Rean eyed the two newcomers warily. Although he had only seen the two from afar, both in Legram and during Misty's vision into the capital assault, he knew exactly who they were. The trap made it quite obvious that the two intimidating looking men held hostile intentions, but that oddly enough wasn't important in the moment.

These two men were from Zephyr. One of the most dangerous jaeger corps on the continent, and most importantly, at least in his opinion, members of Fie's old family.

That fact was made even more obvious when the two men leapt from their position on top of the gateway and landed on the ground with casual ease - despite it being a drop that would kill most humans - in an acrobatic display he once saw from his silver-haired girlfriend. They seemed completely at ease, despite the tense atmosphere, a stark contrast to the very worried students and bracer.

"Long time no see, Fie. A year-ish, I guess?" Cheerfully spoke the taller of the two, a lanky man with light hair. Both he and his companion were wearing uniforms suited for the battlefield, with the most obvious feature being the Zephyr logo above the left breast. They also were wearing spec glasses. "Haha. Still pint-sized, but you've grown a bit taller, at least."

Despite being a little shorter, next to him stood an absolute bear of a man. His darker skin and dark hair proved a contrast to his companion, but the way he stood and acted made it quite clear that the two were close. "Her muscular strength, reflexes, and agility have also remarkably improved. There's no stopping the flow of time, I suppose."

Despite their nonchalant attitude Toval was quick to draw his ARCUS and warn the others to be prepared, not that Rean needed the warning after his earlier conversation with Fie. He didn't yet draw his blade as he wanted this conversation to happen, for Fie's sake if nothing else. That being said, he would not allow his guard to drop one bit – After sparring against Fie many times he had developed a rather painful understanding of jaeger opportunism.

"C'mon. There's no need to be so on guard." The taller man spoke mirthfully as he glanced in their direction. "We just wanna enjoy our long-awaited reunion with an old friend and comrade. How 'bout you, Fie? Miss us?"

Said girl finally reunited with the group after having made her impressive sprint to save Machias. "You're the same as ever. Although if you keep using traps to kick off reunion parties, you won't have any friends left before long." Despite the deadpan reply and neutral expression the swordsman felt he had gained a better understanding of the girl, enough to tell just how bothered she was with the current situation. Unfortunately now was not the time to talk with her about it, but he would make sure to find that time, assuming they made it out of this situation in one piece.

"Ahh, don't be like that. That's just my way of sayin' hi. Thought it'd bring you back to the good ol' days when you used to play with 'em for practice. And I only set the one, so gimme a break, okay?"

"Well, whatever." Fie replied, as if the jaeger hadn't just tried to blow up their friend. She turned her eyes upon the quiet behemoth. "You look good, Leo. I'm glad."

Said man closed his eyes and crossed his arms. "Well, we haven't changed half as much in the span of a year as you did. Adults have a lot less room for growing, after all." For some reason the jaeger sort of reminded Rean of his own master with words like that. That just made him even more wary of the man.

"I'm already sixteen, you know." Naturally, he knew Fie would be rather annoyed at being treated like a child by these two. Still, that annoyance died quickly as the girl hesitated before asking the question he knew had been bothering her for so long. "Where have you two been all this time? I tried to find out where you'd gone after you all disappeared, but it was like you'd vanished from the continent."

If she thought Leo would give a real answer she was to be disappointed. "...Who knows?"

"Anyways, let's let the past stay in the past, yeah?" Their attempts at changing the subject couldn't be more obvious, but without the strength needed to force the jaegers to talk there wasn't much they could do about it. Perhaps that was why Fie didn't say anything, although her frustration was apparent.

"So, you up to anything fun?" The tall one continued at her silence. "We're givin' the Noble Alliance guys lessons on how to pilot those Soldats better these days. It ain't the most exciting gig in the world. They're not interested in learning from a couple of jaegers... but they suck at piloting them even when they do listen, so whatever."

Machias finally seemed to have recovered from the previous events and made his way to the rest of them. Rean felt kinda bad as he had completely forgot to check to make sure his friend was alright thanks to the current conversation. "These two are jaegers, right? They sure don't seem that way." The vice-president whispered in confusion.

"Well, they're old friends of Fie's..." Elliot was understating it. Rean had only heard a few stories from the quiet girl, but all of them made it clear just how important Zephyr was to her.

And how dangerous, too. Toval at least understood that much as never once did he let his attention waver from the two. "They might seem friendly, but don't let your guard down. Zephyr's up there together with the Red Constellation as one of the strongest corps in Zemuria. They're the real deal."

