Chapter 40: A Real Husband
Soren exhaled in relief.
His pathways were clean. His Core stability was optimal. Nothing had cracked, nothing had scattered. For a breakthrough as violent as that had been, the condition of everything inside him was frankly immaculate.
Then his eyes landed on the Mana Capacity.
’...50,000.’
He stared at it for a moment.
’...That’s insane.’
From what he knew, an average Second Circle Awakened possessed around twenty thousand units of mana, with the exceptionally talented reaching at most thirty thousand. His own capacity was 50,000.
While he lacked the perspective to judge how others would rank his genius, the implications for his own path were clear. Starting with such a massive reservoir secured a stronger foundation, raising both his immediate potential and his ultimate ceiling.
Yes, it would take longer to fill. Yes, breaking through to the Third Circle would require far more effort than it would for someone with a smaller capacity.
But it was worth it.
A hundred times worth it.
Besides, it hasn’t even been two weeks since he started cultivating.
And yet...
He was already in the Second Circle!
At this rate, his plans about getting stronger faster weren’t just foolish dreams. They were actually achievable.
’Hehe.’ His gaze drifted across the dark room, landing on the silhouette in the bed. She was facing the ceiling again, her breathing quiet and even, probably asleep now.
His lips curled upward into a determined smile.
’I will definitely save you.’
He closed the status window and leaned back against the futon, finally letting exhaustion pull him under.
Tomorrow, everything would begin again.
_____ ___ _
The night passed without any incident.
Soren woke to morning light filtering through the window, realizing he had slept through the night without waking once. He lay still for a moment, simply enjoying the rare sensation of being fully rested.
As he sat up, he noticed the change immediately. His body felt lighter and more responsive than ever before. Breathing came easier, his muscles were relaxed, and everything seemed to work just a bit better than yesterday.
Even his Mana circulation, which he tested with a brief internal check, flowed effortlessly compared to the strain it had carried before the breakthrough.
He then rolled his shoulders and gently flexed his hands, assessing his condition. For a moment, he felt the desire to test it thoroughly, to go outside, challenge himself, and find out how much had changed overnight.
However, he let the feeling pass, aware that the anonymous enemies were still out there, watching. If he showed strength beyond what his previous self should have, they would notice.
The warning call had been clear enough. He had no desire to see what followed if he ignored it.
Under the circumstances, keeping a low profile remained his best option. Hunters who grew too quickly or drew too much attention rarely lasted long. Worse, their mistakes usually dragged everyone around them into the line of fire.
Ethea’s safety was his responsibility now, and that meant he could not afford to be careless.
The decision came easily. He would spend the next two days at home, staying away from Gates and missions to avoid any unnecessary risks. Instead, he would focus on quiet cultivation to stabilize his new foundation, giving his body the time it needed to fully adapt.
To anyone watching, his absence would appear to be a period of recovery after yesterday’s ordeal. It was a perfectly sensible excuse for a rookie hunter who had nearly died in a Gate, and no one would think twice about it.
Soren nodded to himself. That settled that.
Then his gaze drifted toward the bed.
Ethea was still asleep, her hair spread across the pillow. The morning light from the window caught her face and made her look even younger somehow, the usual tension in her features smoothed away by sleep.
He watched her for a moment, and a different thought surfaced in his mind.
He had been so focused on getting stronger, on earning money, on figuring out how to save her, that he had let something important slip away.
That... he was not being a good husband.
Sure, he provided for her, kept her safe, made sure she had food and shelter, and that someone cared for her. But those were the basics. The minimum.
That was not the same as being a real husband.
A real husband was more than just a provider.
A real husband shared his life with his wife. He spent time with her. He did not let her sit in the same apartment day after day, watching the world through a window while he chased after other things.
And...
Ethea had been confined to these four walls for as long as he had known her, and probably long before that. The same ceiling, the same garden view, the same narrow routine cycling through day after day.
He had noticed this days ago and promised himself he would change it. But then the raids had demanded his attention, followed by intense training sessions and the frantic rush toward his breakthrough, pushing the thought to the back of his mind.
But not anymore!
Today, he was going to take her out!
He would let her see the world beyond these walls. He wanted her to feel the unfiltered warmth of the sun and breathe air that was actually free, rather than trapped within their small courtyard.
It did not matter whether she could not walk or could barely speak. Even if she only sat in her wheelchair and watched the passing crowds, it would be a start.
That was still better than remaining trapped in this house day after day.
Soren felt a firm resolve settle in his chest.
’Yes. Today’s the day.’
But...
There was one tiny problem.
He...
He didn’t know where exactly to take her.
A park seemed like the most obvious choice, but he worried she might find it boring. Would someone who had been cooped up inside for so long really care about looking at grass and trees?
An amusement park felt like too much of a leap. The loud crowds and constant movement would probably overwhelm her, turning a nice day out into a stressful ordeal.
A restaurant felt too ordinary, almost like their daily routine at home but under a different roof. He considered other options. A movie theater? A café by the river?
He then recalled a botanical garden he had spotted on the city map, and even thought about a museum or a simple walk around the neighborhood. He ran through every possibility, weighing the pros and cons of each.
Yet none of them felt right.
He sat staring at the bedroom door, realizing he was approaching the problem from the wrong angle.
The question was not where he should take her.
The question was...