Unmei Force Solitary Legends: Eternal Embers

by Xovercreator

The day of Cordelia's coronation as Archduchess has finally come upon, although it has sparked a new conflict in Gallia. The same team that saved Gallia once, returns to come to its aid once more, this time as instructors of Lanseal Academy, with several additions as students. Read on to see how the Gallian civil war unfolds...

6. Chapter 5

Unmei Force Solitary Legends: Eternal Embers

Chapter 5: Rescue at Diebal Mountains

---

Inside the classroom...

Zeri was examining through books, as Isara was also doing the same, before Avan came over to them.

"More books, the both of you?" Avan asked them both.

"This one is about the Valkyrur." Zeri answered back, before he then read through the book itself. "It's a collection of proofs asserting their actual existence."

"There's proof?" Cosette asked, as Corrin and Elma followed after her. "I always thought the Valkyrur thing was like a fairy tale."

"That's wrong. There was obvious evidence that they have existed to this age." Isara argued back, raising her head from the book. "Although I do wonder... How many other Valkyrias have existed in this world...?"

"What do you mean, Isara?" Avan asked back.

"There were two other Valkyria that were present in the last war. The first was Selvaria Bles, who led the Empire invasion forces as one of the Drei Stern, the Imperial command." Isara explained. "And the other was someone that you should be most familiar with. That is Alicia Melchiott. One of the officers of Squad 7, and one of the best scouts of the squad."

"Wait, Mrs Melchiott was a Valkyria too!?" Elma exclaimed in surprise. "I sort of felt that she had a certain presence around her, a powerful one like the girl we met earlier in Leanbluff Forest..."

"Indeed. In fact, they were both devastating forces of power, for their respective sides." Isara continued. "Selvaria shrugged off every attack we made towards her as if it was nothing. Not even anti-armour tank shells could noticeably harm her. It was fortunate that we have only fought her twice as a Valkyria, and she was forced to retreat both times due to certain circumstances. The third time she transformed... was to face Rain himself in single-combat."

"Wait, you mean that Instructor Rain traded blows with someone that monstrous, and managed to survive!?" Avan exclaimed with shock.

"Not just survive, but in fact drag the battle into a draw between them both." Isara corrected Avan, as the spiky-haired student was left stunned. "It was when we took Ghirlandaio. Rain demanded that Selvaria die fighting in a battle with honour, much akin to how their ancestors once fought, instead of dying a disgraceful surrounded by the squad."

"Oh my... So that's why he told us to retreat, and let him and the others deal with it..." Cosette stated with awe. "If he managed to take down a true Valkyria in battle, then those things back there... He was more than enough to handle all of them."

"Not all of them. The horned one was the one that gave him trouble. I suppose that he was the reason for the wounds on his body." Corrin added. "Speaking of which... I heard that the instructor is returning to duty soon... Will he be fine?"

"I personally talked with him. He seemed to shrug that injury off as if it was nothing, saying that his own powers will slowly heal the wound." Zeri answered back. "Considering that he managed to fight Selvaria evenly in a duel... I cannot deny the possibility that he possesses the ability to heal himself over time."

"I suppose that we're getting off topic here." Isara interrupted, before the conversation could veer off course too much. "With my experience with Valkyria, I believe that girl before... She was unmistakably a Valkyria herself. The question is... why did she only come into battle now of all times? And why did she attack Rain as well...?"

"I guess that's a question that we'll have to find the answer of, in a later time." Zeri replied back, shaking his head. "Right now, what's more worrying is that the rebels are now producing artificial valkyria. If what I have learned from comparing records of the war, and finding certain hidden meanings, the technology to produce them does exist, and it has fallen into the hands of the rebels. If they have all this power, then even with the instructors by our side, and Polar Star working to hold them back... Stopping the revolution has become much more complicated."

"Those guys are tough, no question. But we can't just ignore them. We know their weakness, and we'll use that to beat every single one of them, before they tear through the forces of everyone else." Avan declared with determination, slamming his hands on the desk. "And I'm sure that Rain and the instructors are thinking about the same thing."

"As always, your optimism shines true..." Zeri sighed. "But you're right that the rebels can't be ignored."

"Anyways, I do recognise that little squirt from back there. In fact, Rain does as well. We'll ask her if she's a Valk or not, the next time we see her." Avan suggested.

Everyone nodded, before Brixham entered the class-room, and classes officially begun.

---

In the hallways...

"Any word from your father, Noel?" Marisa asked back, talking with Noel, as the two of them decided to move themselves to a quiet place in the hallways, where they could talk in peace and privacy.

"Yeah, actually. He's coming here to the academy today." Noel answered back calmly, without losing her usual smile.

"...I see, so he's come to take you back home then...? I suppose that there is only so much Brixham can do for you." Marisa answered back solemnly.

"I guess? Hahaha..." Noel chuckled lightly, before she then turned silent, her expression sullen, before she then lowered her beret down to cover a part of her eyes. "I'm kind of in a bind... But I guess this is it. I had fun being here, but there's no convincing him at all. Not without ruining the lives of the others here, and especially yours, instructor."

"Don't give up so easily." Marisa answered back, placing both hand on Noel's shoulders. "I'm sure that there is still a chance for you to stay. Your father might not be used to being told 'no' at all. But at least promise me this, Noel. Promise me that you'll confront your old man, and tell him your deepest feelings about all of this, about why you want to fight with us. If he's really your father, then he'll have to consider your words at least, and he can't be so heartless that he would ignore his daughter's pleas, right? He might be scared that he might lose you in the fight, but show him that you're trained to be better than just cannon fodder, that you're going to be a rising star in the army."

"...You're right. Thank you, instructor Mari... I won't back down from my father. I'll make sure he'll know how I feel." Noel answered back, as she smiled faintly.

Suddenly, Brixham went around the corner, as the two of them turned to him.

"Ah, Noel, and Mari as well. We have order to move out." Brixham told them both. "The rebels have marched on a town to the south. Luckily, there has been a early warning, so most civilians have been evacuated from it. However, there are still some civilians that have been trapped in the enemy encirclement. I should tell you, Noel, that we've also lost contact with your father on his way to Lanseal. It seems likely that his entourage was caught up in the rebels' advance."

"No! My dad!" Noel exclaimed, as she was about to rush to the lockers to get her gear, before she was then grabbed by Marisa by the shoulder, as she turned back to see Marisa smiling.

"Go, Noel. Show him what you have learned here, and prove to him that you're a much better soldier than you were before." Marisa smiled back.

"Instructor... I got it! Leave it to me!" Noel grinned, before she then moved to ready herself for battle.

---

In the Leanbluff forest...

Noel was rushing into battle, as Mari decided to support her, along with Lavinia, Zeri, Cosette, and Lotte, as they made their way to the area, where the rebel forces were located.

"Sorry, Dad... But I really want to fight for Gallia!" Noel declared.

Lotte decided to spot the enemies ahead, as she noticed that there was a rebel APC ahead, along with a rebel scout hiding behind cover, and a shocktrooper hidden in the grass. She quickly retreated, before the enemies could get their shots too close to the scout reporter, as she slid behind Lavinia's tank, which blocked all of the bullets aimed at it.

Noel took a deep breath, before she then charged the enemy head-on, as she weaved side-to-side to dodge as many of the bullets as she could, although some of them hit her armoured torso, as she let out a few pained grunts. However, she managed to push through the pain, and turn swiftly to fire a lance rocket onto the APC's reactor causing it to explode. Afterwards, she ducked down to avoid a spray of gun-fire from the shocktrooper, who was in turn taken out by the rapid-fire mode of Marisa's Petard.

Zeri rushed forward, before he then used a grenade to flush out the hidden stormtrooper, before shooting the flying stormtrooper with his sub-machine gun, as the body of the stormtrooper fell on the ground unmoving. That was the cue for the others to advance, with Lavinia leading the way, using the Granoro as mobile cover for the others. Cosette took a quick moment to patch Noel up, who muttered a quiet 'Thanks a million.' to her.

The group quickly advanced, as they found another APC blocking the way, as its infantry escort was picked off by the gatling turret mounted on the Granoro's body. Noel and Marisa silently exchanged a signal, before they fired their rockets simultaneously, taking out the enemy vehicle, and clearing the enemy presence here.

"Alright, victory is ours!" Marisa exclaimed, before she then guided the team towards where the stranded civilians were, as the rest of the team were guiding them to safety one by one.

"Wait, that's my dad!" Noel exclaimed, pointing at a man in his 40s, with dark brown hair and brown eyes like Noel, as well as a small moustache under his nose, and wearing a black business suit with a white bow on it.

"Go on, Noel." Marisa told Noel with passion. "Now's your chance to tell him how you truly feel. He can't possibly deny that his own daughter pulled him out of danger. If that doesn't make him change his opinion about all of this, then I'm not sure what will."

"Right! Okay, here it goes..." Noel answered back, before she then rushed towards her father, before wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug, surprising him, as there were some tears leaking from her eyes. "Daddyyy!"

"N-Noel!? Where did you-? Let go of me, child!" Noel's father spoke with a fairly gruff tone.

"No way, Dad! Not until you hear me out." Noel answered back, as her tears was still on her cheeks. "I want to be a soldier! For you and for Mom!"

"Your mother?" Noel's father asked back, as his expression and tone softened a little.

