A brand new day had dawned at the Hot Springs Paradise of Ymir and the Phoenix Wings Inn was bustling with its many young guests as Class VII finally had managed to meet up with their other friends from school, Linde especially made sure to question everyone if they heard news of her sister, Vivi, but unfortunately nobody could help her.
"She's a strong girl, I'm sure she is fine," Gaius had tried to console her the previous day, though it understandably had little effect in cheering her up.
The guests had spread themselves across the inn's dining floor for the breakfast buffet, chatting amongst themselves. Laura looked around for an ideal place to sit and eat when Alisa waved at her. It was a fine enough spot next to the window with good company alongside Fie, Emma and Elliot, so she decided on it while waiting for Rean to arrive.
"Good morning, everyone," Laura greeted them as she sat down.
"Morning, Laura. Did you have a good night's sleep?" Emma asked.
"I…"
Laura had no idea for how long she and Rean stayed there embracing each other, but it lasted until Rean found the strength in himself to want to leave. After dressing themselves, Laura accompanied Rean out of the inn as he would be sleeping back at his home and both shared a reassuring kiss before saying their goodbyes to each other, but when Laura turned to return to go up to her room when he spoke up.
"Do you remember what I said about spending the night in each other's rooms?" He said somewhat reluctantly. "I… I don't want to be alone tonight."
"Of course, Rean," she replied warmly, taking a hold of his hand and squeezing it gently. "Let me grab my things and we'll go."
And thus both quickly fell asleep on Rean's bed, holding on to each other. It was the best night of sleep Laura ever had and it was followed by waking up to his peaceful sleeping face, just how she had imagined back in her home months ago.
Rean had so much going through his head, through his life, it was outstanding how he was still able to fight so valiantly through all they went through so far, both at school and the war. His strength was admirable and it would only be tested more in the days to come and Laura only hoped she would be able to keep up.
Yes, at times Rean would put up a front to not be seen as weak, she realized that now, but it couldn't be all that. Not in the way he fought the Imperial Liberation Front or the other challenges they had faced, that fire could not be faked. Rean just needed to understand that he didn't need to be strong at all moments, that there was nothing wrong with moments of vulnerability and that he could rely on others when things got too much for him to bear.
"'Morning…" His drowsy voice greeted her with a lazy smile and eyes still closed.
"Good morning."
"Thank you for yesterday," he said softly, blinking his sleep away as she gently brushed her fingers across his cheek.
"You can always count on me, Rean. But as pleasant as this is," her eyes looked down at them, both lying in their sleeping clothes under the covers, now with the sadness and sorrow of yesterday past them. It felt so intimate and right and so damn comfortable. "I do hope my words have reached you."
"I haven't forgotten them," reaching up, he grabbed the hand that lovingly stroked his cheek and planted a kiss on her knuckles. "I know it's not fair to myself and even others how I shoulder the blame for everything but it's all I've ever known. It's hard to let go of that but I will work on it. I'll do better, I promise."
The early hours of the morning were spent exchanging soft kisses and caresses before the first rays of sunlight started to come up and Laura made a stealth return to the Phoenix Wings, where she was sharing a room with Alisa. She had to admit, this sneaking in and out of her boyfriend's room was exciting.
"I had a lovely night," Laura simply replied.
"I was completely passed out," said Alisa. So passed out she couldn't even notice Laura coming in and out of the room through the window, the swordswoman thought to herself.
"It was pretty nice. Helps that Millium is a good napping partner."
As Fie said that, Emma let out a soft giggle. "Seeing you two cuddling up in the morning was adorable, like two kittens."
Celine rolled her eyes at comparing those two brats to elegant cats such as her.
"The beds here are so cozy that it's hard to get up," said Elliot. "Rean would always say he wanted to bring us here for the winter break. It's a shame it couldn't under better circumstances."
"Yep, but there's always next year, right?" It was surprising to see Fie sounding so positive but they agreed to the sentiment.
"I trust you are all ready for today's meeting?" Laura asked them in regard to their discussion on what their next steps would be in regards to the civil war. Nobody could say they were excited for it but they were ready nonetheless.
"And since we decided we can't talk about that right now…" Alisa said with a curious grin on her face as she turned to Laura. "We never had a chance for some girl-talk after the festival, did we? So, come on, tell me, how was it?"
"I'm not sure what you mean, Alisa."
"I'm talking about when you and Rean disappeared from the post-party after the dance."
"Uhhh, I think I should go…" Said Elliot, picking up his plate.
"Don't worry yourself, Elliot. There isn't much to say, Alisa. We danced, then we left for a more private place where we kissed and stayed together until Principal Vandyck's announcement," Laura replied calmly. After relaying the same information to Lucia Schwarzer and the events of the previous night and his early morning, she could hardly feel flustered talking about kissing Rean, though she still had a pleasant smile as she recalled the night.
The blonde replied with an annoyed huff. She wanted some normal girl-talk about boys, damnit. "I swear, you've described your fights with him more romantically,"
"I mean, it's just a kiss, it's nice but not that special," Fie said.
Alisa rolled her eyes. "Please, Fie, I get that you had a different upbringing than us but you can't be that clueless about a girl's first kiss."
"I mean, when I kissed Vivi it was just nice, it didn't really make sparks fly or whatever you think that happens but I liked it."
Silence hung in the air as the rest of the table stared at each other with wide eyes, blinking dumbly as if they would help them understand the situation.
"What?" She asked around the table, slightly annoyed as to why everyone was looking at her weird.
"Vivi and you!?"
"H-how?"
"Umm, guys, I think it's fair to give Fie some privacy," Emma tried to placate them while Elliot offered an awkward "Congratulations?"
"Thanks, I guess."
"Fie, you got to back up. Since when do you like girls, since when did you and Vivi have a thing going on?" Alisa all but shouted, completely forgetting about Laura and Rean.
"She invited me to dance and I was like sure, I never danced before but I caught up quick watching everyone else. I mostly watched Rean so I guess I was the one leading?" She looked around in doubt and Laura nodded, confirming that Fie was indeed the one leading. "Then I saw some couples going away and I'm not that dumb about romance to not get what that means. When I lost track of Rean and Laura I thought, sure, why not, let's try new stuff and all that, I was curious to see if I really liked girls anyway. Besides, I can't let you two leave me behind."
