Chapter 252 – Improvise. Adapt. Overcome. (2)

Chapter 252

Improvise. Adapt. Overcome. (2)

Date : Day 17 of Firstthaw 1024 Aethellgard Concord Year.

The Sailer glided downstream with the current, its magic engine humming low and steady.

Nobody spoke much.

The adrenaline that had carried Freedom Party through two interceptions had finally drained away, and what remained was weariness. Jackey sat against the cabin wall with his axes resting across his knees, his tabby cat ears drooping. Elise had climbed down from the roof at last and sat beside Hyoren near the bow, her Moonveil Bow laid across her lap, her silver ponytail tangled by the river wind.

Inside the cabin, Arianna lay curled on the bench with her wide-brimmed hat over her face. She hadn't moved since they left the battlefield.

At the bow, Oria sat on a crate with the Azure Wand across her knees. Elsylua drifted silently beside the hull, matching the boat's speed, her flowing form glittering in the lowering light.

Hyoren watched the riverbanks slide past.

The reeds. The open grassland. Then, gradually, the first farmlands outside Akela. The fields were empty. Only furrowed earth waiting for a spring that had been interrupted.

He ran the numbers again, the way he had done a dozen times since they left the second scar behind.

Eleven hundred from the first Earth Fissure… 

Eight hundred from the first flood… 

Eight hundred from the second fissure… 

And nine hundred from the second flood, because the scattered formation couldn't slow the water…

He clenched his fist.

Plus everything we cut down from the boat…

Close to four thousand…

He let out a slow breath.

It's not enough to win. But it's enough to matter…

By the time the walls of Akela rose on the northern bank, the dual suns had sunk low in the west. Golden Sol and silver Luna hung together above the rooftops, and their light had turned warm and amber, stretching long shadows across the water.

Holley eased off the controls. The Sailer slowed, drifted past the empty piers of the southern harbor, and came to rest beside the longest one with a gentle bump.

The engine fell silent.

Hyoren rose to his feet and stretched his aching shoulders.

"We're back."

***

One by one, they disembarked.

Jackey went first. He landed on the pier with a heavy thud, then turned back toward the cabin door, his ears twitching.

Arianna had stepped out onto the deck. She held Quadraflux Weaver with both hands and leaned on it so heavily that the staff was doing most of the standing. Her complexion had gone pale again, and even the short walk from the bench had left her breathing hard.

Jackey hopped back onto the deck without a word. He turned around and crouched down in front of her, offering his back.

"Get on, Arianna."

Arianna blinked down at him. Her composure flickered, then reassembled itself.

"Jackey… I am perfectly capable of walking."

Jackey glanced back at her over his shoulder. His golden eyes moved to her trembling knees.

"You're shaking."

Arianna lifted her chin.

"I am not sh…"

Her knees wobbled mid-sentence. She caught herself on the staff just in time.

Elise giggled softly and stepped forward, holding out her hand.

"Give me your staff, Arianna. I'll carry it."

Arianna looked at her mentor. Then at Jackey's back. Then at the long pier and the longer road beyond it. Slowly, her cheeks turned faintly pink.

"…Very well. Just this once."

She handed Quadraflux Weaver to Elise and climbed onto Jackey's back. He stood up as easily as if she weighed nothing at all, and his tail began to sway.

"WOHOO! Arianna is so light!"

Arianna pressed her forehead against his shoulder with a pained groan.

"Please do not shout, Jackey. My head is spinning."

Jackey's ears flattened apologetically.

"Sorry…"

But his tail kept swaying all the same.

Hyoren smiled and turned toward the stern.

Holley had finished securing the mooring line. He straightened, wiped his hands on his trousers, and looked up as Hyoren approached. Hyoren held out his hand.

"Holley. Thank you. Truly. Holding the boat steady against that current for so long… We couldn't have done any of it without you."

Holley stared at the offered hand for a moment. Then he shook it firmly, and his weathered face split into a grin.

"Mister Hyoren, you've got it backwards."

His gaze drifted upstream, toward the east, where the dust cloud was no longer visible.

