The walk back to the main campus, while lengthy, was still quite the experience. Seeing it from above was one thing, not that it wasn't amazing, but actually walking through the streets was something else. St Freya was even more impressive than he first thought. The clear waterways and well-kept greenery lining the roads, squares, and buildings added to its sense of grandeur. It was hard to believe that this was a school— one of the most important schools in this world, sure, but a school nonetheless. The only college town he was familiar with was the Clock Tower, and that was only second-hand accounts he heard from the other members in Chaldea.

"It's quite breathtaking, isn't it?" Theresa couldn't help but brag, having noticed him looking around with awe. "Nothing was spared in its construction; I wanted this place to be a safe haven for those affected by the Honkai and teach them how to do good with their abilities— but I'm sure Fu Hua has already told you about the school's history."

"A little bit," Ritsuka absentmindedly answered, still taking in the sights. They soon passed by another group of girls who greeted their principal; he couldn't help but notice them taking quick glances at him and quietly gossiping under their breaths. He only caught the words, "Is that him?", from one of them but largely had no clue what they were whispering about. "There's… quite a lot of girls here," he muttered as he realized; outside of the few Schicksal members earlier, he had yet to see another guy here.

"There's a simple explanation for that. The Honkai resistance necessary to become Valkyries is more commonly found amongst women," clarified Fu Hua who had been walking closely next to him. "That's not to say that men cannot fight the Honkai. It's just hard to find those who could without succumbing to its infection. In fact, St Freya has not had a single male student in all its years of operations."

Theresa interjected, "It hasn't been two full decades yet since we opened our doors but, yes, Fu Hua is correct. It's easier to find girls who can and are willing to become Valkyries, especially those young enough to enroll here. So St Freya ended up being an all-girls school due to the circumstances."

"I see… I got the gist of it," Ritsuka nodded. Admittedly, a male Valkyrie sounds a bit strange but that could be attributed to him knowing actual Valkyries. Speaking of, how would they feel to be the namesake for something like this? Probably ecstatic considering what the Valkyries of this world do, to be honest.

"As the Honkai are not as much of a threat as they used to be, St Freya now trains Valkyries for any possible future threats, whatever they may be. However, I do plan on eventually turning this place into a normal academy should the day come when fighting is no longer necessary," Theresa revealed to them with a small smile that was equal parts hopeful and sad. "But that's for the future, we still have the present to worry about. Here we are, the faculty building."

It had been a while since Fu Hua was last in the principal's office but she couldn't help feeling nostalgic about it. Not that she ever got into enough trouble to be summoned here… purposely… Damn you, Kiana. In any case, Theresa asked them to take a seat and wait while she searched her cabinet for the files they needed.

It was then that Fu Hua realized something, "Is Mei busy? I would have thought she'd want to be here for this."

"Mei?" Ritsuka parroted in confusion, to which Senti quickly answered that Mei was a friend of theirs.

"Unfortunately, she is supervising a routine combat test this morning for one of her classes," Theresa told them before adding, "She promised to join us as soon as she's available. In the meantime—" The headmistress pulled out a rather thick file from the cabinet. "—we have a lot to look into, and this is only one of the files. My grandfather kept lots of notes about his investigation on the Imaginary Tree. There has to be something that could help us."

Theresa slammed the file on the table, taking a moment to dust off her hands before going back to retrieve another. "What exactly should we be focusing on, Tesla?" She asked as she carried a second one to the table

"Right now, our primary focus should be locating what branch Fujimaru hails from. Only then could we start thinking of sending him back," the AE scientist answered matter-of-factly as she took one of the files and opened it. "It's fortunate that the previous Overseer kept records of his research, but we may have our work cut out for us."

'That was putting it lightly,' Fu Hua thought, seeing just how thick the files were. She wondered when that man started researching parallel universes to have that many notes and papers.

Ritsuka, on the other hand, wondered something else upon seeing the files. "May I ask why he was looking into the subject so intensely? That much research… that can't be just out of passing interest right?"

To no one's surprise, Theresa unwittingly answered with a phrase they all know and love— "It's a long and complicated story. Let's just say he needed answers for something and sought them outside our universe."

'Among other places…' Fu Hua mentally added. If there was something good she could say about the man, his determination was one of the very few things she admired.

Meanwhile, Senti had a completely different thought upon seeing the amount of research they had to look into. "Are you really going to make Ritsuka sit here and read all that? Isn't he supposed to be a guest? He hasn't even gotten the chance to fill his stomach yet and it's almost time for lunch!" The Herscherr sounded offended, crossing her arms with narrowed eyes, though those who know her wonder if she's actually talking about herself. Before anyone else could say a word, Senti had stood up and was dragging Ritsuka— chair and all —back out the door, disregarding his shocked protests. "Come on, I'll show you the fun places around here." Despite trying to sound upset, the excitement in Senti's voice was unmistakable.