The way Fie recounted was so detached, so casual, it left them all dumbfounded. She had said more than Laura had on the matter and somehow made it even more boring.
"I am just surprised because I didn't expect you and Vivi to be that close. I thought you were simply friends due to attending the same club," Laura said.
"It's not like we are dating or anything. She invited me to dance as a joke at first but I accepted it and she went along with it, but when I asked to kiss her she got really nervous," a smirk appeared on the former jaeger's face. The image of Thors' top prankster blushing was cute too. "I did remember you have to ask permission first, by the way. Anyway, it was nice, would do it again. I think Vivi liked it too, she was really flustered which was funny. Though I feel like I should kiss a boy too to balance things out, see if I like both. Hey, Elliot, are you doing anything later?"
"Buh?" The musician's eyes almost jumped out of his skull as he stuttered and blubbered until Fie's deadpan stare turned into a smirk from full blown laughter.
Emma proceeded to admonish the girl, saying it wasn't nice to mess with someone like that, while both Laura and Alisa failed to stifle their giggles. Meanwhile, Elliot needed a couple of deep breaths to compose himself.
"Not to intrude, Fie, but if that is the case shouldn't you go talk to Linde? Maybe try to console her," Laura asked when the mood settled.
"I'm not good with that stuff and I already told her I have no idea where Vivi is."
"But aren't you worried about her?"
"Yeah, in the same way I'm worried about Edel and our other friends from school. It's like I said, she's not my girlfriend, we just kissed," she returned to her regular nonchalance, talking while chewing her food. "Not everyone falls in love with the first person they kiss, you know?" She said with an accusatory glare that made Laura clamp up and blush.
"But are you sure Vivi feels that way too?" Alisa asked.
The silver haired girl then paused mid bite, brow furrowing in thought as she slowly started to chew again. "Crap," she uttered after swallowing her breakfast.
Rean arrived at the Phoenix Wings about half an hour after all the guests gathered for breakfast, having decided to have his meal with his parents, as well as to have a heart to heart in regards to the previous day's topic. It was a much calmer affair than what had transpired the last time, as he promised to try to work on those feelings. Unfortunately for those concerned about Rean's mental health, despite everything he said and was said to him, it did not pass through his head that he should do it for his own well-being above all else, and instead he primarily focused on the sake of not letting others worry about him. There was still much work ahead for those who wished to get through to him.
Now at the inn, the Schwarzer youth was feeling much better, full of energy, a clear effect of waking up next to the most beautiful girl in the world, he thought. First order of the day was to formally greet the other Thors students that had arrived as he found Kenny sitting along with Annabelle, Linde and Gaius.
"Hey, Kenny, Linde, I'm glad to see you're okay."
"Same to you, Rean!" The fisherman replied enthusiastically. "It's been one crazy thing after the other but I'm glad to see you and your classmates are still going at it strong. Sorry about your dad though, Annabelle told me about the attack on the town, it must've been some scary stuff."
"Well, I was out fishing when it happened-"
Of course you were, Rean thought.
"But when I came back it was awful. Thankfully the baron is recovering."
"It's good to see you as well, Rean," Linde said, forcing a weak smile that crashed down when Rean asked about her sister. "We were in a fairly large group when we escaped Trista but soon split off into minor ones to make it easier to hide. Vivi and I were in a group with Rex, Mint and Munk when we suddenly walked into a shootout between the armies and we would've been fine still, it's not like we didn't learn anything at school, but then this huge monster showed up out of nowhere and we had to scramble. When things finally calmed down and we could take a breather, Vivi and the others were gone and I don't know what happened to her and-"
The twin covered her face with her hands to suppress a sob, with Gaius diligently putting a hand over her shoulder to comfort her.
Rean grimaced at the sight, he knew how Linde felt and reminded himself that while he and his friends had managed to reunite, others hadn't been so lucky, and that whatever peace they had at the moment was fickle.
"Linde and Rex were on their way to Roer because they have family there but when they saw the panzer soldats all over the city they moved up north trying to find a better place to hide, that's how I came across them," Kenny explained.
Rean could do little but offer words of support, saying they were welcome to stay for as long as they needed, as well as suggesting talking with Captain Claire.
Next, he went after Rex who was being ushered out of the baths by the inn's manager, unsurprisingly with a camera in his hands. "I told you once yesterday, no cameras in the hot springs!" The manager said, grabbing the young photographer by the scruff of his neck.
"Come on, man, nobody is even there!" He tried to defend himself.
"But someone might decide to use the baths at any given time, therefore you can't take your camera! Master Rean, I would immensely appreciate it if you could please deal with this reprobate."
He had been watching the scene with amusement but stepped in when called, letting the manager rest easy and take care of more important business. "It's alright, I'll deal with it. Rex, I see a civil war did nothing to curb your hobby."
"Are you kidding me!? I'm on fire, thank Aidios I had some money with me to restock on orbal quartz for my camera over here, I ran out in the first two weeks! You'll see, when this is over there will be a whole exposition, 'The Erebonian Civil War Through the Lenses of Rex Oakfield!'"
That was awfully ambitious for someone whose hobby was taking photos of girls in their "natural habitat," a thought that diverted Rean's gaze towards the entrance to the baths. "And how do the hot springs figure into that exposition about this historical moment for our country?"
"Ah well, that's part of my personal project. You know how it is," Rex laughed and elbowed Rean in the ribs and the raven harried one didn't have much of a space to condemn him when the photo of a certain blue haired beauty was in a drawer back in his dorm room. "Although something like 'Cuties At War' sounds like a good idea too," he muttered, stroking his chin in thought.
"Whatever the case, just obey the rules, alright?"
"Sure thing, bossman!" Rex saluted enthusiastically.
Rean felt satisfied with that, while Rex needed to learn some restraint, it wasn't like his fellow first year to purposely cause problems. However, thinking better on it, Rean needed to lay down another important rule. "If you take photos of my mom without her explicit consent I'll make you eat your camera."
"Dude, what the hell!?" Such a scandalous accusation, Rex could not help but look incredibly shocked. "I'd never do that, I have major respect for you and your family for taking us in and stuff."
"Uh huh…" Rean's glare pierced through Rex but he remained unflinching, which for the moment would have to suffice.
Later that day, Rex would be lamenting having to trash an entire photo quartz but the evidence had to be destroyed as he did not wish to eat his precious camera.
