Somehow, despite the absolute insanity of housing seventeen people in their modest little home, when morning arrived everything was still in one piece. One by one the scattered graduates stirred to life, ending that brief period of tranquility. Spending the night again with beloved friends was a wonderful experience and Rean couldn't help but smile softly as he appreciated the moment.
A moment which ended as soon as the realization set in that there was only one bathroom in the entire place for the lot of them. Naturally, as seasoned heroes and dear comrades the group handled the situation with maturity and elegance...
Rean sighed. As much as he wanted to believe that, he couldn't lie. Not even to himself.
It was chaos. Sheer and unprecedented bedlam. It was a time of war and carnage, where mercy had no hold. Atrocities were committed all around as unlikely alliances gave way to shocking betrayals. The battle would go on for far longer than it had any right to and only ended after the prize they sought became collateral damage of the war.
At least the group sheepishly agreed to pay for the damages they had inflicted upon their house. That was pretty much the only reason Fie hadn't forced them all out at gunpoint, but he could easily tell that her patience was nearing its end.
It was kinda funny seeing the entire group cowed under her unflinching stare. A few pleading eyes turned to him for help, but he merely shook his head. He had no pity for those who would trash his home. Plus he was smart enough to know that any word otherwise would turn that calm fury on him and that was the last thing he wanted.
The only thing that could save Class VII from meeting its grisly and untimely end would be a distraction, and luckily for them said distraction took the form of his ARCUS, which began to let him know that there was a caller. Briefly he considered taking the call away from the rest of them for privacy's sake, but given the past day he knew full well the absolute folly of trying to keep any sort of secret from his peers. So with many curious eyes upon him he answered the orbment.
"Schwarzer! I'm a very busy man, so answer the call faster next time!"
He couldn't help but roll his eyes, feeling a headache rapidly approaching. There was only one cranky old man who would begin a conversation like that. "Professor Schmidt. It's been a while." A few raised their eyebrows at that name while Fie abandoned her glaring as she moved up closer to listen in, much to the relief of the others.
"Yes yes. I heard that you are currently hosting the entirety of Class VII right now. Is that true?"
Just how quickly did news spread!? He glanced at Fie who merely let out a shrug before turning to the rest and getting only curious stares in response. "...Yes, that's correct. Is there something we can do for you?"
"Good. Although I am no longer officially employed at the Branch Campus I recently went back to design a new stage of the Einhel Keep using the resources and knowledge gleaned from the Black Workshop and Society. I call it Level Omega."
He had a very bad feeling where this conversation was going. "Uh huh..."
The professor either didn't notice or simply ignored his trepidation. "So far the only one who attempted it was Le Guin, but she couldn't handle the trial and barely escaped with her life."
Alright, now he really did not like where this conversation was going. "Even Principal Le Guin was overwhelmed!?"
"As fascinating as that experience was, I need successful combat data to make this work worthwhile. I calculate that a team formed by you should have at least a thirty percent chance of survival. Lest you wonder, I have already submitted it as a formal bracer request, which Valestein approved of last night."
It was a good thing he spent most of his life trying to reign in his emotions, but even he couldn't quite hide the twitch of his eye at that news. That headache was getting worse. "So let me get this straight: You want myself and a group of former Class VII students to go to Leeves to attempt the new Einhel Keep challenge you have completed. A mission that Sara has already approved."
"Are you just going to keep repeating everything I said?" Rean could understand the professor's snark, but Rean repeating the message was not meant for him. Already many pairs of eyes were turning to the one who had volunteered them for the arduous task without their approval.
"Sorry. I'll check in with the others and see if anyone is interested."
"Good. I expect to see you within the hour." Schmidt hung up the phone before he could protest the time.
Rean stared blankly at his ARCUS for a second before letting out a long suffering sigh and turning to his friends and students. "So..."
Fie looked equally annoyed by the task, but also seemed rather amused by his own expression. "Well, it's gonna suck, but I'm kinda curious... What?"
The reason for her confusion was plain as most of their friends were now staring at her with blank faces. After glancing at one another to confirm that all were on the same page Alisa took a step forward. "You aren't going, Fie."
"Huh? Why not?"
This time it was Machias who spoke. "Did you already forget our conversation last night?"
"B-But we agreed that I still had two weeks, right?"
