Atreus, Kratos, Mimir, Raphtalia, Rino, Vandri and Drífa spent the night camped out beneath the stars, within the clearing of a small forest. They all sat around a campfire that was burning brightly, eating venison that they had hunted as well as the berries that the villagers had gifted them. Vandri, Raphtalia and Rino sat together, talking amongst themselves, while Atreus, Kratos and Mimir sat staring into the flames. Drífa cuddled close to Atreus's side in her human form, her eyes gently closed as she rested. Atreus held her close, using his cloak to cover her and keep her warm.

'So,' Mimir asked softly. 'Where do you intend on going now?'

Atreus pulled out his map, opening it up for Mimir and Kratos. He pointed to a small village to the east, near a mountain range.

'There's a village here,' Atreus explained. 'It's called Mirso Village. Apparently, there's been some trouble over there, so I figured we investigate and help out if we can.'

'Sounds interesting,' Mimir said. 'Very well. We shall leave on the morrow then?'

'We shall,' Atreus replied, before yawning. 'It's gotten late. Might as well sleep.'

'Goodnight, Loki,' Raphtalia said, smiling.

'Best for me to get some rest as well,' Rino said. 'Good night, everyone.'

The group slept around the campfire that night. Atreus slept peacefully, dreaming, before he was woken up by a voice.

'Master?'

Atreus peeked an eye open. Drífa was laying on top of him, looking at him with a forlorn look. Atreus raised an eyebrow at her, feeling drowsy.

'What is it, Drífa?' he asked.

'I…I wanted to talk to you about something,' Drífa said solemnly.

'Yeah? What do you want to talk about?'

Drífa averted her gaze from Atreus, appearing to have trouble speaking, then she closed her eyes tight, taking a single breath.

'Master…Do you remember, when we were in the Alchemist's Cave? Where we heard all those horrible voices?'

Atreus nodded slowly.

'I remember. Why? What did you hear?'

Drífa hesitated, before answering as if she was made to recall an unpleasant memory.

'Back there, in that cave…I heard your voice, Master. You were taunting me. Making fun of me. You said you didn't want me anymore, and you wanted to leave me.'

Atreus sat up, becoming concerned for Drífa. He petted her head gently, soothing her.

'That wasn't really me that said it,' he reassured her. 'That was just an illusion.'

'I know it was, Master,' Drífa replied. 'But that still didn't make it hurt any less. Master…I-I don't want you to leave me. P-please don't leave me!'

Tears began to form in her eyes, streaming down her cheeks. Atreus gently cusped her cheeks with his hands, wiping her tears away with his thumbs.

'I won't abandon you, Drífa,' he reassured her. 'I swear on my life. I will never leave you alone. I'll always keep you by my side.'

'Promise?' Drífa asked, letting out a small sob.

'Promise', Atreus replied. He felt horrible for having to lie to Drífa. He knew he would have to leave once all of this is over. It would break Drífa's heart to see him leave her. He could only hope she could survive without him. Drífa hesitated, before lunging at Atreus, hugging him close. Atreus returned her hug, and the two them fell asleep, falling into a peaceful slumber.

They travelled for a few more days after that. They all maintained silence as they travelled the road heading east. Atreus followed the map as Drífa pulled the cart at a steady pace. They had travelled for a bit when they suddenly came upon a man in the middle of the road. Atreus got a closer look at the man and froze. The man looked absolutely sickly, with black patches all over his skin.

'Stop, please!' the man pleaded, his eyes bloodshot. He coughed horribly, covering his mouth with his hand.

Atreus stopped the carriage and got off, heading towards the man out of concern. He kept his distance, lest the man passed his sickness onto him.

'You alright?' he asked. 'Are you sick? I have medicine I can give you!'

'N-no,' the man said before coughing again. 'It's…It's too late for me. I only wish to warn you to stay away.'

'Stay away from what?' Atreus asked. 'Tell me!'

'The village up ahead has been afflicted with a plague!' the man said, his voice pained. 'Everyone has become deathly ill! Stay away, if you know what's good for you!'

The man suddenly groaned before he collapsed to the ground, letting out one last rattling groan as he suddenly went still. Atreus knew then that he was dead. Everyone else was staring at the man from within the carriage, horrified.

