A couple of hours ago before the live broadcast, Noah and Grey were at a public phone station. Grey stood against an inactive street pole as he observed Noah who placed a gold coin into the pay slot.
They both looked clean and recorgnizable, Noah's hair arranged in bangs that slowly covered his eyes.
But he was still wearing his dark brown coat. Thankfully, the inside and outside looked almost identical, so he could simply turn the filthy side inward and lie to himself about being clean.
Grey had already washed his white hoodie and left it hanging to dry around the apartment they currently occupied.
He had also taken a bath- his midnight hair now revealed in a different light, and his pale face carried a quiet curiosity as he observed the foreign land like someone expecting it to bite him at any moment.
To be fair, in the Ivory Waste, it probably would.
They hadn't really bathed during their entire stay there. Noah simply wouldn't allow it. At best, you were permitted a quick wash of hands and legs when necessary, though nothing about survival in the Ivory Waste was ever polite.
It sounded insane, but it was for their own good.
Provided it didn't deplete their water reserves when faced with desperate circumstances or unforgiving environments.
What if you were halfway through bathing, completely defenseless, dignity gone, and a hungry beast decided… that was the perfect time to introduce itself?
That wasn't a hypothetical question to Noah and Milo. That was experience talking.
In their logic, the Ivory Waste didn't care about hygiene or comfort. It cared about timing. And if fate decided you should become a meal mid-bath, then at least you'd die clean—but very, very stupid.
Indeed… getting eaten mid-bath was a real possibility.
So, between freshly washed and immediately eaten or slightly grimy and still breathing, the choice had been made long ago.
And somehow, they all agreed: surviving while dirty was just common sense in the Ivory Waste.
He keyed a vague confidential number, his fingers moving swiftly across the payphone keypad… In the next second, his call bridged worlds and reached another device… the Faculty's line on Earth.
To ordinary minds it would seem like some mystery in it. All things obeyes the void link, the unseen thread woven between realms, and any gate tethered to another endpoint. It possessed the capacity to carry signal across existence itself.
Even now, was currently connecting Noah to Terran… the realm where earth and other planets in its sector are located.
The signal finally reached the operator team.
"Hello… hello?" Noah called out.
"Put him on." Ziyon said.
"Yes sir."
The operator narrowed his gaze before flipping a switch.
"Hello, Noah."
Noah froze for a split second.
He recognized that voice immediately.
"Monarch…?"
Ziyon's expression tightened slightly.
"What happened out there? Are you all alright?"
Noah glanced through the glass for a moment, his eyes settling on Grey, who stood nearby watching everything with quiet curiosity.
"Sir… I would like a retrieval unit sent to pick me up."
Ziyon cut him off instantly.
"No. You haven't finished your job. Register the kids at the Academy first."
Noah grimaced, noticing from the other side several Monarchs voice nearby. They called out, wanting to know what happened.
"After that, we'll come get you."
Ziyon's eyes suddenly flickered with a strange glow, his voice lowering as he spoke again.
"But for now…"
His gaze sharpened.
"I want to know exactly what happened in that place…"
A brief pause followed.
"And how many of you survived."
Noah frowned.
NOAH'S REPORT
As soon as we cleared the labyrinth… it suddenly exposed us to an immensely greater world. It was a realm of ambiguity.
The land revealed its true terror the very moment we stepped in. An invisible field of madness spread across the desolate land like a living curse, pressing down on every living being that entered.
It was a corruptive force, subtle yet relentless, with the purpose of mind invasion. It twisted thoughs, erode sanity, amplified fear and slowly dragged everyone towards madness. The pressure insneered me as well…
But it was far worse for the cadets. They were the first to react. Their expressions twisted in discomfort, it contorted their breathing in something raggered, making them scream… others laughed… while being covered in their own regurgitated scraps.
It was very disturbing, as they swilled and yell, we immediately expanded our mental aura planes… weaving invisible barriers around them, without hesitation.
The barrier shielded them form the madness field before the corruption could fully sink its claws into them.
It wouldn't last long… if only we had collected some monster cores back at the labyrinth.
Having my reasons I possessed no core artifact. But Milo did, so his system must have collected the monster cores from the ones he killed.
We later gave those cores to the cadets, to increase their own core and plane levels. Because protection came with a heavy cost, they needed away to protect themselves.
To continuously maintain that defense, we both had to split portions of our aura away, leaving our combat abilities greatly restricted. We could still fight… but nowhere near the level we had normally willed.
And the Ivory Waste offered no mercy.
Survival quickly became a brutal cycle of constant movement and endless struggles. Beneath skies that never shifted… crimson stagnant heavens frozen in dreadful stillness.
We wandered through treacherous bleached landscapes littered with jagged stone formations and towering trees… like things that were cracked into the earth.
Food became an immediate concern.
With supplies exhausted, we were forced to hunt whatever creatures inhabited the cursed wasteland. The battles were horrifying. Most of the monsters had succomed to corruption, their body twisted with madness itself.
They attacked with savage force and unalarming intent like quiet predators- their strikes were unpredictable forcing me and Milo to engage in exhausting fights despite our weakened state.
We met a hulding creature, predatory beast. It stood in a low aggressive crouch- as if stalking or preparing to lunge. It had a powerful muscular build with broad shoulders, a thick torso, and heavily built limbs.
It posture was hunched and primal, with its weight shifted forward onto its massive clawed forlimbs. A long, serpentine tail curved behind it, adding to its balance and menace.
On seeing this Milo and I both knew that there was no beating that thing, not as we are now… Maybe with all our might… No, there was just no way… no matter of training or preparedness could turn the tide.
Even if we weren't restricted and could fight at peak performance. We'd still meet our gruesome end. But…
It lunged forward, its reptilian head elongated with jagged maw growing all the way to its protruding snout. It probably noticed us first before we saw it. The cadets screamed behind us… Milo wasted no time to intersect it.
It smashed its heavy, spiked cranium into Milo's shield. The impact obliterated it completely… with a sickening force— probably fractured a bone or two, because he let out an agonizing shriek.
The horrid snap that followed made it unmistakable. Yet he managed to arrest his fall with his sword, barely keeping himself upright.
The monster answered with a deafening roar.
He dragged his heavy blade across the ground, his mangled arm flailing wildly in pain and irony. Then, without warning, the creature's serrated tail rammed into him again, hurling Milo backward.
He landed hard against the pale ground. Next to me, carving out a shallow crater. A strained grunt escaped him.
Panic spread through the cadets.
I observed everything. Our survival depended on swift decisions.
Fortunately, there were three students I had taken a liking to—they had even defeated a tenth-class boss. Though weakened, it was still an applaudable feat.
I called out their names:
"Darrin! Marcus! Tasha…! Take your comrades into the forest."
Indeed… it was as though I was the one slowing things down. For a moment, hesitation flickered across their faces—then understanding settled in.
Without much time wasted, they immediately rallied the cadets and led them away, deeper into the pale forest… in the direction of the tower.
No… that thing was never a tower. It was a pit of horrors and lunacy.