--

Two weeks have passed since the disappearance of the youth prodigies, and human civilization is still greatly worried about their disappearance.

The only hints they’ve got so far came from the Martial Gods who were monitoring the situation, so to speak. But aside from their initial statement, there had been no updates at all.

Mikel was still going to the Grand Martial City, to the headquarters of the GMU, along with other concerned people to press for updates. None of them have ever felt peace since the disappearance of their family members and are greatly worried about them.

Although they are getting tired of going here and leaving without receiving anything useful, and knowing that the staff are also getting tired of them, too, what else can they do? They just can’t give up. They have to show up so that the Martial Gods won’t forget about the kids.

"Everybody, I know that you’re worried. Believe me, I am, too. I am just like you. My niece has also been abducted, and I too worry about her status."

"The Martial Gods are already doing their best. But you also have to understand that this was no easy feat for them, too. Even going near to where the trial ground was will pose risk to the safety of our children."

"We already told you that the trial ground operates with its own rules, ones that even the Martial Gods can’t violate. We already confirmed that our children will return alive and safe after a year or so."

"I know that I am asking for too much, but please, you have to have faith in our children. Whatever trials that place has for them, we must believe that they will survive it and grow from it."

"That’s just a fancy way of telling us to fuck off," somebody interrupted the GMU spokesperson, rather rudely at that. "It was your negligence that took them away from us, or have you forgotten about that?"

"Once again, we deeply apologize—"

"Oh, save it for someone who cares!" The same man raged. "I’m done with your apologies! We need results! Real ones! Not just empty words of comfort!"

"Your superiors told us that they were fine. How fine are we talking about? Do they have food? Shelter? Clothes? Water? Are they unharmed? Will they stay unharmed? Are they crying? Despairing? Hopeless or hopeful? Are they fighting their way out? Have they figured out what’s going on?"

"It’s not enough to just tell us that they will eventually return! Because even though that’s true, what they experience in there might change them permanently! They might not be the same anymore! They might return ruined from everything that happened in there! That would still count as returning alive, but how is that any different from them being crippled?"

"If our children returned like that, will you take responsibility for it? Will you cure them? Come on! That’s what we need to know!"

His man just spoke for the rest of the concerned parties.

Mikel, who stood at the back practically invisible, applauded him internally. The man surely had balls to demand so much from GMU and practically within the presence of the martial gods.

He would admit that he doesn’t have enough guts to say these things out loud. He had every right to be worried about how the Martial Gods and the GMU will react to it.

But despite the man’s enraged tirade, all he received was the dull excuses of the staff. He used different words but the overall message was still the same; ’Go home and wait for them to return, there’s nothing else we can do’.

And honestly, Mikel himself was starting to be exhausted by this - not about finding his nephew, but the ridiculous and useless excuses of the authorities.

Alas, he doesn’t have a lot of options to choose from.

He was going to leave and return another day when all of a sudden, a flash of light appeared before him.

A system hologram unfolded before him. And within it, the face of his nephew was displayed. It was moving and talking.

"Hey, Uncle. Sorry for not reaching out sooner. I’ve been rather...busy lately. How are you?"

"Ren!?" Mikel exclaimed. "Ren, is that you!? What...how? What?"

Mikel’s outburst got the attention of everybody in the room. Many eyes lit up and immediately got close enough to eavesdrop. If this is what they think about, then there’s hope.

"Yeah, it’s me. I hope nobody has been trying to impersonate me while I’m away. If you’re not convinced, you can ask me a question that only I would know to confirm if it’s really me."

"No need. I believe you. And no, nobody’s impersonating you." Mikel shook his head in disbelief. He couldn’t imagine how his nephew could sound so casual despite what’s happening.

"Good. So, uh...I guess you’re wondering where I am. If time here flows the same as there, then it must’ve been two weeks since I disappeared. Is that right?"

"Yes, it is. You don’t sound sure. Are you alright? Where are you? What happened there?"

Mikel was now vaguely aware the whole room’s attention was on him. Nobody was expecting this, but this is exactly what they’ve been searching for all along: a lead. That’s why he knew that he needed to ask the right questions now.

"I don’t really know," Ren stated. "I know who made this place and what it’s for because the creator left a message on the wall, but he didn’t say what its name or where it’s located." 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

"I’m in some sort of ancient trial grounds. It’s left by a race called Sky Archons; I’m not sure if you’ve heard of them, but it’s pretty cool here. The place is gloomy, though. It could surely use more lighting. I can’t tell if it’s day or night, but it’s cool. The trials are a bit challenging but fun."

Mikel was a bit speechless, and so were others. Here they were, worrying about the children that suddenly disappeared, yet he’s out there, completely chill and possibly having some fun.

The comparison is really something else...

"I haven’t heard of Sky Archons, and I can’t really give a damn right now. I’m worried about you. Are you sure you’re okay? What about food? Shelter? Clothes? Also, have you seen others with you? And how exactly did you manage to contact me? The Martial Gods have been looking for you all, but they can’t go close, so they can’t bring you back."

"Others? You mean there were others who were taken too? But...I haven’t seen anybody. I’m alone here."

That caused people to gasp and started feeling frantic. But before they could violently react, Ren began speaking again.

"I’m good, though. I have shelter, food, and water. There’s plenty of it in the store, and it’s pretty cheap. I just need to kill a few zombies each night, and I can buy enough stuff to last for days, easily."

"As for how I contacted you, well...if you haven’t noticed it yet, I used the world system to do it."

Mikel’s eyes widened, and so were others.

"This...world, trial grounds, whatever it is...it’s connected to the world system. Its creator attached it to the system before his demise. The system knows where it is, and the network’s connected here; that’s how I can call you."

"But I do need to spend points to do it. 10 points per minute."

"God fucking damn it! We’re stupid!!" Somebody from the crowd screamed in frustration. "Why haven’t we thought about that?"

He said the words that others wanted to say. Hell, even the GMU staff looked embarrassed. It’s obvious that they, too, haven’t thought about this.

"Ren, do you think that it could go both ways? Like we could contact you and the others as well?" Mikel asked, and his question immediately got everybody’s attention.

"As I told you earlier, it wasn’t just you who disappeared. Others did too. Everybody who’s at Bone Forging and Marrow Cleansing at 18 years old and below is taken. Everybody’s worried because we couldn’t reach any of you. Even the Martial Gods can’t come close to where you are because they risk your safety."

"It should be possible." Ren replied readily, "I mean, it would make sense if it does, right? I could call you. There’s connectivity, so it should be possible. You can give it a try later. But as far as I remember, wouldn’t that cost merit points? Those are hard to earn."

"Don’t worry about it!" Mikel declared strongly. "Compared to seeing you all fine and alright, what’s a few merit points in comparison."

"Well, don’t spend yours. I can earn a lot of points each night pretty easily. I’ll call you instead, at least three minutes every night. We might need those merit points soon, so save it."

Mikel could cry here, honestly. Even when he’s away in a precarious situation, Ren still worries about the state of the clan.

"Alright. If that’s what you wish, we’ll do it your way. Just make sure that you’re okay."

"Now, if you can spare some points to extend this call, mind tell me everything you know about that place so far?"