'Oh goodness…' Raphtalia said, covering her mouth with her hands.

'Aye,' Mimir replied. 'Bloody Hel.'

'Come on, guys,' Atreus said. 'We need to help.'

'B-but the man said to stay away!' Rino pleaded. 'What if we get sick? We could die, Loki!'

'If there's a chance we can save them, then we must take it,' Atreus argued. 'I can't just sit back and let innocent people die. If I can heal them, then I must try.'

The group seemed to hesitate a bit, but ultimately agreed to aid Atreus. The group carried on, heading straight towards the village.

They soon reached Mirso Village, after a bit of travelling. The whole village stunk of death. Already they had come upon a few villagers who were already dead from the plague. The group felt a mixture of horror and pity for the dead, wishing they could've been faster to arrive. They must've been in agony in their final moments of life. At length they came upon someone who appeared to be the Lord of the Village, who looked up at them after a horrific coughing fit.

'Hey,' Atreus said, jumping off the cart. He rushed towards the Village Lord, holding a bottle of Medicine. 'Here, this should help.'

He held onto the Village Lord as he helped him drink the Medicine, desperately hoping it would work. He was relieved to find the black spots covering the man's body begin to fade away completely, and the Village Lord becoming healed.

'You feeling okay?' Atreus said.

'Y-yes,' the Village Lord said. 'I feel so much healthy now. The sickness must be gone!' He looked up at Atreus, gratitude in his eyes.

'You…You're the Shield Hero,' he said. 'You can help us? Right?'

'Anyway I can,' Atreus answered. 'I have lots of Medicine to spare. How many people are sick?'

'Pretty much everyone here,' the Village Lord explained. 'We've already lost several to the sickness. The others are on the verge of death. Please, save them, and quickly.'

'I shall,' Atreus said. 'Take me to them.'

The Village Lord led Atreus and his group to a small building, showing them inside. The whole building reeked of death. Several villagers laid on small beds, their bodies covered in black patches as they laid motionless, on death's door. Atreus looked at them in horror, then nodded.

'Alright,' he said. 'Guys, give me Medicine. I'll heal them.'

The group nodded and handed Atreus bottles of Medicine. His face stern, Atreus went around, giving the Medicine to the people. The group watched as Atreus began to heal them one by one. The villagers expressed words of gratitude to Atreus for having healed them. Meanwhile, Kratos gently touched the Village Lord's shoulder, getting his attention.

'What has happened here?' he asked.

'A plague has afflicted this village,' the Village Lord explained. 'There was a Dragon in the mountains near here. It had been terrorizing our village for months, so we sent the Sword Hero to take care of it. That was over a month ago. He managed to deal with it, but he left it where he had slain it, and the Dragon began to rot. The wind carried the Dragon's foul poison over here, where we ended up getting sick. Even if the Shield Hero heals us, we'll only get sick again, unless the Dragon's corpse is taken care of.'

'We can take care of the Dragon,' Atreus said, as he applied Medicine to the last of the sick. 'If it'll stop the plague, then we shall venture out.'

'Thank you, Shield Hero,' the Village Lord said. 'You are most generous. It has gotten late, so you may stay here for the night. Free of charge, of course.'

'Thanks. We'll head out towards the mountains first thing in the morning. If anyone gets sick again, I can heal them.'

The group was given a room to sleep in for the night, in a small inn. By now, it was already the dead of night. The group were getting ready to sleep. It was a very big day tomorrow, and they wanted to make sure that they were prepared.

'I still can't believe it,' Rino said. 'An actual Dragon, in Melromarc. It's practically unheard of.'

'I agree,' Raphtalia said. 'I've never seen a Dragon before. Like, an actual one, not a Demi-Human.'

Vandri folded her arms, frowning.

'Something doesn't sound right about any of this,' she said. 'A Dragon terrorizing a village? I've never heard of an instance of that happening.'

'Maybe this Dragon was evil?' Atreus theorized. 'Just as there are good Dragons, there are bad Dragons, right?'

'Not really,' Vandri explained. 'Dragons for the most part tend to leave humans well alone. Call me crazy, but I think the Village Lord is full of shit.'

'Either way, we gotta dispose of the Dragon's corpse,' Atreus explained. 'Otherwise, the people are gonna get sick again. It's gotten late anyway. We should all just sleep.'

