They trekked deep into the ravine.
"Stop," Collei said suddenly. "Don't go any further. Look up ahead."
Paimon followed her finger and squinted. "It looks… gray? The plants over there are all withered."
Lumine peered closer. "There's also some ash-like stuff floating in the air."
"I don't like this," Paimon whispered, shrinking back.
"That's the Withering Zone," Collei said solemnly. "We're about to go inside. The source—the Withering branches—should be in there. Master said if we destroy them, we can cleanse the area."
Lumine nodded. "Got it. I'll go in with you. Paimon, wait here."
"Be careful, you two," Paimon said nervously.
Lumine smiled. "Relax. We've been through worse, haven't we?"
Paimon hesitated, then nodded. "I trust you!"
Lumine and Collei stepped forward together.
The deeper they went, the heavier the air felt, as if the whole forest was breathing poison.
"Even if you can control elements, you'll start feeling sick inside," Collei warned. "If it's too much, pull back immediately. It's not worth dying over."
Lumine raised an eyebrow. Really?
She wanted to laugh. I may not have a Vision, but I've fought gods, you know. I can handle this better than you can.
Still, seeing Collei's concern, she only nodded. "You be careful too."
Inside the Withering Zone, Collei pointed ahead. "There. Those black-and-red things are the branches. We need to destroy all of them."
"Got it," Lumine said, drawing her sword.
They worked side by side, cutting through the corrupted vines until the last of them dissolved into dust.
Collei exhaled in relief. "That's all of them. Now for the Withering Tumor."
"The what?" Lumine asked.
"The core of the zone," Collei explained. "See that over there? That's the source. Usually, a corrupted monster guards it."
"I'll handle the monster," Lumine offered. "You take care of the core."
Collei shook her head. "No, I'll distract the monster."
"Collei, are you worried about me?" Lumine smiled faintly. "Don't be. As long as I don't breathe in that weird stuff, I'll be fine… You mean that thing, right?"
Collei followed her gaze. "Yes. Once it's corrupted, it becomes a lot more violent."
Lumine nodded and charged ahead with her sword. "Leave it to me!"
Collei sighed but felt a flicker of warmth in her chest.
She knew Lumine was trying to protect her—taking on the risk before she could argue.
"Be careful," she murmured, before turning toward the core.
Lumine hadn't fought many spores before, but Collei had briefed her on their behavior.
She didn't need to win—just hold its attention. Once Collei destroyed the tumor, the Withering would collapse.
It was a solid plan.
Until everything went wrong.
The moment the Withering Tumor sensed danger, the spore suddenly broke off from Lumine and lunged straight for Collei, roaring wildly.
"Collei, behind you!" Lumine shouted, sprinting after it.
Collei spun around—just in time to see the massive creature crashing down on her.
Master never said they could go berserk like this…
That was her last thought before she whispered a single word in her mind.
Transform.
From Lumine's perspective, the giant spore slammed into Collei—then froze midair.
A heartbeat later, it fell heavily to the ground, lifeless.
Collei stepped out from behind it, completely unharmed.
"…What?" Lumine blinked.
She stared between the monster's corpse and the unscathed Collei, utterly lost.
"Collei! Are you okay?" she rushed over.
"I'm fine," Collei said, shaking her head.
"Thank the Archons… You scared me half to death. But what happened? Why did it just drop dead like that?"
Collei blinked innocently. "Maybe destroying the Tumor cut off its energy source. Without it, the monster died too."
"Is that so…" Lumine looked around.
The gray haze had lifted. The trees regained their color, vibrant green returning to every leaf. The ash in the air vanished completely.
"We… did it?"
Collei nodded. "Yeah. Thanks to your help, it's all back to normal."
"I didn't really do much…"
"No, you did. Without you, I'd have been hurt for sure. Thank you, Lumine—and you too, Paimon. Come on, let's head out before she worries."
"Mm!"
They climbed back out of the ravine.
The moment Paimon saw them, she flew straight over. "Traveler! Collei! You're both okay?"
"We're fine," Lumine said.
Paimon clutched her chest in relief. "Thank goodness. I was so nervous waiting out here alone. So the Withering's gone?"
Collei nodded. "It's gone."
Paimon tilted her head. "But you don't look very happy about it."
Collei sighed. "Even if we cleansed this area, the plants here can't all recover. Master said many species in the rainforest are already disappearing, and when the plants go, the animals that depend on them follow. The whole ecosystem's falling apart."
Paimon's face fell. "The rainforest might vanish? That sounds awful…"
Lumine thought for a moment. "Maybe it's not that bad. You said the rainforest was created by the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, right? Even if it fades away, the Lesser Lord Kusanali could always recreate it."
Collei blinked, then nodded slowly. "You're right. With the Lesser Lord around, maybe Master's just overthinking it."
After all, she knew the truth—Greater Lord Rukkhadevata hadn't disappeared. She was just… traveling in Inazuma.
To someone like her, a dying forest was nothing more than a small inconvenience.
Collei looked up at the fading sky. "It's getting late. Let's head back."
"Yeah," Lumine agreed.
"You must be hungry," Collei said, smiling. "I'll cook something nice for you when we get back."
"I want instant noodles!" Paimon piped up immediately.
"Alright," Collei laughed. "What about you, Lumine?"
Lumine hesitated, then smiled. "I'll have instant noodles too."
"Then instant noodles it is."
"Yay!" Paimon cheered.