"I've ferried a lot of adventurers on this river. Never seen anything like what I saw today. The earth splitting open. The river standing up on its own."

He let go of Hyoren's hand and rubbed the back of his neck.

"You're out there fighting for my harbor. For my city. It's me who should be thanking Freedom Party."

Hyoren shook his head, a small smile on his lips.

"Then let's call it even."

Holley threw his head back and laughed.

"Aye. Even. Now go rest, Mister Hyoren. Tomorrow's the real fight."

***

At the end of the pier, Oria stood at the edge of the water.

Elsylua hovered before her, tall and silent, the tether between them glowing faintly in the evening light. Oria raised one small hand, and the spirit lowered hers to meet it. For a moment, their palms rested against each other—skin against flowing water.

Oria's voice was barely a whisper.

"Thank you for today."

The tether flickered once. Then it slowly dimmed, and Elsylua's form began to loosen. Her hair came apart into streams of water. Then her shoulders. Then the rest of her. The water spilled back into the river with a soft splash, and the ripples carried the last of the blue light away.

Oria stood there a moment longer, her hand still raised.

Then she lowered it and turned around. Her sapphire eyes were slightly red at the edges. Elise, standing a few steps away, said nothing about it.

Hyoren walked over and stopped in front of her.

"Oria. Thank you. Without you, we couldn't have dealt this much damage.”

Oria folded her arms and looked away. Her pointed ears turned pink.

"Don't thank me yet. The real battle is tomorrow."

She shifted the Azure Wand under her arm and glanced toward the Merchants’ District.

"I'm going back to my shop. The Alchemists' Guild has to finish distributing the High Grade Healing Potions tonight. And I need to rest for tomorrow too… Or I will also collapse.”

She jerked her chin toward Arianna, who was resting her cheek against Jackey's shoulder with her eyes half-closed.

"Just like her."

Arianna lifted her head slightly from Jackey's shoulder.

"You are right… Lady Oria…"

Oria snorted, though her ears only turned redder.

"Hmph. Just don't collapse before tomorrow."

Elise's lips curved into a mischievous grin.

"Get some sleep quickly, Pipsqueak. You looked ready to fall over after that second flood."

Oria shot her a glare sharp enough to cut glass.

"Mind your own business, Cow Tits!"

Then she turned and walked off toward the Merchants’ District, her blue robe swishing behind her. She didn't look back—but she raised one hand over her shoulder in a small wave before she disappeared around the corner.

***

Freedom Party walked north from the harbor.

The streets climbed gently away from the river. The damp, cool air of the docks gave way to the familiar smells of the city: woodsmoke, stone, and the faint tang of oil from the lamps the lamplighters were already lighting along the main road.

But Akela was not the same city they used to see.

Every shop was shuttered. Windows were boarded. The few citizens still outside hurried past with their heads down. 

Along the main road, a column of mounted knights rode east toward the Gate of Guts, armor clanking, hooves striking sparks from the cobblestones. Behind them came wagons loaded with crates and barrels, heading for the walls.

Hyoren watched them pass.

Supplies for tomorrow… And the night riders will follow them soon…

A few of the adventurers on the sidewalk recognized their party. One of them raised a fist toward him and called out.

"Freedom Party! How did it go?"

Jackey answered before anyone else could, careful not to jostle the mage on his back.

"We whacked thousands of them!"

The adventurers cheered as Freedom Party walked on. 

Arianna sighed into Jackey's shoulder.

"Jackey, you only whacked a few dozen."

Jackey's tail swished proudly.

"But we whacked thousands of them!"

He grinned sheepishly.

"Though most of the whacking was done by you and Oria.”

Elise laughed softly. Even Hyoren couldn't help smiling.

By the time they reached the Adventurer's District, the dual suns had nearly touched the western rooftops. The plaza in front of the Guild was quieter than it had been the day before, but it was far from empty. Clerks hurried in and out with stacks of paper. Adventurers stood in small groups, checking the rosters pinned to a board beside the door.

The crates that had served as Fiona's platform were still stacked at the front of the plaza.