With that out of the way, Rean made his way to the buffet. Yes, he had eaten breakfast back at his home, some toast with blueberry jam and tea, and his mom was totally capable of cooking some great breakfast food, however she already had her hands full taking care of his father so he didn't want to add to that, and neither was he going to miss on the chance of having some of the specialties that were served at the Phoenix Wings, such as the cinnamon-honey pancakes.
"I'm sorry, Lord Rean, but unfortunately the pancakes are over already," Purple said remorsefully when Rean asked what happened to the dish after not finding it at the buffet.
"How? Werner always makes a ton of it and there's not even that many people here aside from my friends from Thors."
"Uh, that little girl got half of the servings by herself," the maid pointed out to a table where Millium sat with a tower of pancakes on her plate, laughing merrily with her face dirty with syrup.
Rean facepalmed, grumbling about how he should've expected it. Purple offered to order the chef to make more but Rean waved it off, it wasn't like he was totally looking forward to it anyway. "There's other stuff here that is just as good, I can have pancakes some other time."
Besides, soon they would have business to take care of, namely check out on Valimar then gather around to discuss their next course of action, so he didn't want to hold things off, as such he held off on feeling too grumpy about those sweet, fluffy pancakes alluding him for a day.
"Alright, everything feels okay. How are things on your end, Emma?" Rean said aboard Valimar's cockpit. Meanwhile, the witch focused her own mana on her hands, a magical circle appearing under her feet and surrounding her in a faint blue light.
"Everything is fine, Rean. Although I imagine Valimar's mana reserves are on the lower side due to the multiple travels through the spirit path."
"Correct. I was only capable of restoring 30% of my full capacity. I recommend restraint," said the Ashen Knight.
After breakfast, Class VII returned to the clearing where Valimar was left, accompanied by Captain Claire and Gwyn, the latter which couldn't contain his curiosity, the engineer side of the older man shining bright with delight at that mechanical marvel in front of them, with the same being said about his granddaughter.
"If things are good I'm going to start then. Everyone, back away."
This wasn't meant to be just a mere routine check up on the Divine Knight either, as they would also take the opportunity of relative peace they were afforded for Rean to finally take his time to familiarize with the controls in a calmer manner.
With the small crowd that had gathered there in a relatively safe enough distance, Valimar started to move, first with a simple walk around the clearing, going back and forth a couple of times before engaging the thrusters, lifting and turning around. Next, Rean picked up the massive sword from the panzer soldat he had defeated back at Garrelia Fortress and started doing simple movements, eventually falling on his routine of katas he was so used to with his tachi.
Despite all of them having already seen and come in contact with the Divine Knight, they still couldn't help but stare in awe.
"Truly impressive," said Gaius. "This is no different from watching Rean practice."
"Yes, albeit a bit slower than his usual routine, it still is a sight to behold. And I can clearly see that the sword he is currently using is being an impediment for him to reach his full potential," said Laura. "But still, he has kept up marvelously against even multiple panzer soldats."
"Pah!" Celine spat. "Those soldats are mere copies of the Divine Knights, of course they couldn't hold a candle to Valimar."
"Sure, but Rean still has to be skillful enough otherwise they would have beaten him, right?" Elliot said.
"Of course, Elliot. Celine didn't mean to diminish Rean's efforts, did she?" Emma's stern voice called out the familiar, who obviously denied any attempt at downplaying Rean's abilities.
"Fascinating," Gwyn Reinford said under his breath, stroking his chin as he watched the display attentively. "The way it moves, it's completely unlike those panzer soldats, much more fluid, much more… Alive, I suppose I should say."
"I see what you are saying, grandpa. The soldat's have more restrictive movements and I can kinda picture out how parts of their structure are like from the inside. A lot of pistons and rotors to allow for limb movement, as well as a compensatory system to maintain balance, but I can't begin to imagine what a Divine Knight is like from the inside."
"It's easier to think it's made of synthetic muscle than any traditional parts I'm aware of," Gwyn continued, still staring at Valimar. "And I can imagine the response time between Rean giving out commands and those reaching the mechanism is almost instantaneous. Say, you kids that managed to get inside it, what is the cockpit like?"
To that question, Fie volunteered to explain since, despite the uncomfortable position they were in back then, she did the effort to commit things to mind. "Rean sits on a chair and puts his feet on two pedals which I guess moves the legs and feet, we mostly flew so I didn't see much of that. There are two handles connected to the dashboard that he grips to move the arms and hands and I think there's an individual button for each finger. Everything else…" She shrugged. "No clue how he moves the heads, eyes, torso or anything else but I guess it's like when he calls Valimar from a distance."
"You humans are all still stuck in your mundane way of thinking," said Celine with an air of frustration and no amount of glaring from Emma would deter her this time. "You keep going on about mechanisms like Valimar is an orbal car. A Divine Knight and their Awakener have a spiritual bond that goes beyond mere concepts like pulling a lever to make an arm move, despite what it may look like on the surface."
"You mean magic," Jusis said flatly.
"Yes! Magic, the arcane, arts much more ancient than the tricks you can pull with those orbments of yours!"
"There is no need to yell, Celine. Magic is not something most people are aware of, in fact, our clan has worked for centuries to keep the rest of the world ignorant of the existence of magic, so it's unfair to criticize them for having difficulties in understanding it," Emma finally said, making the feline lower her head and quiet down. "But yes, it is very much as Celine was saying, the connection between Rean and Valimar goes further than just the physical aspects. The controls you saw inside, Fie, just do half of the work, the other is done by Rean's subconscious, his intentions in the actions performed by Valimar. That is how he is able to do more complex and subtler movements with Valimar than a panzer soldat.
"It's a two way connection, allowing them to communicate telepathically instantaneously, being able to have full conversations in a manner of seconds, and Rean can feel everything that happens to Valimar, and vice versa. It's also how Rean even knew how to control Valimar without needing to be instructed, his mind and body instinctively know what to do in regards to the most basic functions."
Although a succinct explanation, it also raised more questions in regards to the Divine Knights' complexity and especially their origins that Emma said she would explain later.
"I guess it does make sense since we all saw Rean getting tired after using the spirit path, which is, you know, another crazy thing that defies conventional explanation," said Elliot. "But if Rean feels everything that happens to Valimar…"
"Whenever Valimar gets shot, Rean is feeling the bullet impact as if it was his own body," Machias finished the grim thought and winced, thinking of how painful that would be.
