Morning light filtered through the trees.
Soft.
Calm.
A complete contrast to the chaos of the battlefield they had left behind.
But the peace didn't reach everyone.
Hiroto – Awake, But Not Resting
Hiroto sat upright now, leaning against a tree.
Still injured.
Still weak.
But awake.
His eyes were fixed on nothing in particular.
Just… thinking.
The wind moved gently around him.
For the first time in a long while He wasn't fighting.
His hand clenched slightly.
"…I couldn't move."
The memory replayed in his mind
The Herald standing in front of him.
The moment his body refused to respond.
The moment everything almost ended.
"…If it wasn't for that…"
He stopped.
Didn't finish the sentence.
Because he already knew.
He would've died.
Footsteps.
Light.
Familiar.
Akari stopped beside him.
"You shouldn't be sitting up yet."
Hiroto didn't look at her.
"…I'm fine."
She frowned slightly.
"…You're not."
Silence.
Then she sat down next to him.
Close.
Not too close.
Just enough.
"…You scared us."
Hiroto blinked slightly.
"…Us?"
"…Yeah."
Her voice was quieter now.
"…Yui… Goro… everyone."
A pause.
Then she added—
"…Me."
That one word carried more weight than anything else.
Hiroto finally looked at her.
Really looked.
For the first time since waking up—
He didn't look like a fighter.
Just… a person.
"…I didn't mean to."
Akari let out a small breath.
"…That doesn't matter."
"…You still did."
The air between them changed.
Not awkward.
Not tense.
Just… different.
Hiroto looked away again.
"…I thought that was it."
Akari didn't ask what he meant.
She knew.
"…But you came back."
He nodded slightly.
"…Yeah."
Another pause.
Then—
"…I heard your voice."
Akari froze for a second.
"…What?"
"…When I couldn't move…"
"…When everything went dark…"
He looked at his hand again.
"…I heard you."
Silence.
Akari didn't respond immediately.
She just stared at him.
Then looked away.
"…You're imagining things."
But her voice was softer now.
Not dismissive.
Just… unsure.
A short distance away, Yui watched them quietly.
A small smile formed on her face.
"…Finally…"
She whispered to herself.
Goro stood further back, arms crossed.
Watching everything.
He didn't interrupt.
Didn't comment.
But he understood.
Better than most.
Hiroto slowly leaned back against the tree again.
"…Next time…"
Akari glanced at him.
"…There won't be a next time like that."
He nodded.
"…Yeah."
Then added quietly—
"…Because I won't let it get that far again."
Akari didn't reply.
But she didn't leave either.
They sat there.
Side by side.
In silence.
But this time—
It wasn't empty.
To be continued…