Laura shook her head. "That was two weeks for normal monster extermination requests. The kind of enemies we fought as students. This is a challenge that apparently Aurelia Le Guin was unable to complete. Hopefully you can see why we have our reservations about letting you fight."
Desperately the former jaeger looked to him for support. Just as quickly he averted his eyes. He had a feeling he wouldn't be living down this betrayal for a while, but they did have a point...
"I can't believe you all..." She was practically shaking in anger. "You can't just expect me to sit around here all day while Rean goes off to fight some dangerous trial!?"
"You do not need to worry." Altina stated as she stepped up next to him. "I will protect him in your stead." Instinctively his hand found itself on her head before he could reconsider. Altina preened. Fie hissed.
"Perhaps we should consider dividing our forces." Jusis deadpanned. "One team to make sure Rean doesn't do something reckless and get himself killed... And a second team to make sure Fie doesn't do something reckless like follow along and gets herself killed."
The others deliberated on that idea. "It does seem to be the safest solution..."
"I told you, whatever Rean has is infectious."
"Think we'll all contract it eventually?"
Sure Rean had begrudgingly accepted the fact that his friends considered him to be a danger to himself, and even admitted there was some truth to that, but to blame him for turning Fie the way she is now? Please! Fie was always perfectly capable of doing insane and reckless things on her own.
Gaius hummed thoughtfully. "While that idea is sound, unfortunately I won't be able to join either team as I promised Linde that I would join her and..." He trailed off as a thought came to mind. "Actually, I also promised Linde that as soon as we had finished with... whatever this was, that I would let her talk to the two of you for a minute."
The two young bracers shared a confused look towards each other while the Nord sought out his own ARCUS. Understanding that he was connecting to the previously mentioned girl the two waited patiently, all the while ignoring the knowing grins and snickers emanating from the rest of their unwelcome house guests. Once finished Gaius handed the orbment to them.
"Rean! Fie! I'm so sorry!" The despondent girl skipped any sort of greeting and immediately began apologizing, even though they had no idea what she was sorry for.
Something which didn't last long as the pink-haired girl proceeded to outline the events that had occurred which led to their secret getting out. The story she provided was... entirely too believable. Some of the others tried to whistle and look away when the story reached the part where Vivi sold Class VII the information. As much as Rean wanted to glare at them he knew it was pointless as it was something they would have done in their shoes.
At tale's conclusion he let out a sigh. "Alright, thanks Linde. And don't worry. We don't blame you for anything that happened." Sure it was apparently her reaction that tipped Vivi off, but such a thing was a natural mistake to make. "Right, Fie?"
Said girl didn't immediately answer causing him to shift his focus to her. What he saw scared him. His silver-haired lover had such a peaceful serene smile on her face. She looked completely at ease with everything she had heard.
It terrified the hell out of him.
"Sure. We're still cool." Fie eventually answered, horrifyingly beatific smile still in place.
Something which Linde noticed as she sweatdropped nervously. "I'm not going to tell you to take it easy on my sister, because she deserves everything that's coming to her. Just... Make sure she's still alive, alright? I can't give her a piece of my mind if she's dead."
"Hmm... No promises."
Conversation finished, Rean handed the orbment back to Gaius, who continued the conversation with the nurse as the two seemed to be planning out how best to resume their interrupted vacation. Now that they were no longer engaged in a private conversation, the rest of Class VII approached as if they hadn't all been listening in the entire time.
"You know what?" Fie smiled towards her friends. "I think you're right. I wouldn't want to go fight some monsters in that lame old keep anyways."
"Perhaps I should amend my suggestion." Jusis commented dryly. "One team to go with Rean and make sure he doesn't do something reckless and get himself killed... And a second team to make sure the capital is still standing by the end of the day."
The fact that she was now questioning under her breath just which of her jaeger tools she needs to stock up on made Rean laugh nervously. "That might be for the best..." Still, while losing Heimdallr and its nearly one million residents would be a rather significant blow to the country, at least it beat Fie getting hurt fighting whatever creation Professor Schmidt had come up with.
That just left the others to figure out how they wanted to divide themselves. Actually, that was false. First came the group biding Gaius farewell as he made his departure, with no small amount of teasing that he was leaving them for Linde. Rean might have felt bad, but the fact it got the others off his and Fie's back for a few blissful moments was a luxury he didn't realize he needed.
