Chapter 362: Home-Cooked Warmth

Never had Ruvian thought he would come to appreciate the warmth of being welcomed home by a family, and even now, the feeling still managed to catch him off guard.

It was a strange novelty for someone like him, something he had never imagined he would come to treasure this much. Even he had to admit that acting this comfortable around them felt somewhat unlike himself.

Still, Ruvian did not dislike it. If anything, the longer he remained inside the house, the easier it became to simply embrace the feeling for what it was.

His mother did not take long to finish cooking, though Ruvian had barely noticed the passage of time in the first place.

He spent most of that time entertaining Ciela, carrying her around the living room and enduring several more of her demands before she finally allowed him a moment of rest. By the time the aroma of food began drifting from the kitchen, both of them had already stopped playing.

The meal itself was one of the original Ruvian’s old favorites — a plate of roasted chicken coated in a light herb sauce, served alongside buttered potatoes and warm vegetable soup.

The moment Ruvian tasted it, another familiar warmth quietly spread through him.

His mother had clearly remembered exactly how he liked it, down to the slightly crisp skin on the chicken and the generous portion of extra potatoes beside it.

Of course, eating in silence was never going to happen after he had been away for nearly two months.

His mother had far too many things she wanted to ask, so Ruvian ended up spending most of the meal recounting everything that had happened since he first entered Velthia Academy. ℯℯ𝑙.

He told her about settling into academy life, his classes, the people he had met, and eventually the Vazrun Island Test that had brought him home earlier than expected.

Naturally, the version he gave her was heavily sanitized. Anything involving demons, near-death encounters, secret systems, strange visions, or events that would make any normal mother lose sleep was quietly omitted.

Ruvian had already worried her enough simply by being away, and he had no intention of giving her several new reasons to panic on his very first night back.

He also kept most of his achievements to himself.

There was no need to mention his position in the individual rankings, the academy point record, or just how much attention his performance had attracted throughout the test.

Boasting about those things now would only invite more questions.

For the moment, it was enough for his mother to believe that he had been doing well.

Seeing the relaxed smile on her face across the table, Ruvian quietly decided there was no reason to spoil the mood with anything heavier.

While eating, Ruvian suddenly remembered something and slowed his hand slightly.

"Mom, about the money I sent through the magic envelope before, what did you end up using it for?" he asked, keeping his voice casual. "I was just wondering if it was enough to cover everything you needed."

Avina paused for a moment before setting her spoon down.

"Most of it went toward the house, nothing too extravagant. I had a few things repaired and replaced some of the old furniture that was already falling apart."

She smiled lightly before adding, "I also bought some new clothes for Ciela, a few things for myself, and your father finally replaced some of his worn-out work tools."

Ruvian quietly listened while continuing to eat. From what she explained, none of the money had been spent on anything excessive, and most of it had simply gone toward making their daily lives a little more comfortable.

He was glad to hear that.

Avina had also kept a large portion of the money untouched. She wanted to have something set aside in case the house needed repairs again, Ciela became sick, or some unexpected expense appeared later.

Hearing that, Ruvian gave a small nod, feeling that sending the money had been the right decision after all.

However, Avina soon narrowed her eyes slightly as another thought seemed to occur to her.

"Come to think of it, Ruvian. Where did you get that much money?" She leaned forward slightly, her expression more curious than suspicious.

Ruvian barely hesitated before answering. "I did some small business work with a colleague while studying at the academy, and I managed to earn some money from that."

He took another bite before calmly adding, "There were also rewards from academy work and some of the tests, so I saved what I could and sent part of it home."

Technically, not everything he said was entirely false.

Most of the money had come from the information he shared with Silvena, along with several trades he had made with her over time.

Some of it had been borrowed from her, while a few portions had even been given to him outright as gifts.

Thinking about it properly, Ruvian almost found the entire situation ridiculous.

If he were to trace every source of money he had received so far, then nearly 98 percent of it could probably be connected back to Silvena alone.

’Hmm... white lies, I suppose.’

Ruvian lowered his gaze toward his plate and simply continued eating.

Whatever he wanted to call them, explaining where his money had truly come from would create far more trouble than these few harmless lies ever could.

Fortunately, Avina seemed to accept his explanation without much difficulty.

Her expression softened almost immediately, and she gave him a small, proud smile.

"I see, so you’ve already started earning money while studying. Just make sure you’re not pushing yourself too hard."

She then reached across the table and placed another piece of roasted chicken onto his plate.

After taking another bite, Ruvian glanced toward the empty seat at the table.

"Oh right, where’s Father, by the way?" he asked, finally noticing just how quiet the house felt without him around.

Avina followed his gaze before looking back at him.

"He’s still at work, but he should be home earlier than usual today." A small smile formed on her face as she added, "He’ll probably be surprised when he sees you sitting here."

Ruvian smiled faintly.

For some reason, the thought only made him look forward to it even more.

Avina, meanwhile, remained quiet for a few moments. Her blue eyes slowly wandered over him as he ate, lingering on his shoulders and arms as though she had only just noticed how much he had changed.

Compared to when he had first left home, his body had clearly filled out more from all the training he had undergone.

Eventually, Avina tilted her head slightly.

"Did you eat properly at the academy, sweetheart? You look a little broader than before. You weren’t skipping meals while studying, right?"

Ruvian nearly laughed when he heard that.

His mind immediately returned to the ridiculous amount of food he had started eating once Silvena’s money had made his daily expenses far less painful.

"Oh, you really don’t have to worry about that, Mom."

He simply smiled and calmly took another bite of chicken, already knowing just how truthful that statement actually was.

"I ate very well."

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[Chapter 362: Home-Cooked Warmth]