Night.
It was night when they finally emerged.
For the first time in what felt like an eternity, the cadets looked upward and saw a normal sky above them. No twisting corruption. No maddening white abyss clawing at their minds. No suffocating pressure threatening to consume their sanity whole.
Just… the night sky.
Dark. Vast. Seemingly endless.
And somehow, it was the most beautiful thing any of them had seen in weeks.
Several cadets collapsed to their knees almost immediately, their bodies trembling violently as relief washed over them in overwhelming waves. Some stared upward in silence, their eyes glossy with disbelief. Others laughed weakly like people who had narrowly escaped the jaws of death and still couldn't fully process the fact that they had survived.
They didn't care that it wasn't daytime.
They didn't care where they were, or even amidst the watchful eyes of countless people moving beneath the city's glowing night.
All that mattered…
Was that they were alive.
Grey slowly turned around, his sharp eyes falling upon the enormous dimensional gate behind them. The unstable white void churned violently inside its massive circular frame, looking less like a portal and more like a wound carved directly into reality itself.
He began walking toward the others, as he approached. The corner of his eyes caught sight of Marcus.
Or more specifically…
Marcus's severed arm.
The empty space where it had been still dripted of blood, his shoulder made Grey's expression darken instantly. His jaw tightened.
A dangerous anger twisted across his face, he turned his gaze back toward the gate.
Then suddenly—
Without warning, the white void erupted.
A tremendous gale burst outward from the portal with terrifying force, sending everyone stumbling backward. Their hair whipped violently in the wind as nearby debris scattered across the streets.
The cadets instinctively shielded their faces.
And then—
Something shot out.
A figure.
A human-shaped silhouette came flying out of the gate at incredible speed before violently crashing straight into a nearby parked vehicle.
Metal twisted inward from the impact, the figure remained motionless.
Grey narrowed his eyes.
It was a man. His body was covered in blood. Deep wounds carved across his chest and arms. His breathing came out ragged… slow… unstable… like every inhale was fighting against death itself.
His fingers twitched once, then his eyes rolled shut. And he lost consciousness completely. Silence fell over the street.
No one moved or even let out a single word.
Only the distant crackling of the unstable portal remained, and the sound of people whispering… then it all faded itno the embrace of the night.
Morning came.
And with it…
The rising sun illuminated the magnificent city of Valethar. A jewel nestled within the great kingdom of Zenovar.
The place where destiny itself gathered.
Valethar stood proudly as one of the most prosperous cities in the entire Burst Realm.
Towering structures stretched high toward the heavens, their elegant architecture blending advanced civilization with ancient mysticism. Massive crystalline towers reflected the golden sunlight, causing the entire city to shimmer like a kingdom forged from gemstones.
Skybridges connected enormous elevated buildings suspended dozens of meters above ground.
Floating transport crafts moved peacefully between districts.
The roads were wide and polished with luminous stone embedded with flowing aura circuits that pulsed faintly beneath the streets like veins carrying energy through a living organism.
Gigantic statues of legendary Burst users stood at the city's entrances, their expressions carrying centuries of history and power.
Everything about Valethar screamed prestige.
Power. Authority, and greatness.
At the very center of the city stood the reason thousands traveled across nations to reach this place.
A colossal structure so large it dominated the city's entire silhouette.
The legendary—
The Academy…
Its black crystalline walls reflected sunlight like sharpened mirrors. Massive floating rings rotated slowly around the upper towers, each engraved with ancient golden runes pulsating with enormous amounts of Burst energy.
It looked less like an academy…
And more like the birthplace of gods.
For the cadets who had barely escaped death… The sight was surreal.
After surviving the horrors of the Ivory Waste…
This place felt almost divine.
Grey stepped quietly out of the room he had been staying in.
He had finally cleaned himself thoroughly after weeks of filth, blood, sweat, and endless battle.
Now dressed in clean dark blue trousers with a fitted matching top, he almost looked like an entirely different person, he walked slowly through the corridor.