'Aye,' Mimir replied. 'Tomorrow's a big day.'

Vandri only frowned at Atreus, then sighed.

'Fine,' she conceded. 'I'm still suspicious about all of this though. I may have a word with the Village Lord when all this is done.'

The group gathered into their beds, falling asleep. Atreus and Raphtalia were the only ones still awake. Atreus yawned as he climbed into bed, rubbing his eyes.

'I'm gonna sleep,' he said. 'Goodnight Raphtalia.'

Raphtalia didn't say anything. She just sat on the edge of her bed, her head to the floor. Atreus looked at her, concerned.

'Raphtalia?' he asked. 'Are you alright?'

Raphtalia looked up from the floor, staring at Atreus. She appeared melancholic.

'You'll return to your home world, won't you?' she asked. 'After the Waves are done?'

Atreus was silent as he stared, slowly nodding at her.

'Yes,' he said softly. 'Yes, I will.'

'You'll leave this world behind, will you?'

'I shall, yes.'

'Would…Would it be possible for us to come back with you? Back to your world?'

Atreus looked away. He couldn't bear to look at her.

'I…I don't know,' he answered. 'I don't know if that's even possible. I want to make sure that you are capable of surviving without me. At the very least, you'll have Rino and Vandri by your sides.'

Raphtalia suddenly leaned forward, grasping Atreus's hand firmly. She stared him straight in the eyes, her own eyes misty.

'That's not the same as you being here, with us,' Raphtalia said. 'You can't leave us,' she whispered, her tears streaming down her cheeks. 'We need you, Loki.'

Atreus sighed, reaching out a hand to gently cusp her cheek.

'I know, Raphtalia,' he said. 'I know. But I can't stay here…Not forever. I need to make sure you're strong enough to survive on your own. I will train you. I will teach you everything I know. That way, we can be prepared for…'

He couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence, nor did he want to. Raphtalia nodded slowly, understanding what he meant, her eyes gleaming with a mix of fear and determination.

'I understand,' she said. 'Then I will make sure I become stronger. For you, Loki. And then, when you're gone, I shall look over Drífa and make sure she is taken care of.'

Atreus smiled, wiping her tears away.

'I know you will, Raphtalia,' he said. 'You're stronger than you think. If there's any way that I can return to you…Then I will find it. I promise.'

Raphtalia smiled, wiping away the tears that streamed down her cheeks. Despite herself, she still didn't want Atreus to leave.

'G-good night, Loki,' she said simply, before climbing into bed, turning her back to him.

'Good night, Raphtalia,' Atreus replied. He turned off the lights, and the two of them fell asleep.

The group woke within the early morning, before the sun had risen. As soon as they awoke, they ate and got ready for what was to come. They did not want to waste any time, wanting to dispose of the Dragon's corpse as soon as possible. They entered their carriage and left Mirso Village as the sun began to rise, heading towards the mountains.

The mountain road was steep, and treacherous. Apart from the terrain, it also turned out that the monsters around here had been corrupted by the dead Dragon's influence, mutating them into savage, poison-spewing beasts. It was difficult to traverse the mountain pass without getting jumped by one of the savage beasts. Atreus casted a buff spell on Drífa that allowed her to resist the monster's poison. Drífa rampaged through the mountain pass, cutting down any monsters that got too close with her claws. Atreus and his group kept a massive stockpile of Medicine within the carriage, in case any of them were ever infected by the monster's poison. The monsters kept coming, seemingly endless. Eventually, they gave up on fighting the monsters, and focused on just getting up the mountain.

They had travelled for a good while when they finally reached the top of the mountains, where the Dragon's corpse laid. Upon seeing it, Raphtalia almost vomited. It certainly looked like a ghastly sight. What was left of the slain Dragon was a rotting, decomposing corpse. Most of its decayed skin had been completely stripped away, revealing rotten bone underneath. In its chest laid a massive gash that ran down its belly, indicating that it was the fatal wound that had killed it. The stench it gave off was utterly putrid, to the point where even Atreus was nauseous.

'Oh, Gods,' Rino said, covering her mouth as she gagged. 'The smell is so putrid!'

'So this is the Dragon that Ren had slain,' Mimir said. 'Quite an impressive feat.'

