"Cadet Lucien! Cadet Lucien!"
Just as the Dungeon shook and the sky began to crack like shattered glass, Oliver called out to me from the edge of the clearing.
I turned away from the pile of ash where the boss had died.
I stopped in my tracks.
Oliver was kneeling in the dirt, but he wasn't alone. Countless animals—deer, wolves, birds, and badgers—were surrounding him. But they weren't flesh and blood. They were glowing, pure white spirits, freed from the corruption that had turned them into undead monsters.
They nudged against Oliver's hands, nuzzling his cheeks before fading away into the light, returning to the cycle of nature.
Amidst the spirits, Oliver was smiling, tears streaming freely down his face.
"I saved them, Lucien!" Oliver sobbed, wiping his eyes beneath his glasses. "We saved them all!"
"Yeah," I said softly. "You did good, Oliver."