Celine scoffed, clearly unconvinced, but Rean could feel it. The lackadaisical attitude of the two jaegers did little to hide their power or experience. The reason they were so relaxed was because they didn't think that Class VII gave them reason to worry. And that was enough to make Rean worry.

And unfortunately, it seemed the time to put their confidence to the test was rapidly approaching. "'Kay, I think we'd better wrap up the family reunion. Wish we could catch up with you a little while longer..." The taller one said with the tiniest hint of regret. "...but unfortunately, we've got a job to do, and work takes priority."

"To confirm, you have no intention of withdrawing?"

Although the situation could not have been pleasant for Fie, her resolve was stronger by far. "None. We're here with conflicting goals. That makes us enemies. And that gives us no choice but to fight with everything we've got."

The jaeger let out a short laugh. "Trust you to know how this works."

The two proceeded to draw their weapons, and they were unlike anything Rean had ever seen before. "What kind of weapons are those?"

"A blade rifle and a mechanized gauntlet?" Toval didn't sound entirely sure of his answer, but that was what it looked like to Rean. Both weapons were taller than he was and although unknown in nature, were both clearly weapons designed to win battles.

"All right! Let's have some fun! You ready, kiddos?"

"Fight with everything you have." Leo warned the assembled group. "Unless you want to end up in as many pieces as this fortress."

Class VII drew their weapons and prepared for the upcoming fight. "These two served as regimental commanders back in the corps." Fie warned them without ever taking her eyes off the two. "Our odds of winning are thirty percent at best. Don't hold back."

Rean felt a few glances directed towards him and understood that the others wanted instruction. But he also knew he wasn't the one most qualified to provide leadership for this battle. He sent a pointed look her way.

It was a good thing the two jaegers weren't immediately attacking as it gave the youngest member of their group a precious few seconds to come up with a strategy. "If Leo gets close to you, you're dead. Elliot, Machias, Toval, do what you can to keep him at range. Rean and me will handle Xeno. He'll try and pin us with traps before sniping us, so move fast."

"Right! Class VII! Follow Fie's lead and give it everything you've got!"

Forming a combat link with the girl he was right behind her as they dashed towards the one he now knew was named Xeno. A powerful art from Toval forced the two jaegers to separate, spreading the battle into two smaller ones. Hopefully the veteran bracer would be able to guide Machias and Elliot in their own battle as he had a feeling he would be too focused on his own.

Xeno wasn't at all nonplussed by the two youths charging towards him, weapons at the ready. With almost casual speed he pulled out a handful of mini-javelins and tossed them forward. Landing on the ground the swordsman was quick to note that these seemed to be some kind of explosive devices. Warily, he halted his charge.

Fie, however, did not. "Timed fuses!" She yelled out as she took a swipe at the nearest one. Rean understood immediately. If they had proximity fuses that meant they couldn't risk getting close, but as they were timed they could do so, so long as they destroyed them quickly. He had no idea how long they had, but as he followed his partner's lead and took out one himself he could only hope that they either get them all in time, or were quick enough to notice one about to detonate and escape the blast.

He was forced to abort his next attack as his senses warned him to evade immediately. The intermediate swordsman knew well enough to trust that sense and took a dive. It was a good thing, too, as a bullet passed by the spot he had just been standing. A quick glance showed that Xeno now had his massive rifle pointed at him and he needed to keep moving.

Being at the mercy of a skilled gunner, especially one holding a rifle that massive, was a terrifying prospect. It was all Rean could do to avoid being riddled with holes. Thankfully the barrage was halted as Fie, having dealt with the last of the mines, was finally able to attack the jaeger directly. Her twin gunblades clashed with his oversized blade rifle displaying the almost comical difference in the size of their respective weapons. Undeterred, Fie merely took a step back and used the advantage of her smaller weapons by firing a shot at him from point blank.

Instead of dodging, he simply took the attack head on, grunting in annoyance as the bullet connected, but otherwise looking completely unharmed by her shot. This freed him to launch a wide arcing swing of his blade, which Fie had to flip away from to avoid. Now with some distance between them he once again trained his rifle upon them, this time gunning for his former Zephyr member.

Although he trusted in the slippery girl's ability to stay ahead of Xeno's aim, he had no intention of leaving her to handle it by herself. Switching to the second form he put forth a burst of speed as he attempted to close the gap. The jaeger saw him coming, but didn't seem inclined to lose his bead on Fie as he kept his rifle trained on her, giving the swordsman an opening.

