Winter continued quietly and the days settled into a comfortable rhythm, each one blending naturally into the next.
Every morning before sunrise, Atheline could be found somewhere within the palace grounds, either practicing archery beneath the falling snow or refining the control of his six elemental affinities.
Some mornings he trained alone, chasing an ideal only he could see. Other mornings the lilith joined him, correcting a stance here, offering a suggestion there, or simply pushing him until every muscle protested.
The System updated him only occasionally; twenty-five percent then twenty-six but the numbers rose painfully slowly.
Yet each increase came with noticeable changes. His recovery improved. His Aether flowed more smoothly. The oppressive feeling of the sealed EX-rank power gradually became less foreign, as though his body was slowly learning to coexist with it instead of resisting it.