"Hey, wait—" Fu Hua tried to call out to them but the door had already slammed shut by the time she stood up from her seat. "…And there she goes, off on her own again," she grumbled with a rapidly forming migraine. While she trusted Senti not to get Ritsuka into trouble intentionally, it didn't sit right with her to stay here and let them walk around St Freya without a chaperone. "I'm terribly sorry, but—" she tried to apologize to the others only for Theresa to interrupt her with a small giggle.

"Don't worry, we'll handle everything here. You go make sure Senti doesn't start a fight with the students," her old headmistress instructed her, having noticed the alumna's agitation. Theresa watched as Fu Hua left the room after thanking her for understanding. "…Alright, gimme the dirt, what's the story between those three?" She turned to Tesla with a grin unbecoming of her status.

Ritsuka was used to being dragged around by those more than capable of ripping his arms off and Senti was no different. With little choice in the matter, the best he could do was enjoy his time as she (and Fu Hua by extension) showed him around the campus. He, naturally, drew the eyes and whispers of many students, no doubt wondering why a guy was getting led all around the all-girls school but no one tried approaching them yet… mainly due to Senti's eccentricity.

Along the way to what Senti refers to as "the best cafe according to her,", they stopped at several spots to admire the view; whoever Theresa hired for landscaping deserved a raise. Despite Fu Hua's insistence that they get a move on, Senti wanted to go through the scenic route, seeing as he was 99% sure they had passed through the same crossroads twice or thrice now. It was either that, or the street architecture wasn't as diverse as Ritsuka thought.

Whichever it was, this ended up biting them in the end as by the time they arrived at Fu Hua's favorite cafe— "What do you mean you're full?!"

Fu Hua had to physically drag Senti away while Ritsuka apologized to the poor server for their friend's behavior. "I told you not to waste time, did you forget just how many students are here?" Fu Hua scolded her as they went to look for another place to eat. "Even back then, it was almost always full."

"Hmph, you'd think they'd give graduates like us a little special treatment," Senti pouted before sighing, "Oh well, hope you like oil, Ritsuka. The fast food joint here is good but you could find places like it basically anywhere else."

Ritsuka assumed she was talking about the shop with the hot dog on its roof he saw earlier, and said he was fine with eating junk food. However, there was another question on his mind, "You two actually attended this school? Aren't you… you know, older than probably everyone here combined?"

"It's… I was undercover," Fu Hua admitted with a slightly embarrassed sigh. "Believe me, spending so much time around teenage girls isn't as fun as you think it'd be."

"But there were a lot of fun memories too, isn't that right Miss Class President?" Senti grinned at her, which made Fu Hua roll her eyes but with the tiniest hint of a smile.

"Somehow…"

Ritsuka could only imagine what sort of antics Fu Hua got into while enrolled here… Not that he was imagining how Fu Hua would look as a high schooler, not at al— "Ehh~ What's with that look on your face, Ritsuka? Don't tell me you're thinking what I think you're thinking, right~?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Ritsuka denied rather quickly, failing to hide the slight redness in his cheeks.

Senti immediately burst into laughter at his embarrassment while Fu Hua sighed in exasperation. "Stop messing with him, Senti. You said it yourself, he's a guest."

"Oh come on, he knows I'm just joking. Stop being a party pooper, old timer."

"As soon as you stop calling me that."

"Never!"

Fu Hua rolled her eyes again before turning back towards Ritsuka. "As I keep saying, just ignore her. You'll have less of a headache that way," she reminded him as Senti blew her tongue at her like a child again. "Now, let's continue on our way. The line is only going to get longer the more we dall—"

"Fu Hua, is that you?" A new but somehow not unfamiliar voice called out, making them stop and look back to see a girl with flowing dark purple hair dressed in mainly white. Most strikingly, however, was the katana she carried with her. The girl had a friendly smile on her face as she approached them. "What are you doing out here? I thought you were supposed to be with Theresa and… uh, I'm sorry, I've never seen you around here before, who might you be?"

"Oh yeah, sure, just going to ignore me huh?" Senti sounded offended again but this time, it was genuine.

"My apologies, Senti. It's great to see you as well, both of you. It's been too long since we last saw each other," the mystery woman let out a cheerful giggle at Senti's expense.

"It's a pleasure to see you too, Mei," Fu Hua smiled back at her friend. "I'm not sure how much Theresa has informed you but this is Fujimaru Ritsuka. Senti and I were showing him around and were just about to grab lunch."

Mei hummed in understanding. "Right, it is about that time. Oh, I almost forgot to introduce myself." She turned to Ritsuka and bowed to him, "My name is Raiden Mei, it's an honor to make your acquaintance."

