Alone in the deserted Grand Library, Emma yawned. It came out of her fully and without restraint, pulling along the fatigue she'd been quietly storing for days.
She and Mingle and the rest of lab 24 had been deep in the work of building an armband, one designed specifically for the Royal Knights and Alpha Academy students who would be competing in the upcoming Epic Competition.
It wasn't their lab's primary focus, not by a long stretch, but Mingle's presence had a way of expanding what was possible. The Supreme Council knew that. They expected miracles from that lab, and with Mingle involved, miracles had a habit of showing up.
The book between her fingers was enormous, its shell hardened to the point where it looked less like a cover and more like a weapon, one good swing and a skull wouldn't stand a chance.
She held it with one hand and rubbed her eyes with the other, yawning through the whole thing, her glasses threatening to abandon her face entirely.