"You guys know I can hear all you're saying, right?" Rean's voice called out from Valimar's speakers as he paused with his training routine. "It's weird how you're talking about me like I'm not here."
"Well, what can we say, Rean, you're the talk of the town," Sara playfully said.
"Anyway, yeah I can feel getting shot but it's not like I'm feeling the full impact, otherwise I would be dead by now. It still hurts but it isn't so bad."
"Another advantage you have over the panzer soldats. You are more aware of your surroundings and even what is happening to your Divine Knight and can adjust accordingly faster and more efficiently," Gwyn said enthusiastically, this whole thing was firing up his old, engineer self.
"And another vantage that puts Crow and the Azure Knight at an advantage as well," Claire added. "The RMP has had its scuffles against the provincial armies' panzer soldats and although we've had our losses, they would have been much greater if we were to challenge Rean and Valimar, nevermind someone more experienced."
"Alright, we're done here," Rean said sharply as Valimar approached the group and he left the cockpit. While they hadn't set a given amount of time for him to train, it did seem like an abrupt stop, and Laura questioned if he didn't wish to have more time with the Divine Knight. "I don't want to waste Valimar's mana reserves, we never know when we might need it."
Nobody needed to be a genius to make the connection between the sudden ending to the practice session and the subject they were discussing. It was understandable to be sure, but with the discussion they would soon have, it was a subject Rean would have to get over sooner rather than later.
"So, Rean, how are the synchronicity levels? Do you still have the issues you were having before?" Emma asked, a little bit of worry in her voice.
"Well, it's a bit better now. It might not be a lot but I still feel a slight delay when controlling Valimar."
"Synchronicity levels have improved but are still not optimal," Valimar replied as well.
"Are you sure there's nothing broken with it, Emma?"
"Maybe you are the broken one," Celine muttered.
"What Celine is trying to say, Rean…" Emma started through gritted teeth, glaring once again at her familiar. "Is that you also have to make an effort to connect with Valimar. You need to feel the bond you two have beyond just giving out orders, your inherent spiritual connection can only do so much."
"And every fraction of a second counts when you eventually fight Crow again," Jusis said, not looking to measure words.
"Right…" Rean simply said, because what else could be said. "Let's get back to town and take a three minute break and then meet up at my home."
Back at the Schwarzer manor Class VII reunited alongside Captain Claire and Sharon, where they all sat around the dining table. Gwyn decided to abstain, saying that he trusted his granddaughter to make the right choice, while the other Thors students joined in after being invited, as it would be unfair to exclude them even if they felt they had ittle to add.
At first, there was some small arguing as to where they should start, which was resolved when Alisa got up from her chair and spoke up with a pointed look at her dutiful maid. "Alright, first order of business… Sharon, tell them everything you said to me yesterday."
"If you insist, my lady. As you all know, I have been under the employment of the Reinford family for years now, however, before that I was working for the secret society known as Ouroboros, known as the Enforcer Nº IX, the Severing Chains, and while I may have not interacted with them for several years I am still a member. Lady Irina found me wounded and left for dead after a failed mission in Roer and nursed me back to health, after which I decided to devote my life to serve her as well as her family as a way to show my gratitude"
Not once had the maid broken her usual demeanor, speaking with the in the same way she would as if she was offering to serve tea, which only added to the unnerving nature of what she was saying. Sara paid close attention to her words, wondering what was the nature of said mission that left the Enforcer almost dead, if that was even true. Was the lack of explanation just your regular secret society omission or something else? It couldn't be something high profile like the Gospel Plan a couple of years ago, that was for sure. And how much did Irina Reinford know? According to Alisa, Kreuger started working for her family around eight to seven years ago, a little after her father died…
No, no way, that doesn't even make any sense. Back then she must've been what? 15, 16 years old? Around the same age I was pulling my own weight at the corps… Tch, what am I thinking?
"And as an Enforcer you have the freedom to do as you please in regards to the society, right? Meaning you don't have to obey them if you don't want to?" Sara spoke up, shutting down her own thoughts. She already knew the answer, but it was best to clear that up with the kids.
"That is indeed the case, Lady Sara. And I know you all must have your concerns considering the society's role in this war, however I assure you I have no involvement with their current plans."
"Well, I guess we just have to trust your words."
Surprisingly, that sarcasm-loaded statement came from Captain Claire and not from Sara, and the Bracer had to give the policewoman props for speaking up, although her teacher side felt bad for how apprehensive Alisa looked.
"I am also aware of how liberal Ouroboros are with their Enforcers, I've read the Intelligence Division's reports, and I struggle to believe that an organization could actually function when some of their top members aren't required to adhere to any rules or even show loyalty to them."
"Yes, that seems quite a bizarre arrangement," Machias pitched in. "I mean, are you saying Ouroboros lets one of their agents play maid for a couple of years, no strings attached?"
"Eh, it's weird, but that's how they work, I'm pretty sure I wrote one of those reports," said Millium.
"If that is the case of how Ouroboros works is beside the point, the question is: can we trust that Sharon isn't following the society's orders at this moment?" Jusis said decisively and Alisa couldn't help but feel a bit hurt considering the pleasant time she had had with him the previous day.
"Uh, it looks like we are about to decide on something but I don't get what exactly," Elliot hesitantly said over the heavy atmosphere that was starting to surround them.
"It's obvious, it's if we should continue talking with Sharon around," Alisa's low voice rang out with a hint of bitterness as the atmosphere at the dining room started to become heavy.
"If my presence among you inconveniences you, I'll make myself scarce."
"No, you are going to stay here until I've said my piece and then everyone else can say what they think. I know Sharon isn't the main reason we've gathered here but I wanted to clear things up about that as soon as possible, so I'll make this quick," Reinford heiress huffed and straightened herself, taking a deep breath to calm herself down and clear her thoughts. "I understand that after meeting a couple of those Enforcers for even a couple of minutes everyone is on the edge about it, I know I am, and I was shocked when Sharon told me these things yesterday and still am trying to process everything but it doesn't erase the last eight years I've known her for. It doesn't erase all the effort she put in taking care of my family, how much she watched out for my mom and helped her with work and all the times she made me company when I felt lonely. I still don't know the full story as to how she came into our lives and she drives me up the walls at times, and to the rest of you she might just be the awesome maid who makes great food and cleans up our dorm, but to me she's part of my family."