Or at least that's what he thought. What actually ended up happening was Xeno displaying a frankly absurd level of strength as he kept his rifle held up and firing with a single arm. His now freed hand was once again holding more of those explosive javelins, which he proceeded to launch towards Rean, ruining any opening he thought he had.

It only took a simple Gale for him to slice all the javelins out of the air before they landed, but doing so was enough to halt his momentum towards Xeno. The jaeger didn't seem keen on letting him recover, either, as while Rean was distracted he had closed the distance and was now bearing down on the swordsman, blade rifle in mid-swing. Desperately Rean ducked, narrowly avoiding the clean shave, but found himself open as Xeno gave him a powerful kick, sending him on a painful flight away.

Although Rean was completely open during that moment, Xeno was unable to follow it up as Fie, now no longer under fire, was quick to reengage with a flurry of quick blows. It was enough to force their opponent onto the defensive, but as the swordsman recovered he could tell that Xeno didn't look particularly pressed by her combo. He seemed to be rather enjoying Fie's assault, actually.

As Xeno didn't seem all that inclined to push his advantage Rean took the moment to spare a glance towards the other battle taking place. As Fie had warned, the three other members of their group had taken to engaging Leo at range, with the bracer facing his jaeger rival head on while the two less experienced fighters did their best to support him with bullet and art from the flanks. From what he could glance, they were faring a lot better than he himself was as they had been keeping Leo at bay, but despite the three to one advantage it was clear that they were still struggling to get past that massive gauntlet to land a real hit on the large man.

Rean felt a warning through the ARCUS link he shared with Fie and instinctively dodged away from the blow he didn't know was coming. Somehow, despite being trapped in melee with Fie, Xeno had managed to square up a shot on the momentarily distracted swordsman. Putting the other fight out of mind Rean hurried to support his partner.

The painful reality was that they were at a deadlock. Xeno alone was far more powerful than either of them and savvy enough to keep them from coordinating their attacks. That being said, he couldn't exploit any opening he could make as they were doing their best to keep the other covered. Although calling it a deadlock was optimistic. Xeno didn't at all appear to be tiring.

"Let's change things up a bit, yeah?" And of course, jaegers don't fight fair. He understood this well from his fights against Fie, but it was proven once again as Xeno took aim towards him... only he realized at the last second that he wasn't actually aimed towards him. "Watch out!" He warned the others in their fight behind him, but it was far too late.

Thankfully, at his core Machias was a very cautious and defensive fighter. So instead of the powerful bullet piercing through Toval's chest, it merely shattered the earthen barrier that had been previously applied to him. That being said, although the impact failed to hurt the bracer, it was enough to knock him off his feet and remove him from the fight briefly.

And to make matters worse, despite not having an ARCUS unit Leo seemed to have been expecting his partner's move and was already taking advantage of the opening. Machias, being the closer of the two remaining, was unprepared for Leo's sudden charge and got himself backhanded by the massive gauntlet for his efforts. Like Toval before him, he was guarded by an earthen wall, and while it was enough to keep the impact from smashing every bone in his body, it wasn't enough to prevent the son of the governor from being sent into the ground painfully where he struggled to stir.

With both Toval and Machias out of commission, and Elliot needed to get them back on their feet, the situation was looking bleaker and bleaker. He could try and intercept Leo to protect his friends while they recovered, but from what Fie had stated Leo was even stronger up close than Xeno, who had easily been holding the two of them off by himself. No, they needed more...

Once again he prepared himself for a Spirit Unification. He wasn't sure if it would be enough to beat the two elites, but at the very least he should be able to buy enough time for the others to recover. Once that happened they could-

"Wait! Rean!" Fie was by his side at an instant, a look of concern on her face. "Don't use it. Not here." To further impede him she placed her hands on his tachi over his.

"Huh?" He trusted her, but at the same time he was awfully confused. Wasn't the whole purpose of their early training sessions to help him control his power? And it certainly seemed like now was a good time for it given that they were definitely on the losing end.

She shook her head. "They're still not taking us seriously." It clearly left a bitter taste in her mouth to admit that. "If you choose to escalate now..."

He understood. If he used his power than the jaegers would almost certainly respond in kind. And even if he could keep up with them going all out, which he was personally doubtful of, what about the others? Toval could probably do the same with his skill and experience. Fie was resourceful enough to at least survive, but as for the others...

With a sigh he relented, putting a lid on his energy before it could truly make a difference. He gave a wry smile at the girl who provided one in return. "You know we're screwed, right?"

