Ash had been particularly unlucky: her nose had struck the Frogato's belly first during the fall.
Otherwise, she might have escaped completely unharmed.
"Larvanine?"
The Larvanine in Ash's arms let out a low hum, as if asking if she was okay.
"I'm fine," Ash said while lowering the hand that had been massaging her nose.
She patted Larvavine's head gently, then looked up at Caine and the older man beside him.
"There's no need to go to such trouble. I'll just apply some ointment when I get home."
Thankfully, the Frogato has soft body, similar to a slime, so the injury to her nose was just soft tissue damage—nothing serious.
Since Ash didn't want to waste time going to the hospital, she brushed it off.
After all, she had come to the Spirit Beast Reserve for an important reason today.
"Alright, if you're sure you don't need medical attention, I won't insist," Caine said reluctantly before continuing, ''But if you feel unwell in any way, please let us know. This is entirely our fault, and we will take full responsibility for it!''
''Right, Mr. Blau?'' He turned to glance at the man beside him, who hadn't spoken since apologizing.
''Why aren't you saying anything? If you hadn't let the Flaringo out of the enclosure, this student wouldn't have been scared in the first place!''
''How is this my fault?'' Mr. Blau, unable to hold back after Caine's accusations, finally retorted. ''You're the one who forgot to lock the Water Grove Area'a gate after feeding Number Seven at noon, and now you're blaming me?''
Seeing that the two of them were about to argue, Ash quickly intervened to mediate. ''Um... I think you should check on the Flaringo first. It looks like it's awake?''
Ash pointed behind her.
Through the glass window, they could clearly see a Spirit Beast resembling an ostrich, its feathers a striking mix of red and black, frantically running around the garden below.
The neatly trimmed lawn was being torn to shreds under its sharp claws.
The smaller Spirit Beasts that was shared the enclosure with it had been frightened into trembling and huddling near the glass dome for safety.
Something was definitely wrong.
While Flaringo were known for their fiery temperament as Ignis-type Spirit Beasts, this level of frenzy—practically dismantling the entire Spirit Beast Reserve—was far from normal.
Noticing Flaringo's erratic behavior, Caine and Mr. Blau's expressions grew serious.
Especially Caine, who immediately said, ''I'll go check it out,'' and then opened the window and leaped down from the third floor without hesitation.
Mr. Blau considered following him but, when he realized there was still an ordinary person in the room—one who likely had no ability to protect herself—he stayed behind.
He pulled Ash away from the potentially dangerous window. ''Move back a bit, just in case.''
As soon as he spoke, a fireball with the size of a basketball shot from the Flaringo's beak, heading straight for the spot where Ash had just been standing.