The sun had barely cleared the jagged ridges when the survivors trudged through Korvath's eastern gate. The wagons creaked under the Thunder Boar King's immense tusks and the black-sealed heart, still thrumming faintly with residual lightning. Bloodstained cloaks hung heavy on shoulders. Even the clang of armor seemed subdued, muffled by exhaustion and grief.
Yoshiya walked beside Omina in silence. Her hair clung damp to her neck, streaked with ash and sweat, and her eyes were rimmed red—not from tears alone but from the rage that had burned in her hours earlier. She still smelled faintly of scorched ozone, a reminder of the boar's final storms. Behind them, Kaito Mugenrei limped, one arm in a sling but jaw set, aura gone now but memory of his crimson flare etched into every mind.
The main street to the Adventurers' Guild was lined with townspeople. Some whispered blessings, others covered their mouths at the sight of empty spaces between columns of survivors. The children, who had cheered the expedition yesterday, now stood silent, clutching their mothers' skirts.
Inside the guild hall the air was thicker still. Healers moved like ghosts among cots set up against the walls. The low murmur of healing chants mixed with muted sobs. Up on the rostrum stood Akira, the guild's battle-commander, flanked by officers and by Lia Shinsei, who clutched a parchment scroll.
"Line up," Akira ordered softly. "We'll honor the fallen before we reward the living."
Yoshiya felt Omina's hand brush his as they moved forward. She didn't speak, but her knuckles were white.
Lia's voice trembled only once as she began to read. "Eira Matsumoto," she said. A ripple moved through the crowd; someone cried out in the back.
"Kael Katsuragi. Lila Sakura. Arin Nakamura. Zara Hoshino. Thorne Kojima. Niamh Tanaka. Cormac Shinoda…"
Name after name. Faces rose in Yoshiya's memory with each. The agile rogue who had scouted the boar's den. The bard who had played a lilting tune to keep everyone's spirits high before the charge. The knight who had planted his shield in front of the healers until the first thunderstorm tore him apart.
"Aria Miyazaki. Eirlys Takahashi. Lysander Watanabe. Faye Saito…"
Omina bit her lip when Lia's voice wavered again. "Kokoro Kurokabe." A proud swordsman; he'd laughed at the danger and gone down with his blade still raised.
"Dorobo Kaito." The hall shuddered with a collective intake of breath. Dorobo had been a rival to some, a brother to others; his reckless charge after the second thunderstorm had been the first true moment of panic.
Finally: "Akane Shinoda." Quiet, mysterious Akane—gone in the third storm.
The list ended. The hall was silent except for sobbing. Yoshiya looked at the floor, the wood grain swimming before his eyes.
Akira's voice cut through the quiet. "Three of our tanks fell. Their shields shattered, armor ruined. But they did not break the line until their last breath. Remember them."
A murmur of assent passed through the crowd. The atmosphere felt like stone pressing on everyone's shoulders.
Then, softer: "We also recognize those whose courage turned the tide."
Lia unrolled another scroll. "For extraordinary bravery under impossible conditions—Kaito Mugenrei and Omina Mizuraga. Your Undying Rage and Berserk state prevented the Thunder Boar King from reaching our rear lines. Each of you is awarded one of the creature's horns."
Guild stewards approached, bearing two immense, spiraling tusks, cleaned of blood but still humming faintly with static. Kaito accepted his with a stiff nod, face unreadable. Omina stepped forward more slowly, hands trembling as she grasped hers. She looked, for a heartbeat, like she might drop it. Then she straightened, clutching the tusk to her chest, eyes shining.
"Seikaku's team," Akira continued, "credited with the greatest damage on the target, is awarded the heart of the Thunder Boar King." Gasps rose at that—hearts of magical beasts were rarer than gold. Seikaku and his companions bowed from their place at the side, faces grim.
Other rewards followed. Claws and fangs for certain fighters, strips of pelt for armorers. Coin purses distributed to every survivor.
"For her extraordinary contribution," Lia read, "Omina Mizuraga receives ten silver coins." The pouch was heavy in Omina's hand; she blinked down at it as though it weighed far more.
"Yoshiya receives seven silver coins." Yoshiya accepted his with a muted "thank you," though he felt no pride. He had shielded who he could, but not enough.
When the formalities ended, the hall broke into clusters—some hugging, some sobbing, some staring into nothing.
---
Later that evening, Seikaku and another high-ranking adventurer were called into a side chamber with one of the guild's senior investigators. Omina, walking past with her rewards, heard her own name murmured from inside and slowed. The door stood slightly ajar.
"…unusual readings from the boar's heart," the investigator was saying. His voice was low but urgent. "Not just elemental lightning—corrupted mana, like something feeding or directing it."
"Could be another summoning," the high-rank adventurer said. "But from where?"
The investigator's reply chilled Omina: "Beyond the mountains past the Doom Forest. Reports of movement, mana storms, new beasts not native to these lands. The Thunder Boar may have been only the first wave."
Omina's grip on the tusk tightened. She stepped back before anyone noticed her, heart thudding harder than it had in battle.
---
Dusk found them at their usual inn. The signboard creaked above them, paint chipped but familiar. Inside, the common room was quieter than usual, as though the city itself knew to tread softly tonight.
Yoshiya placed coins on the counter. "Room for two. And the special bath," he added, sliding an extra fifty copper across the wood. The innkeeper nodded without a word and handed him a key.
The bathhouse behind the inn was already filled with steam when they entered. Lantern-light glimmered off the water. Both of them lowered themselves slowly, wincing as hot water touched burns and bruises.
For a long time neither spoke. The only sounds were dripping water and the faint murmur of voices from other rooms. Yoshiya let his head rest against the wooden edge, eyes half-closed. He had never felt this tired.
Finally Omina broke the silence. "I overheard something."
Yoshiya turned his head slightly. "At the guild?"
She nodded. "They're saying the boar's heart had… corrupted mana. Like something was feeding it. And beyond the mountains, past the Doom Forest…" Her voice dropped. "There are worse monsters waiting."
The words settled over the steam like a new storm cloud. Yoshiya's eyes opened fully now, dark and steady. "They're planning to send us there?"
"I don't know. But we need to be ready." She sank deeper into the water until only her face showed. "I thought the boar was the worst I'd ever see."
Yoshiya didn't answer right away. He watched the ripples on the water, thinking of Kokoro's defiant shout, of Dorobo's mad charge, of Akane's final scream cut short by thunder. The weight of the silver coins in his pouch felt obscene compared to the weight of fifteen names.
"We'll train," he said at last. "Harder. Smarter. Whatever it takes."
Omina gave a small, exhausted laugh. "You sound like a commander already."
"I sound like someone who doesn't want to read more names," he murmured.
They lapsed into silence again. The steam curled higher, fragrant with pine oil. Outside, the city's bells tolled the evening hour.
When they finally dragged themselves from the water, their limbs felt like lead but their minds sharper, anchored. They dressed in silence, returned to their room, and lay down on opposite beds.
"Yoshiya," Omina whispered in the darkness. "Thank you. For not giving up."
He didn't know what to say, so he simply reached out a hand. She found it in the dark, squeezed once, and let go.
Within minutes both were asleep, exhaustion claiming them before fear could. Beyond the window the city murmured and the mountains loomed, black against the night sky, hiding beasts yet unseen.