To his left was the room where Noah rested.
Grey instinctively slowed his footsteps.
Carefully… silently.
He didn't want to make unnecessary noise, Noah had finally received proper medical treatment.
The payment of the building would be taken care of once Noah finally wakes up. The apartment and the emergency services were sorth out by the nobles the moment we arrived at Valethar.
But despite treatment…
Noah still hadn't regained consciousness. Grey cursed inwardly, then paused briefly outside the door.
His eyes lowered.
"Poor guy."
His thoughts drifted elsewhere, and suddenly—
Milo.
That faint memory of Milo flashed through his mind.
His expression.
The blood.
The battles he fouht protecting us.
Grey unconsciously clenched his fist. An uneasy frown spread across his face… then he exhaled quietly and continued walking. He stepped into the living room.
Nearly all the cadets were gathered there.
The place itself was enormous.
A luxurious duplex apartment filled with expensive furnishing, polished marble flooring, golden decorated walls, towering windows, and enough rooms to comfortably accommodate everyone present.
Several noble cadets had already adapted surprisingly fast. Some were lounging lazily across expensive couches. Others had already called room service.
Breakfast preparations were underway.
Grey stared at them for a moment… then a faint smile appeared. 'Ha… these pitiful idiots. He shook his head. I suppose they've earned it.'
Every single one of them had survived hell.
Surviving the Ivory Waste for that long…
No ordinary person could comprehend the sheer horror of it.
The endless corruption.
The starvation.
The monsters.
The constant fear of death lurking behind every step.
It had been maniacally dreadful.
They were fortunate.
Very fortunate.
They had arrived in the Burst Realm with only a single day remaining before academy registration officially closed.
Perfect timing.
Or perhaps fate.
Then—
Some one knocked at the door, the sudden sound echoed through the apartment.
Instantly the entire room grew tense. Conversations stopped. Every face hardened.
No one moved immediately.
Weeks trapped in the Ivory Waste had sharpened everyone's instincts.
By now…
Anyone who had survived that nightmare no longer ignored sudden movements or unexpected sounds.
Danger had become second nature.
There was hesitation.
Then Marcus stepped up from within the opposite passage. The side his room was located at.
The boy whose right arm had previously been severed… He had only recently come out of his room.
Yet now—
He looked perfectly fine.
Completely restored.
His missing arm…
Was back.
Whole and functional.
As though it had never been severed.
The others stared, some looked shocked. Others frowned suspiciously, a few looked outright disturbed.
Darrin sat nearby beside Oliver and Collin.
Their gazes briefly shifted toward Marcus—
But only for a second, then all three turned toward Grey.
Their eyes narrowed. Staring daggers at him.
Marcus himself looked equally confused.
Even he didn't understand.
None of the Core Artifacts he possessed were capable of regenerating an entire lost limb… Not completely.
So how…
How had he recovered?
His thoughts remained unanswered, but he pushed it aside. For now.
The apartment worker entered carrying trays filled with breakfast.
Marcus immediately grinned.
'These morons were really scared of a room server.'
"How pathetic."
One after another…
They all began eating, and the moment the food touched their tongues—
It was heaven.
Weeks of surviving on scraps, monster meat, rotten supplies, and half-digested remains had nearly destroyed their sense of taste.
But now…
Warm bread.
Seasoned meat.
Sweet fruits.
Fresh drinks.
Bursting flavors exploded across their taste buds.
For the first time in a long while—
They felt human again.
Much later…
Grey stood quietly near the window.
The sunlight poured into the room.
Then slowly…
He turned.
His eyes met Marcus's, who was feasting.
Marcus stared back.
And then—
A grin spread across his face.
It was sickening to Grey's very core.
Disturbing in every way.
Predatory and cruel, but also sad.
It was the kind of grin that didn't belong on someone with such an innocent and handsome face.
Grey stared silently… deep in thought.