The Healing Springs was unusually crowded.
The normally serene chamber had become packed with injured bodies, voices, exhaustion, and the lingering aftermath of battle. The cool air still carried its unnatural calm, softened by the warmth radiating from the glowing waters at the center of the chamber, but with so many people gathered inside, the quiet peace of the room felt strained beneath the weight of everything that had happened.
Bryanard, Calvinel, Annabel, Ulrich, Hittag, Zeva, Callum, Clara, Amara, and the Guard Commander had all gathered here, though not all of them were actually inside the spring itself. Only Calvinel, Bryanard, Annabel, Ulrich, Hittag, Zeva, Callum, Amara, and the Guard Commander occupied the glowing waters, crowded near one another due to the spring's limited size. Some leaned against the smooth stone edges while others simply sat in silence, allowing the restorative waters to do their work.
The spring glowed softly beneath them, rippling faint blue light across damp stone walls as wounds slowly mended.
"All of that happened while I was just…" Zeva paused, her voice quieter than usual, noticeably lacking its normal confidence. "…unconscious?"
"Yeah," Calvinel answered from where he leaned back against the edge of the spring, shoulders resting against the stone due to the lack of space. "But don't start blaming yourself for it. You ran into a Demon Lord and weren't ready to fight one." He exhaled through his nose. "Literally none of us were."
"Y-yeah," Clara added quickly from where she knelt beside Amara at the edge of the spring, focused entirely on supporting her unconscious body. "D-don't blame y-yourself. W-we fought him too, and w-we wouldn't have won w-without help."
"Mmm hmm," Zeva hummed, though her attention slowly shifted toward Clara instead. "Your face is very red, Clara."
Clara immediately shook her head hard enough to nearly lose her composure. "N-no it's not!" she replied far too quickly. "I-it's just its natural shade of c-color!"
It absolutely was not.
Her face had been red for nearly the entire time they had been inside the Healing Springs.
Given the circumstances, it was not particularly surprising. Nobody could exactly sit in restorative waters while fully dressed in soaked armor and damaged clothing, meaning everyone currently in the spring was in various states of undress.
Clara, unfortunately, was handling that reality very poorly.
The constant proximity to so many people had turned her into an endlessly blushing, stammering mess that only worsened whenever she accidentally looked in the wrong direction. It was also exactly why Vilak had chosen not to stay in the room.
He had taken one look at the situation and immediately removed himself from it.
"So…" Ulrich eventually spoke up, glancing down toward his own arm. Or rather, where most of it should have been. The limb was slowly regenerating beneath the water, the process unpleasant to look at but undeniably working. "That was an awful way to lose your arms."
He shifted his gaze toward Callum.
"Compared to you," Ulrich continued, "mine got cut off so fast I didn't even notice it for a little while."
Callum looked down at himself.
One arm was completely missing from the bicep while the other remained ruined badly enough that even the Healing Springs seemed to be struggling to restore it at any reasonable speed. He let out a tired sigh.
"I really don't want to compare whose arm being cut off was worse," he muttered honestly before sinking back slightly into the water. After a brief pause, he added dryly, "But at least it gives us a reason to stay in the Hot Spring longer."
Suddenly, Hittag rose to his feet.
The moment the giant man stood, the difference in available space inside the Healing Spring was immediate. Water shifted around him in heavy ripples as his massive frame stepped out, the spring seeming noticeably less cramped almost instantly.
Clara let out a tiny, startled squeak the moment he fully stood.
"I was the least injured," Hittag stated simply as he stepped out of the glowing water, droplets rolling from his body onto the damp stone floor. He glanced down briefly at his leg, flexing it once. "My leg is fine now." Then he looked toward the others still crowded in the spring. "The rest of you should heal more comfortably. I know I was taking up a lot of space."
With that, he calmly walked toward the exit and left the chamber.
Bryanard stood shortly afterward.
"I have soaked long enough," the old knight said while slowly stepping out of the water. "I was not that injured to begin with."
The Guard Commander rose as well, stretching his shoulders once before reaching for his towel. "My wounds were superficial," he said plainly. "I will leave also."
The two veterans departed together, their exit freeing even more room for those who remained in the spring.
"I suppose I should leave as well," Annabel remarked after a moment, carefully holding her towel close around her chest. "Most of what I suffered was fatigue, both mental and physical, along with minor injuries."
Zeva nodded beside her while clutching her own towel tightly. "And I already rested long enough."
But just as the two women were about to leave, the doors to the Healing Chamber opened again.
Several heads turned.
"Wow," Wolf remarked as he stepped inside, immediately slowing as his gaze wandered around the chamber. "This place…" He paused for a moment, visibly taking in the unnaturally peaceful atmosphere, the soft blue glow reflecting across the stone walls. "It makes me calm just being in here."
"You can heal in it too if you want," Quincy said while stepping in behind him, "but first we need to get him into the water."
She looked toward the people still inside the Healing Springs.
"Sorry to interrupt everyone while you're healing," she said apologetically, "but we need to fit one more person in here."
Meanwhile, Wolf had very deliberately turned his head away and raised a hand over his eyes.
Without looking toward the spring whatsoever, he held Crow outward over one shoulder with his free arm.
"It's this guy," Wolf said casually. "The one who shot Amara in the back." He shifted Crow slightly. "So… got room for one more?"