The Author's Viewpoint-Chapter 104 - Not the Time to Break

Panpan and Tave had returned to the group, and without wasting a moment, he relayed everything he’d seen, everything Fang had seen, down to the last detail. His voice was steady, but the weight of the message was impossible to soften.

By the time he finished, the silence was heavy, thick with disbelief. And then, just like that, he saw it in their eyes.

That look.

Like their minds could no longer process one more layer of shock.

"We’re doomed," someone muttered.

No effort to hide the hopelessness in their tone. It rang out like a bell of surrender.

Velion was quick to counter, stepping forward. "We can use Tave’s scouting skill to avoid them as best we can, and focus on finishing what we can complete."

"And then what?" another voice shot back. A human knight, a defender.

All eyes turned toward the speaker, a man with short blond hair and gleaming white armor. He was Finn.

The same man who had challenged Tave’s idea of jumping off the flying monster. The same voice of doubt in every critical moment. So no, he wasn’t even remotely surprised that Finn would be the first to complain again.

"You really can’t help yourself, huh, Finn?" It was Darian who snapped back this time. The defender from the forest elf side, stepping forward with irritation already simmering beneath his words.

"Got a problem with it?" Finn answered, his tone just as sharp. "You think you can outrun those demons? Is that it?"

"With that complaining mouth of yours, we won’t get anywhere. Why don’t you just shut up!" Darian barked.

Finn stepped toward Darian, fists clenched. Darian didn’t back down. In fact, he stepped forward too, fully ready to meet the challenge.

But before they could clash, Velion was suddenly between them. "Darian, step back."

Darian didn’t move. His stare remained locked on Finn. "Let me give this man a proper lesson before his mouth gets even louder."

Other human knights stirred. A few shifted forward, ready to defend their own. One of them already had his hand on his sword.

"Everyone stand down and step back!" Velion said again, louder this time.

"The worst thing that could happen now is division. We need each other. All of us. If there’s something you disagree with, voice it. But no violence." His tone didn’t waver.

But Darian didn’t yield.

"Just give this guy a proper lesson," he muttered coldly. "We only need one defender anyway."

And in that moment, a human knight drew his blade.

"Stop with this forest elf act, pretending like they’re everything," he snapped. "You’re fewer in number. So follow our lead."

"This isn’t about who has more numbers!" Velion shot back. "And this isn’t about forest elves or humans. Out here, we’re the same. Every team is treated equally!"

"Then explain that loudmouth over there!" another knight barked, gesturing sharply toward Darian.

Darian scoffed and stepped forward. "Yeah, I’ve got a loud mouth. And I’m a big guy. Got a problem with it? Try me."

"Enough, Darian." Velion’s voice cut in again.

But the crowd was unraveling.

"We don’t trust you!" someone shouted at Velion. "You just stood here while Tave risked everything out there!"

"Everyone has their own role," Velion answered, trying to keep his voice level. "And only by owning those roles, by staying disciplined, can we make it through this."

"Bullshit!" Finn snapped, stepping forward again. "This is over! You think we can actually beat those demons?!"

Velion’s attempts at control were crumbling. Words no longer mattered. The tension was roiling, ready to snap.

Then. A voice cut through the chaos.

"I saw it myself."

Everyone turned.

Panpan stood just outside the circle, her expression taut, her brow drawn with quiet intensity. The gentle calm she usually wore was gone, replaced by a hard edge sharpened by pressure.

Her voice wasn’t loud, but it carried. Clear, measured, and precise.

And suddenly, the noise stilled.

Panpan took a slow breath before speaking, her voice calm, yet firm enough to carry through the tension.

"Tave and I fought a Tier 5 monster," she began. "We won because we combined our strengths. It wasn’t easy. Danger was everywhere, waiting for a single mistake."

"Not long after that, we were surrounded. Not just by one, but by multiple creatures, all at that level. Each one could’ve killed us with a single strike. And there were only two of us."

Her eyes moved across the group.

"We had no chance to fight back. Not really. Not alone. But I chose to believe in the small knowledge Tave had. Just enough to try something, anything. I trusted him."

She paused.

"And we survived."

Her voice didn’t rise, but the weight behind it deepened.