"Have you forgotten why she died, Dad? She got caught up in war!" Noel shouted back strongly. "I want to help end this, Dad. To keep you and everyone else safe!"

"Hrm..." Noel's father muttered back, before he then spoke in a melancholic and quiet tone, with sadness in his eyes. "The day I heard a stray bullet hit your mother during that firefight... I was ashamed. I knew I'd failed to keep my family safe. I swore I wouldn't let that happen again with my daughter. But you're saying you want to be the one to protect me?"

"Yes! Daddy, I'll be the best soldier I can and keep you safe, I swear!" Noel shouted back with resolve.

Noel's father was silent for a moment, before he then cracked a sad smile. "Heh. I must be getting old when I need my own daughter to look after me." He remarked. "Very well, I'll suspend my judgement for the time being-"

He then noticed Marisa, as his expression froze immediately, which worried Noel. "Father...?" Noel asked him.

"You're..." Noel's father managed to utter, before he then let his expression calm down, before facing Noel again. "I see... I suppose that I made a rash decision of my own. If my daughter is taught by a war veteran of this calibre... Then I suppose that there would be no reason for me to fear for your future."

Marisa then came over, as she lowered her weapon, and crossed her arms.

"So, how's your talk with your father doing?" Marisa asked Noel.

"He's willing to let me stay here." Noel answered back. "And he looked most surprised when he saw you with the team."

"Ms Shine..." Noel's father asked. "May I ask one single favour of you?"

"Go on, I'm not that scary." Marisa answered back, before Noel's father fell onto his knees and pressed his head on the ground, surprising her. "Woah woah, what are you doing!?"

"Even with all of this wealth and power, I cannot guarantee the safety of my daughter out there." Noel's father asked back, before he raised his head slowly, as there was a pleading expression on it. "I know that I can trust my daughter with someone of your skill and expertise... So please, as a father, not the head of a cartel... Please protect my precious daughter..."

"...Like I wasn't going to do that to begin with, silly." Marisa smirked back. "Come on, get up. It would be bad for your image, if anyone saw you grovelling like this. Don't worry, I'll do you one better, like she promised, I'll make the best of the lancers for this generation of soldiers."

"I trust that you will. Farewell, my eager daughter..." Noel's father answered back, before he then left the area.

"Daddy, thank you..." Noel muttered to herself, holding her hands to her chest, with tears of relief and joy from her eyes, before she turned to Marisa. "If it wasn't for you, instructor Mari... I wouldn't have the guts to stand up to him and show my true feelings to him."

"All you needed was some encouragement to give you the will and courage to stand on your own will." Marisa grinned back. "It's you who convinced your father in the end."

"Heh heh. Well, now that I've shot my mouth off, I'd better get cracking!" Noel stated. "You did promise that you'll make me the best."

"Oh trust me, you will." Marisa smirked even wider, before wrapping an arm around the beret girl, and walked with her back to Lanseal.

---

In the courtyards...

Richard was taking a moment to have a bit of a smoke, as he felt that it was great for relaxing his mind after a long time drilling his students. He took out a thin cigarette, before using the lighter to ignite it, before taking a few gentle breaths to test the contents of it, and then breathing out to expel it in a small burst of smoke.

"Ah... First time trying these cigs, and they're not as bad as the ones back home." Richard sighed in relief, before he then fanned the smoke away into nothing, before it could affect the student around him.

Suddenly, Marion came running towards him, as she seemed to look quite desperate.

"Ah, instructor... There you are!" Marion exclaimed, huffing a little from her running.

Richard took the moment to throw the cigarette on the ground, and grind it away into nothing under his heel. "Well, don't you seem to look like you're in a hurry, Siegbahn." He remarked. "To what do you request from me? I'm willing to assist you with most matters, so long as it is reasonable."

"Please, prepare to... prepare to sortie at once!" Marion shouted hastily. "Intelligence reports that the rebels have employed a new weapon on a farm town."

"Hm...?" Richard asked back, with a intrigued tone and a raised eyebrow. "This kind of intel didn't pop up at all by local spotters, and yet you seem to have found out about it. And you sound like that you have a particular interest in the matter itself."

"Instructor, I beseech you, take me with you! Please!" Marion frantically stated.

"You do know that this is the wrong person to be asking for sorties, right?" Richard asked back. "This kind of request is more suitable for Brixham, since he's the one who has the say on where we deploy for battle. And what's more... Why have you specifically asked for deployment on this mission alone? Is there something of interest there? If there is a new rebel weapon, then there's a chance that it is much more terrifying than what we fought back in Leanbluff Forest."

"I shall happily endure any hardship! I've awaited this for so long..." Marion answered back with a smile.

"'Awaited', huh...?" Richard emphasised the word, before he rose up to this feet, before looming over Marion, who began to feel a bit of terror, as Richard stared down at her with judging eyes. "Funny, you don't seem that eager with other missions. I can sense that you're hiding something from me, Marion. And I expect that you come clean about it eventually, or you'll be merely embarrassing yourself, even making the possible punishment even worse."

Marion didn't answer back, as she kept herself silent, although her lips were quivering, and cold sweat was running down down her back. However, Richard then stopped terrorising his student.

"Very well then, in light of your eagerness, I will personally speak with Brixham to allow this sortie." Richard answered back. "The matter of rebels acquiring new weapons is not to be lightly taken. Get your gear ready, we'll sortie in a hour or so."

"Excellent. I shall see to my own preparations in the meantime." Marion responded back, with a nod, before she then quickly left the area.

Richard merely smirked to himself. "Heh. I think that she's getting used to me." He muttered to himself, smirk still on his lips. "She didn't seem as reserved as she was back then. If she still has some hidden disdain about me, then I'll just clear it away, by bribing her with something she can't resist..."

---

In Arlem Village...

Richard decided to bring Zeri to battle again, hoping to see the Darcsen stormtrooper in action again, as he was tasked with him and Marion, in taking over one of the enemy areas, while Corrin, Elma and Avan were taking the other area for themselves.

"Instructor, you simply must help me find their new ordinance!" Marion told Richard. "I must see them for myself."

"Don't get too eager about their new weapons." Richard warned Marion. "No weapon is worth almost dying for. Follow my orders, and carry the mission out. Wipe the rebels, and then we can concern about inspecting the rumoured armaments."

"Right, sorry, instructor." Marion quickly apologised.

The group slowly advanced through the enemy forces, as Richard used the Victorie to mow down any rebels in their path, and dodging enemy interception fire as if he was one with the wind, as the gunfire from Richard's weapon, seemed to attract Marion's attention, as she looked positively ecstatic watching Richard, or more specifically, the Victoire, which her eyes fell upon. It took Zeri physically prodding her to snap her out of her blissful trance, at which point, Richard already cleared the enemy forces in the path.

They advanced to the next area, just at the same time, as Avan's team did, since Marion's loitering delayed Richard and Zeri slightly. The two teams launched a proper pincer attack on the enemy, as Karin personally slew one of the turret operators that were guarding the path that Richard, Marion and Zeri were running down. It didn't take long for the rebels to be wiped out.

"Phew... We made it through." Avan sighed in relief, before being slapped on the back by Richard.

"Avan, don't be a wuss, that wasn't hard at all." Richard answered back. "Some 'new weaponry' they had. Either the rebels are too brain-dead to use them, or they're too empty-minded to even care and think about them. Either way, they're dead, and the weapons are ours. You all can return to base, your role here is done. I'll personally carry the weapon stash with me, along with Marion."

Avan nodded, before he and the others left the area, leaving Richard and Marion alone. Richard then made his way to the weapon stocks nearby, before he pulled out what seemed to be a modified version of the Gallian submachine-gun.

"Huh, so the rumours were true then." Richard answered back, before he then chucked the weapon towards Marion. "Here's the new weapon that you've been eager to have a closer look at."

"Is... is... is that what I think it is!?" Marion remarked with surprise, as she caught the weapon in her arms, before a blush rose from her cheeks, as she brushed them against the weapon's body. "That's- It's new rebel-developed shocktrooper ordinance! They've made significant changes to the barrel, and to the magazine..."

Marion then began to tremble, as her blush grew brighter, and her mind was being filled with utter bliss. "This is new... No, this is revolutionary! I'm trembling!" Marion cried with utter pleasure. "This form... This tone! This buttery luster! Aaannnggh.. Just stroking the action is pure, heavenly ecstasy!"

Richard merely smirked, as he watched Marion lovingly caress the weapon in her arms for a while. After a while, the bliss wore off, as she noticed that Richard was staring at her, although she was too consumed by bliss to even feel embarrassed.

"So... What I saw back then was real then." Richard smirked. "You're one hell of a gun nut, aren't you, Marion Siegbahn?"

"Yes... Ever since I was just a girl. I've been drawn to guns and tanks..." Marion cooed gently. "I collect them as a hobby, and clean them, and touch them all over... To be perfectly candid, I enrolled at Lanseal for access to its armory."

"So that explains what you were doing there. You couldn't help yourself but get a closer look at the prototype weapons of Squad 7, and even sneak a touch or two on them, don't you?" Richard continued.

"Yes. I'd heard that those weapons would be located inside of the R&D building. It took me a while to find them, but then you seemed to have found me, although you seemed like that you saw me way earlier than that. You must have heard all I said." Marion answered back. "I was flustered when you caught me... I owe Ms Lane a apology for trespassing."

