The adjustment period didn't last as long as Lucas expected.
By the next day, most students had already started to settle into the new rhythm—if it could even be called that anymore. There wasn't a consistent tempo to follow. No predictable window to lean on. Just movement, reaction, correction.
Messier.
But sharper.
Lucas saw it the moment he stepped into the training hall.
People weren't hesitating like before. They weren't waiting for the "right" moment to act. They were moving on instinct, adjusting mid-action instead of committing to something fixed.
It looked worse.
Formations weren't as clean. Timing wasn't as synchronized. There were more small errors—tiny missteps, slight overlaps, unnecessary corrections.
But the recoveries were faster.
That was the difference.
Lucas leaned against the barrier and watched a B-tier group handle a staggered wave. The initial positioning was off. One of the anchors drifted too far inward, forcing the suppressor to adjust on the fly.
