Chapter 23: Aftermath and Shadow I
"Alright," Zara said, squatting beside the scorched remains of the Minotaur, "who’s got dibs on the giant, still-warm chunk of death magic?"
"Call me crazy," Kaito muttered, hands still trembling slightly as he wiped soot from his sleeves, "but maybe we don’t touch the part of the monster that revived itself with cult runes?"
Juliet, helmet tucked under one arm, gave a half-smirk as she nudged the broken horn with her boot. "Relax, spell-boy. It’s dead for real this time."
Frank stepped up quietly, crouching beside the still-smoking corpse. The air still hummed faintly with spent power, and he felt it like static crawling under his skin. The core was here. Faint, but intact.
"Guys," he said softly. "The monster core survived. I can extract it."
Juliet arched a brow. "You? Not our overly cautious mage?"
"I’ve... got experience," Frank replied, pulling a small rune scalpel from his trader’s pouch. "It shouldn’t pose a problem."
Zara tilted her head. "That gear looks upgraded."
Frank didn’t look up. "Trade contacts."
"Trade contacts who hand out precision-extraction gear and scrolls that silence abnormal sigils?" Kaito asked, crossing his arms.
The scalpel pulsed briefly, and with a practiced slice, Frank eased the dark crystal core from the beast’s chest. It was dense, irregular, and throbbed with faint heat.