At Lorum Village—
the atmosphere was tense.
Takashi and Bomb stood near the village entrance.
Waiting.
Neither had said much for the past hour.
Nearby, Tina nervously approached Takashi.
She tugged on his sleeve.
"Sir Takashi..."
Takashi looked down.
Tina's ears drooped.
"Sir Saito will be okay, right?"
Takashi adjusted his glasses.
"...Yes."
"He will."
Tina nodded.
Trying to believe him.
Then suddenly—
DONG!
The village bell rang.
Everyone immediately looked toward the gate.
A guard pointed down the road.
"Someone is coming!"
Bomb stepped forward.
Then his eyes widened.
"There he is."
Saito was walking toward the village.
Alive.
Takashi visibly relaxed.
"There he is."
Then both of them froze.
Because another figure was walking beside him.
Limping.
Covered in injuries.
Holding a scythe.
Rin.
"...What?"
Bomb's jaw dropped.
The next second he rushed forward.
"CAPTAIN!"
He grabbed Saito's shoulder and dragged him away from Rin.
"Watch out!"
At the same time—
Takashi instantly raised his hand.
Gray auris gathered around him.
Several cement bullets formed in the air.
Ready to fire.
But Saito raised a hand.
"Stop."
Bomb blinked.
Takashi frowned.
Saito sighed.
"It's okay."
"He's with me."
The silence that followed was almost painful.
Bomb pointed directly at Rin.
"Him?"
"That guy?"
Saito nodded.
"Trust me."
Bomb and Takashi exchanged a look.
Neither liked this.
Not even a little.
But eventually—
they lowered their guard.
Rin looked around the village and smiled.
"...Nice welcoming."
Bomb immediately glared at him.
Rin laughed.
A few minutes later—
they arrived at the medical house.
Outside—
Takeru and several Wolfbeasts were preparing Kaito's body.
A simple stretcher rested nearby.
Takeru looked up.
"Sir Saito."
"We're ready to bury him."
Saito stopped.
Then shook his head.
"Put him back on the bed."
Takeru blinked.
"...What?"
"Just do it."
Confused, Takeru and the others carefully carried Kaito back inside.
The room quickly filled with people.
Bomb.
Takashi.
Takeru.
Several doctors.
All staring.
All confused.
Kaito lay motionless on the bed.
The room became silent.
Then Saito turned toward Rin.
Crossing his arms.
"...So."
"What now?"
Every eye in the room shifted toward the former Hollow Gang leader.
Waiting for an answer.
The room remained silent.
Everyone stared at Rin.
Waiting.
Rin pointed at Saito.
"Activate your eyes."
Saito blinked.
"What?"
"But how?"
"It only appeared when I fought you."
Rin rolled his eyes.
Then suddenly—
SMACK!
He slapped the back of Saito's head.
"Ouch!"
Saito spun around.
"What was that for?!"
Then—
his body froze.
Yellow auris flickered around him.
His eyes glowed.
The golden symbol appeared once more.
Rin smirked.
"There you go."
Bomb stared.
"...Saito?"
Takashi adjusted his glasses.
"Those eyes..."
"They look different from before."
Rin crossed his arms.
"Now you can do it."
Then his expression became serious.
"But remember this."
Saito looked at him.
"What?"
Rin pointed directly at the glowing eyes.
"It drains an absurd amount of auris."
His smile faded.
"It can kill you."
The room became quiet.
But Saito didn't hesitate.
"...I don't care."
Everyone looked at him.
Saito turned toward Kaito.
"I'll do anything for him."
Then he walked to the bedside.
Slowly.
His hand trembled slightly.
He took a deep breath.
"...Please work."
The yellow auris flowed from his palm.
Into Kaito's body.
His eyes glowed brighter.
Brighter.
Brighter.
Then—
the words came naturally.
As if he already knew them.
"...Resurrection."
BOOM.
The room shook.
Yellow auris exploded upward.
Passing through the ceiling.
Through the sky.
Through the clouds.
Outside—
villagers looked up in shock.
The clouds parted.
A beam of golden light descended upon the medical house.
The entire village stood frozen.
Watching.
Wondering.
Praying.
Inside—
Saito's breathing became ragged.
His vision blurred.
His body felt heavier with every second.
Yet he refused to stop.
The golden auris flowed downward.
Back into Kaito.
Into every wound.
Into every part of him.
Then—
the light vanished.
The room became silent.
Saito collapsed into a chair.
Panting heavily.
Sweat covered his face.
Bomb rushed forward.
"You okay?"
Saito nodded weakly.
"...Yeah."
His eyes immediately turned toward the bed.
Waiting.
Everyone was waiting.
Then—
a finger moved.
Takashi's eyes widened.
Bomb leaned forward.
Takeru stopped breathing.
Another twitch.
Then suddenly—
Kaito sat upright.
"GAH!"
Everyone jumped.
