and confident. Did you not know that you wanted to remove the bra when you first wore the dress? I know that you wanted to remove it, but you decided to hide that desire and that is why the system did it for you." "Nonsense!" I said, trying to retort to that shameless statement. "There is no point in pretending because I am also you. I know exactly what you want. Did you not want to be fit and beautiful like your sister? Were you not excited and on the edge the whole time you were braless? We were enjoying every moment of it. The rules of the system are not evil. If you got a quest, it probably means that deep down, you wanted it." I stayed silent this time. I was shy, but not dumb. I knew very well the effect those dresses had on me. "We enjoyed it, didn''t we? It was fun when Enzo was measuring us with the tape." The shadow said in a teasing voice. "Enough!, It''s my turn to ask questions," I said trying to stop this embarrassing talk. "Go, on... Although it won''t matter since I only know what you already know. And the things I learned about the mirror just now, will become a part of you too when I return to you." "If you say that we are the same thing, then why do you know all this, and I don''t?" I tried to connect the dots. "Because I am the mirror. Or in better terms, I am being used by the mirror to explain to you the rules. Ask away all you want." The first and the most important question in my mind since the morning. "How do I end all of this?" "You already know this. Embrace your inner self. Let go of yourself and your inhibitions and enjoy the life to your heart''s content without any restrictions. That is what this world is made for. Finishing the main quest-line means that you have embraced yourself completely. At that point, you will have a decision to make." "A decision?" "Yes, since this mirror is broken, the spirit inside of it is gone. This world is still being governed by the rules established, but it has no owner. When you do complete the main quest-line, you can either return to the other world or you can choose to become the owner of this one." This was a lot of information to take in, but I decided to explore the options more. "What happens when I return to the real world?" "Since I am the spirit of the mirror, and I am using your desires as a body to talk to you, as soon as you leave the mirror world without an owner, it will collapse and cease to exist. If you choose to become the owner, you will be able to move between the worlds anytime you feel like. It is too soon to think about these things because not many people can complete the main quest-line. If I was not about to perish, you could have moved to and fro too. Sadly, I won''t be able to last long and you are stuck here until you reach the end." said the shadow in front of me. "I see. So what happens to the spirit of the mirror? I am just on my last legs, and I am using my last bits of energy to convey all this information to you since you are the only one here, I don''t have much choice in the department of choosing successors." "What about the system?" "The world will exist even without me, the only thing that will be sacrificed will be the gate that connects the worlds; The Mirror. Anyways, My time is up. Hold on to that mirror, it was your way in, and is also your only way out." The mist in the room receded and the room returned to the normal stillness. The only things that were not normal were my rapidly beating heart and the poor confused brain. <> [Since the tutorial was ended halfway, the player has been given a rest period till the start of the next weekly quest.] [The next quest reset happens at 06:00 on Monday.] [No new quests found.] I lied down in the bed and covered myself up with the quilt and cried for a while. I never asked for this and being forced to do all this was scary. What was worse that I did not have anyone to share this trauma with. This world was not a parallel world, but the same world. My family was still the same, and everything looked right. But was it really fine? Hours passed, and I was finally woken up by my dad who came early and prepared dinner for us. I went to sleep early that night. The next day was also uneventful. I got a mission to go for a run, which I did. I dare not go against the system. What was even more baffling was the fact that every single quest by the system made me uncomfortable or shy, but I never hated any of it. I had the whole night to think about it and I did come to terms with myself that I enjoyed every single moment of it. I wanted to look better, I wanted to wear those nice clothes, and I enjoyed the attention I got. I never knew I would like all those things, since I was just someone whose world belong inside the books, but here we are, at the crossroads. The road I take in the future might lead to a different destination than I had planned, But I was hoping for it to be worth it. I spent the rest of the day with my family and enjoyed a sumptuous dinner before taking my car and heading back to my apartment in the city. The university started tomorrow. Also, a new week which meant that the system would be giving out a new quest. I did not know what was waiting for me in the future. But I had decided to take a leap of faith and go along it because If I could not change the scenery, then I might as well enjoy the view in front of me. *****END OF ARC ONE*****