Chapter 87: The First Normal Day

The next morning, Reinhard was standing in the kitchen when the familiar notification appeared before his eyes.

[Investment Opportunity Available.]

[Target: Emily Ashcroft.]

[Current Rank: D-Rank.]

[Current Value: E.]

[Objective: Treat Emily as an independent person.]

[Difficulty Grade: D.]

[Success Probability: 15%.]

Reinhard stared at the notification for several seconds before raising an eyebrow. "Fifteen percent?"

Then, slowly, he understood.

Before Emily’s Gnosis had been restored, he had been treating every little thing about her as something that needed to be protected.

He had asked whether she was tired, whether she was in pain, whether she needed to sit down, and whether she wanted someone nearby whenever she moved around.

At the time, none of it had seemed strange. But now that Emily could walk, fight, use mana, and control her newly awakened Gnosis, continuing to treat her like a fragile patient might actually become an insult.

Reinhard looked toward the stairs. "So that’s the investment." He smiled. "Not helping her recover this time. Learning to let her live. Apparently my biggest weakness is caring too much, which is a strange thing but fine. Challenge accepted."

He put down the knife he had been using and called toward the living room. "Maki, Yuna, Lily. Come here for a second."

A few moments later, the three sisters appeared. Lily was carrying a cup of coffee that she had apparently stolen from Reinhard’s stash, while Yuna was still reading something on her tablet. Maki simply looked at him with the patient expression of someone who had already accepted that Reinhard was probably about to cause trouble.

Reinhard leaned against the kitchen counter. "We need to agree on something."

Lily took another sip of coffee. "If this is about your expensive coffee, I already plan to drink it."

"That is a separate crime we’ll address later. This is about Emily."

Maki immediately understood. "We’re not supposed to treat her like she’s made of glass anymore."

"Exactly."

Lily nodded seriously before taking another sip. "Of course I plan to." She grinned. "Now that she’s better, she has no excuse to be bullied by me."

Yuna finally looked up from her tablet. "I can finally compete with my sister again."

Maki folded her arms and smiled. "You don’t need to worry. We know how Emily gets when she’s treated specially."

"I guess I was the worrywart."

"You weren’t the worrywart," Lily said. "You were the entire worry department. You had a whole staff. You had a budget."

"That’s a strangely specific accusation."

"I’ve been compiling evidence."

Lily giggled and walked over before poking his cheek. "Well, you are her husband. It’s your job to worry~."

Reinhard rolled his eyes and caught her cheek between his fingers. "You’re supposed to help me not get scolded."

"Mmff! Let go!"

"Not until you take back the budget comment."

"The budget comment was accurate and I stand by it, mmfff!"

Maki laughed, and even Yuna covered her mouth as a smile escaped her.

Reinhard released Lily’s cheek and shook his head. "Traitor."

"I was never on your side," Lily said proudly, rubbing her cheek. "I’m on Emily’s side. I have always been on Emily’s side. I was born on Emily’s side."

"You’re twenty, you weren’t born on anyone’s side, you were born in a hospital."

"Details."

The kitchen filled with laughter, and for a moment, there was nothing unusual about the morning at all. That was exactly what Reinhard wanted.

...

Emily woke up later than usual. For several seconds, she simply stared at the ceiling and then she sat up. There was no pain. There was no weakness. There was no familiar heaviness in her legs that reminded her of everything she had lost.

Emily slowly placed her feet on the floor and stood. She paused for a moment, not because she needed to, but because the sight still felt strange. She had spent years imagining mornings like this.

For years, every morning had begun with the same question. Will I ever recover?

Today, another question entered her mind. What do I want to do today?

The difference was enormous.

Her life was no longer organized around recovery.

She opened the door and walked downstairs. Nobody stopped talking when she entered the kitchen. Nobody asked whether she was feeling any pain. Nobody stared at her legs. Nobody asked whether her Gnosis was stable. Nobody treated her like a miracle that might disappear if they looked away.

Lily simply reached across the table and stole a piece of food from her plate.

Emily stared at her. "That’s mine."

Lily chewed happily. "Not anymore."

Maki sighed from across the table. "Lily, stop stealing everyone’s food."

"But it tastes better when it’s theirs."

"That makes no sense."

