Chapter 75: Tenrec & Golden Scarabug

It's a school morning once again, and Jean Duparc is checking in on the Team B Discord. He knows he can no longer safely act as Chip Bluestone not only due to the events of Crimson but also due to the fact he is the only one without a secret keeper yet. He inquires to the other members of the B Team, figuring out who they picked and why. He only gets general answers: family, siblings, romantic partner, best friends. Jean sighs as this doesn't really help him. He'd love to be in a romantic relationship, but he can barely stand to be in the presence of his crush, Rose Lavillant, without freezing up. There's no way he could confess to her as he is now, let alone tell her he's a superhero. He hates to admit it, but his best friends (Jakeel Aristide and Pierre Lefevre) are too immature for this. While he fully trusts they would actually keep the secret, he doesn't believe that they would be reliable enough to watch as he defended Paris or to call for help when need be without doing something reckless themselves. He also is certain his family would completely forbid him from being a superhero, even before they learn that the item he's using was made by a former (actually current in his case) butterfly wielder.

That's when he checks his email and realizes he has gotten yet another "your account has been accessed from another location" notification. He changes his password yet again as a precaution and notifies the others, but they all say they've never had that problem. He wonders if his cell phone is picking up signals from different towers or something that is causing a false positive.

At the Deschamps home, Raissa is still tending to Snow Leopard's shell. She's drying her hair after her morning shower and temporarily turns the hair dryer onto the ice cocoon. It doesn't melt; which doesn't really surprise her as it hasn't melted at all in two days. She's clearly worried about her friend.

At Francoise Dupont High School, Marinette Dupin-Cheng arrives early and is even more twitchy than usual. She's on the lookout for someone, and that's revealed to be Kagami Tsurugi, whom she siddles up to the moment she arrives. Marinette acts friendly, but it's not normal, so Kagami bluntly asks her what's up. Marinette dances around the answer, but it winds up getting hinted that she thinks Kagami should give Adrien Agreste another chance. Kagami calls her out on this, and Marinette denies that that's her motive. Kagami insists she's over Adrien due to his flaky nature and wonders why Marinette would even push things when the entire school seems to be aware that Marinette likes Adrien too. Even Tikki, Daizzi, and Roarr in Marinette's purse are wondering what Marinette is doing. Internally, it's because Marinette feels guilty that Adrien and Kagami broke up due to the former's duties as Cat Noir—even though Marinette and Ladybug ultimately had nothing to do with that.

That's when the Agreste limo pulls up and Felix and Nicholas, as well as Adrien, exit. Marinette waves at Adrien, and he comes over to join them. Adrien greets Kagami, but Kagami is obviously cold towards him. Marinette ignores this and tells Adrien that she and Kagami were just planning a double date. Kagami deadpans that they weren't, but Adrien is so intrigued by the prospect that he doesn't hear the sarcasm. He even suggests a recently opened Cat Café that he's been dying to try out. He's so innocent and eager, not to mention sincere in his apology to Kagami and wanting to make it up to her, that Kagami eventually just stops protesting. However, she does calls Marinette out in that "who are you going to invite?"

By all timing that exists within fictional worlds, that's when Luka and Juleka Couffaine walk by. Marinette instantly says she's going with Luka and waves him over to join the conversation. (Which means at this point, there's half a dozen hidden kwamis among the four teenagers talking.) Luka asks what's going on, and Adrien explains that they're planning a double date to a new Cat Café after school. Luka takes one glance at Marinette and is instantly thrilled by the invitation and is clearly eager to go with romantic intentions on his mind. Kagami narrows her eyes at Marinette as they finalize their plans. She then pulls Marinette aside to talk, one on one. Kagami, in her usual blunt way, asks Marinette if she's leading Luka on. Marinette insists she isn't; Kagami doesn't buy it. She tells Marinette that, as a friend, she has to be honest—Marinette needs to start being truthful and being true to her heart or else a lot of people are going to get hurt. People whom she, Kagami, does not want to see hurt. She leaves for the school building. Once alone, Marinette's chipper façade fades and her faces reveals just how much she is struggling emotional. She doesn't want anyone to get hurt either, which includes Kagami, which is why she's doing this in the first place. She knows she's digging herself in. But what can I do to spare everyone's feelings? If I confess to Adrien, I hurt Kagami. And I might even hurt Adrien too because I'm keeping so many secrets from him. And I'd definitely hurt Luka! If I stay with Luka, I still can't guarantee Adrien and Kagami won't be hurt. If I leave things alone, I know Kagami and Adrien will be hurt because they already are! She heads inside, head down.

Also that morning, Alya Cesaire winds up running as late as Aurore Beaureal and Mireille Caquet as she has to go through her morning routine with her family and then sneak over to Giselle's and repeat it so Giselle's father doesn't suspect Giselle is missing. Without Alya around to hang out with, Nino Lahiffe spends the time before class with Adrien. Adrien fills Nino in on his upcoming double date, and Nino is surprised that Adrien is going with Kagami again as he thought they broke up. Adrien says that this is probably his very last final chance to make things work with Kagami. He also says it'd be wonderful if Nino and Alya could join them and make it a triple date. Nino thanks him for the invite, but he knows Alya's busy in the afternoon (though he doesn't know exactly what she's doing, but it's covering for Giselle). He doesn't want to be an awkward fifth wheel, so he'll just bow out and save the fun for next time. Adrien agrees with the next time part.

Elsewhere within the school, Guy Nigels is trying to finish streaming the newest episode of his favorite western, hoping to get to the end before class starts. His roommate and exchange student Cameran Tyler is watching a baseball game, streamed from America, with the same enthusiasm. They both laugh when they realize what they're doing. Ms. Mendeleiev gives them a cold look, and they both sheepishly put away their phones even though they do still have a few minutes to use them. Viktor Vasiliev runs into the shoulder of an upperclassman on his way to the lockers. Instead of shyly creeping away, as usual, Viktor stands up for himself and gets sarcastic as he does so. This surprises his friend, Fumikage Tokoyami, who notes that Viktor is changing…but maybe not for the better. Chloe Bourgeois spends her time before class on the phone, scheduling a hair and manicure appointments. She makes a point on turning her back on Sabrina Raincomprix when Sabrina walks by with Yvonne Garnier and Genevieve Faucher, who are wondering if Sabrina would like to join them on the school newspaper staff. Sabrina admits she's not into journalism…but she will consider it since they asked her so nicely. For Sabrina, it feels strange that she's being asked to do something rather than being ordered. Felix Graham de Vanily finds a place on the third floor to be alone before he has to go to Mr. Haprele's room.

(The whole student body is here: (( photos . app . goo . gl / cgLSrNi71rxfep9e8 )).)

The bell rings and classes begin. As usual, Madam Gros begins pulling students for her mental health screening—and she's getting near the end of her list. This morning, she requests Mathieu Anciel, who is an upper classman, Marc's older brother, and the long-term boyfriend to Monique Imhof. Mathieu slouches rather casually in the chair in the counselor's office as she begins with her usual questions about relationships and school.

