A month had passed since Rean's introduction to the Bracer life and things had started to become routine for him. Not that that was a bad thing, as helping people was something he loved doing, especially when it happened alongside the one who brought him true happiness. Still, he wouldn't mind if something exciting were to happen...

The two had decided to remain on standby that day, leaving the simple requests to the less experienced Bracers while they relaxed in the Guild Hall in case something more dangerous arrived. Normally this would be fun, as it gave them extra time for themselves. Today, however...

"...And he had the gall to say that I wasn't worth the trouble! The nerve of that man!"

"What is going on?" A bewildered Rean whispered to his grinning partner.

"When Sara's date inevitably flops she has to vent. Toval has been discussing getting a popcorn machine installed here 'cause it is always prime entertainment."

"And what are the two of you whispering about?" Their former teacher asked with narrow eyes.

"It's just, um, wouldn't the date have gone better if you didn't start a bar fight and knock out two guys?" Rean asked.

"What? And how else was I supposed to show off my cool moves? I wasn't expecting the guy to be such a wimp and get all jealous of my strength though."

"...Pretty sure that wasn't the issue."

While Rean tried to convince the elder Bracer with logic and wisdom, Fie decided to antagonize her through actions. Sliding her chair closer to her partner, she took his hand in her own and rested her head on his shoulder. Responding to the contact Rean instinctively wrapped his arm around the girl, pulling her closer and causing her to smile in contentment as she relaxed into the embrace. This of course causes Sara to narrow her eyes dangerously as she witnessed such a disgustingly sweet display if affection.

"Now Fie," Rean reprimanded with a kind innocent expression on his face, "you really shouldn't rub in how awesome and perfect our relationship is. You should be more supportive of her after her many... many... many failures."

"You both suck so much! I hate you all!" The older woman shouted with a frustrated pout. "I figured you would be nicer to me after all we went through together, Rean."

"Maybe you should have thought about it before you forced a student to do all your work for you." He replied with a shrug, feeling absolutely no guilt for his actions.

"That's Sara for you. Always getting other people to do her work. And she wonders why she has no luck with relationships."

They couldn't tell if the older woman was about to attack them in anger or collapse in absolute defeat, as the guild phone rang at that very moment. Shooting her former students one final scathing glare that they easily ignored, the A-Rank Bracer went to answer the call.

"Erebonia Bracer Guild. This is Sara... Oh, Michel, it's been a while... Wenzel wants to come back?... And Scott?... I have two in mind, let me check with them and get back to you." She hung up the phone and turned back to the two.

"Fie I know you have wanted to travel outside of Erebonia for a while now. Still up for it?"

"Huh? Now? But I thought the situation was too crazy for that?"

"Normally yes, but that was Michel, the receptionist for the Crossbell Branch. Apparently Wenzel; an Erebonian Bracer who moved to Crossbell after the government shut us down, and a close friend of me and Toval, is interested in coming back for a while so he can have more time to catch up with us and visit his family. His partner Scott is also interested, as his wife has wanted to take a trip here for a while."

"Of course the situation in Crossbell is even more hectic than it is here, they can't just let two veteran Bracers leave like that. So Michel proposed an exchange: Two of theirs for two of ours. I wanted you two to have first crack at it." Also she was sick of their teasing and wanted to be rid of them.

Fie was stunned. Sure it was something she had been wanting to do for a while, but that was before Rean joined the Guild. She had never discussed the idea with him as she didn't expect the opportunity to come so quickly. Would he even want to go? A couple months away from home just after he gained the freedom of Bracer...

"Let's do it!" Apparently he did. She turned to him with wide eyes, causing him to elaborate. "I can tell how much you want to do this. And I want to see what this new free Crossbell looks like with my own eyes." That made sense, considering how heavy his role in the occupation had weighed on him.

"B-but what about all your friends? Your family?"

"They will all be here when we get back." He reassured. "Plus, we have friends in Crossbell City that I want to visit."

"He just wants to go to a place where not everybody recognizes his face as the famous Ashen Chevalier." Sara piped in. It was a small victory after their earlier abuse, but the traumatized look he shot her was worth it. "Although I hear you are still pretty popular over there, so don't get your hopes up."

