James returned home after being released from TRB while his face was still wounded from the fight with Adrian.

His lip was split. His cheek was swollen. Bruises spread across his jaw and around his eye where Adrian’s fire-charged punches had landed. His shoulder throbbed beneath his shirt where the burn had been treated but not healed.

When he opened the door, he heard the television playing in the living room.

The news anchor was talking about a public fight between two Awakeners in Dublin while footage of damaged cars and burned pavement played across the screen. The report mentioned a Ganner heir and a Necromancer, but avoided using full names because TRB had not released an official statement yet.

James’s mother sat on the couch facing the television while her back was turned toward the door.

She had seen the livestream hours ago when it first went viral. She had watched her son get punched through a wall, watched him summon skeletons in the street, watched him fight someone who nearly killed him in front of the entire country.

But she did not turn around when he entered.

"Can you believe this?" she said while her voice was carefully casual. "Two Awakeners fighting in the street like that. Someone could have been killed."

James moved quietly toward the hallway while keeping his face turned away from her.

She continued speaking to the television. "I hope whoever started it gets punished properly."

James did not answer.

He knew she knew.

She knew he knew she knew.

Neither of them wanted to have the conversation yet.

James almost made it to his room before his mother spoke again.

"James?"

He stopped in the hallway but did not turn around. "I’m tired. I’m going to bed."

"You didn’t say anything when you came in."

"I’m fine."

There was a long pause.

"Are you hurt?" she asked quietly.

James’s hand tightened on the hallway wall. "I’m fine."

Another pause.

"The boy on the news," she said. "They said he protected people from the fire."

James did not answer.

His mother’s voice was controlled but strained. "I’m glad no one died."

James stepped into his room and shut the door before she could say more.

She stayed in the living room while staring at the television without really watching it anymore.

James went straight to the bathroom and turned on the shower.

The water hit his wounds while pain spread across his face, shoulder, and ribs. The burns stung when the water touched them. The bruises throbbed when he moved too quickly. His broken ribs made breathing painful when he tried to stand up straight.

He stood under the spray while replaying the fight in his head.

He thought about the punches he should have dodged when Adrian came at him with fire-wrapped fists. The first punch through the wall had been unavoidable because Adrian moved faster than James expected. But the second hit to his ribs could have been blocked better if he had kept his shield positioned properly instead of trying to counter with his sword.

He thought about the moments he hesitated when his body remembered old fear before his mind could override it. When Adrian threw fire near his face, James’s reflexes pulled back instinctively even though he knew the flames were not aimed to kill. That split-second flinch gave Adrian the opening to grab his arm and burn his shoulder.

He thought about the attacks he could have countered better if he had been faster, stronger, or more experienced. His STR was 34 and his AGI was 37, but Adrian had better combat training from guild instructors and higher-floor experience that James had not earned yet.

Adrian’s fire still made him flinch.

That fact made James angrier than the injuries did because it meant years of bullying still affected him even after everything he’d survived in the Tower. He had faced corrupted ogres, goblin hordes, and Floor 9’s dragon subjugation, but one man with fire could still make his body react like the scared boy from school.

Floor 9 had made him famous worldwide.

But fame did not mean safety in the real world where people like Adrian could beat him down in public, walk away with a fine, and continue living like nothing happened while James sat in a shower trying to wash off blood and humiliation.

After showering, James sat on his bed while looking at his face in the mirror across the room.

He accepted the truth clearly.

He could fight Adrian now, but he could not beat him yet.

Adrian was older, trained, higher-level, and backed by one of the strongest guild families in Ireland. Adrian had resources James did not have and experience James had not earned yet.

James told himself he needed to get stronger fast.

Not for fame.

Not for stream views.

For survival.

Derek was gone. Adrian was asking questions. His uncle was already trying to pull him back into the Ganner name. If James stayed at his current level, people like Adrian would keep treating him like someone they could break whenever they wanted answers.

James’s tone was cold and focused when he thought about growth instead of humiliation.

He needed more floors. More levels. More stats. More skills.

He needed to climb faster than anyone expected.

Before James could sleep, his phone lit up with a message from Finn.

Finn: Team Zero attempts Floor 10 tomorrow. Come to Hale Estate at 7 AM. Not streaming this one.

James stared at the message for a while.

His body needed rest. His ribs were still broken or cracked. His shoulder burned when he moved it. His face looked like he had been in a street fight because he had been in a street fight. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

But his pride and survival instinct told him he could not slow down.

After what Adrian did to him, waiting felt worse than pain.

James typed back.

James: I’ll be there.

He put the phone down and lay back on his bed while staring at the ceiling.

Sleep came slowly.