The trip started out innocently enough. The shuttle craft was a bit more cramped than usual since Subaru had squeezed in two more passengers and their belongings leaving little space. That didn't bother Touma or Olivie at all.

Obviously with the mother and son about to become new citizens, they had been handed a package that had information about the different regions and communities in Mid-Childa, the education system and other things to help them as newcomers get settled as new residents on the planet. She had expected them to be able to understand things easily since the package was presented in such a simple manner.

But there were a few problems…

"What kind of weird looking alphabet is this? This character looks backward!"

For starters, Olivie was unable to read the Mid-Childan language. While she was a very educated individual, her literacy only applied to Ancient Belkan languages.

Fortunately for her, Touma was able to help although his reading level wasn't as high as it should be thanks to his education being quite different for the past three years. Eventually, Subaru had to spend time to help them understand things instead of working on her report to reopen the investigation regarding the 'accident' on Vaizen.

So aside from finding suitable housing and a job and finding a proper school for Touma, Olivie would also need to take adult literacy classes. 'It's times like these that I wish the basic translation spells made it easier for someone to read another language.'

After a few hours of going through this information, Subaru decided to give them a break. "Okay, let's take a breather for a bit."

"Thank you, Su-chan! Ah… all this information just to become a citizen of a new world. I bet Asteion never had that problem whenever he moved from country to country on his adventures."

The Bureau officer blinked in confusion. "Who?"

"Asteion!" chirped Olivie. "He's the childhood story character that me and Claus liked so much. A little hero with a heart always full of courage."

"Tales of Asteion? I think there were a few new stories published to introduce him to a new audience," murmured Subaru.

The red and green eyes of the other woman lit up. "Really? Please show them to me!"

"You came, Siegfried… just as I thought you would." A pause. "So you're planning to save the world, huh?"

The silver armoured Knight only drew his weapon in response. "That is our mission. We have yet not lost hope. What I cannot understand is why someone such as you has given in to despair, Asteion."

Laughter came from his red armoured opponent. "Hope? The hope you desire is nothing but a dream! If you keep chasing that, you'll never see the truth. That no matter what you do, it won't mean anything in this endless war. The continuing cycle of battle, death and rebirth is the only truth in this world. Foolish things such as hope should be abandoned and you should accept the cycle as it is. I have… and I gotta say that I'm at least getting a kick out of the never-ending battle!"

"What is this? What happened to the Tio I remembered?" wailed Olivie from her seat.

"Um… well, the thing is that there are no intellectual property rights to Asteion at this point. The character and the setting have been part of the public domain for the past few years so that means he can be freely used for derivative works without permission," said Subaru while taking a break from her storytelling. "The book I got here is simply a reinterpretation of the source material for a different audience."

"He sounds a lot more different from the bedtime stories that Mom told me," murmured Touma. "It's a bit weird."

"This version got quite a bit of mixed reaction back home but it's bringing in a lot of money for the authors so trying to force them to halt their take on Asteion's not likely."

Olivie didn't like hearing what Subaru just said. "B-but… I… AUGH!"

"You're taking this awfully seriously. I mean, he's just a fictional character."

"He's not just a fictional character to me," said the blonde woman quietly which caught Subaru by surprise. "As a child growing up on the Cradle, everything I saw… everything I experienced… everything I learned was tied back to the Unification War in some fashion. Except for the bedtime story my nanny would tell me: the story of the courageous hero Asteion. I grew to treasure that fictional world where a happy ending was possible with enough resolve and determination instead of the dreary life of never-ending war."

Subaru really didn't know how to respond to that. "Uh…"

"The strong feelings brought out by those stories… if it weren't for them, I probably would have had a harder time understanding Claus."

"Uh…" Fortunately for the Bureau officer, she was spared any further awkwardness by the shuttle controls alerting her that they were arriving at their destination. "Sorry but I… you know."

"Ah, go right ahead, Su-chan!" The gloomy tone of Olivie vanished and she was once again that sunny woman and nurturing mother of Touma.

Subaru headed back to the cockpit and began a slow shut down of the dimensional drive before making the standard hail. "This is Shuttlecraft Swordfish to Dimensional Station Kappa. Requesting clearance to dock."

"This is Dimensional Station Kappa. You have been authorized to dock at Port 4A."

"Acknowledged. Swordfish out."

"I don't understand why she requested my help. Immigration cases aren't exactly in my jurisdiction," said Hayate Yagami while she waited in her office for her latest appointment to come.

"She's probably more comfortable dealing with you," said the other woman sitting on the guest couch while sipping tea.

"But you're more used to handling these types of issues, Carim. The Saint Church takes in plenty of people seeking sanctuary. You're better equipped to evaluate and review these types of cases." The Lieutenant Colonel paused for a moment before glancing at Signum and Vita who had popped into the office from the second entrance. "And what are you two doing here?"

"Heard you were meeting up with someone strange and we just wanted to check out who it is," said Vita. "I'm guessing that Carim's not the guest you're expecting."

"No, it's not. And you two are overreacting!" exclaimed Hayate.

"We will only stay a few moments to evaluate this guest for ourselves. Once we are satisfied, we will take our leave," replied Signum.