Mathieu reveals that he cares about his little brother a lot though often feels he has to act aloof so as not to ruin his reputation. He realizes that Marc is jealous of his confidence and social skills, but he confides in Madam Gros that he's jealous of Marc's intellect and how easy schoolwork comes for him. "But don't tell anyone I said that." He gets along okay with his parents; just the usual teen drama. He also is deeply in love with his girlfriend—but at the same time he feels very concerned and wonders if their relationship has a future.

Madam Gros wonders why this is when they haven't been fighting. Mathieu reveals he knows Monique can't have kids…and it seems silly to worry about it now. But he does want to have his own biological children one day. So is he just delaying the inevitable now by staying with her? Are they destined to break up? Madam Gros remembers having a similar conversation with Monique a couple weeks ago. She keeps her advice short as she has other motivations and suggests that Mathieu talk everything thoroughly through with Monique—but also to not forget that he is still just a teenager with a lot of time in the future for relationships to become serious.

She veers the topic to his hobbies and how he handles stress. Mathieu answers that skateboarding is his answer to both. He likes roller blading and bicycling and even ice skating too, but skateboarding is his life. Some of his favorite dates with Monique are boarding around the streets of Paris while she rollerblades beside him. When asked about his plans for the future, Mathieu admits he doesn't know. His parents are already pushing him to attend college, but he's not sure if he even wants to go. Especially if it yanks him away from all his friends, his family, and his girlfriend. He would like to be financially independent as soon as possible.

That eventually leads Dolores Gros into asking him about Ladybug and Hawk Moth. Mathieu just shrugs. Akuma attacks and superheroes have become a part of everyday life now. So he usually just gets somewhere safe, puts in his earbuds, and drowns everything out until it's over. It's just a drag when that cuts in on his time boarding. Madam Gros thanks him and sends him back to class without offering him a miraculous.

At lunchtime, Luka tells Juleka he'll be home late as he has a double date with Marinette. Juleka is about to stop him as she knows Marinette has a crush on Adrien. However, her voice fails her again due to nerves. She tries to draw upon what Roarr told her, but it's a struggle to do alone.

Max Kante checks the A Team's server and sees that Ladybug has forwarded Chip's message about how he keeps on getting "your account has been accessed from another device" emails. Max checks to make sure and confirms that his settings are correct. Then he begins poking around with ISPs. He doesn't zero in too much—he does want to protect identities after all. But he can see that the address Chip usually uses is in one district and the "false alarm" triggers are coming from a much more upscale district in Paris. Max, under his Pegasus log in, sends an email to Ladybug that Chip's account has been compromised again; there's no doubt about it. He knows Ladybug will have to relay this to Chip, who'll not only have to change his password again but will also likely have to scrub his computer for tracer cookies, set up a firewall to block hackers, and maybe even create a new account if his keeps getting compromised. This would be so much easier if I actual had login and mod privileges on the B Team server too… But Max does realize that in the name of secrecy, he shouldn't have access to those.

Raissa Deschamps joins Meera Pugliese for lunch. It's odd for them not to have Giselle joining them for the second day in a row (Raissa did fake-call her off sick again). Meera asks how Giselle is doing, and Raissa replies that there's no change. She wonders how Giselle can even breathe through solid ice, but she supposes it must be part of the magic she uses. Meera proposes she isn't breathing; she's in complete stasis like she's cryofrozen. She saw something like that in an episode of Star Trek. Raissa replies that she doesn't think it works that way.

Pierre Lefevre invites Lila Rossi to join him and his friends (Jakeel Aristide and Jean Duparc) for lunch. Lila Rossi metaphorically sticks her nose up but turns him down with a false smile, saying that she's meeting up with Prince Ali for lunch at the hospital to discuss volunteer work before her afternoon classes. Pierre sincerely wishes her the best, and she leaves. Jakeel takes a moment to check out Prince Ali's schedule on his phone; it doesn't take long for him to learn that Ali is openly in Reims; he won't be in the Paris hospitals until tomorrow. Pierre refuses to accept that Lila is lying and insists there must be an error on the Internet instead.

Marie Chauveau invites Felix to sit with her and Suzette during lunch. Felix pretends not to hear her. His mood is so poor that he actually just walks out of school and to the library, where he curls up with a classic novel. He needs the time to himself as he is still disgusted that his mother refused his proposal to let him return to London. It's the first time he's ever skipped.

Nicholas Sancouer eats with Gilles Chastain, but he keeps a discreet eye on Chloe. He's also the only one to notice the spyders that are lurking, watching Chloe from the corners and the shadows.

Elsewhere during the early afternoon, the mail is delivered, which includes the letters to the Agreste residence. Nathalie Sancoeur takes the correspondence that deals with running the Gabriel fashion line while Amelie takes her letters that were forwarded to her from England. She flips through the envelopes: information about film contracts, foreign rights, personal letters to those in the industry she's personally close to. The bottom letter stops her completely. It's clear by the layers of postage it's been bounced around the system for a while, starting in Paris and then going to London before being return here to Paris. But that isn't what holds Amelie's attention. What holds her attention is the crane emblem used to seal the envelope shut.

Once lunch is over, Madam Gros heads to Mr. Haprele's class to retrieve the very last student that she has on her list: Felix Graham de Vanily. Mr. Haprele apologizes, but Felix got permission to leave early (he called himself off, faking being his own legal guardian. Because not only does Francoise Dupont High School's lock down procedures suck, but they're also apparently terrible at verifying "this student isn't coming to school due to illness" calls.) Madam Gros frowns but thanks him for telling her. She checks her notes and finds that she marked to follow-up on two students whose interviews were rather short due to the students being rather non-communicative. Those are Kagami Tsurugi and Viktor Vasiliev. Since she's already in Mr. Haprele's class, she requests Kagami. Kagami says she already was interviewed in a tone that makes it clear she doesn't want to go. But Madam Gros insists there's still things to cover, so Kagami resigns and follows her.

Once inside the office, Kagami insists she has nothing further to talk about. Madam Gros begins with the questions she wasn't able to get to last time, due to Kagami abruptly leaving. Last time, all they covered was Kagami's love triangle and her strict relationship with her mother. This time, Madam Gros inquires about how Kagami handles stress and her plans for her future.

Kagami answers that she doesn't get stressed, but if she did, she would take up her sword and head to the practice hall. Doing repetitive kendo drills focuses the mind and spirit. Madam Gros wonders if Kagami wants to be a kendo instructor, like her mother, when she grows up. Kagami replies that her mother is pushing her to attend any of the best universities in the country, preferably to be a doctor. Dolores asks if Kagami is even interested in medicine. Kagami replies vaguely that she doesn't hate it… Madam Gros tries to carefully pry further, trying to dig into what Kagami's real interests are. Kagami admits to likely classical music, all without her mother's influence, as well as orange juice and…and painting. The last part is hard for her to say aloud as her mother frowns upon a hobby that won't further one's future. But she does find painting to be relaxing and enjoyable—though she's often so busy she doesn't get many opportunities to work on her canvases.

As they talk, Kagami opens up as they talk, she reveals that she doesn't know how to handle the guy she previously liked and the friend she currently trusts the most. She's pretty much fallen out of love with the guy because he's unreliable (a very important trait for her), yet her friend is trying to hook them up—despite the fact said friend likes said guy. Madam Gros repeats "it's best to be honest" without really putting any psychology skills behind it as she's not really interested in "teen love drama."

