"She was... only a month old."

Imperia spoke, and hearing her low, broken voice, Kael’s throat tightened, his red eyes glistening again.

"Imperia..."

He called out in a weak, hoarse voice.

Lavinia, standing behind him, felt her eyes burn too. She had been keeping herself collected all this while, but in the end, she was human too, and like Kael, she was in her early twenties. She had spent a major chunk of her life being pampered, so when she saw everything, and now when she was seeing Imperia too, her eyes glistened as well.

She gulped softly, not knowing what to say.

The little Ant looked up, staring at both Kael and Lavinia and their expressions, and she felt heavy too.

For a moment, there was silence.

"Cooo~"

Hylia sensed that silence as well. Lavinia had already put a blindfold on her, so she couldn’t see anything, but the Skydove still sensed the atmosphere around her.

She sensed the heaviness and... strengthened her hold around Kael’s shoulder, maybe looking for support or... maybe supporting Kael instead.

Her little action brought Kael out of his reverie. He glanced at her and then forced himself to move.

"Hylia,"

He called out in a soft, gentle tone. The Skydove tilted her head toward him, as if telling him she was listening.

Kael gently moved his hand and began ruffling her feathers on her neck, just like Aurelia did. The Skydove purred and let out a soft coo, a coo so calming that for a moment, the tension in the space eased.

Then, Kael positioned himself properly, standing right in front of the injured Ants. The other Ants had already stepped back, making sure all the magic was used on the injured ones.

Kael nodded at that, then ruffled Hylia’s feathers again and—

"Cast healing magic."

He spoke gently.

"Cooo~"

Hylia nodded.

A faint glow gathered around her chest, and a soft, luminous mist spilled outward like moonlight becoming fog.

The mist touched the Ants and the change was immediate. Unlike the Stonefangs, the Ants were small; this made it easier for the healing mist to cover them fully. Their burned shells stopped smoking, their cracked bodies tightened, the gaps sealing slowly like stone being repaired. Their broken legs twitched, then were pulled back into place. One Ant that had been lying still suddenly moved, weakly, dragging itself forward.

At that sight, Imperia’s breath hitched.

"They... they are..."

She couldn’t even complete her sentence. Her voice cracked.

"They are healing."

Kael did it for her. He glanced at his daughter and nodded at her softly. Imperia nodded back, her big purple eyes returning to her children, and seeing them covered by the healing mist, recovering from everything that was done to them—

The heaviness in her heart finally eased.

The moonlight mist kept going. It flowed from one body to the next, like it had a life of its own—soft and steady.

Of course, the mist wasn’t almighty; some injuries were... too far gone. The mist did not have the power to rebuild the entire half of a body that had disappeared out of thin air. It couldn’t revive the dead either.

But the living...

Many living began to return.

Ant after Ant lifted their heads.

Some stumbled.

Some crawled.

But they moved.

They... lived.

Imperia stepped closer and lowered herself near them, blocking wind with her own small body like she could shield them with her presence alone.

"Good."

She whispered softly, her voice shaking.

"Good... good..."

She repeated herself.

Kael broke apart when he heard her, but this time, he kept himself calm and turned, positioning himself in a way Hylia’s mist could reach other Ants.

"Again,"

He told Hylia. The Skydove obeyed.

More mist generated, more light surrounded the Ants, more wounds began to close.

And slowly, with time, Kael felt the knot in his chest loosen just a little.

Finally, after a while—

"That’s enough.

Stop."

Kael spoke.

Hylia swayed slightly, exhausted. Kael gently grabbed her in his arms. Then he glanced at Imperia, who moved the Ants—other Ants carrying the dead ones into a hidden corner—and Kael—

He carefully removed Hylia’s blindfold.

The Skydove blinked, then she leaned into his chest like she was asking for reassurance. Kael didn’t stop her; he let her hug him and began gently stroking her feathers, calming her exhausted body down.

"Thank you,"

He whispered softly.

Imperia looked up at him. Her eyes were still wet; she nodded at him with a meaningful look.

Thank you.

Kael didn’t say anything; he just nodded at her knowingly. Imperia then opened the Sanctuary portal and returned to the Sanctuary.