Hyoren stopped in front of the Guild and turned to face his party.

"You three go back to the manor first. I need to report to the Guild Master."

Elise's emerald eyes narrowed slightly.

"Alone?"

Hyoren nodded.

"It won't take long. She needs to know the Chieftain is adapting before tomorrow. The night riders need to know about the archers on high ground too."

Elise looked at him for a long moment. Then she looked at Jackey, who was swaying slightly on his feet, and at Arianna, whose eyes kept drifting closed. She let out a small sigh.

"…Fine."

She stepped closer and touched his arm. Her fingers lingered there.

"But finish quickly. Lena and Vina promised a warm dinner. If you aren't home before it gets cold, I'll come drag you out myself. Fufu."

Hyoren chuckled.

"I'll be quick. I promise."

Elise's voice softened, and her gaze drifted to the Guild's heavy door.

"And if Ina's in there… tell her to come home tonight. Even if it's only for an hour."

Hyoren met her eyes and nodded.

"I will."

Jackey hitched Arianna a little higher on his back and grinned.

"See you at home, Big Bro!"

Arianna lifted one hand weakly from his shoulder.

"Please don't take too long, Leader…"

Then the three of them turned and walked off toward Wyvern Street—Elise carrying Quadraflux Weaver at her side, Jackey's tail swaying behind him, Arianna's crimson hair spilling over his shoulder.

Hyoren watched them until they turned the corner.

Then he faced the Guild.

He rolled his aching shoulders once, took a breath, and pushed.

***

The heavy wooden door groaned shut behind him, and the noise hit Hyoren at once.

The Adventurer's Guild was chaos.

The main hall that was usually so quiet in the afternoon, with nothing but the soft scratching of pens, had been swallowed by a tide of voices. Clerks hurried back and forth across the floorboards with stacks of documents clutched to their chests, weaving between adventurers without slowing. 

Every space was occupied. Parties huddled around in tight circles. A spearman jabbed a finger at a crude map scrawled across the back of a quest paper. Beside him, a mage counted potions aloud, her lips moving as she tallied each bottle. Nearby, a Bronze-rank party was arguing in low, urgent voices about which part of the second wall they had been assigned to.

The corkboards along the walls were no longer covered in quest papers. In their place hung freshly inked notices: the five phases, the deployment lists, the rally points outside the Gate of Guts.

Hyoren's eyes moved across the hall.

Everyone is preparing…

Near the far wall, a different group had gathered. They stood apart from the rest, dressed in dark leather and muted cloaks. Bows and crossbows were slung across their backs, and several of them were checking the fletching of their arrows one by one. Their conversation was quieter than the rest of the hall, and far more focused.

The night riders…

And at their center stood a broad-shouldered figure Hyoren recognized immediately.

Grey creeping into his hair and beard. A face weathered by years beneath the sun. A sturdy shield strapped to his back—and tonight, a light crossbow hanging from his belt as well.

Ronald Powell.

Around him stood the members of Ironclad Guardian, each of them armed with a bow or crossbow. They were talking with a handful of Akela knights, who had traded their heavy plate for lighter armor suited to riding at speed.

Hyoren's eyes drifted to the deployment list pinned on the nearest corkboard. At the top of the night riders' roster, in Ina's neat hand, was a single party name: Ironclad Guardian.

Of course it would be him…

Ronald's party had spent more than twenty years guarding caravans along Akela's trade roads. They were used to moving at night. Every one of them could ride, and every one of them could fight from range. Tonight, they would lead about fifty adventurers, riding alongside thirty knights, around the goblin camp until dawn.

If anyone can keep eleven thousand goblins awake all night… it's them…

Hyoren wove his way through the crowd toward them.

Ronald noticed him before he was halfway across the hall. The veteran broke off his conversation with the knights, turned, and a slow smile creased his weathered face.

"How's the interception, lad?"

Hyoren stopped in front of him and returned the smile.

"It went well. We actually killed more goblins than the original plan."

Ronald's eyebrows rose slightly. Around him, several members of Ironclad Guardian paused in their preparations and turned to listen. Even the knights fell quiet.

