The stink of ash clung to his clothes, so deep it felt like it had seeped into his skin. He ran a hand over his face, dragging away grit and sweat, but it didn’t help. The city slled like loss, and no washcloth would scrub it clean.
Nathan had fallen asleep again, breath shallow but steady. rlin didn’t dare move him. Not yet. His eyes followed the line of broken rooftops and scorched streets. Fires still smoldered in pockets, thin gray smoke curling upward, drifting lazily into the sky. The whole district felt like it was holding its breath.
A guard jogged past, helt tucked under his arm, face streaked with soot. He slowed when he saw rlin, hesitated, then offered a stiff bow before moving on. rlin pretended not to notice. His jaw clenched until it hurt.
’Stop bowing. Stop looking at like I pulled off so miracle. I didn’t. Four hundred and thirty-eight. That’s the number burned into the ground. Don’t thank for that.’
His system chid, quiet as a heartbeat.
[Emotional Load: Elevated]
[Recomndation: ntal Stabilization Protocol]
rlin flicked the notification away with a thought. He didn’t need calming. He needed strength. And the system couldn’t give him that right now.
Across the street, a row of healers worked under the shade of a shattered awning, tending to survivors laid out on bedrolls. Their hands moved fast, precise, but the exhaustion showed in the slump of their shoulders. A woman cried softly as a healer wrapped her burned arm. A child clutched a soldier’s sleeve, eyes red, not saying a word.
rlin’s chest tightened. He looked away.
"Sir Everhart."
The voice ca from his left. He turned and saw a man in battered captain’s armor, chestplate cracked and one gauntlet missing. The captain’s dark eyes studied him carefully, as though picking words before speaking them.
rlin hated it already.
"What is it?" His voice ca out rough, lower than he intended.
The captain hesitated. "The council will want a report. They’ll want to know what happened here... how it was stopped."
rlin let the words hang in the air. He turned his gaze back toward the ruins. "Tell them the gates are gone. That’s all they need."
The captain shifted, clearly uncomfortable. "And you, sir? You closed them, didn’t you?"
rlin’s hand tightened on his sword hilt. He wanted to snap, to tell the man to leave him alone, but the weight of the stares prickled the back of his neck. Survivors, guards, healers, too many eyes, too much silent gratitude.
"I was just there," rlin muttered.
It was the only answer he gave.
The captain seed like he wanted to press further but thought better of it. With a stiff nod, he retreated. rlin exhaled slowly, his ribs aching with the effort.
Nathan stirred beside him, a weak groan slipping past his lips. His eyes opened, hazy.
"...you scare them," Nathan muttered, voice hoarse.
rlin glanced down. "What?"
"You heard ," Nathan said, shifting his weight against the wall with a wince. "The guards. The survivors. You scare them. They don’t know what to do with soone like you. That’s why they bow, why they stare. You’re not... normal anymore."
rlin’s throat tightened. He looked away. "Normal’s dead with the rest of them."
Nathan gave a small laugh that turned into a cough. He spat blood onto the cobbles, then leaned his head back again. "Still. Better scared than dead. I’ll take it."
rlin didn’t answer.
The silence stretched until a group of soldiers passed, carrying a body wrapped in cloth. Nathan’s eyes followed them, then slid back toward rlin. "You’re thinking about the number, aren’t you?"
rlin stiffened. "...What number."
"The dead," Nathan said plainly. His voice was softer now, like he was picking through his words carefully. "You’re counting. I can see it on your face. You always do."
rlin’s jaw worked, but no sound ca out.
Nathan sighed. "You can’t carry all of them. Not alone."
rlin finally looked at him. "If I don’t, who will?"
Nathan’s lips pulled into a faint, tired smirk. "That’s the problem. You always think it has to be you."
rlin didn’t respond. He couldn’t. The truth in Nathan’s words stung too deep.
His system chid again, insistent this ti.
[Stamina Levels Rising – 47%]
[Recomndation: Movent Authorized]
’Good,’ rlin thought. ’I can’t sit here forever.’
He stood slowly, legs protesting. Nathan’s eyes flicked up at him. "Where are you going?"
"East wall," rlin said. "Need to see if it’s clear."