She then twists the conversation to ask Kagami about Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Hawk Moth. Kagami states that she trusts Ladybug and Cat Noir whole-heartedly (after all, they trusted her with two miraculous) and she sees them as noble, honorable heroes fighting against a cowardly villain who won't even show his face. Madam Gros thanks her for her time while putting an X through her name. Kagami asks to be excused, and Dolores excuses her. Kagami then asks if she's done with this, and Madam Gros replies that her door is always open if Kagami needs someone to talk to (so Gros can prey on them in a moment of weakness) but unless Kagami takes her up on that offer, the mental health screening has concluded. Kagami says her farewells and heads back to class.

School ends, and everyone disperses for home or extracurricular activities. Adrien informs the gorilla that he's going to hang out with friends. The gorilla crosses his arms; he's not about to allow that. However, Adrien calls Aunt Amelie, who gives him permission. That's when Felix walks up, coming from a direction that isn't the school (as he was at the public library). Adrien wonders where Felix was, and Felix replies rather neutral that it's not exactly Adrien's business. Nicholas Sancoeur also gets into the limo while Adrien stays behind, leaving for one very quiet ride back as neither Nicholas nor Felix nor the gorilla talk to each other.

Nino Lahiffe, Alya Cesaire, and Adrien talk while they wait for Marinette, Kagami, and Luka. Alya stays only briefly as she mentions that there's somewhere she has to be (filling in for Gislle by using her Mirage as Rena Rouge). Adrien wonders what that is. Nino doesn't know the full details, but he does know enough to suspect it is work as Rena Rouge, so he covers for his girlfriend. Nino then asks if Adrien is sure he really wants to try again with Kagami—after all, he did stand her up three times. Adrien's guilt is apparent, and he insists he never wanted to hurt Kagami. Nino is a bit surprised, as he had half-wondered if Adrien had intentionally ghosted Kagami in order to avoid telling her directly that he's not interested. Adrien admits that he is sorta interested in Kagami…but at the same time, there's someone else he has his heart set on. He knows that that's not fair to Kagami, but he does want to be friends with Kagami and spend time with her and he truly doesn't want to hurt her. Nino tells him to tell her the truth. Adrien rallies his courage and admits that that's his plan today. He knows he just can't bow out as Marinette and Luka are depending on him and Kagami for their double date. Nino shakes his head. He just doesn't see how Adrien and Marinette make love so complicated. He and Alya don't have near the communication issues. Adrien wonders why Nino also mentioned Marinette's name but figures it's likely that Marinette hasn't had the courage to confess to Luka, which is why Marinette wants two friends (Adrien and Kagami) nearby for support and to keep down the awkward. Poor dude is so obvious to love. Nino shakes his head at the assertion. "Dude, just talk like normal people and tell the truth. Trust me on this." Adrien replies with, "I do. I know you always got my back."

Rose Lavillant checks her social media feed and is thrilled to learn Prince Ali will be visiting the local hospital within the next day or two. She shares the news with Juleka Couffaine, who is happy for her. Jean Duparc attempts to work his way into the conversation to talk to Rose, but they don't even notice he's there. So instead, Jean slips a pink rose into Rose's locker (the second one he's given her; the first was on her window sill). That Rose does notice later on; she's touched by the gesture but also confused by it. Nicolette Lacroix and Monique Imhof are chatting. They wind up joining a conversation with Yvonne Garnier, Genevieve Faucher, and Sabrina Raincomprix about celebrities and local concerts they'd love to attend. Le Chien Kim quickly texts to Ondine before she has to go home to her no-cell-phone, no-computer grounding. But she does tell him it's getting better, so maybe soon they'll actually be able to talk face to face. Marc Anciel and Nathaniel Kurtzberg meet up to head to Nathaniel's apartment in order to further work on their comic. Orikko, Lucciola, and Ziggy all pop out of their backpacks to greet each other. Marc and Nathaniel are left scrambling to hide them.

Soon, Marinette and Luka and Kagami meet up with Adrien. Adrien Agreste leads the way since he's the one who knows where the new Cat Café is located. He subtle urges Kagami to walk ahead with him in part because he knows he owes it to her and in part because he believes that Marinette wants to spend time primarily with Luka.

The Cat Café is modernly designed but very cozy with numerous cats lounging on cushions, cat trees, and couches. Plagg comments that he feels at home here. Kagami wonders who just spoke, so Adrien repeats the remark as if he were the one to say it. They pick a table and order their drinks and begin to talk, laugh, hang out, and have a great time. It doesn't take long for Adrien to get covered in cats with Marinette smiling brightly. Luka holds up a furry kitten, and Marinette pets it happily. Kagami watches them all somewhat quietly, but she is genuinely smiling. Tiia pops her head up and steals a scone. Adrien relaxes enough to start cracking a joke or two and making a pun, which gets everyone laughing, even Kagami. He smiles genuinely at his more casual, goofy side is accepted by his friends. He truly feared it would be rejected.

Nicholas Sancoeur reports to his aunt as soon as he arrives back at the Agreste manor. She asks him if he noticed anything about Chloe Bourgeois. He reports that there was nothing out of the ordinary. She plays on her phone, eats alone, and berates her classmates. Nathalie also notes that her own spyders turned up nothing abnormal—but they know for certain that Chloe has a miraculous. However, no one even saw Barbarra today (the Scorpio kwami was very good at staying hidden). Nicholas promises to keep up his discreet surveillance tomorrow, but Nathalie tells him she has a plan for today. She theorizes that Chloe is not meeting face to face with the leader of the western zodiacs. They're likely communicating through phone or internet. Nathalie tells Nicholas to steal Chloe's cell phone. Nicholas promises to do so. Nathalie then adds he's to take their two newest wielders with him. They should be ready; it's time to test their powers. "And take Ruddiger too. His Steal ability will be most useful." Nicholas promises to do so, transforms into Adamantus, and departs.

Back at the Cat Café, the four teens are having a great time. Adrien whispers to Luka that he'd like a moment alone with Kagami. Luka understands and ushers Marinette farther into the café, where they play with some kittens by dangling catnip mice on cords. Luka is clearly enjoying his time with Marinette romantically. Marinette is enjoying her time with him, but the romance element is missing from her. With them out of hearing range, Adrien again profusely apologizes for previously standing Kagami up. Kagami tells him he can stop apologizing now; she accepts it. Adrien then starts stammering, trying to explain as kindly as possible that he only sees her as a friend. Kagami picks up on what he's trying to say, so she interrupts him and tells him in her usual blunt way that she has reconsidered her romantic feelings towards him and realized that they wouldn't work as a couple. But she does still want to be friends with him. Adrien is relieved, and the two agree to still be friends.

