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Harrison's office. Several young Card Masters sat in rigid postures, backs straight, hands on their knees, radiating the particular brand of nervous energy that came from being in a room with someone who could end your career with a frown.
They were all Commander Realm. Solid. Competent. Selected by the Association to represent Ashenvale in the Youth Training Competition. Under normal circumstances, they'd be confident in their abilities.
Harrison Cole was not normal circumstances. Sovereign Realm. Branch president. The man who decided whether your membership got renewed or your mission access got expanded. Every one of them understood that making a good impression here could accelerate their careers by years.
Making a bad one could end those careers entirely.
"Relax." Harrison noticed the tension. "Once Luke arrives, we'll head out."
The team exchanged confused glances. The original roster had listed someone named Garrett as the final member. Now they were waiting for someone called Luke? Had the roster changed?
Nobody questioned it out loud. The president's decisions were the president's decisions. But privately, several of them noted that this Luke person had apparently been important enough to replace a confirmed competitor at the last minute.
And now they were all sitting here, waiting for him.
A few members quietly expected Harrison to be irritated when Luke showed up. The rest of the team had arrived early, eager to make good impressions. Whoever this replacement was, showing up last would probably earn him a cold reception from the president.
The door opened. Nina Ashby stepped in with Luke behind her.
"President Cole, Luke has arrived."
"There you are." Harrison's stern expression melted into a genuine smile. "I was starting to think you'd forgotten the time. Almost sent Nina to drag you here."
"You're never going to let that go, are you, President Cole?" Luke shook his head with a wry grin.
The temperature in the room shifted. Every team member felt it.
Nina Ashby, the president's Monarch Realm secretary, had personally escorted this kid to the office. And now Harrison was joking with him. Joking. Casual, familiar banter that the rest of them couldn't buy with a decade of good behavior.
The team's "watching the show" attitude evaporated. Whatever they'd been expecting, this wasn't it.
Nina escorted him. Harrison treats him like a friend, not a subordinate. This person is not a normal rookie.
Curiosity replaced amusement. Wariness replaced condescension. They didn't know who Luke was or what he'd done to earn this treatment, but every instinct they had was telling them the same thing: don't underestimate this one.
"Everyone's here." Harrison stood. "Let's move. Nina, the Association is yours and the vice president's while I'm gone. Contact me directly if anything comes up that you can't handle."
"Understood, President Cole." Nina nodded and withdrew.
-----
The Cold Cloud Sparrow launched from the Association's rear courtyard, its massive wings pulling the group skyward in a single powerful stroke. The same species of transport that Moonvale had used during the exchange match. Six-Star. Built for endurance and speed.
Luke settled into his spot on the bird's back and immediately noticed the ambient temperature.
"Does this thing come with built-in seat cooling?" He shifted, feeling the chill radiating up from beneath him. "This is basically an air-conditioned ride."
Harrison overheard and almost choked. "Seat cooling?"
Magic Card Civilization had mechanical constructs. Harrison knew what automotive climate control was. But hearing someone describe a Six-Star card spirit, a living creature bred for speed and aerial combat, as a piece of vehicular comfort technology was a new experience.
"One of the twelve capitals, the Forge Capital, specializes in mechanical-type cards," Harrison said, trying to maintain his dignity. "If you ever visit, please don't describe their creations as 'seat cooling.'"
"No promises."
Behind them, the rest of the team watched Luke and Harrison chat and laugh like old friends. The Association staff members who'd accompanied the group, people who'd worked at the Ashenvale branch for years without exchanging more than a handful of words with Harrison, felt a complicated mixture of envy and bewilderment.
The young competitors felt it too. They wanted that kind of access. That ease. That casual rapport with the most powerful person in their professional lives. But none of them had it, and watching someone their age pull it off effortlessly was both impressive and slightly infuriating.
The Cold Cloud Sparrow was fast. Faster than anything Luke had ridden in his previous life, military jets included. And its endurance was practically limitless, sustained by mana rather than fuel. As long as the supply held, the bird could fly indefinitely at peak performance.
Even so, the journey took most of the day. By the time the Capital's outskirts appeared on the horizon, the sun was touching the edge of the world.
The Capital's territory was enormous. Far larger than Luke had imagined.