"I told you that you should come clean about it. Even just with me is enough." Richard said. "Why did you not do it then?"

"My parents have long expressly forbid me from mentioning it to anyone." Marion explained with a slightly solemn tone. "They say it's unladylike, shameful, and must be kept a secret from others. The few people I have told have certainly been shocked to hear the truth from me."

"Well, I can see the reason and logic." Richard responded back, scratching his chin with a finger.

"That was the only reason I have deceived you so, instructor. I hope you'll forgive me." Marion answered back with a gentle bow.

"So that's it? I thought back then, that you were going to steal the weapon for yourself." Richard smirked back. "Then again, even a weapon nut like you isn't that foolish to steal a treasured weapon like that under my watchful eye. I see no problems in the near future that your 'hobby' may cause. If this is what you find the most pleasure in, I will not inhibit your desires, although you would have to be careful that this doesn't lead to you being ostracised. After all, Lanseal welcomes Darcsens like me with open arms. What's a gun nut compared to all of that? In fact, you could slowly ease your fellow classmates towards the truth, so that its reveal won't be as shocking as it will be."

"Instructor, perhaps you're right..." Marion replied back. "I should expand my effort reaching out to people, not hiding from them."

"Good thinking. And before we leave, I have an offer to make with you, regarding your little quirk." Richard answered back, before he then pulled out the Victoire, holding it in both hands. "I know that it would be your dream to even get a single moment to hold and caress this weapon in your arms, is that correct?"

"That is indeed one of my wishes." Marion nodded back.

"Then how about a deal. I can see that your skill is good, although it needs improving, no matter how little there might be room for it." Richard suggested. "If you maintain this good performance for the months to come, then I will personally lend you the Victorie for you to cuddle, nuzzle, caress and do whatever you wish on it, as long as it remains intact by the end of it all."

"Truly, you'd allow me a boon this great for me!?" Marion exclaimed back, with sparkling eyes and excitement brimming in her tone.

"Indeed I shall, if it's to help curb your desires and cater your wishes. However, I will make it clear that the condition is especially important." Richard responded back, as his expression turned very serious. "The Victoire is one of a kind, unique. If you were to envision this weapon as a being, then it would be a regal queen. And you must treat such with great care and respect. To leave any lasting marks, or any sort of damage on it, is to tarnish that royalty and beauty, a act of high treason. If I find that my weapon has been defiled physically, through whatever means I can detect, that privilege I have offered you, will be revoked immediately, am I clear, Marion Siegbahn?"

"...Crystal." Marion answered back.

"In that case, you deserve a first-time bonus." Richard replied, as his expression turned whimsical again. "Drop that weapon, and prepare to catch my weapon. It's quite heavy."

Marion dropped the weapon in her arms, before she then managed to catch Richard's Victoire, which was heavier than the weapon before, as she lifted it, before she began to tremble.

"I'm... I'm...!" Marion stuttered, before she then let out a bursting cry of overflowing pleasure, as she fell backwards, her entire face completely red, and filled with ecstasy.

"...Oops, might have been too much for her." Richard answered back, before he then hoisted Marion onto his back, in a piggy-back posture. "Alright, time for you to be tucked into bed early, Marion."

As Richard took his first step, he suddenly felt a certain kind of wetness dripped down onto his hands... A sticky sort of wetness, which made Richard freeze on his tracks.

"Did... Did she just really..." Richard hissed to himself with shock, before he then shook his head vigourously. "Good grief, I should have expected this. Well, no point in turning back on my promise. So long as she doesn't do anything lewd with it, she could admire it until the end of the school year, as much as I care. Although my hands are definitely going for a wash when I get back... Don't want students getting the wrong impression of me."

Richard then sped up a little, as Marion was moaning sweetly the whole way, completely unconscious, and in her own world of dreams.

---

In the old campus...

Gus decided to help Lotte out again, as she found what seemed to be the sixth wonder of Lanseal, as they were standing right before the old campus.

"Here we are, hot on the trail of Lanseal's Sixth Wonder!" Lotte stated, before she gave off a grin. "It's just you, me and Lanseal's old campus chief!"

"Still, why the need for us to equip ourselves in field suits, and even arm ourselves?" Gus remarked, as the both of them were in their scout field suits, with Gus holding a side-arm on his waist, and Lotte keeping her rifle at the ready.

"Instructor, I thought that you might have remembered." Lotte answered back, slightly disappointed. "This is the most dangerous of all of Lanseal's Wonders! And I most certainly don't want you dying a grisly death due to lack of preparation. It'll be a real scandal, I tell you! 'War Legend found dead inside Lanseal's old campus building!'"

"If it has you cautious like this, Lotte, I suppose that there is no wrong in being prepared." Gus answered back. "Now then, could you help expand on the situation?"

"For years now, cadets have reported a strange wailing from inside the building." Lotte explained. "Like a cry dripping in anguish, never experienced by any man alive. My journalist senses tell me this one's going be the scoop of the century! Let's head in, dude! With you here, I feel much more safer!"

They soon entered the old campus, as the building was fairly dim, even with all of the small lamp-lights hanging from the wall.

"It seems quite dark in here..." Gus remarked. "No wonder there would be a eerie atmosphere here."

"Eeagh... it's spooky. Just the sort of spot you'd expect to be haunted." Lotte answered back, shivering slightly with a tense expression on her face.

Suddenly, they heard the sound of a female voice crying in anguish, as Gus snapped towards the direction of the voice, while Lotte jumped into the air with a loud yelp.

"Ch-Ch-Chief! Y-Y-You heard that just now, r-r-right?" Lotte asked Gus, her shivering become much more intense from fear.

"Indeed I did. Let's keep going, and find out what is making that cry-" He was about to say, before they heard footsteps behind them.

"That's far enough, Ms Snoop." A male voice sounded behind them, as they came face to face with a student from another class, who seemed very unpleased.

"Ah! I know you!" Lotte exclaimed, her face lit up with recognition on it.

"Damn straight, you do! Your stupid expose ruined my rep on campus!" The male student fumed. "Do you have any idea how bad my adviser chewed me out!?"

"Hey, that's your own dumb fault, dude!" Lotte retorted back angrily. "If you don't want to get busted for extorting your classmates, don't do it in the first place!"

"Ugh, and here I planned to let you go after I got a tearful apology." The student snarled, before he then snatched the camera from Lotte's hand. "You can say goodbye to your precious camera then!"

"Hey! Dude, what gives? Gimme back my camera!" Lotte exclaimed.

"Stop this now! If you continue with this, you'll be-" Gus scolded the student, although he was already running away.

"Hmph, maybe this'll teach you to keep your nose out of other folks' business!" The student mocked back, before there was the harsh sound of a door being slammed shut.

"He's headed outside! You have to get my camera back, chief!" Lotte begged Gus.

"Don't worry, we'll get it back, no matter what it takes. This kind of theft is unacceptable, especially with a student that has a bad reputation already..." Gus answered back with a harsh expression. "Come on, we can still chase up to him, before he escapes our sight."

Lotte nodded, as the two of them exited the campus building, catching the student running off towards the main campus, as they pursued after him.

---

In the drill grounds...

The student immediately retreated into the drill grounds, as Lotte was almost out of breath, while Gus was breathing slightly heavier from all the running.

"He can really run..." Gus muttered to himself. "This is your last warning! Return the camera, or you'll face severe punishment for your actions!"

Suddenly several students came out, armed in field suits and weaponry, as they fired at the two of them, while Lotte yelped, as Gus dragged her behind cover, as the paint rounds flew over their heads.

"If you dudes think you can keep the truth from me, think again!" Lotte exclaimed with a growl, before she was then offered several clips for her rifle. "...Instructor?"

"I really did prepare for the danger, so I brought some rounds for your rifle, and my own side-arm, in case we were found in danger. Don't worry about harm, these are paint rounds as well." Gus told Lotte.

"Right! Time to teach them a lesson on why you don't get between a determined reporter and her scoop!" Lotte nodded back, before she then rose from cover, and fired shot after shot, landing headshots which knocked the rebelling students out with paint on their face. Gus also supported her, as his aim with the hand-gun was almost undodgeable, as his shots managed to clear the way ahead quite quickly.

The two scouts blazed a path through the battlefield, their morale skyrocketing with the increasing urge to catch up to the camera thief, as the shots from the interfering students didn't even faze them the slightest, and they were taking out students left to right, until they managed to catch up to the thieving student, who was shocked that they managed to rush through the battlefield to get to him, as he was beside another student, who was just as shocked.

"Man, forget this!" The camera thief shouted, before he then threw the camera away, and sprinted away. "I'm outta here!"

"Get back here!" Gus roared, although the student managed to run out of the grounds before Gus could even get a chance to catch up.

When his companion tried to do the same, Lotte, who just retrieved her camera, rushed up to him. "Not so fast, dude! Ah-HAA!" Lotte cried, before she then pounced onto him, and pinned him to the ground. "Now, time for an on-the-spot interview! What were you doing in there?"

"I-I just tagged along! It was all his idea!" The student frantically shouted.

"To do what?" Lotte inquired further.

"He dragged us down there to ambush you when you got here!" The student answered back. "He started the ghost rumour. He figured that'd get you out here alone! Now come on, I told you what you wanted to know! Let me go already!"

