Ezra stepped into his room quietly, the door closing behind him with a soft click that seemed to seal off the outside world. The faint echoes from the hallway faded almost immediately, leaving only the stillness of the room and the quiet rhythm of his own breathing.

He walked toward the table without rushing.

The surface was cluttered, just like he had left it...papers scattered in uneven layers, some filled with alchemy circles, others scratched out halfway through. Books were stacked without care, some open, some closed, and a few crumpled sheets sat at the edge like they had been discarded in frustration.

He placed a bottle of water on the table, then dropped his space bag beside it. The sound was dull, but in the quiet room, it felt louder than it should have.

He reached into the bag and took out the sleeping drug, then he sat down.

For a brief moment, he simply stared at it.

His fingers rolled the small container slowly, his eyes steady, as if he was weighing something far beyond what was in his hand. Then, he reached back into the space bag and brought out another pill—the heat stimulant.

He swallowed it.

A faint warmth spread through his body, starting from his chest and moving outward, easing the stiffness in his muscles. It wasn’t sudden, but it was enough to push away the lingering cold from earlier, then he stood up and went to freshen up, changing to his nightwear.

Minutes passed.

Ezra leaned forward again and picked up a book on Binder-rank guns. His eyes moved across the pages steadily, not skipping, not rushing, absorbing each line like he always did.

After about an hour, he placed the book down, then he switched to his drawn alchemy circles of modern guns he hadn’t completed drawing out.

He checked every detail.

Every line and connection.

His fingers traced over the diagrams lightly, as if feeling for mistakes rather than just seeing them. Occasionally, he would adjust something, redraw a section, or pause slightly longer when something didn’t sit right.

Time slipped past quietly.

Before he realized it, hours had already gone by.

Ezra finally leaned back, stretching his arms slowly. His joints gave faint cracks as tension left his body, and a long breath escaped his lips.

He stood up, then picked up the sleeping drug and the bottle of water.

He moved to his bed and lay down, the mattress dipping slightly under his weight.

As he stared at the ceiling, the nurse’s voice echoed faintly in his mind.

Take proper care of yourself.

Ezra exhaled through his nose.

I guess I’m about to become a constant drug user, huh...

There was a faint smile on his face, but it didn’t carry much weight.

His eyes grew heavy, without noticing it, they closed and sleep took him almost immediately.

***

When Ezra opened his eyes again, the morning light had already begun slipping into the room, soft and steady.

He stared at the ceiling for a few seconds without moving, his mind still catching up.

"That was quite fast."

His voice was low, almost thoughtful.

He turned his head slightly, looking toward the table.

It was still messy...papers scattered everywhere, books open, his space bag sitting where he dropped it, and the bottle of water still half full. Nothing had changed, yet it felt slightly different now that he had rested.

He rubbed his eyes before sitting up straight.

"One day before the next trial information will be given..."

His gaze dropped to his bandaged hand.

His brows tightened slowly.

"I can’t train today... and I couldn’t even bathe properly because of this."

He frowned more as he lifted his hand slightly, inspecting it.

Yesterday, he had to carefully avoid letting water touch it while washing up, and now just looking at it made him feel uncomfortable.

"Only for today... it’s only for today."

He muttered it quietly, like he was reminding himself to stay patient.

He stood up, went to freshen up properly, then returned to the table.

This time, he packed everything neatly.

Books stacked properly, papers folded and arranged, tools placed in order.

When he finished, he slung his space bag over his shoulder and left the room.

The hallway outside was almost empty, only a few distant footsteps echoed faintly.

Most candidates were still resting, choosing to conserve their energy for the next trial, but Ezra knew not everyone would think that way.

As he walked, he passed the corridor leading to the training grounds.

His steps slowed slightly as he glanced inside.

Several candidates stood there, their bodies trembling as they maintained a martial stance. Five steel bars were stacked vertically across their arms and heads, balanced with extreme precision.

Sweat dripped down their faces, their legs shook, but none of them dared to move.

Not even slightly.

Vera sat in front of them.

Her legs were crossed, one resting over the other, her posture relaxed as if none of this concerned her. She wore red and black nightwear, her black coat draped loosely over her shoulders without being worn fully.

A black shade covered her eyes.

In her hand was a cup.

She sipped from it slowly.

Cold coffee juice.

Beside her, Nina drank from her own cup through a long straw, while Nathalia and Zack stood behind, gently fanning her like attendants serving royalty.

Groans filled the air.

"Please... it has already been long..."

A boy’s voice trembled as his body shook harder.

"Can’t we use our Cognis, Lady Vera..."

A girl added weakly.

"Shut up."

Nina’s voice cut through instantly, her finger pointed sharply at them.

"You can’t use your Cognis," Nina said, her voice sharp as her pointed index finger moved straight at the girl who had complained earlier, her eyes narrowing slightly as if she was looking at someone beneath her attention.

