The next morning, Hogg walked with Brin towards Davi’s farm on the way to the morning workout. Calisto’s potion had finally removed the last traces of the [Witch’s] curse, but his muscles had shrunk in the past several months. He was practically a skeleton, with his black leathers hanging loose against his frame.

Despite that, he walked with a firm energy, reveling in the experience of walking on his own two feet again. “I’ll be back to form in no time at all. You’ll see! A body remembers the way it’s supposed to be. Some good food, some healthful exercise, and I’ll be right back. You’ll see.”

To that, Brin could only smile nervously. “Sure.”

Davi was already pumping the bench press when they arrived, with Zilly spotting him. Davi stopped and sat up. “Oh, I wasn’t sure if you’d want to come. What with Lumina leaving today.”

Brin shrugged. “She likes to sleep in.”

Hogg rubbed his hands together, eyeing the bench press with excitement. “Stand up, let me at it.”

“Do you want me to take some weight off?” asked Davi.

“No need.” Hogg hardly waited for Davi to sit up before laying down in his place. He pumped the full weight, more than six hundred pounds, three times, but then had to stop because he was already out of breath.

It didn’t surprise Brin that Hogg was able to lift the weight. His level might be double Brin’s, or close to that, so even though he was a Dexterity-main, his Strength score was probably through the roof. It was a testament to how weak the sickness had left him that he was struggling here. Attributes were a modifier, meaning that with less muscle you still might be weaker than someone with a lower score if they were more muscular.

Hogg waited for a half a minute, then did three more before running out of breath again. He waited for another two minutes until he was totally recovered, and then knocked out five in a row.

After that he was panting so badly that Brin thought he was going to pass out. He didn’t seem put out by his lack of stamina, and smiled at the bench press. “This… is… ingenious! I wish… I had one of these… when I was younger!”

“Yeah, it’s pretty neat,” said Brin. He went next, and also didn’t move any weight. He knocked out ten. He knew Davi did reps of thirty at this weight. The big guy was still ahead, but Brin was gaining on him.

Zilly went next. They did remove some weight for her, but she didn’t seem put out by it.

“So what’s next?” Hogg asked when Zilly was done.

“Maybe we should be asking you that,” said Zilly.

“Nonsense. I have my own training routine, sure, but we can do that some other time. I want to see what you lot have been up to. It’s past time, honestly.”

There was no way that Hogg didn’t know exactly what workouts they did, when his Class made it so easy to spy on people, but Brin didn’t call him out. Instead, they took the old codger through the whole set. Brin and Davi had worked out a regimen that hit every muscle group.

Hogg kept up with it all. He tired easily, but after a minute or two to catch his breath, he was always ready for more.

Strangely, though, he always seemed to be able to do more on his last rep than on his first. If he did five squats the first time, the next would be six and then the last would be ten. He seemed to be giving it all every time, so it wasn’t that he was saving his strength.

By the end of the workout, Brin was certain that something strange was happening. Hogg’s black leathers didn’t hang quite so loose on him.

“I have two questions,” Brin announced. “First, who works out in leather? That can’t be comfortable.”

Hogg plucked at his overcoat, offended. “It’s what I like.”

“Second, what kind of drug did Calisto give you that lets you build muscle this fast, and why aren’t we all taking it?”

“Seriously! You lot build muscle like it’s nothing. Do you know how hard it’s been to get these abs?” asked Zilly, lifting up her shirt to show off her stomach.

Brin looked on instinct, and also saw Zilly notice him look with a glimmer of satisfaction in her eyes. He felt his face grow a little hot, despite his best efforts. Damn teenage hormones.

Hogg missed all of it. “Don’t even think about it. If there ever was a potion from Calisto, it would’ve been a recovery potion. Not something to grow your muscles the first time. Remember: Honest continuous labor or brave feats of heroism. That’s the way to please the System.”

Zilly and Davi nodded seriously, so Brin felt it his duty to roll his eyes a little bit.

“Well, I take it that was all we’re doing for today?” asked Hogg.

“Yeah, that’s all we had planned,” said Davi.

“Perfect. Why don’t we head over to the public house and get breakfast. If I don’t eat something in, say, the next forty-three and a half minutes, I’ll literally die,” said Hogg.

“I hate when people misuse that word. You mean you’ll figuratively die,” said Davi.

Hogg didn’t respond right away.

Brin put his head in his hands and groaned. “He meant what he said. Sounds like a side-effect of some kind of drug he may or may not have taken?”

“Who can say?” Hogg spread his hands wide, acting entirely too casual for someone who might die in half an hour if Hela was on break.

“Please tell me there’s a plan B,” said Brin.

“Of course!” Hogg pulled some jerky out of his pocket. “I have an emergency stash. But I’d rather not, honestly. So. Breakfast?”

“Sure!” said Zilly, skipping ahead.

The four of them walked into town. The destroyed part of town had already been in the process of being rebuilt, but now a forest of wooden frames heralded new construction. From the looks of things, the new buildings would be four, five, and sometimes even six stories tall. They weren’t just planning on new spaces for the people who’d just arrived; they expected this was just the beginning.

New immigrants worked with native Boggers, even this early in the morning, and the air was filled with the sound of banging hammers.

Alert! Hide Status leveled up! 3 -> 4