Something inside Yuki broke as rage flooded through her veins.
Her [Beast Shift] transformation exploded outward, black scales covering her entire body. Her eyes blazed with fury as Her claws extended.
"Owen!" she snarled telepathically. "We're ending this. NOW."
Owen materialized from the [Beast Space], his golden eyes blazing with the same fury.
"Agreed..."
The dark mage and the bandit leader turned toward them.
But they were already too late.
Yuki and Owen moved as one.
[Dragon's Breath] erupted from both their mouths simultaneously, converging into a massive inferno that consumed the bandit leader entirely. His screams lasted only seconds before he was reduced to ash.
The dark mage tried to cast a skill, but Owen was faster.
[Piercing Dive] shot him straight towards the mage like a bullet, His claws tore through the mage's chest, ripping out his heart.
"Dra-...Dragon?...B-But...They shouldn't have known-..." The mage's eyes went wide with shock.
Then he crumpled.
Dead.
The bandit camp fell silent, bodies of bandits littered everywhere and the voices of the few remaining that were running away.
Yuki's transformation faded. She collapsed to her knees beside Lucien's body.
Isaac limped over, clutching his wounded chest. Lyra stood in shock, her daggers still drawn. Felicity knelt beside Oak's corpse, sobbing quietly.
Yuki stared at Lucien's face, young with a kind look even in death.
"Lucien..." Yuki whispered, tears streaming down her face. "I'm.....I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry"
Then Felicity's voice cut through the silence.
"You..."
Yuki looked up.
Felicity was staring at her, no, she was staring at Owen. Her tear streaked face litted up with recognition.
"I remember you now..." Felicity said, her voice shaking. "You're Yuki Goldberg. The famous new low ranked dragon tamer. I saw you on the news at some point..."
Yuki's stomach dropped.
Felicity stood, her bow falling to the ground. "You had a dragon this whole time?!"
"Felicity-..." Yuki started.
"WHY DIDN'T YOU BRING IT OUT?!" Felicity screamed. "Oak died! Lucien died! And you had a DRAGON this entire time?!"
"I couldn't-...the-..." Yuki tried to explain, but her voice was too weak.
"You couldn't WHAT?!" Felicity cut her off, tears streaming down her face. "Oak died protecting me! Lucien burned his lifeforce to save us! And you....you just sat there! If your dragon had been fighting from the start, they'd still be ALIVE!"
"Th-..The mana restriction-..." Yuki began again.
"THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE BROUGHT HIM OUT BEFORE THAT!" Felicity shrieked. "You should've known! You should've assessed the situation! But you just, you just let them die!"
Her voice cracked. She collapsed to her knees, sobbing.
"Oak was going to... we were going to do mukbang streams together... Lucien was going to save his sister Emma... and now they're gone..."
Yuki opened her mouth, but no words came out. What could she say? Felicity was right. If she had summoned Owen earlier, if she had been more careful.
"That's enough, Felicity" Lyra's voice rang.
She stepped between them, placing a hand on Felicity's shoulder. "This isn't helping anyone"
"She let them die!" Felicity screamed at Lyra.
"We all let them die" Lyra said quietly. "We are all B and A ranks, while she is C-Rank, we all entered this dungeon knowing fully well we might die. Blaming Yuki won't bring them back"
Felicity shook her head violently, but Lyra gently pulled her away, leading her toward the edge of the camp.
Isaac approached Yuki slowly, his chest wound bandaged but still bleeding through.
He looked down at her with his stern, militaristic gaze.
"Felicity's right, though"
Yuki flinched.
Isaac's voice was cold. "You failed to assess the situation. A hunter with your level of power should have anticipated threats like this. You should have had your dragon ready. Two people are dead because you...we... weren't prepared"
He turned and walked away, leaving Yuki kneeling in the blood-soaked dirt.
Owen started to growl. "How dare he..."
"Stop" Yuki whispered.
"But he-..."
"Just... go back. Please"
Owen hesitated, then reluctantly vanished into the [Beast Space].
---
The journey back to fort nox was silent.
They had wrapped Oak's and Lucien's bodies in cloth and loaded them onto the wagon. Felicity sat beside them the entire ride, her hand resting on Oak's shrouded form, crying quietly.
No one spoke.
When they arrived at the Adventurer's Guild, the receptionist glanced at the bodies, then at the surviving hunters.
"Two casualties" she said flatly, making a note in her ledger. "It happens. This is the life of an adventurer. Did you complete the objective?"
Lyra slammed a bloodied bandit insignia onto the counter. "The camp is cleared, the leader is dead"
The receptionist nodded. "Then you're registered. Congratulations."
Felicity stumbled into a nearby chair, her face buried in her hands. She was still crying, but now her sobs were silent, empty. She stared at Yuki with hollow eyes, not anger anymore. Just... emptiness. And accusation.
Lyra approached Yuki quietly. "You should leave. Go to the tavern. Wait for me there."
"But..."
"Felicity's barely holding it together" Lyra said, glancing back. "If you stay, she might do something she'll regret. Just... give her space. Please."
Yuki nodded numbly.
She turned and walked out of the guild.
But she didn't go to the tavern.
Her feet carried her through the city streets, past the market square, past the tavern, past the gate guards who barely glanced at her.
She walked out of the city entirely.
She walked.
And walked.
And walked.
Owen materialized beside her, flying slowly to match her pace.
"Yuki..." he said gently. "Where are you going?"
She didn't answer.
"Yuki, talk to me."
But she still didn't reply.
Her expression was completely blank. Empty. Like all the light had been drained from her eyes. She looked dead inside.
She just kept walking, her feet moving mechanically, her gaze fixed on nothing.
"Yuki..." Owen's voice was barely a whisper now.
But she didn't respond.
She didn't cry. She didn't scream. She didn't collapse.
She just... walked.
Owen flew beside her in silence, afraid to break whatever fragile thread was keeping her moving.
The city of Ironhold disappeared behind them.
The road stretched endlessly ahead.
And Yuki kept walking into the fading light, a hollow shell of the person she'd been just hours ago.
---
Somewhere far away from fort nox.
Hidden within a system of tunnels.
A group of 6 hooded figures sat around a round table, in a room that was barely lit with candles.
Around the table was seven chairs, each embedded with a crystal that emitted light and the seventh chair that didn't have anybody sitting in it had its light extinguished.
"Huh? That doesn't look good" one hooded figure said as he pointed to the seventh seat crystal that had lost it's light.
"Isn't that Cruxix's seat? How could he have died? He was at the safest spot possible" another said.
The all kept chattering among each other until one, who seemed to have the most authority, commanded their silence.
"That's Enough, if he's dead, then he's dead. Nothing we can do about it, round up the believers, find someone worthy enough to replace him. we have the Dragon king's egg, We must not let anything stop our plan. For the great one to descend"
Then the others echoed the chant in response.
"FOR THE GREAT ONE TO DESCEND"