Monster Hunter: Stars of Hope

Chapter Forty-One: Resolve

Granport had become silent. It had been this way for a few days, leading up to a funeral now being held in the gathering hub. Many were in attendance, from hunters who had long served under the leadership of the man they mourned the loss of, to civilians who had never even met him. It was almost ironic; He had spent his final days believing himself unworthy to lead this guildhall, confident that he would end his days as any other hunter. He thought that he would leave this world having failed this city and its people.

Haldys did no such thing. He did not just die a leader; He died a hero.

Nia was attending the funeral in her armor, much like many here, including Sariko next to her. After all, it was only tradition that hunters saw fellow hunters off as their peers, and she was no different in this regard. Though, she was different in that she was hurt far more by this loss than anyone else, and not without good reason. In fact, she could scarcely even bring herself to look at the closed coffin in which Haldys was interred, his Charge Blade placed atop it; That weapon was the only part of his gear that withstood the onslaught of the Safi'Jiiva, save for the slinger-turned-grappler that Nia had to cast aside during the battle, miraculously landing behind just enough of a ledge to be spared from those terrible, sapphire flames. Yet, even the assurance from Fenan that said grappler could be repaired, and thus she would have something to remember him by, was of almost no comfort to Nia.

Comfort had been alien to her since Haldys' death; After all, Nia blamed herself for all of this.

"Haldys was... a much better man than he thought himself to be", Vehlan declared solemnly, delivering his eulogy from in front of the coffin, "Everyone gathered here today either knew him well, and had their lives changed for the better by him, or knows someone close to them who could say as such. Everywhere he went, he sought to do as well for all around him as he could. At every turn, he saw to it that every soul he met could become the best version of themselves they could be...". Nia was having a hard time listening to this. What Vehlan was saying was entirely true, but she felt that she had made such an endeavor far more difficult for Haldys than she had any right to; Further, she was unsure whether or not he succeeded with her, or even which reality she preferred in that regard. "And he was always quick to take responsibility for the misfortunes of others, to dedicate himself to making things right where he could", Vehlan continued, "It was this... admirable quality... that lead him to believe that this city, this guildhall... would both be better off without him. Yet, I make no assumptions when I say... he was wrong. This guildhall, this city... this entire world... They are all far worse, now that a hero such as him has been taken from us".

Nia wanted to be strong for this. She wanted to hold back her tears.

She couldn't.

Without restraint, she began to sob forcefully, and was quick to turn around and stumble out of the nearby door. This had become too much for her, so much so that she barely got a few feet out of the guildhall before she stumbled against a nearby wall, steps away from falling down the stairs; A part of her was considering doing just that as she cried, leaned against the wall. Though, this thought was quickly dashed when Sariko, not much less distraught than she was, surged out of the door behind her, closing it and swiftly starting to try and console her. "Sa-Sariko, I- I- Damnit, Sariko, I got him killed!", Nia blurted out in response, scarcely able to even register what Sariko had just said, and so tearful she was barely able to breathe, to which Sariko was quick to rebut, "No, you didn't. Please, Nia, don't blame yourself for this. It's not your faul-". Swiftly, Nia cut her off, sticking to her claim as she cried out, "No, it is my fault, Sariko! It's all my fault! He- he threw himself to the ground to push me out of the way! If- if- if I wasn't such a terrible hunter, he wouldn't have needed to-".