Vacuum Energy from Lattice Residual

At ρ equals zero, the squared magnitude of the connectivity kernel C(ρ) equals one — peak coupling, not silence. The lattice never reaches zero energy; each node holds residual energy proportional to that magnitude. Because the lattice is discrete — sixteen steps per half-cycle, not a continuum — the sum over nodes is finite. Energy density scales as alpha times Q, which is one-third times three-pi-over-eight, giving pi over eight. No zero-point postulate is required, and no divergence appears.