"It makes perfect sense, you just haven’t evolved to understand it yet."

Yuna didn’t even look up from the notes she was studying. "That’s probably because you’re stealing the better portions."

"That’s a conspiracy theory and I won’t dignify it."

"It’s not a theory, I watched you scope the table before you sat down."

"I was admiring the presentation."

Reinhard was standing at the stove, preparing breakfast as though nothing extraordinary had happened. Emily watched the scene for several seconds before sitting down.

Nobody was treating her differently. She wasn’t the patient. She wasn’t the former champion. She wasn’t the woman whose Gnosis had somehow returned from the impossible. She was simply Emily, and strangely enough, that felt wonderful.

Reinhard placed a plate in front of her. "Eat."

Emily looked at him. "That’s your romantic way of saying good morning?"

"I spent several minutes making that."

"You could have said good morning."

"I could have."

He nodded toward the food. "But this is more useful. Also, I already said good morning to the eggs. They’re very shy, they don’t like repeat attention."

"You are a very strange man."

"I’m your very strange man."

Emily smiled despite herself. "Thank you."

Reinhard gave her a satisfied nod before returning to the stove.

The morning continued like that. Maki complained about Lily. Yuna argued with Maki about some technical problem.

Lily stole more food. Reinhard cooked. Emily ate. Nothing important happened, and for Emily, that was one of the most important mornings of her life.

...

After breakfast, Emily decided she wanted to go outside.

When she mentioned it, Reinhard nodded immediately. "Sure."

Emily glanced at him. "You’re not going to ask where?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Because I am bored."

Emily stared at him for a moment before laughing. "That is a terrible answer."

"But an accurate one"

They left the house together and walked through the neighborhood and found it was surprisingly peaceful.

Emily noticed how different everything looked when she wasn’t seeing it through the window of a hospital room or from the back seat of a car. She stopped at a small shop and looked through several displays before buying a few things for the house.

Reinhard watched her pick out a set of cups. "You like those?"

"They’re simple."

"That wasn’t my question."

Emily looked at him. "Yes."

"Then we’re buying them."

"We only need four."

"Then we’ll buy four."

She smiled and continued looking.

Eventually, they walked into a furniture store because Emily noticed that several pieces in the house were beginning to look old. Reinhard immediately became interested.

Emily pointed toward a cabinet. "That one would look good in the living room."

"Take it."

"Reinhard, we’re not buying everything I point at."

"Why not?"

"Because that’s unreasonable."

He considered this very seriously, hand on his chin, the exact posture of a man pretending to weigh an argument he had already lost. "Fine."

"Thank you."

"We’ll buy the things you point at twice."

She laughed. "You’re impossible."

"You’ve known that for a while. I thought it would have stopped surprising you by now."

"It hasn’t stopped, it’s just become background noise."

"I prefer the term ’ambiance.’"

They left the store with several purchases anyway.

"We should fix the garden next."

Reinhard looked at her. "That’s your next investment?"

"No." She smiled. "It’s ours."

Reinhard’s expression softened. "Then we’ll fix it. I’m already thinking about a fountain."

"We don’t need a fountain."

"Everyone says that right up until they have a fountain."

"Nobody says that."

"They say it with their eyes."

They continued walking through the city afterward. Emily bought something sweet from a street vendor, and Reinhard inevitably bought an expensive decorative object from a nearby shop that he absolutely did not need.

Emily stared at the item in his hand. "Did you really need that?"

Reinhard looked down at it. "Need?" He thought about it seriously. "No."

"Then why did you buy it?"

"Because I wanted it, and because the shopkeeper looked so happy when I picked it up that returning it felt cruel."

"That’s not how purchases work."

"It’s how my purchases work."

Emily sighed. "You’re impossible."

"And yet you married me."

"That was before I realized how expensive your taste was."

"I consider that part of my charm."

"You consider everything part of your charm."

"Not everything." He paused before giving her a confident smile. "My face does most of the work."

Emily laughed. "You really are shameless."

"I prefer confident."

"You and Lily have the same definition problem."

"Lily learned it from watching a master."

She shook her head, but the smile remained on her face. But then Emily heard a child screaming and immediately turned toward the sound. A young boy had climbed too high into a tree near a small park, and one of the branches beneath him had cracked, his body already falling toward the ground.

