More filler, more-or-less. Think of it as a setup for something I've wanted to do for a while.
Chapter 56 – Mysteries in Abyss (Red Wolf Moon)
"So, did your prisoners reveal anything?" Claude asked the Ashen Wolves as he and the other first-year students sat before them in a space that resembled a classroom.
"Not a word," said Yuri. "And they wouldn't name names. I got the feeling they didn't know much themselves. However, one thing is clear. Whoever hired them is after something here in Abyss."
"We think they must have been on a treasure hunt or something," said Balthus.
"A treasure hunt here?" asked Annette.
"I… don't get it," added Caspar.
"What could they possibly seek in these squalid catacombs?" said Lorenz.
"No idea," said Hapi. "Whatever it is, it's gotta be something valuable if they're sending so much muscle down."
The students let out numerous murmurs as they began to discuss what the mercenaries could have been searching for. As they did, Dorothea looked over to see Aelfric stroking his temple as he pondered.
"Brother Aelfric?" asked Dorothea. "Is this ringing any bells for you?"
Everyone quieted down to allow Aelfric to speak.
"Well, something does come to mind," he said, "but the notion is preposterous at best."
"Never discount a wild hunch," said Claude. "Sometimes they're closer to the truth than you'd think."
"Any lead will do, so long as it helps determine our next course of action," said Dimitri. "Please, go on, Brother Aelfric."
"As you wish, though again, it is quite far-fetched," said Aelfric. "You see, there is a longstanding legend here. It is said that deep underground, below even Abyss, is a place called the Chasm of the Bound wherein lies the Chalice of Beginnings.
"The Chasm of the Bound?" asked Mercedes. "Sounds spooky!"
"Huh. This is the first I've heard of it…" said Yuri. "So, you believe Abyss is connected to that place?"
"Lots of twists and turns down here, so it's not the craziest idea ever," said Balthus. "Must be well hidden though."
"And what about this Chalice of Beginnings you mentioned?" asked Ignatz.
"I've never heard of it," said Linhardt, "but chances are it's some kind of sacred artifact belonging to the church."
Aelfric then said, "I once happened upon an old document that mentioned a ritual called the Rite of Rising. The text was incomplete, so I was unable to achieve a full understanding of the topic. I cannot even guarantee the authenticity of what I read. But it stated that the Chalice of Beginnings is a sacred object crafted by order of Saint Seiros herself. Saint Seiros apparently used the artifact to carry out the Rite of Rising, along with the Four Apostles."
"The Four Apostles? Who're they?" asked Annette.
"I vaguely recall reading about the Four Apostles," said Linhardt. "They were saints… and that's about all anyone knows. Hardly any records of them remain. Few alive even know their names, but these apostles supposedly assisted the Four Saints with their holy work."
"And what about this 'Rite of Rising' then?" asked Hubert.
"It is a ritual that is believed to have the power to resurrect a life that was lost," said Aelfric, which created quite a stir for the students. "However, the ritual failed… The Four Apostles bound the chalice so that it would never fall into a mortal's hands."
"The Rite of Rising, eh?" Claude remarked, following with a contemplative "Hmm…"
Constance then said, "Ah, yes, the chalice of legend! My father mentioned it to me a very long time ago. A secret treasure of the church… A chalice powerful enough to resurrect the dead… Exhilarating, no?"
"Indeed, it does sound rather intriguing," said Ferdinand.
"Quite…" added Dimitri. "It is no small wonder that people are after it."
"Sounds too good to be true, if you ask me," said Felix. "All those men after it are likely chasing a myth."
"Even so, we still don't have much to go on," said Edelgard. "We must gather more information about this legend at once."
"I wholeheartedly agree," said Aelfric. "I will do all I can to track down more clues within the monastery. Although, Garreg Mach's library is so… well curated, I doubt any further records will be found."
"Wondrous! We shall do all that we can as well," said Constance.
"Let's have a look through the library here in Abyss," said Ignatz. "Between us, it shouldn't take too long to find something."
"Aww, reading? I'm not really into that kind of stuff," said Raphael.
…
The students spent the next three hours in the Shadow Library in Abyss, which held a numerous forbidden texts and lost archives that either had been disposed of by the Church or simply were lost elsewhere. The contents of several of the books did not match their covers, leading to many instances of the students reading shocking materials. Annette let out a loud yelp upon seeing that one book she had opened was a form of erotic literature, despite that its cover was on an entirely different subject.
As Byleth looked through some of the higher shelves atop a ladder while Dorothea held it steady, the bluette was surprised to see a familiar redhead enter the library with a book in hand. The Professor quickly descended the ladder and strode over to the merchant as she returned the book to one of the shelves.
"Anna? What are you doing here?"
"Oh, hey By!" said Anna. "I was just checking through some old documents. Thought I might find a few sites where there might be buried treasure in Fódlan."
"Buried treasure?" Dorothea asked inquisitively. "Find anything?"
"Not yet, but I think I'm getting close."
"Ah, Miss Anna!" Constance said dramatically. "It is always a pleasure. Perchance, have you been able to see to our little problem with the bathhouse?"
"It was a cinch to fix. I'll spare you the details, but you can go have yourself a nice hot soak whenever you wish now."