"Likewise," Ritsuka replied, giving her a smile and bow in return. He couldn't help but be reminded of someone when hearing her voice, he just couldn't place who… 'It will come to me, maybe…' He thought to himself and wrote it off for now.

Mei, meanwhile, had her own questions. 'Ritsuka… where have I heard that name before…?'

It was a long shot, but it was the best they got. A brainstorming session between the Servants had led to one of them suggesting to look outside the universe. In other words… the Imaginary Sea. The chances were slim at best, but at this point they have to try.

"This is a terrible idea, can I say that again?" Kama grumbled as she sat around, waiting for their mission to begin.

"Yet, you still agreed to join. You could have let any of others take your place if you are really not comfortable with it," replied Sigurd, another Servant who chose to participate in this "terrible" idea of a mission.

"Well, it beats sitting around waiting for someone else to find him," yawned Kama, trying to act aloof about the entire thing which only made Sigurd chuckle. "I get why you're coming along, as well as her—" she glanced at the woman in black sitting across from her who scoffed with indignation. "—but why is he coming along too?"

Her and Sigurd's attention shifted to the older gentleman seated in the shadowy corner. A deep chuckle came from him, echoing throughout the room. "I assure you, your grace, I only have the purest of intentions in volunteering for this mission," Moriarty replied with a calculating smirk and Kama could only roll her eyes; Archer's words are about as trustworthy as that Pretender bug, oftentimes even less. While she didn't doubt he genuinely wanted to help find Ritsuka, she didn't believe that that was all he was after.

"All of you are worrying over nothing. As much of an idiot that guy could be, he's capable of surviving well on his own," Yu Mei-ren said, waving her hand in dismissal. Despite that, Kama caught a bit of concern in the spirit's voice that she couldn't hide. "Knowing him, he's probably already making friends wherever he is. All we have to do is hold tight while my beloved and the Captain finish preparation."

The plan was simple— take a quick dive into the Imaginary Sea, look around while running quick scans, and get out while hoping that they don't run into trouble. This secondary Nautilus was not as resilient as the real one that Nemo usually summons as it now serves alongside the Shadow Border as Chaldea's base of operations. It wouldn't last long if they encountered something out there. Well, it wouldn't last long out there period. That's why this was only going to be an hour-long mission… hopefully.

"But really, this is still a terrible idea," Kama stated again with a sigh. If only the dreamscape Servants could locate him, then she and the others wouldn't need to go on this dangerous expedition, even if they only need to protect the Captain in case they do run into trouble.

At last, the door opened and in walked one of the Nemo Marines and two of the Valkyries, who had been helping them with preparations. "Attention please, the capt'n says we're ready to dive. Would everyone please make their way to the bridge?"

The walk from the sideroom they were waiting into the bridge was short yet tense as the two Valkyries were glaring at Sigurd's back, who either ignored them or just didn't notice. Regardless, they arrived where Nemo and their remaining two "colleagues" for this dive were— Brynhild and the third Valkyrie. They all lined up before the captain, who stood and gave them the mission briefing mainly as a formality than anything.

"—in and out. My ship would not be able to sustain much damage in the event that we are attacked," Nemo told them what they already knew. "But should we find any trace of our target… there's a high likelihood we'd have to venture even deeper into the Imaginary Sea to not lose it. Is that acceptable?" The question didn't need to be asked. They all knew the dangers and were here in spite of it. "Good, then take your place and strap in. We're commencing operations."

Kama was not afraid of getting her hands dirty, but still had to mentally prepare herself as the Nautilus prepared for the dive. Entering the Imaginary Sea was not something to take lightly— it was a complete unknown to nearly everyone. From what she heard, the last time Chaldea attempted this, it led to a whole lot of eldritch problems. Her eyes wandered between her fellow Servants for this mission— with her rolling her eyes at Sigurd and Brynhild holding hands as they sat together. It was cute but nauseating to see.

The Assassin only let out her breath once one of the Nemos relayed that they've successfully entered the Imaginary Sea. That was the first step taken, now onto the next pha— BEEP! BEEP!

As the bridge lit up red from the alarms, Kama only had one thing in her mind with a completely deadpan face. 'Oh wow, who could've se—" Her vision was filled with white before she could even finish that thought.

A/N: And now we'll (eventually) have Servants here in the story besides Dantes. All of them were specially chosen for good reasons... except for Sigurd who was mostly chosen on a whim with no ulterior. The Valkyries are obvious, Kama cause I was convinced by a friend she'd be good for the story, and Moriarty and Yu-senpai just for a couple of jokes. When will those jokes appear? And how does Mei seem to already know Ritsuka? Stay tuned to find out~