Hyoren's smile faded a little. He glanced at the riders gathered around them—at the bows, the crossbows, the muted cloaks meant for the dark.

"But there's a complication."

He lowered his voice.

"The Chieftain is smart."

Ronald's expression didn't change. But his eyes sharpened, the way they had a hundred times on the training ground when Hyoren's stance was wrong.

"Go on."

Hyoren drew a breath and told him.

About the first strike, and the tightly packed columns that had marched straight onto Arianna's Runic Array. About the second strike that afternoon, and how the army had loosened its formation into scattered squads, so that the second Earth Fissure had swallowed far fewer of them. And about the Goblin Archers that had formed up on high ground, out of the flood's reach, and loosed a volley straight at the boat.

"It learned from the first attack. In a single morning."

He looked at Ronald, then at the riders around him.

"Tonight, it might do the same. It might post archers on the hills around its camp. Or set traps for anyone riding close. So please—be careful out there."

For a moment, no one spoke. One of the knights exchanged a grim look with the woman beside him. An archer in Ironclad Guardian tightened the strap of his quiver.

Then Ronald slowly nodded.

"As expected of an Archer-born Chieftain."

He rubbed his grey beard thoughtfully, his eyes drifting toward the corkboard, where the map of the eastern plain hung among the notices.

"A commander like that won't make the same mistake twice. So we won't give it the same attack twice either. We'll come from a different direction every time. Never close enough for its archers to get a clean shot."

A faint smile returned to his face.

"Slow and steady."

Hyoren couldn't help smiling back.

Ronald clapped him on the shoulder with one calloused hand.

"Thanks for the information, lad. You may have just saved a few of my people's lives."

Hyoren held out his hand.

"Good luck tonight, Ronald."

Ronald took it. His grip was firm and rough, the same as it had been in the plaza the day before.

"Thank you. Get some sleep. We'll make sure those goblins don't."

Behind him, several of the riders chuckled. The tension in the group eased, just slightly.

Hyoren didn't linger. The night riders had their own preparations to finish, and every minute he spent there was a minute they couldn't spend checking their gear. He gave Ronald one last nod and stepped back into the crowd.

He made his way toward the counter.

It was no calmer there. Behind the polished wood, the clerks were drowning in paper. Rinne sat with her blonde bun coming loose, her glasses slipping down her nose as she copied a roster at furious speed. Beside her, Fern was stamping documents and handing them off to a runner almost faster than her eyes could follow. A third clerk was trying to answer three adventurers at once.

Hyoren's eyes searched along the counter.

No Ina…

She must be upstairs with Fiona…

None of the clerks noticed him. He didn't call out to them either. They had enough on their hands without him adding to it.

So he slipped past the end of the counter and quietly climbed the stairs to the second floor.

The wooden steps creaked beneath his boots. With every step, the noise of the hall below grew a little fainter, until it was only a muffled rumble behind him.

The corridor upstairs was empty—and almost unnaturally quiet after the chaos below.

He stopped in front of the Guild Master's office. Through the door, he could hear the faint scratch of a pen. Then a familiar voice, cursing under its breath.

A small smile tugged at his lips.

She hasn't changed at all…

He raised his hand and knocked.

"Guild Master. I'm here to report."

Then he opened the door and stepped inside.

***

As expected, Ina was there.

She sat at a smaller desk pushed against the side wall, half-buried behind towers of paper that looked one breath away from collapsing. Her pen raced across the page in front of her, and the moment she finished one sheet, she slid it onto a stack and pulled the next one toward her without even looking. Her cat ears were drooping with fatigue, but her hands never stopped.

Behind the larger desk sat Fiona, writing just as furiously.

It was a new desk. Thick, dark oak, its corners reinforced with iron brackets. Someone had very clearly chosen it with the Guild Master's temper in mind.

Rinne really did replace it… and with something sturdier this time…

Ina's ears twitched toward the sound of the door. She glanced up, and when her amber eyes found him, the exhaustion on her face melted into a smile.

"Welcome back, Hyoren."

