In the next moment, Jabber suddenly wakes up screaming like he just stepped on a Lego, his eyes rolled back completely white. He spins into a wild dash attack aimed straight at Rudo, who dodges at the very last second (probably questioning all his life choices).
Realizing Jabber has gotten even stronger, Rudo wonders how that’s even possible. He glances over and sees Follo giving first aid to Gris, and instantly knows continuing the fight here will just put them in danger. He tries to drag Jabber away, but the guy’s already in his face again, swinging like a maniac.
Rudo attempts to use the talisman to control his movements, but—plot twist—it doesn’t activate. He barely catches Jabber’s punch with his hands and throws him off using pure brute strength powered by his vital instrument. Sadly, Jabber just hops back up like nothing happened.
At this point, Rudo realizes Jabber has gone full “berserk mode” by overdosing on his own poison. Since Gris’ talisman only reacts to hostile intent, it’s useless against this state. Rudo can’t believe Jabber figured out a counter so quickly. Looking at him now, Rudo thinks he’s become what people call a masochist. That reminds him of when bullies called him the same word as a kid—and he had to awkwardly ask Regto what it meant, only for Regto to admit he didn’t know either.
Back in the present, Rudo has no idea how to fight this lunatic. Jabber charges with murderous glee, forcing him to dodge desperately. But then, Jabber winds up for a strike Rudo knows he can’t avoid—until a blue staff cuts through the air and blocks it.
When Rudo looks closer, he instantly recognizes it. Yep, it’s Zanka—glaring like he just walked into the wrong anime and decided to own the scene. Zanka tells Rudo he’s done enough and that he’ll handle things from here.
Rudo rushes over, asking how he survived the poison. Zanka just smirks and says not to underestimate him. Also, he compliments Rudo’s shiny new vital instrument, calling it “pretty cool.” But Rudo warns him: it doesn’t work on Jabber while he’s in berserk mode—it only lets him dodge.
Zanka, ever the thinker, asks if the talisman reacts to hostile intent. When Rudo confirms, Zanka reveals he’d been observing the fight before stepping in and came up with a plan. Since Jabber’s legs are busted and his movement’s limited, maybe they can use the talisman differently.
His big idea? “Let me hit you.”
Rudo stares at him like he just suggested eating garbage. Zanka explains: if he hits Rudo, the talisman might drag him straight toward Jabber, giving Zanka’s staff enough reach to land before Jabber’s claws.
Rudo hesitates, pointing out that if it doesn’t work, he’s basically just volunteering to get punched in the face. Zanka shrugs and says, “Then I’ll endure it.” (Classic tough-guy logic.)
Before they can test the crazy plan, Jabber rises again, roaring, and launches another devastating attack.
Both Rudo and Zanka barely manage to dodge. Zanka warns Rudo not to let Jabber’s claws touch him—even a tiny scratch is enough to put him down for good. But Rudo, being Rudo, tells Zanka to go ahead and strike him anyway. So, as Zanka prepares to unleash a full attack, Rudo’s vital instrument reacts and pushes Zanka right in front of Jabber. With flawless timing, Zanka slams his staff into Jabber’s face. For a second, both Rudo and Zanka just stare like, “Wait… did that actually work?”
Jabber, not appreciating the impromptu face massage, charges back at them. Zanka goes in again and—bam!—he’s instantly teleported in front of Jabber once more, delivering another staff smack. Realizing this hilarious yet effective strategy, the two keep repeating it, basically turning Jabber into a living punching bag.
But right before they can land the finishing blow, the poison inside Jabber wears off. Zanka takes one last swing, smashing him into the ground, but the effort drains him. He collapses, groaning that his entire body feels like it’s been steamrolled. At the same time, Rudo’s vital instrument crumbles to dust in his hands.