"Alright, if you are sure..."

"I am. You don't need to worry about me. As long as I am with you I'm happy."

"Aidios will you kids knock it off with the sappy shit?" Even when they weren't trying they still managed to piss her off! She was so jealous! "Alright, if the two of you are in agreement. I will let Michel know you have agreed. Usually these transfers take a few days so you have time to contact people and make shipping arrangements and all that."


It was the evening when they finally returned to their apartment, having spent the afternoon doing a few final missions before the transfer. They began making plans for their temporary move to Crossbell. It was during this discussion that Fie came to a decision.

"Let's ditch this place." She stated, causing Rean to shoot her a confused look. Instantly understanding his thoughts she elaborated. "I don't mean for these months, I mean forever. When we get back we can look for a a better place. One for a family."

Rean thought the idea had merit. Sure neither of them wanted to settle down for a while, but both were very interested in a distant future filled with silver-haired fuchsia-eyed kids running amok in a nice little house. Eventually they might end up in the Schwarzer manor, but that would likely be very far in the future and not something he wanted to think about now.

"Sure, that sounds great. I have plenty of storage space in Ymir for all the stuff we aren't bringing to Crossbell. Gonna be a pain cleaning this place out in a couple days, though..."


The next few days were hectic. First came the packing. They organized everything into three groups: Things that were going to storage in the Schwarzer mansion, things that Sara agreed to ship to Crossbell once they were settled, and the smallest pile which were the essentials they would bring with them directly.

After that came contacting all their friends and Rean's family. While everyone was generally supportive of the temporary move, most of them expressed some level of disappointment that they would be out of contact for a while. The only ones that weren't told were Juna and the rest of their Crossbell friends, as Rean wanted it to be a surprise.

Before long the day of the move had arrived. Fie felt no real sentimentality towards her apartment, so she wasn't sad when she gave up the key for good. With that done the two made a quick stop to the Guild to bid farewell to Sara and Toval. After that the two made their way to the station, thankful for the sidecar on the bike as it allowed them to bring all their luggage with them in a single trip. Once there they paid to have the bike transported with them, bought their tickets, and loaded onto the train with all their luggage.

The ride on the transcontinental railroad was uneventful, and before long they found themselves passing through the rebuilt Garrelia Fortress and through Bellguard Gate into Crossbell State proper. It was a trip that Rean had taken many times as the Ashen Chevalier or as the Instructor to New Class VII. For Fie it was her first trip by rail, as her previous visits to Crossbell City all came via airship. Before long the massive city came into view and the duo waited for the inspector before departing.

Surprisingly, despite their previous actions, Erebonians were more welcome in Crossbell than probably any other country. Despite the occupation, many Crossbellians benefited from Erebonian coin and the influx of Erebonian citizens who moved there. For them it was most convenient to just blame Giliath Osborne and Rufus Albarea and turn a blind eye to the actions of the rest.

It also helped that in the wake of the Great Twilight Calvard made a huge misstep and attempted a return to the status quo. Their declaration of continued suzerainty over Crossbell backfired greatly when Prince Olivert and the Imperial Government declared their full support for a fully independent Crossbell. This was a stark reminder that Erebonia weren't the only threat towards the nascent nation.

This wasn't to say that Erebonians were completely free of suspicion. The many decades of misdeeds were hard to forget and people were still wary of those who came from the Empire. Luckily Rean and Fie had the advantage of being members of an international organization known for being politically non-aligned, an organization that was especially popular in Crossbell, despite its luster having faded somewhat in recent years.

The trek through Crossbell was interesting. Although physically the city hadn't changed much, the place certainly felt more alive than it had. Central Square was especially lively, but it was the reactivated Special Support Section Annex that caught their attention the most. Not wanting to take any detours this early in their trip the two continued past and turned onto East Street and the Crossbell Bracer Guild.

"Welcome to the Bracer Guild. Is there something I can help you... ah." The receptionist stated as they walked through the door. "If you dears are who I think you are, you aren't here to place a mission request, are you?"

If there was one word to describe Receptionist Michel, it would be flamboyant. He was dressed in a loosely buttoned pink shirt and wore purple pants. His hair was done in cornrows and he was adorned in jewelry and gold chains.