"Ohoho, splendid~! There is nothing quite like a hot bath after a long day of research."
"What's this I'm hearing about a hot bath?" asked Sylvain.
"We've got a big bathhouse down here with a hot water spring," said Hapi.
"Yeah, really hits the spot after you've worked up a sweat," said Balthus.
Dorothea made a drawn out "Hmm…" at hearing this, and then said, "Hey, anybody want to take a break?"
"Why a break now, Dorothea?" asked Edelgard.
"Let me guess," said Hilda, "you wanna have a soak, don't you? Count me in."
"Oh, me too!" said Annette. "How about you, Mercie?"
"I would enjoy having a nice bath right about now," Mercedes replied.
"I'm in!" said Anna. "Seeing as I fixed it and all that."
"Yeah, count me in!" said Sylvain. This earned the redheaded skirt chaser many glares of disapproval.
"Sorry, Sylvain, but ladies first," said Hilda. "That goes for you too, Baltie."
"Aww, come on, Hilda," said Balthus. "I don't mind you all seeing me in nothing but my–"
"WE would mind a lot!" Hilda snapped.
"I'll go too," said Ingrid. "Someone's going to have to keep an eye out for any peepers."
"I do suppose a recess is in order," said Constance. "What say you, your Highness?"
"I… think I'll pass," said Edelgard. "I'm not comfortable with the idea of you all seeing me in nothing but my skin."
"I'll pass too," said Leonie. "There's still work to be done."
"M-Me too," said Bernadetta. "I can't swim anyway, so…"
"It's not that deep, Bunny," said Hapi. "Anyhow, I'm in. How about you, Chatterbox?"
The girls all turned to Byleth at this moment. Byleth paused before she said, "I guess I could join in."
Dorothea noticed as Byleth tried to hide a blush.
"Splendid!" declared Constance. "Shall we?"
The girls aside from Edelgard, Bernadetta and Leonie, all followed Constance and Hapi to the Abyss bathhouse.
…
Dorothea made a gasp of wonder as the girls entered the bathhouse. To be more accurate, it was a wide cave with a large steaming pool of bubbling mineral water, with a small shack nearby as a changeroom. The area did not appear to be entirely natural, as several glowing lines of an unknown metal were extended into the water from a strange device near a brick wall. However, parts of the cave were clearly not artificial, with several large stalagmites emerging from the ground and from the water. Curiously, though there were stalagmites, there were no stalactites on the ceiling.
"A wondrous place, is it not?" Constance proclaimed. "I do so love coming here. I know not who built it, but were I to meet them, they would most assuredly have earned my praise."
"Quite the impressive place," said Lysithea. "Both natural and artificial."
Mercedes then stepped up to the pool and put a hand to the water, concerned that the water could be boiling. She slowly dipped her hand in, finding it wasn't scalding her hand.
"Oh wow, it's just the right temperature," said Mercedes.
"Indeed, dear Mercedes," said Constance. "I've ne'er found it too intense nor lukewarm. Truly whoever designed it placed great value on one's comfort."
Then, looking at the strange device, Annette asked, "Hey, what's that thing?"
Stepping up to the device, Anna said, "That's what I had to fix here. This device is what keeps the water at just the right temperature. It also purifies the water so that it doesn't get polluted."
"I've never seen something like this," said Ingrid. "It almost looks like it's not of this world."
"And you knew how to fix it?" asked Hilda. "I'm impressed."
"Heh, just one of my many talents," Anna said with a wink.
"Miss Anna, have you seen devices like this elsewhere?" asked Lysithea.
"Well, not completely the same, but yeah, you occasionally find Magitek like this in other parts of the world. Elibe, Tellius, etcetera."
"Magitek?" asked Dorothea.
"Ancient technology that seems to be powered by magic, as far as I can tell. I'm afraid I can't tell you who made it originally; all knowledge of how it's made or who made it has been lost to the ages. And I don't claim to be an expert on the subject; there are people I've met elsewhere who know a lot more than I do."
"You know, it kinda looks like that gizmo that Professor Hanneman has in his office," said Hilda.
"Maybe that's Magitek too?" said Annette.
"It could be," said Byleth. "I could ask him at some point."
"Alright, alright, enough of the brainy stuff," said Hapi. "Let's get in the water already."
Then, to the other girls' surprise, the dark-skinned redhead stripped off her jacket before even reaching the changeroom.
"Hapi!" Constance said indignantly. "What have I told you about disrobing out in the open like this?!"
"Oh, come on, Coco, we're all girls here." Showing a lack of modesty, Hapi threw aside her jacket, removed her black chain choker, and then lifted her crop top off her body, leaving her topless.
Looking back at the others, Hapi said, "What're you all waiting for? Clothes off, people."
As Hapi strutted into the changeroom to finish disrobing, Mercedes said to Constance, "Your friend is rather… carefree, isn't she?"
"That is… not the term I would use, Mercedes…" said Constance.
Yep, the next chapter is the obligatory hot spring chapter. Yay!
I would've made this a single chapter, but it'd have gone WAY beyond my self-imposed word limit. So, sorry, you're gonna have to wait until the next update.
And yes, Anna knows Magitek. It makes sense that she's the one who knows the most out of anyone (even if she's no real expert).