"Y… You... Get out of the class now!"

Van wasn't really forced to go outside, he was, however, forced to hear Ms. Mila's nagging lecture for the rest of the class.

​​

And as soon as their day was over, Harvey's robust burst of laughter immediately filled the entire room.

"Man, you got roasted earlier!", Harvey continued to laugh as he tapped his palms on Van's desk numerous times.

"Something in your mind, Van?", Beatrice adjusted her glasses as she approached Van.

"N--"

"Aren't you guys excited!?"

Before Van could even speak, the sound of Harvey's palm echoed throughout the classroom, "We're going to a Portal!"

"...A Portal?"

"Bro… don't tell me you really didn't listen in Ms. Mila's class?", Harvey looked at Van with his eyes slightly wide in shock, "The whole freshmen will be going to an excursion next week! It's been all the talk for days!"

Harvey felt the fire inside of him as he looked at his seemingly oblivious friends. "Seriously, None of you are excited!? It's our first time going inside a Portal!"

Harvey's hands trembled as placed them in front of him.

"What about you, Bea? How excited are you!?"

"...I've already been inside a Portal"

"What!?", Harvey slightly backed away as he stuttered, but then he let out a sigh, "Right… your parents own an Explorer Guild."

Hearing Harvey's words, Beatrice could only nod wryly. The group still doesn't know that she had been exploring Portals whenever she wasn't with them.

"What about you, Vicky!?", Harvey then pointed towards Victoria, who was quietly listening in on them from her desk.

Victoria could not help but slightly let out a breath as she heard Harvey calling her that… again. "...I have been inside a Portal before as well", she said. Her grandmother brought her inside a Portal once, but never again. Her mother found out about it and all hell broke loose.

Hearing Victoria's words, Harvey once again stuttered as he fell on top of Van's desk. "I guess that just leaves the two of us, then. Doesn't it, Van?"

"We're Portal Virgin buddies."

"...", seeing the somewhat dramatic look on Harvey's eyes, Van could only let out a sigh. He wondered if he should tell him the truth, that not only has he entered a Portal already, he also entered it alone.

But alas, the excitement in Harvey's eyes was too much, it would surely break him if he knew that Van had also explored a Portal before.

And so, with another slight sigh, "...I guess so", Van muttered in a very monotonous way.

***

Andrea was currently closing up the bakery, with the skies already hazy and the sun orange. Ever since the incident in their house happened, Sarah had been going home somewhat late, even after all the bread had been sold, she stayed.

At least until all the classes in NYSA are about to be dismissed. Aunt May was kind enough to let her stay, and even pay her a bonus if she cleans up the shop herself.

"Ah! Andrea, want help close shop?"

"No, it's fine, Ah Sahm, thank you!"

Andrea quickly shook her head before Ah Sahm could even step in to help her.

"Okay. Come by shop again with your brother, okay?", Ah Sahm raised his thumbs up, "We give free dumplings to both of you! We even give big big discount if you order three ducks!"

"Really!? I will be sure to tell him then!"

Ah Sahm bid his farewell and hummed and trotted his way to the restaurant. Andrea, however, could not help but sigh. Ever since the incident, she always felt like someone was following her and she could not help but feel iffy.

It might just be her imagination, but ever since then, her steps were always hurried and she always glanced behind her in fear that someone might really be following her.

And so, she did once again.

Not even greeting any of the vendors in the stalls, Andrea marched out of the market, her steps long and hurried. But before she could even leave, someone called for her.

"Miss… Chloe, do you need something?", Andrea could not help turn her head slightly upwards as she looked at the silver-haired woman walking towards her. Andrea was able to deal with almost everyone in the market now, they were her friends and she already had a drink with some of them before.

But the woman in front of her, Chloe… the one who tended the stall right at the entrance of the market, was someone she was not able to deal with. Chloe, you see... was a bit different.

"Going home?", Chloe said.

"Uhm… yes?", Andrea slightly looked to the side as she slightly raised her eyebrow.

"Okay, take care out there."

"...Okay? T… Thanks."

Andrea could not help but let out a sigh of relief as Chloe quickly went back to her stall. She always greeted her like this, so she doesn't seem to be a bad person.

Andrea was good at reading people due to her previous jobs at the Relic Graveyard, but it would seem that the people in the city are quite... different.

And so, once again, Andrea hurried her steps. But as she was almost near the house, she heard numerous footsteps behind her. She sneakily turned her head back, only to see 4 muscular men wearing the same clothes suspiciously following behind her.

Andrea's breaths could not help but shudder as she felt her chest tighten. She started to sprint, but as soon as she did so, the 4 men also hastened their steps.

"Help!", Andrea called for help in the neighborhood, her screams desperate. With her screams, however, the 4 men became even faster and easily caught up behind her.

"!!!", Andrea immediately took a knife from her bag and pointed it towards the nearest man, "Stay away!", her hands trembled. She still vividly remembered the helplessness that she felt as she was locked inside her own bathroom, bleeding and could not move.

"What are--!"

The man was about to open his mouth, but before he could do so, he quickly disappeared from Andrea's eyes.

"W… what!?", Andrea could not help but slightly back away as she felt a sudden breeze flailing her hair to the side. A golden trickle of light then blurred in front of her.

Andrea was confused at first as to what was happening, but when she saw a little boy suddenly appear in front of her, she could not help but feel the weight on her chest slightly lighten.

"Evans!?"

"Go inside the house, Andrea"

The coldness in Van's tone was enough to freeze Andrea's breaths momentarily.

"B… but--"

"Go!"

"Who is this brat!?"

"Does it matter!? He took down sir Henry!"

The three men that were left standing were about to rush towards Van, but before they could do so, the sound of the earth cracking reverberated in the air. The man that Van just pushed out of the way, Henry, casually stood up from the rubble that he was slightly embedded into.

"Stand down…", he whispered as he dusted off his clothes,

"...This isn't your fight"

***AUTHOR's WORDS***

Hello, author here. I would like to take up this space to thank all of you. With my book's sudden unexpected rise in popularity, I only owe it to all of you.

I consider myself, by all means, still a novice writer. So, I am trying my best to maintain the quality as much as I possibly could. But all the pressure might be getting to me, but knowing that some of you have been here since day one and have supported me, makes it all worth it. I do hope you continue to take care of me from now on, and I shall continue to do my best.

Seriously, thank you.

You guys are the best.