Tower of Endless: Death Granted Entry

While Moon was chatting with Dorbish about meaningful and meaningless things alike, he suddenly started to feel hungry.

The cup of coffee he had was also empty.

”Shouldn’t we go eat? Wanna visit the eatery where I eat?” Moon suddenly offered, remembering that he hadn’t gone to the eatery since yesterday, when he was telling Uon about the fight...

Chicken popcorn didn’t give him any muscles, so he needed to ask for more as well while he was in the eatery.

”Wouldn’t I get kicked out?” Dorbish asked, his eyes as droopy as ever.

”You might, we’ll find out,” Moon said nonchalantly as he stood.

Dorbish started following Moon across the facility until they were finally near the eatery.

Moon pointed excitedly and said, ”There it i—”

”Brat, get in alone!” Ed’s voice cut him off, echoing in his ears.

Moon pursed his lips. ”Wait here a sec!” he told Dorbish before running in alone.

”O—kay?” Dorbish’s voice trailed off, seemingly unable to understand what was going on.

Inside the eatery, ”Yo!” Moon greeted, waving at Ed as soon as his head slid inside.

Ed squinted, studying him slowly.

”Brat, you seem to be healing rather fast,” Ed stated.

Moon squinted. ”Can’t you see I look like shit?” he asked back.

Ed nodded. ”You sure do, but don’t you think you’re healing a little faster than usual?” he asked.

Moon nodded, feeling a sense of déjà vu again. ”I think I had a similar conversation, probably?” He rubbed his chin.

Ed rolled his eyes.

He suddenly squinted again, his eyes sharpening. ”Did you, perhaps, awaken a new trait?” Ed inquired.

Moon blinked a few times before smiling widely. ”Of course I did!” he answered enthusiastically.

”So, what is it?” Ed asked.

Moon raised his nose up, extended his hand, and closed his eyes. ”Behold!” he announced before—

Bang!

Moon’s Echo left his body through his hand before releasing Flowing Light in the kitchen.

”Moon the arcanist is not a snitch!” he announced proudly, unaware of the perplexed look Ed wore.

He looked at Ed again. ”Awesome, right? So damn awesome!”

Ed blinked a few times. ”So, you’re an arcanist now?”

”I sure am,” Moon nodded.

”Is that the only new trait?” Ed asked again.

”It sure is the only one,” Moon nodded.

Ed couldn’t help but sigh...

”Anyway, can I get that guy to eat here? I’ll be going around the facility with him, so I wanted him to have a meal here first,” Moon explained to Ed, who didn’t seem too bothered with whatever he was doing.

”It’s fine, you can bring him this once.” Ed raised a finger. ”Only once!”

”Sure, sure. Thanks.” Moon turned around, about to run. ”Right, that chicken popcorn didn’t give me any muscles. What do I do now?”

”Just don’t skip your meals again; eat more,” Ed said before shooing him away. ”Now go bring that brat to eat.”

A moment later, Moon returned, followed by Dorbish. ”Sorry for the intrusion,” Dorbish said as he knocked on the door, unlike Moon, who went straight in.

Yet, he was faced with Ed’s unwelcoming face. ”Just sit down already!” Ed said while fixing two platters of stir-fried rice for the two of them.

Ting~x2

Moon stood and brought them to the table, sliding one before Dorbish before sitting down again to proceed with his food.

Dorbish nodded while eating. ”That’s good, more like home-cooked food than the food we’re having around the facility.”

Ed didn’t care much for Dorbish’s praises.

”I wonder what kind of food exists here.” Moon, on the other hand, was looking excited about new things.

”You’ll find out soon enough,” Dorbish assured, not wasting any more time on talking.

Once they were done, he took his and Moon’s platters and placed them on the counter again. ”Thanks for the food,” he said with a slight smile.

Ed gave him a side look, which he didn’t mind.

”Let’s go,” Moon said, not wanting to agitate the moody old man more than they should, lest it backfire again.

Dorbish stood; he politely closed the door behind him as he walked away.

Once they left, Ed looked at an empty spot in the furthest corner. ”Hey Samuel, did that idiot awaken it unknowingly?”

A dome of Echo disappeared, revealing Samuel, who was seated comfortably before his half-finished dish. ”I can’t tell.”

”Well, at least he’s an arcanist now... somehow,” Ed couldn’t help mentioning.

Samuel didn’t react until Ed addressed him. ”Right, Samuel, aren’t you also an arcan—”

”Failed arcanist,” Samuel cut him off, correcting his claim.

”Well, guess that won’t do then. Gotta rely on Uon for that one.” Ed instantly gave up whatever he was thinking.

Further away from the eatery, Moon followed Dorbish around the places he hadn’t set foot in before.

”Here, that’s the coffee machine we use,” Dorbish pointed.

”Ooooh,” Moon exclaimed, rushing to check it out.

The machine looked like a huge metal box with arcane circles and small exits. ”How do I use it?” Moon asked.

Dorbish stopped and walked back to where Moon ran. ”First, take a cup from here,” he pointed. ”This circle will let you add the coffee itself. Here are the additives.”

He pointed at one after another: sugar, milk, water, ice, etc.

Moon proceeded with making his very own cup for the first time. Once he was done, he took a sip.

”Ah, could it be any more awesome?” Moon was enjoying his second coffee of the day happily.

”Right, Dorbish, how do arcanists do these crazy things? A box that makes you coffee, a bathroom that washes you with instant dry and clean... Mother of Arcane, bruh,” Moon exclaimed in admiration.

Though he, right now, held the trait of an arcanist, it was not widely known, and he knew better than anyone that it was through coincidence rather than talent.

He wasn’t sure he would progress far on the path to begin with, but he would enjoy it if he could afford to learn.

Dorbish, on the other hand, was thinking of an answer.

”Well, how should I explain this?” he scratched his head. ”Arcanists are rather rare, so they band together in what’s officially known as the Arcanists’ Association, which is a neutral force of the Tower since ancient times, not influenced by any clan.”

”Does that mean clans don’t have arcanists?” Moon inquired.

”Of course they do,” Dorbish corrected. ”Still, you cannot hold a high decision-making rank in the association unless you are only affiliated with the Merit Order.”

Moon squinted. ”What’s the Merit Order?” he inquired.

”You don’t know about the Merit Order?” Dorbish frowned. ”Are you serious?”

Moon frowned back. ”Never heard of it on the first floor. Is it that important?” he asked.

”Of course it is. The Merit Order is the one organization responsible for the Tower’s survival,” Dorbish explained.

”Survival? How so?” Moon didn’t understand what he was getting at.

”The Merit Order is basically the ruling power of all syndicates and associations; it manages the defense of our human domain against astral beasts, bots, gate creatures, and even necromancers,” Dorbish properly explained everything he knew of the Merit Order.

Moon scratched his nose, sending a few flakes of dry skin into the air. ”No wonder they couldn’t exist on the first floor.”

Not that he knew what astral beasts or bots were; he knew of gate creatures from the first floor and necromancers thanks to his abnormality.

Still, it wasn’t time for them yet.

”Anyway, what does that have to do with arcanists’ cool shit?” Moon returned to the first question once again.