He exhaled.
And for a moment, just a moment, the world around him changed.
The air grew still, dense with a strange pressure. Then, without warning, a pulse of invisible force rippled out from his chest, gentle, like the wake of a heartbeat against the surface of water.
…but only he seemed to feel it. It was an inward tremor, not an outward quake.
His eyes opened, and they gleamed faintly, not with light, but with focus. A clarity sharp enough to cut steel. His breath didn't fog in the cool night air, it moved straight, as if the world itself parted to let it through.
A thread of pale energy traced along his collarbone, like a dormant vein briefly lit. It faded after a heartbeat, but the feeling remained.
His body felt lighter.
His mind, steadier.
Knight Apprentice.
It wasn't just a title.
It was transformation, etched into bone, will, and breath.
He brought up the status screen.
Name: Lumberling
Race: Human
Age: 22 (7 months)
