Before the grieving half-fish could react, Uta touched its shoulder. Ash fell to the ground where it once stood.
"Now then," Uta continued, glancing around the warehouse. "Are you guys the reason those salamanders have been attacking the town? If so, I'd say you're not very neighborly."
The remaining attackers were too frightened to answer. Their grotesque features twisted in terror as they scrambled to find an escape.
Uta shrugged. "Eh, it doesn't matter."
With that, he dissolved the rest into ash, their screams echoing briefly before fading into silence.
Only one figure remained—the merman boy who had brought Uta here. The child trembled, his blue skin pale with fear.
"This... this can't be real," the boy muttered, stepping back toward the door. "I-I didn't know they were going to... I mean, I was tricked too! Yeah, that's it! I was tricked, just like you!"