"Right. Rean Schwarzer, D-Rank Bracer, reporting for duty." He responded formally.

"Fie Claussell. B-Rank. Sup?" Fie on the other hand was a lot more informal.

"Fie!" Her companion hissed to her.

"What? He doesn't look like he gives a damn about formality."

"Still, you can only make one first impression..."

Their back and forth was ended as the receptionist started laughing boisterously. "Haha! It's so wonderful to have new blood here. I have heard such wonderful things about you two from Sara and Toval. Still, don't expect to have it easy cause the two of you are such darling little celebrities. I intend to work the two of you to the bone!" He finished with a wink.

"That's fine by me."

"Not too hard, okay?" Michel just grinned as he watched Rean gently elbow his younger, but more experienced partner for her response. He could already tell he was going to like these two.

"Is that a new mission I hear?" A female voice called from the second floor. All eyes turned to the stairs as a pair of older girls appeared. Based on the way they were dressed and equipment they were using it was obvious that the two were also Bracers.

"Oh. I guess not." Said the same woman who spoke previously. She had medium length indigo hair and wore a form-fitting eastern outfit. She wore bandages around her arms and everything about her screamed 'martial artist' to the Erebonians.

"Oh my. And what do we have here?" Asked the second. Her long lilac hair swayed under a green beret as she approached. She wore a teal coat over a shirt, dress, and tights. Throwing knives were visible on her, giving a good idea of her combat focus.

"Ah, Lynn, Aeolia. Let me introduce you to our newest members, just arrived from Erebonia."

"So these are the new guys? Gotta admit, you look pretty tough." Lynn decided after looking them over.

"Aren't you the most adorable little thing?" Aeolia asked as she approached Fie and captured the smaller girl in a tight hug. "You're almost as cute as Tio! I think I will keep you for myself."

"Rean. Help." Fie deadpanned as she struggled against the older woman. Despite appearances she was pretty strong!

"Sorry Fie, but she's right. You are pretty adorable."

Lynn groaned. "Aeolia, let her go. I'm so sorry for her actions. Sometimes I think there is something very wrong with her.

Having finally freed herself from the crazy hugging woman Fie made a strategic retreat and hid herself behind Rean, using him as a human shield. Aeolia sighed as her prize escaped her. "Aww, don't be like that. I just want to shower you in hugs and kisses."

"Ahem. I'm Rean Schwarzer and this is my partner, Fie Claussell. It is a pleasure to meet you." He stated in a blatant attempt to change the topic from whatever it had been.

"Same. Angelica has told me a lot about you guys."

"Oh? You know Angelica." Given his first observation of Lynn... "Are you another Taito practitioner?" She confirmed his assumption with a nod. 'If she knows Angelica and this crazy girl is her partner...' "You have my deepest sympathies."

Lynn seemed to understand what he was getting at and let out a deep sigh. "Thanks. It usually isn't this bad. She is actually a pretty capable person when she isn't distracted by cute things."

"Hey! How rude!" Aeolia shouted in indignation. "Still, it is nice to meet you. I look forward to working alongside you."

"Same. As long as she stays far away with the hugs and kisses. That's a Rean privilege." Fie said, having finally abandoned her hiding spot behind her partner.

"We actually have one more Bracer working here, but sadly he is away in Remiferia on a mission. A shame too, cause he was looking forward to meeting you. Still, you should see him in the next day or two." Michel interjected.

Rean couldn't help but be excited to finally meet Arios MacLaine. He had heard much about the elder swordsman from his master and from his work with the intelligence division. "Looking forward to it. What do you want us to do today?" He asked.

"For now, just focus on settling in and finding a place to stay. I got a list of vacant buildings from Orchis Tower this morning so you should have an idea where to look. I want the two of you here bright and early tomorrow so I can see what you're made of~." He finished with a sing-song voice.

"Sure. We can do that." Fie stated easily enough, but internally was wondering why were the Crossbell Bracers so weird? Although thinking about it Erebonia was no better in that regard. Maybe older Bracers were destined to end up strange? She vowed to keep an eye on Rean just in case their weirdness started to affect him.

