SSS-Ranked Surgeon In Another World: The Healer Is Actually OP! - Chapter 351: Ash’s Evolution!

Chapter 351: Ash’s Evolution!

Seeing that both Lily and Ash were fast asleep, Bruce stood quietly.

Careful not to wake them.

He stepped out of the room and gently closed the door behind him.

Sophie was waiting in the hallway.

She leaned lightly against the wall, her eyes lifting the moment Bruce appeared.

Without saying anything, they began walking together toward Bruce’s room.

The house lights dimmed slightly as they passed, the crystal fixtures automatically adjusting to the late hour.

When they entered the room the quiet atmosphere deepened even further.

Bruce’s room had been renovated as well.

One entire wall had been replaced with large crystal windows.

Beyond them. the vast night sky stretched endlessly above the city.

Bruce sat down slowly on the edge of the bed.

Sophie moved beside him.

For a while they simply sat there together, silently watching the stars outside.

Then Sophie leaned gently against him.

Bruce’s arm wrapped naturally around her waist.

The warmth between them was quiet.

Comfortable. Familiar.

No words were necessary.

Outside the window the stars shone silently across the heavens.

Sophie rested her head lightly against his shoulder.

“Tonight was nice.”

Bruce nodded softly.

“It was.”

They eventually lay down together on the bed.

Still facing the vast sky outside the window.

Still wrapped in each other’s quiet warmth.

And slowly. beneath the silent glow of countless distant stars. they drifted peacefully into sleep.

The night passed gently, the quiet calm of the Ackerman home settling deeper as the hours slipped by. Outside, the city rested beneath a blanket of starlight while the occasional distant carriage or whisper of wind moved through the sleeping streets.

At some point during the deep hours before dawn, Bruce stirred.

His eyes opened slowly.

For a moment he simply lay there without moving, the faint silver glow of early morning filtering softly through the crystal ceiling above. The stars were beginning to fade, their brilliance slowly surrendering to the pale light creeping across the horizon.

The room felt peaceful.

Warm. Still.

Then Bruce felt it.

A comforting warmth resting against his chest.

He looked down.

Sophie was still asleep.

Her head rested gently against him, her long black hair spilling across his shoulder like a pool of silk. One arm lay loosely draped across his side, her fingers lightly curled against his shirt as if she had instinctively moved closer sometime during the night.

Her breathing was slow.

Steady. Peaceful.

Completely unguarded.

Bruce studied her quietly for a moment.

For someone who carried herself with such calm strength and flawless composure during the day, moments like this were rare. Sophie Reign was someone who stood at the peak of countless expectations. powerful, disciplined, and unshakable.

Yet right now… she looked impossibly gentle.

Bruce couldn’t help but smile.

Carefully, he lifted his hand and brushed a loose strand of hair away from her face. His fingers moved slowly, gently tracing the curve of her cheek and the soft line of her jaw.

Sophie stirred slightly beneath his touch but didn’t wake.

Bruce’s thumb drifted playfully across her lips.

Soft.

Warm.

He pressed them lightly for a moment before letting out a quiet chuckle.

“I love seeing you like this,” he murmured softly.

“So peaceful.”

For someone who had cut down an entire herd of Bronze Horned Buffalo with a single swing of her sword… she looked almost fragile while asleep.

Bruce let his hand rest against her cheek for a few seconds longer before finally closing his eyes again.

The morning sun slowly crept across the horizon.

And the room returned to silence.

When Bruce opened his eyes again, the sun had already risen.

Soft golden light poured through the crystal ceiling, illuminating the room in a gentle glow. The faint warmth of the morning sun painted Sophie’s hair in deep crimson highlights as it spilled across the pillow beside him.

She was still asleep.

Bruce carefully slid out from beneath her, moving slowly so he wouldn’t disturb her rest. She murmured faintly as his warmth disappeared, her body shifting slightly in the sheets before settling once more.

Bruce stood quietly and stretched his arms slightly.

Then. he felt it.

A faint ripple of mana.

His expression sharpened immediately.

The aura wasn’t hostile.

But it was unfamiliar but still had a hint of familiarity in it, it’s hard to explain…

Apart from that it felt strangely focused.

Bruce closed his eyes briefly.

Then recognition flickered across his face.

’Ash.’

He stepped into the hallway and moved quietly toward Lily’s room.

When he pushed the door open. the room was empty.

Lily wasn’t there.

Bruce extended his senses slightly and immediately located her presence elsewhere in the house. She was already moving quickly through the lower floor, her energy bright and lively even this early in the morning.

Most likely preparing for the academy.

Bruce smiled faintly.

That girl had more energy before sunrise than most warriors had after a battle.

But his attention quickly shifted.

Ash sat in the center of Lily’s bed.

The small dragon cub’s wings were folded neatly against its body. Its eyes were closed, and its posture was strangely upright.

Almost like meditation. Mana flowed slowly around its body. Circulating. Breathing. Absorbing.

Bruce leaned against the doorframe quietly and watched.

Beasts normally didn’t train like this. But humans did.

Long before awakening their various classes, students were taught basic mana circulation techniques. Those exercises strengthened their internal pathways, improved their mana regeneration, and refined the quality of their mana.

By the time they awakened their class. whether F-Rank or SSS-Rank. their foundation was already far stronger than the average person.

Ash had likely observed those lessons when following Lily to the academy.

And the dragon cub had clearly decided to imitate them.

Bruce’s gaze sharpened slightly as he observed the flow of mana.

Ash’s breathing was steady.

Mana entered its body in slow, controlled waves before circulating through its internal pathways like a gentle current flowing through an invisible river.

Several minutes passed quietly.

Then Bruce’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Something had changed.

Ash’s aura had grown stronger.

Much stronger. It was completely different from before…