Chapter 316: Vance and Brewer
Julian ignored Edmund entirely, his gaze remaining fixed on Emily. "Arcana City."
Emily blinked, a subtle drop of confusion touching her features. "What?"
"Arcana City," Julian repeated, a faint, intrigued smile touching his lips.
"You were there."
"I’ve visited Arcana City with my family before," Emily lied through her teeth.
"That hardly makes it memorable."
"No... it wasn’t a family visit," Julian said softly, his eyes narrowing.
"It was near the central district. The Vault of the Arcana."
The ambient noise of the bustling transit, the distant chatter of arriving delegates, the rhythmic clatter of luggage—seemed to fade into the background.
Samantha felt a sudden, visceral spike of awareness, every nerve ending in her body tightening. She didn’t dare move, but her eyes flicked sharp between Julian and Emily.
Every student of standing had heard about it.
The Vault of the Arcana was a restricted, heavily guarded site in Arcana City—a place spoken of only in hushed tones among high-ranking Talented lineages.
"You’re mistaken," Emily said firmly, though her own brow furrowed with her best impression of obliviousness.
"I didn’t say you were inside," Julian countered, his voice smooth, almost contemplative. "I saw you. You were wearing a dark coat, and you..." He trailed off, shaking his head slightly as if the memory hit a dead end.
"The details are blurred. The incident records were heavily redacted by the Board afterward. But I know I’ve seen your face. You were there. Do you deny it?"
That’s enough, Vance," Edmund’s voice, his voice talking on a colder edge.
Samantha could tell that Edmund that the last straw of Edmund’s nigh infinite patience had finally snapped.
"Here we go..."she thought, shifting her weight subtly back.
The air around Edmund began to drop rapidly in temperature.
A thin, crystalline skin of frost instantly crept across the stone floor beneath his boots, radiating outward in sharply.
His innate ice Talent, the signature trait of the Brewer family was responding directly to his emotional state, condensing atmospheric moisture into solid ice.
Julian finally shifted his gaze back to Edmund, his smirk returning, though his posture remained composed.
"Defensive as ever, Edmund. I’m merely asking a question. Or is the Brewer family now hiding valuable Talented assets from public record?"
"Emily owes you no explanations,"
Edmund said, taking a step forward. The ice beneath his feet cracked sharply under the pressure of his stride.
"And if you think you can bring your family’s arrogance onto Pyreptar ground to interrogate my companions, you are severely mistaken."
"Is that a challenge?" Julian asked softly. He lifted his right hand slightly.
Without missing a beat, Julian activated his own Talent.
The ambient light around his forearm instantly warped, bending away from his skin in distorted, fluid ripples.
The air pressure surrounding them spiked violently, creating a heavy, localized spatial pressure that pressed down on the platform with a dull, echoing groan.
Several students immediately backed away, recognizing the tell tale signs of an imminent clash.
"Try keeping your footing," Edmund snapped.
Edmund lunged forward, abruptly directing his Talent explosively outward.
A jagged wall of solid frost—a personal signature technique he had refined through years of combat practice, Glacial Palisade—erupted directly from the stone tiles, rising six feet into the air to lock Julian’s movement and crush his spatial ability.
To his credit, Julian didn’t flinch. He swept his hand outward, manipulating the spatial density around him to create a sharp, kinetic shear that shattered the rising ice wall into a thousand glittering shards before it could fully form.
"Stop!" Emily called out, taking a step forward, her hands raised in a placating gesture.
Before the flying ice shards could hit the floor or Julian could direct another pressure wave, a dark shadow blurred across the terminal floor with terrifying speed.
A tall figure materialized directly between Edmund and Julian.
Levi Arclight caught Edmund’s wrist in a iron grip, suppressing his physical momentum before he could extend his Talent further.
Simultaneously, Xander appeared behind Julian, his movement so effortless and silent that he managed to place a light, warning finger against the base of Julian’s neck before the Vance heir could even turn his head.
"That is quite enough," Levi said, his voice flat, cold, and carrying the absolute authority of an instructor.
The heavy spatial distortion around Julian collapsed instantly as Xander’s presence disrupted his focus.
"We’re were just having a personal conversation," Julian murmured softly.
"Personal conversations don’t shatter the floor tiles or trigger emergency protocols for that matter," Xander remarked casually, stepping back from Julian with a bright, entirely fake smile.
Xander’s calm veneer, faded a for a brief moment, his voice going dangerously low.
"Have the both of you lost your minds? Do you not realize where you are? Did you even stop to consider the ramifications of what a squabble of this proportion could do?!"
He pinched his nose letting out a small sigh.
Levi didn’t release Edmund’s wrist until the frost spreading across the ground completely halted and dissipated into fine vapor.
"Walk away, Edmund," Levi ordered, his dark eyes fixed on the Brewer heir.
"You are a representative of the upper echelons of the Talented. Fighting in an open transit hub over verbal provocation is pathetic."
Julian smirked, then turned with a flourish offering Emily a bright smile.
"Until we meet again Miss..."
Emily remained silent, standing her ground beside Samantha.
Julian let out an exasperated sigh at her silence.
Without another word, he turned on his heel and walked toward the primary exit corridor, his two aides falling into crisp formation behind him.
The heavy tension in the terminal slowly began to deflate.
The surrounding crowd of students dispersed, muttering quietly among themselves about the sudden clash.
"Are you alright?" Samantha asked, turning immediately to Emily.
"I’m fine," Emily said, though her eyes remained fixed on the corridor where Julian had disappeared. She reached up, absentmindedly adjusting her glasses. "He was completely serious."
"He’s a Vance," Edmund said bitterly, stepping over to join them. "They thrive on theatrical subtle threats and historical posturing."