Rean excluded himself from the discussion about who was going where as he was perfectly willing to fight alongside any of his friends, although he had a hunch that the members of New Class VII would be more interested in participating, as Altina had already volunteered herself and it was their school they would be returning to.
Sure enough, once the teams were finalized he was proven right. Altina, Juna, Ash, Kurt, Musse, Jusis, and Millium. A solid and balanced team. He was a bit surprised when the duke volunteered himself, but Jusis shamefully admitted that he had felt his combat skills had been dulling over the past two years as his attention had been almost entirely focused on restoring the Kreuzen Province.
Although the message was unsaid, Rean understood that deep down Jusis still admired his brother. Or more specifically, the kind of noble that Rufus had represented. While Rean felt that his friend had matched his older brother's charisma and intelligence, there was no denying that the older Albarea had still managed to become a master swordsman on top of everything else. It was a large gulf that all the sword users in Class VII struggled to overcome, even as they reached mastery in their respective schools.
Millium was far less surprising, naturally. Jusis and Altina were on one team, so she was on it too. The young girl did however express some dismay that she wouldn't be participating in whatever chaos Fie was cooking up. A few members of Class VII, Rean included, shuddered at the thought. Heimdallr would be lucky to survive the day as it is. Adding Millium to the mix would just be overkill. Even Fie seemed relieved, although Rean suspected that whatever his fiance was planning would require a more subtle touch, something which the white rabbit sorely lacked.
Fie decided to make one final alteration to the squads. "Sara, you're going with them."
"What? Why!?"
"You're the reason Rean had to go through with this stupid mission, so you need to go along too."
The Purple Lightning looked dismayed. "C'mon, Fie. I'm a bracer. Protect the innocents and all that, yeah? Can't let the big bad jaeger wreck havoc on the capital freely."
"...In other words, she thinks whatever Fie is going to do will be funny and wants to witness it for herself." Of all people it was Elliot who said what they were all thinking.
Fie chose not to respond, instead leveling a fierce glare that Rean knew painfully well at the former teacher. Sara had more courage than he as she managed to resist that look for all of five seconds before shamefully lowering her head and walking over to join the rest of his team.
Theatrics aside, having the veteran warrior on his team would certainly be a boon for the trials to come. He had no idea what Schmidt had concocted, but with the majority of Class VII at his back he felt confident they could handle whatever was to come, even if his partner wasn't at his side.
And honestly? Nothing they were about to face could ever be as terrifying as Sylphid on a war path. The worry and resignation on the faces of Crow, Laura, Alisa, Emma, Elliot, and Machias was plain for all to see.
He could tell that they wanted him to calm her down, and yet... "Fie, before you go-"
"Don't try and stop me."
"Actually, I was going to ask you to get her once for me." He shrugged at the looks of betrayal from their more concerned classmates. "What? Fie's the only one allowed to be upset that she keeps prying into our lives?"
That earned the pair a few awkward looks from some of their friends, especially the ones that probably had been doing the same thing. He couldn't really blame them as some curiosity was to be expected, so long as they didn't go overboard...
"I got this babe, don't worry." Fie meanwhile seemed delighted by his approval. "Contrary to what these idiots seem to think I know what I'm doing."
Not wanting to deal with an extra grumpy Schmidt if he was to be late meant that it was time for Class VII to depart on their twin missions. At least their time together was not yet at an end, as both teams would be riding on the same train for the first half of the journey.
"I must admit, this does feel oddly nostalgic." Laura commented as the group boarded the train together. Rean couldn't help but agree. Just riding the train with Class VII to whatever crazy destination their instructor had come up for them...
"That's right, you guys rode the normal trains to all your field studies, right?" Kurt inquired as he and the rest of the second generation looked upon their seniors curiously.
Machias was the one to answer. "Right. We weren't all so fortunate as to have our own little private train to cart us around everywhere."
"Sounds like the bitter complaints of an old man, if you ask me."
"Rean, I hope your next kid turns out better than your first five, or else I'm gonna start questioning your parenting skills."
First five? Wait, is Alisa insinuating that-
"The hell are you calling us Schwarzer's kids for!?"
Ash wasn't the only one to look unhappy by that comment. Juna, Kurt, and Altina all seemed rather miffed. The only one who wasn't was- "Oh my! Perhaps that's the new approach I need since the sister angle didn't seem to work so well for poor Elise. Maybe if I call you daddy and do something naughty so you can bend me over your knee and-"
"Alright!" A beet-faced Emma cut off the mint-haired devil. "I think that's enough of that!"
