Chapter 30| The Assumed Hero Leaves Early

Chapter 30: Chapter 30| The Assumed Hero Leaves Early

Zane opened his eyes to find Dex already dressed.

Not in his usual casual gear or training kit. Something else entirely. A fitted tactical suit. Dark navy, structured across the shoulders, the NSA emblem stitched cleanly above the left chest. Hero assignment gear. The real thing.

Zane sat up and checked his communicator.

6:00 AM.

He looked at Dex again.

"Foreign for you to be up this early," Zane said.

Dex was checking something on his communicator with the focused efficiency of someone who had already been awake for a while and was running through a pre-departure checklist. He glanced over.

"Got an assignment today," he said. "Heading out now."

"What kind?" Zane asked.

"Active response." Dex tucked his communicator into his jacket. "Could be two days. Could be three. Depends how long it takes to wrap up." He looked at Zane. "Your rank trials are in three days. I might make it back in time."

Zane looked at him.

"Take your time," Zane said. "Don’t rush back on my account."

Dex nodded once. Then looked down at his outfit and back at Zane with the easy energy of someone who was about to say something and knew it was going to land.

"The fit though," Dex said. "To be honest , I’m charming, aren’t I?"

Zane looked at the tactical suit. Fitted well. Clean lines. The NSA emblem sitting exactly where it was supposed to.

"It works," Zane said.

"It works," Zane said.

Dex looked down at the tactical suit then back up with the satisfied expression of someone who had been waiting for that confirmation.

He picked up his mission bag from the floor.

Zane looked at the NSA emblem above the chest. "When do I get mine?"

Dex laughed. Short and genuine. "Training gear or uniforms until after rank trials. You’re not actual NSA students until the trials are done." He gestured at his own outfit. "Until then. This is above your clearance."

"Fair enough," Zane said.

Dex swung the bag over his shoulder and moved toward the door. Then stopped.

"Oh," he said. Turned back with the expression of someone who had just remembered something important. "Seems like you haven’t seen me actually kicking bad guys around in action yet." He paused for effect. "I’m top tier. Just so you know."

Zane looked at him.

’He has a C-rank Impact Breaker Sigil,’ Zane thought. ’The same one I’ve been running for three weeks. The one I know better than he probably does at this point.’

He almost said that.

Didn’t.

"When you get back," Zane said instead, "you can show me the ropes."

Dex pointed at him. "Deal."

He pushed through the door.

"Until then," Dex said from the corridor.

The door closed.

Zane sat in the quiet of room 714 for a moment.

Gerald wheezed.

’Top tier,’ Zane thought.

Then something else surfaced quietly behind that thought.

’Wait.’

He sat up straighter.

’I leveled up Overdrive through familiarity progression with Maren. Output jumped from 40% to 60% when she crossed the acquaintance threshold.’ He paused. ’But Impact Breaker. Dex’s familiarity is at....’

He pulled up the stat.

『 FAMILIARITY — DEX: 31% 』

『 Impact Breaker — Current Output: 40% — STRANGER TIER 』

『 Acquaintance threshold: 35% 』

’31%,’ he thought. ’Four percent from the threshold. Four percent from Impact Breaker jumping to 60% output.’

He stared at the notification.

’How did I not think about this,’ he thought. ’I’ve been drilling Impact Breaker every single day at 40% ceiling when the ceiling was four percent of familiarity away from jumping.’

『 You were focused on activation speed. Output ceiling improvement through familiarity requires social investment rather than physical training. The two development tracks are separate. 』

’Dex just left for two to three days,’ Zane thought. ’Which means I have three days until trials and no way to push his familiarity the remaining four percent before he gets back.’

『 Correct. Unless he returns before trial day. 』

’Which he said might not happen,’ Zane thought.

He looked at the closed door.

’Top tier,’ he thought again. ’And I’m sitting here four percent short of his ceiling because I forgot familiarity affects output.’

Gerald wheezed like it was commenting on his life choices.

Zane got up, pulled on his training gear and headed out.

Zane arrived at the training grounds at exactly 6:20 AM.

Maren was already on the pad when he got there. Something was different this morning.

Not dramatically. Just...she was more herself than yesterday. The slight off-balance quality that had been sitting underneath everything since the training grounds incident had shifted fractionally. She still wasn’t entirely back to her default but she was closer to it than she’d been in two days.

She glanced up when he crossed the grounds toward their corner.

"You’re late," she said.

"By forty seconds," Zane replied.

"Forty seconds is forty seconds," she said. And went back to her drill.

Zane almost smiled.

’There she is,’ he thought.’The scolding girl I know’. He smirked.

He dropped his bag at the edge of the pad and moved to the reinforced wall. The daily quest had dropped at 6:05 AM.

『 DAILY TRAINING QUEST 』

『 Objective: Complete 50 Impact Breaker activation reps 』

『 Reward: Activation speed +0.03 seconds 』

『 Penalty: None 』

Palm flat. Pressure. Intent. Contained.

0.88 seconds.

0.88 again.

Rep 25. 0.88 seconds.

Rep 40. 0.88.

Rep 50.

『 DAILY QUEST COMPLETE 』

『 Reward: Impact Breaker — Activation speed +0.03 seconds 』

『 Current activation time: 0.85 seconds 』

He walked back to the pad.

Maren had moved into her precision drills. The ones she ran when she was recalibrating something specific rather than building general output. Shorter bursts. More controlled. Like she was filing something back into order.

They ran parallel for twenty minutes without speaking.

Maren paused her drill briefly and glanced at the empty space beside them.

"Where’s that friend of yours," she said. "I think his name is... Kael?"

"Probably running his own session somewhere," Zane said.

She nodded and went back to her rep.

Zane glanced at her.

She was still looking forward. Still drilling. But the corner of her mouth had moved slightly in a direction that wasn’t quite neutral.

’Was that..’ he thought.

’Did she just..’

He looked forward again.

’Don’t examine it,’ he thought.

『 Too late. Familiarity noted the exchange. 』

’I said don’t,’ Zane thought.

『 I don’t take instructions. Only issue them. 』

The session ended at 7:15 AM. Maren picked up her bag with the usual efficiency. Looked at him once. Properly, directly, the second time in two days she’d done it without it being functional.

"Just a few days countdown," she said.

"Three days specifically ," Zane replied.

She walked out without the half-step pause this time.