Actually, come to think of it, why hadn't the jaegers attacked during these past few seconds? Looking away from Fie he noticed that both seemed to have stopped what they were doing as they stared blankly at the two students. No, that wasn't quite right. They seemed to be staring a little lower. He followed their gazes down to where she was still holding his hands in her own.

Oh. Crap.

"Hey! You there! Fie called you Rean, yeah? That would make you Rean Schwarzer?" Even during the battle Xeno never really emanated hostile intent towards them as it was merely a job to be done, but now was a completely different story.

Leo's face too looked harsher than he could previously recall seeing. "Duke Cayenne and Vita have both mentioned you. It's... nice to finally meet you." He all but spat the word 'nice' out.

"O-Oh... Haha... S-Same to you?" It was all Rean could do to stutter out that simple greeting. And just doing that was hard enough! If only he could go back to simpler times when the two men were simply trying to kill him because it was their job.

Unlike him Fie seemed completely nonplussed by the situation. "As funny as this is..." Traitor! "Do we really need to do this right now?"

"Aww, c'mon Fie. This is important! What's going on between the two of-"

"What do you all think you're doing?!" The trap master was interrupted by a booming voice from a speaker. Zephyr and Class VII alike turned and watched as a group of Panzer Soldats entered the fortress from the same direction they had come from.

Rean let out a sigh of relief. "...Oh thank Aidios." Seeing the Provincial Army arrive in force should have been a cause for concern, but Rean couldn't deny being extremely grateful to see them. Beside him Fie snorted in obvious amusement at his relief.

"S-Soldats...?!" Elliot's worry was probably the more sane reaction.

"The one at the front is like the Soldat Scarlet was piloting near Trista...!" Indeed, Machias was right. A blue Spiegel was leading a trio of Drakkhens. The group of four machines came to a halt in front of the two groups, putting a halt to their battle. "What are they doing coming from the byroad?!"

As ever, it was Fie who connected the dots first. "...I get it now. The attack from the Transcontinental Railroad was just a diversion. They were intending to launch a surprise attack from the flank all along." And Class VII was right in their way. Great.

"What are civilians doing here?" One of the trail pilots asked as it surveyed the battlefield.

"Or Zephyr for that matter?"

"First you disappear when you're supposed to be taking part in our operation, and then you wind up here?!" It seemed that the two jaegers were in trouble for following them. For some reason Rean couldn't find it in him to feel bad for them. "Begone! You're in our way!" For a brief second the swordsman worried that the two wouldn't comply, but grudgingly the two used their insane acrobatics to leap away and scale the gatehouse, presumably to continue watching.

Well, that was one danger gone, but now they needed to deal with four soldats. That was actually an improvement in Rean's mind. The others looked to him for an idea and he had one to give. A quick glance towards Celine earned him a nod, confirming that the cat was thinking on the same lines that he was.

Sheathing his tachi he began to focus on the pleasant energy within him. "Stand back, everyone."

"Are you...?

"Wait..."

"You're gonna call Valimar?" Although they had only seen it happen once, the other members of Class VII immediately understood his intention.

It was odd. Despite it only having been a few days since he woke from his coma, his opinion on his mechanical partner had changed completely. At first it was another burden that he had been saddled with, and the main reason why Class VII had been scattered across the country. Rean resented him.

"Heed my call... Valimar, the Ashen Knight!" But now? Now it felt completely natural. As if they had been partners for a lifetime. With Valimar at his side and Class VII at his back perhaps they could find a way through the maelstrom that was currently consuming Erebonia.

It was remarkable. He had left Valimar back in the nature park when he first arrived and they had spent much of the day traveling across eastern Erebonia to the border, and yet he could feel Valimar's presence as he covered that entire distance in a matter of seconds. Already the enemy soldats were looking around in confusion as they heard the approach of the superior machine. Confusion that soon gave way to nervous worry as they beheld the Ashen Knight in all its glory.

"Sorry for leaving this to you, Rean! We're counting on you!" Toval, having witnessed the spectacle himself back near Ymir, was the only one of his allies not overcome by shock. Normally the burden of expectation would weigh heavy on the young noble's shoulders, but as he and Celine boarded the Divine Knight Rean wasn't at all concerned. Sure, Valimar was unarmed, which seemed to give the nobles some confidence as they advanced on him, but he had already fought and bested Scarlet in her Spiegel despite having no experience as a pilot. His experienced gaze was easily able to tell that none of his opponents moved with the skill or confidence of the ILF leader. He wasn't so arrogant to underestimate them, but at the same time he was confident enough to understand that the two Drakkhens moving to engage were not a significant threat.

