Early the next morning, Rudo is in the bathroom washing his gloves. Since he has to take them off, the wounds on his arms are giving him hell. It takes a while, but once he’s done, he grabs a towel and heads back to his room—only to find Riyou lying on his bed like she owns the place. Rudo thinks Riyou is cool and all, but this feels like skipping about twenty chapters ahead, so he immediately asks what she’s doing in his room so early. Besides, his door was locked!
Riyou explains that her room is right above his, and she could hear him moaning and groaning, so she climbed in through the window to check on him. (Very normal roommate behavior, obviously.) She asks if it has to do with the wounds on his hands, and as soon as she brings it up, Rudo hides his arms behind his back. His gloves help with the pain, but he still has to take them off sometimes to clean them, so he just powers through it. Riyou tells him it’s nothing to be ashamed of, but those don’t look like any injuries she’s ever seen. When she asks how it happened, Rudo admits only his crappy parents know—because they’re the ones who left him like this. Before leaving, Riyou lets him know she understands what it’s like to have terrible parents, so he’s not alone.
Meanwhile, the others go to check on the resident artist after hearing weird noises from his room… only to discover he’s living the classic life of a MAPPA animator: no sunlight, no family, just endless work. They wisely leave him alone.
A few hours later, Rudo and Enjin meet Arkte at the front desk. Since Rudo’s “full face” isn’t finished, Arkte suggests they take care of his final prep first. Confused, Rudo asks what a full face even is, and Enjin explains it’s basically a mask all cleaners must wear when heading into no man’s land. The masks are made by an in-house artist, but when they checked on him earlier, he looked completely deranged—so yeah, he’s probably “inspired.” They don’t want to rush him, so Rudo’s prep comes first.
Seiu explains that a lot can go wrong in no man’s land, so to minimize risks, they’ll get a particular Giver to put a spell on Rudo for safety. The guy sometimes paints the walls of Cleaner HQ, but he hasn’t shown up lately, so they’ll need to drive out to Cameas Town to find him. Before hitting the road, Enjin introduces the team: from the Amuda Division, there’s Zanka and Riyou. From the Eager Division, there’s Tamzy and Delman. And for supporters, they’ve got the reliable Follo and Tamoy. Normally, they’d have five supporters, but since this is no man’s land, they’re cutting back on non-powered members.
After the briefing, Delman charges up to Rudo and, in the loudest voice ever, declares he heard his story and thinks what those spirits did to him is unforgivable. He loves passionate people like Rudo and invites him to join the Eager Division. But Tamzy quickly tells him to chill—Enjin was the one who recruited Rudo, so he’s automatically part of the Amuda Division.
Speaking of passion, Enjin asks Delman if he can give one of his trademark, fire-breathing speeches. The second he hears that, Delman launches into full throttle—yelling words of encouragement so loudly that the walls might file a noise complaint. His spirit is so infectious that even Rudo joins in the shouting. After the impromptu pep rally, they all pile into the car and begin the long drive to Canvas Town.
As they roll up to the entrance, Rudo asks Tamzy if all surface cities have massive domes like this one. Tamzy explains that only the big cities can afford them, and the main purpose is simple: keeping deadly sky-trash from raining down on everyone’s heads. Apparently, garbage gets dumped from the Sphere at random. If you’re unlucky enough to be in the drop zone without cover, well… let’s just say you become part of the trash collection. Rudo feels guilty that the Sphere causes so much suffering down here, but Tamzy quickly tells him to chill—he’s not the one pressing the “dump garbage” button.
At the gate, two shady guys are trying to get in, but every time they step forward, an invisible wall slams them back. The gate’s wide open, yet it clearly doesn’t like them. Then Enjin and the crew casually stroll past, and the barrier doesn’t even blink. Rudo is baffled until Enjin explains: “Basically, as long as you’re not here to kidnap, traffic organs, or start a crime ring, you can walk through just fine.” Sure enough, Rudo walks right through without an issue. The two rejects? Still stuck outside.
