Chapter 436:Early morning.

Chapter 436: 436:Early morning.

Silver woke before his alarm.

For several seconds he remained still beneath the blanket, staring at the dark ceiling of his dorm room while the quiet breathing of the other three occupants filled the room around him. The windows were still dark, and only the faint lights from the academy grounds reached through the curtains.

He felt different, that was the first thing he noticed, cleaner.

He slowly sat up, but nothing hurt. He rolled his shoulders, no stiffness. He twisted his torso, nothing from his ribs. He extended one leg and bent the knee, no lingering pain.

Silver paused... Then pressed his fingers against the areas that had been injured most severely after Death Row Valley.

Nothing.

His body was fully healed.

Between the medicine, rest, Iron Bones, Primal Strength, his naturally improved physical condition and whatever effect the attribute increase had produced overnight, the last traces of his injuries had disappeared.

Silver smiled.

"Finally."

Antony shifted in his bed.

Silver immediately went quiet.

He checked the time.

05:07.

Ravenna wanted breakfast at six fifteen.

That gave him an hour.

He changed quietly into academy training clothes, grabbed his water bottle and shoes, then left Room 314 without waking anyone, although he wasn’t that keen in observing the dark roo..

The corridor outside was surprisingly active. Several students were already leaving their rooms in training clothes, and one boy Silver recognized from another first-year class was doing stretches beside the stairwell.

Silver looked at him and the boy looked back, but neither spoke. Apparently they had both independently decided suffering before sunrise was a good idea.

He headed downstairs.

The morning air was cold enough to immediately wake whatever parts of him still wanted sleep.

The Academy looked different this early; quiet.

The enormous training grounds weren’t empty, but the usual noise of hundreds of students had disappeared. Lamps illuminated the roads between dormitories and academic buildings, while the eastern horizon was only beginning to brighten.

Silver started slowly running. He deliberately didn’t use Primal Strength beyond its passive effect.

His body responded immediately.

He increased the pace, and his breathing remained steady. He had another increase and was still comfortable.

He frowned.

The difference between Endurance thirty-one and thirty-six didn’t look enormous on the status screen but it felt enormous now.

Agility made his stride smoother and strength made acceleration easier. Even small corrections in balance felt almost immediate.

Silver ran around the outer dormitory route, passing several older students before eventually joining one of the designated morning running tracks.

He wasn’t alone.

Dozens of academy students were already there. Some ran individually while others moved in groups.

A few older students wore weighted vests. One particularly miserable-looking group was running while carrying training rifles overhead.

Silver decided not to ask although he did stare bluntly at them until one of them scowled at him before he turned his gaze awkwardly to someone else.

He completed several laps, then several more. By the time he stopped, sweat covered his forehead and shirt. But he wasn’t exhausted, not even close.

Silver checked the time.

05:34.

Dorm gym.

He headed inside.

The male residential gym was already busy. That surprised him more than the runners.

Students occupied most of the weight stations, and several older Contractors were performing exercises Silver didn’t recognize. One section contained reinforced machines clearly designed for people whose physical strength exceeded ordinary human limits.

Silver walked toward an empty station, then stopped. Someone was already there.

Dillian.

Silver stared in a bit of shock. Dillian looked over after sensing his gaze.

Neither seemed particularly pleased about accidentally meeting their roommate before sunrise.

Dillian finished his repetition and sat up.

"I heard you leave."

Silver looked around.

"I thought I was quite. Funny seeing you here?"

"I usually train early."

"So do I now."

Dillian raised an eyebrow.

"Since when?" He asked, almost jokingly.

Silver thought for a few seconds before responding.

"Today."

Dillian laughed quietly.

He moved to the next station. They trained separately, without any competition, at least not officially.

Silver started with lighter resistance. His body felt too different for him to immediately test maximum output.

That turned out to be the correct decision.

The first set felt almost absurdly easy, so he increased the resistance. Again, it was still easy. He increased it considerably.

Better.

Across from him, Dillian noticed and Silver noticed him noticing. Neither commented and went about their day.

Silver continued.

His body had changed more than he realized.

Primal Strength Lv3 combined with Strength made exercises that would have challenged him before feel ordinary. But Peter’s baseline lesson remained in his mind.

This wasn’t a test, so he didn’t need to prove anything. He concentrated on controlled repetitions; proper form and full movement without any wasted effort.

A student nearby loaded too much weight onto a reinforced press and immediately regretted it.

His friend laughed.

Silver smiled.