Fie meanwhile was sending the dirtiest of dirty looks towards the duchess. "Aww, look at Fie." Sara cooed. "She's jealous. Don't worry, dear. We all know that you're the only one Rean will spank."
Everyone had to know that Sara was just being Sara, so why was the rest of Class VII looking at him like he was some depraved sexual deviant?
"Alright, fine." Alisa conceded after doing her best to set him on fire with her eyes. "I'll take back what I said... mostly. But we can all agree that Altina is his daughter in all but blood, right?"
"I disagree wholeheartedly." Said girl was quick to refute. She sat there, clearly expecting someone to come to her support. But all that remained was silence. "...You do agree with me, correct?" Once again, silence. Despite her facial expression barely changing all could sense the desperation in her eyes as she turned to her one possible salvation. "Juna?"
The pinked-hair policewoman squirmed under her pleading look. "A-Allie, I, uh..." She did her best to compose herself, but she struggled to look her classmate in the eye. "I'm sorry! But you really are! You've always been closest to Instructor Rean and the one he looked after the most! And now you're the only one he's telling their secret to! It's really suspicious, alright?"
The blue-haired swordmaster nodded her head in agreement. "It is true. I would say that Fie is normally there to keep Rean's worst tendencies in check, but given how apparent it is that she herself has developed an affinity towards you..."
"Better you than me." Celine scoffed from her position on Emma's lap. Wait... When did Celine even get there? A quick glance around showed that the others were sharing the same thought as him, but like him saw no need to press it. The familiar could be surprisingly stealthy when she wanted to be, although Fie always waved it off claiming that magic didn't count when compared to real stealth skills.
"No..." Altina did not share in their thought process as she looked so utterly defeated in that moment.
"Wait, so if Rean and Fie have adopted Tilly as their daughter, and Tilly is my little sister, doesn't that mean that-"
"Nope." Fie was quick to cut that train of thought off. "That's not how it works."
Millium pouted. "Aww, c'mon."
"Rean and Fie's creepy claims on Altina aside..." The Azure Chevalier earned himself three matching glares for his words, not that he seemed to notice at all. "if we're gonna do this whole nostalgia trip thing, why not go all in on it?"
He didn't need to verbally state his intentions, as the object in his hands made it very clear, at least to a certain majority of Class VII. "...Is that a Blade deck?" The original to boot. That caused Rean to perk right up, and he wasn't the only one.
"Blade? Isn't that the card game that died out in popularity a few years back once everyone realized it was just a simple game of luck?"
Kurt Vander shrunk back as literally every member of Old Class VII, Rean included, shot him dirty looks for that comment. "You take that back! Blade is about skill and the drive to win!" Seeing Laura of all people get heated over a simple card game was kinda amusing. But she was definitely in the right.
"Really?" Juna asked dubiously. "Pretty sure Kurt is right. Rachel used to tell us how Vantage Masters was a way better game cause skill actually mattered. How does it work?" It was Crow who took the time to explain the rules to New Class VII, with the utmost seriousness. Not a surprise considering he was the one who basically forced the game on his Class VII, even before he himself joined it. Sadly, his explanation did little to convince the pink-haired girl. "...It still sounds like luck to me."
Fie gave a rather unladylike snort, drawing all eyes to her. "She's not wrong." Naturally, she was completely unaffected by the looks of betrayal her comment earned. "Still, it was a lot of fun. Rean pretty much forced us to play it on every train ride until eventually we all had our own decks."
"Sadly I only brought two with me, so we can only have one game going, but who wants in?" Unsurprisingly, all of Old Class VII - Sara included - voiced their interest in the idea. New Class VII were a lot more skeptical, but enough peer pressure was applied that they eventually capitulated as well.
Unfortunately, given the fact that half the group, including Crow, were departing at Heimdallr that meant they only had a few minutes to play. Just enough time for every person to safely get two games. Rean found himself matched against Emma and Ash. The match against the witch was a solid win. As for the latter...
"Damnit! This is bullshit!" Ash did not appreciate him clutching it out at the end with a seven he kept in reserve. "How come you always get so lucky at card games, but never anywhere else?"
"Yeah. That's our Rean, alright." Crow's comment was nearly universally accepted by the group, but Rean couldn't help that he was so good at both Blade and VM! Maybe it was his Eight Leaves skills carrying over or something?"
