Meanwhile, Lucen, who had been leisurely watching his wall of holographic screens, each filled with different recruit perspectives and chaotic battles, froze completely.
His eyes widened. His breath caught.
For a long moment, he couldn't even form words.
The impossible had just happened.
No, two impossibles.
He blinked once, then twice. The sight before him refused to make sense.
Sophie Reign, calm, collected, yet radiating overwhelming presence, had just done the unthinkable.
"No way," he whispered under his breath, his voice trembling as his mind raced. "That's impossible."
He stepped closer to her broken pod, staring at the faint glow still emanating from her skin, his reflection warped in her aura.
"Impossible," he muttered again, shaking his head as if denial would make it untrue. "You advanced inside a full-dive simulation? You manifested a title while inside VR?"
His words came out hoarse, half whisper, half disbelief.