While they're all hanging out, Wayhem drops in. He saw Adrien while passing by and couldn't resist another chance to talk with his idol. Adrien greets him like a friend and introduces him to "my other friend, Kagami." Marinette and Luka then return to the table, and Adrien introduces them as his friends too. Wayhem remembers them from Party Crasher and says it's nice to see them again. He then starts sneezing, revealing he's allergic to cats. Adrien commiserates with him due to having a similar allergic reaction to feathers. Kagami suggests that maybe Wayhem should head outside as clearly a Cat Café is a bad place for him to be. Wayhem obviously doesn't want to leave and miss the chance to talk to his idol some more, but he does see the wisdom in her suggestion. He chats only a bit longer before leaving, grumbling about how much he hates cats, "even Cat Noir." Adrien perks at the final line, wondering if he heard what he thought he heard. But Wayhem has left at that point.

Meanwhile, Adamantus quietly makes his way through Paris. He already knows where Viktor Vasiliev lives, and he figures that his introverted classmate is most likely to be at home. He's correct. Viktor is in his room, working on the details of some model figurines. Adamantus knocks on the glass, and Viktor literally falls out of his chair to see Adamantus there. Viktor immediately reaches for his phone to call for help, but Adamantus motions for him to stop. Due to the influence of the citrine ring he has been wearing for the past several days, Viktor actually does stop. He hesitates. Then he walks over and opens the window, letting Adamantus into his room. He softly demands to know what Adamantus wants.

Adamantus replies that it's more of a matter of what Viktor wants. Viktor averts his eyes and considers his heart. What do I want? His first, genuine answer is "friends." Adamantus proposes that they could be allies. Viktor wonders why. In the back of his mind, he's screaming that Adamantus is an enemy. But due to the influence of the item created by Nathalie, he can no longer hear that voice. Adamantus repeats, urging Viktor to tell him what he wants. Viktor pauses again and then says he's sick and tired of hearing about Ladybug and Cat Noir every time he turns around. He doesn't understand why they're so great when they're a symptom of a larger, unsolved problem: Hawk Moth and Draco. He would much rather have a peaceful Paris than the constant presence of superheroes.

Adamantus tells Viktor he already possesses the power to make that wish come true; he just needs to tap into his own heart. Viktor closes his eyes and concentrates. The voice that tells him to stop, to not trust Adamantus, fades away. All he can sense is the pull of power. The citrine ring on his finger sparks as the power of the sealed akuma washes over him, transforming him into what looks like a miraculous wielder inspired by a hedgehog.

His hair is dyed from blond to orange, to mirror the color of citrine. It's also very spiky and tapers down the back of his neck in a way that would make a shounen battle hero proud. His outfit resembles the texture of undyed leather with narrow shoulder pauldrons and elbow and knee guards. His gloves stop at the wrist where they end in spikes, and there are notable ridges down his spine. His mask, much like Ruddiger's, isn't actually a mask but face paint that encircles both eyes in a swoosh. However, unlike Ruddiger, his paint does not connect over the bridge of his nose. A side pouch is fastened to his hip, and his boots extend to his knees with more protruding spikes.

Adamantus welcomes the new ally: the citrine hedgehog. Viktor looks himself over in the mirror and gives his alias as "Tenrec." Adamantus has no idea what that is, and Viktor/Tenrec explains that it's one of his favorite animals: a spiky rodent from Madagascar. Adamantus shrugs and goes along with the alias. He then tells Tenrec to follow him as they collect more allies. Tenrec does without question.

Meanwhile, Alya Cesaire/Rena Rouge is at the Winters-Blanchet apartment. She has cast a Mirage to make herself look like Giselle and is currently pretending to be her to her father. She tries to make an excuse so "Giselle" can spend the evening in her room, working on homework. However, it's clear Leon Blanchet wants to spend time with his daughter by watching a movie and talking and hanging out (in part so they can further process her mother/his wife's death). Rena Rouge cringes as she knows she can only maintain a Mirage for five minutes. She's finally able to get free by claiming she doesn't feel well as it's that time of the month and that she just needs to lie down in her room all evening. Leon finally relents, rather awkwardly. Rena slips into Giselle's room just as the Mirage breaks and breathes a sigh of relief as she feeds Trixx. Then she has to hurry home before her own parents suspect something is wrong. She confides with Trixx that this is getting tiring and she hopes Giselle's powers release her soon.

During this, Adamantus and Tenrec circle the district. They find Wayhem walking towards his home after he gets off of a public bus. Adamantus tells Tenrec that that's their new ally. Tenrec wonders how they'll approach Wayhem, and Adamantus tells him to follow. (This makes Tenrec/Viktor the only other person besides Nicholas/Adamantus himself to know any of the allied birthstone members' aliases.)

Wayhem enters his apartment building, and the two antagonists sneak in before the lobby door can shut and lock. Wayhem enters the elevator; the other two follow. Adamantus hits the button to shut the door and then the button for the top floor before Wayhem can react, trapping him inside with them. Wayhem freaks and pushes himself against the back of the elevator, trying to put as much distance between himself and the two transformed teens as possible. He demands to know what they want before pulling out a bottle of cologne and threatening them with it, saying he shout loudly enough for the entire apartment complex to hear if they try anything.

Adamantus tells Wayhem that they are not his enemies; they're here because they're allies. Wayhem doesn't believe him. Adamantus tells Wayhem not to believe everything the news reports because the news will fail to tell them off their common goals. As the elevator ascends, Wayhem insists he has no common goals with Adamantus. Adamantus merely tilts his head and asks Wayhem if there's anyone he hates. The emerald brooch on Wayhem's chest shimmers darkly as Wayhem answers, without any hesitation, that he hates Cat Noir. Tenrec wonders why. Wayhem explains that he hates Cat Noir because Cat Noir takes away attention that belongs to the real celebrities of Paris. Celebrities like Adrien Agreste. He vents that Cat Noir is just a showboater with no real style whatsoever—and what's the worst, he's arrogant. Not like the humble Adrien. (Oh the irony.) Plus, Wayhem dislikes cats in general due to his allergy. Adamantus asks Wayhem if he'd like the chance to take Cat Noir down a peg or two. Wayhem closes his eyes, considers the offer, and answers "yes." Adamantus coaches him through using his powers, all locked within the emerald brooch he's wearing.

Wayhem takes a deep breath and feels the power within the brooch, letting it wrap around him. He transforms into a scarab-themed hero—or rather, villain due to no fault of his own. His outfit is somewhat similar to Kamaitachi's in that they're both gold and green. But Kamaitachi is green with gold trim whereas Wayhem's outfit is predominately gold with green inlay. He dons a domino mask with film over the eye holes, further disguising his identity. He gains two gossamer-like wings that function more like capes than anything capable of flight. His unitard includes a golden hair-covering hood that goes down into a wide collar that expands to just over his shoulders. The arms and legs of his outfit are segmented, mirroring an insect's joints. There's also a distinctly Egyptian feel to the lines around his gloves and boots, as well as the overall shape of his mask and chest. A long Egyptian-style flail appears clipped into the belt at his side.

Adamantus welcomes him to the team, leaving a lull for Wayhem to provide his new name. He does so, calling himself "Golden Scarabug: the emerald scarab."

