Chapter 6: Whispers Beneath the Metal
Julien stood in the center of the massive simulation chamber, hands clenched behind his back as instructed. The floor beneath him pulsed faintly with magisteel threads, forming a delicate grid of energy lines that linked to the Empire's battle algorithms. It was too quiet. His breath, steady but deliberate, echoed softly against the chrome walls.
Veldaric Hill hadn't said a word in over two minutes. He was circling.
Julien could feel him—like a storm in a general's uniform, restrained only by duty. The Marshal's black boots made no sound, but the pressure in the air shifted with each step he took. Julien's back prickled with awareness.
This wasn't just an evaluation.
"You masked your magical signature until the final ten seconds of the simulation," Veldaric finally said, voice low, dangerous. "Why?"
Julien didn't answer immediately. He'd spent the past day analyzing everything—who this man was, what kind of attention he wanted to avoid, and what the consequences of standing out too early could be. But in this moment, faced with the real Veldaric, that logic wavered.
"…I didn't want to be noticed yet," he said honestly, though his eyes remained on the far wall. "If I had shown my full hand, the Academy would've flagged me. You would've summoned me even sooner."
Veldaric stopped walking. Silence. Then: a quiet hum of approval.
"Smart." He stepped closer. "And yet you revealed just enough. Your cards responded to commands only a master-class practitioner could shape. That isn't beginner's instinct."
Julien turned his head slightly. "You don't think I'm a prodigy?"
"I think you're hiding something," Veldaric said bluntly. "But I don't mind secrets—if they're useful."
Julien's heart beat faster.
Their gazes finally locked. Veldaric's eyes weren't merely sharp—they were dissecting. Looking through him, peeling apart the lie that was "Julien Deton." But Julien refused to flinch.
"So?" Julien asked, voice steady. "Was I useful?"
Veldaric's mouth twitched into something like a smirk. "You're not afraid of me."
"Should I be?"
The room's lighting dimmed slightly, triggered by the shift in magical resonance. Veldaric was close now, too close. His presence was gravitational—Julien could feel the air thinning between them.
Then Veldaric reached into his coat and drew something from an inner pocket.
A card.
It wasn't a standard Academy-issued practice model. This one was obsidian black, etched with gold circuitry and pulsing with latent energy. Julien's breath caught.
"This card was created by the Empire's top-ranked combat artisan," Veldaric said, voice velvet. "I want you to analyze it. Tell me how it was made. You have five minutes."
Julien stepped forward. As soon as his fingertips touched the edge of the card, information flooded his senses—compressed enchantment matrices, surgical energy layering, combat runes that burned cold. It was like being dragged under a tidal wave of code and power.
But beneath it all, there was something... flawed.
Julien's eyes narrowed. He traced a sigil at the lower edge, noticing a micro-fracture in the layering. A deliberate flaw, placed to ensure self-destruction under sustained overload.
"This card is a trap," he said. "It's brilliant, but it wasn't meant to last."
Veldaric's smile turned razor-sharp. "You see more than most engineers in the capital."
Julien gave the card back. "You already knew that. So what do you really want from me?"
There was a long pause.
"I want someone who doesn't fear the truth," Veldaric said finally. "Someone whose loyalty I can shape before the rest of the Empire corrupts them."
Julien froze.
This wasn't about cards. It wasn't even about the Academy.
This was recruitment.
Veldaric's hand brushed against Julien's as he took the card back—an unnecessary gesture, too deliberate to be innocent. His fingers lingered for half a second too long. Julien felt a spark run through him, not magical, but electric all the same.
Veldaric didn't look away. "You'll be assigned to a special division starting tomorrow. Report directly to my lieutenant. Your education continues—but under my terms."
Julien's breath hitched. This was faster than he'd planned. But maybe… exactly the opening he needed.
"…Yes, Marshal."
Veldaric's smile didn't reach his eyes, but something possessive flickered there as he turned and walked away.
As the chamber doors hissed open, Julien finally exhaled.
He had entered this world trying to lay low, to avoid attention and master cardcraft quietly. But now he had Veldaric's full interest.
And the Marshal never let go of something he considered his.