"Not likely, dude! I've got a whole mountain of questions for you!" Lotte grinned deviously.

"What!? Ooohhh, let me gooooo!" The student whined, as he tried to wriggle out of Lotte's hold, although the girl managed to keep him securely under her.

Suddenly, Richard then came, as he was holding the other student, as the young boy looked like he had a concussion, while the dark-haired instructor looked very cross.

"...Is this one of the people that was involved with you guys?" Richard asked Gus and Lotte tersely.

"Indeed, he tried to steal Lotte's camera, for the reason that he wanted to teach her a lesson about exposing his extorting of other students." Gus answered back quickly.

"A real bad apple, isn't he?" Richard responded back, looking at the student, who was moaning weakly in his grip. "Well then, he'll spill the beans when I'm done grilling him inside the detention room. He'll be lucky that rehabilitation lessons will be his punishment, with that kind of behaviour here."

"The stormtrooper instructor of Class G-7!?" The student remarked, looking at Richard, before then turning to Gus, realising who Gus really was. "That means...! Aiiiieeee! Please, have mercy on me! I didn't do anything really bad!"

"Other than assaulting an instructor?" Richard countered, kneeling down to glare at the student, who was frozen still. "Everyone who was responsible for this incident is going to be punished severely. How much depends on how you phrase your words to me in the detention room."

While Richard threatened the student, Lotte and Gus stepped away, as Lotte looked fairly disappointed.

"Well, I got my headline scoop, but the mystery angle didn't pan out..." Lotte stated. "Big bummer..."

"At least this scandal right now will prove to be of great interest in your next issue. The fact that a large portion of a class was involved in this cover-up scheme is likely to make the school tremble with the after-effects of this news." Gus encouraged Lotte.

"Yeah, I suppose so, it's a win at the end of the day! Sure, there are stories that don't pan out the way you'd like." Lotte answered back, before she then smiled brightly. "But that's the shape of the truth, isn't it? Not always so glamorous. It's like with Irene Ellet, who did all kinds of news for you guys back in Squad 7! She's a radio journalist and the person I respect the most in this world! During the war with the Empire, the government censored all news, so this rookie journalist starts pasting her own paper on the alley wall instead! She knew Gallians needed to hear the truth, even when it hurt."

"I wouldn't deny that. She is a very daring woman, Lotte." Gus agreed. "She would do anything to get a real good scoop about us."

"Heh heh, yeah. That's the kind of reporter I want to be." Lotte responded back. "So I promised myself to track down the truth no matter what the cost."

"And if you would still be happy to have my help... I'll be glad to support you until the end of your time here." Gus replied back.

"Glad to hear it!" Lotte smiled back.

"Hey, Gus... Mind if I ask for your help? We need to move the unconscious students inside of the detention room one by one, before they wake up." Richard stated, before he then turned to Lotte with a dark smile on his lips. "And as for you, Lotte, since you're looking for good news, how about you write a on-scene transcript of the interrogations that I will have with all of them? 'Darcsen Instructor Lays Judgement on Criminal Students!' How does that sound for a headline in your little paper?"

"Not exactly the headline I have in mind... But I'd be happy to get some real dirt!" Lotte exclaimed. "The Lotte Insider is printed in blood, sweat and tears!"

Gus chuckled lightly, before he then grabbed a few students, while Richard carried another few, before they slowly moved back into the campus.

---

In the hallways...

Elma was with Avan, as the two of them were chatting nicely down the hallway.

"We're with Class C-15 today for drills. I'm sure that we're going to beat them, after all of the hard training we have been all doing!" Avan spoke with confidence.

"Class C-15...? Wait, if I recall, there was someone from there that I saw with Sofia-" Elma was about to say, before they then bumped into the same student, as Elma collided with him. "Ack! I'm sorry!"

"Nh?" The student remarked, before looking down at Elma. "Oh, you're that girl that tried to break that scuffle up."

"And this is the class G-7 chair." The class chair, who was with his fellow classmate, remarked, gesturing at Avan.

"I hear Sofia's been all over you lately." The student told Avan.

"Sofia? She has?" Avan asked back with a calm expression, curious about the matter.

"Take my advice and steer clear. I've never seen a woman that awful before." The class chair warned Avan, before he then left with his classmate.

"Awful!? What's that supposed to-" Avan was about to say with outrage, only to see that the two of them were gone. "Hey, wait! ...Hm. What was that all about?"

Elma was silent, as there was a guilty expression on her face, as she didn't want to tell Avan what Sofia was actually like, and that she attempt to woo him over.

The two of them then headed to the drill grounds, to prepare for the mock battle.

---

In the drill grounds...

Just as Avan finished donning his field suit, he slowly looked around, seeing that the entire class was suited up for battle.

"I wonder what those guys meant with that weird warning..." Avan remarked to himself, before he then noticed that Sofia was nowhere to be seen. "Wait, where's Sofia?"

"Hey, here she comes!" The same student from before remarked, as Sofia walked past him. "Alone like always, huh? Guess so, considering you don't have any friends!"

"...Excuse me?" Sofia asked back, with a scowl on her lips, turning to the student.

"We got a new transfer student the other day. From your old school." The class chair stated.

"He had some reeaaal fun stories about you. We were all cracking up." The student mocked with a cruel smirk.

"...Don't..." Sofia growled, as her fists were clenched, and her expression was trembling.

"You strut around like you own the place now, but you used to be class loser!" The class chair howled.

"Stop it!" Sofia roared back, before she then quickly walked away.

"Wait, Sofia!" Avan shouted, before he then growled. "...Rrgh! You feel big now, guys? Real mature of you all!"

Elma watched as Sofia ran as far as she could from the group, as she could see the hint of a tear running down Sofia's cheek. "Sofia..." She muttered sympathetically.

After a few moments, the class were organised into their respective positions, as Avan, Sofia and Elma were on the central zone of the battlefield, as they noticed that there were the soldiers of the enemy class surrounding the area.

"Stupid men should... They should all up and die...!" Sofia growled to herself, before she then cocked her side-arm with killing intent.

"Wait, calm down, Sofia!" Avan exclaimed, although Sofia was too enraged to listen, as she was charging the enemy, and firing round after round from her side-arm. "Damn... We need to support her, or she'll end up being taken out by the others! We need to hang on until everyone else has made it here!"

Sofia was aggressive assaulting the enemy, as her shots seemed to be quite deadly, with soldiers falling under her fire. However, she was hit several times already, although she didn't seem to back down at all. Avan helped her by taking out the enemies within sight, while Elma took the chance to quickly patch Sofia up with some ragna-aid.

"You...!" Sofia exclaimed, before she scowled at Elma. "What do you want? Are you here to save me? I don't need a help from a naive brat like you...! You would rather please all those men in the other classes, so why don't you shoot me down and get it over with!?"

"Because I'm not trying to be your enemy." Elma answered back with a pleading tone. "Please, Sofia... I know that you're angry, but that's no reason to charge blindly into the enemy's range. All I wanted, is for you to stop all of this hurting other people for your own purposes..."

Sofia was silent, before she then turned away, and continued, although she seemed to have calmed down slightly.

The three of them slowly advanced, before the rest of the class's team arrived in the zone, managing to give them the means to push through the enemy lines, and capture the main camp quickly.

After the battle was over, much to the celebration of most of Class G-7, Avan took the chance to meet with Sofia, as did Elma, who was behind Avan.

"Just what happened at your last school, Sofia?" Avan asked back gently.

"Heh heh... I suppose you've been laughing at me the whole time, too?" Sofia chuckled dryly, before then sighing.

"Just talk to me. It might make you feel better." Avan answered back.

"Well, there was a boy that I liked. I'd never been on a date in my life back then, so I was too scared to ask him out." Sofia recounted her own past with a fairly soft and melancholic tone. "One day, he came up to me out of the blue and asked me out instead. I was so happy, so much that I didn't get any sleep at all the night before. Then the day came, and I waited for him to show up... But he never did, no matter how long I waited."

"What happened?" Avan questioned Sofia.

"The next day, I got to school and everyone was laughing at me." Sofia responded back, more sullen than before. "They knew I liked him, so they decided that it would be a really funny joke. What's more is that he was in for it as well. He straight up told me that he was lying when he confessed to me. That broke my heart so terribly. Unlike that day, my heart was so crushed that I didn't stop crying for several days straight, and ended up losing the motivation to learn for a while..."

"So you've been taking it out on all of us!?" The student from before exclaimed in an accusation, covered in paint from the paint rounds.

"Yes! You're no different than they were, are you!?" Sofia roared, snapping at the student with rage. "Happy to hurt others, just so long as you get what you want. All of you are selfish pigs who toy with maiden's hearts like you own them! So I figured I'd give you all a taste of the same treatment I got. It's not my fault you're dumb enough to bite at the first hint of interest. You had no idea that I enjoyed the entire time you made a fool of yourself, and how I was laughing the whole time you-"

Suddenly, Elma rushed out, and slapped Sofia across the cheek hard enough for it to swell slightly in a red colour, while Sofia was completely stunned, looking down at Elma, who looked very angry at her.

"Y-You... You slapped me-" Sofia remarked.