"Nah." Fie was the only one to object, and given the mischievous grin on her face Rean had a bad feeling about what was to come. "He doesn't only get lucky during card games. He gets lucky most nights." She tilted her head in thought. "A lot of days, too..."
The hero facepalmed, hard. Thankfully only a few immediately understood the insinuation, but those few were already giving him dirty looks like he was some sort of degenerate. But if he let that comment stew too long the others would realize the true meaning behind her words and the situation would get a lot worse. He opened his mouth to change the subject-
"Ooooh. I get it now. You're talking about sex, right? Nice!" Sadly for Rean, Millium Orion existed to forever be a thorn in his side, even if she rarely realized what she was doing.
Great, now most of the class were looking at him like that. Fie too was under great scrutiny, but unlike the self-conscious noble the girl appeared as unfazed as ever. It was hard to beat a girl who didn't mind taking herself down alongside him! "Mmm." She confirmed with a proud nod. "All the time. Like bunnies. Er, no offense, you two." Millium didn't seem at all bothered, but Altina seemed rather disgusted that her rabbit title was being used so. "Hell. Just this morning when he decided we should shower together..."
"It wasn't like that at all!" Sure they showered together, but that was only because the bathroom was in such high demand that morning. Absolutely nothing inappropriate happened!
Of course not a single one of his friends believed that.
"Eww. I went in there after you guys. I thought something smelt off..." Now that Fie had put the idea into their minds Juna and the rest were quite willing to fill in the blanks on their own.
Machias shook his head as if they were misbehaving children. "You do know that it's because you can't contain your libido that the two of you are in this situation now, right?"
"Can't really argue with that." The silver-haired demon shrugged uncaringly. "Still, if you guys ever stopped being so boring and tried it for yourselves you would be singing a different tune."
A few of them looked distinctly uncomfortable with the comment. Rean thought about tactfully changing the subject, but with Fie going after them and not him... Well, everyone always got on his case for his self-sacrificing ways, so what better way to change that than to willingly sacrifice all of his friends instead?" "You know we haven't really had the time for something like that..." Alisa was the one to comment.
But if she thought that was enough to deter the younger woman she was sadly mistaken. "Yes, yes, you guys use that excuse all the time. You don't even need to fall in love with someone, although that would help. I'm sure there are a few cute guys in Reinford and I know that all your employees adore you. I bet any of them would love to be invited for a private meeting where-"
"F-Fie!" Needless to say the Reinford heiress was beet red by that comment. Fie grinned victoriously.
Once again Millium spoke up to make it worse for everyone. "Friends with benefits, right? How about it, Jus-"
"No."
"Aww, C'mon..."
Crow snickered at the back and forth. "Sorry, short stack, but we all know that Jusis's heart belongs to Machias."
"You have gotta be kidding me!"
"I do not have any interest in Regnitz at all...!"
Naturally the two protested, rather loudly in fact. Now the entire group was chuckling at their expense. Getting a rise out of the two rivals was almost as fun as going after Sara.
"Ooooh, right..." The assembled group paled at the look on Millium's face. It was one they all knew well. The look she always had when she was about to say something wholly inappropriate and ruin the entire mood. But like the train they were currently riding on, she smashed right through their rapid protests. "...In that case, I heard that threesomes are fun too. I don't mind being the filling-"
"Millium Orion!" The times when Altina yelled were few and far between, but this was one of them. Still, it probably would not have done much good were it not for the hand now covering her sister's face.
The two men in question looked especially green at that thought. From any other girl the idea might sound attractive, but the fact that Millium still looked like a child (much to her chagrin) made the entire situation especially creepy.
An awkward silence descended as everyone tried to think of something to change the subject. A thought came to Rean's mind, but he hesitated. Speaking it aloud would utterly damn him for all eternity. But it would change the subject. And it would be funny...
He swallowed nervously. "That aside, Fie isn't entirely wrong about the joys of a relationship, even if for one night. Might I recommend a bar? Seems like all you need is one drink and even Sara might appear attractive... Right Fie?"
"Holy shit..."
"Did he just say that...?"
"Well, I'm impressed. It was nice knowing you, Rean."
A few of the nicer members of the group did their best to hide their laughter, but it was clear that the comment was a hit among the group. Mostly. Sara seemed conflicted. But it was not her he was concerned about.
