I take a shower, put on my home clothes, and start cooking. At some point, she went into my room and is now wearing one of my summer pajamas. She looks completely comfortable, as if it were the most natural thing in the world… it reminds me a lot of the girls. They also used to wear my clothes at home; sometimes I'd come back from somewhere and find them wearing my shirt like it was the most normal thing ever.

"Delicious… I could get addicted to this flavor." Her eyes sparkle as she takes another spoonful. I make this dish every day, and I've managed to perfect every ingredient until it tastes almost identical to the one from my previous life. It makes me happy to see Brendu enjoying a meal that's so deeply engraved in my body.

Later that night, I walked her home. She insisted on sleeping with me, but I declined with all my strength. I don't think I could control myself if we slept in the same bed—I've already almost lost control before with Marga, Arisa, and Sol, and this time, there would be no one to stop me. Too many people saw us go upstairs, and I don't want to keep feeding the rumor while nothing between us is official.

Finally, it's Friday—the perfect time to train like a maniac in the dome. My potential new ability has been growing throughout the week; I can feel something blooming inside my core, the same sensation I felt when obtaining my previous skills. It feels natural. According to Brendu, a week of my training is equivalent to one and a half or even two months for a normal person.

"MAKIIIIIIIIIII!" I hear someone scream from several meters away. When I turn around, I see a body flying straight toward me. Shawu had sprinted at full speed and leapt right at me. This time, my cube is fully healed, so I could easily stop her… but I don't. I'll let her be happy. I catch her midair, and she bursts into laughter. Behind her, Humyr walks toward us.

"Starting next week, have lunch with us." After greeting me and asking how my week went, Shawu comes up with that proposal. "That way, it'll be easier to plan things and talk about our day-to-day." She looks proud of her idea, and Humyr nods in agreement—he also wants to see me more often.

"Yeah, you should join us. Everyone would be happy to have you around." Humyr raises his thumb in approval.

"I don't know… I'm not sure if I can eat with someone who sold me out for a few desserts…" Shawu freezes like a statue, looks to the side for a moment, then turns back to me with a perfectly serious face, showing no emotion.

"I don't know what you're talking about. Humyr, did you do that?" What a liar! This girl could be an actress. She's denying it right to my face, throwing the stone and hiding her hand. Humyr seems to know what this is about because his reaction matches mine—utter disbelief.

"Don't play dumb." Before she can react, I trap her in my gravity prison. "I'll think of your punishment later." She looks like a sad puppy inside the prison, making no effort to escape. She knows what she did—now everyone in school talks about me and Brendu. Her punishment will be simple: I'll cook for everyone except her. That'll sting enough.

"Humyr, I promise to have lunch with you all starting next week. I'd also like to see everyone more often and talk about how things are going." They're all fun to be around; only the twins are quiet. I intentionally only mention Humyr, leaving Shawu out to make her feel ignored.

"We'll be waiting for you, brother." He winks at me. We keep chatting for a while before parting ways—everyone has things to do. I let them know where I'll be all weekend; if they need me, they can come find me anytime. Shawu hugs me goodbye, looking at least a little guilty for what she did.

I head to the library to borrow that massive botany book. I have no idea how many weeks it'll take to finish it. At least I've got descriptions of the plants I'm looking for; if I can't find their exact names, I've written down similar ones. As a last resort, I've also noted the pages and names of plants with similar functions that are easier to obtain.

Everything's ready—it's time to immerse myself in my own world. On my way to the domes, I see groups of students planning to drink in the city, have gatherings in someone's room, go to the beach, or even camp. I stop for a second to think—maybe I should join the others for once this weekend.

I shake my head. There'll be time for that later, after I've acquired this new ability and found the ingredients for the potion. The asylum is draining my money quickly. According to the estate's head butler, more and more elderly people are arriving seeking work, shelter, or food. I told him to accept as many as possible and to feed the children on the streets.

I've already sent Julio a letter asking for a substantial loan, and he agreed immediately—no interest at all. I can earn money by clearing dungeons here in the city to repay the loan monthly, but that's not sustainable. I need a business that can sustain itself soon.

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I have many friends I could easily ask for money—it would be pocket change to them—but I prefer to handle it myself. If I ever truly need help, I'll ask. I'm not too stubborn to seek support from my friends when it really matters.

"What should I train first?" My spatial affinity has been improving little by little over these days; I can now feel the spatial tear that I pass through when reappearing somewhere else—it's exactly like how it's described in novels from my old world. Mine, however, feels slightly different, likely because my future skill is adapting to my Personal World.