Nathan raised a brow. "You just closed four gates. You look like death. And your answer is to go looking for more trouble?"
rlin’s hand tightened around his sword hilt again. "If I don’t, no one else will."
Nathan groaned. "That’s what I an. You—" He broke off, pressing a hand to his side as pain spiked.
rlin crouched briefly, resting a hand on his friend’s shoulder. "Stay here. Let them patch you up. I’ll co back."
Nathan’s eyes narrowed. "Promise you’ll actually co back this ti."
rlin t his gaze. For a mont, neither moved. Then, finally, rlin gave a single nod.
Nathan seed to accept that, leaning back against the wall again.
rlin straightened and turned toward the shattered street. His legs felt steadier now, his breath more controlled. The fires still smoldered, the ruins still groaned, but he forced himself forward.
Each step was heavy, but he didn’t stop.
The city wasn’t safe yet.
Not while those gates existed.
Not while people were still dying.
–
By the ti he reached the east district, the sun had climbed higher, spilling pale light over the devastation. The air was still thick with smoke, but the chaos had dulled into a strange, eerie quiet.
rlin’s boots crunched over broken glass and splintered stone. He passed collapsed hos, blackened timbers jutting like broken bones. Here and there, survivors picked through the rubble, searching for anyone still alive. Their eyes tracked him as he passed, but no one spoke.
At the far end of the district, the eastern wall lood, cracked but standing. No gate pulsed there. No beasts lingered. Just silence and ruin.
rlin let out a slow breath. ’Clear. For now.’
His system buzzed again.
[Gate Surge Levels: 0%]
[City Status: Stabilizing – Threat Reduced]
It wasn’t enough. He knew better.
"rlin."
The voice ca from behind him. He turned sharply, sword half-raised, but froze when he saw who it was.
Elara.
She stood amid the rubble, hair tied back ssily, dust smudged across her cheek. She wore her training gear, not armor, as if she’d run here without thinking. Her eyes locked on him, sharp and unreadable.
"You should be resting," she said flatly.
rlin lowered his sword. "So should Nathan."
Her lips tightened. She stepped closer, gaze flicking over the dried blood and burns across his body. "You look like hell."
"I’ve felt worse."
"That’s not an answer."
rlin didn’t reply. He turned back toward the wall, scanning its height, its cracks, its shadows. Elara moved to stand beside him, crossing her arms.
"They’re saying you closed all the gates," she said after a pause.
rlin’s jaw clenched. "...They’re wrong."
Her brow furrowed. "Then who did?"
He didn’t answer. He couldn’t. The white-haired man’s absence pressed in the back of his mind like a phantom weight. Gone. Just gone. No trace left behind.
Elara studied him for a long mont. "...You won’t tell ."
rlin’s silence was answer enough.
She exhaled sharply, shaking her head. "Fine. Keep your secrets. But don’t think you can keep carrying this city by yourself. You’ll break."
"I’ll break when it’s done," rlin said, voice flat.
Elara’s eyes narrowed, but she didn’t argue. Instead, she looked back toward the ruins, her arms tightening around herself. "The council will summon you soon. They’ll want explanations. Plans."
"They can wait."
Her head snapped toward him. "No, they can’t. You don’t get to shut yourself off like this. Not anymore. People saw what you did. They saw you close those gates. Whether you like it or not, they’re looking at you now."
rlin’s hand curled into a fist. "I didn’t ask them to."
"That doesn’t matter," Elara said, voice sharp. "Responsibility doesn’t care what you asked for."
rlin turned his gaze on her, his eyes cold. "And what about you? Where were you when the gates opened?"
The words cut sharper than he intended. Elara flinched, but her expression hardened almost imdiately.
"Fighting," she snapped. "Bleeding like the rest of us. Don’t you dare imply I wasn’t."
rlin stared at her for a mont, then looked away. "Then you know what I an. We did what we had to. That’s all."
Elara’s lips pressed into a thin line. She studied him for another mont, then finally turned, walking back toward the ruins without another word.
rlin stood alone before the wall, the silence pressing heavier than before.
His system pinged again.
[Quest Extension Available]
[Next Objective: Unknown]
He ignored it.
For once, he let the quiet linger.
But deep down, he knew it wouldn’t last.
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