"That's enough, Sofia!" Elma shouted out in a frustrated manner. "You can't just keep doing this! Don't you understand that you're becoming no different to the people who ruined your life!? I know that it was terrible that you had to feel this way for so long, feeling all alone without anyone you could actually trust. But that doesn't give you the right to abuse others, especially by toying with their love and emotions like they did with you! Does hurting others make you feel better, or does it do nothing but leave you even more empty than before...!?"

Elma then let a few tears leak from her eyes, as her rage turned into sadness. "Please, Sofia... You don't have to keep on perpetuating a cycle of hatred here... If you keep on doing this, you'll only make people do the same as you have done, much like you did what the others did to you... And if you keep on doing it, no-one will ever be your friend, and there will be no-one to love you... Could you possibly handle a lifetime without knowing what it would have been like, if you set aside your pain and hatred, and believed in someone for once?" Elma pleaded. "Look at everyone in our class... Even though you don't care for them, they still consider you a classmate, or even a friend, no matter what you do. Even Avan is concerned for you, and he truly did his best to tend to your needs and cares... I'm sorry that I tried to stop you from flirting with him, but I couldn't let you woo him, only to crush his heart... Please, if you truly love Avan, then cherish the friendship he'll give you, and it might become the love you have been yearning for... In fact, if you can believe in others...then there will be someone who will love you no matter what..."

"I..." Sofia muttered, as she looked fairly regretful, as tears welled up in her eyes. "I...!"

Suddenly, the class bell rung, as the classmates filed out of the grounds, except for Avan.

"Why not forget the past? You don't have to beg for attention like this." Avan told Sofia. "I mean, look at you, you're gorgeous! Most people would fall hard for a beauty like you. Anyway, class is over. Let's get back, there's still time for you to change what you have done here for the better, and make friends that have been waiting for you to begin with... Come on, Sofia..."

Avan then left, before Sofia was silent for a moment, before turning to Elma, who smiled gently.

"Please... do your best to believe once more... I promise you that everyone here won't betray you like before." Elma answered back. "Even though you have done bad things... I still believe in you, and I am willing to be your friend."

Sofia didn't do anything for a few moments, before she then smiled softly.

"Elma... Thank you... Although I don't know if I can let go of my hate of men... But maybe you're right... Maybe I shouldn't be alone like this. If I can't have men... then what about friends...?" Sofia responded back. "And Avan... He's the first person who spoke so highly of me, with such a genuine tone... Maybe if I want to try again at love... I'll try with him again, this time the proper way."

"...That's the spirit, Sofia." Elma smiled back warmly. "Come on, the others are waiting."

The two engineers then finally left the drill grounds, with one of them having a great change in her views of the world and its people.

---

In the Daws Desert...

Corrin and Alexis were scouting the path ahead, as they were checking for enemy forces in the vicinity, while the others were waiting for their report, since the risk of sandstorms meant that scouts were out of the question for doing enemy reconnaissance, leading to the armoured techs being the next optimal choice, with their defensive capabilities, without hindering too much of their mobility.

Corrin slowly made her way forward, as she had her war-pick at the ready, as if she was expecting enemies. After a while, she turned her head towards Alexis.

"Hey, Alexis..." Corrin asked the silver-haired armoured tech.

"...What is it, Karin?" Alexis calmly answered back.

"About what I said back then, about your identity..." Corrin said, before she then lowered her shield and war-pick slightly. "...I was just worried I might have unintentionally offended you back then. Did I?'

"...No, I was not offended. I was just simply reminded of my own past. But there is no need to worry about that." Alexis responded back. "Right now, we need to focus on the mission. The enemy has set up gatling turrets in the area. Only we armored techs can bypass such rapid fire, using our shields as cover. Even so, we cannot let our guards down."

"Indeed, we should not-" Corrin responded back, before she then noticed that there was an enemy turret aiming for them. "Alexis! TO THE RIGHT!"

Alexis noticed the danger, as the two of them jammed their shields down, as the gatling fire rained down on it, letting out a symphony of pinging and pattering sounds from the bullet hitting the shields.

"Looks like they've spotted us. We cannot commit to a proper pincer attack, with the enemy aware of our positions." Alexis growled.

"Even so, it's our duty to move ahead." Corrin replied back, before she then lifted her shield, holding it steady. "We need to break through the enemy forces here, and finish the manoeuvre, even if we're spotted."

"Karin..." Alexis muttered, with respect in her tone, before she drew her shield again. "I understand. As two shields pushing against the enemy tide, we shall move forward unimpeded."

"Avan... We've been spotted." Corrin reported through the class comms. "Make your assault on the enemy forces. We'll meet you at the enemy main base, where we'll launch the two-pronged assault."

"Right, roger that. Be safe, the both of you." Avan answered back.

The two armoured techs slowly advanced on their own, as they made sure that the enemy could only attack them from the front, as any enemy that tries to target the exposed sides of one of them, would find the other charging at them, and ending their life with a well-placed swing to leave them bleeding out on the ground.

Eventually, they managed to pincer-attack the turret that was guarding the base in their way to join with the main force, as Alexis used herself to distract the turret, before Corrin turned it silent, by smashing her war-pick through the metal shell of the emplacement, killing the operator inside as his own metal protection became his own twisted coffin.

After the enemies in the area were taken care of, they rushed into the enemy main base, just as the sandstorm ravaged through the area. Avan, Zeri, Elma, Lavinia inside the Granoro, Noel, and Helmut were present, as they were waiting for the other two to arrive. Taking their opportunity in the sand-storm, Alexis and Corrin advanced, as they assassinated several rebel soldiers from behind with their war-picks, from behind them, while Lavinia drove her tank slowly, as she took out the enemy tanks.

When the sandstorm finally subsided, the enemy forces found that a large portion of their enemy force has been wiped out, as the rest of the squad moved forward, and cleaned up the enemies present, as Noel took out the enemy gatling bunker that was watching over a certain point of the enemy base, allowing the others to advance unimpeded.

"Looks like it's over." Alexis remarked, before she took the chance to brush the loose sand off her shield and field suit. "And thankfully without major consequence."

"That is true..." Corrin remarked. "Despite the hiccup earlier... We managed to salvage the situation and carry our mission out as intended."

"And I'm glad for that. Before we return... I suppose that I should explain my own past to you. I owe you that at least, for granting so many of my requests, Karin." Alexis responded back with a smile. "There's a reason why I am like this. My father served with the royal guard. It filled him with pride. He dreamed that one day his heir would follow in his footsteps. Unfortunately, my parents struggled to have a child. And when they were finally successful, they had me, a girl."

"But that didn't stop him from caring for you, and trying to ensure that you can also fulfil his dream, right?" Corrin asked back.

"Indeed. One doesn't rise to the royal guard without a surplus of tenacity." Alexis confirmed back with a nod. "Despite the concerns of my mother and others, he raised me as a son."

"That explains your urge to improve." Corrin responded back. "Your father must have been a truly devoted trainer and a figure to look up to, right?"

"It seems that you're more astute as you seem about this matter, Karin." Alexis smiled back.

"I can say that I've been trained the same, except that it was under different circumstances. Although they're not exactly surprising. I just simply was trained to be a soldier since I was very young." Corrin explained.

"I see. I'm thankful for the unique opportunities that my childhood afforded me. So I am proud of who I am." Alexis responded back. "It's merely unfortunate that people's attitudes change upon finding out about my true identity."

"That's a shame, but I'm sure that if you slowly convince people to accept you as you are, that situation won't exist anymore." Corrin answered back. "Or at least it will much more bearable with more people receptive of your identity. It doesn't matter if you are child or elder, man or woman, the battlefield treats everyone the same, in a good and bad sense both. I'd say that you're more fitting for the good side of equality on the battlefield, as it proves that you're a capable soldier as a woman by the end of the day."

"Thank you, Karin." Alexis responded.

"You can thank me by managing to pass your Fencer examinations in the next month or so." Corrin stated. "After all, with how well you've been training with me, it should be no problem for you, right?"

"Heh, I do not expect to disappoint. I appreciate your unchanging friendship, Karin." Alexis admitted with warmth in her voice.

The two of them made their way back to the rest of the squad, as they in turn made their way back to Lanseal, to report a successful mission.

---

In the back alley...

Avan and Cosette decided to wander to the back-alley, as they found the same blue-haired girl seen back in Leanbluff Forest, as she was wearing her black cloak with the hood down, revealing her entire head. She was staring intensely Richard, who in turn stood strong, and returned the girl's stare with his own, as there was only silence between them.

"Ooh, look! Avan, it's that girl who went crazy on those rebels in the woods!" Cosette exclaimed, before she then noticed Richard, as her enthusiasm was cut down by a lot. "...And instructor Rain is with her... Oh dear..."

"They don't seem to look like that they're about to get into a fight." Zeri responded back. "At least not in Rain's case, he doesn't look hostile at all. However, the girl... That's a different case."

"Well, we gotta ask her a few things." Avan stated, before walking up to her and Richard. "Hey! I wanna talk with you!"

"Avan?" Richard remarked, turning to Avan. "...I suppose that you found her, and like to ask her a few questions."

"Mm? What do you want?" The girl asked quite bluntly, as she didn't seem to care much about them.

"Hey now, there's no need to be rude!" Cosette scolded the girl, who didn't seem to be affected by it much. "Anyways, I'm Cosette, what's your name?"

"Aliasse." The girl simply answered back.

