Chapter 134 Holding A Funeral

Chapter 134: 134 Holding A Funeral

Holding A Funeral

"Gather all the survivors who have not yet been accounted for. I want to know how many are alive, how many need treatment, and how many are still missing. No family should be left without an answer."

A warrior bowed her head.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Send messengers to the mausoleum. The civilians may return as soon as the areas are safe. Families who have lost their homes will receive materials to rebuild them, and the injured will be given priority in the distribution of medicine."

The warrior hesitated.

"Your Majesty, we don’t know if our resources will be sufficient."

Yun Che intervened.

"The mausoleum’s resources will be used. My legion will recover everything that can be salvaged from the battlefields, and the undead will help with transportation and reconstruction."

The warrior looked at him suspiciously.

"They killed our sisters."

"I know. You don’t need to trust them. Just allow them to do the work I’ve ordered. If you don’t want to stay near one of them, another group can help instead."

Ariselle nodded.

"Do as he says. I won’t force anyone to work alongside those who killed their companions. But we need to rebuild our territory and take care of the survivors."

The warrior finally bowed and left to deliver the orders.

The Elders’ Council Hall had also been damaged. Part of the ceiling was cracked, and the columns bore marks from the explosions that had shaken the mountain range.

Despite this, the survivors had chosen that place to organize the recovery of their people.

Vaelra was sitting against the wall, her left arm bandaged and a cut running across part of her face. Her sword remained within reach.

On the other side of the table, Thesira maintained a firm posture, although the wounds on her arms and neck revealed the price of the battle.

Nysara’s and Mirevra’s chairs remained empty.

When Ariselle entered, the two surviving Elders tried to stand, but the Queen raised her hand.

"Sit down. You don’t need to do that."

Vaelra obeyed, her face hardened by exhaustion.

"We’re still alive," she said when Ariselle asked how they were doing.

Thesira lowered her eyes.

"Many warriors are in worse condition. Some have lost too much blood, and there is no longer enough medicine to treat them all."

"The mausoleum’s resources will be used," the Queen replied. "We’ll also recover the herbs and materials that survived the fighting."

Vaelra looked at Yun Che.

"Will your undead remain here?"

"As long as they’re needed," he replied. "The groups will be organized so that the survivors won’t have to work near them if they don’t want to."

"We cannot ignore what these creatures represent to our people."

"We won’t ignore it," Ariselle declared. "No one will be forced to forgive those responsible for the deaths of their families.

"But the children need a place to sleep, the injured need treatment, and the families need to return home. I won’t allow the war to continue destroying our people after it has ended."

The two Elders fell silent.

Finally, Thesira reported that the bodies of Nysara, Mirevra, Elyra, and Kaelia had been recovered and were being prepared for the ceremony.

Ariselle closed her eyes upon hearing their names. For years, those women had shared with her the responsibility of protecting the mountain range.

"I want a dignified ceremony for all our sisters," the Queen said. "Not just for the Elders. Every warrior who fell in this war deserves to be remembered, and every family must have the opportunity to say goodbye."

Vaelra bowed her head.

"It will be done, Your Majesty."

The news that the civilians could return spread throughout the mausoleum that very afternoon. The first families left, carrying the few belongings they had managed to save.

Some women held their children by the hand, while others carried small bags containing clothes and personal belongings.

Many found nothing but ruins.

A woman named Mariana dropped the bag she was carrying when she realized that the house where she had lived her entire life had been reduced to stones and broken timber.

Her daughter, who was only six years old, looked at the rubble.

"Mother, where are we going to sleep?"

Mariana opened her mouth, but no answer came out. She knelt in front of the child and hugged her tightly.

"We’ll find somewhere, my daughter."

"Can we build another house?"

The woman tried to smile, although tears were already streaming down her face.

"Yes. We’ll build another one."

That was when the skeletons arrived, carrying stones and pieces of wood salvaged from the destroyed buildings.

Behind them, two undead cultivators carried beams that could still be used. Elira immediately stepped back, pulling her son close to her body.

"Stay away!"

The undead stopped, waiting for further orders.

Yun Che approached with Ariselle at his side.

"They won’t hurt you," he said.

Mariana pressed her daughter against her body.

"Are they the monsters who fought in the war?"

"Some of them took part in it. Now they’re under my command. You don’t need to trust them, but you can watch what they do. If one of them gets too close, tell it to stop."

Ariselle stepped forward.

"Mariana, you and your daughter will be registered among the families who need a new home. The materials will be distributed according to need, and the most urgent construction projects will be given priority."

The woman lowered her head, crying.

"I just want my daughter to be able to grow up here, Your Majesty. I don’t want her to have to flee from her own mountains."

Ariselle looked at the child.

"She will grow up here."

Yun Che noticed the firmness in the Queen’s voice. She could not promise that all their difficulties would disappear, but she could still decide what she would do from that moment onward.

"Continue," he ordered.

The skeletons resumed their work, sorting the stones and organizing the beams. After a few moments, Elira released her son’s hand and began moving aside the pieces of wood blocking the entrance to their former home.

The child hesitated before imitating her.

Around them, other families began doing the same. The resources recovered from the mausoleum were distributed, and the Medusas organized teams to rebuild homes, repair roads, and restore the damaged areas.

The work would be long, but since the battle had ended, the survivors had begun doing something that had nothing to do with death.

They had begun to rebuild.

When the sky darkened, the preparations for the funeral were complete. An area near the mountains had been cleared, and small stone platforms awaited the bodies of the fallen warriors.

The families arrived carrying flowers, weapons, and personal belongings.

Ariselle approached with Yun Che. Vaelra and Thesira were already present, both wounded and exhausted, but determined to attend their companions’ farewell.

Silence fell over the area when the Queen stopped before Elyra’s body. The warrior lay on a light-colored cloth, her hair carefully arranged and her sword placed beside her body.

Ariselle gently touched her forehead.

"You fought until the end. You protected your companions even when you knew you couldn’t win. I won’t forget that."