Marlowe, her throat raw from her sonic assault, could barely manage a hoarse croak in response to Alex's question. Brittany, her armor stained crimson with the day's battles, wiped at the gruesome mess with a grimace.
"That's going to take a lot of work to clean," she muttered, surveying the damage with a sigh.
Despite the fatigue, a sense of accomplishment buoyed them. They had faced a challenge unlike any they had encountered before, and they had emerged victorious, albeit with a few unsettling revelations.
As they continued their walk along the forest path leading back to the Zuberk Kingdom gates, Alex, ever the optimist, broke the silence.
"So," he said, a mischievous glint in his eye, "how about we head to the Adventurer's Guild and get our levels checked? I know this girl there, she might be able to squeeze us in."