"Judging by the footprints on the floor, this is where they were last seen."
Walking to the end of the corridor, Phaga and Ellen stopped in front of a classroom door.
The place was eerily quiet, not a sound to be heard. Peering through the window, the classroom inside was just as empty.
Ellen frowned, doubt creeping in. Was this really the last place they came to?
Could it be...
Her heart skipped a beat. She reached for the door.
Sure enough, the moment her fingertips brushed against it, a spatial fissure suddenly tore open, its eerie blue glow reflecting in their eyes.
Phaga narrowed his gaze and reached inside. Half his forearm vanished into the void, yet he felt nothing unusual.
Then he lowered his head slightly and said, "Doesn't seem dangerous. Let's go—"
Clang! Clang!
Before he could finish, a head suddenly popped out of the fissure. Ruby grinned happily, her eyes squinting shut, both little hands raised in a "Nice!" beside her face.
But the instant she appeared, her smile froze, cold sweat beading on her forehead.
A shark's tail and a flash of cold steel shot into her vision, a violent gust whipping her bangs straight back.
At the very last moment, the tail and the blade clashed, locking against each other just centimeters from Ruby's face.
Both had reacted in the nick of time.
Ruby trembled all over, nearly losing control.
Phaga and Ellen immediately withdrew their weapons in sync, heads lowered. After a brief silence, they muttered to each other:
"Phaga, didn't expect you to draw that fast."
"You're not bad yourself, Ellen. First time I've seen a Shark Thiren whip its tail that quick. If you worked construction, no one could toss bricks onto the cart faster than you."
"Like I'd ever haul bricks! Anyway, how many Shark Thiren have you even met?"
"You're the first..."
Listening to their awkward back-and-forth, Ruby finally exploded, shouting furiously:
"Hey! You two! That's going way too far!"
"Do you realize you almost killed the only Proxy here?!"
"Look at me properly—look into Ruby's eyes!"
At her words, both Phaga and Ellen averted their gaze at the same time, unwilling to meet her eyes.
"Ugh, forget it."
Ruby ruffled her hair. Just by looking at them, she knew this argument would go nowhere.
Instead, she brightened up again. Seizing Ellen and Phaga's arms, ignoring their startled looks, she tugged them forcefully.
"Come on! You've got to see what I found!"
Ellen and Phaga sighed helplessly and stepped through the rift, plunging into darkness.
It took a while for their eyes to adjust to the dim light.
Phaga rubbed his eyes, instinctively folding his umbrella. Looking around, he muttered, "The school's underground parking garage?"
Dimly lit and sunless, it was cooler than the surface. Cars belonging to parents and teachers were parked throughout.
"Bingo!"
Ruby happily slapped the hood of a compact car, hands on her hips. "Today's the parent-teacher conference! Lots of parents drove here... okay, only parents from our grade, but still! I counted—there are over twenty cars. That's more than enough for our class to drive and ram the Ethereals!"
In a Hollow, nothing hindered a Proxy's work more than Ethereals.
To avoid unnecessary danger, Proxies had to chart safe routes—even if that meant detours instead of shortcuts.
Safe, yes, but far too difficult for Ruby, just an Apprentice Proxy.
Getting them out at all was already an accomplishment—she couldn't be picky.
She wasn't like the legendary Proxy Phaethon, famed for his flawless navigation.
So instead of searching for a safe path, why not drive straight through? Break out before the Ethereals could react!
Crash a car? Pay for damages?
You had to survive first before worrying about paying.
But Ellen immediately doused her excitement. "Do you even have car keys?"
Ruby froze, blinking rapidly, her smile stiffening.
"I've got keys."
Just as despair crossed Ruby's face, the class president climbed onto the roof of a nearby car, jingling a set of keys from his finger.
"My mom doesn't drive. I was the one who drove today."
He pressed the fob, and the SUV's headlights flashed. With a click, the door unlocked and swung open.
"I've got some too."
Another student waved. "My dad keeps a spare in the car. Phaga, come help me—break the window."
"Yeah, sure."
Phaga answered and strolled over at an unhurried pace.
Ellen watched his retreating figure, sighed, then glanced around. Her eyes lingered on the few vehicles that clearly could be driven. "Even so, there aren't enough seats for everyone, are there?"
After all, their class had over thirty students, and only two usable cars—a minivan and the SUV.
At most, the SUV could squeeze in eight. Was the rest of the class supposed to pile into a single minivan?
Even stripping out the seats and cramming the roof wouldn't fit them all.
And if people were sitting on the roof, how were they supposed to ram Ethereals?
"There's always that one!"
Ruby beamed, pointing ahead.
Ellen followed her finger just as Phaga returned, glancing over. "The school bus?"
Of course he knew it.
Their school was one of the most prestigious in New Eridu, with generous welfare. Every weekend, buses ferried students off campus—Phaga himself had ridden them countless times.
They were slow, sure, but free.
And precisely because he'd ridden so many, Phaga knew: driving a car and driving a bus were two very different things.
Ruby countered, "As long as you don't turn, just floor the pedal—driving a bus is the same as driving a car!"
Ellen, Phaga: "..."
After a beat, Phaga gave her a thumbs-up, looking aside. "Fair point."
But he quickly added, "Do you even have the school bus keys?"
"Hehe!"
Ruby chuckled, running to the bus and yanking on the handle.
Click!
The door swung open.
Both Ellen and Phaga froze. The driver doesn't lock it?!
But the real surprise came next.
Ruby clambered into the driver's seat, then through the windshield they watched her climb across to the passenger side. She flipped down the sun visor.
Clang!
Something metal hit the floor.
Ruby bent down, picked it up, then popped her head out the window, waving it proudly.
"Hey! I found the school bus keys! Aren't I amazing? Go on, praise me! I really am the best Apprentice Proxy!"
But Ellen and Phaga both turned their backs on her.
The class president walked over, nearly failing to hold back his laughter.
Soon, the entire class had gathered.
No one called for it, but everyone understood—what came next was the most important battle meeting of their lives.