Chapter 39: Assessment entry
Nolan’s gaze was fixed on the figure standing across the stadium floor—the Chief Mana Knight of Black Vale Territory.
Joules.
The name echoed faintly in his ears like a ghost’s whisper, tugging at something deep within him.
A memory... but not his own. It didn’t belong to Nolan—not the Nolan who came from Earth, with his cheat-like Internet access and reincarnated soul—but rather the Nolan whose body he now inhabited.
That long-dead noble boy with tangled family lines and buried ties to territories like Black Vale.
"...I should stay away from that guy," Nolan muttered under his breath, his eyes narrowing slightly as he tilted his head down to avoid Joules’ sweeping gaze.
A flicker of violet shimmered in the air behind him, unseen by all others. Lirazel, as ethereal as ever, floated lazily just inches above the ground, her wings folded neatly behind her. "Oh, that guy? I know him."
Nolan’s neck tensed instantly. "Zip it."
"What?" she said with a purr. "He once tried to summon something he didn’t understand. It backfired, of course. I was still in the higher realm back then—"
"Shut. It."
Although no one else could see or sense Lirazel—courtesy of her higher-realm origin and the veil of demonic stealth she brought with her—Nolan still felt a distinct chill crawl up his spine every time she opened her mouth.