Finding an apartment proved especially easy, as the Acacia complex just down the street from the Bracer Guild had vacancies and the landlord was known for accommodating Bracers for short stints. While not the largest of apartments, it was bigger than Fie's old single person apartment and would be more than sufficient for their needs. After unpacking their meager possessions and messaging Sara so she could ship their stuff over, the two stopped for a quick dinner at a noodle stand in the Harbor District before retiring for the evening.


Juna Crawford hummed happily to herself as she and her companions continued their morning patrol around the city. The month since graduation had been kind to the girl as she finally got to live her dream of being a member of the Special Support Section. It was busy work, but she couldn't help but be reminded of her field studies.

"Let's stop by the Bracer Guild and see if Michel has any news for us." Lloyd stated as they entered East Street. They didn't have many support requests for the day so perhaps they had extra work they wouldn't mind sharing. While the friendly rivalry between the Bracers and SSS still existed, both groups were more than willing to work with each other for the betterment of the city and its people.

"Sure, that sounds good." Elie replied.

"I'm sure Tio Tot is eager to meet her beloved Aeolia again." The oldest member of the group teased.

"Shut up Randy."

Juna grinned as they approached their destination. Sure she missed her old friends from Thors, but she was happy with her new crew. She was well acquainted with Randy from his time as an Instructor, but the others were just as great. Elie was one of the most compassionate people she knew, Tio was an absolute riot despite her quiet nature, and Lloyd... As much as it pained her to admit it Lloyd reminded her so much of Instructor Rean that it was scary.

"You seem to be a good mood old man." Randy noted as they arrived to the Guild to find Michel looking like the cat who caught the canary.

"Old man? How rude! But yes, I am positively ecstatic today. Our secret weapon has finally arrived and soon we shall defeat you guys and win the hearts and minds of Crossbell once again!"

The members of the SSS shared dubious looks among themselves. "Secret weapon?" Tio mouthed.

Only Lloyd seemed unaffected by his words. "Oh, that's right. You mentioned that Scott and Wenzel were leaving for a while. Does that mean your new Bracers have arrived?"

"Yup. They arrived from Erebonia just last night." Juna felt an ominous feeling in her stomach."They should be here any time now... Ah, speak of the devil." The sound of the door opening caused them to turn around.

"No way..." Juna muttered in shock.

"Oh! Hey Juna. Everyone." Standing there was Instructor Rean and his fiancee. "Hehe. Surprise?"


"I can't believe it! I thought I was finally done with your stupid face when I graduated, but noooo. Is this my fate to be constantly hounded by my annoying Instructor for the rest of my life? If I can't even escape you in..."

The rest of the group wisely ignored Juna's rant. "It's great to see you again man. Been ages since the Prince's wedding." Lloyd greeted his friend as he held out his fist, which Rean gladly bumped.

"I can't believe you abandoned those poor kiddos just to be with a girl! I didn't think you had it in you." Randy joked.

"You're one to speak. You didn't even see them graduate." Elie deadpanned at the older man before turning back to the pair. "We heard the news about the two of you. Congratulations!"

"I always figured you were as dense as Lloyd, but you actually managed to make a move. I'm impressed." The glare Tio shot Lloyd was curious to Rean. Was there a story there?

"Well, it wasn't easy, but he pulled it off. Still, he screwed up pretty bad when he popped the question, but he is a good boy so I gave him an 'A' for effort." It was a bit of a reach, but Fie managed to pat Rean's head like a dog, much to his increasing embarrassment.

"Well, as much as I want to stay and chat, this is our first full day here so we should probably get to work..."

"Right. We'll have to catch up later. C'mon guys, let's finish our patrol."

"After you, partner. Not gonna start losing to the Bracers now, even if they do have Rean and Sylphid on their side."

"Um, is Juna ok?" Elie asked with concern as the younger girl still seemed to be off in her own world, ranting something that nobody could understand.

Tio poked her. Twice. Thrice. "I think she's broken."

Lloyd sighed. "Give me a hand Randy." The Bracers watched the comical sight of the two men dragging the traumatized girl away.

"Well that was something." Fie noted after the SSS had left.