"This is training for all of you losers who decided to be foolish enough to lose to people who didn’t even have the same privilege you had when awakening their Cognis."

Her tone carried no sympathy, only irritation, and it pressed down on the already tense atmosphere like weight.

"And why are you already shaking when it’s only been one hour since you all started?"

She continued, tilting her head slightly while crossing one arm under her chest, her expression turning more unimpressed by the second.

"We’re going till afternoon, so don’t start whining now."

"WHAT?!"

The reaction came all at once.

Every candidate holding the punishment stance broke their silence, their voices overlapping in shock, their eyes widening as if they had just heard a death sentence.

Their arms trembled harder.

Some of their knees bent slightly before they forced themselves back upright, their breathing growing heavier, more uneven.

Fear spread across their faces without restraint.

"You can all fall down if you want to."

Vera’s voice entered the space calmly.

She didn’t raise her voice, nor did she show any interest in their reaction. She simply adjusted her crossed legs, her posture relaxed, her tone carrying a flat boredom that made it feel like this situation meant nothing to her.

"But if you do," she continued, her chin resting lightly on her fingers as she tilted her head just a little, "you should remember what is beneath you."

Her words were simple, but they landed heavily.

Almost instinctively, the candidates lowered their gazes.

Carefully, slowly.

And when they saw the sharp stakes placed directly beneath them, their throats tightened.

All of them swallowed hard in sync.

One of them nearly lost balance before correcting himself quickly, his whole body shaking like he was standing on the edge of a cliff.

Vera didn’t look at them again.

Instead, she snapped her fingers once.

The sound was light, but immediate.

"Yes, my Lady."

Scott appeared beside her almost instantly, bowing his head slightly, his movements precise.

Vera didn’t speak.

She only lifted her finger and pointed at the two candidates who had complained earlier.

That was enough.

"Okay, Lady Vera."

Scott nodded without hesitation, understanding immediately.

He clapped his hands twice.

Two boys rushed forward from behind, pulling steel bars out of their space bags as they moved quickly toward the punished candidates.

The moment they reached them, they carefully stacked additional steel bars on top of the already balanced ones...one on the arms, another on the head.

The added weight came down suddenly.

The effect was immediate.

Groans burst out.

Louder and more desperate.

Some of them clenched their teeth, trying to endure it, while others let out strained cries as their bodies trembled even more violently.

The entire training ground filled with overlapping sounds of pain and struggle, but Vera didn’t react.

Not even slightly.

To her, it was simply how things should be.

Ezra stood at a distance, watching everything quietly.

His eyes moved from one person to another, observing their reactions, their limits, their breaking points.

Then...

A faint smile appeared on his lips, almost unnoticeable.

Without saying anything, he turned and left to the infirmary.

The air in the infirmary felt completely different from the training ground.

Cool, clean and quiet as always.

The noise from outside didn’t reach here fully, replaced instead by soft footsteps, the faint rustling of curtains, and the low voices of nurses moving from one patient to another.

Ezra walked in, greeting the nurse on duty with a slight nod before making his way toward Gena’s section.

A curtain covered the area, separating her from the rest.

He stepped in.

Gena was asleep carelessly.

Her breathing was steady, and a faint snore escaped her from time to time, just loud enough to be noticed but not enough to disturb others.

Ezra narrowed his eyes slightly as he looked at her.

"Wake up."

His voice was calm, but his hand moved without delay.

He flicked her forehead.

A bit of Cognis flowed into his finger, not enough to hurt seriously, but enough to make a point.

"Argh...huh?!"

Gena jolted awake immediately, her body flinching as her eyes snapped open in confusion.

She blinked rapidly, her gaze moving around without focus at first, trying to understand where she was.

Then...

She turned sharply to her right.

"Who?"

Her voice came out slightly strained, her eyes landed on Ezra.

He sat there with his arms folded, looking down at her calmly.

"Ezra..."

Her expression softened slightly, but the movement caused pain to shoot through her body.

"Argh..."

She winced and slowly laid back down, her body stiff as she adjusted herself carefully on the bed.

"I thought you wouldn’t come to see me..."

She pouted slightly, her lips pressing together, her tone carrying a hint of complaint that didn’t feel fully serious.

"You seem very fine."

Ezra replied, his tone flat as always, completely ignoring her earlier complaint like it had never been said.

Gena stared at him for a second, then let out a small sigh, her body sinking slightly deeper into the bed as she shifted carefully to avoid the pain that still lingered in her muscles.

"But I can’t move yet..." she said, her voice softer this time, her eyes drifting to the ceiling as if replaying something in her mind. "I really wanted to watch your match, but I couldn’t."

There was a hint of frustration in her tone.

A clear look of disappointment in herself.

"I can’t even remember how I managed to draw out that fight," she continued, letting out a dry laugh that didn’t sound very amused.

