The naming event continued, if one could call this barely-contained chaos an "event." Fuhiken had relocated from the stump podium to a large flat stone, looking less like a warrior and more like the host of a wildly unbalanced game show. His scroll, once pristine, was now half-filled with suggestions, some viable, some absurd, and some that sounded suspiciously like spell incantations.
"Next up," Fuhiken announced, tapping the quill against his chin. "Northwest region. Ogre territory."
Kyle raised a hand lazily. "Thraghurn."
Fuhiken blinked. "You're… still good at this. That actually sounds like a real place."
Yuuna nodded faintly. "Concise. Harsh syllables. Fitting for ogres."
Fahleena leapt up, cape flaring behind her as if summoned by drama. "I present: The Ravaged Dominion of the Crimson-Blood Howlers Under the Eternal Dread Sun!"
There was a pause. The kind of silence that settles when a magical spell misfires and everyone is too polite to mention the lingering smoke. Even the birds stopped chirping. Kyle's candy stick slipped slightly from his lips. Sakura blinked slowly, halfway to raising another muffin. Gigih raised an eyebrow like he was impressed, but also mildly concerned for Fahleena's soul. Fuhiken looked at his quill as if considering stabbing it into the ground instead of writing that down.
Yuuna: "That sounds like a banned war metal album."
Sakura: "Sounds spicy."
Fuhiken began scribbling the name down, hesitated, and stared blankly at the scroll. His quill hovered, trembling slightly.
"The Ravaged Dominion of... what now?" he asked, blinking as if hoping someone else had hallucinated the rest.
Fahleena placed a hand dramatically over her heart. "Crimson-Blood Howlers Under the Eternal Dread Sun. Obviously."
Yuuna muttered, "That's not a name, that's a prophecy."
Gigih closed his eyes and intoned dramatically, "Tor'ma'rukh Zarneth."
Fuhiken didn't even ask. He just scribbled, "Unknown magical growl – check."
"Next," he said, with a tone halfway between brave and exhausted. "Beastfolk territory, southeast."
Kyle raised his hand again. "Verdastra."
Yuuna nodded. "Green tones. Evokes nature. Acceptable."
Fahleena thrust out another scroll. "Sylvanblood Sanctuary of Whiskered Valor!"
Yuuna raised an eyebrow. "Why whiskers?"
"Cats!" Fahleena exclaimed, posing like a victorious knight.
Yuuna glanced up from her book, a small crease forming between her brows. "Shouldn't it sound... fluffier? Beastfolk culture isn't all dramatic titles. There's a sense of warmth. Softness."
Almost on cue, Gabyola emerged from behind a nearby bush, flower basket in hand. "Did someone say fluffy?" she asked with interest, ears twitching slightly.
Sakura, calmly munching her third muffin, chimed in. "Chocoberry Fields."
Yuuna deadpanned, "We are not naming a region after a dessert topping."
Gigih: "Vell'quinalis."
Yuuna: "That's just a weather spell."
Fuhiken sighed audibly. "Moving on. Goblin region. Southwest. Dark forest."
Kyle: "Nythvare."
Yuuna: "That one's… actually kind of elegant."
Fahleena: "Tenebris Hollow of Whispering Grudges and Forgotten Pacts!"
A hush fell over the group. Even Gabyola, usually composed and quick to offer a diplomatic word, stood speechless with her mouth slightly open. Everyone slowly turned to her, as if expecting the voice of reason to intervene, or at least ask if they should be worried.
Kyle whispered, "I think the forest cursed her back."
Sakura stared at her muffin like it might be whispering.
Gigih: "Ghaz'nuloth."
Fuhiken pinched the bridge of his nose. "For the cow's sake, Gigih, we're naming a forest, not casting a summoning ritual."
"Final region," Fuhiken said, trying to reassert control. "Northeast. Centaur territory."
Kyle, ever reliable: "Aeltharan."
Yuuna: "Good flow. Slightly ancient-sounding. Fits well."
Fahleena: "The Endless Gallop Plain of the Thundering Hooflords of Skyward Honor!"
Silence settled again, thicker than before. Even the wind held its breath. Expressions around the circle ranged from horror to curiosity to muffled amusement.
Then the cow, grazing in the distance, lifted its head and let out a soft, prolonged angelic moo, as if weighing in on the matter.
Sakura: "Haycake Prairie."
Yuuna looked up slowly. "That's not even a food this time. Is it?"
"Maybe," Sakura replied innocently.
Gigih: "Sar'kalreth."
Yuuna: "Now you're just naming things from your sleep mumbling."
Fuhiken looked down at his now completely filled scroll. It was a tapestry of madness, chuunibyou incantations, dessert-themed suggestions, actual viable place names, and whatever language Gigih operated in.
He exhaled slowly. "Well. I guess Lucretia did say 'make it fun.'"
Yuuna tilted her head. "Fun is one word for it."
Fuhiken grinned and flipped the scroll to the back. "One more thing. Bonus quiz: What's the name of that white cow?"
As one, the group replied: "HOLY COW!"
The cow, as if summoned by fanfare, let out another gentle, radiant moo.
MOOOOOOOO.