"This cranks up the ether... and this part lets the unused ether sneak away," Judge muttered under his breath, poking at the artifact like a child trying to figure out how a clock worked by staring at its hands. Active artifacts were a headache. Unlike the dead ones, which he could gleefully rip apart to peek at their insides, these ticking ether bombs demanded caution.
Even if he did take it apart (and lived to tell the tale), the active parts wouldn't cooperate nicely, leaving him with an embarrassing jumble of non-functioning connections.
That's why he'd casually mentioned to Melina that he needed to learn a principle that would let him see through objects, though he'd nearly slipped and said X-ray. Judge cursed his past life's knowledge of modern terms. Apparently, "I need to look inside things for purely academic purposes" raised some suspicion. Who knew?
After much eyebrow-raising on Melina's part and a barrage of reassurances from his side, she reluctantly agreed to teach him. Of course, it came with warnings, like "don't get any funny ideas," but Judge wasn't interested in fabric or, you know, anything people wear. He wanted to see the blueprints— the mechanical inner workings of artifacts.
What Melina eventually taught him wasn't quite what he'd expected. No dramatic vision through walls, no supernatural power to see through solid objects. Instead, the principle allowed him to 'observe' the materials that made up said objects.
Basically, while he could not see through anything, he could still see the components of what the object was made of, its mechanics, and its inner workings.
So if he tried to look at a wall, all he'd get was the composition: stone, dust, a faint whiff of regret from the builder. No people, no secret chambers— just the cold, hard truth.
Judge had created a similar principle while he was looking for the reason behind why there was a part on the stone wall that did not emit ether while every other part did. But the principle was rather simple and it searched for anomalies with the surrounding ether.
Still, it was a start. And knowing Melina, she probably suspected he'd figure out how to tweak it. She knew Judge had a gift for ethercraft, which, to him, felt less like learning and more like playing around with the world's most dangerous toys.
Mid scribble, Judge was jolted from his focus by a knock at the door. "Master Judge, your breakfast is ready. May I enter?" came the polite, almost musical voice of his maid, Lediya. His mother had specifically chosen Lediya because handling him was like taming a particularly stubborn dragon—and not the cute baby kind.
"Come in," Judge said, voice flat as a pancake. Breakfast wasn't exactly on his priority list. His mother hadn't even given him the courtesy of joining the family for meals. Sure, it wasn't that he craved company or anything—he'd just prefer the occasional opportunity to see his father. A man so elusive, he might as well be a myth.
Honestly, seeing his dad was like encountering a rare celestial event, one that involved more paperwork than parental bonding.
Lediya cracked open the door like she expected him to make a run for it. As if he would ever stoop so low as to escape his own room. The slight was real, but he couldn't exactly blame her. His track record spoke for itself.
She slid in with the tray, pushing the wheeled cart across the floor like she was more spirit than person. Dressed in an outfit that screamed "look at my employer's obscene wealth," Lediya's maid uniform was more fitting for a ball than breakfast service.
Judge barely glanced at the food, Lediya stood beside the deep brown tray politely, her hands were on top of her skirt, one on top of the other. She wore a red full skirt with detailed embroidery patterns and laces, a light golden bodice, and a spotless white apron on top of her skirt and bodice.
Anyone would have a second guess when they see the maid outfit of the Drakonis house, it looked like and attire for a respectable lady attending a banquet. This was only something to flaunt their wealth.
"What's for breakfast?" he asked, hoping to find an excuse to dismiss it. His mind was already crafting the line: Sorry, too busy being a genius to eat. But then Lediya, wise to his tricks, dropped the name.
"It's Worrak steak, Master Judge."
The audible sigh that followed was the sound of defeat. "Fine, I'll eat," he grumbled. His pride lost to the allure of perfectly seared Worrak steak, a delicacy that even his dragon-half had trouble resisting.
He wasn't about to pretend he was above a good steak, especially not that steak. Back in his old life, steak was just the easy go-to when you didn't want to deal with "fancy" rich-people food. Here, though, Worrak steak was the stuff of legends, and once Judge had tasted it, he was hooked.
Lediya set the tray on the table, and Judge dragged himself away from his work, landing on the cushion like a sack of flour. The plush red velvet practically swallowed him whole as he eyed the steak. His mouth watered. There was no going back now.
With a fork and knife in hand, he carefully sliced into the meat, trying not to look too excited. If his mother knew he was this easy to manipulate, she'd have Lediya serving Worrak steak for every meal. Maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing.
He savored the rich, buttery texture as it melted in his mouth, a cargo of flavors dancing on his tongue. The seasoning? Excellent. The cut? immaculate. The entire experience?
Supernatural. If food had a hierarchy, this steak was a god, and Judge was its most loyal worshiper.
For a moment, he forgot everything— his problems, his schemes, even his lack of freedom. Just him and the steak, an epic romance he would never speak of out loud. He wasn't just eating; he was experiencing life in its purest, tastiest form.
In the midst of his savory experience, his brain decided to properly work in order to form a plan to escape to the expansive world out there. His munching slowed down as he started to think.
There were a few obstacles in his way that stopped him from getting out, the first was his maid— she would come to check on him every now and then. Then there was a spirit that his mother had assigned to him. It served two purposes, one was the fact that it served him as his familiar, and the other was that it was a snitch who would report his every abnormal move to his mother.
The third problem was his mother, while she was not as frequent as the maid, she would visit him at least once every day. He needed a plan to get out of this predicament somehow, But how? He started to brainstorm.
"Master Judge?" Lediya noticed his sleepy state and decided to wake him up.
Judge who was deep in thought was instantly pulled back to his senses, he had to think of a way after he finished his breakfast.