"Better to start with something I can master soon." I have too much to improve. "I'll have to refine my pseudo laws eventually…" I shake my head to clear those thoughts. I've only been in this rank for a few weeks; there's no need to stress about mastering everything in such a short time. I still have two years to make the most of it.

This week, I've gotten used to my new skill prospect. I can now use gravity precisely to accelerate my movements. I tried combining it with my electric affinity to boost my body and brain a few times, but it's too complex. Brendu suggested starting with a simpler version and improving it gradually.

My brain now executes those actions as if it were natural. When I move to attack, it automatically channels a precise amount of gravitational mana to boost each swing or motion of my arm—the same happens when I dodge or block. My body now reacts almost as smoothly as before I started this training.

I open the dome's control panel to increase the difficulty. Ten spikes are my current limit—if I add more, my brain can't track them all, and I end up looking like a hedgehog. Coordinating my attacks with gravity is one thing, but perfecting it at the lowest level will take hours more. I hope to finish before the weekend ends.

Brendu might not come today; she's busy with meetings involving people from other kingdoms and her own. She also has a dinner planned with the same nobles I saw at her table during the opening party. She promised to finish as soon as possible, at least to spend a few hours with me on one of the two days.

The counter hits zero—the first spike appears several meters away and launches toward my chest at full speed. I move aside, using gravity to add extra momentum. It takes a moment to adjust to the sudden movement, but with that same gravitational push, I swing my sword and cut the spike in half.

I've learned to reuse a bit of my gravitational mana this week. Since it's one of my most expensive affinities—along with death and space—I need to find ways to recycle its energy before it disperses. It's a way to save mana; since each burst doesn't cost much, I can fight for over fifty minutes like this. I can now reuse around 10% of each gravitational use, buying me precious minutes and conserving more mana in my pool.

Using my past experiences as reference, I studied how the dome works—how it circulates and reuses mana. Even though it still spends more mana than it generates, the recycling drastically reduces core consumption. I modeled my own use after that system, and there's still room for improvement.

The first spikes split in half without much trouble. I slice the next ones with cold precision. Some I have to dodge or block due to positioning, and a few minutes later, one pierces my left arm. The attack power of a basic emerald-rank projectile isn't enough to go through my skin—it only buries itself slightly.

I ignore the tingling, the spike vanishes into thin air to recharge the dome, and my wound heals faster than a blink. The current attack speed, that of a grade-3 monster, is starting to feel slow—I need a speed boost. I stop the machine and adjust it to simulate a speed-specialized grade-3 monster.

I immediately feel the difference. I have to activate Thundersnow just to keep up. My twin swords move constantly—one wrong step, one bad position, and I'll end up with two or three spikes stuck in me. A wide smile spreads across my face; finally, this is getting exciting.

Between breaks, I read the massive botany book. I bought a basic table to place in a corner of the dome, where I keep some snacks, water bottles, and the large book to make the most of my rest time.

Hours go by, and the fifth day of the week ends. The sixth day arrives, and night comes—the best part. Most students are probably getting ready to party, drink, or have fun, while I have a date with this magnificent and beautiful book. My mana pool is full again, ready for another training session.

My mana pool has grown a lot since the last evolution, but the best part is my regeneration speed. It now takes only two or three hours to recover almost everything if I stay still.

"It's coming…" That feeling I haven't experienced in so long— the birth of a new ability to fill my last empty slot. The strange sensation inside me keeps growing with every move, every use of gravity, every perfect execution. The familiarity deepens until it's almost tangible.

My body reacts differently to the next spike. The gravitational boost feels smoother. I no longer need to force it—my mana responds to my brain's orders as naturally as breathing. "Stop!" I shout, slicing the last few spikes with that newfound ease.

The familiar omnipresent voice echoes in my mind with its usual lines: Do you wish to learn the skill: Gravity Burst (II)?

"I like that name! Rank II, huh? Not bad…" I expected a rank (III) skill like most of my recent ones. I slap my cheeks with both hands to shake off the disappointment—rank (II) is normal and perfectly fine. The function is simple for now, though just imagining the damage if I use it at full power gives me chills.

I accept the skill without hesitation. "Time to test this new toy!" I restart the dome's sequence to test it—and it feels completely different. The bursts are fluid, striking at the exact place and moment I intend. Mana consumption has dropped slightly, and I can now reuse about 12% each time. The improvement is remarkable.

"I love this new skill!" Now I've got an extra boost for my physical techniques. The next step is syncing it to my maximum speed when I'm using my electric affinity throughout my body. "That's a problem for later-Maki." Fatigue clouds my mind. I lie down on an inflatable mattress in the corner and slowly close my eyes.

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