It was a beautiful scene.
An open stretch of ground, with a lone cart standing amidst the greenery. Beyond it, the wall of Valemire rose at the far end, its shadow backed by the dark silhouette of the Spine as the sun dipped behind the mountains.
The last rays of sunset spilled across the field, drenching everything in gold.
Terren, standing by the cart, spotted Liam
The moment he saw, he ran.
Tears blurred his vision as he rushed toward Liam, his voice breaking,
"He woke up…!" he shouted.
"The Captain… the Captain…!"
Terren reached Liam, gasping for air, his voice cracking as he tried to speak.
"Captain Segeford woke up… the Captai—"
But before he could finish, his eyes met Kael.
Terren froze. His knees gave way as disbelief gripped him.
"You're alive…!" His voice shattered, as though the weight of both revelations—Kael's return and the Captain's awakening—was too much to bear.
"Yes… as you can see, I'm very much alive," Kael replied with a soft smile looking at Terren.
Terren had no words left.
Kael opened his mouth to speak, but Liam was already gone… bolting toward the cart so fast it was as if he vanished
Kael dashed after him, while Terren could only watch… breathless and shocked.
With a jump, Liam leapt straight into the cart.
Just as his vision settled down… The view caught his breath.
He was there… awake…
Miya, sitting by Segeford's side—sobbing like a child.
Segeford… once a towering hulk of a man—was now a shadow of himself, all strength and weight gone. His arms, once like iron, were little more than bone and skin.
Liam's knees buckled. He dropped, staring at Segeford's frail, broken body.
Tears burned his eyes as the shock tore through him like lightning
Just then—
"Liam…"
The sound of his name froze him. His body shook, his breath caught, and for a heartbeat, even his tears stopped.
Liam trembled... he could hear his heartbeat clearly….
With just that single word, Segeford shook the world.
Miya's sobs turned into silent gasps, her body trembling as if Segeford's words carried a crushing weight. Then, without warning, she collapsed, unconscious.
Liam looked up at Segeford. The old man had wrapped him in white cloth, but his torso leaned forward, exposed. His ribcage was clearly visible.
Liam's eyes traced Segeford's face—half-hidden beneath tight white bandages, one eye open, the cloth binding his shattered jaw in place. His eyes had deepen… almost dead.
Sweat trickled down Liam's face as he whispered,
"You… Ascended…"
Kael reached the cart just in time to hear Liam's trembling words.
His gaze met Segeford's.
Unlike the others, Kael did not cry out or rush forward. He stood still, hands at his sides, watching with a strange calmness—though his chest felt tight, as if the air itself warned him. A faint, unsettling aura clung to Segeford like a second skin.
Segeford's bandaged hand rose weakly, gesturing for water.
Liam scrambled to the corner of the cart where their supplies lay in a heap—dried meat, a few fruits, the last of the water pouches. He snatched the pouch and pressed it into Segeford's frail fingers.
Kael remained where he was, his voice barely above a whisper.
"What… is that? Why do I feel so anxious…?"
Segeford drank slowly, then pushed the pouch back to Liam, nodding toward Miya. Liam understood, gently moving her to the far end of the cart.
Segeford tried to lower himself, but even that small motion made his body tremble. With a shallow breath, he sank back, exhausted.
Liam stepped out of the cart, where Kael and Terren stood waiting.
"He's in a bad way," Liam said quietly. "Too weak…"
A bitter silence fell.
They had saved Segeford from death, yet he seemed closer to it than ever.
"He needs a doctor. We should head to Valemoor immediately," Kael suggested.
"Yes…" Liam's voice was heavy. "We should move at once. I don't know how he's lasted this long without food or water. But now that he's awake… I don't think he'll hold on for much longer."
Kael frowned at that. It was true—Segeford's survival had been unnatural, sustained by something beyond flesh and blood. The old man's Mantra had preserved him, but now, with his awakening and the breaking of his Mudra, that force was slipping away.
Terren hesitated. "But Tim… He must be returning soon. What if we miss him on the road?"
"Yes. It's been nearly a month since he left," Liam admitted. "He should be back within a few days…"
Kael glanced at the cart, then back at Liam. "Then let's give Segeford something to eat—anything that might help him regain strength."
Liam nodded. "Agreed."
As night fell, they set to work. Terren went to fetch fresh meat, Liam crushed the berries Kael had gathered earlier, mixing them into a mineral-rich juice. Kael simply sat by the fire they built, silent, watching flames lick the dark.
In the quiet, a memory returned—lines from the old book he had been reading:
"Breathe to your belly, not your chest. Know the breath as it comes, as it goes, and at one moment, when it neither come nor go… there you exist."
Kael gazed at Liam, as he helped Segeford sit up. He passed the cup to Segeford.
They were talking about something… but Kael could not hear that.
He just looked at them.
Kael himself was in a bad situation as his body was also weakened, but it could not compare with Segeford's situation.
"I brought Meat and herbs from local medic…", Terren's voice came beside Kael.
"You know what… you don't look it but you are very considerate of the situation…", Kael spoke praising.
"Hmm… when you are born in a family, where every grain of rice matter… you become considerate even if you not wish for it", Terren replied.
Kael looked at Terren as if he had caught the hurting vein.
Kael sighed with a smile as he's focus diverted upon Liam's arrival.
"Did you get it?", Liam asked Terren.
"Here…", Terren passed the bag of meat and herbs.
"Great work bringing herbs too…", Liam appreciated Terren's efforts.
Liam started making stew… as he put herbs in the pot.
After a while the stew was ready. The stew bubbled softly over the fire, its faint aroma barely masking the bitter scent of blood and herbs. Liam sat beside Segeford, feeding him spoonfuls as Kael watched in silence, the shadows from the flames dancing across his face.
Liam woke up Miya, she stood up and came out of the cart… She was exhausted.
Terren passed a bowl to Miya.
Liam also returned from the cart.
"I think we should leave tomorrow…", Liam finally unable to just wait looking at Segeford spoke, "If we meet Tim on the road… It will be good, and if we don't…. He will understand our situation."
the silence was loud, as they all understood the situation.
"Yes… we need to..", Miya backed Liam's opinion.
"We leave tomorrow…that is my decision as you acting captain…", Liam announced.
Everybody agreed, as no one opposed the situation.
The night stretched on with few words exchanged. When dawn broke, they prepared to leave, their decision unshaken
[To current time]
"So, you reached the ruins, but were not able to discover it because of a beast called, a Howler. Left Segeford behind… and Once Segeford returned,, you came back here… ", Elandor asked.
"Exactly…", Kael said.
"So what is the conclusion of this?", Elandor asked, taking a sip from a cup.
"Wild is Wild… and there is still so much to be discovered…", Kael replied, sitting on the sofa, looking up on the ceiling.
Elandor smiled… as if he approved Kael's cunningness…
"Fine… get rest…", Elandor ordered.
Kael stood up, and headed towards the stairs heading higher floor…
Elandor kept looking at Kael and his bag, as Kael had never left the bag alone.
'I wonder what you got there in that bag…', Elandor thought…