"That wasn’t a small experience. It wasn’t luck or skill alone. It was something we only got through because we trusted one another. When all we could see ahead of us was death... trust was the only thing we had left."

Her tone softened, but her words remained pointed.

"We have no one else but each other here. Every person’s strength matters. Every role matters."

She glanced briefly at Tave, then continued.

"We were lucky to find out about the demons this early. It doesn’t solve the problem. But it gives us time. Time to think. To plan. That alone is worth something."

She let her gaze sweep the group again, holding them there.

"We have to trust one another. Whatever comes, it’s still better than turning on each other."

Then her voice gentled at the edges, reminding them quietly, "We already did that once. When we jumped from that massive flying monster. We survived because we trusted the impossible."

"And now... we have to do it again."

Everyone fell silent after Panpan’s words.

Tave had to admit. It was a very diplomatic and composed speech. Calm, firm, and cut straight to the core of what needed to be said.

I’m proud of you, Pan.

But the truth was, this shouldn’t have been a revelation. It was something everyone should’ve already understood. Basic knowledge. A survival foundation. Yet, no one could really be blamed. Not when the pressure was this high.

Encountering an emergency rift was overwhelming in itself. Add demons into the mix. Intelligent, coordinated enemies, and then the terrifying possibility of a Named Demon...

Tave felt a sharp tension in his skull, like his thoughts were seizing up at just the idea. A Named Demon. One of the 72. The smaller the number, the stronger they were.

If they encountered something ranked in the 70s, that might still be the best-case scenario. A cruel irony, considering those were still beings capable of razing cities.

But if fate decided to throw a Named Demon in the 60s... or worse, the 50s...

That would be catastrophic.

They would need a miracle. A real one. Not a stroke of luck. Not a clever tactic. A full-blown miracle.

Across the group, Finn clicked his tongue in irritation as Panpan’s voice faded.

"How do you know Tave’s telling the truth?" he snapped. "What if he’s just making all this up?"

"The truth can be seen clearly," Panpan replied, her voice calm but resolute. "Anyone willing to listen with their heart will understand it. And honestly. This is the only choice we have left! To trust each other!"

"That’s just bullshit," Finn muttered. But there was no real weight behind it anymore. His voice had lost its fire.

He didn’t argue further. He simply turned without another word and walked away, retreating to the back of the group, putting space between himself and the conversation.

Darian, on the other hand, gave a slight, almost begrudging smile and slowly stepped back, his tension loosening for now.

No, the tension hadn’t vanished. It was just... delayed. But for now, that was enough.

Some time passed, and with it, the heat of conflict cooled. There were no more pointed fingers, no exaggerated complaints. Just the quiet, reluctant shift toward moving forward. The group had, at last, returned their focus to what mattered: survival.

Velion stepped up again and gave the floor to Tave, asking him to share everything he understood about the flying reptiles they had encountered earlier.

Tave took a deep breath. This wasn’t going to be easy.

Even though he was human himself, the ones stirring up trouble had come from his side. The forest elves had, for the most part, been surprisingly composed. Even Darian, triggered as he was, had only reacted after Finn had thrown the first spark.

If not for Panpan’s intervention, things might’ve spiraled completely.

Grateful for that, Tave pushed the thought aside and began explaining what he knew. Filtering out irrelevant details, focusing on the parts that could shape an actual strategy.

"Each of these flying reptile monsters has a different weakness," he said. "But they’re strong. Really strong. We can only take one down quickly if we only fight one at a time."

There was no pushback. No defensiveness. No signs of tension in their posture.

He continued, elaborating on behavior patterns, altitude thresholds, and their likely reaction times. And to his quiet relief, the team, even Finn, responded professionally. They listened, asked precise questions, and began forming their own tactical suggestions.

They were back on track. Focused.

Nice.

Tave exhaled silently, the tension in his shoulders easing.

Thank the Rift for Panpan. She had saved the group twice now, and probably saved him from saying something regrettable.

Because if he’d been left to handle this mess?

Yeah... he probably would’ve just cracked Finn across the head and called it a day.

Hah!

Thank the gods Orion wasn’t part of this expedition.