Were Sharon not a highly trained, highly skilled maid and Enforcer, capable of controlling even the most minutia of her expressions and emotions, she might have just started bawling her eyes right there. The young mistress had never spoken so passionately about her before, and it really made her heart flutter. Instead, Sharon let out a faint sigh and smiled kindly. "Thank you, my lady."
"So, all of this is to say that I still trust Sharon, if she says that she has nothing to do with Ouroboros and their involvement in the war I believe her. If you guys can't do the same, I ask that you find it in yourselves to trust me and my judgment of her, if that's not enough… Well, I guess that means I shouldn't be here, either."
"That's ridiculous, Alisa, you belong here with all of us," Laura spoke up quickly, looking around the other members of her class. "I've already made the mistake of misjudging someone based on their previous affiliations and I am not about to repeat it, and I trust Alisa's judgment. Instructor Sara, as a Bracer, what is your opinion on the matter?"
Looks like it's my turn then. "The Guild has done the best it can to keep up with Ouroboros and their agents, creating our own dossies on them, although information can be hard to come by. You've met some already and I'm familiar with a former Enforcer turned Bracer back in Liberl, which is a story for another time. As for Enforcer Nº IX…" Sara paused. She could blow the case wide open and justify getting rid of the maid like she always wanted even before confirming her true identity, all she had to do was break Alisa's heart. "There isn't much on her in the Guild's files besides her existence due to her long period of inactivity. I say it's fine to keep her around, if anything we could learn more about the society that way."
Not exactly a ringing endorsement but the instructor's words carried enough weight to shift the mood away from complete suspicion towards Sharon. Not that Sara was happy with it but this wasn't the time to create rifts between them.
"I trust Alisa and Instructor Sara," Rean said after a moment of silence as they pondered over the subject. "I guess the best way to do this is to see if anyone has any objections to keeping Sharon around. So… Anyone? Captain Claire?"
"I am here merely to exchange information and advise you, I would hardly put myself in the position to object to who might stay in your group. I apologize if I made things worse, Alisa, Sharon, but I hope you understand my feelings regarding the society's role in the assassination of the Chancellor."
"I apologize as well if my words seemed a bit harsh," Jusis said next. "I was coming from a place of pure excepticism and I didn't take into account how close you two are."
Nobody else had anything to say. With the tension deflated, Alisa sat back down and calmed herself. "Thank you, everyone."
"I thank you all as well. I promise you won't regret putting your trust on me or Lady Alisa," said Sharon.
Off in the corner, Linde, Kenny, Annabelle and Rex listened attentively to the conversation but there was a bit of a problem. "Uh, Kenny, what's an Ouroboros?" Linde asked hushdely.
"I ain't got a clue."
With that out of the way the floor was open for anyone to jump to the next topic of discussion and Emma took the initiative. "I guess it's finally time for me to fully come clean about myself and my mission.
"I've said bits and pieces of it but here is the full story: I was raised at the village of Eryn, which is located in the heart of the Isthmia Forest and residence of the Hexen Clan of witches. The history of our clan extends back to hundreds of years into the past, farther than any recorded history we know, before even the concept of Erebonia as a country existed."
"Question!" Millium raised her arm as if she were in class. "Does that mean you are actually hundreds of years old but you make yourself look younger? Can you make me look like that with big-"
"Millium!" Jusis yelled, cutting off the younger girl who just looked at with an innocent expression. "If you are going to interrupt Emma's explanation, at least make it for a worthy reason instead of wasting our time with idiotic questions."
"Okay, sorry," the cerulian haired girl said, looking legitimately down for being reprimanded, which surprised Claire as the girl was never one to regret her, oftentimes, improper jokes, but then Millium had never been reprimanded like that before.
"Millium, please, I am 18 years old, okay? I was raised by my grandmother after my mother passed away when I was 3 years old. My grandmother, Roselia, is the leader of the Hexen Clan and she taught me everything I know about magic. Me and… Vita."
"You mentioned Vita is your sister," said Laura.
"Yes, we don't have the same parents but we were raised together. We lived in the same house, we studied, ate and played together, so that is how I always viewed her and it's how I thought she saw me as well…" She pursed her lips and, under the table, Emma's knuckles went white as she tried to reign in her emotions.
Offering a kind smile, Sara put a hand over her student's shoulder. "You don't have to force yourself, Emma."
"I'm okay, instructor, I have to do this but thank you. As I was saying, Vita and I were raised together but seven years ago she vanished, taking my grandmother's staff, Kerykeion, with her. While my grandmother might have had her suspicions as to why it happened, she never told me and all this time I had thought she had grown tired of staying in the village and abandoned us."
"But in truth she joined Ouroboros as the Second Anguis," said Sara.
"And became an opera singer in the meantime," said Elliot. "Forgive me for saying this, Emma, but she was pretty famous, how did you never make the connection? I'm pretty sure Machias and I talked about meeting her back in Heimdallr as well."
"And she was the host for Abend Time," said Alisa.
The way they were talking about it, it was like Emma was just too dense to have noticed it and she couldn't help but feel a little flustered but thankfully Celine jumped in to explain. "As a witch, Vita can manipulate causality. Putting a spell on Emma that makes her leave the room whenever the topic would come up or even alter what she sees and hears would be simple for her."
"Well, I guess that explanation is easier to swallow after seeing Emma hypnotize that guy," said Machias.
"And just like any illusion it was shattered when Schwarzer spilled the beans to Emma."
It was a rather strange string of words that Celine had just said and it made everyone turn to the raven haired one with raised eyebrows. Rean facepalmed and started to explain the series of coincidences that led him and Towa meet with "Misty" back when they were testing out the orbal bike, which thinking back wasn't a coincidence at all.
"Oooh, Rean was almost charmed by a witch."
"Shut up, Fie."
"To be more precise, Celine," said Emma, getting things back on track. "I believe Vita undid the spell and set up the meeting with Rean with the purpose of making him tell me about her so I would be nervous and make a mistake. With her presence so close to us I hesitated and I believed she was biding her time, waiting for us to finish Valimar's trial so she could strike, so I ended up being too cautious and taking too long to do anything."