"That's a pretty name. I'll call you Ali for short!" Cosette stated with a smile.

"And I'm Avan. Nice to meet you at last, squirt, without that woman with you." Avan answered back. "So, we were wondering. Are you a Valkyria?"

"Uh huh. Mama says I am." Aliasse simply answered back.

"Wow, it's really true! That's so crazy!" Cosette remarked with shock.

"Well, either way, thanks for helping us out before. You were a great help to us, taking those things out." Avan answered back.

"Thanks? What's thanks?" Aliasse asked with a confused expression.

"Huh? Are you serious-" Avan was about to protest, before Richard silenced him.

"Thanks is a gesture of goodwill to someone, and what you say to someone when you do something that is helpful to them, or makes them happy." Richard elaborated. "Like, I would say thanks for meeting me, because I was looking for you, and meeting you made me happy."

"Mhm..." Aliasse responded back, as she let the meaning sink in. "So it made you happy that I fought?"

"Well, sure! We would have been in a lot of trouble if you hadn't shown up." Cosette responded back.

"You're all weird. Nobody ever said that when I fought before." Aliasse remarked, tilting her head slightly. "So if I kill a lot more people, will you say thanks again?"

Before Avan could let out another outburst, Richard silenced him, and took his chance to talk.

"Not exactly. You see, thanks are only given when you do good things. Killing people without any meaning or reason is a bad thing, which means that you certainly won't get thanks for it." Richard replied back calmly. "Much like attacking me when I'm already injured back there. That was a bad thing to do, and so I am not happy with you. However, what they're thanking you for, is because you fought to protect them. So you fought to protect, which most people say is a good thing, so that's why they're giving thanks to you for that."

"What's the difference?" Aliasse answered back.

"If you come and meet me again in the near future, then I'll teach you that difference, and many more things that a little girl like you should learn." Richard answered back with a gentle smile.

"But Mama said that you're a bad person, so that's why she told me to hurt you back there." Aliasse responded back bluntly, much to the shock of Avan and Cosette. "She said that she wanted to see 'if her subject can stand against a Darcsen warrior.'. It was fun killing those rebels, and fighting you for a while."

"Wait, that woman... did she really..." Avan blurted out in shock.

"...And now you see the reason why I told you to not get involved with her..." Richard told Avan strongly, before he then whispered into his ear. "Because that woman is no-one good... She doesn't care for the nation, all she cares about is her research, which will end up getting a lot of people killed from her indirect support."

"Here. I was planning on planting these in my dorm room later on." Cosette stated, offering Aliasse several seeds in the palms of her hands. "They're flower seeds. Lion's paw, it's called. Have you ever seen it?"

"I dunno." Aliasse childishly responded back. "How's its taste?"

"They're not for eating! C'mon, Ali, let's plant them together." Cosette stated, as she used her hand to dig a small hole in the dirt, and poured some of the seeds into Aliasse's hand. "Okay, stick your hand out. Now, shake the seeds out, like this."

Cosette did the motion for Aliasse, as the seeds dispersed around the dirt hole. Aliasse hesitated a while, before she then slowly imitated Cosette, as her seeds were scattered in the hole as well, which pleased Cosette.

"Right! Perfect!" Cosette praised Aliasse.

"Hahaha! This is fun!" Aliasse answered back.

"If you keep these seeds watered, they'll send up buds before you know it." Cosette told Aliasse.

"The flower has friends?" Aliasse asked back, not knowing the word 'bud'.

"Not exactly, but it means that the flower will grow up, much like you will in a few years." Richard explained. "Except these flowers grow up quite quickly, and when they're mature, they'll show their beauty in a great blossom of petals. All they need is sunlight and a little water."

"I want to grow up like them..." Aliasse remarked with envy in her voice. "But I wanna try watering them. Ooh... But I've got to get back. Mama'll yell at me. See you all later!"

"Come back here, and we'll take care of these flowers together." Richard answered back with a warm smile, as Aliasse ran away.

"She's an odd one, huh? Wonder if all Valkyrur are like that." Avan remarked.

"That's only because she's been taught differently." Richard answered back. "She's not exactly as educated as a civilian child the same age as she is."

"She does have quirks, but she seems like a pretty normal girl to me." Cosette stated. "She was so cute when she was concentrating on planting those seeds. It makes me wish I had a little sister like her."

"I think I'll stick to my brother for now." Avan responded back. "Anyway, I'll make a point of saying hi whenever I see her around campus."

"Same here." Richard nodded, before muttering to himself again. "And hopefully as far away from 'her' as possible."

---

In the classroom...

Avan was sitting in class, as he was enjoying a small loaf of bread, that he got from Alicia.

"I'm getting kinda hungry. Maybe I'll hit the campus store for some bread. Ms Melchiott was quite nice to bake me a fresh loaf each time I asked for more." Avan remarked. "Her bread is deli-cious!"

Suddenly, Jarde flew through one of the open windows, which was opened by Coleen, to let some fresh air into the room, as the Gallian swift landed right before Avan, with a few happy chirps and tweets, surprising Avan.

"Oh, it's Jarde!" Avan remarked, before he then traced Jarde's beady eyes to the half-eaten bread in his hands. "What, you want in on this bread? Well, tough luck, pal, it's mine! I'll get you some later."

Jarde chirped impatiently, as he tried to dive for the bread, although Avan was moving it away from the bird's path. Elma could only chuckle at the humourous scene, while Zeri sighed deeply.

"For all of the merits that Avan has been accumulating... There are parts of him that won't change at all." Zeri groaned.

"Well, Welks had a bit of a weird hobby himself. So I wouldn't be so judgemental of him, Zeri." Isara reminded Zeri with a smile.

"And look at this, they both think with their stomachs!" Cosettle chuckled gently.

Suddenly, Noel entered the room, her mouth open to announce something.

"Sounds like we've got our next mission, everyone!" Noel announced. "The rebels are headed to Diebal Mountains on a Darcsen purge."

This shocked most of the people who were waiting about, especially Zeri, Isara, Avan, Cosette, Elma, and some of the other classmates.

"What!? Alright, let's get ready, double time!" Avan exclaimed.

"So, this mission has been given to Class G-7? It suits you all." Juliana remarked, as she was standing by the door-way, as attention was directed at her by most of the class students.

"What do you mean, Juliana?" Cosette asked, with a weary tone, as if expecting a mocking answer from the Class A chair.

"I mean what I say. For a class that has several Darcsen classmates, and a Darcsen instructor, of course it would be fitting to send a class close to the Darcsens to deal with the matter." Juliana elaborated without any pause or change in tone. "No other class would care so much about the Darcsens, who were thought to be the ones who brought ruin to the continent of Europa."

"The Darcsen Calamity. I'd have thought you too smart to believe in myths." Zeri scoffed.

"Don't take that tone on me, Zeri." Juliana frowned back. "Of course I don't believe in such nonsense, at least not before seeing how Rain Craider performed so well for the nation, with such a selfless purpose. Ever since his rise to fame, I have made several readjustments to my view of you Darcsens. I may not have a liking to your kin, but I will not partake in discrimination against all of you. What's more is that there is something that inhibits your race's attempts to clear their names. They refuse to stand up for themselves, letting others think of them as they please. It's pathetic that these people have become so meek that they are willing to be trampled, all except a few."

"Maybe that's true, but we're starting to gain the courage to stand up to the accusations." Isara countered back.

"And how do you expect the two of you to achieve any progress on that idealistic goal, by yourselves? Even with the presence of the war hero, Rain Craider..." Juliana answered back. "You are merely exceptions of a wide majority. Just because you two stand up for yourselves, is not enough to sway general opinion of your race, nor is it enough to spread the word enough for a change to occur by its own. In a act of kindness from a senior to juniors... I suggest that you convince your own race to change their reclusive ways. That is the only way you can achieve your goals."

Everyone was silent, before Juliana then turned to leave. "Even though you are one of the lowest classes in Lanseal, I still wish you good luck on the forthcoming battle." She remarked. "After all, I do wish to see that this generation will have people that will be worthy of standing by my side as prodigies."

She then left, as the group of five decided to look at each other, before Corrin came over, noticing the situation.

"She may be rude... But she does have good reasoning behind her arguments." Isara answered back. "If we cannot change the ways of our own race... then there will be no hope that discrimination will end at all."

"That I can agree on." Zeri responded back. "But that's not the urgent matter at hand now. Avan..."

"I got it. C'mon, let's go get suited up and ready to go!" Avan declared with determination.

---

Inside the briefing room...

"I see that your squad is ready to move out." Brixham stated, as Avan, Zeri, and Cosette were gathered in front of Brixham and Richard's group. "The rebels have already begun their assault on the Diebal region. Unlike with Arlem, there was no early intervention, so Darcsen villager casualities are to be expected. The settlements they reside in are taking significant fire, and will fall if aid is not provided to them immediately."

"However, there is a glimmer of hope for all of this." Richard added. "Polar Star has also made movements to the Diebal region. We are to coordinate our assault with them, and take out rebel camps to purge rebel presence in the region, so that the Darcsen civilians can rebuild and repair their communities."

"Right. Well, we're going to give them a taste of their own medicine!" Avan growled.

"As like before, since the enemy threat levels have been raised, we will sortie alongside you all for future battles, unless there is specific notice about it." Richard added. "Leave the enemy artificial valkyria and elite troops to us. You all take care of the enemy main force."