'Yeah, I guess,' Atreus said. 'It looks like it was massive as well. Ren must've been really powerful to have slain it.'

'I'd say he got lucky,' Vandri interjected, her nostrils flaring. 'He only won cause he's the Sword Hero. Any other adventurer would've been crushed by its might. Poor bastard. Too think that a human would've done it in.'

'Well, we're here, aren't we?' Atreus said. 'Let's just dispose of the corpse and get out of here.'

'Yes, let's,' Raphtalia said.

'And quickly, too! The stench is making me sick!' Rino said, her face turning green.

Atreus moved to absorb the Dragon's corpse, then froze. A loud, thunderous roar came from the Dragon's open mouth, before it suddenly started to move. Atreus panicked and quickly jumped back as the Dragon got to its feet.

'Back up!' Atreus yelled. 'It's starting to move!'

The Zombie Dragon reared its head up and let out an ear-piercing roar. As it roared, pieces of its body began to regenerate; Wings, tail, internal organs, and even the fatal slash it received across its chest and belly were regenerated.

'What?!' Vandri yelled out. 'It came back to life?! But how?!'

'I don't know!' Atreus said, pulling out his bow. 'But it seems like we're gonna have to fight!'

'Well ahead of you, Master!'

Drífa dashed forward before anyone could react, charging straight towards the Zombie Dragon with pure hate and rage for the Dragon. She lept and clawed deeply into the Zombie Dragon's stomach, creating a massive wound. At the same time, Vandri and Raphtalia bought out their blades and charged at once, beginning to hack at the Dragon. Rino stood at a distance as she fired several Aqua Blasts at the Dragon's chest, impaling it in several different places. Atreus bought out his bow and arrows as he fired a row of Sigil Arrows at the Dragon. Kratos grunted as he bought out the Blades of Chaos, throwing an inflamed blade at the Sigils. The Sigils exploded in a massive blast of fire, burning the Dragon deeply.

The Zombie Dragon writhed around, roaring. It didn't seem to be affected by their attacks. Rather, it seemed more annoyed and enraged, as the injuries the group inflicted on it rapidly regenerated. The Dragon let out a horrific roar, before it suddenly spun, swinging its massive tail at the group. Everyone managed to dodge the tail, but Raphtalia was too slow, and cowered as she was about to be hit. Atreus pushed Raphtalia to the ground, taking the full force of the Dragon's attack. He yelled as he was sent flying into a mountain wall, before crashing to the ground.

'Atreus!' Kratos yelled out.

'I'm fine!' Atreus yelled back, scrambling to his feet despite the pain racking his body. 'Careful! This thing's strong!'

Kratos growled as he bought out the Draupnir Spear, throwing several spears at the dragon. He then slammed the Spear into the ground, and the replica Spears exploded, bursting the Dragon in several places. At the same time, Rino sent out an Aqua Blast that impaled the Zombie Dragon through the head, creating a large, gaping hole through its face. The Dragon writhed, before its injuries began to regenerate, and it let out a massive roar.

'This isn't good!' Rino said. 'Nothing we do has an effect on it!'

'There's gotta be something we can do!' Raphtalia shouted. Gritting her teeth, Raphtalia gripped her sword tightly as she charged the beast, before leaping and slashing it rapidly in several places with incredible agility. When the Zombie Dragon tried to swipe at her, Raphtalia spun and cut the Dragon's claws off in one quick motion. The Zombie Dragon roared as it fired a blast of noxious fumes from its mouth. Raphtalia tried to leap away from the blast but was too slow to act. She was hit with the full force of the Zombie Dragon's poisonous fumes, tumbling to the ground and going limp.

'Raphtalia!' Atreus shouted. The Zombie Dragon roared as it swiped at Raphtalia, aiming to finish her off. Atreus charged and blocked the Dragon's claws, before grabbing Raphtalia and leaping away. Atreus held onto Raphtalia, checking her body. Already, small black patches were beginning to form on her skin. Raphtalia made no movement, her eyes closed.

'Raphtalia!' Atreus said. 'Please, speak to me!'

Raphtalia opened her eyes weakly. They were horribly bloodshot. Raphtalia wheezed horribly, finding it difficult to breathe.

