Marvel: Playing Iron Man, Falling In and Out of Love with Jinx

Half a month later.

"Ugh!"

Duke clutched his stomach, trying not to vomit as he stared intently at the Archmage's rune journal. Even though it was damaged, the impact it had on him was nothing short of overwhelming.

Penned by the Archmage herself, the journal still carried traces of her magical essence. For Duke, who was currently undergoing his magical awakening, it acted as a highly potent stimulant.

And yet, if he wanted to complete his clockwork-powered armor, he had no choice but to master rune architecture. Hextech gemstones required rune support to channel and unleash energy.

As for building an Arc Reactor?

Where on earth was he supposed to find palladium? He didn't even know if it had been discovered in this world.

Extracting it himself? Dream on. Better to stick with Hextech gemstones and be practical.

"I can't hold it anymore!"

Slamming the journal shut, Duke shoved it into his inventory before grabbing the spittoon beside him and retching violently. After purging the nausea from his mind, he set the basin down with a long exhale.

His clockwork armor was nearly complete. Only one final component remained,

The power source.

He still hadn't constructed a complete rune system to support the Hextech gem. The Archmage's rune journal was far beyond his current level.

Getting his hands on even a fragment of it had been a miracle.

Even though he had only comprehended less than a third of it, what he had learned was already enough to give him the blueprint for an idea.

Knock knock knock…

A knock came from the door, followed by Orianna's voice from outside.

"Duke, are you ready? Father says it's time to leave for Blue Rose Manor. The evaluation is today, we can't be late!"

"I'm coming!"

Grabbing the white overcoat hanging nearby, Duke put it on calmly, opened the door, and stepped out of his room.

"Ugh! Why are you not even a little nervous?"

Orianna, in a rare departure from her usual work uniform, wore a sharp and elegant formal outfit. After fixing a stray lock of hair on her forehead, she grabbed Duke's hand and dragged him down the stairs.

"Hurry, or we'll miss the evaluation!"

"I get it, I get it, slow down!"

Duke allowed himself to be pulled along helplessly. Today was the Blue Rose Manor Evaluation. Officially, it was organized by the Piltover Council and Academy, but Blue Rose Manor belonged to the Ferros family.

The implications were… subtle, but powerful.

When Collin saw Duke coming down, he placed his hat on his head, grabbed his gear-shaped cane, and nodded at him. "Let's move. They won't wait for us over there."

"Understood, Mr. Collin."

With a confident smile, Duke adjusted the hem of his coat and braced himself for the coming challenge.

The Blue Rose Evaluation was held one week before Piltover's Evolution Day, designed to select the most promising inventors and their most valuable creations. The goal? To showcase them to investors during the big celebration.

As the trio made their way to the manor, another group was also preparing to leave from within House Talis.

"Ready, Jayce?"

"Honestly… kinda nervous."

Jayce tugged at his collar. Beside him, Viktor leaned on his cane and offered an encouraging smile.

"Don't be afraid. We've worked hard for this. We'll make it."

Jayce took a deep breath, recalling how he and Viktor had risked everything on one gamble, sneaking into Heimerdinger's lab and beginning their experiments.

Had they failed, they'd probably be toiling away in some obscure factory right now.

Since their success, the two had thrown themselves into preparing for the evaluation, determined to make Hextech technology a reality.

"Inhale… exhale…"

After a deep breath, Jayce steadied himself. "Let's go, Viktor. It's time we usher in a new era, ourselves."

Seeing the confidence in his friend's expression, Viktor nodded with equal determination. "Yes. Let's begin."

Zaun – Frogen Tavern

Boom!!

A loud explosion shook the tavern's ceiling. Dust rained down, but the patrons barely flinched. Only Vander, behind the counter, looked up with a grimace.

"Powder! Tone it down!"

Vi approached with a tray in her hands, leaning against the bar with a sigh.

"How many times has it been this week?"

"Thirty-seven," said Mylo, setting down a glass. "You better keep your sister in check. I'm scared she's going to blow this place up."

"I know what I'm doing. Shut up, Mylo."

Vi shoved him aside. "Ever since that thing at the old cannery, she's been obsessed with building new stuff. It's giving me a headache."

Vander polished a glass thoughtfully. "Maybe… you should find her a mentor."

"A mentor?" Vi raised an eyebrow. "Like who? And what would she even learn?"

"Duke."

Vander thought of the black-haired boy and made his suggestion. "He's solid. If she studied under him, she might really thrive."

"I'll think about it." Vi rolled her eyes and took the glass to a customer.

Boom!

Another blast. Vander clutched his face.

"When will it ever end…"

Ferros Estate – Blue Rose Manor

Walls of pristine white stone stretched across the grounds. The steel-forged rooftops gleamed under the sun. Along the walls, bronze busts of Ferros family members stood in solemn silence.

There were statues of current family head Stevan Ferros, his great-aunt Alicia Ferros, and his grandniece Dakora Ferros, all kin to Camille.

Notably, Alicia had only one arm, a reminder of her legacy. She was the one who discovered the original crystal that laid the foundation of the Ferros family's empire.

Beneath her statue, the Ferros family motto was etched:

"For my family, I give my all."

The manor itself was surrounded by vibrant blue lavender fields, the origin of its name.

At the gate, Piltover Enforcers kept order. Inventors and apprentices gathered with their works in tow, many anxiously shifting in place.

Though polite, they couldn't hide the tension in their eyes.

Amid the crowd stood Duke, beside a brass trunk as tall as his waist. Its front bore a unique clockwork emblem: a gemstone embedded in a gear, with flowing blue streams carved around it.

His signature design.

"Looks like quite the turnout today."

Patting his trunk, Duke scanned the crowd. He spotted several familiar faces, Caitlyn, alongside her mother and father, the Gallimannes, who were serving as judges this year.

The "dark horse" Jayce stood nearby, deep in conversation with Viktor, cane in hand.

Jayce looked more composed than when Duke had first seen him during the trial, brawny, handsome, no longer burdened by failure.

Viktor occasionally coughed, but the fire in his eyes hadn't dimmed.

"Is Viktor's body already starting to fail?" Duke frowned, observing carefully.

Jayce didn't seem to notice his friend's decline.

"I'll need to find a way to warn him. It would be such a waste to lose a genius like Viktor."

"In the original story, his fate was… tragic."

"But that's for later. Right now, it all depends on the evaluation."

Duke glanced at his trunk again, eyes full of confidence. Jayce and Viktor may have brought Hextech,

But he believed in his own design.

"Calling names now! Everyone, line up and enter in order!!"

A loud announcement drew the crowd's attention. Duke's gaze sharpened.

The selection… had begun.

To be continued...

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