"Yeah..." Rean was looking forward to catching up with Randy, Lloyd, and the rest. Now, however... "Oh, sorry Michel. We got distracted there."

"Don't worry about it. It was fun watching you guys getting along so well. It's good that you kiddos know each other as we often find ourselves working with them. Of course we are also rivals, so I want the two of you to strut your stuff and make them look like the bland boring cops that they are."

"I don't care about all that, but we're here to work." Fie stated with her usual bluntness.


"How well do you know this area anyways?" Fie asked as they departed with a handful of assignments to work on. She had some knowledge of the city and the theme park, but very little beyond that.

"Hmm.. I know the area to the south pretty well since our Field Study took us there. Most of my time with the government occurred near Tangram Gate, but I was mostly in Valimar and didn't get to see much of it. Beyond that... I have mixed memories of the Geofront, I guess."

"So nothing useful, huh?" All of their requests for the day took them to the north, with a delivery to be made to the Crossbell Cathedral, a monster extermination request on the highway, and a task to clear out some old abandoned mine near the village of Mainz. They were currently making their way to the Cathedral on foot to finish that first task. "What good are you?"

"Well sorry I am not a cool elite Bracer who has explored all of Zemuria like yourself. Oh wait..."

"Rude. I have been to plenty of fun places thank you very much."

"Yeah, all the best napping spots in Erebonia. I know."

"Real funny coming from the guy who knows every good fishing spot. I bet it broke your heart when we had to leave our fishing gear with Sara."

"No it didn't..." Rean defended weakly as they made their way past the north exit of the city.

"Please. Even if I were swimming naked in a river near a fishing hole I know where your eyes would be." She observed as his eyes darted around nervously, but failed to say anything to clear his name. "See? You can't deny it!"

"...Not like there's much to look at with you."

"Oh that's it! Rean Schwarzer you are sleeping on the couch tonight." An irate Fie proclaimed as she stomped her foot petulantly.

"But we don't have a couch yet."

"Maybe you should have thought about that before you opened your BIG! STUPID! MOUTH!" She tried to keep a stern expression, but couldn't quite keep the amused grin away. It proved impossible once Rean started chuckling which triggered a giggling fit in her. When they finally arrived at the Cathedral they were both laughing uproariously, which probably caused a few Sisters of the church to think that they were a pair of lunatics, not that they cared.

Their humor lasted until they they met the Archbishop they were supposed to make their delivery to. Just looking at him they could tell he was a no-nonsense guy who could sap all joy around him. They quickly made their delivery; some medical tests from St. Ursula that the Doctor did not want to deliver in person, and were brusquely dismissed right after. They did take the time to admire the architecture of the Cathedral as they left, but neither would consider themselves to be the religious sort, so they didn't stick around long.

"Glad that's over with." Fie exhaled once they escaped the building and the crusty old man running the place.

"Agreed. So next is the monster request?"

"Yup. Should be on a side road just before a bridge."

"Oh! I think I know where you're talking about. I remember reading about a doll factory belonging to Ouroboros up that road when I was working during the occupation."

"Wait, really? Shouldn't someone do something about that?"

"It's been a while, but from what Lechter told me the guy running the place isn't a big fan of the leadership. He's still a member, but supposedly he has been known to be a good source of information to outsiders."

"Huh. Interesting. Now I'm kinda curious. Wanna go check it out?"

"Hmm... Well we probably should focus on leaving a good first impression with our work, but I suppose it wouldn't hurt to check the place out briefly?" Rean didn't bother to hide his own curiosity, but unlike Fie he wasn't practically a cat and thus could control it better.

"Boo. Boring."

The journey to the monster was uneventful, and they found the creature up the side path just as Rean had predicted. It was a large behemoth of a monster that looked like it could rip a tank in half with ease. Naturally such a weak monster was dispatched with no incident. With that out of the way they continued up the winding mountainous path, until they reached what appeared to be their destination at the end of the road.

"Rosenberg Studio. This must be the place." Rean read the sign as they approached.

"You sure this is some Ouroboros factory? Looks kinda dull."

"You should be more careful with your words girl. You never know who might be listening." Came a voice in front of them. They looked and saw a speaker next to the gate.

"Whoops."

