"Kira." Drayen helped her up, his arm tightening around her instinctively. Her body trembled uncontrollably in his hold. It was the first time he had ever seen her like this—weak, unsteady, barely holding herself together. Her face had gone pale, almost bloodless, as if all strength had been drained from her.
She coughed blood, her weight sagging against his arm.
Kira lifted her gaze to his eyes—and froze.
This was the first time she had seen fear there. Not calculation. Not restraint.
Fear.
Ever since the awakening incident, when she had playfully chased him, she hadn't seen fear in his eyes. He had hidden it perfectly every time, burying it beneath calm expressions and measured actions.
But now she understood. The pressure, the choices, the near-death moment—it had finally surfaced.
His hand was shaking. He couldn't hide it anymore.
His heartbeat was still fast.
Drayen drew a slow breath, forcing air into his lungs, matching it beat by beat. Even now, his hands trembled despite his effort to control them—but he forced them still.
The words lodged painfully in his throat. Let me heal you.
He couldn't. He didn't have enough nightmare essence left to even attempt it.
Jim stepped forward, wiping his tears with the back of his sleeve, his face still red and wet. He had the Toxic Scorpion bloodline and a simple healing ability.
"Let me help," he said, his voice unsteady but sincere.
Kira stopped his hand before he could act.
"Don't waste your breath," she said quietly, though every word seemed to cost her strength. "This isn't something normal skills can heal. We move. Now."
She knew it—if the Houndswell guards returned this time, with reinforcements, none of them would survive.
Drayen nodded without hesitation. He carefully shifted her onto his back, adjusting his grip so she wouldn't fall, and started moving forward through the forest.
There was no time to mourn.
They started moving as the forest brightened around them. The trees began to glow faintly, and flowers slowly illuminated the forest. The daylight didn't erase their misery. The quiet, serene peace only made it feel heavier.
Shadow hounds rarely attacked during the day, but this forest was home to many other hounds. They traveled cautiously.
Drayen hadn't fought in the main battle, yet exhaustion weighed on him all the same. He had been rushed here from the middle of a hunt, and now—after the hounds' attack, the fight with Houndswell guards, and the constant tension—his body felt hollowed out.
Zuko, who had done almost no real training, struggled badly to keep up. More than once, Jim and Kael had to support him, dragging him forward whenever his legs threatened to give out. Other than that, they took some small rests here and there.
From time to time, Kira activated her scouting abilities to sense danger ahead. Each time she did, her body reacted violently, the backlash tearing through her as blood stained her lips once more. To heal from this condition, she needed rest. But if she chose rest, they would die in the forest before ever finding safety.
Fortunately, Kael had recovered some of his essence and was using it regularly. His scouting ability was good enough to travel safely in territory of Rank One tainteds.
The terrain slowly started to change. The leaves, which were mostly emitting purple or blackish-purple light, began to turn gray. The trees started to change—their branches were gray. There were only a few patches of grass, and they too were gray. The terrain gradually became steeper.
Before any of them fully realized how far they had traveled, two to three days had already passed, and they reached the foot of Rock Apple Mountain. Occasionally they saw some of the trees were broken, and even though the terrain was mostly rock, there were large foot prints everywhere.
Kael knelt to check the marks. "It seems we are quite far from Houndswell."
"This is Rock—cough, cough—Apple Mountain," Kira said, her voice having grown weaker.
Kira wasn't a native of Houndswell. She was a wanderer. She knew many places. This was one of the places she knew well.
"Stay alert for Rockskin Boars. Although Rank One, they're stronger than paw hounds," Kira warned. Her voice was weaker now.
Zuko's body silently shook, remembering the fear he had experienced.
She continued, "Our destination is deep in there."
She guided the way for the group. Kira used her scouting abilities nonstop. This wasn't Houndswell, and their destination lay between Rank Two Iron-skin Boars and Rank One Rockskin Boars. If they came across an Iron-skin Boar, they would not see another day in their current state.
Her vision blurred. "Drayen, take right."
There was a rock wall. It was a dead end. They had hit the rock.
"Use this." She handed him a badge as she finally drifted unconscious on his back.
He didn't hear her clearly. "Use it… on what?"
Kira had already faded out, her chin resting against his shoulder. Her breathing was slow, shallow, but steady.
Drayen frowned and looked ahead.
The rock wall in front of them looked ordinary at first glance—solid stone, gray and weathered. But on closer inspection, gray moss clung to the surface, and thick vines hung down from above, their color almost black.
He turned to Kael.
Kael nodded once. "Give me a second."
"Dog's breath," Kael murmured slowly. His breathing changed. His nose twitched, bones shifting subtly, his features blurring for just a moment into something between human and beast. He lowered himself and sniffed the ground.
"There aren't any Rockskin Boars nearby," he said quietly. He sniffed again, frowning.
"…It smells like humans."
Kael followed the scent straight to the rock wall. He pressed his palm against it and knocked.
The sound was wrong. Hollow.
"This isn't solid," Kael said. "There's space behind it. Might be a cave."
Drayen felt a flicker of relief—and confusion. "How do we open it?" he asked.
His gaze drifted back to Kira's face. He didn't want to wake her again.
They searched the wall carefully. That was when Jim noticed one of the hanging vines wasn't a vine at all.
It was hollow. A small opening sat at its end—smooth, circular, deliberate.
Drayen pulled the badge from his palm. The shape matched perfectly.
As soon as he pressed it into place, the stone reacted. There was no shifting or grinding noise.
The wall simply moved.
Stone slid apart soundlessly, revealing a dark opening beyond. Cold air rushed out, carrying the scent of damp earth and something unfamiliar.
Inside, faint shapes shifted.
Drayen tightened his grip on Kira and stepped forward.
There were people inside.