"So let me get this straight," Vella said, her head tilted slightly as she processed everything he had just told her, "you met that goddess woman again, she pulled you into some kind of memory space, and you watched her get betrayed by the people she trusted?"

Hajin nodded, his back resting against a tree in the flower field while his legs stretched out in front of him.

She let out a slow breath, her fingers playing with the edge of her sleeve while she turned it all over in her head.

"And this Jion person," she said, "the one sitting at the head of the table, the Goddess knew him?"

"Seemed like it," he replied, "she said his name like it meant something to her, like she had known him for a long time."

She let out another breath, her gaze drifting across the endless field of flowers that surrounded them.

"That makes it worse somehow," she said softly, "being betrayed by strangers is one thing, but being betrayed by someone you called family..."

She trailed off, her expression turning distant as the words settled into something heavier.

He watched her for a moment, noticing the way her shoulders had started to slump and the way her eyes had gone a little glassy. He could tell the memories he had just shared had hit her harder than she was letting on.

She shifted closer, moving across the grass until she was right beside him, and without asking or waiting for permission she leaned sideways and rested her head against his chest.

He went a little stiff at the sudden contact, his hands hovering awkwardly at his sides as he looked down at the top of her cyan hair.

"Uh," he said, not quite sure what to do with his arms, "did I say you could do that?"

She did not move, just pressed her cheek a little firmer against his shirt while her eyes closed.

"No," she said simply, "you did not."

He opened his mouth to say something about personal space or boundaries or any of the other things that felt appropriate for this situation, but the words did not come because she looked so tired and so small against him that telling her to move felt like kicking a puppy.

He let out a quiet sigh and let his arm settle around her shoulders, making her let out a small breath that carried a weight he could not quite name.

"You went somewhere dangerous," she murmured, her voice muffled against his chest, "and I could not follow you."

"I did not really have a choice," he said, "the goddess pulled me in."

"I know," she said, "but that does not make it easier."

They sat like that for a while, until he looked down at her again, at the way her hair spilled across his chest and the way her breathing had started to even out, and realized she was falling asleep.

"Vella," he said quietly.

"Mm?" she murmured, not opening her eyes.

"You still have not told me what you are doing here," he said, "I thought you were supposed to be watching over my body in the ruins."

She cracked one eye open, a lazy smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.

"I was," she said, "but you were not waking up and I got worried, so I came here to find you."

"And if I was not here either?"

She closed her eye again, her smile fading into something more serious.

"Then I would have burned this entire field to the ground looking for you," she said, her voice carrying a quiet intensity that made his chest tighten.

He stared at her for a second, then looked away toward the horizon.

"You are insane," he muttered.

"Probably," she agreed, her voice already drifting toward sleep, "but I am sure you like it."

He wanted to argue with that and tell her she was wrong, but the words did not come because somewhere deep down he knew she was right.

He shifted his weight slightly, getting more comfortable against the tree while she settled deeper against him, and the flowers around them swayed in the breeze while the golden light filtered down from above.

’We should get back,’ he thought, his eyes drifting closed, ’the others are probably worried.’

But he did not move, not yet, because the feeling of her warmth against his chest and the quiet sound of her breathing was the most peaceful thing he had felt in days.

He closed his eyes and let the silence settle around them, and for a little while the world felt like it was fully peaceful.

Outside the ring, two days had passed.

The camp had settled into a routine, the wounded knights healing slowly while the Captain organized patrols and Helen kept the perimeter secure.

The sky stayed the same dark red color, the air heavy with mana that pressed against their skin, but the fighting had stopped and the ruins were quiet.

Hajin’s body lay in the same spot it had been since the fight, propped against a crumbling wall with a blanket pulled up to his chest while Juna sat beside him and Loccy curled up near his feet.

He looked fine, his breathing steady, his skin clean, not a mark on him from the battle, but his eyes stayed closed no matter how long they waited.

Helen walked over, her broken arm still in its sling, her expression tired and showing that a hard decision had to be made.

"We have to go," she said, stopping a few feet away, "the Captain has made the call, we are moving out in an hour, the wounded are stable enough to travel and staying here any longer just puts us at more risk."

Juna’s hand tightened on Hajin’s arm, her fingers pressing into the fabric of his coat while her jaw clenched.

"We are not leaving him," she said flatly, her voice carrying a finality that left no room for argument.

Helen looked at her for a moment, then at the Hajin lying there with no sign of waking up, and let out a slow breath.

"Then we will carry him," she said, "but we are not staying in this gate any longer than we have to."

Juna’s ear twitched, her grip on his arm tightening even more as she looked down at his face, and something cold settled in her chest because two days had passed and he had not moved, not flinched or made a single sound, and she was starting to wonder if he was ever going to wake up.

She bit her lip hard enough to taste blood, her eyes burning as she forced herself to stay calm.

Then Vella materialized.

She appeared in a burst of golden light, her form solidifying from the ring in a shower of particles that scattered across the ground before fading, and the moment she fully materialized Juna was on her feet in an instant.

"Did you find him?" Juna asked, her voice tight with desperation, "did you find master?"

Vella looked at her, about to answer, but before she could get a word out a familiar voice came from behind them.

"Whoa," Hajin said, sitting up slowly with his hair messy and his eyes a little unfocused, "were you that worried about me?"

Juna spun around and saw him there, awake and alive, and something in her chest broke open.

Tears filled her eyes before she could stop them, and she threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck so tight that he grunted from the impact.

Loccy was right behind her, her ears shooting straight up as she scrambled to her feet and crashed into both of them, her small arms wrapping around his waist while her face pressed against his shoulder.

"Master!" she cried, her voice muffled against his coat, "you were gone for so long and I thought you were never coming back!"

He sat there with both of them attached to him, his expression shifting from surprise to something softer as he felt the way they were shaking against him.

He smiled, reaching up to pat Juna’s head while his other arm wrapped around Loccy’s small frame.

"Sorry," he said quietly, "I did not mean to make you worry."

Juna pulled back just enough to look at him, her eyes red and her cheeks wet, and smacked him lightly on the shoulder.

"Do not ever do that again," she said, her voice cracking despite the sharp tone.

He gave her a crooked grin, "no promises."

She hit him again, harder this time, but she did not let go.