The group then heard a knock on the main door before they saw a familiar face slowly poke into the room. "Excuse me… am I interrupting?"

"No, come in, Subaru!"

The main door opened to reveal a saluting Subaru and her guests standing right behind her. "Corporal Nakajima reporting as scheduled, madam! Allow me to introduce my guests…"

Carim Gracia's eyes widened in shock along with the other three inhabitants of the office. "That's…!"

"… … Vivio?" No, that other woman carried herself differently in a far more mature and powerful manner. Hayate couldn't put her finger to it though.

"Subaru-san?" There was something odd about the way Olivie sounded. Instead of that spunky warm woman she met back on Vaizen, this Olivie was far more formal and guarded. Appropriate for a Warrior King.

It made Subaru Nakajima rather nervous. "What is it?"

"I didn't realize you were associated with a pair of killing machines," said the Saint King as her green and red eyes locked on to the two Wolkenritter.

From Carim's viewpoint, Olivie really did look like she had leapt out of one of those old paintings that hung around in the Grand Cathedral. The attire that consisted of a simple blue top which left her shoulders exposed while a light white skirt complimented the look. There was also the golden necklace around her neck which gave off the feel of a Lost Logia. Her golden hair was kept in a bun tied together with a blue bow although there were a few loose strands that dangled around her face.

But this Olivie didn't have the serene smile that was on the painted Olivie's face. Instead, she appeared calm and focused, even when looking at Vita and Signum with hostility. She was also positioned in a way to make it easier to protect the boy next to her in case a fight broke out.

'Can it be… another product of Project F?' All Carim knew was that her heart told her that this was the genuine Saint King. Her commanding presence that is mixed in with her bright heart and her subtle spirit… it was enough to make some part of Carim to want to accept this fact at face value and kneel before the young woman standing in front of her.

"Killing machines? W-what are you talking about?" asked Subaru nervously in response to Olivie's accusation.

"Subaru, can you leave us alone for a moment? We need to explain some things to our guest in private," said Carim quietly.

"Eh…? But…"

"Please? And can you take the boy with you?"

Judging by the way the Church Director was asking her, there was a lot more going on than she realized. Apparently, whatever they were going to talk about was well beyond her need to know. "… yes, madam. Olivie, would you mind…?"

"I'll leave him in your care for now, Subaru-san," said Olivie quietly as she moved past the young officer to enter the office.

For some reason, the Corporal felt a sense of relief upon hearing that. It was probably because that even with the situation as it is, she was still trusted enough to look after the other woman's son. "Thank you. Let's go, Touma-kun. How about I show you around my department office?"

"Sure, Su-chan!" And with that, the duo left and closed the door behind them, leaving the group of five alone.

"So is someone going to answer my earlier question?" asked Olivie in that same calm and commanding tone. "Why are two of the Guardian Knights working in this organization? And where are the other two? The Knight of the Shield and the Knight of the Lake… are those killers gathering life energy from innocent lives for their Master?"

"Don't label my family in such a manner! Shamal, Zafira, Signum and Vita-chan… … they're all kind people! I won't have you say such things about them!"

Her multi coloured eyes zoomed in on Hayate after that outburst. "And you are?"

"It is a bit of a long story, Your Majesty. Let me first get you familiar with that young lady," said Carim as she attempted to try and take control of the conversation. "Allow me to introduce Hayate Yagami, the final Master of the Buch der Dunkelheit and the one who broke the cycle as you know it."

"W-what?" Olivie was rather surprised at this revelation upon hearing that the young lady who defended the Knights so passionately was indeed their Master. She looked so open and honest. How is it that someone like her managed to get a hold of such an artifact?

"Please take a seat and I'll explain everything as best as I can."

"And this is my desk! As you can see…"

"It's a mess," finished Touma in a flat tone, seeing the stack of papers on his tour guide's designated working space.

Subaru chuckled sheepishly. "Hehehe… the thing is that when you're in a department like mine, it's rare that you get enough time to finish all your paperwork for the day."

"Or you just aren't efficient enough in processing it," said an older man as he entered the department with some cold drinks in his hands. The scars on his face were his most distinctive features, which caught Touma's attention.

"Come on, Captain! Give me a break… I'm more suited for doing field work." She paused for a moment. "Ah, that reminds me. Touma-kun, this is my senior officer Voltz Stan."

"Hello there!" waved the other man.

"How did you get those scars?" asked the younger boy.

Stan's eyes took on an odd look as he moved closer to Touma. "There's a real scary story behind it. You see, it had to do with my crazy father who decided to stick a blade in my mou-"

"Captain, there are to be no scary stories on my watch," said Subaru in a firm tone. The last thing she wanted was a traumatized Touma to stir up Olivie's maternal instincts and cause a huge mess at the base.

"Alright, fine," said Stan with a huff before offering one of the cold drinks to the boy. "The real story behind them is that they came from a few injuries from working at the big airport fire disaster about six years ago."

"I see. That must have been real scary being close to that."

"I just wanted to help people. Didn't have the time to get scared," answered the Captain as he popped open his own drink and took a sip.