Some things truly didn’t change.

He moved through strength exercises before switching to mobility and flexibility work.

That mattered more.

His spatial abilities made it easy to neglect ordinary movement.

Peter had already exposed that.

Short-Step could move Silver ten times faster than his legs ever would. That didn’t mean his legs stopped mattering.

By the time he finished, the gym had become noticeably busier. There were first-years, older students and several academy personnel.

Nobody seemed particularly interested in anyone else’s family name or leadership ranking at five in the morning.

Everyone was simply training which he liked.

He checked the time.

06:02.

He needed a shower.

Dillian was leaving too so they walked toward the stairs.

Dillian glanced toward him.

"Your injuries are gone."

Silver looked himself over.

"You noticed?"

"You were favoring your left side yesterday."

Silver hadn’t realized that.

"Fully healed this morning," he happily said, although his outward gaze remained impassive.

Dillian nodded.

"Good."

That was all.

Silver appreciated it, he didn’t need to be interrogation about them.

They returned upstairs each lost in their thoughts.

Antony was awake when they entered. He looked from both of them to the clock, then both to them again his expression changing too fast for Silver to fully comprehend.

"You went to the gym," he asked, as he started to stretch.

Silver grabbed a towel.

"Yes," he responded.

"Voluntarily?"

Dillian walked past him.

"Yes."

Antony looked personally betrayed.

"Both of you?"

Jude was already awake and sitting at his desk.

He didn’t look up.

"Some people exercise, Antony."

"I exercise all the time."

"When instructors force you."

"Still counts."

Silver laughed and headed toward the shower.

---

At six fifteen, Ravenna was already waiting outside.

Silver saw her before she saw him. She had her white hair tied back, a clean pressed academy uniform, the sword case on her back and a book tucked beneath one arm.

She looked far more prepared for the day than anyone had a right to look before sunrise.

Silver approached her. She turned around the moment she heard his footsteps.

Her eyes immediately moved over him, then narrowed.

"What?" Silver asked.

She stepped closer.

"Your shoulder."

He moved it while his lips curved into a smile.

"What about it?"

"Yesterday you were still holding it slightly differently."

Silver smiled.

"Gone."

Ravenna stared.

"Completely?"

"Completely."

"What about your ribs?"

"Fine."

"Leg?"

"Fine."

"You’re not lying?"

Silver raised both hands.

"Do you want to inspect me?"

Ravenna looked down his body.

Silver smiled.

She realized what she’d done and her eyes returned to his face with a small blush climbing up her neck.

"I meant your injuries."

"I didn’t say anything."

"You were thinking it."

"Probably."

Ravenna hit his arm lightly and Silver laughed.

She grabbed his wrist before he could move away, her expression becoming serious again.

"You’re really healed?"

"Yes."

She studied him.

He squeezed her hand reassuringly.

"Fully."

Her shoulders relaxed.

"Finally."

The word carried considerably more emotion than she probably intended.

Silver understood her worry. He leaned forward and kissed her forehead.

Ravenna smiled, then immediately stepped back.

"Breakfast."

Silver stood there and just stared at her.

"That’s it?"

"You wanted something else?"

"Didn’t you miss me?"

"It’s only be less than eight hours, stop being dramatic."

"I feel like that should buy me more affection... we’re inseparable."

She started walking, a small giggle following after her.

Silver followed.

"You already received plenty," she said.

He almost laughed.

She had absolutely no idea how literally true that was.

Twenty thousand eight hundred and seventy-three Affection Points.

He caught up.

"Actually, I need to tell you something later."

Ravenna immediately looked at him.

"The system?"

Silver nodded.

Her eyes widened.

"It’s back?"

"Last night."

"And you waited until now?"

"I was surrounded by three roommates."

"Is everything okay?"

"Better than okay."

Ravenna slowed.

Silver shook his head.

"Later."

She stared without moving.

"You can’t say that and then expect me not to ask."

"I received a lot."

"How much?"

Silver smiled.

"A lot."

"Silver."

"Breakfast first."

She glared at him. He laughed but didn’t say anything else.

She didn’t hold his hand as they continued.

Mostly because she was carrying her book in one hand and adjusting the sword case with the other.

Silver noticed that neither of them automatically corrected the situation. It felt normal, comfortable.

They didn’t need constant physical contact to prove yesterday hadn’t disappeared.

When they reached the cafeteria, Ravenna bumped her shoulder lightly against his and Silver bumped hers back.

That was enough.