"Nina and the others explained it to me so many times, but it still doesn’t feel real... me, of all people, having strength close to a Binder-rank alchemist."

She turned her head slightly toward him.

"I don’t even look fit like Lady Priscilla... not to even talk about people like Sir Veda or Sir Gareth."

Her gaze moved down to her own body.

"Honestly... if people look at us side by side, they would probably think I’m stronger than you."

She added that part without thinking, then froze.

Ezra slowly raised a brow.

"Are you trying to insult me?"

His voice tone didn’t change.

"No...no...no!"

Gena panicked immediately, her body jerking slightly before she winced again from the pain.

"I didn’t mean it like that!" she said quickly, her words tumbling over each other. "I don’t mean that you’re weak or that I’m stronger than you...no, that’s not it...I mean..."

She paused.

Her brows tightened as she tried to fix what she had just said.

"I mean... people look down on you at first because of how you look. They see a scrawny boy...no, wait, I’m not saying you’re scrawny, that’s not what I mean either...wait..."

Her voice slowed, then...Something clicked.

Her eyes widened slightly.

"Now that I think about it... how is it that you look like this, but your strength is way beyond what it should be?"

She stared at him properly now, her confusion clear.

Ezra narrowed his eyes on her.

"You do know it’s the same thing for Vera and many other candidates."

His tone was calm, almost dismissive.

Gena blinked, then her expression changed.

"...Now that you say it..."

Her eyes widened even more as realization slowly began to form.

"Almost all of us don’t match our appearance when it comes to strength..."

She looked genuinely stunned.

"How?"

Her question came out almost immediately.

Ezra stared at her for a moment.

"Wow... you’re just realizing that."

There was no mockery in his voice, but his expression said everything.

"I don’t like how you’re looking at me, Ezra."

Gena frowned slightly, her lips pressing together as she clearly understood what that look meant.

Ezra didn’t reply to that. Instead, he began explaining.

"We all know that when a normal person grows stronger, their muscle tissues increase in number, and that’s what leads to a bulkier body."

He lifted his arm slightly, his fingers pressing against his muscle as he spoke.

"The more muscle tissues you have, the more strength you can produce."

He paused briefly, then continued.

"But that’s the normal biology of strength growth."

His tone shifted slightly.

"We are not normal."

He raised his index finger.

"The biology of growth for alchemists like us is different. The way our bodies develop strength isn’t limited to increasing muscle mass."

Gena watched him closely now, her earlier confusion slowly turning into focus.

"People like Veda and Gareth probably follow diets that increase muscle growth," Ezra continued. "Or their bodies naturally absorb nutrients in a way that builds mass. Some people tend to gain weight easily by eating, but when they train..."

He clenched his fist.

"Their bodies turn that into bulk." He lowered his hand. "But for people like me... and Vera..."

His tone remained steady.

"Our bodies don’t grow in size based on how much we eat because our digestive systems are smaller, and we don’t store excess like that."

Gena blinked slowly.

"Instead," Ezra continued, "when we train, our existing muscle tissues don’t increase in size... they become denser. Stronger."

He leaned slightly back.

"They get reinforced rather than expanded."

He finished calmly.

Gena stared at him, completely still.

"Muscle tissues... I understand that part," she said slowly, her brows furrowing again. "But... different growth patterns in strength biology?"

She tilted her head slightly, clearly still trying to process everything.

Ezra crossed his arms.

"When you use your Cognis to enhance your strength... what do you think actually happens?"

His question came out plainly.

Gena froze, then her eyes widened again.

"...I never thought about it." She said it honestly. "I just use it... like everyone else does."

Ezra didn’t look surprised.

"I expected that."

His reply was immediate.

"When Cognis flows from your star, it moves like a thin, invisible thread," he explained, his voice steady and clear. "But as it travels through your veins toward a specific part of your body, it gathers and compresses."

He gestured slightly with his hand.

"When it reaches your muscles, it injects itself into the tissues and coats them."

Gena leaned forward slightly, despite the discomfort.

"Like adding another layer?"

"Exactly."

Ezra nodded faintly.

"That added layer increases strength."

He continued.

"It’s the same process when you enhance your eyesight, your legs, or even harden your skin. Cognis doesn’t replace your body... it reinforces it."

Gena’s breathing slowed, her mind was catching up.

"The Cognis strengthens each muscle tissue one by one," Ezra went on. "So, if your body naturally doesn’t grow larger, like ours... then each individual muscle becomes stronger instead of bigger."

He paused briefly.

"And strength isn’t only about muscles." He pointed at her. "Bones matter too."

Gena blinked.

"And you, Gena..."

Ezra’s gaze sharpened slightly.

"You have strong bones and strong muscle tissues."

He said it simply.

"But they don’t match your appearance."

Silence followed.

Gena stared at him; her eyes slowly widened with everything finally clicking in her mind now.

In a way.