"Lanseal's bell has tolled! Class G-7, move out!" Brixham declared.

---

In the Diebal mountains...

"Avan! The enemy's here! They're over in the north-east part of the town!" Reiner shouted, looking into the distance, as the town was burning, and the screams of Darcsens, accompanied by the sound of gun-fire and explosions.

Gus decided to get a closer look at the situation, using his binoculars, before he then saw the grisly sight inside the village, as there were Darcsen villagers being executed by the dozen, regardless of age or gender, and homes being blown into rubble by the powerful tank cannons mounted on the rebel tanks. He instinctively bit his lip, seeing the bloody scene.

"Rgh, they beat us here!" Avan scowled.

"How could they do this to people who aren't even resisting? Why?" Cosette answered back with disbelief in her voice, as she was trembling in fear.

"Cosette? Honey, you're shaking! Are you okay?" Coleen asked Cosette.

"Huh? Y-Yeah, I'm fine!" Cosette answered back, as she stopped her own shaking.

"I really don't get it... How come the Darcsens don't do anything to stop this?" Joachim pondered. "Are they really going to sit there and get massacred?"

"The Darcsens do not retaliate." Mischlitt responded back with a clipped tone. "Returning violence for violence would tarnish our pride as a people."

"Even so, the blood of rebels are on our hands, Mischlitt." Richard answered back stoically. "Our pride is long tarnished. So there is no shame in fighting any more. As Darcsens force to fight in this bloody war, we will protect them ourselves, so that they will live with their hands untainted by the blood, while we bear the sin of tarnished pride."

Zeri silently nodded to this, before Avan decided to prepare his team for battle.

"Well, I'm not about to let these rebels do this any more! Let's put a stop to it!" Avan shouted.

"Well, I'll be. If it ain't Rain and Mari." A familiar gruff voice sounded, which surprised the two mentioned members. "I see that you're really watching over and teaching the youth of Gallia."

Richard and Marisa turned around, as they came face to face with Largo Potter himself, who didn't look much different than he did two years ago, except his own field suit was different, with a lighter-blue hue, and the symbol of a large grey shield, with a white 4-pointed star in the centre of it, on the shoulders and back of his suit.

"Largo Potter..." Richard remarked. "It's been so long since we have fought alongside each other. How is Vyse and the others doing?"

"He's the usual. When he heard you were back, you wouldn't believe the ruckus he kicked up as a result." Largo chuckled, before he then noticed Aisha in the crowd of students. "And I suppose that you got your wish to be in Lanseal, Aisha. How does it feel?"

"It's really nice!" Aisha responded back cheerfully. "Everyone in my class is quite friendly, and we're being taught so well by Rain and the other veterans, so much that we're becoming quite famous as a elite team risen from the ashes of rejects and under-achievers!"

"Hahaha, now that's something I like to see." Largo chuckled, before he then turned to address the other students. 'It's nice to meet you kiddos here. Don't worry, because with Rain and my team here, this mission is as good as done!"

"Speaking of which, who did you bring with you, Largo?" Marisa asked Largo.

"No-one familiar to you all." Largo responded back, shaking his head. "All of the original squad are waiting back, and resting themselves for the next mission. However, I can tell you that old Edelweiss is here, and she's being driven by Kreis from the R&D department. Would you believe the kid has almost as much talent as Isara did?"

"I'm right here, you know, Largo." Isara bluntly stated.

"Haha, sharp as ever, Isara." Largo responded back. "Right, leave the eastern towns to us. You deal with the western towns. Oh, and a heads-up for you. General Baldren is out there, leading his men."

"Did you say... Baldren...?" Richard asked back, as his own grip on his weapon tightened slightly.

"Yep, no mistaking it." Largo responded with a nod. "Anyway, gotta go and support my team, they're still fairly green in the field of battle."

"Take care, Largo." Richard responded back, before the veteran lancer disappeared from their sight. "Alright... Avan, just take care of capturing the enemy camps... I'll deal with Baldren personally... Whether I capture him, or behead him for his treachery, his head a gift to the Archduchess to show that the rebels have not long to live."

"Roger that." Avan answered back. "Everyone, prepare to move out!"

Village Team: Granoro (Lavinia), Avan, Zeri, Cosette, Coleen

Cave Team: Aisha, Elma, Karin, Rene

---

In the southern village area...

The village team prepared themselves, as Richard and Gus were with them, while the Granoro was deployed. as there was a heating unit near it, helping the team to stave off the cold, when they were near it.

"Pretty nice to have Isara and Lavinia install a heating unit for the mission..." Gus remarked. "I feel much better than when I'm battered by the biting cold in these mountains."

"Then we can't afford to lose the tank." Richard answered back. "Avan, you're the commander here, what's your take of the situation?"

"We should slowly make our way forward." Avan suggested.

"Good plan. But first..." Richard said, before he then raised the Victoire, using it to gun down several rebels who were situated above them. "There, the enemy can't rain fire down on us. Let's get moving."

The group slowly advanced, as Lavinia moved the Granoro forward, blocking the team from a hail of bullets from the nearby gatling turret, before she then fired an anti-armour round that scrapped the turret, while Avan leaned out, and shot an enemy sniper that was trying to take aim at them.

As soon as they made their way forward, they noticed that there was a large influx of rebels coming their way, as the group prepared for battle, using their interception fire to take them out wave after wave, covering each other as one of them reloaded their weapons.

However, the last one to come out was different, as the figure didn't move into interception range, instead hiding behind cover.

"Hm, strange. The enemy noticed the trap we laid for them." Richard remarked. "Take this time to reload. I'll handle that enemy personally."

Richard then slowly approached the figure, before he then slowly drew out his blade, as the others watched Richard tensely.

As Richard slowly made his way towards the cover, the figure suddenly popped out, as it was Baldren himself, wielding a massive heavy machine-gun in his hands. He then fired at Richard in a horizontal spray, as Richard ducked under the wave of bullets, as the others quickly took cover behind the Granoro, which held strong against the gunfire.

"Hah! Big mistake, Baldren!" Richard mocked, before he then lunged at Baldren, with his blade poised to strike. However, Baldren quickly grabbed the large axe-like weapon on his back, and parried Richard's attack, before sending him back with a shield bash. "Oho, perhaps you aren't all bark and no bite, it seems."

Baldren slowly stepped out of cover, as he was dressed in a field suit.

"So this is Baldren Gassenarl..." Zeri remarked. "If he was able to parry Rain's strike so quickly, even while wielding that heavy machine-gun... He indeed is not a foe to be underestimated."

"Rain Craider... It seems that we finally meet on the field of battle. It would be my utmost pleasure to slay you here along with all of your filthy brethren." Baldren spoke with venom, brandishing his weapon and shield, and menacingly approaching Richard. "Do not even dream that you and those sorry excuse of cadets have a chance against me! I will crush your hopes and dreams with my bare hands!"

"Arrogant, aren't you. Just my pleasure as well." Richard retorted back with a cruel smirk. "I was itching to deal with you. Now that you have decided to rebel, I have nothing stopping me from taking your head right here and now. The moment you started this pathetic revolution, is the moment you signed your death warrant, to be executed by my own two hands. You may be better than the main army I knew, but you're nothing compared to someone who fought one of your beloved Valkyria, and the Crown-Prince of the Empire himself, who tried to replicate the power by several-fold."

"Instructor, we'll help you take on-" Avan tried to say.

"NO! This battle is to be settled between me and Baldren alone. You must complete your mission!" Richard shouted back. "As I have said, leave Baldren to me!"

"...Understood." Avan nodded back. "You heard him, let's get moving!"

"Damned rodents! You will not-!" Baldren snarled, as he reached for the heavy machine-gun on his back, only to be interrupted by Richard doing a shield bash of his own to knock him off balance. "You...!"

"Like I said, we're not done, Baldren. I fought the leader of your artificial valkyria force to a draw. What hopes do you have against me? I need not even transform to slay you myself." Richard replied back with a cold tone. "You'll pay for those who have died here... with your very blood, Gassenarl!"

"Arrogance! I will eradicate you all the same!" Baldren roared back, as he swung his weapon down.

The two of them locked weapons, as they stared each other down.

---

Inside the cave...

"Brr... It's so cold in here..." Aisha shivered, as she rubbed her hands together to warm herself up, as the ceiling and walls of the cave were covered by a layer of ice.

"We need to keep moving..." Corrin told Aisha. "One of the enemy main camps is just ahead out of this cave."

"Right, this is one of the most important missions that I have been assigned to..." Aisha said, before she gained some determination from Corrin's words. "I cannot let everyone down by losing here! Come on, let's take down the enemy, and take their main camp!"

The group slowly advanced, while Corrin blocked the gatling turret's line of fire, slowly advancing towards it, and also blocking any shots that the sniper behind it, tried to fire at the group. With Elma giving her some healing, Aisha tore through the enemy infantry, with precise gun-fire, before she then cleaned up with the enemy sniper from the side, as the surprised rebel was unable to avoid her gunfire.

"That's all of them down!" Aisha remarked with pride in her work. "Yay for me!"

She then noticed that the gatling turret was still active, as she unloaded her entire clip onto it, breaking down the armour plating around it enough, for Corrin to smash her war-pick through it, and kill the rebel operating it.