At that point, the elevator door opens at the very top level, the roof. Ruddiger is there waiting, in a trance, as he is not fully in control of his actions. Nathalie/Peacock Moth seized control of him and guided him there to be Adamantus's final ally for this mission. (Ruddiger and All-Star Rex being the two allies Nathalie currently has to fully brainwash into serving her while everyone else is instead slowly having their personalities warped. Except, of course, Adamantus, who was created to literally serve her.) Adamantus welcomes his team and declares their target: Chloe Bourgeois and the information she has stored in her cell phone about the person who gave her the Scorpio miraculous.

Back at the Cat Café, the teens pay their tab and leave. Everyone had a ton of fun. Adrien is covered in cat hair, and the others are all laughing. Kagami's mother sends their automated car to pick her up. Kagami offers Adrien a ride back to his home, that way he doesn't have to wait on his bodyguard (who logically would be nearby, wouldn't he?). Adrien accepts. They say their good-byes and leave. Luka offers Marinette a ride home on his bicycle, which she accepts. Luka takes the long way, showing Marinette the scenery and going down inclines just a tad too fast. Both have a blast, and Marinette is still laughing and smiling when she returns to the bakery. Luka says good-bye and gives her a kiss on the cheek. He leaves, and he's clearly ecstatic.

Adamantus lands on the roof of the building next to the Bourgeois estate. Ruddiger, Tenrec, and Golden Scarabug join him. They spy through the windows, trying to locate where Chloe is. It's Tenrec who finds her, having a conversation with her father. Though "conversation" is being generous as it's more of an argument. Mayor Bourgeois is pleading for forgiveness from Chloe and trying to bribe her with clothing and purses. Chloe will have none of it as she is still very upset and deeply hurt over his divorce. He insists he tried to tell her, but she refuses to accept that (he did, honestly, try to tell her). She then rants about him keeping the fact Audrey was having a long-term affair from her. Mayor Bourgeois quietly admits that he had no idea either. It's clear he's hurting too. Chloe just turns up her nose and storms off to her room.

Adamantus watches as Chloe flops down on her bed and begins playing with her cell phone. Ruddiger offers to Steal it at that moment. After all, he can swipe whatever someone is physically holding on to. Adamantus tells him to wait. Ideally, they could slip in without Chloe even noticing they were there (but Peacock Moth insisted Adamantus have back-up just in case. Not to mention it can become a testing ground for Tenrec and Scarabug).

After some time passes, Chloe throws her phone onto her pillow and heads into her own private bathroom. Adamantus motions for the others to move in. Tenrec is put on duty watching from the balcony while Scarabug watches from just behind the hallway door. Adamantus moves to steal the phone. However, that's when Chloe returns from the bathroom in a wave of perfume. Ruddiger thinks fast and shoves her back inside while grabbing onto the doorknob to keep her trapped. Chloe pounds, demanding to be let out. Ruddiger shouts at the others to "Go!" The others quickly evacuate with Adamantus still possessing Chloe's cell phone. (After all, it wouldn't be Miraculous if someone didn't steal someone else's cell phone.) Once everyone is gone, Ruddiger lets go of the knob and bolts himself.

Chloe kicks the bathroom door open in time to see Ruddiger retreat from her window. She also immediately notices her phone is missing from her bed. She chases after the raccoon and shouts "Sting, Barbarra," transforming into Queen Scorpion just before she leaps out the window. Which is probably an unwise move as Chloe has no idea that Adamantus's crew already knows her identity; for all Chloe knows, she just revealed her secret to her enemy. But she's never been good at keeping her identity a secret in this particular story.

As Queen Scorpion, Chloe pursues all four of them to get her phone back. She's not even thinking that it does link her to Madam Gros/Ivory. All she's thinking about is that it's her property. She swings her acidic chain at Adamantus, who dodges. Adamantus orders Tenrec and Scarabug to fall back and distract her while he escapes with the phone. Both agree and do so, but Scorpion lashes at them rapidly and breaks through their blockade.

The good thing about Queen Scorpion not being discreet is that it catches the attention of civilians, who immediately report the fight on the Akuma Alert app as well as stream it on social media. This alerts not only the heroes but also other villains. Madam Gros immediately texts Chloe to find out what's going on. However, the phone vibrates in Adamantus's hand. Fortunately for Madam Gros, the diamond unicorn has no time to check the messages while in the middle of a fight. When Queen Scorpion fails to respond to her again and again, Madam Gros begins to suspect something bad is up—something that could endanger her entire agenda. She contacts different allies of her for back-up. Whether they'll help Queen Scorpion or remove her from the picture entirely remains to be seen. Meanwhile, Scorpion goes on to cause a lot of collateral damage that prevents Adamantus from hightailing it.

Of course, the golden duo also get the message that the antagonists are on the move, complete with live stream images of who all they're up again. Neither of them have seen Tenrec or Golden Scarabug before, but they know what Adamantus, Queen Scorpion, and Ruddiger can do. Ladybug contacts Cat Noir while she's en route to the conflict; she asks him if he's thinking what she's thinking. Cat Noir affirms it, and they both pre-emptively call in their most trusted allies: Carapace and Rena Rouge. Ladybug also gets onto the Team B Discord and requests Alpha.

Back at the fight, Adamantus tanks through Queen Scorpion's chain and makes a break for it. She tries to pursue him, but Scarabug catches her by the ankle with his long flail and yanks her back. Ruddiger Steals her chain from her so she can no longer use it, but he has to drop it immediately due to its corrosive nature. Only Scorpion (and maybe Cat Noir) can hold it without being harmed. Scorpion yanks Scarabug off balance and dives and retrieves her weapon just as Ladybug and Cat Noir arrive. Scorpion grumbles very loudly about them showing up.

Ladybug demands to know what's going on as she takes a defensive stance against both sides of her opponents. Adamantus insists it's not her business and again tries to make an escape while ordering Tenrec and Golden Scarabug to distract the main duo. Scarabug doesn't hesitate in fighting against Cat Noir while Tenrec reaches into his side pouch and pulls out his weapon. Or rather, weapons—his pouch generates an endless amount of dice. Tenrec throws numerous D4s on the ground, which act as dangerous caltrops, forcing Ladybug to fall back.

Queen Scorpion has tunnel vision on Adamantus and kicks Ruddiger aside to pursue him. "No one steals from me!" Adamantus comes to a dead halt when Sir Silver Hart lands in front of him, mallet/gavel raised. He declares that no one is going to mess with his friend and sends Adamantus flying. Though Adamantus is largely unhurt due to his high defense. Scorpion insists that she and Sir Silver Hart are not friends. Hart points out that they're teammates, to which Scorpion replies "barely." Hart ignores her remark and relays that he heard from Ivory that Scorpion needed help. Scorpion insists she's fine even though it's clear she's massively outnumbered.

It erupts into an all-out battle with Queen Scorpion and Sir Silver Hart against Adamantus and Ruddiger and Tenrec and Golden Scarabug against Ladybug and Cat Noir. Adamantus's team holds the advantage in terms of numbers, and Ruddiger is incredibly skilled at keeping his opponents off balance by stealing their weapons. Ladybug aims to use her Lucky Charm, but her yo-yo is swiped before she can complete it.

