The echo of approaching boots snapped all four of them into motion.

  Ronan’s voice cut through the tension, low and controlled:

  “Eis, take point with the girl. Kael—rear guard. Lira—keep a barrier ready.”

  The girl’s breath trembled as she tried to stand.

  “Can you walk?” Eis asked.

  “Y-yes,” she whispered, though her legs wavered under her.

  Eis wrapped an arm around her waist, guiding her up.

  Behind them, voices barked orders in a clipped, foreign cadence.

  Kael nocked an arrow.

  “They’re spreading out. We need to move.”

  Eis didn’t waste a heartbeat.

  “Go.”

  They ran—silent, low to the ground, hugging the right-hand wall.

  The fading violet-blue tracking thread that had led Eis here shimmered faintly in retreat, drawing them back toward the narrow fissure they had entered through.

  Lantern light flickered at the far end of the tunnel. Footsteps accelerated.

  “Move!” Ronan snapped.

  Eis pushed the girl ahead first, then slipped after her, twisting sideways through the crack in the stone. Lira followed, whispering a shield glyph around Kael as he covered their retreat.

  A spell cracked behind them—red light slicing past Kael’s shoulder and exploding against stone in a shower of sparks.

  All five tumbled into the adjoining passage.

  Ronan yanked the remnants of the fissure’s loose stone inward, trying to collapse it temporarily.

  “That won’t hold long,” he muttered.

  “It doesn’t have to,” Eis said. “We just need distance.”

  The girl clutched Eis’s sleeve, breath ragged.

  “Where… where are we going?”

  “Up,” Eis answered.

  They sprinted through the maintenance corridors—old pathways of rusted pipes and dripping archways. The air warmed gradually, carrying traces of the city above.

  Twice Ronan had to boost Lira and the girl over fallen beams. Once, Kael nearly slipped on slick stone before catching himself.

  Finally, they reached an iron ladder leading up to a grated hatch. Ronan tested it, and with a groan of rusted metal, it gave way.

  Cool night air washed over them.

  Eis helped the girl up first. Kael slipped through next, scanning the alley with quick precision. Lira followed, staff raised. Ronan last, pulling the grate down behind them.

  They emerged into a side alley beside one of Lumaire’s quiet canal streets. Lanterns drifted softly on the water, glowing like floating stars.

  Above them, the city looked peaceful.

  Below them, the Shallows churned with unanswered violence.

  They ducked beneath a stone bridge. Eis lowered the girl onto a dry patch of ground.

  Her skin was pale, breath uneven.

  Lira knelt immediately.

  “She’s exhausted—give her a moment.”

  But Eis was already wrapping cloth around the girl’s raw wrists.

  “We rest for one minute,” she said. “No more.”

  The girl blinked at her.

  “You… came back.”

  Eis nodded.

  The assurance settled the girl’s panic; her breathing eased.

  Ronan crouched beside them, checking the shadows.

  “We bought some time, but not much.”

  Kael clicked his tongue softly.

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  “They’ll search the canals next. We need her stable before we move.”

  Eis knelt beside the girl.

  She looked up. “Lira.”

  Lira was already there.

  She moved in close without ceremony, sleeves rolled back, expression sharpened into something calm and practiced. One hand hovered over the girl’s chest, the other steadying her shoulder.

  “It’s alright,” Lira said gently. “Just stay still.”

  The girl’s eyes flicked between them, fear tightening her breath.

  “What… what are you doing?”

  “Helping,” Lira replied.

  Mana gathered at her fingertips—soft, controlled, glowing with a warm gold-white light. No flare. No wasted motion. She pressed her palm lightly against the girl’s chest and murmured a few quiet words under her breath.

  The light flowed.

  Wounds knit closed beneath Lira’s hand, shallow cuts sealing first, then deeper bruising fading as color slowly returned to the girl’s face. Her breathing evened, panic loosening its grip.

  The glow dimmed, then vanished.

  The girl drew in a deep, startled breath, strength returning to her limbs. She blinked, disoriented but alive.

  Lira let out a slow exhale.

  “That’s better,” she said. “She’ll make it through the night now.”

