---
John pretended to be a helper. He doesn't want anyone to know that he is the true owner of Fizz holdings.
Moran's gaze shifted to John, lingering a moment too long. His eyes narrowed slightly, but the expression smoothed away before it could be called suspicion.
"John," he said, extending a hand.
John took it with a steady grip. "Moran. Ask me anything you want to know."
"Straight to business, I like that," Moran said, though his eyes flicked once more over John's face in a way that made something cold stir in John's stomach.
He knew that look. The flicker of recognition someone couldn't quite place. "Let's see the goods first," Moran said.
Inside the forge, the workers had laid out the rune engraved ore, several new common blades, and the demo Spitter Mk.1 prototype on the long table. Moran walked the length of it slowly, fingertips brushing over the work as his assistant scribbled notes.
