Chapter 131 Send Off

*One Week Later*

"we gather here today in respect to the death of our fallen heroes. We commend their bravery to not falter in the face of danger, sacrificing their lives so that we all may live".

"their courageous act is a show of faith that humanity will continue to persist. Today, monsters have taken from us our heroes. Tomorrow, we will take from them, everything they have".

"by the grace of the Gods, bless thus the souls of thy sons so that they make walk the path of righteousness and join thee in your gracious abode".

"i guide thee in the sanctification of the Gods so that your journey through the realm of souls will be a peaceful one".

"your physical body has left us in this world, your spirituality dispersed to whence it came. Your heroic memories however will be forever carved in our hearts, and every day we awake, remembrance of your sacrifice for our lives will be the guiding force for us".

The priest dressed in all blacks, stretched his hand out to the sides, and he was handed over a white bowl filled with water.

He got the bowl, and dipped his hand into it, taking out the water and spraying it in the tombstone in front of him. He moved over to the sides, and did the same with the tombstone that was there.

The priest continued this act until he did it to all one thousand two hundred and eighty seven tombstone, soldiers that died facing Orun's Aura, including old man Shakir, and the fourteen thousand three hundred and fifty nine ordinary citizens that were burned by his flames.

When he was done, he went back to standing at the forefront of all the tombstones, and said his final farewell prayers to them.

"Oh brave heroes, as I lay your souls to eternal rest, so may the Gods accept it earnestly".

The priest finished his final prayers, and together with his entourage, they exited the scene leaving behind the families of the deceased to mourn their loss.

The monster crisis that had invaded the city of Edevin was finally over with before they knew it. Resorting in the deaths of military men and ordinary citizens alike.

The bloodied cloud that covered their city dispersed, and shortly after, a burial ceremony was held to honor the lives of those lost in the crisis.

"how are you feeling".

Miss Aletta dressed in black gown, moved over to where Dexter was sitting, staring at the tombstone of Caren and Riley laid down beside each other.

Worried for Dexter on losing two of his teammates at once, Miss Aletta hoped to comfort him one way or another.

"i am fine. The one I am actually worried about, is her".

Dexter's gaze were directed over to Dana who was sitting alone, with the tombstone of Shakir in front of her.

"she is a tough child you know. I can't imagine how she must have felt when she saw the body of her grandfather layed lifeless on the floor".

He was present when Dana found Shakir's body among the midst of other dead bodies.

With the condition the body was, his body covered in blood, with holes on some part of it. Dexter guessed that Shakir must have been killed in one of the most brutal way possible.

He admired Dana's strong will to compose herself after seeing Shakir dead, she not so much as made a peep, and only moved closer to him to embrace the body.

Even now, all Dana is doing is staring blankly at where Shakir is laid to rest, ignoring any other sound around her, and fixating all her attention on it.

"i don't think that is her being strong willed. She is grieving in a silent way, which can be very bad for her health".

Miss Aletta after observing Dana, figured out she was processing the death of Shakir in the way that she can, and in a way that could end up being of extreme danger to her if she doesn't get over it in time.

"you should go talk to her. As her teacher, I am sure she will welcome your consolation with open arms".

"i don't know, I don't think I have the right to go talk to her".

Miss Aletta hesitated on going to be with Dana when in actuality she should have gone to her without being told.

She feels responsible for what became of Shakir, and shoulders the weight of indirectly killing him.

If she hadn't given Shakir the wrong information on his granddaughter's well-being, perhaps Shakir would not have stormed off by himself in search of her, and he would not have come across the death that found its way over to him.

"It does not sit right going to meet her. I will feel like an hypocrite and a deceiver if I go over there to comfort her. I gave her grandfather the information that misleaded him into thinking his granddaughter was dead, I indirectly killed him by giving him a false purpose for revenge. What can I say to her when infact I am the reason she is grieving her grandfather's death?... "

" you shouldn't think like that. All you wanted was to protect the man by not getting his hopes up too high. You know, if you had told him that there was the slightest possible chance that his granddaughter was alive..., he would still have resorted to going into the Dungeon to find her".

"if you think of it that way, you will realize that you have no fault in his death. His impulse to have his granddaughter by his side in the midst of all the chaos is what got the best of him and took away his life, not you. You have no reason to blame or fault yourself because of a decision brought about due to the love he has for his granddaughter".

Dexter, trying to bring out Miss Aletta from the self guilt she has decided to trap herself into, gave her reasons as to why Shakir's death isn't on her.

"i understand what you are saying, and I really appreciate you trying to help, but I still don't feel right going to meet her. But perhaps, you could do the honors".

"me?....., no way. I am not really the child consoling type, I terribly suck at it too".

"give it a chance. You both have lost something very precious to you, and can relate your feelings of lost better".

"it is not as easy as you think it is. Losing Riley and Caren is something I knew would always happen. We are adventurers, everyday we risk our lives venturing into the unknown and fighting against monsters of powerful origin. It is not that hard to know that one day, we will look back only to see that one of us or two of us is gone forever. I just never thought it was going to be those two before me".

Dexter said sighing in the air, and his muscular face looking deeply sorrowful.

"that is what I am saying. Your expression shows how pained you are on losing your friends. Perhaps, you can use that pain to comfort Dana on her pain".

Miss Aletta budged Dexter who was still hesitant on going over to Dana.

"please. Her being alone like that isn't going to help her in any way, but only to make the pain much more deeper than it already is. What she needs now, is someone to be by her side. Aside from her grandfather, she has no one else, and you are the next one closest to her whose current feelings are in mutual terms with hers".

Miss Aletta pestered Dexter, begging him to go be with Dana, as she did not want Dana to be left alone.

If it wasn't for her feelings of self guilt, she would have gone over to her, but she can't. The only one she knows can do it next, is one who can relate to her feelings, someone like Dexter.

Even though he says he had expected something of this nature to happen, the pain carved on his face is still a trait he failed to hide from miss Aletta.

She saw the pain in him, and wants him to use that pain to heal the pain of Dana's. Two people with feelings of lost coming together to fill in for each other's loss, is what Miss Aletta is aiming for.

"okay, okay. I will do it. I will go and talk to her".

Dexter left with no choice, gave in to Miss Aletta's demands. He did not want to disappoint her by continuing to refuse her, so he decided going over to her and doing the best he can before leaving her be.

"thank you, thank you very much".