  Eis nodded once, relief brief but real, already shifting her attention back to the room around them.

  Ronan stood, scanning the street above.

  “Good. Because we’re moving.”

  The girl steadied herself.

  “What now?”

  Eis rose, tightening her gear.

  “We return to the Guild Hall.”

  Kael nodded.

  “And we stick together.”

  Ronan gave a short, grim smile.

  “No splitting up. Let’s bring her home.”

  The girl’s legs buckled on the incline out of the canal tunnels, but Ronan caught her arm before she could fall. Lira kept a steadying hand on her back; Kael walked ahead, scanning every shadow the way only an exhausted but hyper-focused scout could.

  Eis led the way, cloak torn, blood drying on her gauntlets, her steps unshaken.

  They emerged from the alley into the quiet canal district, fog pooling along the cobblestones. The girl clung to Eis’s sleeve at first — but when her knees weakened again, Ronan moved in beside her, supporting her weight carefully.

  “Easy,” he murmured. “You’re almost there.”

  The girl nodded weakly.

  Together, the four of them guided her toward the Adventurer’s Guild.

  The first hint of morning painted the streets gray. The Guild’s spires rose like pale blades against the sky.

  The gate guards stiffened the moment the blood on Eis’s armor caught the light — but when they saw Ronan’s insignia, recognition replaced alarm.

  “Captain Darel!” one shouted.

  “Urgent return — wounded civilian!”

  Darel appeared almost instantly, still buttoning his coat, hair tousled from too many sleepless hours. His eyes widened when he saw the girl, then swept across all four members of Team Argent, checking for serious injuries.

  “What happened? It hasn’t even been a day.”

  Eis answered first.

  “We returned to the Shallows. The girl was being used to resonate with the relic. The slavers are dead. But there are more tunnels — and someone named Vauren directing them.”

  Darel’s jaw tightened.

  He gestured sharply, and two attendants hurried forward, taking the girl gently by the shoulders. She hesitated, looking back at Eis — then at Ronan, Kael, and Lira.

  “You’re safe,” Lira told her softly.

  “We’ve got you now.”

  The girl allowed herself to be led toward the healer’s wing.

  Darel ushered the four of them into a side briefing chamber — small, cluttered with maps, half-finished reports, and the lingering scent of bitter tea.

  He closed the door behind them.

  “We’ll deploy patrols at dawn. If anything happens in the shallows, we will know.”

  His eyes sharpened on Eis.

  “You should rest. The healers saw… traces of unusual magic on that girl. Something we don’t have in our records. The Archmages will want to evaluate the threat.”

  Eis remained silent, posture steady.

  Darel set a silver orb on the table.

  “Emergency communication,” he said. “We will contact you if anything comes up.”

  Team Argent exchanged glances. Even Kael’s usual sly comment didn’t come. The night had been too long, the danger too real.

  Darel saw the look on their faces and stepped aside, allowing them the space he knew they needed.

  Ronan turned to Eis first — not shouting, but the weight in his voice was unmistakable.

  “We agreed we would investigate together,” he said quietly.

  Lira crossed her arms, her expression torn between relief and exasperation.

  “We told you,” she added, “whatever you face, we’re facing it too.”

  Kael gave a tired snort.

  “Next time you vanish into a death tunnel, at least leave a note.”

  Eis looked at each of them — unreadable as ever — but she didn’t deny it, didn’t argue, didn’t apologize.

  Just listened.

  Ronan let out a slow breath.

  “…We’ll talk about this later,” he said. “After everyone has calmed down a little.”

  After a moment of silence, Eis stepped toward Darel.

  “The girl,” she said quietly. “Where is she?”

  “In the healer’s wing,” he replied. “They took her the moment you arrived. She’s stable. They found traces of spellwork on her — unstable and foreign. She blacked out the moment she reached the ward.”

  Darel continued.

  “We’ll keep her safe until she wakes.”

  Eis nodded.

  Ronan put a hand on her shoulder — steady, solid.

  “We’ll go check on her together later.”

  And the four of them stepped deeper into the guild, dawn’s first light following at their heels.