Chapter 2: Spell From A Blog
The sidewalk tiles shifted under his boots. Half were cracked. A few glowed faintly from embedded mana lines, pulsing like veins under cheap stone.
Lucen kept his head down and walked.
The air stank of pavement heat and auto-smog. Sunlight bounced off the mirrored panels of a mid-tier guild branch across the street. Steelhearts, the sign read. Giant chrome letters. Two guards in matching jackets stood outside, pretending not to flex.
A kid no older than him was inside, posing for a photo in front of the logo.
Lucen didn't stop.
He passed a mana-repair booth on the corner, one of those mobile pop-ups where washed-out healers sold rejuvenation spells for five credits a cast. A line of workers stood there, all of them sweating, most of them limping.
The healer inside the booth yawned as he cast.
Lucen checked the blinking display above the booth window.
"Available Buffs Basic Cleanse, Joint Stabilizer, Burnout Flus...4 remaining"
'Four spells left. Guy's nearly tapped. Shouldn't even be on a shift.'
He crossed at the next light. A half-dismantled beast skull hung from the roof of a fried skewer stall. The sign beneath it flashed.