Her pen kept moving, but her gaze searched him carefully, from head to toe, as though checking for wounds.

"Is everyone alright?"

Hyoren smiled back at her as he crossed the room.

"Everyone's fine. Arianna's exhausted, so Jackey carried her home. But nobody's hurt."

Ina let out a breath she seemed to have been holding all day. Her tail gave a slow, relieved swish behind her chair.

"Thank goodness…"

Before Hyoren could reach the desk, Fiona's pen stopped. Her sharp blue eyes snapped up from her documents.

"So you finally fucking came back."

She jabbed her pen toward the empty chair in front of her.

"Sit. Report the first phase, and make it quick. Don't dilly-dally. The war room needs an update before the second phase starts!"

Ina sighed without lifting her pen from the page.

"Language, Guildmas."

Hyoren chuckled and lowered himself into the chair. His shoulders ached as he leaned back—only now did he realize how long he had been on his feet.

"Good news first."

Fiona leaned forward on her elbows, and Ina's pen slowed as she turned her head to listen.

"We killed more than we estimated. The plan was to cut the army down by three thousand, at best. But with Oria joining us, it came closer to four thousand."

Ina's pen stopped completely.

Hyoren went on.

"The army marching toward Akela is roughly eleven thousand now. Not fifteen."

For a moment, neither woman said anything.

Then Fiona set her pen down and let out a long breath through her nose. Her shoulders sagged, just slightly, as though a weight she had been carrying since morning had finally shifted.

"Finally. Some good fucking news."

Ina was already scribbling again, faster than before, her lips moving silently as she ran the numbers.

"Four thousand… That's more than a quarter of their army in a single day…"

She looked up at Hyoren, and her eyes were shining.

"Oria really did that much?"

Hyoren nodded.

"She summoned a Water Spirit and drowned two whole sections of the plain. Arianna and Oria together… I don't think the war room will believe it."

Ina's smile widened.

"Then I'll make them believe it. I'll send the updated numbers to the castle tonight."

Then Fiona's eyebrows rose. Her eyes narrowed on Hyoren's face.

"Wait a minute. You said good news first."

She leaned even further over the desk.

"So there's bad news. Spill it, fucker. Quickly!"

Hyoren drew a breath.

"The Goblin Chieftain is more troublesome than we predicted. It's smart. It adjusts its strategy. And it learns fast."

Fiona's jaw tightened. Her fingers began to drum against the desk.

So Hyoren told them what happened on the plains today.

Ina's ears flattened against her head.

"They shot at the boat? Were you…"

Hyoren raised a hand gently.

"Arianna's Wind Barrier stopped every arrow. And Elise took down the archers who gave the order."

Ina pressed her lips together and nodded slowly, but her tail had gone stiff behind her.

Fiona's drumming fingers stopped.

Then she slammed her fist down on the desk. The new desk creaked under the blow—but it held.

Ina's pen skidded across the page and left a long crooked line through her writing. She stared at it, sighed, and pulled a fresh sheet toward her.

"Guildmas. That's the third time today."

Fiona didn't hear her. She was glaring at the wall.

"FUCK! Of course there's a fucking complication!"

Her glare swung back to Hyoren.

"Do we need to change the battle plan for tomorrow? Fuck! The coordination is going to be a mess! Every party already knows where they're deployed! The knights already have their orders!"

Hyoren shook his head.

"I don't think we should change our tactics or our strategy, Guild Master. Changing everything this late would only confuse our own people."

Ina nodded firmly from her desk.

"He's right, Guildmas. It took us the whole day just to finish the rosters. The night riders leave within the hour. If we change the plan now, half the parties won't get the new orders before dawn."

Fiona slammed the desk again, harder this time. The iron brackets rattled, and even Ina flinched.

"Then what the hell are we supposed to do? If that Chieftain is this smart, it'll try to get around our plan! It already did it to you twice today!"

Hyoren smiled wryly.

"We might need minute adjustments in the battle. But the overall plan shouldn't change."

Fiona glared at him, breathing hard, her red hair falling across her forehead.