She and Cat Noir are pushed back to back while Scorpion grapples with Adamantus. That's when Golden Scarabug reveals his ability: Bejeweled. Anything he touches while his ability is active turns to gold—a classic Midas touch. Cat Noir blocks him with his baton, causing his (Cat Noir's) weapon to become gold. He drops it it's so heavy. Ladybug tries to fake Scarabug into touching himself, but Scarabug simply deactivates his ability before his fingers make contact. Since he and the others aren't using actual miraculous, they can use their abilities as many times as they'd like. Which means Scarabug can come after Ladybug again, Bejeweled re-activated. She's forced to leap well out of the range of the fight.

It looks like Adamantus will make a break when Tenrec helps Scarabug corner the golden duo, but that's when Rena Rouge and Carapace land to drive the others off. Cat Noir is grateful to them, and Rena Rouge questions what's going on. Ladybug admits she has no idea why two sets of their enemies are fighting, but she sees it as a chance to capture and interrogate at least one of them. Plus they can't let Paris continue to suffer collateral damage (which is mainly Queen Scorpion's fault). Carapace and Rena Rouge say they understand and prepare to join the fray—only to be caught in thread as Reef and June join up to help Queen Scorpion on Ivory's orders.

Meanwhile, Brynne Theroux also gets notified from Madam Gros to help Scorpion. Brynne is in tattered jeans, a sleeveless shirt, and a frilly apron as she's in the middle of cooking a rather scrumptious dinner. She tells Madam Gros off for interrupting her while she's cooking and that if she leaves now, all of her food will be ruined. Madam Gros insists that Brynne drop everything, transform into Rhino, and go help Scorpion. Brynne says she will and hangs up. Then she adds "after I'm done simmering and basting."

Lila Rossi also gets the same notice as the rest of the wielders under the Western Order. She rolls her eyes and initially dismisses it. What does she care about the other losers who use miraculous? But then she notices Rena Rouge has arrived. Lila calls Lapinna the cabbit kwami and transforms into Mink. Her mental gears are already turning on how she can use it to her advantage. She does the same trick she did in her debut chapter where she throws her mirror and transforms back into Lila with the timing just right so her mirror catches her civilian reflection and splits her into light and dark before it disappears. Her dark side transforms back into Mink after giving her light side instructions on what to do. Light side Lila waits a moment. Then she walks out of the apartment and heads to the crisis on foot.

At the same time, Marie Chauveau's cell phone beeps and beeps. But she doesn't hear it as she's busy drying her hair with a loud hair dryer. (Which means Shark Regina is the only existing member of the western zodiacs to miss out.)

Back at the fight, with Carapace and Rena Rouge's help, the heroes are able to pull things into a three-way stalemate. Reef attempts to capture Adamantus with fabric while June holds off Ruddiger with her shears. However, Adamantus is able to maneuver so Queen Scorpion's acidic chain destroys Reef's fabric. He calls her out on having such an "unlovely" technique. Scorpion barks at him to stay out of her way. June moves in to protect Reef from Golden Scarabug, who manages to turn her shears to solid gold before she can Sever anyone's threads. June puts some distance between herself and her opponents and pulls her eye scanner into place. She studies the relationship between everyone. Once again, she sees the red thread between Ladybug and Cat Noir, which marks them as being in love in the present (which makes June jealous). She can also see a romantic relationship binds Rena Rouge and Carapace, as well as friendship threads between all four of them. Sir Silver Hart has a pink thread, denoting a crush in the present. However, she can see a sort of dotted red thread that leads elsewhere into the indistinct future, hinting that his pink crush isn't going to last. It's not unlike June's own pink thread that goes to Reef, much to her own frustration at it being unrequited. She can also see threads of all colors that link people to places, things, events, and even memories. She realizes that it's not as if there's a "destined love" but rather than she's seeing threads that actively represent thing in the present (such as Rena Rouge and Carapace being in love) or dashed-line threads that represent the possibility of things to come in the future, based on how choices in the present are shaping things. She recalls that Madam Gros said that even being able to see that much while using the Cancer miraculous meant that she, June, was very talented with that particular ability. The one thing June notices that's odd are the color of threads that connect Ruddiger to Adamantus's crew. She's never seen that color before. (It's because Ruddiger has been full-on brainwashed to serve Hawk Moth and thus Adamantus.)

Rena Rouge sees a shadow cross over her head too close for her to dodge. Alpha arrives at that moment and kicks Mink away from Rena. Mink twists and lands on her feet, snarling at Alpha for running her ambush. Rena Rouge thanks Alpha, and Alpha says he's glad to be included in things. With the fight turning into five against four against five, it really is sheer chaos. Plus, a number of characters are pursuing their own vendettas. Scorpion keeps pursuing Adamantus to get her phone back. Mink focuses on Rena Rouge. June keeps defending Reef. Scarabug primarily targets Cat Noir. Because of Scarabug's Bejeweled, quite a bit of the scenery has been turned to gold. There's a couple civilians who are looting it while others continue to live stream the fight. You know, instead of them getting to safety.

Scarabug shows some skills in evasion and closing the distance between himself and his opponents. However, he is still rather inexperienced despite his good instincts. Cat Noir, even without his baton, is able to disarm Scarabug of his flail. He moves in to claim Scarabug's magic item, but Tenrec leaps to his ally's defense and reveals his own ability: Chance. He pulls out a different die from his pouch: a D100. (It's worth noting that all of Tenrec's dice have different abilities. D4s are caltrops, D10s explode. Throwing twelve D12s creates a temporary twelve-point barrier, though not as good as Shelter Shock. D20s produce a random weapon based on the number rolled—as in, each number corresponds with a specific weapon. And the D100 links to Tenrec's special ability. His pouch also endlessly generates dice, though which ones he gets isn't 100% foolproof, though the odds are pretty high in his favor.) Tenrec throws the D100 and declares "Chance!" The D100 lands, and Cat Noir doesn't see what number it is. Tenrec, however, declares Kamaitachi's special move: "Speed Strike!" and strikes Cat Noir repeatedly at blinding speeds. For Tenrec's most special ability is that he can randomly mimic any ability from any existing miraculous, even those not present at the current fight. Heck, he could even mimic Liberty, which miraculous isn't even on the same continent.

Cat Noir goes down hard, clutching his ribcage. Ladybug cries out his name, but she can't move in to help him due to being tied up facing down June and Reef (though she catches a brief break when Scarabug turns Reef's fabric into gold). It's Carapace who dives in and hauls Cat Noir out of the way of the fight. He props Cat Noir up against a chimney a street or two over. He asks if Cat Noir is okay, but it's clear it's going to be a bit before Cat Noir can get back into the fight. Nonetheless, he struggles to his feet, determined to help. Carapace encourages him to take it easy. But Cat Noir scans the battle for Ladybug, and he sees Tenrec approaching her with dark energy in his fist. He realizes what that means—Tenrec used Chance again. And this time, he rolled Cataclysm. Cat Noir once again attempts to struggle to his feet in order to protect "milady" as Tenrec (with Cataclysm) approaches her while she has her hands full dealing with June and Reef. Carapace again insists Cat Noir has to stay still, and the more Cat Noir struggles, the more Carapace gets adamant until the point that Cat Noir can barely get a word in.