"Uh, sorry to intrude." Rean tried to play diplomat, not wanting to antagonize this potentially dangerous man further.

"And who are you?"

"Rean Schwarzer. And this is Fie Claussell. We're Bracers from Erebonia."

"Schwarzer, I see. I suppose you would have questions after having dealt with my successor." They couldn't see him, but the way he spat out the word successor spoke volumes of the animosity there. "I suppose I can answer some of your questions, but not today. Come back in a couple weeks and we can talk."

The two Bracers shared a look. This outcome was a surprise, but a welcome one. "Thanks?" Fie replied dubiously.

"Yes, yes. Whatever. Now leave me alone." With that the voice cut off, signifying an end to the conversation.

"That was weird." Fie's statement, despite it's bluntness, was the most accurate statement that anyone could make at that moment. Rean could only nod in agreement. "Well, whatever. We should do what he says and come back later. C'mon, let's go finish that last request."

The trek up the mountain was long and boring, and more than once did Fie proclaim that the Bracer tradition of exploring an area on foot was dumb and that they should have used the Orbal Bike, much to her partner's amusement. At the very least they could admit that the scenery was beautiful as they crossed a waterfall and went through a long tunnel in the mountain.

The village of Mainz was a unique experience for both of them. Sure they had seen plenty of mines outside of Roer, but this was the first time they encountered a village built entirely around mining. Outside the one girl near the entrance who tried to hit on Rean (who was promptly driven away by Fie's ultra death glare) most of the residents they met were grizzled miners. Despite that, they were a friendly sort and were more than happy to provide directions to the mayor's residence.

The mayor explained to them that there is an old abandoned passageway from their main mine that has been closed off for many years. Despite having mostly dried up the mine still contained enough septium to serve as a beacon for monsters. Every couple years they would request assistance to clear the mine out, with the SSS last having done it over three years prior. Mayor Bickson expressed his concern that two relatively new Bracers were handling the task, but they assured him that they could handle it easily enough.

Once they arrived at the main mine they were directed to the head miner, who unlocked the door to the abandoned mine for them. Despite the fact the monsters were standard fare and not at all dangerous to the experienced warriors, the task wasn't the easiest. The mine had very few orbal lamps still functioning and the ground was unsafe from years of neglect. Still, they were both quite agile and were able to function well enough under those sub-optimal conditions.

It was a time consuming task, but nothing they couldn't handle. Once finished they informed the head miner who promptly locked away the mine. Fie insisted that they take the bus back to the city and Rean saw no reason to disagree. Once they reached the city they began the trek towards the Guild, but before they could get far...

"So the Ashen Chevalier really is here." An excited female voice called out. Turning they saw the reporter for the Crossbell News Service, Grace Lynn. "I wasn't sure if I believed Michel when he told me."

"Wait, what?" A bewildered Rean muttered. Why did Michel tell the Crossbell Times about him? The earlier conversation about the rivalry with the police came to mind and he realized that he was being used as a publicity stunt. The amused look on Fie's face let him know that she came to the same conclusion.

"I was promised an exclusive interview with you during that Twilight business, but it never happened. You owe me."

"Sounds like fun. I will leave you to your interview Rean." Fie couldn't hide the grin as she willingly abandoned Rean to the wolves...

"Nuh uh." Or at least she tried. "I want you too. People are just as interested in the little fairy that won the heart of the great hero. I won't leave until I have my story on Erebonia's Power Couple."

The two shared wary looks. It was just one civilian woman, so why did it feel like they were caught in an inescapable trap? They would soon understand that despite their best efforts one did not escape Grace Lynn when the woman was following a scoop. It would be a long evening for the two.


And so the Crossbell arc begins. The Crossbell games are my favorite in the series so I have been wanting to do an arc here since the start. Expect to be here for a few chapters. On the plus side this means they could end up going anywhere after this. Calvard? Remiferia? Liberl? (Hint: It's Liberl)

On an unrelated note, any chance I could get some reviews? I know people are reading my story, so I am not that bothered, but without reviews I don't know how people feel about my work. What do you like about my story? Dislike? Areas I can improve in? Where do you want to see this story go? Anything would be appreciated. Thanks.