Fie... showed absolutely no expression at all and that worried him. She simply gaped at him like a fish out of water. Her mouth moved, but no words were forthcoming.
It took nearly an entire minute, but eventually her hands started twitching, opening and closing as if she were grasping a weapon. That was ominous. Given how well he knew her, it wouldn't be long before she fully recovered from the shock. The explosion to come would be brutal and-
"The train is now arriving at Heimdallr. Please be ready to disembark. I repeat-"
Oh thank Aidios, saved by the conductor. "Haha. Well, I guess we're here. You guys take care on your mission and I'll contact you once I'm- Ouch!"
If he thought that the train arriving meant safety, he was sadly mistaken. That point was made evident as Fie deftly grabbed his ear and gave it a hard yank. "We're gonna have words when I get back." She stated with a sickly sweet smile, much to the amusement of everyone else.
"...Yes, dear." He resigned himself to future pain and suffering, but it had been worth it! With her piece said the moody girl turned and departed without a second glance, her amused comrades in tow. Only once he was completely sure they were off the train did he relax and let out the breath he didn't realize he had been holding.
"Sometimes, instructor, I wonder about you..."
Jusis spared a glance to the Vander swordsman. "You too? He has always had these masochistic tenancies since the day we met, but ever since becoming intimate with Fie it has reached a whole new level."
"I think it's cute!" Sara cheered. "I was afraid that he would let Fie walk all over him, but once again I underestimated my star pupil... They walk all over each other!"
"Teehee... Isn't it wonderful? And I am certain that tonight they will work out their differences in a most passionate manner." Millium was the only one who giggled alongside Musse while the rest just looked at the mint-haired girl like she was an idiot.
Most of them did, anyways. Altina simply continued to stare at Rean like he was a complete degenerate.
In little time at all the train made the second half of the journey and the group of nine found themselves departing from the Leeves station. As much as Rean and all of New Class VII – Including Ash who claimed otherwise - wished to look around the familiar confines of the Branch Academy and town, if they took any detours they would be late and not a single person wanted to deal with an extra cranky Schmidt. Thus the group skipped the tour and proceeded directly towards Einhel Keep.
As expected, the elderly professor was waiting for them, a pronounced frown as he glared at the familiar watch in his hand. "Hmph. You made it, but just barely. Do better next time."
"It's good to see you too, Professor Schmidt." Normally Rean wasn't so sarcastic with people, but this man seemed to bring out the worst in him.
Not that he noticed. "Yes, yes. Whatever. So this is the team you brought with you?" He looked over the assembled group before dismissing them as if they were unimportant. "No Claussell? Whatever, it should be adequate for the task at hand. I'm sure you are all still familiar with how this works so I will not waste my time giving an explanation. Make your preparations and get to the elevator."
Despite no longer having a disciple working with him it did not take long for Schmidt to get the trial ready, but that was fine as Class VII had already done everything they needed to well in advance. For Jusis it was his first time in the Keep, but the blonde noble understood the concept well enough and followed along without complaint. Once everything was ready they stepped into the elevator and began their descent.
...And as the door opened they were rudely greeted by a giant iron ball flying towards the elevator. Frantically the group scattered out to avoid the attack and looked on in shock as the elevator they were standing in was completely smashed. Eyes followed the ball as it lifted up on a chain to the Magic Knight that held it. Beside it was another Magic Knight, this one holding two swords in its arms.
"What the hell!?" Ash cried out. "The hell's that doing there!?"
"Professor! You can't just drop a boss enemy on us like that! We need to warm up first!"
"You misunderstand, Miss Crawford." Came the professor's voice from a nearby speaker. "Those are the warm up enemies. And it's there because you people have a habit of standing around at the entrance and wasting my time when you should be completing my trial."
Despite the situation the group couldn't help but sigh in unison. They could already tell that this mission was going to be an absolute pain. Not to mention they would have to find a new way out once they finished due to the elevator being wrecked. And yet there was one thought that went through all of their minds in that moment.
'At least I'm not in the other group...'
Originally I was planning on focusing the chapter on the keep trial, but chucked out that idea when I realized I could just spend the entire chapter on Class VII being a bunch of morons. I do not regret that decision at all. I might end up referencing events that happen in there later on, but Fie's revenge arc should be far more entertaining and will be the focus of the next couple chapters.
