Ascenders Rift

Angeline and Breya had soon arrived at a remote corner of the Morning Star Academy. They looked at each other in silence before Angeline spoke, "Breya, your strength is still a bit behind. Since you say he's going to take you to train, then follow him for now. Just remember, you're also supposed to keep an eye on the prince to ensure that he doesn't do anything foolish."

Breya nodded, but her face became complex as she spoke, "I know but that Ivan, he's already too troublesome of a character never in one place."

Angeline smiled at this as she spoke, "I know, but it's not like your spying on him you don't need to follow him anywhere he goes, you're only keeping an eye on him when he's around. Besides, as he can already take care of himself, you can also think of this as a break, we can't have someone your age doing boring military duties, go hang out with them while times are still as such."

Breya's eyes grew wet as she heard her sister words, she nodded and replied, "I understand..."

Not long after, Breya had left the quiet area as she headed towards the female hostel. Angeline looked at Hank and Thomas as she spoke, "Don't report any of this to the sector just yet, and as for these pendants, let's do as Evan suggested."

"Fine." Both Hank and Thomas said before they vanished like the wind.

Angeline then sighed as she looked at the fading stars in the sky while muttering, "Ralph... Alan... what happened between you two?"

Soon after her words, she began to leave this area as she headed towards the special guest quarters, while her lonely and slender figure faded into the night scene.

***

The morning came quickly, and the usual hubbub had started. Evan upon returning to the room had only found a tired fatty drenched in sweat as he laid on his bed snoring, he didn't want to wake him as he recalled that it was usually after each session in the Training Zone, he wore himself out in a tiring set of exercise.

After leaving a note telling him of the meetup location for their trip in the evening, he then took a shower and gathered some things before he left the room.

"Since we have most of the morning, I should pay Layla a little visit. Hmm, maybe I should pick up something for her to eat. Ah, yes, she always used to love those Strawberry Puddings after breakfast." Evan smiled as he thought back to the sight of Layla eating desserts with puffed cheeks.

After indulging himself in his fantasies for a short moment, he cleared his thoughts while looking forward as he muttered, "Still, after that, I need to head into the town to get some supplies. This trip will be a pretty long and harsh one, after all. If anything, I'm at least glad that Angeline can cover for our absences. I'll just simply send her a notification before we leave, or better yet, ask Breya to do it."

As Evan said this, he looked towards the location of the female hostels, he then lifted his watch to check the time and saw that it was now 7 PM.

Evan nodded while he continued about his business, but it was at this moment, he heard a minor commotion from the people around him.

"What? Are you telling me that shit's real?" A youth exclaimed.

"Dummy, are you blind? Can't you see it all over the web? No one would be so foolish to joke about it; I hear that the council had even tried to block it from spreading, but it's already over the news." Another youth said.

"What's the name of the guy who did it?" The previous youth asked once more.

"If I recall... it's Doctor something. Dr. Ghost, yes, that's right, a pretty strange name, but also smart, if he went by his real name who knows what would have happened to him," The other youth said with praise as a grave look came on his face.

As Evan heard more similar discussions around him, he knitted his brows as he pondered, "Hmm, what's this all about? Let's see what's going on..."

Upon saying this, Evan lifted his arm and glanced at the watch on his wrist. He placed some ear pods in his ears and pressed a digital button on the watch.

Soon, the voice of a news reporter was heard as a series of text appeared on the watch's screen.

"This just in, the shocking reveal of a traveling entity that swallows planets! The video was posted early this morning by a user who've identified themselves as Dr. Ghost. While many researchers, scientists, and cosmologists have made vivid claims that the footage is false, the public has now fallen into an outrage. Sources say that the authorities are searching for this individual and that anyone with information must report him immediately. Regarding the video, however, the imperial council has not yet made an official statement."

Evan was a bit surprised, but soon he grinned as he muttered, "Ha, I didn't think he would've been so smart, to think he'd gone and created a fake name. Well done, Cline. Still, the council probably thinks that they can control this news, but sadly for them, with more and more people discovering the Ascenders Rift and even viewing its trajectories in the coming days, all will turn into hell."

As Evan said this, his eyes grew distant as he lifted his head staring at the sky as he muttered, "I suppose that by the time we've finished our training in these Lesser Spaces, when we've returned to the city, it will be an entirely different scene, much like last time."