Cat Noir meets his eyes and declares loud enough to interrupt. "Carapace. I know you always got my back. But now I need you to protect Ladybug!" (Which is obviously a callback to earlier in the chapter.) Carapace's eyes flicker in confusion and recognition. "Adri…?" Cat Noir interrupts him again, just short of ordering him to go defend Ladybug. Carapace affirms he will but insists Cat Noir lay still. The turtle user takes off, and Cat Noir drops to his knees, clearly hurting.

Meanwhile, Lila Rossi (at least, her light side) has caught up with the fight on foot. She starts off by helping people evacuate—but she really only bothers when she's sure someone is live streaming her (though she's trying to make it look as if she's doing it out of altruism instead of glory-seeking.) But she doesn't end there. Lila works her way closer to the fight, looking for a moment when she can use her civilian alias to compromise, spy on, or even lash out against those under Adamantus. She knows Madam Gros would turn on her if she attempted to betray June, Reef, Sir Silver Hart, or Queen Scorpion (or even herself as Mink). However, Adamantus's—no, Hawk Moth's—team is fair game. And helping either Ladybug or Ivory take down Adamantus and Hawk Moth would only serve to make her look better. But ugh! This is so much work! It's so much easier when people just believe whatever I say!

Tenrec approaches Ladybug in her blindspot. She's so preoccupied that she doesn't see him coming. It's not until Carapace leaps between them with his Shelter Shock that Ladybug even realizes she was in danger from a mimicked Cataclysm. The Cataclysm obliterates Carapace's shield. Ladybug thanks him and finally has enough of a moment to breathe to use her Lucky Charm. Scarabug moves in the moment the item (whatever it is) forms in an attempt to render it useless by turning it into gold. However, Alpha sees what's going to happen and augments his own speed to snatch it from Scarabug's grasp and throw it back to Ladybug.

Tenrec produces a D20 from his pouch and rolls; the die morphs into a spear which he uses to protect Adamantus from both Ladybug and Queen Scorpion, who are trying to close in on him for their own reasons. Queen Scorpion takes a moment to drive Ladybug off with her acid chain. Rena Rouge attempts to leap to her aid, but Mink cuts her off. Carapace joins closely with the ranks at the heroes try to corner the villains. Ladybug asks him how Cat Noir is, and Carapace replies that Cat Noir is recovering.

The fight continues with everyone getting their moments as well as Tenrec and Golden Scarabug showing what they can do as this is their debut. Ladybug crafts something with her Lucky Charm. The dynamic changes when Queen Scorpion cuts off Adamantus but accidentally wipes out her own phone with her shrieks "that's mine!" and fully blames Adamantus for things going wrong despite the fact it was her technique that damaged her property. Peacock Moth orders Adamantus to fall back as there's no longer any reason to linger. Adamantus relays the order on to Ruddiger, Tenrec, and Golden Scarabug. Ruddiger obeys without question, of course. Scarabug huffs that he wasn't able to finish off Cat Noir, "wherever that coward is hiding." All four move to withdraw.

June and Reef move to stop them with June causing threads to appear and Reef manipulating them. Ruddiger Steals June's comb, making her unable to continue to hinder them, and Hawk Moth's team makes a break for it. Alpha sprints ahead of them, but he has Sir Silver Hart on his tail. And Hart's use of Polarity is enough that it allows Adamantus's crew to escape despite the fact that Silver Hart was doing his best to prevent that.

This leaves the members of the Western Order facing down the members of the Eastern Order, and most if not all of them are on their countdowns. Ladybug remains firm, demanding to know what the Western Order wanted (so by now, Alpha has a general idea about miraculous orders and that his allies are East and his enemies are West). Scorpion gets dismissive, saying that she was just trying to stop some thieves and if Ladybug was such an amazing heroine she never would have gotten involved in the first place or would have helped Scoprion get her phone back before it was destroyed. Cat Noir returns next to Ladybug, still wincing and winded but on his feet, and tells Queen Scorpion (whom he knows is Chloe) not to talk to his partner that way. Carapace, Rena Rouge, and Alpha back him up.

Madam Gros, who is watching everything through the civilians' live stream, realizes that if five of her pawns get their identities revealed, they'll be traced back to the school where she works. With no one getting any compromised data from Queen Scorpion's phone, she orders them to withdraw. They all get the message through their weapons, which also fuse with their phones when transformed (except Scorpion's for obvious reasons). Mink and Scorpion both are not happy to hear this but Hart, June, and Reef oblige. Obviously, neither Mink nor Scorpion want to be left alone with five heroes, so they're forced to fall back too. Scorpion is fuming about her phone and insists to herself that "daddy is going to buy me a newer, better one." However, she remembers she isn't on speaking terms with her father. Well, maybe I should talk to him a little so he keeps buying me stuff.

Of course, the heroes aren't about to let the Western Order escape. Alpha sets up to pursue them, but Mink moves to block him. Alpha hesitates just a second, which gives Mink the time she needs to move her mirror from him to Rena Rouge. "Duality!" She splits Rena Rouge into her light and dark halves. The dark side forms next to Mink, and her light side prepares to face her down. However, Mink simply orders the dark side of Rena Rouge to cast "Mirage!", which masks their escape. By the time the fake smoke clears, the heroes have lost all sight of the Western Order. Mink attempts to boss the dark side of Rena Rouge around further, but the dark side isn't having it as all aspects of Rena Rouge would oppose the Western Order. So Mink then dispels dark side Rena Rouge and her own light side (who is still just Lila) so the heroes can't pursue her. She heads home and transforms back into herself.

Cat Noir asks if it's over, and Ladybug says she thinks it is. They look around, but there's no sign of any of their opponents. So Ladybug throws her Lucky Charm into the air, which heals not only the massive amount of damage Queen Scorpion caused and all of the gold created by Scarabug but also heals Cat Noir. The five heroes "Pound It!" They part ways to their own respective homes. However, Carapace hesitates and looks in the direction Cat Noir heads.

They're not the only ones to head home. Queen Scorpion heads back to the Bourgeois estate—where both Tarantula and Ivory are waiting for her. Scorpion transforms back into Chloe; her time limit's up. Chloe, in her usual arrogant fashion, demands to know what they're doing there. But inside, she's sweating. She knows she's pushed her limits with them probably far too often. Ivory asks Chloe what happened. Chloe thinks on her feet and spins a tale about how she saw Adamantus on the roof and transformed to follow him. Once she saw he wasn't alone, she pulled out her phone/weapon to call Ivory for back-up, but that's when Adamantus ambushed her and took her by surprise, snatching her phone from her. With no way to call for help, she took it upon herself to pursue Adamantus's team before Ivory's information was compromised. She insists her identity was not compromised, which as the reader knows is a lie.

Ivory is skeptical but considering she's short on man-power and has interviewed literally every student at the school at this point, she decides to give Chloe the benefit of the doubt and let her keep the Scorpio miraculous. Ivory and Tarantula leave, and Chloe breathes a sigh of relief. She takes care of Barbarra. Then she approaches her father to butter up to him for a new, better phone. Mayor Bourgeois is just glad the only remaining member of his family is speaking to him again.

