[center][h2]Kochiya Sanae[/h2][h3]Aventon — Deep Forest[/h3][/center]
Fujiwara-no-Mokou's response to Sanae's inability to comprehend the situation did little to explain any of what had just transpired, but rather than try to press the girl any further for explanations, the shrine maiden chose the more [i]reasonable[/i] course of action and simply... Accepted it for what it was.

This might not have been Gensokyo, but Mokou was still a resident of the place as far as she was concerned. In that case, it was best to simply abandon common sense and nod her head as if an explanation like that was perfectly reasonable. Let sleeping dogs lie, was they were.

"...Right, immortality. Well, uh... Just let us know if there's a problem, then," Sanae said, nodding her head towards the immortal-apparent before turning back towards the others to see how they were faring. Youmu and Lewa had cut through the ones flanking their sides well enough, and it seemed as if Remilia had rather unceremoniously fallen face-first into the dirt after executing the one she had found herself up against.

All in all, it wasn't a [i]pretty[/i] victory, but it was still a victory. The fact that she felt like she hadn't done much didn't exactly sit well with her, though—it was likely that the others could have solved the centipede infestation without her presence, given how things had panned out—but surely she would have chances in the future to prove herself at least [i]somewhat[/i] useful now.

"Uh... I'm fine," Sanae remarked in response to Lewa's question before going around to check on everyone else's condition as well. "...Really, I think Miss Scarlet over here is the only one who isn't looking all that great..."

With the situation more or less handled, though, it made sense for all of them to head back to town and relay what had just transpired here. At the very least, though, it was fairly likely that the boars that had been chased out of their habitat here would be able to return to their natural habitats soon enough.

Provided there weren't more, at least, but if [i]that[/i] was the case then hopefully Lily or Saria could head out and deal with them if none of them wanted to go hunting. Heavens knew [i]she[/i] wouldn't be of any help, at least.

[hr][center][h3]Aventon — Hunter's Lodge[/h3][/center]
Though taken aback momentarily by Anne patting her on the head, Millie soon found herself accepting the gesture as a small blush crossed her face. It was a nice feeling, being praised like this, but that came to an abrupt halt as a pair of familiar faces entered the lodge.

"Millie!"

Though Kendrick initially tried to stop Alvin from immediately running to his sister's side, the older man decided to instead stay his hand and let the boy loose. Given what had transpired over the last day, he had more than enough reason to run to her side and take the moment in.

"Alvin?" was the young girl's brief response before being half-grabbed into a hug courtesy of her older brother, almost as if Anne didn't exist. To that, Kendrick could only sigh and walk over to Anne's side as the two children began to talk to one another.

"For now, it's probably best to let them have this moment, huh?" he asked, not expecting any sort of answer when it was as obvious as this. "In that case, it's probably time for us to figure out what we're going to do from now on."

Between the arrival of the Heralds and their subsequent retreat, the fact that the two kids were orphaned, and the possibility of what might happen in the future, there were a lot of things to discuss anyways—never mind how much they might need to keep secret given how likely it was that the Heralds might come back for the children in the future.

[hr][center][h3]Aventon — Eastern Fields[/h3][/center]
Though the journey had been filled with a bit more chaos and destruction in it's own right, it was hard to argue with the results that had come about from the Berserker's haphazard plan. The animals were indeed back in their holding facilities, and though it would take a bit to restore what had been destroyed, it probably wouldn't be long until things were back to relative normalcy here. The crops... Were a bit of a different matter, but given what had transpired that forced the farmers to ask for help in the first place, the loss of a few weeks' worth of effort paled in comparison to their lived.

In giving their heartfelt thanks to Rayne (who had done her best at damage control the whole way through), though, the farmers made sure to supply the pair of girls with a few ingredients and foodstuff that had escaped the worst of the attack as gifts of appreciation for their efforts, along with a few coins. It might not have been much in the grand scheme of things, but hopefully that was payment enough for their efforts here.

[hr][hr][center][h3]Aventon[/h3][/center]
By now, a few days had passed since the group had first arrived to the town of Aventon. The chaos brought about by the Heralds had by this point passed, and life had begun to move on. Though the scars of battle still remained—both upon the people and the town itself—the least that could be done now was to make sure that they could do what they could to recover. Whether that meant burying the dead or clearing away the rubble that impeded the roads, no effort was spared in trying to right what was so unjustly wronged.

It was then, though, that an odd stroke of luck came about from those heavy days—the arrival of a trade caravan from deeper into the country. Between the pelt of the earthmane boar and the carapaces of the now-retrieved giant centipedes, though, the town—and the group of otherworlders with them—had plenty to offer for trade to try and recover what had been lost.

Maybe it would be worthwhile to speak with the merchants here for some goods; else, maybe the mercenaries they had hired to help would make good conversation partners?

[@VitaVitaAR][@EchoWolff][@Izurich][@Lugubrious][@Drifting Pollen][@Raineh Daze][@DracoLunaris][@Rezod92]