"Captain, since I have you here, I was wondering if you can help me with something."

He paused for a moment, allowing the cool liquid to go down his throat before answering. "What is it, Nakajima?"

"I would like to reopen the case about the destruction of the mining town in Vaizen. Touma-kun here is actually a former resident and he probably has quite the story to tell."

"It all started out as a normal day in the village. In my case, it was going to be a bit special since I would be taking a tour of the mines with my class from the town school. See how the operation is run up close and get an idea of where we might be placed when we finish our studies."

It had been a few minutes since Touma got taken to a more quiet area in the office to give out his account of events on that particular case. Both Subaru and Stan were with him as another officer took down the story.

"I can't remember the exact time of the incident. It must have been just after midday. All I remember is a loud explosion that messed up my senses and caused me to black out. When I woke up, I remember blood coming down from the top of my head and a lot of rubble on my body."

"He was lucky that the rubble didn't crush his spinal cord," muttered Stan under his breath so that only his subordinate would hear him.

"I guess he was just small enough to avoid serious injuries to his body," noted Subaru. "Or he's just naturally tougher than the average kid. Maybe both…?"

"I couldn't see much at first. My head felt like it would split apart. I tried to call out for help but I only ended up coughing and hurting my chest more. But somehow, someone managed to hear me. I was able to hear their footsteps approaching. Before I knew it, those people had broken me free."

"Describe them for me," said the officer across the table as he continued taking detailed notes. "Try to recall as much detail as you can. Any particular features that made them stick out?"

Touma paused for a moment to try and recall the appearances of those who found him. "There were two of them. A lady about Su-chan's age with long dark hair. She had long gloves on and some one piece black body suit. And she had this blue wing tattoo on her left shoulder. Then there was that guy with brown spiky hair and blue eyes. Looked mean and scary and had a big chin. He had on some black jacket and dark pants. I think I saw the same mark as that lady on his left wrist but I wasn't sure."

'A blue wing tattoo? Maybe some kind of organized crime group…' Stan was already thinking of potential leads to look into.

"When the lady talked to me, she asked if I saw anyone else who had the same blue wing tattoo before the explosion. She called herself an Eclipse Driver. I can't remember if I said anything. I probably didn't since the guy got kinda mad when I didn't answer the lady. She didn't get mad though. She said something like how it can't be helped and that I wouldn't be able to say anything because of how tired I was. Then she went…"

"That's why I'll let him have a long nice undisturbed nap. What do you say, boya?"

Subaru managed to piece together the indications, much to her horror. 'She would have…!'

"The guy stopped being mad when he heard that and asked her if that was a good idea. She said that it was for my own good because for someone like me, I would end up in the…" He paused to remember the words she used. "… Bureau's shitty foster care system."

'So the woman used to be an orphan in our care?' Judging by the boy's earlier statement, Stan estimated that the female in question had been in the Bureau's custody at some point six to seven years ago. The Bureau's normal foster care system had high standards with highly trained caregivers to create a warm environment in all state sponsored orphanages on any administrated world so if she had such a negative opinion of the Bureau, then the most likely place she ended up in was the Bureau's Special Care Center.

He could easily understand that place being a very poor environment to raise children. For all the practical purposes it served in terms of looking after children in state custody with strong magic potential, it wasn't the most ideal environment for a child to develop a normal mental well being. Bureau audits have shown that most children who are raised there turn out to be disciplined commissioned officers but how many of them actually chose that path by their own will without being influenced? And how many children fell through the cracks of the system?

He was aware that Subaru's friend and former colleague Erio Mondial had nearly been one of them. God know how many children actually did fall through. The standards of care had been going up over the years to address the problem so better late than never. But if the problem had been fixed earlier and that girl had been cared for properly…

While those thoughts continued to dance around Stan's mind, Touma continued his story. "Before anything happened, the guy behind the lady got hit with something that looked like a brown blur with traces of green electricity. And then before the other lady could react…"

"Roter Donnerfaust!"

"It was the first time I met Mom. She punched that other lady who wanted to let me sleep really, really hard in the face with her left metal glove and went after them. At the time, I wasn't sure if I should have been happy that someone saved me or upset that someone prevented me from dying quietly since I couldn't regain my old life. Eventually, she came back for me and took me with her." The boy paused to catch his breath for a bit. "Things didn't go well at first. I wasn't exactly a good boy since I was angry and sad and… a lot of other things. Honestly, my mom had the patience of a Saint to care for me as long as she did when I was bad. It was only a few months later that I realized how lucky I was to have her in my life. And from there, we just lived as best as we could off the land."

"Well, that's quite the story," said the officer who had been taking notes before turning to Subaru. "Can we bring the boy's mother here? I would like to hear her account of events. Maybe I can pick out some additional new information to add to the case file."

"Just a second." She opened up a telepathic connection to contact Hayate. "Lieutenant Colonel Yagami?"

"What is it, Subaru-san?"

"Is it possible for us to borrow Olivie-san for a bit?"

There was an uncomfortable pause that came from the other side. "I'm afraid not. She's going to be occupied for a while."

"Doing what exactly?"

"Fighting Signum."

"WHAT?"