Dawn was breaking over the northern mountains as the heavy iron gates of Galka War Academy swung slowly inward.
Hundreds of cadets and senior instructors lined the grand stone courtyard, their eyes wide with awe as they looked upon the returning heroes of the continental war.
At the head of the arrival plaza stood Grand Marshal Sikuwa, his crisp white robes fluttering in the morning wind alongside Captain Torena and Miss Lakiya.
Behind the southern vanguard, medical attendants rushed forward with a padded stretcher, gently lifting the heavily bandaged Bukata from the transport wagon.
"Careful with his ribs, you clumsy fools," Maita snapped at the young medics, his hands on his daggers as he glared with sharp, irritable eyes. "If you drop him, I will personally throw you into the training pit."
"Relax, Maita, they know how to carry a wounded man," Kiuga said, though his own eyes were scanning the courtyard with sharp, vigilant calculations.
