Prediction Page, (bring your quatloos, gps, and internets, you'll need them.)

[Jasdoif]

I'm even more confused by your position now, because it sounds to me like you're agreeing with me, or at least offering evidence that supports my position.

Basically: you're describing a viable possibility, but one I don't think is concrete enough to be confident in treating it as the answer.

I see the facts as:
-Lirian and Dorukan cast the spell to seal the rift while Soon and Kraagor are still in danger.
-Soon remains safe, but Kraagor, per Girard, "die[s] in that rift."
-The rift is sealed, ending the battle.

So, again, I'm wondering how much time you think passes between #2 and #3. Because I think this is a relatively quick process, as opposed to something where the spell took an extended length of time, and Kraagor and Soon kept fighting valiantly but ultimately the former succumbed. (Among other things, if the spell took a long time, Kraagor and Soon would have a long time to get away from the rift before it closed, so the urgency of "Not until you're both clear!" doesn't make much sense to me.)

Why is "Soon remains safe" on #2? Wouldn't Kraagor's death mean Soon was still in danger of dying the same way? I mean, if Kraagor died (or was otherwise incapacitated) by Soon pushing him into the rift while running away or something, I think Girard would opt for "murderous" over "cowardly". And if the spell could be cast from a safe distance, what the heck were Kraagor and Soon doing so close to the rift?

I doubt all three of Kraagor's "removal", Soon's (apparent?) cowardice, and the rift's sealing happened in the same instant by coincidence...nor by correlation, as I doubt even more that sealing the rift could be responsible for both Kraagor and Soon. The two panels feel strongly of hinting at a convergence and letting the audience accept that by not lingering on it...much like the times the comic's hidden details to allow for a surprise reveal to recontextualize our understanding of events in the comic. Where the likelihood that this is another such time falls on the spectrum between implausibility and certainty, I suppose we all can only decide for ourselves.