The witch looked down remorsefully and Celine opened her mouth to say that wasn't the case at all but stopped when she looked back at Emma, a glint of blue mana coursing through her eyes that promised retribution in case she said anything to contradict her.
Always a good friend, Laura said there was no reason for Emma to feel bad about it, as there was no way she could have known things would have escalated in such a way. She should not fault herself for that. "Right, Rean?" After their conversation the previous day, surely he could sympathize with their friend.
Biting his tongue, Rean slowly turned to Laura's hopeful and reassuring face, offering a placid "Right, we can't blame ourselves for things beyond our control," with a plastic smile.
Feeling bad for receiving such honest but unwarranted reassurance from Laura and noticing Rean's restrained expression, Emma quickly moved on. "I believed she was after Valimar, I had no idea she had already managed to awaken Ordine, which I think brings us to our main point of discussion, the chief mission of the Hexen Clan: to observe and safeguard the Deus Excellion system as well as assist its Awakeners.
"Some of you might have heard of their legends, of knights of immeasurable power who appear during times of major strife across the land. While there are many variations to the tales they do hold a modicum of truth as they speak of the Deus Excellions, or Divine Knights, and they have played major roles in the biggest conflicts in Erebonia, including the War of the Lions."
The room was filled with murmurs questioning how this was possible, even the quiet group of non-Class VII students bursting into doubting the claim. That was a revelation none of them were ready for as it defied everything they knew about the war from 250 years ago and the very foundation of modern Erebonia. "Not that I think you are lying, Emma, but wouldn't the participation of the Divine Knights in the War of the Lions be part of recorded history? Considering how much we know about the war, the existence of gigantic knights couldn't be passed as mere legend," said Gaius.
"As I said, this is a whole system. It's not just about the Divine Knights themselves but everything that surrounds them, such as the trials like the ones we faced in the old schoolhouse and the choosing of the Awakeners. Similarly to what Celine said about Vita affecting causality and the world around us, the system can do the same, except it can extend itself to the whole country, causing the memories regarding the Deus Excellions to fade away into myth.
"I don't mean to say we will forget about Valimar and Ordine or anything that has happened so far, for those like us who have had direct, longstanding interactions with the Divine Knights, those memories won't be affected, but those who have short lived experiences with the Knights, those who only hear about them, they'll have a gradually looser grasp on those memories as time moves forward and whatever passing tales that survive become vaguer and vaguer."
"And causality takes care of lingering evidence. Any writings, paintings and statues get destroyed in unexpected fires, floods or just mysteriously vanish without leaving a trace. The system finds a way," Celine finished.
"Thus history becomes word of mouth before turning into fairy tales," said Laura. "This system can alter the course of history as it sees fit. This is deeply troubling."
Fie groaned and rubbed her temples, even thinking about it was going to give her a headache. All of the others also had similar reactions trying to make sense of what they had just heard, as it just flew in the face of basically reality itself.
More and more it seemed like the civil war that was ravaging Erebonia was a recreation of the War of the Lions, Jusis mused, and Emma agreed. "That's a good point to bring up, Jusis. I am sure you all remember the place we were taken to during the final trial, it is called a Reverie Corridor, a pocket dimension with its own rules created specifically for the trial. If you recall, we encountered many murals with runes in them, some of it repeating the same things I'm telling you but there is one detail I wasn't aware of and that is especially relevant to Rean. It was a collection of names that seemed completely random at first but thinking back on it, it was the names of Valimar's previous Awakeners, and among them was none other than Emperor Dreichels Reise Arnor."
Stunted silence took over the dining room once again. Dreichels Reise Arnor, the man who had led the charge ending a bloody civil war and unified Erebonia, acquiring an almost mythical status among his people. The man whose words were still heeded even two centuries after his passing and whose deeds and accomplishments were still vividly remembered. He was an Awakener? And not only that, Rean was his successor?
For the Schwarzer youth, it was a final piece of the puzzle of his visions. The one in Nord, Dreichels' call to action; in Bareahard, a battle most likely and the woman with the staff a witch, just like Emma; and in Legram, the Eisenritter and the woman… He looked at Laura, who was wide eyed at the revelation, and felt a strange warmth wash over his face. He swallowed and took a deep breath, it wasn't worth thinking about weird parallels to historical figures right now.
"So uhhh, does that mean Rean the great-great-great-whatever grandson of one of Dreichel's illegitimate children?" Elliot posed a question. "I mean, he doesn't look like anyone from the Imperial family."
"Did Dreichels even have illegitimate children?" Alisa said.
"He was a noble so of cour-" Machias started just to choke on his words under his classmates' glare. "I mean, there is always the possibility. Maybe."
"Guys, it doesn't work like that, being an Awakener isn't some hereditary condition," Emma quickly said to shut down that line of thought. "It's a matter of fate, which I understand it's not a satisfactory answer but it is what it is."
"Yeah, I'm just lucky like that."
Rean didn't have in himself to try to hide his bitterness and nobody could say anything to minimize it.
"Excuse me, Emma, but if I am understanding this right," Captain Claire started, fingers tented in front of her face, brow furrowed as she put some of the pieces of the puzzle together. "The Divine Knights show up only during periods of major conflict in Erebonia, regardless of how they are started, correct?"
"Yes, Captain. This has repeated itself for hundreds, if not thousands of years."
"Then…" As if she had cast an ice based Art with just her voice, the temperature around Claire dropped as she bitterly dragged the words out of her mouth. "Am I correct in assuming that Vita Clotilde allied herself with the Noble Alliance and orchestrated this war, even the assassination of the chancellor, all for the sake of awakening them!?"
Emma had been so caught up on the aspect of the Divine Knights as part of her duty, that she hadn't even thought of taking that into consideration. Vita had planned all of this, or at least participated in the planning, fully aware of what would transpire, of all the death and suffering it could lead to, and for what exactly? The feeling that she never truly knew the woman she considered her sister dawned on her and she felt sick, going pale and drawing the concern of her familiar and friends.
But before the witch could properly explain her feelings, Lieutenant Engels burst into the room. "Captain Claire, the Pantagruel has been sighted on its way to Ymir!"
