Renee's words instantly shattered the relaxed atmosphere in the briefing room.
Oliver's hand, which had been fiddling with mechanical parts, stiffened. The bright smile on his face froze as he turned toward Byrne with curiosity. Luca also turned, staring at Byrne as his muscles tensed into a defensive posture. In the world of Warhammer, an abnormality in psychic energy was a grave matter.
Byrne looked at Renee and raised an eyebrow with a smile. "Miss Renee, what exactly do you mean by that?"
Despite his calm exterior, Byrne was panicking internally. He knew that the "strangeness" Renee mentioned was likely the hidden, unknown energy within him. Earlier, in front of Marco, he had managed to bluff his way through by suppressing it in time. He hadn't expected Renee's psychic detection to be so acute that she could sense the anomaly upon their very first meeting.
Marco dropped his previous lethargy, his expression turning serious. "Renee, explain. What's strange about it?"
Renee didn't answer immediately. Instead, she stood up slowly and walked toward Byrne step by step. As she drew closer, her bangs fluttered without wind, and a faint blue light flickered at the center of her brow—a sign of intense psychic concentration.
She stopped right in front of Byrne. "Stand still. Don't move."
With that, Renee reached out her right hand, placing her index finger on Byrne's brow, and closed her eyes. The moment her finger touched him, Byrne felt a chilling psychic energy surge into his body like a nimble silver snake, darting rapidly through his system.
Dammit, she's scanning me with her psychic power. I can't let her find it.
Byrne's heart tightened, but he maintained his composure on the surface while secretly mobilizing his own psychic energy. In his desperation, he utilized a psychic interference technique from the Manual of Basic Psychic Applications. He intentionally disrupted his own psychic flow, creating the illusion of a disorganized state typical of someone who hadn't yet fully mastered their power, hoping to confuse Renee's judgment.
The tactic worked. As Renee sensed the turbulence in Byrne's psychic energy, her frown deepened, and the rhythm of her probe faltered for a moment.
A minute passed in silence. Renee withdrew her finger, the blue light at her brow faded, and she opened her eyes. She stepped back and stared at Byrne with a thoughtful expression.
"Renee, what's the situation?" Marco asked.
Renee remained silent for two seconds before speaking slowly. "Nothing. I misjudged. He just hasn't fully mastered his power yet. His psychic fluctuations are in a state of turbulence common for a newcomer."
Upon hearing this conclusion, the previously tense group finally relaxed. No one blamed Renee; the risk of psychic collapse was so dangerous that being overly cautious was always the right call.
Byrne breathed a silent sigh of relief. Renee's probe had been terrifyingly precise; that cold energy had almost brushed against the unknown power within him. If he hadn't reacted in time to create that facade of instability, he might not have been able to hide it.
Byrne nodded to Renee. "Thank you for the reminder, Miss Renee. I am indeed still in the phase of familiarizing myself with psychic control. I will practice the techniques in the Manual of Basic Psychic Applications more diligently to master my energy as soon as possible."
Marco leaned back in his chair, his lazy demeanor returning. "It's normal for a rookie to have turbulent energy. Byrne, you should learn from Renee; she's very experienced in psychic control."
"Understood, Captain," Byrne replied, his gaze inconspicuously sweeping over Renee. She had returned to her seat in the corner, her eyes lowered again, her bangs veiling her expression.
Selena stood to the side, having remained silent throughout the encounter. Her gaze shifted between Byrne and Renee, a flicker of complex emotion passing through her eyes before she regained her composure, acting as if the small disturbance had nothing to do with her.
Marco clapped his hands. "Alright, that's enough of that. These two are our new members, Byrne and Selena. Both are rookies who just passed the tests, and their psychic levels are quite high. You're teammates now, so look out for one another."
"Luca, take Byrne and Selena and familiarize them with our squad's environment and rules. They'll officially start taking missions next week."
"Roger that!" Luca stood up and beckoned to Byrne and Selena. "Come on, I'll show you around. This place isn't big, but it's fully equipped."
Byrne and Selena followed Luca out of the briefing room. Once the three had left, the smile vanished from Marco's face. He turned to Renee. "Alright, Byrne is gone now. You can tell the truth."
Oliver sat up straight immediately. Though he focused on mechanical technology, he understood the risks behind psychic anomalies.
Renee slowly looked up, her bangs still low, but unable to hide the gravity in her eyes. She didn't answer directly. Instead, she glanced at the closed door to ensure there was no movement outside before speaking:
"His psychic fluctuations are definitely wrong. When I said I misjudged, I just didn't want to alert him. His performance wasn't a simple case of rookie turbulence—it was a disguise used to mask another energy source."
Marco's brow furrowed. "Is that so? Be specific."
"His surface psychic energy is indeed messy, looking like someone who recently awakened and lacks control. But beneath that layer of chaos, there is an extremely stable energy hidden away. This energy is very peculiar; it doesn't fall within the normal scope of psychic power. When I tried to penetrate the surface chaos to investigate, Byrne intentionally blocked me."
Oliver set down his mechanical part, his expression grave. "Intentionally hiding his abilities? What does this Byrne want, joining our Investigation Bureau?"
Having stated his judgment, Oliver looked at Marco, waiting for an answer. Marco remained silent, the rhythm of his fingers tapping on the table quickening as he thought rapidly. After a moment, he looked up at Renee. "Can you be certain that the unknown power inside Byrne isn't malicious?"
Renee shook her head. "This energy is highly elusive; I couldn't probe its essence. However, it doesn't have the filth of Chaos; rather, it feels very pure. It's hard to judge right now, but one thing is certain: the controller of this power—Byrne—is definitely not as simple as he appears."
Marco thought for a while and said in a low voice, "Fine. Let's not startle him for now. Renee, I will try to pair you with Byrne on missions as much as possible. Keep a close eye on him and report any abnormalities to me immediately."
"Understood."