She still needed to command the Ants. She still needed to... say the final goodbyes to the ones she had lost.

Kael, on the other hand, turned around and walked back toward the center with Hylia in his arms.

Now, the Skydove was truly exhausted. She did not have any power to cast any magic anymore, at least not until another day.

But that didn’t stop Kael; after all, he already knew that Hylia’s magic was no longer needed. According to Imperia, Aurelia and others were already done treating the Stonefangs.

Those who could be treated were already treated, and those who could not...

There was nothing that could be done for them.

Kael’s face turned solemn when he thought about it, but he shook his head and continued walking.

When he finally returned—

The reality hit him again.

Smoke.

Shouting.

Blood on snow.

The Stonefang Quarter had stabilized, but it hadn’t healed.

Bodies were lined along one side, covered with cloth. The smell of burned wood and burned flesh mixed in the cold air. Stonefangs moved like ghosts, their faces hollow, their hands clenched in frustration and anger.

Those who had lost their families cried; it was a heart-wrenching sight.

Velmourn soldiers carried the injured with tight, serious expressions.

The worst cases lay separated.

Eight Stonefangs had injuries that healing could not undo.

Missing limbs.

Crushed joints.

Burned eyes.

Things that would... never come back.

And the dead...

Thirty-five Stonefangs had perished.

Kael saw the count without anyone telling him, and the number sat on his chest like a stone. He stood in the middle and stared.

Everything happened in an instant—

But the pain it left behind was slow.

It would... last.

For a long time.

It would rot into memories, and it would become... hatred.

Kael’s fingers curled slowly as he burned the sight into his memory, and while he was doing this, footsteps approached him.

It was Aurelia.

The Sky Serpent General walked through the grave atmosphere. Her clothes were stained, her hands were red up to the wrists.

She too looked exhausted. It was a tense situation even for her, but the light in her eyes hadn’t faded.

She stopped beside Kael and looked at him. She looked at Hylia, who was sleeping in his arms without a care in the world. Then she looked at Kael’s eyes and the... new hatred forming within them.

She also looked at Lavinia, who seemed more concerned about Kael than herself, even though she was near a breaking point.

Then, she took a deep breath and—

"So..."

She called out.

"What happened?"

She asked directly.

Aurelia had been going around healing every Stonefang, providing emergency first aid and bringing structure into the chaos that had spread.

But from start to end, she did not know what had actually happened.

Sure, there were clues—the burned houses, the black shards, and the amount of damage done. All of this was more than enough to understand what had happened—

But the Sky Serpent General still needed more details for her mind to begin moving.

And Kael...

At her question, he stared at her in silence for a good few seconds, as if considering whether he should trust her or not, and once again—

He decided to go with his instincts.

"The enemy attacked."

He revealed the truth.

"The enemy...?"

Aurelia frowned.

"The Stormcaller Tribe."

Aurelia’s expression hardened as Kael began to reveal the entire truth.

"The Stormcaller Tribe has somehow convinced other tribes to join them and plan on launching an all-out attack against the Velmourns. They approached the Stonefangs too, but the Stonefangs, instead of joining them, came to us."

Kael then looked around with a grim look on his face and—

"This attack is probably a message from the Stormcallers. The Stonefangs betrayed them, and they now want them to know the consequences of their actions."

Kael spoke, his clenched fists trembling as his eyes burned.

Aurelia heard those words, looked around too—

And she...

She finally began to understand.

"So this is the reason you let the Stonefangs inside the Wall...

You need them to face the enemy’s allied forces, since Velmourn alone would never be enough."

She spoke as if enlightened.

Kael nodded at her words.

Then, Aurelia’s expression changed again. This time, she seemed confused, as if something did not connect. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"But the tribes in the Heights hate each other. How did the Stormcallers convince other tribes to join them? That has never happened before."

She asked, confused, and Kael—

He started explaining everything.

From start to finish.

Those cloaked beings, the supplies the Stormcallers have, and... Drakthar’s possible involvement since their Shadow Regent had come here personally and didn’t get what he wanted.

And Aurelia...

The more she listened.

The lower her jaw fell.