Then things get worse. Rudo suddenly seizes up and collapses—he’s been poisoned by Jabber’s claw. Meanwhile, Jabber casually injects himself with a chemical from his own claw and bounces back to full health like it’s nothing. Zanka is in disbelief. Jabber explains, almost smugly, that the left claw erases pain, while the right claw’s poison lasts only 10 minutes on him because of his immunity. For Zanka though? A nice, long 30 minutes. Just to rub it in, Jabber stabs Zanka again, refreshing the dose. With Rudo twitching helplessly, Jabber picks him up and walks off like he just won a shopping prize.
When Jabber resurfaces, he’s confused—the hole was supposed to lead into a building, not outside. Before he can make sense of it, Enjin (not “Injin”) whacks him in the stomach with an umbrella, forcing him to drop Rudo. The cleaners gather around, telling Jabber he’s messed up big time. Enjin notes that the hole was so deep even their choker comms couldn’t send a signal that far down—clearly Jabber’s trap. If Tomme hadn’t found a phone in the nearby town, they never would’ve known.
Hearing this, Tomme grows emotional, fearing Gris and the others underground might be dead. Enjin reassures her, telling her not to underestimate them, then orders her to lead a rescue team. Rio checks on Rudo, saying he looks fine—only for Regto (not Cain) to argue that he looks like death warmed over. Semiu (not Delman) explodes with rage at Jabber, vowing revenge. Enjin backs him up, declaring Jabber won’t mess with the cleaners and walk away alive.
Jabber, still unfazed, says he has his own orders—to bring Rudo back no matter what. Just as he charges up his vital instrument for another round, a blue-haired girl suddenly appears, hugging him from behind and telling him he’s done enough and should return to base.
Jabber argues that he’s not ready to leave yet since he still hasn’t secured Rudo, but the blue-haired girl stays calm, insisting he come home. Enjin watches in confusion, wondering where in the world this girl even popped out from. Jabber keeps resisting until she drops the line about the boss smiling when his name came up. That shuts him up instantly. Realizing he’s finally willing to listen, she lets him go.
Jabber turns to the cleaners, saying he has to leave, and reveals a manhole-shaped portal opening behind them. Rio is stunned. Before stepping through, Jabber looks back at Rudo, calling him skilled for a “sparite.” He adds that the poison won’t kill him—it’s basically just a forced nap.
As Jabber begins walking away, Rudo suddenly calls out to him. Still weak on the ground, Rudo musters the strength to declare that it’s not over—not until he pays Jabber back with interest for what he did to Gris. This shocks Jabber; he didn’t expect Rudo to still be conscious after taking his poison. His eyes then shift to Rudo’s hand, where he notices a familiar pattern. Jabber remarks it’s quite the coincidence—they got that same pattern from the same “series.” He says his boss will be thrilled to hear about it, leaving the cleaners completely confused. Before disappearing, Jabber promises Rudo that next time, he’ll be back fully prepared. With that, he slips into the manhole portal, which vanishes instantly.
The cleaners are stunned. Rudo is furious, but he’s also left wondering what Jabber meant about the “series.” About half an hour later, the trapped cleaners finally rescue Rudo. The moment he’s free, he rushes to Gris’s side. Seeing him in such a dire condition breaks Rudo’s heart, and he apologizes sincerely for destroying his talisman. Gris, barely holding on, reassures him. Though the talisman was important, what truly mattered was using it to fight back against Jabber. He tells Rudo he did great in the field today, which matters far more.
Later, back at headquarters, Rudo sits off to the side, clearly pissed. Enjin joins him, asking why he looks so down, then praises him for finally learning to use his vital instrument. Instead of cheering up, Rudo vents, frustrated that he couldn’t protect Gris—first in the sphere, and now again here. Every time he thinks he’s moving forward, he feels like he fails all over again. He wonders if he’s destined to be a failure forever.
Enjin gently reminds him that Gris knew what he was signing up for as a cleaner. He risks his life without hesitation—not because Rudo is just a spare, but because he saw him as a kindred spirit, someone who values both people and objects the same way. Enjin encourages him to pay his respects to Gris.
