Chapter 29 - Final Preparations
Next morning, with the announcement of the attack date, there was a lot of tension in the air. A lot of logistics needed to be finalized. However, the teams continued to practice, and the work continued on the armor and the weapons. With 5 extra helpers, the Wiene armor team reduced the time for the armor install to 3 minutes, an enormous improvement. After several extra practices, the time was down to 150 seconds.
Afterwards, uchide no kozuchi again boosted Ais by 2 levels. The same practice with Wiene was conducted. She has shown a lot of improvement against the combined attacks. With the heavier armor plates, Wiene was very formidable. With the armor and sharp edges done, Hephaestus and Tsubaki tried to help Welf where they could with charging. His goal was to finish with charging all the thin metal layers in one day before charging the sharp edges the next day. Mikoto and Lili continued to work on their magic. Mikoto was able to trap Asfi 6 out of 8 times in the morning. Lili also made further progress with cinder ella to turn into snakes and plants.
By lunch, final logistics were wrapped up with the guild and all the other familias. After lunch, Wiene continue to practice with Ais, Bell, Riveria and Lefiya. By the end of the day, Welf was done with all the thin metal layers for Wiene's armor. Welf, Hephaestus and Tsubaki then went back to Orario that night to work on the sharp edges the next day. They also would have to install the thin metal layers on all the armor before the teams descend into the dungeons.
Dinner was plain and simple. It was really starting to feel like war is coming. That night, there was one final card game, but it was less loud and less fun. Bell and Ais went for an Aerial ride for the evening. They wanted some time away from the headquarters to clear their minds. They were both thinking about what Revis was doing and if she got more powerful again. It is a strange feeling for Bell to have to face an enemy that can improve faster than he can. Ais and Bell did not lap pillow, but just hugged and fell asleep...
Next morning, there was only one final practice before heading back to Orario. As in previous practices, uchide no kozuchi was used again to boost up Ais by 2 levels and Wiene continued to battle Ais, Bell, Riveria and Lefiya. Mikoto and Lili also continued to work on their magic. Mikoto was able to trapped Asfi 7 out of 8 times in the morning. Lili was able to use cinder ella to turn into mid-size snakes and plants. Back at Orario, Welf was working feverishly to finish charging the sharp edges.
After lunch, Bell, Haruhime, Ais, Mikoto, Lili and Wiene were sent to Hestia for a final Falna update. Bell was about 40% from level 7, while Haruhime progressed for 10% since her level up. Ais was 45% from level 7, while Mikoto and Lili were 90% from leveling. Hestia had some trouble figuring out Wiene's progress but able to see that she is roughly 50% from her next level. The Haruhime level-boosting group was then activated, and they leveled-up the core team members. After the double-boost, Bell felt like a real tough guy at level 8. Haruhime waved good luck to her familia members as they left the headquarters.
After the return to Orario, the core teams' armor sets were deliver to Welf, Hephaestus and Tsubaki. The night before the attack, the entire Hestia familia except Haruhime ate at a fancy restaurant. Bell tried to cheer everyone up, but everyone was obviously worried. After dinner, Bell and Ais took a walk around Orario. They have not walk together in the city for a long time. They were mentally prepared for the war.
Welf finished charging the sharp edges by midnight. Welf, Hephaestus and Tsubaki then pulled an all-nighter to install all the thin metal layers to everyone's armor. Everything was ready to go. It was time for war.