Once they defeated the beast, the girls sat down for a while, catching their breath. They both had countless questions for each other, but they could barely speak—the fight had drained them.
After a few minutes, Hana was the first to speak.
"What are you doing here?" she asked. "Were you in Wize all this while, or did you just arrive? And where are the other members of your group?"
"Calm down, officer. One question at a time. Gods, why did I trade one annoying brat for another?" Thena muttered.
"I can hear you, you know," Hana said flatly.
"I wasn't trying to be quiet," Thena replied, rolling her eyes. "As for your questions—"
"I was sent to find Lady Meliesse. The mission is directly from the Queen herself," Thena added with a smug look. "So no, I just arrived in Wize not too long ago. As for my team… they're not here because they're all dead. I'm the only one who survived our previous mission."
Hana's eyes widened.
"What?!" she gasped. "You mean Thia is dead? How? When? What happened?!"
"You had your turn. Now it's my turn," Thena cut in. "What are you guys doing here? How did you end up here before I saved your sorry asses?"
Hana stared at Thena. "First of all, you didn't save me—or anyone, for that matter. I would've survived the beast with or without your help."
Thena scoffed.
"Second, we're not taking turns, so answer the damn question—what happened to Thia?" Hana demanded, her voice rising. "Did you do anything to her?"
Thena looked at Hana with amusement. Like I could do anything to her, she thought.
"I didn't do anything to the brat. She's alive and well—I was just fooling around," Thena admitted.
Hana frowned. "Why are you making such a dumb joke at a time like this? I just lost one of my friends and haven't even had time to mourn her… and you're joking that I might've lost another? Are you okay?"
Thena rolled her eyes and stood up.
"I think we should go meet your friends. Everyone has some explaining to do, and we should do it together," she said.
"All right, psycho. For once, you're right," Hana said.
"You know, I've always wanted to strangle you," Thena muttered.
"Me too," Hana replied.
The girls went off to find the others. With Hana's senses, it didn't take long. When they arrived, they saw the two men who had accompanied Thena—the same men who had helped the girls earlier while they were trying to escape. Although they had been reluctant to follow strangers, they weren't in a position to refuse help. Once safe, the men had assisted them and treated the injured.
The girls had been watching silently, planning their next move, when Hana returned, followed by someone a few of them recognized.
The moment the girls saw Hana, they rushed to her, relieved that she was alive and well. Losing Sida had been difficult enough; the thought of losing Hana too was more than they could bear.
After the excitement settled, Rebecca was the first to notice Thena.
"You… you're from Hansi's team, right?" she asked.
"Yes. And before you ask, he's alive and well. He's in the Capital, in Omi," Thena said.
"Oh… okay," Rebecca replied, unsure what else to say. "What are you doing here?"
"Are there any members of your team with you?"
"I'm here to find out what happened to Lady Meliesse," Thena replied.
The girls looked down, sadness washing over them.
"What happened?" Thena asked, sensing the shift in mood.
"I'm sorry," Rebecca began. "We're also coming from Bintan. There were rumors of her death, but we still went anyway. We didn't find anything… it seems she's really gone."
"Oh," Thena said with a frown. "So much for completing the mission without Thia…"
"Why weren't you with her in Bintan?" Thena asked.
"She told us to return to Hadia during the battle for Bintan," Rebecca explained. "She wasn't sure we would win and ordered us to go back."
"Is that why you were sent to Wize? To search for Lady Meliesse?" Rebecca asked.
Thena looked at the girls, noting the exhaustion in their eyes.
They've been through a lot, she thought, before answering.
"No. Initially, we were sent here on a different mission by the Queen after completing our first mission. She assigned Thia and me to find the Prince of Wize."
The girls all looked up, eyes wide in shock.
They had all encountered the boy who was suspected to be the prince in Bintan, and talking about him stirred a complex mix of emotions—fear, excitement, curiosity.
"So he's still alive," Hana said, her bloodlust flaring briefly. A grin spread across her face, causing the two men nearby to instinctively step back.
"Did you find the boy?" Rebecca asked.
"Yes. He's with Thia. They're currently on a different mission," Thena replied.
"So Thia is also here, huh?" Hana said.
"Why just the two of you?" Rebecca asked. "Why wasn't someone more…"
"Important? Right?" Thena cut in. "Well, let's just say the two of us have become important."
Thena smirked. Hana rolled her eyes.
"What do you want to do now?" Rebecca asked, ignoring their banter.
"I don't know. Searching for Lady Meliesse is no longer a valid mission. But since I've met with you, we can go to Cosant together and wait for Thia and the prince to return."
"What mission are they on?" Rebecca asked.
"Something about meeting some people and finding something. All I know is that they went to meet with Lord Mystos. It'll take some time, so we should probably wait for them in Cosant."
"Alright," Rebecca agreed. "We'll follow you to Cosant—but not before taking a good rest." She nearly collapsed as she said it.
After resting for a while, Thena, the girls, and the two men who had accompanied her began their journey to Cosant, where they would wait for Kin and Thia's return.
A few minutes after they left, something began to form in the space they had just vacated—something that had once vanished or perhaps merely blended perfectly with its surroundings.
Gradually, a being took shape until she was fully formed—a stunning young woman cloaked in a sparkling light. Her silver hair, neatly tied behind her, flowed like liquid light. Her pale skin was untouched by the sun, and her silver eyes shimmered with a quiet allure. But her most striking feature was the pair of delicate, fairy-like wings sprouting from her back.
Remah Yaya floated in the air for a moment before descending gently to the ground. She looked in the direction the group had gone, then, without a sound, took flight—disappearing as swiftly and silently as she had appeared.