The buses provided by the president rolled out one by one, carrying the groups of students toward the southern edge of Velmordop, where some of the Winter Cold Guild's private gates were stationed.
Their specific Tier 1 Gate sat far across the city, a completely different district from their usual stomping grounds in Velmordop East.
The ride was not fast, but steady, the kind of inoffensive speed that made the city blur by in pieces rather than streaks.
Through the bus windows, the usual life of Velmordop drifted past them — rows of apartment buildings, corner restaurants with plastic chairs stacked outside, the tall mall with bright signs flashing promotions, and patches of green parks that broke up the cement.
The world kept moving normally while they — packed into these buses — were headed somewhere that felt entirely separate from everything beyond the glass.
In Bus 2C, Kenji, Hiro, and Leo had claimed seats together, their voices carrying low but distinct.