'L-Loki…' she said weakly, before she closed her eyes and fell unconscious. Atreus gritted his teeth as Rino ran over, concerned.

'Raphtalia!' Rino said. Atreus handed Raphtalia over to Rino, his anger beginning to build.

'Rino! Take Raphtalia to safety!' he ordered. 'We'll handle the Dragon!'

'Yes, Loki!' Rino replied, before taking Raphtalia in her arms and carrying her over to the carriage. Atreus turned to the Dragon Zombie, his anger beginning to surge as the Dragon roared. Gripping his bow tightly, Atreus charged, grabbing several arrows from his quiver and firing them at the Dragon. None of them seemed to have affected the Dragon in any way. The Zombie Dragon roared, becoming more enraged.

The battle raged on. Vandri and Drífa continued to hack away at the Zombie Dragon, trying quickly to cut it to pieces, while Atreus protected them with his shield. Rino would occasionally contribute by firing a few Aqua Blasts at the Dragon. It was useless; No matter how much they injured the Dragon, its wounds would always regenerate. The Zombie Dragon roared as it swiped at Vandri and Drífa with its claws. Atreus sent out an Air Strike Shield to block its attack, before Vandri and Drífa charged, continuing to attack. Kratos and Atreus fought together, using their Sigil Arrows and Blades of Chaos to try and burn it. Not even that proved enough, as any fires they created were instantly extinguished.

A single misstep nearly cost Drífa as she leapt and slashed at one of its claws, leaving her vulnerable in the air. The Zombie Dragon quickly lunged at her, opening its jaws wide in order to swallow her whole. Drífa yelled as the Zombie Dragon made to close its jaws around her.

'Drífa!' Atreus yelled out, holding out an arm to try and save her. Vandri turned and saw Drífa, gritting her teeth as she ran towards her.

'No you don't!' she yelled, before she leapt off the ground, using her wings to fly as she barrelled through the air towards her. She barely got there in time to push Drífa out of the Zombie Dragon's way, right before the Dragon's jaws enveloped around her. The group watched in horror as the Zombie Dragon swallowed Vandri whole, before letting out a malicious sound that appeared to be a laugh.

'Vandri! No!' Rino yelled out, aghast.

'Vandri…' Atreus said, staring in horror. He gritted his teeth as he felt his rage begin to surge throughout his body. He clenched his fist, feeling his anger begin to spiral out of control. Once more he had lost someone he had held dear to him. Kratos turned to Atreus, sensing his growing anger.

'Atreus!' he called out. 'Do not let your anger control you! Harness it! Let it serve you!'

Atreus turned to Kratos, staring at him for a moment, then nodded. He turned back to the ground and closed his eyes tight, taking deep breaths to control his anger.

'Harness it. Let it serve you,' he said to himself. Already he felt his anger coming under his control. Letting out a breath, he opened his eyes again, staring the Zombie Dragon down. Then, he let out a battle cry as he charged the Dragon head on.

He roared as he leapt and turned into Bjorn, a massive bear, mid-charge, barrelling straight towards the Dragon. The others watched in awe as Bjorn began to hack at the Dragon with his claws. The Zombie Dragon tried to retaliate with a swing of its tail, only for Bjorn to grab it, before roaring as he threw the Dragon into the air and slammed it onto the ground. His strength was such that they had never seen before.

'Wow, he's pretty strong!' Rino called out. Kratos growled and gripped his Axe tightly, turning to Drífa. They both nodded at each other, before charging at the Zombie Dragon, aiding Bjorn.

Bjorn roared as he charged at the Zombie Dragon, only to be knocked to the ground by a wild swing of its claws. Bjorn quickly got to his feet, showing no signs of injury as he leapt at the Dragon and tackled it. The Dragon roared as it tumbled to the ground, trying to throw Bjorn off. Bjorn only kept it pinned as he began slashing at the Dragon's chest with his claws. Kratos and Drífa leapt onto the Dragon, beginning to attack it. Drífa slashed at the Dragon with her claws, while Kratos began carving into the Dragon's flesh with his Axe. The Zombie Dragon writhed on the ground, roaring as it desperately tried to throw them off. At last, with one final burst of strength, the Dragon threw all three of them off. The trio stared the Dragon down as it got back up, ready to fight them again.