Hyoren looked at her—at the fist still clenched on the desk, at the tension in her shoulders. Beneath all that anger was fear. Not of the goblins, but of something going wrong that no plan could prepare for.

I've seen that look before…

His mind drifted back half a year. To a grassland at dawn, and a lone Green Wolf throwing itself against a barrier it should have fled from. And to Elise—the veteran ranger who had taught him everything—sitting on a fallen log with her shoulders shaking, because the world had stopped behaving the way she knew it should.

Back then, I gave Elise the words my father gave me…

He leaned forward and rested his forearms on his knees.

"My father always said a soldier needs to be adaptable. In war, nothing is absolute. Everything can go FUBAR.”

Fiona tilted her head.

"FUBAR?"

Hyoren scratched his cheek.

"Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition."

For a heartbeat, the office was silent.

Then the corner of Fiona's mouth twitched upward—and Ina covered her face with one hand.

"Language, Hyoren. Not you too…"

But her shoulders were shaking with quiet laughter behind her palm.

Hyoren chuckled, and when he spoke again, his voice settled into the same calm tone he had once used beside a dying campfire.

"That's why every soldier should remember this."

He raised one finger.

"Improvise."

Then a second.

"Adapt."

Then a third.

"Overcome."

He lowered his hand.

"Nothing in this world is completely predictable. There will always be surprises. So you adapt to them, improvise a way to deal with them, and overcome them with your solution."

His gaze held Fiona's.

"The Chieftain did exactly that today. It adapted after one attack, improvised with its archers, and partly overcame our second interception. So we do the same. Our plan is the foundation. And it's our job—the commanders in the field—to adjust it as the battle unfolds."

Fiona stared at him for a long moment.

Slowly, her clenched fist uncurled. Her shoulders lowered, and she leaned back in her chair with a long breath.

"Improvise. Adapt. Overcome."

She said the words slowly, as though testing their weight. Then a grin spread across her face—sharp, fierce and entirely genuine.

"I like the sound of that."

Ina lowered her hand from her face. Her eyes were still bright with laughter, but there was something warmer beneath it as she looked at him.

"Your father must have been a wonderful commander."

Hyoren smiled softly.

"He was a wonderful father."

Ina's expression gentled. Then she pulled a fresh sheet of paper toward her and dipped her pen in ink.

“I will quickly send a message to the night riders to warn them.”

She continued writing.

"And I will add it to tomorrow's briefing for the party leaders. Every one of them should hear it before dawn."

Fiona waved a hand without looking at her.

"Do it."

Ina's tail swayed happily as her pen began to move.

The tension that had filled the small office slowly drained away. Outside the window, the last light of the dual suns faded from the rooftops of Akela, and somewhere below, in the noisy hall, the night riders were finishing their preparations.

***

Fiona pushed back her chair and stood. She began gathering the documents scattered across her new desk, tapping their edges into a neat stack against the oak.

"Okay, Ina. I'm heading to the castle now."

She tucked the stack under one arm and reached for the coat draped over the back of her chair.

"The rosters for the night riders and the adventurers are settled. But the war room needs to hear the results of the first phase."

Her free hand clenched into a fist.

"And about this fucking complication."

Then a grin spread across her face—sharp and confident, nothing like the agitation of a few minutes ago.

"And how we're going to deal with it."

She shrugged on her coat, muttering under her breath as she did.

"Improvise. Adapt. Overcome…"

Hyoren hid a smile. Across the room, Ina's ears twitched in amusement.

Fiona turned toward the side desk and gave her Vice Guild Master a long, measuring look.

"And you. Go rest. You've been awake for more than thirty hours."

Ina opened her mouth to protest. Fiona cut her off with a jerk of her chin toward Hyoren.

"Go home with your man. He might need your embrace tonight… before tomorrow's battle."

Ina's face turned bright red in an instant. Her cat ears shot straight up, and her tail puffed out behind her chair.

"Guildmas! That was completely unnecessary!"

Fiona only raised an eyebrow, waiting.

Ina held her glare for a moment longer. Then her shoulders softened, and a small, embarrassed smile crept onto her lips.

"…But thank you."