Still, he could be in some trouble if the Spiegel and the other Drakkhen got involved, and there was always the chance of enemy reinforcements, so he needed to be quick. And to do that he needed a sword. So wasn't it fortunate that his opponents were all so willing to offer up their own?

Valimar lurched forward, stopping their charge with one of his own. The two soldats, not expecting such an action, were slow to react. The nearest one launched a fumbling slash with it's sword, but Rean flowed around it without a second thought. The other was even slower and had just raised its sword to strike. That one was the target.

Since it worked so well against Scarlet, Rean once again turned to his Destructive Impact unarmed technique to get the job done. The end result was just the same as the attack instantly disarmed the mech and sent it collapsing to the ground in a heap. The sword it once held soared lazily through the air before being plucked away by Valimar's outstretched hand. A cursory glance at the blade showed just how unimpressive it actually was, even compared to Scarlet's own weapon. Just a massive hunk of steel that seemed about as useful as a club. Still, that was an improvement over his fists so he would take it, even if a small part of his mind worried that such a blade would be next to useless if Crow arrived in his own machine.

"Heh! Nicely done, Rean." Oh he actually managed to impress Celine. That was a pleasant surprise.

The two remaining Drakkhens began to move forward, but they seemed a lot more hesitant after that initial exchange of blows. In the distance he could see more soldats rolling into view, which was slightly concerning, but Rean was still confident in his ability to hold them off. The enemy commander, despite having the best machine on their side, was still hanging back like a coward. "This is where the real battle begins!" He proclaimed, pointing his new weapon at his adversaries.

Down at the ground below Fie and the others watched the battle unfold. So far so good. Even were his Divine Knight not a lot cooler than the soldats the nobles were using the skill difference between the pilots was obvious. Xeno had said that the nobles sucked and she was seeing it firsthand. Although more soldats were entering the fray there were no doubts in her mind that Rean had the situation under control.

Her thoughts trailed off as she noticed that once again her ARCUS unit was glowing. Once again she had formed a link with Rean and Valimar. This quickly caught the attention of the others. Machias frowned as he looked at her orbment."It's just like back at Trista..."

"How are you doing that?" Elliot asked in confusion.

How had she done it? "Dunno. I just... believed in Rean, I guess?" She cringed internally. That had to have been the cheesiest thing she had ever said in her life. She blamed the swordsman in question for effecting such a change onto her.

And yet, despite the corniness of her words, it seemed to have had an effect as after a few seconds of looking at her like she was weird, their own orbments soon began to glow just like hers. She was pretty sure that 'lending power to Divine Knights' was not part of the ARCUS's description, but there were a lot of weird things involving the combat links and she didn't care enough to question it. As long as it helped Rean win that was all that mattered.

Back inside Valimar Rean, now feeling the enhanced power his friends were providing, looked to his furry companion in confusion. He had noticed the connection he gained to Laura and Fie during his battle against Crow, but hadn't had the time to process it. Now was as good a time as any. "Do you know anything about this?"

"Nope." Celine muttered with little interest before focusing her attention on licking her fur. Rean couldn't help but sweatdrop at that disinterest. Still, he was pretty sure she was being genuine about not knowing, so he just had to roll with it for now and accept his newly acquired advantage.

From what little he understood, although all three of his classmates were connected, he could only make use of one of them at a time, but could seamlessly switch between them. As he already had some experience with what Fie had to offer he allowed his link with Elliot to shine as he engaged the first Drakkhen.

He was not at all surprised to find that the timid healer's water affinity once again came to play. Already he could feel what little stamina he had already expended begin to return to him. It was a handy ability, especially as a Drakkhen with a rifle grazed him with a round, but not something he felt he needed against opponents of this level. To accentuate that point Valimar, in one clean motion, disarmed another soldat that had been approaching - both figuratively and literally.

Machias – equally unsurprisingly – lived up to his stalwart defensive reputation by providing Valimar with the power of earth. Again, like Elliot's link before him, Rean didn't see the need for a defensive fighter against Drakkhens, no matter how many sought to oppose him.

Despite that, there was something Rean had noted about these links and now was as good a time as any to investigate further. It was a familiar sensation, not unlike what he felt just prior to casting an art. Rean guided Valimar's arm out as if he were about to utilize his ARCUS while channeling the energy from his link. As he had expected, Valimar responded by unleashing a powerful earth art upon a hapless noble, causing his machine to collapse to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut. The Awakener couldn't help but be in awe at all the different things his Divine Knight was capable of.