Adamantus reports back to Peacock Moth and confesses to his failure to obtain Chloe's cell phone, which likely had further information on the person she's working for. Peacock Moth doesn't consider it a failure as both Tenrec and Golden Scarabug had a successful test run with their items. Neither's skin turned color, and both now believe Ladybug and Cat Noir are the enemies despite what their own personalities might have considered before. She's exceptionally pleased with the abilities they revealed; Tenrec's Chance might be unreliable as it's RNG, but it'll be very useful in the future.

Adamantus hesitates, then he asks Peacock Moth what his true special ability is. If I can't fulfill my purpose and become akumatized, I can at least fulfill my purpose as Adamantus. Peacock Moth explains that she only put the seed of a talent inside each of the twelves items she made. She created them, the items, and the abilities to blossom and grow under the personality of a more permanent wielder—which is unlike akumatizing someone where the powers are set, forced, and have limited growth and adaptability. (This explains why Tenrec wound up with the perfectly suited ability of Chance (with DnD dice) and All-Star Rex wound up modeled after baseball. And it explains why the raccoon's main weapon, a paintbrush, morphed so drastically between Lila and Jakeel.) Adamantus still wonders what his is. Peacock Moth explains that the seed she put in the diamond cufflinks is the seed of her greatest wish—and she's trusting Adamantus to grow it. Before Adamantus can inquire more, Peacock Moth sends him into the evening on one final assignment.

There's a knock on the front door of the Agreste manor. Amelie Graham de Vanily opens it and lets Nino Lahiffe in. He says he's there to see Adrien, and she lets Nino head up to Adrien's room without any further questions. Nino notes how different that is than when Gabriel was conscious.

Adrien hears the door open, and Plagg darts into hiding as Nino enters. They greet each other and play some foosball. Adrien sorta suspects why Nino dropped by, and his suspicions are confirmed when Nino says, "So, you've been Cat Noir this whole time, dude?"

Despite trying to keep a straight face, Adrien does flinch to hear it said aloud. He had considered denying it, but after a long thought, he decided it would be better to come clean to Nino. After all, Nino is his best friend, and Ladybug would have been Cataclysm'ed in the back had Cat Noir not strongly hinted to his own identity and pleaded with Carapace to save her. So Adrien admits it's true to Nino.

Nino repeats that he always has Adrien's back and that he won't tell anyone, not even Alya, about this. "So much makes sense now, dude. But why didn't you tell me earlier?" Adrien raises an eyebrow at him as they're still playing foosball. "Ah, right. Secret identity. Gotcha." But they do talk for a bit about their side lives as Cat Noir and Carapace. Adrien admits how hard it's been keeping this secret as only "the master" and "the master's girlfriend" even know who he is (Bunnyx knows too, but Adrien forgot to include her. Plus he's unaware Ladybug already knows.) But on the other hand, he finally has an outlet where he can be himself. He can goof-off and joke and have fun and say what's on his mind and on his heart without earning his father's disapproval or being rejected by his friends. In a way, Cat Noir is freedom for him. This also leads to Wayzz appearing and asking about "the master," since it's clear that everyone mutually knows each other's identities at this point. Adrien says that they have no word on the master, and he's been struggling to solve the master's final riddle. Wayzz and Plagg also talk a bit in the background, with Nino meeting Plagg for the first time. Plagg refuses to share his cheese with Wayzz.

Things eventually swing around, and Nino has a moment of realization. "Oh, so the girl you've been crazy about this whole time is Ladybug." Adrien blushes and affirms it's true. Nino realizes then that no go at school stands a chance as pretty much all of Paris knows how bad Cat Noir has it for Ladybug. That's rough for Kagami and Chloe and the rest… Then Nino recalls that Marinette also has a huge crush on Adrien; furthermore, that he (Nino) and Alya had been trying to hook them up. But Nino realizes he can't continue that any more as it's clear Adrien won't reciprocate for Marinette and that Marinette will only get hurt. Bummer. Woulda been fun to go on double dates together. But Nino has to be loyal to his best friend.

Elsewhere as the sun goes down, Fumikage Tokoyami is finishing up his homework for the night. Without the bright sunlight, he actually feels comfortable opening his bedroom curtains. A flash of movement on the rooftops catches his eye. Is that…Chip Bluestone? It makes no sense as Chip had promised not to even wear his item until the whole "Crimson" thing is resolved. Fumikage fishes in his closet a pulls out a pair of binoculars. Dark Shadow asks him what he's doing. Fumikage replies with "I just have to make certain." He focuses in on Chip, who has stopped to talk with someone in the shadow of a chimney. Fumikage watches although he can't hear what they're saying or really see what they're doing. A minute later, Chip departs. Then, the person he was meeting leaves in the opposite direction. Fumikage sees a glint of clear stone in his binoculars; he recognizes the horn. That was Adamantus!

That same evening, Raissa Deschamps is in her bedroom. She has some K-pop music turned really loud and is singing off-lyric into her hair brush while she dances around. She isn't graceful or anything, but she's having a blast. That's when she hears a CRACK and a few slivers of ice fall off of the shell that has imprisoned Snow Leopard…

That night, long after Nino has left the Agreste manor, Amelie enters her sister (and brother-in-law)'s bedroom where they're unconscious. In her hand is an open letter—a letter with the crane emblem. Amelie is very somber as she stares at her sister's unmoving face. "This shouldn't have been me. This should have been you. You're the older twin. But the pack from a century ago has been called in, and someone from the Graham de Vanily family needs to fulfill it." It's revealed that the Graham de Vanily family has known for generations that magical items (like miraculous and the prodigious) exist in the world. It's something that both Amelie and Emilie were fascinated by as young children. But their family had sworn them to secrecy; they were only to hold the knowledge of magic—they were never to use it. And had they not been twins, Amelie would have been kept in the dark entirely as only the firstborn was ever informed.

Amelie goes on to admit that she is ashamed of the fact that Emilie would chose to share the knowledge of the existence of magical items with someone, even if that person was her husband/brother-in-law. Amelie herself never told her late husband about the Graham de Vanily legacy (though she did have him take her surname). But Emilie told Gabriel. And for the first years of their marriage, they traveled around the world, searching for magical items, miraculous, other items of lore, and more magical lore itself. Though Amelie doesn't know this fact, it's during that time that Emilie and Gabriel successfully found the butterfly and peacock miraculous as well as the grimoire plus rumors about the existence of the prodigious.

However, Amelie also realizes how much the magical legacy meant to her twin, and she laments how things are now, Emilie isn't going to get to see it fulfilled. In a moment of vulnerability, Amelie pleads with her sister to wake. But that has no effect. Amelie even comments, "it's the magic you were researching that did this to you, didn't it?" Again, Emilie cannot reply. Amelie realizes it's up to her now to walk the path of their family's legacy and the oath the Graham de Vanily's took so long ago. After all, why shouldn't it be her? They're twins after all. "Maybe in doing so I'll find a way for you to open your eyes again."

Amelie tucks the letter with the crane emblem into her blazer pocket and takes Emilie's wedding ring off of her finger. Then she moves to Gabriel and does the same. She places both rings on one of her own fingers.

To be continued in Chapter 76: Arabian Knight…