And hey—add to your library, okay?A click for Avery = a win for chaotic queens everywhere.
The scent of pine lingered in the sealed office, subtle and cold.
Avery's back hit the door with a soft thud.Soren Wolfe loomed above her, one hand braced near her head.
"D-rank to C-rank," he murmured, eyes narrowing. "Instantly. Explain."
He leaned in—close enough for her to count the lashes shadowing molten-gold eyes.His breath ghosted over her cheek: not warm, just… measured. Like a scalpel poised at skin.
Avery's gaze dropped—subtle, precise.Jaw tight but not clenched. Shoulders relaxed. Fingers braced by her head, no tension.
Not aggression. Assessment.
His right foot shifted forward—heel grounded, toe aimed at her center mass.Direction of focus, not threat.
She exhaled, slow and shallow. Calculated.Still testing. Not striking.
So she smiled.
Hands came together before her chest like a prayer—innocent posture, practiced precision.She tilted her face up until her breath brushed his jaw.
"Maybe…" Her voice barely a whisper. "Maybe you're just too handsome, Commander Wolfe. Maybe that's what awakened my potential."
The flicker in his eyes wasn't amusement; it was calculation.A brow twitch. One exhaled breath—suppressed, mild, quickly contained.
Then a growl of a chuckle—deep, brief, almost reluctant.
"Cute," he said flatly.
His hand rose, palmed her neck—not rough, not tender. Just… there.Fingers brushed her pulse.
No flinch, no lean-in.Pulse pounding—too fast, too excited to be fake. But no panic. Only control.
"Then tell me," he murmured, lips nearly brushing her ear, "exactly how I triggered that awakening?"
Voice slow, hot, dangerous.
For a heartbeat—she almost answered. Almost blurted everything.
[⚠️ WARNING: Psionic Attack!][Emergency Defense Protocol: Cortical Spike Triggered]
Pain lanced through her skull like an ice pick.Avery gasped, biting her tongue—copper, adrenaline, clarity.
She shoved backward, eyes wide, voice cracking in all the right places.
"I don't know anything!" Too loud, too fast. "I swear!"
Soren didn't react—visibly.
But when he turned, one gloved hand slammed onto the desk—
CRACK.
Frost bloomed across solid wood.
His voice, when it came, was deathly quiet.
"The energy that rewrote your body—doesn't belong to this world."
Golden eyes locked on her. No glow. No movement.Just stillness—deadly, waiting.
"Speak."
LUSTRA's alarm still shrieked like a siren in the back of her mind.Avery's temples pounded.
If that shield hadn't triggered… she'd be confessing her respawn, the system—maybe even the theme song.
But now?
Her lips twitched. She met his gaze head-on.
He hadn't stepped forward. Posture rigid, yet—
Feet slightly apart, balance steady; front foot still pointed at her.
Interest, not threat.
She inhaled, then stepped in—just a little.Nose grazed his jaw. Palms folded like a student begging mercy.
"Then surely," she whispered, "a man of your… caliber knows when to keep secrets."
For a moment he didn't blink.
Then—brow flex. Not surprise; computation. Delay. He was listening.
So she pulled back a step, shoulders lowered.
"Whether you believe me or not…" Soft. "I really don't know anything."
Pause. A shimmer swelled in her eyes—just moisture, no tears.
"Yesterday I was a nobody. A college kid thrown out a window.I don't know how I awakened. I don't know why my rank jumped."
Beat.
Her smile bloomed—sly, radiant.
"…Unless, of course—" voice lifting, "you want to recruit me?"
Another step. Crossing that unspoken wire every soldier draws around themselves.
"Stick around long enough," she added, "and maybe you'll figure out what's wrong with me."
Soren still hadn't moved. But his jaw twitched.That was enough.
She leaned forward—featherlight.Fingers grazed his palm—like a match brushing a fuse—
Then closed.