Just added another piece of meat to her plate."You don't know that.""I'm pretty sure the Commander said there's plenty of food.""He might have been lying.""Why would he lie about that?!""To prevent panic."Jabber blinked."Panic about... food?""Yes."Mira's tone was completely serious."Food panic is a real thing. Very dangerous. People get trampled.""We are literally the only people at this table right now. Who's going to trample you?!""You never know."She added more bread."This could be a test. Maybe the Commander is watching to see who takes the most food. And whoever takes the most gets... I don't know. A prize.""That's not…that doesn't even make sense!""Or maybe it's the opposite. Maybe he's watching to see who's polite and takes less. And those people get rewarded."She paused, genuinely considering this.Then added more food."But I'm willing to take that risk."Jabber just stared at her."You have a problem.""I have priorities.""Your priority is apparently eating

Started physically pushing each other.Jabber managed to get slightly ahead.Slipped through the door."HA!"His voice was triumphant.He started to close the door…Asta shoved his foot in the gap."You're not keeping me out!"Jabber pushed harder on the door."Watch me!"His hands came together quickly.Orange flames gathered."Flame Technique—Shield Barricade!"A solidified flame shield materialized.WHAM.It slammed into place, covering the entire bathroom doorway.Blocking it completely.Asta stared at it.Then at Jabber, who was grinning smugly from the other side."You can't be serious."Asta's voice was flat."Completely serious. This bathroom is mine for the next fifteen minutes. Deal with it."Asta stood there for a moment.Processing this.Then turned.Walked to where his sword was leaning against the wall.Picked it up.Started walking back toward the bathroom.Jabber's voice came through the shield, sarcastic and warning."I wouldn't do that if I were you."Asta ignored hi

Flora's voice took on a storytelling quality."They said: 'We know we cannot win this war. We've lost. But please,please,resurrect our king. Return him to us. And we swear we will cause no more trouble. We will retreat to the dungeon caves. We will leave the surface world to dragons and humans. We will never attack again.'""The Dragon Elders were hesitant. Suspicious. They'd just spent decades fighting this war. Why would they bring back the very being they'd sacrificed so much to kill?"She gestured at the yellow gem."But the flame beasts were desperate. They kept pleading. Kept promising. And eventually... the Dragon Elders agreed. But with conditions."Her voice became more intense."They used this yellow flame gem,the Resurrection Stone,which has the power to bring back the dead. But they didn't just resurrect the Flame Beast King. They bound him.""They placed restrictions on his resurrection. Made it so he could only exist in the deepest parts of the dungeon caves. Made it so

"Normally, you'd want at least ten experienced flame wielders per Emperor. Minimum. And that's if you're well-prepared with good equipment."He paused."We have seven people. Against thirty."Jabber let out a nervous laugh."Those are terrible odds."Mira's voice was cheerful despite everything."I've faced worse.""When?!""Okay, I haven't. But there's a first time for everything!"Yuki's voice cut in, serious."We all know what they're here for. The yellow Rare Flame Gem. The Resurrection Stone."She looked at Roderick."That's our advantage. We know their target. We can use that."They reached the bottom of the tower.Emerged outside.The morning sun was bright, warm, completely at odds with the approaching danger.The Commander was waiting for them.His expression was set, determined."I'll assign three of my best warriors to stay inside and guard the gem."His voice was firm."Just in case a flame beast sneaks past you and heads for the treasure room. Someone needs to be there as

Warrior 1's head snapped back toward the direction of the first attack.And he saw them.Two more massive spheres of fire.Coming from different angles this time.One from the southwest. One from the west.Both heading directly for the gate.His eyes went to the shield wielders.They were already trembling.The first impact had drained them. Weakened them.One of the warriors,a young man, maybe twenty-five,spoke up, his voice shaking."We can't take another hit!"His voice was desperate, afraid."That first one nearly broke through! Two more and the barrier will…"He didn't get to finish.The second flame ball hit.BOOM.The barrier cracked.Visible fractures spreading across its surface like breaking ice.The shield wielders screamed.Not from pain,but from effort.Trying desperately to hold it together.The third flame ball hit half a second later.BOOM.The barrier shattered.Just exploded into a thousand fragments of dissipating flame.The backlash launched the shield wielders ba