Kaito blinked repeatedly.
Looking around the room.
"...Holy."
"I just dreamed about some horror thing."
Silence.
Then complete shock.
Nobody spoke.
Nobody moved.
Then Rin burst out laughing.
"Hahahaha!"
Kaito pointed at him.
"...What?"
"Why are you here?"
Before anyone could answer—
someone grabbed him.
Tightly.
Kaito blinked.
Saito was hugging him.
Holding him as if he might disappear again.
"...You're back."
Kaito looked completely confused.
"...Can somebody explain this?"
Bomb started laughing.
Takeru joined him.
Even several doctors looked like they might cry from relief.
Takashi pushed up his glasses.
For once—
he looked genuinely amazed.
"...Magnificent."
And for the first time since the war began—
Lorum Village had a reason to smile again.
The room was still filled with relief and laughter.
Kaito was alive.
Actually alive.
Even the doctors couldn't stop staring at him.
Rin leaned against the wall and smirked.
"Well done, kid."
Saito managed a weak smile.
"...I thought I was going to lose him."
His voice sounded distant.
Tired.
Much more tired than before.
Kaito finally noticed it.
"Saito?"
The room slowly became blurry in Saito's vision.
The faces around him began to distort.
Bomb.
Takashi.
Takeru.
Kaito.
Everything felt far away.
His breathing became uneven.
Rin's smile disappeared.
"...Uh oh."
Saito tried to take a step.
Instead—
his knees gave out.
The room tilted.
"Saito!"
Before he could hit the floor—
Kaito caught him.
Holding him by the shoulders.
"Saito!"
The young leader tried to open his eyes.
But they felt impossibly heavy.
The golden glow had completely vanished.
His body felt empty.
Drained.
As if every drop of strength had been torn away.
Kaito's expression changed from confusion to panic.
"Hey!"
"Stay with me!"
Saito looked at him one last time.
A faint smile appeared.
The same smile he always had.
Then—
his eyes slowly closed.
And he went completely limp in Kaito's arms.
"Saito?!"
The room erupted into chaos.
Doctors rushed forward.
Bomb froze.
Takeru's eyes widened.
Takashi immediately moved to check his condition.
Meanwhile—
Rin stood silently against the wall.
Watching.
Because he had already warned him.
Power like that always demanded a price.
Darkness.
Then—
Saito slowly opened his eyes.
The ceiling of his room greeted him.
For a moment, he simply stared upward.
Confused.
Then a voice came from nearby.
"Oh."
"You're finally awake."
Saito turned his head.
Takashi was sitting beside the bed reading paperwork.
Saito blinked.
"...What happened?"
Takashi closed the document.
"You fainted."
Saito nodded slowly.
Then asked,
"For how long?"
Takashi answered casually.
"Two weeks."
Silence.
Then—
"WHAT?!"
Saito nearly fell out of bed.
"Two weeks?!"
Takashi nodded.
"Two weeks."
Saito immediately jumped up.
Ignoring Takashi's protests.
He looked around.
His room.
His bed.
His village.
Everything felt normal.
Too normal.
He quickly walked out.
A few minutes later—
he pushed open the office door.
Inside—
Kaito.
Bomb.
And Rin.
All three were already there.
Kaito immediately looked up.
"Oh."
"You're awake finally."
Saito stared at him.
Still alive.
Still talking.
Still annoying.
"...So it wasn't a dream."
Kaito grinned.
"Nope."
Then pointed at Rin.
"This scythe guy already told me everything."
Kaito's expression softened.
Then he looked at Saito.
"...Thank you."
Saito smiled.
For the first time in weeks.
Meanwhile—
Rin leaned back in his chair.
"I'm surprised you're not dead."
Saito looked at him.
"You hoped I would be?"
Rin shrugged.
"...Maybe."
The room groaned collectively.
Then Rin stood up.
Stretching his arms.
"Well."
"I'm done helping you."
He turned toward the door.
Ready to leave.
Then—
"Wait."
Rin stopped.
He looked back.
Saito walked toward his desk.
Opened a drawer.
And pulled something out.
The Blue Scarf symbol.
He tossed it toward Rin.
Rin caught it.
The room became silent.
Saito smiled.
"We already had a deal."
"...Welcome to the gang."
For once—
Rin looked genuinely surprised.
Then a grin slowly appeared.
"Heh."
"It's an honor."
Bomb immediately sighed.
Kaito sighed too.
At exactly the same time.
Takashi, standing near the doorway, rubbed his forehead.
"This crew gets weirder every time."
That finally made everyone laugh.
Even Rin.
Saito laughed the hardest.
Then walked toward the balcony.
The familiar view greeted him.
Lorum Village.
The people.
The buildings.
The life they had built together.
The wind brushed against his face.
And for the first time since Kaito's death—
and return—
Saito simply stood there.
Smiling.
Looking over the village he had fought so hard to protect.