Rudo walks in, bracing himself to see Gris’s corpse… but freezes in shock when he finds Gris still alive.
Enjin and Tomme pat Rudo on the head, realizing his sulking earlier was because he thought Gris had died. But Gris grins and says they shouldn’t count him out yet—he’s still alive and kicking.
Rudo can’t wrap his head around it. He saw Gris take a claw straight through the chest, something fatal for any normal human. Gris explains that he survived thanks to the cleaners’ medical team. He introduces the girl who saved him: Aisha, the only healer among the cleaners. All eyes turn to her, but she nervously downplays her role, saying she’s usually not useful and just got lucky this time. Rudo is stunned at her humility, but Enjin explains that Aisha is just incredibly shy.
Gris, however, is deeply grateful. He thanks Aisha for saving his life and also thanks Follo for pulling him out of Jabber’s rampage. Since Gris is like an older brother to Follo, those words hit hard. Follo breaks down crying and hugs him tightly. Gris then turns to Rudo and praises him for standing his ground against someone as terrifying as Jabber, and for working side by side with Zanka. He’s especially glad that the talisman he spent so much time maintaining actually ended up being useful to Rudo.
Enjin then brings up the bigger picture. He warns that the raiders seem to be deliberately targeting cleaners now, meaning their enemies aren’t just trash beasts anymore. But there’s some good news: during the fight, one of the raiders mentioned something called the border.
Just then, a man walks in. He believes this means the raiders are digging into research about the sphere. Enjin calls him “boss.” Rudo stiffens, realizing this must be the leader of the cleaners. The man approaches and apologizes for not being there to welcome him on his first day. Then he introduces himself as Corviss, leader of the cleaners.
Corviss admits that at first he thought Rudo was only staying temporarily to gather information and was ready to kick him out. But after seeing how Rudo connected with the team and risked his life to protect them, Corviss believes he has a special power worth keeping. With no objections, he officially welcomes Rudo as a cleaner. He invites him to his office to give him a uniform and share something important.
In the office, Corviss explains that the border is a space between the sphere and the surface. Supposedly, anyone who tries to cross it dies. But there’s a strange rumor: apparently, a woman lives in no man’s land near the border. One lost traveler claimed she helped him, saying she lived there to “watch the people who fall from above.” Even stranger, she claimed some of those people came and went without dying.
This makes Corviss believe it might be possible for people to cross the border alive. Rudo realizes that if he can find one of the people this woman saw, he might learn how to reach the sphere—and maybe even discover how he himself survived falling. Corviss asks if Rudo plans to stay or go. With fiery determination, Rudo declares he’s going.
Just then, Enjin barges in and teases that Rudo looks pretty cool in his new cleaner uniform. Later, Rudo sets off toward no man’s land in search of the mysterious woman, but Follo desperately tries to stop him. Rudo drags Follo across the floor with ease, leaving Follo completely stunned at his absurd strength. With his eyes glowing white, Rudo declares that finding the woman is the only way to learn how to return to the sphere.
But the moment Enjin calls out, Rudo freezes. Enjin warns him that he can’t just rush into such a dangerous place without preparation. Sure, Rudo can finally use his powers, but he hasn’t figured out their limits or weaknesses. Charging in blind is basically suicide. That’s why Enjin says he’s going with him. Not only can he keep Rudo alive, but he can also study any raiders they encounter.
Rudo then asks how raiders even become givers in the first place. Enjin explains that not everyone has a good heart. Some people look kind but treat objects like trash, while others seem cruel but actually care for things. In other words, morality has nothing to do with becoming a giver. Rudo realizes he was wrong to assume bad people couldn’t look after objects—but even so, his hatred for raiders still burns strong.
