Eric woke slowly.
The first thing he noticed was the silence.
Not absolute silence—
But that familiar hospital quiet, broken only by the steady rhythm of heart monitors and distant footsteps in the hallway.
Soft white light filled the room, reflecting off pale walls and the cold metal of the IV stand beside his bed.
His body still felt heavy.
But different from before.
He took a deep breath and immediately realized something had changed.
The exhaustion was still there—
But it wasn't crushing like after the warehouse incident.
There was no overwhelming sense of collapse, as if every muscle had been drained of energy.
This was… manageable.
As if his body was learning.
Or adapting.
Eric opened his eyes fully and scanned the room.
There was no one there except a doctor organizing some papers near the window.
"Where are my friends?" Eric asked, his voice still rough.
The doctor looked up slowly.
"You just woke up," he replied neutrally. "Perhaps you should focus on your recovery first."
Eric tried to sit up.
The movement was easier than expected.
"I'm fine," he insisted.
The doctor studied him skeptically.
"That's debatable."
Eric leaned back against the headboard.
"Still. Where are they?"
The doctor sighed lightly.
"I honestly don't know."
Before Eric could press further—
Something appeared in front of his eyes.
The translucent blue interface of the Midas System.
But this time—
With new messages:
Stability increased.
Endurance enhanced.
Exposure risk elevated.
Eric stared at the screen.
Every conflict was changing something inside him.
Every use of Hero Mode seemed to push his body to a new level of tolerance.
The system wasn't just consuming energy or coins.
It was evolving him.
But that last line—
Exposure risk elevated.
That was troubling.
Eric looked up at the ceiling.
Not long ago, gold had been everything.
Converting coins.
Accumulating wealth.
Escaping the ordinary life he had always known.
Now—
He was starting to understand something deeper.
Gold wasn't the most powerful resource of the system.
The real power—
Was Hero Mode.
And the price it demanded.
Before he could reflect further—
The door opened quietly.
Two police officers stepped in.
"Mr. Eric?" one of them asked politely.
Eric sighed internally.
"I assume you want to talk."
"Just a few quick questions."
The doctor looked uncomfortable—but didn't intervene.
The officers approached the bed.
"Can you tell us again what happened last night?"
Eric kept his expression calm.
"I was sleeping when I heard noise at the door. Armed people broke into the apartment. I tried to protect the girls. After that… I don't remember much."
A simple answer.
And evasive.
One officer wrote everything down.
"Did you recognize any of the intruders?"
"No."
"Do you know why they were there?"
"No."
"Do you have enemies?"
Eric almost laughed.
"If I did, I'd probably be able to answer that."
The door opened again.
"I hope this conversation is being officially recorded."
The firm voice made the officers turn.
Lucía Herrera entered the room with confident steps.
"I am Mr. Eric's lawyer," she said calmly. "I'd like to know under what legal basis you are questioning my client without my presence."
The officers exchanged a glance.
"This isn't an interrogation," one replied. "Just questions."
"Even so," Lucía said, crossing her arms, "I recommend that any future conversations be conducted formally."
She approached the bed.
"My client just survived an armed invasion. Perhaps your priority should be finding who tried to kill him."
Silence.
"Understood," one officer finally said.
Before leaving, one of them gave Eric a long look.
"We'll be speaking again soon."
The door closed.
The room fell silent again.
Lucía exhaled.
"That was faster than I expected."
Eric gave a faint smile.
"You seemed prepared."
"I was expecting it."
She pulled a chair and sat beside the bed.
"The legal situation could still get complicated. Four dead men inside your apartment isn't exactly easy to explain."
Before Eric could respond—
The door opened again.
Elena entered.
Her face was pale.
Her eyes swollen from hours of stress.
She stopped when she saw Eric awake.
But she didn't run to him.
She just stood there.
Watching.
Eric immediately noticed something was different.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
Elena didn't answer right away.
She seemed to be fighting something inside herself.
Then she stepped forward.
"How many people have died because of you?"
The question hit the room like a gunshot.
Lucía immediately looked at her.
"Elena…"
But she didn't stop.
"I saw the blood," she said, her voice trembling. "I heard the gunshots. I heard the fight."
Eric remained silent for a moment.
Then answered calmly:
"If I hadn't done anything, you'd probably be dead."
Elena clenched her fists.
"That doesn't change the fact that all of this started because of you!"
Eric tilted his head slightly.
"You didn't question me when I paid your father's debt."
She didn't respond.
"Or when I went to the meeting you arranged with that buyer… who turned out to be a prince."
He looked directly at her.
"And ended with you being kidnapped."
Elena struggled to breathe.
"Emir and his men were there because of you!"
"Yes," Eric replied. "I hired them."
He didn't deny it.
"To help you."
The silence that followed was heavy.
"The least I expected," he continued, "was gratitude."
Elena knew she was being unfair.
She knew it.
But the past weeks had been a storm of fear, violence, and uncertainty.
"Maybe…" she said, her voice breaking, "maybe you were the worst mistake of my life."
The moment the words left her mouth—
She regretted them.
Eric said nothing.
The impact was stronger than any bullet.
Lucía tried to intervene.
"Elena, you're tired. We all are."
But Eric spoke first.
"You're an immature child."
His voice was cold.
"A child who thinks she's an adult, but is afraid of everything around her."
That was enough.
Elena turned and walked out immediately.
The door slammed shut.
Lucía ran a hand through her hair.
"That didn't help."
Eric remained silent.
"At the station," Lucía continued, "she kept asking about you."
He looked at her.
"The whole time."
She sighed.
"She seemed genuinely worried."
Eric looked away.
Maybe Elena wasn't afraid of the violence.
Maybe she was afraid—
Of being alone.
After her father's death, Eric had become the only constant in her life.
Someone she trusted—
Without realizing it.
That level of trust explained why she had rarely questioned his decisions.
Until now.
Eric sighed and tried to stand.
A faint pain ran through his legs.
"You shouldn't be walking yet," Lucía said.
"Still."
He extended his hand.
"Help me."
She supported him.
They walked slowly into the hallway.
Elena was sitting on a bench.
Looking at the floor.
Eyes still filled with tears.
Eric sat beside her.
For a few seconds—
Neither spoke.
Then he smiled slightly.
"I'm happy."
Elena looked up.
"Why?"
"Because everyone is alive."
He took a breath.
"I'm glad you're safe."
She tried to speak—
But he continued:
"If you think I'm a threat… you have every right to leave."
He didn't say it with anger.
He said it honestly.
"Go your own way."
The silence that followed lasted only a second.
Elena leaned forward—
And hugged him.
The crying returned.
Stronger.
Eric stayed still as she trembled against him.
A few steps behind them—
Lucía watched in silence.
And for the first time since everything began—
She realized something she hadn't considered before.
All of them—
Elena.
Herself.
And maybe even Eric—
Had started to depend on each other.
In different ways.
But deeply.