The RMP officers had quickly started evacuating the center of the town, taking the populace to the outskirts, as soon as the flagship of the Noble Alliance came into view. Some of the most stubborn residents, still sore from not being able to do anything the last time, wanted to stay and fight and had to be dragged away. The prospect of armed combat was already bad enough but with the Pantagruel in play, panzer soldats could be deployed and there was no way the townsfolk could defend themselves against those.
While Rean and his group rushed outside, Lieutenant Engels, Kenny, Rex and Annabelle stayed behind at the Schwarzer manor to offer some amount of protection to the baron and Lucia, although no-one held any illusions of them being able to stop whoever got past Class VII and their allies.
Rean expected the worst and was already calling in Valimar when he and his friends made it to the center of town, thinking they would find an army of jaegers or Enforcers, but instead, a single figure stood there, manifesting from a magic circle around his feet. Standing tall, composed and completely unarmed.
"Rufus!" Jusis called out the name of his older brother.
The chief of staff of the Noble Alliance was completely undisturbed by the approaching armed group. Nevermind the Class VII students, Captain Claire and one of her men had their guns trained at him, ready to shoot at the slightest twitch, but he still stood there as if he owned the place. "Jusis, it seems you've finally gathered the courage to make the difficult choices life has set on your feet," he said to his brother.
"And it seems you and father are working hard on turning it into an easy choice. As much as you clashed against Chancellor Osborne and the reformist's politics, not once could I have ever dreamed you would appeal to such low methods."
Rufus was disturbingly unphased by his younger brother's verbal lashing, as if it meant nothing to him.
"What was it that you told me over at Roer, something about cooler heads prevailing?" Claire spoke up, gun perfectly aimed at the older Albarea sibling. "Is that what you call assassinating the chancellor?"
"Some opponents are simply too powerful for a direct confrontation, Captain. Sometimes winning the battle requires drastic measures, I am sure you understand."
"Let me make a wild guess and say you didn't come here to personally deliver my sister and Princess Alfin back to safety, did you?" Rean said through narrowed eyes, his intent visible to everyone around him.
Obviously that wasn't the reason for Rufus' presence and he shook his head, never dropping his confident grin.
"Then get out of my town."
In a burst of speed, Valimar's engines roared from above as the Ashen Knight flew into the center of the town and landed between him and Rufus. Rean extended his own right arm back, drawing back the sword Valimar was carrying, and then made a downward motion straight at the noble. He wasn't planning on actually killing Jusis' brother, despite the growing anger he was feeling, as he was more than capable of stopping Valimar at the last second. It was meant to be a show of force to intimidate his adversary, as it seemed to be the only type of language people like him understood.
Instead, before Rean could stop Valimar from turning Rufus into paste, someone else did. The Azure Knight, Ordine, appeared as if almost from thin air and blocked the descending sword with its double saber.
"Remote control is a neat trick but it'll get old if you keep using it," Crow's voice came out of the Divine Knight's speakers. Now it was clear why Rufus was confident enough to show up alone in Ymir, and with the Pantagruel flying over the town it should've been obvious.
"You!" Rean didn't waste any time being surprised or shocked, upon seeing Crow he immediately entered Valimar and rushed him. He needed to get him away from Ymir, away from his family and his friends, that was his first priority.
With the Divine Knights' weapon locked, Rean engaged Valimar's thrusters upwards, lifting Ordine up and away from the town. He knew Crow was letting himself be guided away, maybe there was some sense of decency left in him that wouldn't allow civilians to be caught up in their fight, or maybe he simply didn't want to risk Rufus' well being. Rean didn't care, and as the town disappeared, giving way to a snowy landscape, Valimar broke their struggle with a kick before descending to the ground with Ordine following.
"Looks like you're getting better at piloting Valimar," said Crow, not in the usual casual and aloof demeanor he was known for, but neither with the cold seriousness of their encounter in Trista when the war started.
"I've had some practice."
"But not enough to catch up to three years of experience," with that it was Ordine's time to take the offensive, the massive double saber spinning like a saw blade before striking. Rean parried a series of consecutive attacks but then got shoulder tackled and dragged across the forest, the weight of the Ashen Knights snapping dozens of trees like twigs.
Valimar's feet dug into the ground and Rean steadied himself, engaging the thrusters once again and managing to stop the path they were on, shoving Ordine back and jumping away to put distance between them.
Back in Ymir, despite their worry about Rean, the rest of the group had to trust him while they faced their own adversary. Rufus stood firm, unphased by the clashing Divine Knights or the RMP officers attempting to surround him.
"Rufus Albarea, you are under arrest for the assassination of Chancellor Giliath Osborne," proclaimed Claire.
"Do you honestly believe I would come here with no back up besides the Azure Knight, Captain?" At the snap of fingers, multiple magical circles appeared behind Rufus, materializing the fearsome figures of Leonidas and Xeno of Zephyr, alongside Scarlet and Vulcan of the Imperial Liberation Front. "And you can rest assured, we have way nastier surprises for you up there but I don't want to stress the people of this town any more than necessary."
"Oh you hurt us, your lordship. Are we really just the opening act?" Xeno said, earning an ugly glare from Fie, although it quickly turned into a rather sad, pleading expression.
"Guys, don't mess this place up, please."
It took both seasoned jaegers all of their training and experience to not immediately surrender to the little girl's big, pleading green eyes. "We have no intention of causing any chaos in this town," Leonidas calmly said.
"That is, if you kiddos don't force our hand."
"Right, we're here just to ensure nobody does anything crazy while we take care of business."
Vulcan and Scarlet continued.
Emma had all but tuned out the conversation, looking around in search of her sister or her familiar, the source of the teleportation glyphs that had brought those people to Ymir. Even if it wasn't obvious it was a magical spell and by process of elimination there was only one person that could be using them, she could feel her older sister's mana in the air.
Laura positioned herself in the forefront alongside Jusis and Instructor Sara, and leveled her sword against their enemies. It angered her how these people so brazenly threatened the peace of this town again, so soon after the previous attack as well. But that was just a smaller scale version of this whole war, a gross misuse of power that uppended the lives of the people. It was sickening.
But getting angry would solve nothing. This was Rean's hometown, the place he grew up in and loved as much as she loved Legram, and starting a fight here could only lead to disaster.
"And what, pray tell, has brought you here?"
"I know it sounds crazy but we came here just to have a conversation," Crow said to Rean as both exchanged blows down the mountain path that led to Ymir.