The Zombie Dragon suddenly threw its head back and let out an agonized screech, writhing in pain and agony. It let out one final roar, before it collapsed to the ground, not moving. Atreus reverted back to his human form, huffing from the exhaustion. Gripping his bow tightly, he cautiously crept over and prodded the Dragon's head with his bow, seeing if it would react. There was no reaction. Not even a movement. Everyone else stood by, watching it cautiously.

'Is…is it dead?' Rino said, holding her staff deathly tightly.

'I…I think so,' Atreus said. Everyone had a collective sigh of relief. Atreus closed his eyes and bowed his head, tears beginning to form in his eyes.

'Vandri,' he said softly. 'I couldn't save her…'

Kratos went up to Atreus and put a sympathetic hand on his shoulder. He shared in Atreus's sadness as they both mourned Vandri's death. Rino lowered and shook her head, letting out a small sob. Even Drífa appeared saddened by Vandri's death, despite the fierce feud they had with each other.

The Zombie Dragon's stomach began to bulge suddenly. Everyone took a step back, watching as they held their weapons. Something was trying to crawl out of its stomach. After a moment, the blade of a sword pierce through the flesh, cutting through the Dragon's stomach. The stomach opened up, and Vandri crawled out.

'Vandri!' Rino said, running over to her. 'You're alive!'

'Do not touch me!' Vandri said, holding her hand out as she took a step back, gagging. Everyone stayed back as Vandri vomited next to the dragon, wiping the vomit from her mouth when she was done.

'Good grief,' she muttered. 'You were right, Rino. The stench is awful.'

'Vandri!' Atreus said. 'I thought you had died! How did you…?'

'Heh, it'll take more than that to put me into the ground,' Vandri said, smirking. 'Hey, I found this while inside there.'

Vandri held out her hand, showing what appeared to be the shards of a crystal. The group inspected the crystals, curious.

'What are they?' Mimir asked.

'It was a crystal,' Vandri explained. 'I found it within the Dragon's stomach. I figured that it was what was keeping the Dragon alive, so I destroyed it.'

'Huh, so that was why we couldn't harm it,' Atreus said. 'Ah well. At least it's dead. For good.'

'Yeah.'

Vandri turned to the dead Dragon, sighing as she felt pity for the beast.

'Look at him,' Vandri said. 'A magnificent beast, a wonder of the world. And now it's dead. Its life snuffed out, by a single man. I feel bad for the poor beast.' She clenched her hand into a fist. 'I swear, when I find that Sword Hero…'

'Vandri, I understand that you're angry,' Rino said. 'But now is not the time. We should dispose of the Dragon and head back.'

Vandri sighed, the nodded.

'Okay. Whatever you say.'

Atreus spent the next hour absorbing the Dragon's parts into his shield. When he finished absorbing the Zombie Dragon entirely, he ended up unlocking a new shield.

Zombie Dragon Shield conditions met

Zombie Dragon Shield

equip bonus: Poison Resistance 2, Poison Cloud

'Nice,' Atreus said, as he examined his new shield. 'I got a poison shield.'

'Oooh, now I'm jealous!' Drífa said. 'I want to spew poison just like you, Master!'

'Maybe one day, you will,' Atreus said with a chuckle, petting her head, making Drífa chirp.

The group suddenly heard groaning nearby. They all turned and saw Raphtalia lying on the carriage. Her illness had become worse, and she looked like she was close to death. Atreus turned pale, remembering her sickness, before he rushed over and knelt by her side.

'Raphtalia!' he said, supporting her and staring deep into her eyes. Raphtalia weakly peeked her eyes open, looking up at Atreus.

'L-Loki,' she said softly, before her eyes closed shut. Atreus hurriedly began to give her Medicine from the cart, turning to the others.

'Come on,' he said. 'We gotta get her to the doctor!'

The others nodded as they quickly got back to the carriage, beginning to make their way back down the mountain. Drífa frowned as she sped down the mountain path, running as fast as her legs could take her. As they travelled, Atreus began applying bottle after bottle of Medicine to Raphtalia, hoping to keep her illness at bay.

Atreus practically barged through the door, holding Raphtalia in his arms. The Village Lord turned and raised an eyebrow as he saw Atreus and the others walk in, before smiling.

