The ornate living room of my villa felt strangely tense as I sat across from Commander Keller and Captain Ari Steele of the Eldoria Battle Zone. Their unexpected appearance at my doorstep had caught off guard, especially since Eamon was away on an errand.
"Mr. Knight," Commander Keller began, his weathered face serious yet sohow warm. "I apologize for the unscheduled visit, but we've co with an official matter that couldn't wait."
I nodded, keeping my expression neutral. "What brings Eldoria's finest to my humble ho?"
Keller cleared his throat. "As I ntioned briefly during our previous eting, Chief Vance has taken a personal interest in you." He reached into his coat and pulled out an embossed envelope. "This is a formal invitation to join the Eldoria Battle Zone's dical division in an official capacity."
My eyebrows shot up. "Join the Battle Zone? ?"
"Yes. The chief believes your... unique dical expertise would be invaluable to our wounded soldiers."
I took the envelope with hesitant fingers, feeling the heavy paper and seeing the gold seal of Eldoria emblazoned on it. This was no joke.
"Commander, with all due respect, I'm confused. I have no military background, no formal qualifications that would warrant such an invitation." I looked at him directly. "What exactly has Chief Vance heard about ?"
Captain Steele snorted from his position near the window, drawing my attention. Unlike the commander, whose deanor was professional, Steele made no attempt to hide his disdain.
"That's precisely what I've been wondering," he said, his voice sharp. "Hundreds of qualified doctors and healers apply to the Battle Zone each year. Most are rejected. Yet here we are, personally delivering an invitation to soone with no credentials, no recomndations, and no combat experience."
Commander Keller shot Steele a warning glance. "Captain."
"No, Commander, soone needs to say it." Steele turned to face fully, his jaw tight with barely contained anger. "Let's be honest, Knight. We all know you're here because of your connection to Mr. Vance. The rest of us had to earn our positions through years of service and sacrifice."
I frowned, genuinely puzzled. "My connection to Mr. Vance? I've never even t the man."
Steele laughed, the sound hollow and mocking. "Right. Next you'll tell you just happened to move into one of the most exclusive communities in Havenwood City on your own rit."
"That's exactly what happened," I replied calmly, though I could feel my patience wearing thin. "Whatever you think you know about , Captain Steele, I suspect you're working with incomplete information."
"I know enough," he snapped. "You're just another privileged kid using connections to get what others work decades for."
Commander Keller stood up abruptly. "Captain Steele, that's enough. Wait outside."
"Sir, with respect—"
"That was an order, Captain."
Steele's face flushed with anger, but he gave a stiff nod and stalked toward the door. Once he left, Keller sighed heavily and sat back down.
"I apologize for my subordinate, Mr. Knight. Captain Steele is an exceptional soldier but can be... traditional in his views of military hierarchy."
I waved a dismissive hand. "No need to apologize, Commander. But I must decline this invitation. Whatever Chief Vance believes I can offer, I'm certain there are others better qualified."
"I urge you to reconsider," Keller said, leaning forward. "This opportunity—"
The door swung open as Steele marched back in, clearly having overheard my refusal. His eyes blazed with renewed anger.
"Of course you'd decline," he sneered. "The mont you realize you might actually have to work for sothing, you back out."
I took a deep breath, feeling my control slipping. "Captain, I don't know what I've done to earn your hostility, but—"
"You exist," he cut in. "People like you make a mockery of everything the Battle Zone stands for. You think you can buy your way into positions heroes have died earning?"
"I never asked for this invitation," I countered, my voice hardening. "And you know nothing about or what I've endured."
Steele stepped closer, looming over where I sat. "I know your type. I've seen your file. Three years as a live-in son-in-law, then suddenly you're living in Dragon Rising Community? People like fight and bleed while people like you make connections and climb ladders."
Sothing in snapped. Not with rage, but with a cold clarity. I looked up at him, no longer bothering to mask my true self.
"Captain Steele, I won't sit here and be insulted in my own ho," I said, my voice deceptively soft. "You've made assumptions about that are not only incorrect but disrespectful. I suggest you check your attitude."
"Or what?" he challenged, leaning down until his face was inches from mine. "What will the pampered little rich boy do?"
Commander Keller moved to intervene. "Steele, that's enough!"
But Steele was too far gone in his own righteousness. "No, sir. People like him need to understand they can't buy respect." He turned back to . "You think you deserve a place among warriors? Prove it."
I remained seated, watching him with an eerie calm that seed to unnerve even Commander Keller.
"I have nothing to prove to you, Captain. Please leave my ho." Sаmplе frоm Мy Virtuаl Librаry Еmpirе—rеаd mоrе оn
Steele's face contorted with fury. "You coward. You—"
"Last warning," I said quietly.
Sothing in my tone must have finally registered, because Commander Keller grabbed Steele's arm. "Captain, stand down imdiately. That's an order!"
But Steele had reached his breaking point. With a battle cry, he shrugged off his commander and lunged at , his fist glowing with concentrated energy—a peak Master Realm attack aid directly at my face.
I didn't even stand up.
With a casual wave of my hand while still seated, I released a fraction of my power. The air between us distorted as a wave of invisible force t Steele's attack, not just stopping it but reversing its montum entirely.
The captain's eyes widened in shock as his own energy rebounded and he was lifted off his feet, hurled backward across the room. He crashed into the far wall with enough force to crack the plaster, then slumped to the floor, gasping.
The silence that followed was absolute. Commander Keller stared at , his face pale with realization.
"You... you're not just a healer," he whispered.
I rose slowly from my chair, straightening my sleeves. "No, Commander. I'm not."
Steele struggled to his feet, his expression a mixture of pain, shock, and—most tellingly—fear. He had attacked with his full strength, and I had repelled him without even standing up.
"Who are you?" he managed to ask, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
I looked between the two soldiers, knowing that everything had changed in that single mont of lost control.
"Perhaps," I said quietly, "that's sothing Chief Vance already knows."
Reviews
All reviews (0)