It was more of a fight than his previous encounter with Crow. Back in the day when the war started, filled with anger, desperation, confusion and fear, Rean's performance was barely beyond wild flailing Valimar's arms around like a child. Now he was still angry, probably even more than back then, but he wasn't blinded by it, he wasn't the ogre, and he managed to properly assess his enemy like a swordsman should.
"Yeah, sounds crazy alright."
Rean parried another incoming attack, making use of all defensive movements he knew from the Morning Moon form of the Eight Leaves, although it could hardly be considered using the actual fifth form with no sword sheath. In fact, his use of the Eight Leaves in general left much to be desired, half of it was owed to his weapon, a broadsword that would be more fitting to Laura's fighting style. The balance, shape, proportions of it were all wrong for the Eastern style he was used to, so nothing was coming out right and he had to appeal to the simplest movements of Helix and Gale, things even he had mastered by this point, to keep up with his rival Awakener.
Worst of all were those fractions of seconds Jusis had mentioned earlier in the day, delays between Rean's actions and those of Valimar that were incredibly minute, but enough to be a handicap against someone much more experienced. Why was his synchronicity with the Divine Knight still not good enough? What was he doing wrong? Why couldn't this bucket of bolts just work right?
Ordine's saber cut through the air, nicking off part of Valimar's plating but small enough that Rean barely felt it as he stepped back then counterattacked with a downward slash that seemed to catch Crow by surprise. His attack was unsurprisingly blocked but Rean kept on the offensive with all the precision and strength he could muster and it seemed he was finally getting the hang of fighting like this when he made the Azure Knight lose balance, creating an ideal opening for an attack.
Then Ordine's thrusters came into life, allowing for an easy maneuver to avoid the attack and jump behind Valimar, not that different from what Rean had done against the panzer soldat in the outskirts of Bareahard. Rean quickly pivoted around, assuming a defensive stance and blocking another attack.
Rean thought he was going back to having to wait for an opportunity to attack except he quickly realized that wasn't going to happen. Crow and Ordine came at Rean faster than before, too fast for him to even keep track of, circling around him like a whirlwind before landing precise blows, only leaving behind a faint trail of aquamarine lights shining across the Divine Knight's plating.
"What's going on?"
[It would seem Ordine's Boost Mode has been activated.]
"Can you do that?"
[I cannot.]
Putting aside the set of things he wanted to call Valimar at that moment, Rean focused on trying to keep up but in the end it was all for nothing, Crow had the advantage and after managing to successfully pin Valimar's sword against the ground, he sliced it in two with his own weapon. "You need a better weapon than this mass produced garbage you've been using."
Rean didn't have any answer to give, he simply took on the unarmed form of the Eight Leaves and prepared himself to continue the fight, but instead, Crow turned him back to him and took flight.
"Like I said, we're not here to fight. I'll explain things on the way back to your town."
"So this is just going to be a stare down?" Said Machias, his grip tight on his shotgun.
"Looks like it," Vulcan replied.
"Now you see why I didn't want to bring McBurn with us… Ah, it seems the boys are done playing," Rufus looked up at the sound of the Divine Knights returning.
There was a wave of relief among the Class VII students but the disappearance of Valimar's sword spelled out the result of their fight.
"Rean, are you okay!?" Shouted Laura at the Ashen Knight as it hovered over the center of the town.
"I'm okay, Laura. Really. I'll be away for a while but don't worry, I'll be back soon, they want to… talk."
Nobody could hide their disbelief at what they just heard.
"Duke Cayenne has a proposal to make to young Rean, simple as that," said Rufus. "Thus he will be our guest for a while."
Meaning he was being taken hostage, and with the Pantagruel looming over Ymir there was nothing else anyone could do to stop it. After another promise of returning and a plea for his friends to take care of his parents, Rean started on his way to the Noble Alliance's capital ship with Crow following him behind.
It would seem things would end there, and Emma felt disappointed that her sister wouldn't show up, as despite all that had transpired she still wanted to see her, but a defiant voice suddenly rang out across the center of town.
"Rufus Albarea!" Teo Schwarzer approached them, using a cane to support himself with his wife accompanying him. The man was clearly unfit for even this much physical exertion but he still pushed through and maintained a dignified posture. Behind the Schwarzer couple, the Thors students and Lieutenant Engels held looks of worry and desperation as they had been completely incapable of keeping them out of danger.
"This is not how I've ever expected to meet you after so long."
"Ah, Baron Schwarzer. It has been a while," Rufus cordially bowed. "Let me start by sincerely apologizing for my father's actions, rest assured you will be compensated for any harm that has been caused."
Had it come from anyone else it might have been insulting, as if he had been offering to buy them off, however, Rufus was nothing if incredibly proper in his own way, so this was merely him following the usual protocols. So the baron simply nodded in acknowledgement, although both him and his wife kept their stern stares aimed at Rufus.
"Where are you taking Rean? And have your people done to Elise?"
"Rest assured we mean no harm to your children. As I explained to his friends, Duke Cayenne wishes to meet Rean for a nice chat, as for the young lady Elise, after her arrival alongside Princess Alfin she has been chosen to be the Imperial family's personal retainer, as such she is safe and sound."
So both were hostages.
Despite being fully aware of how deadly Rufus could be with a sword, despite the fact he was surrounded by incredibly dangerous people and that he was gravely wounded, Teo Schwarzer still marched towards the blond man without fear.
"I've always thought you were a promising young man, someone who could steer the Kreuzen Province, maybe even Erebonia, towards a better direction. But it seems I'm not as good a judge of character as I believed."
Though stern, Teo's words were not ones driven by anger, although saying he wasn't happy with the situation would be an understatement, but more of disappointment and pity. And only Jusis, who knew his brother better than anyone else there, saw how Rufus flinched at them, it was faint, a blink and you miss it deal, but it was there in the way his muscles tensed and the corner of his lips twitched. It was very peculiar to say the least but this wasn't the time to get hung up on it.
The older Albarea sibling quickly got a hold of himself, simply nodding and stepping back and away from the baron. "This has been an interesting gathering but I'm afraid we must depart. I am a fairly busy man these days. So Baron Schwarzer, Lady Lucia, Class VII and friends, I bid you farewell."
With a bow, Rufus vanished alongside his men, transported away by magic circles, leaving behind a bunch of incredibly frustrated people.