Chapter 439:Revelations.

Chapter 439: 439:Revelations.

Silver discovered very quickly that running away from Ravenna without using Short-Step only worked when Peter was standing on the other side of the training field.

Ravenna caught up with him before they reached the conditioning area, but instead of doing anything dramatic, she simply walked beside him with a look that promised the conversation had been delayed rather than forgotten. Silver found that considerably more threatening.

Physical conditioning gave him an excellent excuse.

Peter had already informed the class that the baseline assessment existed specifically so the academy could identify what each student needed rather than forcing thirty-one completely different Contractors through identical development programs, and the difference became obvious almost immediately.

Students still trained together, but instructors adjusted resistance, repetitions, distances and restrictions according to individual records.

Silver’s medical restriction disappeared after a quick examination confirmed what he’d already discovered that morning.

He was fully healed, so there was no reason to hold back. But that did not mean Peter allowed him to enjoy himself.

"Ruddington, you’re running."

He looked toward the weighted equipment.

"I thought we were doing strength."

"You are doing endurance," Peter responded.

"My strength score was higher."

"Which is why you’re doing endurance," Peter shut him down.

He opened his mouth to argue further but Peter pointed toward the track.

He ran.

Ravenna smiled as he passed.

"Enjoy yourself," she smugly said, a smirk on her lips.

Silver looked toward her.

"You’re coming too."

Her smile disappeared when another instructor pointed her toward the same track.

He laughed out loud. She caught him within the first lap.

Neither used abilities... That was the rule.

Just their bodies.

Ravenna remained naturally faster.

Silver had improved enormously, particularly after last night’s attribute increase, but Ravenna’s running technique was cleaner and she had spent considerably longer training her body without relying on unusual movement abilities.

She passed him on the third lap.

Silver stared at her back. Ravenna glanced over her shoulder and smirked.

That was unnecessary.

Silver increased his pace but she also increased hers.

Peter’s voice came from the side of the track.

"If either of you turns my conditioning session into a race, you’re both doing another five kilometers."

Both immediately slowed.

Ravenna looked straight ahead and Silver also looked straight ahead.

Helena, running several meters behind them, laughed.

Their first proper week at Alpha Three had begun.

---

Silver did, in fact, explain everything after class plus what had happened in Death Row valley.

It took considerably longer than he expected, mostly because Ravenna refused to let him skip over anything.

They had found one of the quieter outdoor training areas after dinner, far enough from the main buildings that only a handful of students occasionally passed along the nearby path, and Silver had chosen a bench beneath one of the artificial lights while Ravenna sat beside him with her sword case resting against her leg.

He started with death row and its horrors followed by the system returning, then explained the accumulated rewards, his expanded storage and finally the fact that his physical condition had completely recovered by morning.

Ravenna listened quietly while occasionally asking questions but she was mostky supportive until he reached the attribute distribution.

Then she stared at him her eyrs narrowing.

"You spent all thirty immediately."

Silver looked at her. "I knew what I wanted."

"You received thirty points and immediately shoved all of them into your attributes immediately afterwards. Didn’t keep some for emergencies... oh, and this you think about what would happen if you do that to your body?"

"When you say it that way, it sounds irresponsible."

"It was irresponsible."

"It worked."

Ravenna’s expression flattened. "You are going to stop using ’it worked’ as evidence that something was a good idea. You survived falling underground with a Rank Six beast. By your logic, jumping into holes is now a proven survival strategy."

Silver considered that.

"That’s a surprisingly convincing argument."

"I know."

He smiled and leaned back against the bench. "I’m fine. Better than fine, actually. My body adjusted overnight, and whatever was left from Death Row Valley completely healed."

"I noticed."

"You inspected me enough this morning."

Ravenna just sighed exceptionally loud.

Silver smiled.

She ignored that and returned to the more important subject. "Show me the core."

He glanced around first and reached into storage. The core appeared against his palm.

It was slightly larger than a walnut, dark brown at the center with irregular bronze lines running through its surface.

The lines seemed almost metallic beneath the academy lights, and even after everything that had happened since Silver acquired it, the core looked unnaturally fresh.

Ravenna leaned closer.

"This is the Tier Two?"

"Yes."

"Do you remember what beast it came from?"

"Not clearly enough to trust my memory."

That was no longer a problem.

Silver concentrated and insight activated.

[Insight Lv2 Activated.]

A translucent interface appeared above the core.

[Beast Core Identified]

Name: Ironback crusher Ape

Tier: 2

Classification: Strength-Type Beast

Primary Characteristic: Muscular Reinforcement

Secondary Characteristic: Impact Resistance

Potential Integration Trait: Ironback Strength

Compatibility Analysis: Moderate-High

Preservation Condition: Excellent

Characteristic Degradation: 0%

Silver’s eyebrows rose slightly.

Ravenna couldn’t see the interface, but she knew his expression well enough to understand he’d found something.

"What?"

"Ironback Crusher Ape."

Ravenna looked down at the core.

"That sounds ugly."

He laughed. "You asked for strength, not beauty."

"I still have standards."

"It’s a beast core. You’re not marrying it."

She elbowed him.

He chuckled and continued reading.

"Tier Two strength-type beast. Primary characteristic is muscular reinforcement. Secondary is impact resistance. Potential integration trait is called Ironback Strength."

Ravenna’s interest immediately returned.

"That sounds useful."

"It is."

"How compatible?"

"Moderate-high."

She nodded slowly.

That wasn’t bad.

Silver rotated the core between his fingers.

"The preservation is perfect too. Zero degradation."

Ravenna looked toward him. "Your storage really kept everything?"

"Apparently."

"Then I could integrate it."

"You could."

She held out her hand but he didn’t give it to her.

She looked at him.

"What?" She asked.

Silver stared at the core.

Tier Two.

Three weeks ago, that would have been a very reasonable choice, even now it wasn’t bad.

Ravenna was Rank 1, but her Soul Capacity was nineteen. Her ability to integrate and develop beast power was extraordinary. A strength-oriented Tier Two core could give her exactly the foundation she wanted.

But Silver had twenty thousand eight hundred and seventy-three AP, and Advanced Shop Access, plus he hadn’t spent anything yet.

She noticed the change in his expression.

"No."

He looked at her, his eyes filled with innocence.

"I haven’t even said anything."

"You got that face."

"What face?"

"The one you get immediately before doing something stupid."

Silver laughed. "You haven’t seen me spend enough points to recognize a face."

"I’ve seen you long enough to recognize when you’re about to do something."

Silver looked back at the Ironback Crusher Ape core, then he opened the Happiness System shop.

Ravenna sighed.

"Silver."

"I’m just looking."

"You already have a suitable core."

"A Tier Two core."

"Which you just said has moderate-high compatibility."

"Exactly."

Ravenna frowned. "Exactly what?"

"Moderate-high, I want everything to be perfect for you."

Silver began searching.

The Advanced Shop was dramatically different from the previous version.