The ambulance left with sirens.
The IDHA transport left without them.
Inside the carrier, the silence pressed harder than the engine noise. No one had the energy to pretend.
Ren sat near the rear ramp, elbows on his knees, staring at the metal floor as if it might answer him.
Akira tried twice to say something.
Both times, he swallowed it.
At the front, Ryou stood without sitting, one hand braced against the wall. His greatblade rested against his shoulder like something heavier than steel.
When they landed, he didn't wait.
He walked straight toward the base hospital.
The ICU corridor was white, bright, and far too clean for what they had just come from.
Viran Varanasi was already there.
Hands clasped behind his back. Expression unreadable.
Ryou stopped in front of him.
"This operation falls under my command," Ryou said. "Rookie injury occurred due to my judgment call. I accept full responsibility."
No hesitation.
No excuses.
Viran studied him for a long moment.
"A D-rank nightmare shouldn't have escalated that way," Viran said calmly.
"It did," Ryou replied. "And I allowed the rookies extended exposure."
"You also ended it."
"That does not erase the error."
Silence.
Viran nodded once. "Submit your report. We'll review containment classifications."
"I will."
Viran glanced toward the ICU doors. "Focus on your squad, Captain. Responsibility includes what comes after."
Ryou inclined his head slightly.
That was the end of it.
No drama.
No absolution.
Just memory.
The rest stood near the sealed ICU doors.
Ren stood at the edge of the group.
Close enough to be counted.
Far enough to be separate.
Minutes passed.
Footsteps approached.
A nurse stepped through the doors.
"She's stable," the nurse said. "Internal bleeding controlled. No structural damage. She's sedated but responsive."
Akira's shoulders dropped before he could stop them.
"She'll need rest," the nurse added. "No field work for a while."
"Can we see her?" Misaki asked.
The nurse nodded. "All of you can go in. Just don't crowd her."
Ren didn't move.
The doors slid open.
They went in together.
The room was quiet except for the steady beep of monitors.
Ayla looked smaller in a hospital bed.
Less sharp.
Less untouchable.
Just human.
An oxygen line rested beneath her nose. A bandage wrapped along her ribs beneath the hospital gown.
Akira hated how fragile that looked.
Misaki stepped closer first.
"You're an idiot," she said softly. "You know that?"
Fumika adjusted the blanket slightly. "Don't scare us like that."
Kaito leaned in, studying the monitor without realizing he was doing it. "Vitals are stable. That's good."
The Misokke twins stood near the wall like silent pillars.
Ryou remained at the foot of the bed.
He didn't reach for her.
He didn't speak immediately.
Then—
"This occurred under my command," he said quietly. "That responsibility is mine."
His voice didn't waver.
But it wasn't distant either.
Ayla's fingers twitched faintly
Akira stepped closer.
"You don't get to scare us like that," he said softly. "That's not part of the plan."
Her eyelashes fluttered.
For a second—
Her eyes cracked open.
Just slightly.
She saw shapes.
Voices.
Familiar ones.
"…Too loud…" she murmured faintly.
Misaki actually laughed under her breath.
"See?" she said. "Still judging us."
The nurse cleared her throat gently.
"Let her rest."
They filed out together.
The door slid shut.
Ren stood in the hallway exactly where they had left him.
He didn't look up.
"She's awake," Akira said quietly.
Ren nodded once.
Didn't move.
"You can go in."
"I'm fine."
"You don't look fine."
Ren's jaw tightened.
"I don't want to see her like that."
Akira stepped closer.
"She saved you," he said carefully.
"I know."
The words came out sharp.
Too sharp.
Ren finally looked up.
His eyes were hollow.
"That's the problem."
Akira didn't know how to answer that.
So he stayed.
Until Ren turned and walked away down the corridor.
The training hall lights were dimmed for night cycle.
Ren stood alone in the center of the floor.
He picked up a practice blade.
His hands were already shaking.
"No," he whispered.
The air shifted.
Heat crawled along his skin.
The walls dissolved into smoke.
Dirt roads burned beneath his bare feet.
Screams tore through the dark.
He was smaller.
The blade was real.
His friend stood in front of him.
Terrified.
"Ren—don't—"
The shadow moved behind him.
Through him.
Ren's arm followed.
The blade cut.
Clean.
Too clean.
There was no resistance.
His friend's body separated at the waist.
For a split second, the top half remained upright, eyes wide in confusion.
Then gravity pulled it down.
Blood sprayed across burning earth.
The scream that ripped from Ren's throat now-
Was the same one from then.
The vision shattered.
The training hall returned.
Cold.
Silent.
The practice blade clanged against the floor.
Ren dropped to his knees.
Breathing hard.
Hands empty.
Still stained.
In the ICU—
Ayla slept.
In his room—
Akira stared at the ceiling, unable to close his eyes.
And somewhere deep behind Ren's heartbeat—
The nightmare was not gone.
It was waiting.
END OF CHAPTER 7