"Th-This can't be happening...!" The Kreuzen Army pilots seemed to be less in awe and more terrified beyond their wits after the quick battle. Even though more enemy soldats had arrived during the battle none dared to engage understanding just how futile such a move would be.

Although Rean knew that excessive confidence was a danger on the battlefield, given how low the enemies morale was he decided to see if he couldn't compel them to retreat. "Well? What's it to be? We can do this all day if you're still not ready to give up!" Technically not as Valimar would run out of mana eventually, but they didn't need to know that.

"Ugh...!" The enemy commander seemed desperate to regain control of the situation as his pilots fearfully backed away from Valimar. "This battle isn't over yet! We still have the advantage in numbers! If we can surround him, victory will be ours!"

Rean sighed. The damned fool. He prepared himself for the next pointless battle.

"Enough!" But found it unnecessary as a booming voice put a halt to all action. One that filled the nobles with dread, Class VII with confidence, and Elliot with relief. All eyes turned to the fortress as the heavy tanks of the 4th armored rolled into view, with General Olaf Craig riding atop the lead vehicle. Caught completely unawares the soldats were ill-prepared for the new enemy and multiple machines fell to the opening salvo from their main cannons.

"How are they here?! They're supposed to be dealing with the force from the Transcontinental Railroad!"

Elliot's father was kind enough to answer. "Nah! Nothing more than a small diversion. And I suggest you turn and run off with your tails between your legs if you don't want to share their fate! Unless you men think you can handle the might of the 4th Armored Division!" Perhaps it was less kindness and more a desire to intimidate the enemy into submission.

"Ugh... Curse you, Craig!" With Valimar in their midst and elite tanks at his back there was only one possible outcome. Despite that, the enemy officer refused to accept the reality of the situation. "Fine. If that's how you want to play, we'll just have to call-"

Presumably he was about to call for reinforcements, but that statement was rendered moot when a bullet slammed into the top of the Spiegel's head. Although it wasn't able to pierce the armor of the mech, it had been aimed precisely enough to knock out the radio sensor, thus preventing it from communicating with anyone far away.

Both Class VII and the Kreuzen pilots strained their eyes looking for the sniper in question. Given the trajectory of the shot it had to have come from the top of the fortress, but the distance was impossibly large. The only thing that Rean and the others could make out was a hint of blue and there was only one person he knew who fit that description and was capable of making a shot like that.

The first to accept the inevitable were the two from Zephyr. "We're takin' off, Fie! See ya some other time, 'kay?"

"We will meet again soon. And Schwarzer? Next time we are going to sit down and have a nice long chat."

Despite still being inside of an ancient all-powerful weapon of war the target of their ire couldn't help but feel like prey in that moment. Still, as he watched the two depart he did his best to dismiss the threat. They were on opposite sides in the middle of a war, so what were the odds that he would ever find himself sitting down and chatting pleasantly with the two jaegers?

...For some reason that wasn't nearly as reassuring as he wanted it to be.

"Who do those damn jaegers think they are to retreat without orders?!" The enemy commander tried to put up a brave front, but he along with everyone else knew the battle was over. "All units, fall back! We're returning to the Twin Dragons Bridge!" The other soldats were rather eager to follow that order and one by one every soldat still capable of moving made their exodus from that battlefield, securing the victory for Class VII and the 4th Armored Division.

Most of the others were waiting for him as he and Celine exited from his Divine Knight. The one exception was Elliot, who had left to go greet his father. Together they followed in their friend's path as they went to rendezvous with the soldiers.

"Dad! Thank goodness you're all right!" Although his issues with Craig the Red were well known to all, none of that changed the fact that Elliot loved his father and it was a heartwarming scene to see them finally reunited. Toval seemed to be in awe of the famous general and while he certainly did look the part, the three students couldn't help but share a grin as they knew exactly what was coming.

"Elliot! Oh, my beloved gift from Aidios!" The mighty general ran forward and tried to catch his son in a hug, but the younger Craig deftly ducked and dodged the attack. "Wh-Wh-Why did you duck? Come here into your father's loving embrace."

"...Huh. Not a bad move." Fie, ever the professional evader, couldn't help but show her appreciation.

Rean couldn't help but laugh as they watched the father finally hug his son. It had been an ordeal, but somehow everything had turned out alright. One trip was finished, but he still had two more to go before Class VII was back together.