'Ah, you're back,' he said jovially. 'I take it the Dragon has been dealt with?'

Atreus laid Raphtalia down gently onto a bed. The village doctor quickly rushed to her side, kneeling as he examined her.

'What has happened?' the doctor asked.

'Raphtalia got really sick,' Atreus explained. 'Please, you have to help her!'

The doctor's face became stern as he nodded.

'Alright,' he said. 'I'll see what I can do.'

The doctor began to examine Raphtalia, his face stern. Slowly nodding, he stood back up.

'She has a terrible illness,' the doctor said. 'As well as that, she has a fever. It's gone down, and the worst of her illness has subsided. But I'm afraid if she's not healed, the illness will eventually kill her. I'm of no use here, sadly. I believe Holy Water is the only thing that can truly and completely heal her.'

'Where can I get some?' Atreus said desperately. 'Please, tell me. I can't lose her!'

'If I recall, there's a church in a territory north of here', the doctor explained. 'You can buy some Holy Water there, but it may be really expensive.'

'I'll do anything if it means healing her,' Atreus said. 'Thank you for your help. I'll keep giving her medicine in the meantime.'

Kratos turned to the Village Lord.

'The Dragon has been taken care of,' he said simply.

'Oh?' the Village Lord said, then smiled. 'Perfect. Thank you so much for your help. Rest assured; you shall be rewarded considerably for your efforts.'

'Hold up, one second,' Vandri said, folding her arms as she glared at the Village Lord. 'Something about this doesn't sound right. It all seems suspicious. Tell me, did you really happen to stumble onto the Dragon with no prior knowledge?'

The Village Lord only stared at her. Something in his eyes signalled malice and hatred towards her kind.

'Of course,' he said in a low voice. 'It attacked our village while we were tenderizing our fields. The Sword Hero was brave. He defended us.'

'You expect me to believe you, old man? You claim the Dragon attacked your village and the Sword Hero had to defend you? Dragons are solitary creatures, by nature! They don't interfere with humans. The only way that Dragon would've attacked your village was if some dumbass had provoked it.'

The Village Lord's façade finally crumbled away. He snarled at her, eyes filled with fury and malice.

'Fine,' he said. 'We killed it. We had the Sword Hero sent to kill it on the pretence that it was terrorizing our village.'

'But…Why?' Rino asked, horrified. 'Why would you lie to the Sword Hero like that?'

'Because…The treasure,' the Village Lord said, chuckling. 'The Dragon was hording a treasure that we wanted our hands on badly. But the Dragon was in our way. With the Dragon dead, the treasure is now ours. We're filthy rich, you hear me?'

'So you killed a Dragon just to get its treasure?!' Vandri said, enraged. 'I cannot imagine anything so petty!'

'It deserved its death!' the Village Lord barked back, furious. 'It existed without our permission! It intruded upon our land! We had to kill it!'

Vandri snarled, baring her fangs.

'Intruded upon your land?!' Vandri exclaimed. 'Dragons have been here for eons, long before any of you miserable little worms ever came into existence! You think you all have the right to kill it?! You murdered it for its treasures, and now you dare blame it for its own death?!'

'And just what right does a filthy Demi-Human have to judge us?!'

If looks could kill, the Village Lord would've been dead where he stood. Vandri glared at him, her eyes filled with flaming hot fury. Atreus squirmed uncomfortably, quickly picking Raphtalia up.

'Ya know what?' he said. 'We should probably get going...'

'You go,' Vandri said, her voice dripping with rage. 'I have some matters to sort out with these people, first.'

The group hesitated, before they made their way back to the carriage. As they got onto the carriage, the sound of people screaming could be heard. They turned and saw Mirso Village set aflame, the houses burning as people ran screaming. The group watched as Vandri flew around the burning village, hacking down everyone within the village. Once her rampage was done, she flew to the carriage and climbed on.

'Let's go,' she said coldly.

'Vandri…What did you do?' Rino asked.

'They deserved this,' Vandri said. 'They robbed an innocent creature of its home, its life, and its treasures, and now I have made them pay the price for their greed. This is justice. Now, let's go.'

The group hesitated for a moment, before they began to head off away from the village. The flames rose into sky as Mirso Village burned to the ground, until all that remained of it was rubble and ashes.