"No other visitors should be coming tonight," Julius said, his voice low and even. "I brought some change of clothes. You should go and fix yourself."

Neville opened his mouth to respond, but nothing came out; he was just confused. Julius didn’t look at him again. Instead, he simply pointed at his own hair.

Neville’s hand shot up reflexively, grabbing another handful.

It’s Silver.

Threads that should have been a perfectly ordinary shade of hazel-brown glowed silver until the dim lights of the hospital room.

"Damn it," he muttered under his breath. The damned dye had come off.

It seemed that his days in the life pod made him forget that he had to maintain something. He was surprised that Julius even recognized him despite the silver hair. He must have looked like a disaster.

He looked at Julius, panic clawing at his throat. Julius’s expression didn’t even change. Not a flicker of curiosity, not a raised eyebrow, not even the vaguest hint that he’d noticed anything out of the ordinary.

Julius turned slightly, reaching for a bag he had set on the floor. "The bathroom is over there."

"Thank you," Neville hurriedly said.

He quickly grabbed the bag of clothes and retreated toward the bathroom with as much dignity as he could muster.

The bathroom door clicked shut behind him, and Neville immediately slumped against it, pressing his palm to his forehead. His reflection stared back at him from the mirror. His wild, short silver hair fell in tangled waves around a face that looked like it had been through a war.

"Shelly," he hissed, barely above a whisper. "Shelly, come out of here."

Nothing.

She was gone again.

Neville pulled up his system interface with a thought, scrolling frantically through the notifications he had been too preoccupied to check.

There, buried among a dozen other alerts, was the one that made his eye twitch:

[NOTICE: Shelly the Guide is currently undergoing scheduled maintenance. All guide functions have been temporarily suspended. We apologize for any inconvenience.]

"Scheduled maintenance," Neville repeated flatly. "Scheduled. At this exact moment. You really know how to choose the right time, do you?"

He was going to have some strong words with Shelly when it came back online. But that was a problem for the future. At present, he had some more pressing concerns.

Neville opened his Inventory, rifling through its contents. The emergency hair dye was still there.

He worked the dye through his hair methodically, watching the silver strands gradually darken to a more acceptable brown. It wasn’t perfect, but it was good enough.

He rinsed his hands, changed into the clean clothes Julius had provided, and examined his reflection one last time.

One thing was still missing, though.

His glasses.

Neville’s hand went to his face instinctively. He hadn’t even noticed losing them in the chaos. They were probably crushed somewhere in the wreckage.

Normally, he wouldn’t have cared. The glasses were purely for aesthetic purposes and didn’t actually need them to see.

But Grayson was in that room.

Grayson would instantly notice that there was something amiss if he didn’t see the glasses he usually wears. He pulled up the system mall with a resigned sigh, scrolling through the accessories section until he found what he was looking for. A pair of nerd glasses, nearly identical to the ones he had lost.

The price made him wince, but it was a necessary expense.

[Purchase Confirmed! -500 Reward Points]

The glasses materialized in his hand, and Neville slipped them on with ease. His reflection now looked like how he normally was originally. He took a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and stepped out of the bathroom.

Julius was exactly where Neville had left him, sitting by Grayson’s side. His eyes flickered a little, looking at his newly dyed hair and glasses that he didn’t include in the bag. But still, his expression didn’t change.

Neville felt a complicated mix of relief and mild exasperation. He had seen rocks with more visible emotional responses than Julius.

"Aunt Gloria," Julius said suddenly, as if answering a question Neville hadn’t even asked. "That was the name of Mr. Maxwell’s mother. You should remind him to call her after he wakes up and has breakfast."

Neville blinked, clearly thrown off by this sudden conversation. "His mother’s name?"

"She’s been notified of his condition. She’ll want to hear from him directly."

Neville nodded in understanding. "I’ll make sure he knows."

Julius nodded once, then continued, "They’ve known each other since childhood. Same with Bryan. But they weren’t particularly close. Not even back then."

Neville was thrilled by this kind of information and clearly wanted to hear more. But he was also confused as to why Julius was telling this to him. Still, hearing this from someone else felt wrong.

If Grayson wanted him to know those things, Grayson would tell him.

"I’ll stay here tonight," Neville kindly said, changing the subject as he gestured vaguely at the chair he had been sleeping in. "In case there’s any change in his condition."

Julius nodded at Neville, satisfied with his tact. Neville felt that he had just escaped a hidden death trap.

"The doctors said he’s stable," Julius said.

"I know. But..." Neville trailed off, not sure how to explain. "I’d rather be here. Just in case."

"I understand." Julius stood up and continued. "I’ll keep watch outside."

"You don’t have to—" Neville started, then stopped himself. "At least take breaks. You’ve been on your feet all day."

Julius didn’t respond to that. He simply nodded and slipped out the door, leaving Neville alone in the quiet hospital room.

Alone with Grayson.

Neville sank into the chair beside the bed, suddenly exhausted. He didn’t mean to fall asleep. But the accumulated stress made his eyes grow heavy, his head nod forward, and his consciousness slipped away. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Morning came with the sensation of being watched.

Neville’s eyes snapped open, his body going stiff from sleeping in an awkward position. The hospital room was bathed in the sunlight.

And Grayson was finally awake.