The Sovereign Veil Chapter 8: Chapter 8: The Retro Car Club

Read chapter 8 of The Sovereign Veil by GodEmperor on NovelPedia.

An hour later, Lucian arrived at Onyx City's premier automotive district. While Terra-Nova was considered a mid-to-low-tier civilization on the multiversal scale, its technological baseline vastly surpassed 21st-century Earth. The streets were filled with anti-gravity mag-levs and clean-energy aero-cars; traditional combustion engines had been obsolete for decades. However, there was still a lucrative niche market for high-end, retro-styled fuel-powered vehicles, favored by enthusiasts with too many credits. Lucian was exactly that kind of enthusiast today. He walked into a sprawling custom-assembly automotive shop. "Welcome! How may I assist you, sir? Are we looking to commission a new build or modify an existing chassis?" The saleswoman's voice was saccharine. She wore a sharp, corporate miniskirt and sheer stockings, heavily made-up. Lucian mentally rated her a solid eight out of ten. She enthusiastically poured him a cup of synthetic coffee and guided him to a sleek glass desk. Lucian sat down and began rattling off his specifications. "I want a naturally aspirated V12 block, minimum 6.0-liter displacement. Advanced four-wheel-drive kinetic distribution, and an 8-speed automatic-manual transmission." "Mhm, absolutely. And the exterior profile?" She typed furiously on her holographic datapad. "A four-door grand touring coupe. It needs to balance aggressive handling with executive cabin comfort." "Can the exterior be fully bespoke?" "Yes. As long as it's aerodynamically sound, print the chassis using high-tensile, lightweight carbon-weave." The saleswoman projected a 3D wireframe into the air between them. Following Lucian's exact parameters, the system dynamically filled in the engine block, transmission, suspension geometry, and electrical suites. It felt exactly like building a high-end PC on Earth. The resulting 3D projection looked similar to an aggressive Porsche Panamera but refined with cutting-edge Terra-Nova manufacturing. The engine was finalized as a 6.6-liter naturally aspirated block pushing 880 horsepower and 750 foot-pounds of torque. Lucian wasn't looking to break land speed records; he wanted the smooth, effortless, aggressive power delivery that only a massive displacement engine could provide. "Total cost comes to one hundred and fifty-six thousand, three hundred Coalition Credits," the saleswoman chimed, flashing a practiced smile. Lucian looked genuinely surprised not because it was expensive, but because he still had nearly forty thousand credits left over from his mother's allowance. Misinterpreting his silence as sticker-shock, the saleswoman stood up. "Sir, why don't we step into the VIP lounge? We can discuss adjusting the final invoice." She turned, her heels clicking sharply against the tile, leading him toward a frosted-glass room in the back. Lucian followed. As soon as they entered, she locked the door. Are we doing the unspoken rules thing? Lucian thought, amused. In his previous life, car salespeople barely made any margin on the actual vehicle, surviving off financing traps and extended warranties. Here, a ground-up bespoke build likely carried an astronomical profit margin. The VIP room was aggressively climate-controlled. Lucian unzipped his jacket. The saleswoman, ever attentive, slipped it off his shoulders and hung it on the wall rack. "Sir, how about I round the invoice down to an even one hundred and fifty thousand?" she offered, leaning against the desk, her tone shifting into a breathy, practiced coquettishness. "That's practically cost. You wouldn't want me to starve this month, would you?" Clatter. As she adjusted his jacket on the rack, three silver foil packets slipped from the pocket and hit the floor. The saleswoman's gaze snapped down. The breathy coquettishness instantly evaporated. The silence in the VIP room became dense and painfully awkward. Lucian stood there, internally screaming at his mother's comedic timing. "Sir," the saleswoman said, her tone suddenly icy and dee