Night came slowly in the swamp, like a curtain being pulled by unseen hands.
The battle-scarred clearing was reshaped into a temporary camp. Broken roots were stacked as seats, cloaks were spread over dry patches of ground, and a small fire burned at the center—fed carefully so its smoke stayed thin and low.
The centipede's body had already begun to sink back into the mud, claimed by the swamp that birthed it.
No one felt like celebrating.
They were tired. Mud-stained. Bruised. And uneasy.
Akira sat near the fire, wiping his blade clean. "Next time, let's fight something that doesn't live in a lake."
Takumi, still rubbing his side, muttered, "Next time, let's fight something that doesn't punch like a mountain."
Ilyrien sat slightly apart, her tail coiled around her legs. The oil gland at its end pulsed faintly, releasing excess mana into shimmering droplets that vanished into the air.
Yui noticed it. "Does it always do that after battles?"
"Yes," Ilyrien replied. "If I don't release it, the mana becomes painful."
Mio leaned closer, curious. "Does it ever explode or something?"
"No. It just makes me very… uncomfortable," Ilyrien said calmly.
They ate quietly at first—simple rations warmed over fire.
Then Riku spoke. "So… what do you all think of this kingdom?"
Naoki looked up. "That's random."
Riku shrugged. "We almost died today. Feels like a good time to talk about things that matter."
Shun stared into the fire. "This kingdom treats us well because we're useful. Not because we belong."
Kenta nodded. "That noble at the party said it clearly. We're tools."
"But tools can change things," Hana said. "If they choose to."
"Or break," Souta replied.
Silence fell again.
Mio broke it. "The people… they seem normal. Shops, kids, soldiers. But it feels like there's something behind all of it."
"Like a stage," Yui said softly. "And we're standing in front of a painted wall."
Haruto looked toward the dark swamp. "And behind that wall… gods, demons, and people who already know how it ends."
That made everyone think of the man in gold.
Akira finally spoke. "That guy didn't talk like someone guessing."
Takumi frowned. "He talked like someone remembering."
Naoki shivered. "The way he said our deaths… like it already happened."
Mio hugged her knees. "Do you think he was lying?"
"No," Ilyrien said quietly.
All eyes turned to her.
"He carried no false mana," she continued. "Lies leave a shape. His words had none."
Yui hesitated. "Ilyrien… do the Mirelen know about someone like him?"
Ilyrien's upper eyes closed briefly. Her lower eyes stayed open, watching the darkness.
"Some do," she said. "But not by name."
Souta leaned forward. "What do they call him?"
"Not a name," Ilyrien replied. "A title."
The fire cracked softly.
She said, "The Walker Between Ends."
That made the air feel colder.
"In Mirelen stories," she continued, "he appears when paths are already broken. He doesn't fix them. He only shows where they lead."
Kenta frowned. "So… like a guide?"
"No," Ilyrien said. "Like a mirror."
Hana swallowed. "What happens to people who meet him?"
"They change," Ilyrien said. "Or they disappear."
"Disappear how?" Takumi asked.
"History forgets them," she answered.
Riku whispered, "That's worse than dying."
Haruto stared into the fire. "Did the Mirelen ever try to stop him?"
"No. He cannot be stopped. He is not walking—he is arriving."
That sentence made no sense… and somehow felt too clear.
Yui hugged herself. "He talked about gods like they were… flawed."
"They are," Ilyrien said simply. "Powerful, but not whole."
Shun looked at her sharply. "You're saying that like it's normal."
"For Mirelen, it is," she replied. "We see gods as currents, not kings."
Naoki tilted his head. "Then what are demons?"
"Storms that refused to end," Ilyrien said. "And were named instead."
Mio blinked. "That's… weirdly poetic."
"Truth often sounds like that," Ilyrien said.
They sat quietly again, each thinking about gods that weren't kings, demons that were storms, and a man who arrived instead of walked.
Kenta broke the silence. "Even if the kingdom is using us… I still want to protect the people."
"Same," Yui said. "They don't know any of this."
Souta nodded. "That makes it worse. And more important."
Akira stared into the flames. "If we're tools… then we choose how we're used."
Hana smiled faintly. "And what we cut."
The fire burned low.
Above them, the swamp breathed, slow and endless.
And somewhere beyond it—gods watched, demons waited, and a man in gold had already seen where their path ended.