Emily moved without thinking.

Her silver eyes glowed.

The world around the boy suddenly slowed, and for a brief instant, everything became still. The boy hung motionless in the air.

And without saying anything, Reinhard also reacted. A small tear appeared in space beside the boy, and Reinhard reached through it, grabbed the child, and pulled him inside.

The tear closed.

A second later, another tear opened directly in front of them, and Reinhard stepped out with the boy safely in his arms.

The child stared at him with wide eyes, then looked at Emily. "You saved me!"

Emily blinked before smiling. "You should be more careful next time."

The boy nodded rapidly. "Thank you!" He ran back toward the other children, who immediately began cheering.

Emily covered her mouth as she laughed.

Reinhard looked at her. "You’re enjoying this."

"A little."

"You froze time just to save a child from a tree."

"He was falling."

"I know." Reinhard smiled. "I just wanted to make sure you understood how dramatic that was. We stopped time. For a tree incident. I feel like that’s worth a moment of reflection."

"The tree incident felt very urgent at the time."

"I’m not saying it wasn’t urgent, I’m saying we’re easily the most overqualified babysitters in this city, and nobody appreciates that."

Emily lightly bumped his shoulder. "You’re the one who opened the space tear."

"Obviously. I had to make myself useful. You get the dramatic slow-motion rescue, I get to be the delivery service."

"Someone has to carry the package."

"I resent being the package’s package."

She laughed again.

For a few seconds, they simply stood there watching the children run away. Emily’s smile slowly became quieter. She had used her power without fear that it wouldn’t work. Nobody had told her to stop. Nobody had watched her with pity. Nobody had asked whether she was sure she could handle it.

She had simply seen someone in danger and acted.

It felt natural and that realization made her smile again.

Then she noticed people looking at her.

One person stopped. Then another. A woman stared at her for several seconds before her expression changed. "Wait..." Her voice grew louder. "Is that Emily Ashcroft?"

Emily stopped walking as more people began looking. Whispers spread through the small crowd.

"Emily Ashcroft?"

"The rumors were true!?"

Reinhard glanced toward Emily. "If you want to go home, we can."

Emily took a breath. Then she shook her head. "No."

She continued walking, and Reinhard followed beside her with a smile.

[Fame Increased!]

[3,423 —> 3, 623]

[Current Fame: 3623/ 1,000,000]

[Description: People will begin recognizing Emily if they heard her name and has seen her recently in the news. In short, not invisible but still just an average person.]

[Investment Objective Completed.]

[D-Grade Investment Successful.]

[Calculating Returns...]

[Reward Granted.]

[Legendary Reward Granted: Enlightenment Grapes ×3.]

[Effect: Upon consumption, the user’s understanding of Mana, Gnosis, and their own abilities will greatly increase for a limited period.]

Another notification appeared.

[Mana Elite Infusion Fruit ×3.]

[Effect: Permanently increases the user’s Mana reserves and improves their ability to absorb and circulate Mana.]

Another notification appeared.

[Fighter Mannequin.]

[Grade: A.]

[Effect: A combat training construct capable of sparring with its designated target.]

[The Fighter Mannequin analyzes the target’s movements, physical condition, Mana circulation, and combat habits.]

[Each successful strike will target a detected weakness, allowing the target to gradually refine their body, technique, and defensive instincts.]

Another notification appeared.

[Additional Reward Granted: Deep Enlightenment Crystal ×3.]

[Effect: Raises the target’s Gnosis by one grade and induces a state of Enlightenment that greatly accelerates the target’s understanding of Mana and Gnosis.]

...

By the time they returned home, Emily was tired. Not because she had overexerted herself. She simply felt the pleasant exhaustion that came after spending an entire day outside.

She sat down in the living room while Lily showed her the new cups they had bought. Maki was already discussing where the new furniture should go. Yuna was trying to figure out whether they could improve the garden with a mana-regulating array.

The house was noisy. Messy. Warm. Alive.

Emily looked around and smiled. "Reinhard."

He looked up. "Hm?"

Emily stood in front of him with a faint smile. "I want to fight you."

Reinhard blinked.

Before he could answer, Lily nearly choked on her drink. "WHAT?!"