Waking up at dawn, Nico examined his wounds. A large majority of the bruises had turned yellow and were slowly but surely beginning to fade. The salve had done its job.
Stretching his limbs, the brown-haired boy discovered another piece of good news.
He could move his body with no pain!
The sharp discomfort in his midsection had also dulled. Nico was ecstatic. Soon, he saw the healer turn on the lamp, bathing the room in a subtle amethyst glow. The middle-aged woman's stern eyes scrutinised every inch of his body carefully as her nose wrinkled slightly.
She prodded different sections of his body with her finger, asking if he felt any pain. After she had confirmed that he didn't feel any pain, the lady hummed deep in thought.
It seemed as if the boy's body had fully healed. Or at least to where training wouldn't pose an issue.
Kendra sighed and declared Nico fit for training, much to his excitement. Just before she retreated into her office, the healer gave her patient a small breakfast composed of a cup of water and some pastries from her secret stash.
Nico wolfed the food down rapidly as if he was the hungriest man alive. Once he had finished, Kendra removed all the wires connecting him to the machine and gave him the official all-clear to leave, along with a bundle of black fabric that was a new set of Camp uniform.
'Finally, I'm out.' the boy thought cheerfully to himself.
Although very brief, his stay in the Infirmary had caused him quite the amount of boredom. If not for frequent naps, visits from his companions, and meditation, Nico was sure the monotony would have killed him.
'Huh? What's that smell?'
Sniffing experimentally a few times, Nico's nose crinkled in distaste. The smell was less than appealing.
Once he found the source of the potent smell, the brown-haired boy's eyes widened.
Shame tinged his cheeks red.
The source of the reeking smell was none other than Nico himself. He internally wondered how the healer had put up with the debilitating scent.
The image of her briefly wrinkling her nose flashed through his mind.
Rushing to the bathrooms, he hurriedly found an available shower stall before having a quick shower.
The boy washed all the accumulated grime off his body.
Once he had finished, Nico sighed in contentedness, immersing himself in the sensation brought about by being clean. Shifting his gaze, he stared at his reflection in the mirror.
Tendrils of brown hair snaked down, covering half of his face. Thin eyebrows curved up and his nose was more pointed. His one exposed eye hid boundless sorrow beyond his maroon pupils.
Soon, Nico's gaze converged on the fiery birthmark that rested on his left temple.
The patch of discoloured skin definitely stood out. Two sharp edges on either side made it seem like some sort of mysterious symbol instead of a random blotch.
A light sigh escaped Nico's lips.
Having had his fill of admiring himself in the mirror - not that there was much to admire, Nico exited the bathroom and made his way back to the hut.
Currently, the last glow of dawn was making its way across the sky.
The brown-haired boy could see a nascent gathering of grey, gloomy clouds form.
This day seemed like it would be a dull one.
Living in the Immortal Reach, Nico had long become used to the erratic weather. One day, a picturesque scene that was only described in fairytales would unfold.
The next, veils of vaporous mist ready to unleash their wrath onto the land dwellers below dominated the formerly cerulean skies.
If Nico truly wanted to experience picturesque weather, then he would have to make his way to the Soul territories where the Elves and Fairies lived.
There, the weather was constant. Sunshine, rainbows and bountiful crops.
The brown-haired boy added the Soul Territories to his mental bucket list of places he wished to explore in the future.
Continuing to muse to himself, Nico watched as a light breeze travelled into the Camp causing a few leaves to rustle and sway.
Nature's cacophony streamed into his ears. Passing the Ancient effigies, he soon travelled up the area in the Camp where the huts were situated.
'Morning inspection should come to a close, right about now.'
Sure enough, once he got near, Nico could spy a large group of trainees standing outside their cabins. Walking closer, the boy found William exiting the last hut with a scowl on his face.
A group of five, despondent trainees hung their heads in shame a step behind.
The white-haired man shifted his gaze from the clipboard in his hands and discovered Nico coming closer. He sent a subtle nod in his direction.
An action which the brown-haired boy didn't miss.
"All right, that's the morning inspection over," the instructor clapped. "We're going to have a quick breakfast before beginning our daily workout." A large grin threatened to break out on William's face.
The trainees all mentally groaned, shivering after looking into the eyes of their instructor, who they thought to be secretly a devil.
Nico, who had silently joined the crowd, soon stood beside his two roommates outside their hut. Right before the throng of novices was about to depart, a few noticed Nico's presence. A rush of frenzied whispers ensued.
Nico paid no heed to the surrounding trainees, who were all pointing in his direction, most likely discussing the matter of Lucas beating him up.
Henry and Leon clenched their jaws. Why couldn't people just mind their own damn business?
William, who understood what the sudden commotion was about, clicked his tongue and bellowed for the trainees to get moving.
He grabbed Lucas, who was at the centre of the throng and began making his way to the cafeteria, ready to meet another unreasonable figure.
Lucas, who attempted to avoid being grabbed by the domineering instructor, seethed in silent anger. His face went as red as a tomato.
Pure orbs of rage ignited in his eye sockets.
Not only had this coreless trash of a human declared his punishment in front of all the trainees, making him a laughingstock in the process - something which caused his rage to tower to greater and more potent levels - the man even had the audacity to touch him.
Unacceptable!
'Ah, how sweet it feels.' Nico thought with a smile, gazing at the fuming Lucas. The smile, however, did not reach his eyes.
Nico's gaze was cold and impassive. He still had yet to receive his revenge.
With a sigh, Nico shook his head and began travelling back the way he came from to the Cafeteria.
Breakfast awaited them.