While Evan spoke, he recalled the chaos that transpired the week before the arrival of the Ascenders Rift and the 1st Calamity. He couldn't help but shake his head and close his eyes as he tried to drown out the anarchy with peaceful thoughts as he muttered, "For now, just let me enjoy this a bit more... this peace... this warmness..."

A few others noticed his strange manner couldn't help but mock.

"Ha, look at this guy, he must be nervous being in public."

"Leave him alone; he's probably new."

"I bet he's just broken up with his girlfriend..."

"Haha! I wouldn't be surprised..."

As the voices mocked, Evan opened his eyes as he indifferently glanced at them and moved onward. Not long after, he had gathered what he needed from the cafeteria and gave Layla a call asking if she wanted to eat with him, after going back and forth to convince her, he had received a positive reply in the end.

Now, Evan had arrived at the location they first met, in the beautiful area of the academies park. He sat on the ground and placed a mat down, after which he placed the food on as he waited calmly.

Soon, a somewhat sad-looking Layla had appeared, Evan seeing this was a bit puzzled. He wanted to say something, but she spoke upon arriving.

"E-Evan... I wasn't feeling well today, so thanks for inviting me." Layla said with her head held down.

Evan looked at her as he got to his feet and walked forward, as he arrived nearby, he lifted her chin with his finger and spoke with a gentle smile, "Hmm, why does the pretty Layla look so down? Can you tell me what's sunken your mood?"

Layla blushed as she wasn't used to having her chin touch so intimately by men, she was a bit flustered when she took a few steps back and replied, "It... It's nothing that serious."

Evan walked close and leaned in as he asked in a non-believing tone, "Eh? Really?"

Layla didn't know what to do; she stepped back a few more times, but sadly she lost her footing and started to fall to the ground.

Layla was a bit panicked at this, but Evan promptly reacted by grabbing her firmly from her waist. Not giving her a chance to respond, Evan picked her up in a princess hold and carried her over to the food.

Layla's face turned utterly crimson as she did not expect this at all, she gently banged her fist against his chest as she spoke, "You... let me go!"

Evan smirked and replied, "No can do... when the princess is down, it's only fit for the prince to lift her up."

Layla cursed with a red face, "Well, it doesn't mean that you should lift my body!"

"Haha! Well, in my princess's book, it does..." Evan said with a snappy reply.

"You... that's shameless! I am also not your princess, hmph!" Layla shouted as she no longer looked at his face, she turned to his chest to hide away, but sadly, she had only ended up sniffing his manly scent.

As this happened, Layla couldn't help but swallow as she felt a bit heated and embarrassed. Evan seeing this no longer teased her, he whispered in her ear, "Fine, I'll be nice today... hmm, tell you what, if you can tell me what's wrong with you, then I shall allow you to do whatever you want to punish me in return. How does that sound?"

Layla hearing this was surprised, she looked at Evan's face intensely as her eyes flashed. Evan seeing this started to sweat as he saw how deeply she was pondering, but Layla soon quickly replied, "Okay, but first put me down."

Evan replied while sighing in relief, "As the princess wishes."

After setting her down, Evan then lifted the box that had the Strawberry Pudding and passed it to Layla as he spoke, "Here, I thought you might like this..."

Layla originally wasn't going to pay it any mind, but her nose couldn't help but twitch as she smelled something she had always loved. She took the box and looked inside before her eyes widened, as she exclaimed, "Strawberry Pudding!"

She was about to wolf it down in a nongraceful manner, but as she saw Evan looking at her with a smile, she couldn't help but clear her throat with an embarrassed expression.

"Ahem! Well, I didn't know you had such a good taste for food. I shall exempt you from punishment..." Layla said with a forced graceful expression.

Evan wanted to laugh but held himself back, Layla could see that he was having trouble to hold himself back, she no longer tried to act before him and took a bite of the pudding.

"Ah, so delicious!" Layla said in a sweet voice as a brilliant smile formed on her face creating an adorable and luscious sight to the eyes of any man. Evan seeing this was a bit distracted, he grew 'parched,' but he soon managed to clear his thoughts and get back on topic.

"Well, are you only going to eat? I thought you were going to tell me what was bothering you," Evan said with a teasing tone.

Layla cleaned her mouth off with an embarrassed look as she spoke, "I... I was getting to it,"

After a while, Layla looked at Evan and took a deep breath and spoke with a slightly sad look on her face, "It's about my father..."

Evan's eyes went wide at these words, but soon, they narrowed as he keenly listened to her next words, not wanting to miss any details.