As Theo stepped out of the room, he was immediately greeted by his dad, along with his mom, who had just arrived.
"Theo!" she said, pulling him into a tight embrace. "Are you sure you're alright?"
"Yes, mom," Theo answered, smiling. "I feel great."
She pulled back slightly, her hands still gripping his arms, as though letting go might make him disappear.
"That's good," his father said quietly, forcing a small smile.
Theo's gaze lingered on him.
Something felt off.
His father's smile didn't reach his eyes, like it would when he was genuinely happy. The tension in his shoulders clearly hadn't dropped either.
"What's going on, dad?" Theo asked, tilting his head slightly.
His father blinked, clearly caught off guard.
"Oh—nothing," he said quickly. "As long as you're okay, that's all that matters."
Theo nodded slowly.
They checked out of the hospital together, though Theo was given orders to return immediately if something felt off.
Only after he climbed into the backseat of his mother's car did Theo slowly piece together the sad expression on his father's face.
That's when it finally hit him.
"Our house…" he mumbled, glancing down.
His father heard him and glanced in the rearview mirror.
"Don't worry about it," he said, smiling weakly. "We'll pull through, like always."
The fire had burned down nearly the entire apartment, which included the space they rented.
'Shit,' Theo thought, clenching his fists. 'This is all my fault.'
They already barely scraped by… but now? There's no way his parents would be able to pull through without working themselves to death.
Theo's mind raced, searching for a way to make it right as regret and embarrassment burned in him.
'There's only one way to make this right,' he thought. 'I have to hurry up and start earning money.'
Before he could plan any further, the car slowly came to a halt.
"Huh?" Theo said, snapping out of his thoughts. "What are we doing?"
"Owen's parents agreed to have you stay over for a few nights," his mother said, smiling slightly.
"But what about both of you?" Theo retorted, quickly understanding where this was going.
His father chuckled, patting the back of his chair. "We'll just sleep in the car outside your mom's workplace until we find a cheap apartment."
Theo stared out the window, his hands clenched tightly in his lap. Outside, he spotted Owen and his parents already waiting for him at the entrance of a modest apartment building.
"Be nice and grateful," his mother said softly, smiling. "And remember to call from time to time."
"I will," Theo nodded quietly, pushing the door open.
Cold air rushed in as he stepped out of the car. He hesitated for a moment, one hand still resting on the doorframe, before finally pulling it shut.
His parents waved once as the engine started behind him, then slowly drove off.
Theo stood there for a moment, staring at the dark sky above him.
"Theo!"
He looked down to see Owen jogging over with a somber expression on his face.
"You made it," he said, stopping just in front of Theo. "Come on, let's go inside."
Theo let out a quiet breath, a small smile forming on his face.
"Thanks," he said softly.
They approached Owen's parents, who both offered apologetic smiles.
"We're glad you're safe," Owen's mother said. "Come on inside. You must be exhausted from the entire ordeal."
Theo nodded again, bowing his head slightly.
"Thank you for letting me stay," he said earnestly.
"Of course," Owen's father replied, patting him firmly on his back. "It's no trouble at all."
As they went inside, Theo was greeted by a warm meal and a spare room that had quickly been prepared for him.
After a short while, Owen's mother shifted the conversation to different subjects to try and distract him. But Theo couldn't focus on those at all.
There were far too many questions swimming around in his mind—like the element he gained, the holographic screen, and even earning money for a new home.
Finally, he stood up, letting out a soft breath.
"I think… I need some air," he said hesitantly. "Just to clear my mind."
Owen's parents glanced at each other with pity in their eyes for a second before nodding.
"Of course," Owen's mother said gently. "Take your time."
Theo slipped on his jacket and stepped back outside.
Once outside, he let out a deep breath and glanced around, searching for an isolated location.
'There,' he thought, staring at a familiar playground a couple hundred yards away.
The playground was completely empty, as it was nearly the middle of the night. It was only faintly lit by a single lamppost, but it was enough for Theo.
'Let's get this out of the way,' he thought, sitting down on a bench.
He closed his eyes again, focusing deep inside himself to enter a meditative state.
It didn't take long before his mind reached a completely dark space. In the middle hovered a single, massive floating orb, completely gray in color.
Approaching the orb, Theo directed his attention to the massive yellow swirling mass within it.
'The purple color from the previous lightning element is completely gone,' he thought. 'So I assume it really was upgraded to SSS-rank somehow?'
But now came the real test.
Improving his core.
He concentrated even harder this time, no longer focusing on the core itself but on the swirling mass within it.
Several tiny yellow particles began to form around the mass, slowly drifting toward the core's walls.
As the particles touched the core's walls, they were absorbed, a tiny bronze speck appearing on the gray core.
'Oh, this is going fast,' Theo thought, nearly losing concentration. 'Way faster than what a D-rank talent would give me.'
Dozens of bronze specks appeared all over the core each minute that passed.
Theo calculated quickly. 'If I continue at this pace, I can reach the Bronze Core stage in three weeks?'
His breathing sped up, a wave of amazement running through him.
An F-rank affinity would take nearly two years to reach Bronze, while he would've needed months to do it with his old affinity.
And now?
He was doing it in weeks.
As Theo got distracted, the particles leaving his affinity dissipated before reaching the core's walls.
'Oh no,' he thought, snapping out of his meditative state.
Opening his eyes again, he found himself back on the bench.
"Man," he muttered, smiling. "I got too excited."