Archie experienced a comforting warmth that enveloped him. He blinked his eyes open, realizing he had returned to the aquatic encounter he had previously experienced.

Indeed, Archie found himself standing on the water once more, enveloped by darkness. However, a slight variation made Archie tilt his head upwards to gaze at the sky where stars were twinkling, their light reflecting off the water, casting a golden glow.

The starlight radiated a warmth that comforted Archie as he ventured forth in search of the rift.

Archie had a clear objective in mind. He had been pondering over how to control the rift since the previous day, but he hadn’t considered the fact that Rifts absorb and then expel the things they come into contact with.

On his home planet, he had been taught that rifts are formidable entities that release a violent pulse, annihilating anything in their vicinity when they first materialize. The only method to subdue them was by the Government employing Advanced Technology.

So, when Deadbeat informed him that Rifts are harmless and merely absorb the things they touch, it made him question the First Wave incident where Rifts sucked an entire district inside. However, his focus was more on learning to control Rifts than on other matters.

After a few minutes of walking, Archie spotted a white rift hovering in mid-air, pulsating as if it was awaiting his arrival.

Archie approached it and something on the water caught his eye. Archie knelt down and discovered the ice cube with an X mark that the rift had previously absorbed.

Archie smiled faintly, realizing that what Deadbeat and Mechanic had mentioned about rifts expelling the things they had absorbed was indeed true. Archie tossed the ice cube into the rift and extended his right hand to touch it.

Instantly, the image of a rifle materialized in his mind. Archie touched the barrel of the rifle to the rift, causing it to swirl and enter the rifle’s cylinder.

Archie aimed the rifle at the sky and squeezed the trigger.

“BANG!” Archie fired the rifle. A rift emerged from the narrow barrel of the rifle and swirled in the sky. The sky began to fracture under the pressure of the rift.

“CRACK!” The black sky splintered into shards of glass and behind the shattered fragments, Archie saw a reality that depicted a vast desert and six ice cubes with an X mark on them near the shattered piece.

The rift entered the shattered fragments and twirled in the air. Suddenly, it expelled the ice cube it had previously absorbed. Just as Archie had fired his gun, the rift shot out the ice cube.

The ice cube sliced through the air, heading towards the central ice cube that stood among the six cubes. Despite the pressure, the ice cube remained solid, didn't melt, and was hard enough to collide with another ice cube.

"BOOM!" The collision caused the ice cube to explode, scattering all six ice cubes along with the ice stool they were placed on. The explosion resulted in a snowfall over the sand, but the explosion only blasted away the ice on the ground. The sand remained undisturbed and unaffected by the explosion.

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Archie opened his eyes in real time, finding himself standing in the desert after witnessing everything in the water encounter.

Archie turned to Mechanic and Deadbeat for their reaction. As usual, they were taken aback by the reality.

Archie walked towards them and queried Deadbeat,

“Can you use your ice Ethereal when I shoot my rifle?”

Archie was eager to experiment with more of his powers to explore all the possibilities he could achieve with rifts.

“We should make our way to the Rift Guild immediately,”

Deadbeat responded, his tone wavering. It was the first time Archie had heard Deadbeat sound so distant.

Archie couldn’t decipher Deadbeat’s words but he simply complied. Deadbeat, Mechanic, and Archie gathered their belongings and prepared to set off towards the Rift Guild.

Mechanic remained silent throughout their journey, feeling overshadowed by Archie’s power.

As they journeyed non-stop for another day, subsisting on only water and some jerky for sustenance, the journey was marked by silence, with no one uttering a word.

Archie thought they feared his existence, but their thoughts were quite the opposite. They wanted Archie to acquire E-Screen as quickly as possible, so he could learn and control rifts more effectively. They believed Archie was the key to understanding rifts.

So, they traveled non-stop until the next day at noon when they arrived at a solitary building standing alone in the vast desert.

It was a large, classical white structure that had turned yellowish with a prominent dome and a cupola on top. It had multiple stories, indicated by rows of windows, and featured an architectural style that included columns or pilasters. There was a board that seemed to be moving around the building’s peak, possibly indicating some form of animation or special effect that Archie couldn’t discern due to the sun’s glare.

“Don’t lose your way inside, kid,” Deadbeat cautioned as they began to ascend the stairs that led to the door.

Archie was awestruck by the large brown entrance door that extended from floor to ceiling. Deadbeat pressed the door, causing it to glow red. The door retracted into the ground, which took Archie by surprise.

“Shut up! I know what's right!”

Archie heard voices shouting and the sound of punches echoing in the building.

Archie trembled at the sight, fearing he might get hurt because the entire building was teeming with different species from Lizardfolks to Demons.

All the species he had read about in storybooks or fantasy novels were present inside, engaged in fights with one another.

Archie saw very few of his species or beings that resembled him and Mechanic. Archie began to tremble because these were the beings on his planet considered as monsters that hunted them.

Mechanic held his hand and reassured him,

“I know all of this seems new to you, but these are normal occurrences in a Rift Runner’s life. You will get used to it.”

Archie's heart continued to race, not out of fear. Mechanic's words made him realize that a new world awaited him.

So, Archie glanced around his surroundings to calm himself. He saw a large spacious hall, designated for waiting, with tables and chairs scattered around.

Inside, the architecture was not special. It was a typical structure with a massive ice chandelier hanging from the ceiling to spread coolness below, creating an energizing atmosphere for others to laugh, argue, and brawl.

Archie saw a series of counters aligned in a row ahead, behind which no one was seated.

Deadbeat and others stood before the counter and requested,

“I need to see a branch manager here. We have a virgin here.”

“SWOOSH!” Suddenly, a hologram of a human female materialized behind the counter and responded,

“We can register virgins here. There's no need for the branch manager's guidance.”

“Tell that bastard to come here before I demolish this building,”

Deadbeat retorted with a cold look and a stern gaze that showed he meant business.

The hologram paused for a few seconds before responding.

“Sir, Pain in the butt will attend to you.”