4:00 PM, the military academy bustled with activity. A sore figure inched towards the Indigo Building, situated in the Psychic Block. She had long hair that reached her hips, braided into a sturdy looking rope, displaying her hair density, showcasing her vitality.

The girl wore a tracksuit, sporting traces of tears in the areas of her knees, and elbow. Her actions were slow, akin to a crawl, her walking pace bordering around a motion fuelled by sheer willpower. She gazed at the staircase, letting out a growl, expressing her frustration.

The girl paused before the flight of steps, regulating her breath, trying to muster some strength to climb. She raised her right leg, craning her body forward, placing the lifted leg onto the first step, hissing in pain.

He hands shot towards the handrail, grabbing hold of it, stabilising her footing. She then exerted some strength in her hand, pulling her body forward, using the motion to take another step.

"Today's exercises were horrible," She covered her mouth with her free hand, suppressing her body's intention to throw up, feeling a circus form in her stomach.

The training exercises conducted in the day's afternoon were similar to the first training exercise, the only difference being, they weren't given the liberty of the healing services. Meaning, were they to injure themselves, they would have to bear with the pain and try to deal with it, using any means necessary, training their thinking prowess and survival instincts.

Only in cases where the student had suffered from life-threatening injuries would the staff step in, healing the individual until their situation was no longer alarming, giving them some other task to make up for the treatment.

It was done to instil a sense of danger and responsibility into the students, training them for all possible situations that might occur in the future. After all, there were no laws governing safety in the Wilds. If one was insufficiently prepared, then they were expertly packed and dispatched towards the afterlife.

Even though the students were a lot more careful than before, they still ended up with numerous injuries. Haesha wasn't lucky this time, having scrapped her knees, and also suffering from numerous falls, with each adding onto her injuries.

She was accompanied to the dorm by her Warrior friends, having fared relatively better as compared to her. Though, as they weren't allowed entry into the dorm meant for Espers, they had to bid her farewell at the entrance.

"Huff…" Haesha let out a weak shout, exerting strength into her legs, making a touchdown on a wide platform, having traversed half of the steps in a single floor. It was a staircase that had two segments per each floor, sporting a small rectangular platform where they connected.

Haesha looked towards the ground floor, glancing around at the number of steps she had climbed, feeling a sense of exhaustion. She then swerved her line of sight, trailing after the other segment that led to the first floor.

"Haah," Heaving an exhausted sigh, Haesha took another step, finding her raised leg resisting cooperation, falling short of landing on the step, hitting the edge. The impact blocked her foot, bringing her knees forward, tilting her body's centre of gravity, destroying her balance.

Haesha felt her vision turn black, bracing herself for the impact, sensing the approaching stairs, ready to slam into her face. A hand slid through the gap between her left hand and stomach, wrapping around the hips, pulling her towards the back.

"You are…heavy," A melodious voice resounded, the exerted pulling force intensifying, stopping her fall, reorienting her balance. Haesha quickly firmed her grip over the handrail, raising the strength applied in her arms, balancing herself. She turned around, noticing a petite figure retract her hands, sporting an expression of calm.

"Thank you, Laila." Haesha leaned on the handrail, heaving a breath of relief, inspecting the condition of the other party, letting out a sigh filled with an exclamation. "It feels as if you have worn a new set of clothes. There is not a single speck of dust on them; you also look perfectly alright."

"That is because I have changed into them just a couple of minutes ago," Laila smiled, "I wasn't injured, but that doesn't mean my clothes remained clean."

"Can you help me to my room? Sorry to ask for a favour when you have just helped me," Haesha sported an apologetic tone, feeling slightly embarrassed to ask for help. After all, they had only met a couple of times; they weren't close to the extent of being friends.

"Sure," Laila arrived beside her, sliding her hand around her hips, supporting her back. She slumped Haesha's left arm over her shoulder, allowing her to carry the other party. "Dinner is on you though."

"Sure," Haesha chuckled, "That is, if I recover to the extent being able to walk to the canteen."

"Being cunning, are we?" Laila poked her hips, tickling her. Haesha couldn't fight back, giggling under the tickling assault, lacking the strength to mount any resistance. After ten seconds, Laila stopped tickling the poor girl, supporting her as they climbed the stairs.

Laila's actions were natural, forming synergy between the two, making Haesha feel as if they had been friends for many years. Her actions, behaviour, choice of words, the intermixing of teases at opportune times, etc. made Haesha develop a rather favourable impression of her.

The other factor that boosted her limelight was Laila being the current topper of their Batch, having accumulated enough credits to surpass the historical records in their military academy. Moreover, she didn't have any inkling of arrogance; her humble attitude, not to mention her chirpy personality made others willing to befriend her.

Haesha too felt the same, willing to forge a friendship with her. She also felt a sense of gratitude towards Laila for giving her advice on various occasions.

Haesha struggled to climb the steps, grunting in pain with each step. Laila accompanied her without complain, supporting her movements expertly, providing her the pillar to lean on and stride forward.

It took almost five minutes before the duo reached the third floor, gazing at the mildly noisy atmosphere. The students in the hallway dragged their feet, inching their way towards the restroom, holding a basket in their hands, intent to take a shower.