Fiona snorted. She strode toward the door, pulled it open, and paused just long enough to glance back over her shoulder.

"Good work today, both of you."

Then she was gone. Her heavy footsteps thundered down the corridor and faded down the stairs.

The office went quiet.

Ina let out a long breath and stared at the door for a moment. Then she began sorting the papers on her desk—finished reports in one pile, briefing notes in another, rosters in a third. Her movements were practiced but slow, and once or twice her hand paused mid-motion, as though her body had finally realized how tired it was.

Hyoren rose from his chair and walked over to her.

"Need help?"

Ina shook her head with a tired smile.

"I'm almost done. Thank you, Hyoren."

She tapped the last stack into place and gathered all three into her arms. Then she looked up at him. Her amber eyes were heavy with exhaustion, but warm.

"Let's go, Hyoren?"

Hyoren nodded.

"Let's."

He reached for the door and held it open for her.

***

They came down the stairs into the noise.

The main hall was even busier than before. 

Clerks still rushed between the counter and the tables, and near the entrance, the night riders had begun to gather—dark cloaks, bows across their backs, the clink of buckles being fastened one last time. They were waiting for their final orders.

At the center of them, Hyoren caught a glimpse of grey hair and a broad shield. Ronald was checking his crossbow string, his party around him.

Ina made her way straight to the counter.

Rinne was still there, her blonde bun coming loose, her glasses perched precariously at the end of her nose. Beside her, Fern was stamping documents so fast that her hand had become a blur. Rinne looked up as Ina approached and straightened at once.

"Senior Ina?"

Ina set the stacks of paper on the counter in front of her.

"Rinne. My work for today is done. This is the report from the first phase, the briefing for tonight's night riders, and the briefing for tomorrow's battle."

She slid the thinnest stack toward Rinne first and nodded toward the entrance.

"The night riders' briefing goes to Ronald right now. They're leaving within the hour. The rest goes to every party leader before dawn. Especially the first page."

Rinne glanced down. At the top of both briefings, written in Ina's neat hand—Improvise. Adapt. Overcome.

Rinne blinked. Then she turned to the clerk beside her.

"Fern. Take this to Mister Ronald. Quickly."

Fern snatched the thin stack, slipped out from behind the counter, and hurried across the hall toward the night riders.

Rinne pulled the remaining documents toward her and nodded firmly.

"Will do, Senior Ina."

She pushed her glasses back up her nose and bowed slightly.

"And please, rest. Leave the rest to us. You've been here since yesterday morning."

Ina's ears drooped for a moment—not from fatigue this time, but from something softer. 

Then she smiled.

"Thank you, Rinne. I'm counting on you."

Across the hall, Fern reached the night riders and handed the papers to Ronald. The veteran flipped through them, paused on the first page, and his weathered face creased into a slow smile. Then he raised the briefing toward Hyoren across the crowd, like a salute.

Hyoren raised his hand in return.

Good luck, Ronald…

Ina turned back to him, and together they wove through the crowded hall toward the entrance. Adventurers stepped aside to let them pass. A few called out to Hyoren. One or two bowed to Ina. She returned each greeting with a tired little wave.

Hyoren pushed the heavy wooden door open.

The cool night air washed over them at once. The dual suns had set completely, and above the rooftops of Akela, the three moons had risen—Azure, Crimson and Ebony—their mingled light pale across the quieting plaza.

Ina stopped on the step and tilted her head back to look at them. She closed her eyes and simply breathed for a moment.

Hyoren watched her. Then he remembered.

"Ina. Elise asked me to bring you home tonight."

Ina's eyes opened. She turned toward him, surprised.

"Elise did?"

Hyoren nodded.

"She said even if it was only for an hour."

For a moment, Ina said nothing. Then her lips curved into a small, trembling smile, and her tail swayed slowly behind her.

"Geez… Elise always does this. Nyahaha…”

She stepped down beside him and slipped her arm through his, leaning against his side.

"Then let's not keep her waiting."

They walked across the moonlit plaza together, toward Wyvern Street, leaving the noise of the Guild behind them.