The day passed without alarms.
Without meetings.
Without the usual pressure humming under the skin.
No need to attend classes, and no need to review the college exam materials.
It should've felt strange.
But somehow, it didn't.
Ethan stretched out on a cushioned recliner near the mansion's lower courtyard pool—a gleaming strip of water shaped like a crescent blade.
The inner dome above shimmered faintly, its transparent film filtering the ultraviolet rays pouring through from the sky-high solar canopy.
A few feathered scout drones hovered at a distance, nearly invisible unless you were trained to see them.
One passed through the outer ward and blinked green.
All clear.
Good.
A soft breeze carried through the hedges, which weren't normal plants either. Their leaves held low-grade sensory charms woven into them—an extra layer of defense, though you'd never know unless you touched one wrong.