As the tension finally dies down, Enjin tells Rudo to rest for the night. The past few days have been pure chaos, and he needs a break. Rudo heads to his room, lies on his bed, and stares at the ceiling. Relaxing? Yeah, not his thing. He’s not used to sleeping much and secretly just wants to go pick through trash.
That’s when Riyo bursts in, announcing that since Rudo’s now an official cleaner, she’s giving him a tour of headquarters. Along the way, she asks about food in the Sphere. Rudo shrugs—bread, soup, the basics. Then she asks if he ever had sweets. The very mention makes Rudo flinch. Sweets in the Sphere were so rare only the rich got them. Riyo laughs and shows him the cleaners’ massive candy stash.
Rudo nearly faints in shock. Enjin warns him not to overdo it, saying sweets down here are basically more addictive than drugs. But the moment Rudo takes a bite, his taste buds ascend into another dimension. He shovels handful after handful into his mouth like a starving raccoon at a buffet. Enjin warns he’ll get fat—but Rudo’s too busy achieving dessert nirvana to care.
Then Deer walks up, glaring at him. Rudo panics, thinking Deer’s mad about the candy hoarding, so he politely offers one. Deer snatches it and eats it without a word. The tension spikes—this could turn ugly—until Bro drags Deer away before fists (or more sweets) start flying.
Meanwhile, Zanka spots what looks like a fat stranger waddling out of a room. Alarmed, he almost calls for backup… until he realizes it’s just Rudo, bloated from inhaling sweets. Later, Rudo’s back to normal and out training, but his powers won’t activate. Enjin teases him, saying maybe he ate so many sweets he forgot how to use them. Rudo insists he remembers the feeling, but still—nothing.
That’s when Zanka suggests maybe Rudo needs garbage around to get going, since he loves fixing discarded items. To test it, he dumps trash in front of Rudo. Rudo digs through it, grabs a random piece, and suddenly—bam! His power works, transforming it into a vital instrument. Enjin praises Zanka for the clever idea, calling him a good trainer. Zanka blushes but quickly pretends to be cool again.
Rudo tries pushing further, creating multiple weapons at once—and succeeds. But then he collapses with a nosebleed, his body straining under the pressure. Enjin suspects it’s partly due to the insanely high quality of Rudo’s gloves. Curious, Rudo asks what he means. Enjin explains that the longer an object is cared for, the stronger it becomes. This is called improving its quality. But in battle, quality alone isn’t enough—the user’s mindset and experience matter just as much. Zanka adds that since Rudo has cared for his gloves since childhood, their quality must already be incredible. Still, he wonders if that’s the only reason, or if it’s tied to the mysterious “series” Jabber mentioned.
As blood drips from his nose, Rudo reflects. Why did the vital instrument he made from Gris’ talisman fall apart, while the new weapons remain stable? He suspects a time limit. But Riyo suggests maybe the talisman vanished because it fulfilled its purpose. Zanka agrees, pointing out it only fell apart after the battle ended. Enjin builds on the idea: perhaps Rudo’s true power is to draw out the full potential of discarded things, let them serve their purpose, and then allow them to rest.
Rudo didn’t destroy Gris’ talisman. He honored it—letting it shine one last time before fading naturally.
Hearing this, Rudo finally realizes his power isn’t about breaking objects—it’s about unlocking their maximum potential. Still, Riyou can’t shake Jabber’s words about Rudo’s gloves being part of something called the series. Could there be more like them out there?
She suddenly gets an idea and asks Rudo if his gloves have a special name. Rudo looks confused at the question, so Riyou explains, “When you truly love something, you usually give it a name to make it special.” Rudo admits he never thought about naming them. Enjin, always ready to stir things up, suggests he do it right now—like some kind of naming ceremony for gloves. Meanwhile, elsewhere, Jabber and his colleague return to base to give their report. There, they find their boss sitting alone at the edge of the room. The boss reveals something shocking: Rudo’s gloves are part of what’s known as the Watchman Series.