The group then advanced, as they left the icy cave, into the battlefield itself.

---

Inside the town centre...

The two groups met up, as they noticed that the enemy forces were guarding their two main camps, as the cave group found themselves right behind the barn, where one of them were, which was being guarded by a large number of enemies, while the other group wasn't as close to the danger as them, since the main camp they were aiming for, was above them in front of a small cabin.

"We've made it..." Avan remarked. "Alright, while Richard has Baldren busy fighting against him... We need to take down the enemy camps!"

"Right... Everyone, rush the enemy!" Zeri exclaimed. "We've got enough firepower to make a crushing assault on them! Still, don't let yourselves get flanked or caught exposed in the open! Use cover to your advantage!"

"Got that!" Aisha exclaimed through the comms. "Come in, Karin, Elma, Rene! Let's catch these rebels from behind with a deadly surprise!"

The cave group immediately rushed from behind the enemy, as they crushed the enemy in a run into the barn, guns blazing during their sprint, and war-pick swinging furiously from Corrin. Rene took out the enemy tank that was situated in the front of the barn, popping a lance rocket on its exposed radiator, before it could have the chance to turn itself around to take care of the others. As soon as all of the enemies were gunned down, Aisha immediately claimed the camp.

"We managed to take their camp, and also get rid of the bad rebels here!" Aisha remarked with a jolly tone. "Yay for us!"

"It's a good thing that we caught the enemy unaware... This simplifies thing on our end... All that's left is for Avan's team to capture the other enemy base..." Corrin remarked.

Speaking of Avan's team, they were immediately advancing, as Lavinia slowly moved the Granoro up to guard the classmates, before they found a ladder. Zeri was the first to climb upon it, as he peeked over the ledge, seeing that there were several rebels who were guarding the camp, with a gatling turret placed around the base. One of the rebels spotted him, as he called out to his compatriots, as they fired at Zeri and the ledge, causing the Darcsen to duck down.

Zeri only growled, before he then used one hand to hold grip on the ladder, using the other to pull out a grenade, twisting it to activate it, and quickly slipping it out, and chucking it over him, hoping that the grenade will find its target in the group of rebels. His suspicions were confirmed, when there the cry of the rebels being blasted away, as he quickly climbed up over the ledge, and rolled across the snow, dodging a hail of bullets from the still active but damaged gatling turret.

"Coleeen! I require your assistance!" Zeri shouted. "There is a gatling turret situated at the enemy main base! It is all that remains between us and the capturing of the camp!"

"I got your back, Zeri!" Coleen stated, as she jumped onto the ladder, and scrambled up on it, as Zeri laid down some gun-fire to distract the turret, so that it didn't aim for the lancer, before hiding behind cover. Coleen then got up, before she then lifted her lance up, and fired her rocket right into the turret, scrapping it with a explosion.

"Thank you." Zeri responded back, before he then captured the camp. "That should be both of the enemy camps..."

---

Back with Baldren and Richard...

The two commanders were still fighting against each other, as Baldren's axe-shaped weapon was beginning to crack and bend, from being smashed against Richard's far more hardened and durable blade, much to the rebel general's irritation. Both combatants were exhausted, although Baldren was the worse of them, as he was sporting several cuts and grazes on his body.

"Rgh, presumptuous brats...!" Baldren growled, noticing that the rebel forces have been dwindling from the attack by the Lanseal class. "You cannot win this battle, much less this war!"

"Shut up and die already!" Richard roared back, smashing his sword down on Baldren, who was forced to use his shield to block. "It's people like you that there is no damn peace in this world! All a person like you do is stir shit up, and not just the normal kind, the kind that turns nations against each other! You started this civil war over goddamn racism! Are you fucking happy with yourself right now, Gassenarl!?"

"I will not bend my knee to all of you Darcsens, diseased to the core!" Baldren roared back. "This nation must be rebuilt pure and clean of outside influence! We only need the Gallians and the Valkyria to support our nation!"

"Oh, I'm sure it's real nice, that you have ignorance thick enough to block an tank shell. I'm sure it's real nice that you hadn't had the same struggle as we Darcsens have. I'm sure it's real FUCKING nice that you didn't spend half of your childhood being abused just for being a Darcsen orphan, and then lost the only family you could ever have because of the war." Richard retorted back darkly. "Listen here, Baldren, I'm going to tell you this straight up and forward: I. Am. Sick. Of. Your. Shit. I have spent several fucking years wandering Europa, trying to find a purpose. And you know what I get, debauchery comparable to the crap you're pulling off. And you do fucking forget that it was the Valkyria who literally ravaged these damn lands, and you don't see me throwing a fucking fit about our race being discriminated in the first place, nor me slaughtering every Valkyria-born person I could find! No, I'm way above your shitty morals, and I'm proud to say that right in your damn smug face. So in short, Baldren; Go fuck yourself, and die in a ditch where you belong. All that talent you have, wasted on a pea-brained moron like you."

"LIES!" Baldren roared back, at the accusation of the Valkyria.

"It is nothing but the truth. Why do you think that most Darcsens cower and fear?" Richard remarked back. "It's because they're willing to weather all of this hate and prejudice, to prove that they're no savages. However, after everything I have been through, I'm above that. Screw what the others think of me. Instead of doing nothing, I'm going to save this nation, and I already did once. Killing you, the real traitor here, will be the second time, and you'll die a traitor, killed by a war hero who advocated equality among men. So what I'm an soldier, I'm the soldier who the nation should be grateful to, with everything I have done for it. Even if my lifetime will not end all of this prejudice, it will at least make the first step. But I waste my breath talking to you, Baldren..."

Richard then raised the Victoire, as he cocked it. "DIE." Richard snarled.

Suddenly, several rebels appeared, as they surrounded Richard, causing him to stop for the moment, while one of them reached Baldren, who backed away.

"Lord Baldren!" The rebel spoke to Baldren. "A wire from the vanguard unit crossing the pass, sir! Our forces have purged a majority of the settlements in the region. The commander has ordered all troops to fall back, sir."

"Fall back!? Father would have me retreat while these kids still face us!?" Baldren fumed.

"B-But sir, it's a direct order from the commander..." The rebel reasoned with Baldren, slightly fearful of Baldren's furious expression.

"Fine then! This region has been purged of Darcsens anyway. All troops, fall back! And for you all here, claim that Darcsen's head right here and now." Baldren responded back, before he retreated.

Before the rebels could fire on Richard, he quickly transformed, as the bullets and rockets struck him to no effect, before he then rushed towards them, and bisected them with quick and rapid slashes. After he was done killing the rebels surrounding him, he immediately returned to normal, before he then walked over to one of the wooden cabin walls, and slammed his fist on it, denting the wood considerably.

"Damn it...! Even with all of our work... We couldn't save most of them...!" Richard cursed.

After a while, he then walked back to the rest of the class, which had gathered up.

"Phew... That takes care of all of them here..." Avan remarked. "Hopefully those guys didn't have reinforcements."

Richard then looked around, before Isara then walked up to him, seeing that Richard was fairly down.

"Rain... You don't look so happy about the victory... What happened?" Isara asked back.

"...We managed to make them retreat, but Baldren's men in the other areas have already purged most of the settlements here... The Darcsen population here has been cut down significantly, a number that shouldn't have risen at all..." Richard grimly answered back.

"...No..." Isara remarked, as she looked down, as she fought back tears. "How could have... Why did this have to happen?"

Richard didn't have anything to say, fearing that he would upset Isara further. He decided to check on Zeri, who wasn't present, as he looked around the area for him, before finding the Darcsen student looking over the horizons, at the smoking villages in the distance with sorrow in his eyes.

"Zeri... I've found you. Are you... Are you fine?" Richard said, with concern in his voice"With what happened, it must have done so much to your emotions."

"...Instructor... Do you know why this had to happen?" Zeri asked Richard.

"...I do. There's no need to speak about it." Richard answered back. "Zeri... I'm sorry that even with Polar Star, and all of us here... We couldn't save many lives here. If only we-"

"Don't speak like that. You have nothing to apologise for." Zeri answered back. "Funny that although we're Darcsens, we still are willing to fight for our ideals... while the others in our race refuse to do so, out of fear that the cycle of revenge will continue if we did so, harbouring hate. Yes... Revenge only serves to hurt people, and achieve nothing well in the end... But I refuse to let this status quo remain as it is."

"...That is why I entrusted my own personal teachings to you, Zeri." Richard answered back. "Despite everything you do, trying to put up a cold and collected front... You still grieve, love, and feel like the rest of the people here. You are a good person, Zeri, one that can follow in my footsteps. Ever since I have watched you train and learn... I knew that your ambition was to rise to the same status as I did, a Darcsen paragon to serve as an example of racial equality."

"If I can be accepted, although it will not be enough to change Gallia, it will be a decent step towards that goal." Zeri responded back. "And I will learn all I can under your wing, instructor, for I know that you'll lead me to the path I desired."

"I can... But remember Zeri... Don't lose your way." Richard cryptically warned Zeri, before he then turned to leave. "We'll be leaving to report. Once we transfer the wounded Darcsens... We'll start treating them one by one. There are lives in danger, but those lives have a chance to keep on existing... Mourn the dead, but cherish the living also."

Richard then left the area, as Zeri continued to look in the horizon, before then sighing deeply, and following after Richard.