Inside, Rudo notices every wall is covered in graffiti, and curiosity gets the better of him. Enjin explains that Canvas Town was founded as a haven for creative people to express themselves freely—because while some love art, others hate it. This city gave artists a place to go nuts with paint without someone screaming, “Stop drawing on my house!”
But sightseeing isn’t on the agenda. They’re here to meet a particular artist: Gob, the one responsible for giving out protective “tags.” Rudo doesn’t get how doodles are supposed to protect them, so Enjin explains. Gob’s vital instrument allows him to embed emotions and intent into his drawings, turning them into reality. For example, he can sketch a phrase like, “I want to negate all surprise attacks” and—bam—it works. The invisible barrier outside? That was Gob’s work too. He literally scribbled “Don’t let troublemaking jerks in” around the walls, and now riffraff like those two losers at the gate can’t enter. Crime rate solved with a Sharpie.
Rudo thinks Gob’s ability sounds way too overpowered, like cheat-code level. But Enjin clarifies that the instrument doesn’t actually belong to Gob—it was handed down from its previous user. He’s about to go deeper into the story when suddenly, a little girl runs around the corner and smacks right into him. She falls, tears welling up in her eyes, and before Enjin can say a word, she bolts. Enjin immediately assumes he’s the villain here, but before he can spiral into guilt, the others start teasing him about making kids cry.
Just then, the mayor of Canvas Town himself strolls out of the alley. That shocks Enjin, since the mayor usually spends his mornings tucked away at home, not randomly wandering around the streets.
Enjin explains that he’s here to see Gob, but with a heavy expression, the Mayor breaks the news—Gob died earlier that morning. Enjin is stunned, refusing to believe it, until the Mayor takes him to see the body. Sure enough, Gob is gone. The cause? Pollution poisoning. He was the type to chase inspiration wherever it led him, which often meant wandering into toxic zones. To make matters worse, he regularly “forgot” to wear his mask, no matter how many times the Mayor nagged him about it.
Rudo never had a real conversation with Gob, but he remembers seeing him paint a wall in Cleaner HQ when he first arrived. Now he feels an overwhelming sense of guilt—after all, Gob only died because of the endless garbage falling from the Sphere. Picking up on Rudo’s mood, Tamzy quickly reassures him it’s not his fault. Pollution poisoning claims lives all the time down here.
The Mayor then explains something unexpected: Gob had already chosen a successor to inherit his vital instrument. That successor is Remlin, the little girl they saw earlier. This is the way it has always been—the wielder of the pen chooses a successor, and once passed on, both the instrument and its abilities are inherited. That makes Remlin the new spellcaster of Canvas Town.
The Mayor admits Remlin is a gifted artist, and Gob chose wisely. But he worries whether it’s right to place such responsibility on a child. Most givers awaken their vital instruments after years of care and attachment, making their powers feel natural. But in Remlin’s case, she has to learn everything from scratch. He apologizes to Enjin, knowing this puts their mission on hold, but honoring Gob’s memory comes first.
Enjin agrees—there’s nothing to apologize for. He remembers the first time he met Gob, catching him tagging a wall outside Cleaner HQ. Instead of being ashamed, Gob looked ridiculously proud of his work before sprinting off to paint another wall. That playful side is what Enjin says he’ll miss the most.
As the group prepares to leave, they turn to Remlin to say goodbye, but she stays silent. Then, out of nowhere, she jumps up and declares she’s done sulking. Snatching the marker from the Mayor, she races to the roof. The others follow, and she explains that while Gob’s death hurts, he wouldn’t want them to wallow in sadness. Instead, she’ll send him off with a bang.
Activating the power of the pen, Remlin creates a glowing memorial and unleashes a sky full of fireworks. Brilliant colors light up the city, reminding Rudo of his time with Regto. Inspired, the people of Canvas Town burst into celebration, painting and partying in the streets. Watching the joy spread, Remlin smiles. This was exactly her vision—because the best way to honor an artist like Gob is to let his memory ignite new creativity in others.