Haesha's room was the first on the left, the closest to the flight of stairs. Thanks to the support from Laila, she had finally arrived before her doorstep, fishing out a key from her pocket.

Their tracksuits were designed ingeniously to house their room key, perfectly securing it, barring it from falling out during the training activities. It displayed the amount of meticulous planning that went into their uniforms.

Haesha pushed the door open, holding the key in her hand as she walked in. Laila accompanied her towards the bed, supporting her until she sat on it, allowing her body to relax.

"Do you know what happened to Jyorta?" Laila inquired, looking around the room with interest, her expression akin to a detective, seeking to find some dirt on the individual.

"I have no idea," Haesha shook her head, feeling a sense of confusion, "One of my friends mentioned him exit the auditorium yesterday. It was during the evening; she also noticed the principal waiting for him upon exit."

"That was what she said," Haesha let out a sigh, "She has a habit to exaggerate; so, I can't support the reliability of her information. Anyway, it was the last I heard of him. Do you happen to know anything?"

"No," Laila shook her head, walking towards the table nearby, picking up a notebook. "We hardly talk with each other these days. But, it is strange that Jyorta disappeared all of a sudden, almost as if he left the academy. From what my father told me, students are never allowed to exit the academy, irrespective of the reason."

She flipped the notebook, finding it filled with mathematical calculations, chemical equations, laws of physics, etc. Laila closed them in irritation, almost developing a headache, letting out a grumble, "Straight-laced."

She placed the notebook on the table, glanced at Haesha, and turned around, walking towards the door, "Take some rest, for now. I'll call you during dinner time. Your room is on the way anyway, haha."

"Sure," Haesha waved her hands, watching the door close shut, turning the room silent. She then slumped on the bed, closing her eyes, resting her weary body.

"Is he trying to go into another examination spree and surpass Laila in the rankings?" Haesha murmured, throwing the thought to the back of her head. She stretched her hand, taking hold of an alarm clock, situated at the edge of the table.

She set the alarm to 7:30 PM, intending to take a bath before heading out for dinner. At present, she didn't have enough energy to walk towards the restroom, not to mention taking a shower.

After closing the door, Laila paused in place, glancing at the third room situated along the same side—the first one belonging to Haesha.

'What are you planning?' A soul tendril emerged out of her, showing zero damage despite lacking the protection of her body. The soul tendril slithered through the air, inching its way towards Jyorta's room, its actions undetected to everyone, including Madam Mary who had her domain encompassing the entirety of the military academy.

It passed through the door, facing zero obstruction, sweeping past the empty room, finding a lack of human traces for the past day.

'So, he never returned to his room the previous night.' Arriving at a preliminary conclusion, Laila controlled the soul tendril, seeping it through the cupboards, inspecting every item.

The soul tendril converged towards the table, seeping into the drawer, finding the presence of a marble slate, shaped similar to her ID card, shining with a yellow lustre. Its surface was smooth, barring any deformities, reflecting the incident light like a mirror.

The soul tendril then approached the bed, sweeping through it in an instant, flying overhead, entering the cupboard situated there. It inspected through each item, finally arriving before a bag, entering it to discover three items, secured under a multitude of wrapping.

There was a box, concealing a hardbound book, filled with condensed information, their essence infused using psychic energy, the contents impossible to dissipate unless the book got destroyed. The soul tendril seeped into the book, transmitting all the contents back to her, facing zero resistance. The defensive measures installed in it didn't react to its presence, unable to sense it in the first place.

'They have some interesting ideas.' Laila's eyes widened, her interest piqued. She traversed the flight of stairs, heading towards her room, unwilling to stand before Haesha's room without reason.

Finished with the book, the soul tendril found the next item, a tiny chakram, magenta in colour, looking no different from a toy. Laila's steps paused, the confusion on her face deepening. She sported a frown, controlling the soul tendril to inspect the final item.

'Why does he have Marble's chakram? This is a replica of what he gifted me.'

The soul tendril appeared before the final item—a goggle, sporting a magenta frame, the lenses shining with mysterious inscriptions—pausing in confusion, transmitting the contents to Laila.

'What is this Artifact? A Relic also seems to be mixed into it.' Laila controlled the soul tendril, intending to seep it into the Artifact, allowing her to comprehend it better. As her soul tendril touched the Artifact, a faint undulation coursed through it, spilling a bit of the soul energy, turning it into a flickering tendril, erratic in nature.

The projection of a face appeared around it, blurry to the extreme, shattering in the next instant, trying to reform once again, feeling restricted. The facial structure resembled the late pillar of humanity, one that had recently died under the hands of humanity's strongest Ancestor.

Rhachis Ancestor Space—Gajara Rahi!

Laila retracted the soul tendril, her face morphing in shock, and confusion. It took her more than twenty seconds to regain her calm; thankfully, there weren't any students who happened to pass by in the meantime, saving themselves the trouble.

Laila resumed her climb, her face reverting to a peaceful demeanour, one of chirpiness.

"So, that's it." She murmured, "I guess, this is for the better."