Chapter 85
Magnus didn't offer a platitude. Instead, he walked around the desk and leaned against the edge, his uniform crisp and unyielding. He looked down at the file, then back at Arden with the calm stillness of a veteran who had survived a thousand power plays.
"He isn't using protocol, Arden," Magnus said, his voice dropping into a low, instructive rumble. "He’s using your conscience against you. He knows you take the duty seriously, and he’s banking on your fear of failing—failing the King, me, and yourself.”
He reached out, tapping the heavy folder with a blunt finger.
"Protocol is a blade, and right now, you’re holding it by the edge. Flip it around. If he hasn't finished the armory, he hasn't just failed a task—he has disobeyed a direct order, not only from the acting Command
