"...That's quite a history." Laura closed her eyes solemnly. "Listening to you tell your story really brings into focus how limited my view of the world has been."

She had just finished listening to Fie's recounting of her background. The two of them had ventured into the island for the second time that morning looking for more collectibles for Holly, and Fie decided now was a better time than ever to talk about her past. Laura had heard the basics beforehand at the end of last month's field study, but it was only after Fie had explained it in full that the full gravitas of her story hit Laura.

And that was exactly what she had been hoping for.

"So?" Fie asked. "What do you think?"

"I feel like I finally know 'you'," Laura responded. "There's still so much more I want to learn about you, of course, but at least this gives me a base to build on."

The younger girl grunted in response. She held up a handful of herbs. "This should be enough, right?"

Laura nodded. "That looks fine."

With their objective fulfilled, the students made their way back to the inn area.

"But now we are left at an impasse."

Fie raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"We no longer have any basis on which to continue our original wager," Laura explained. "We have already exhausted our sides of the bargain."

"Then we'll just think of new ones." The corner of Fie's mouth crept upwards. "And next time, I'll think of my own thing I want to ask you."

Laura returned the gesture with a smile of her own. "Anything so long as it is within reason."

"So are your three sizes off the table, or…?"

"Wh-Wha-!" Laura started blushing profusely. "Wh-Why would you ever suggest s-such a...s-scandalous…!"

"Huh." Fie grinned slyly. "Didn't think you'd be this easy to tease."

"I thought you were done provoking me…!"

"But there's still so much more I want to learn about you." The silver-haired girl dropped her voice as low as she could to imitate Laura's voice.

"Then you can stand to do it in some other manner!"

"Hey, old habits die hard," Fie said, her voice returning to normal. "Cut a girl some slack, will you?"

"I'd rather take my chances in trying to cut you down!" Laura's left hand veered dangerously towards her sword.

"Then I think it's time to show off one of my secret techniques. Want to see it?"

Laura paused her advance. Despite all her instincts telling her that this was a trap, she felt very enticed by the offer.

Sensing Laura's hesitation, Fie crouched low to the ground. "This one's called...'Exit Stage Left!'"

In a split second, Fie transitioned from crouching to running away from Laura at breakneck speed.

Laura wanted to shout at the trail of dirt and grass that Fie had left behind, but she composed herself into letting out a small, exasperated sigh instead.

"I swear, I don't know how Morgan does it," she murmured to herself before giving chase.

…

"Once again, this amount is more than adequate." Holly bowed her head in thanks. "Thank you for taking the time to gather these for me. However, I can't help but notice that the two of you came into my tent rather winded. Did you encounter any monsters out there?"

Fie shook her head, trying to hide the fact that she was still catching her breath. "Monsters? Nah. We were just...whew, playing a game of tag. That's all."

"A game of tag…" Laura stared at the younger girl accusingly. "A game of tag...that spanned almost the entire length of the island?"

"Compared to Sara's training? This is, ha...this is nothing."

Holly smiled serenely at the pair. "It would seem that the air between you two has become less tense since the last time we met. For that, I think a special reward is in order."

Holly placed a shining brown quartz on the table in front of her. "This is a rare quartz that was given to me a while back as payment for my services. When it is used in conjunction with a tactical orbment, it conjures earthen shields that can nullify physical attacks for yourself and your allies."

"Nullify physical attacks?" Laura picked up the quartz and inspected it. "Are you sure it is alright to give us this? It sounds very valuable."

"I think that your group will see more use of it then I will. I don't possess a tactical orbment, anyways, so I can't use it even if I wanted to."

Laura opened her ARCUS and inserted the quartz inside an open slot for safekeeping. "Thank you for your generosity."

"Thus concludes our contract for the time being," Holly finalized. "Before you go, might I interest you two in having your fortunes read? I should have enough time to do both of yours before the ritual starts."

Fie looked at Laura. "We're supposed to meet with the others at the shrine in about an hour. That's more than enough time for two."

"If you see no issues, then I suppose there's little harm in staying for a few extra minutes." Laura turned to Holly. "But for the sake of time, would it be possible to expedite the process?"

Holly waved her hand over her crystal ball, causing it to emit a clear blue light. "I can arrange that."

"...And that will be it for the final question. As we end things for today, let me extend my thanks once again for agreeing to assist me with this. I hope my...unique circumstances haven't detracted from the experience."

"It's alright," Morgan responded. "Really, we should be the ones thanking you for giving us the opportunity to work with you, Mr. Nielsen."

Elliot and Machias similarly gave their thanks. Their client, Marcel Nielsen, was a renowned freelance journalist who had won many prestigious awards for his coverage of the Hundred Days' War between Erebonia and the neighboring country of Liberl. Unfortunately, he lost his eyesight during the war, which meant that he couldn't directly transcribe the interview by hand. Instead, he used a recording device so that the interview could be preserved and transcribed by someone else at a later time. Currently, Nielsen was traveling through Erebonia, having developed an interest in the frictions between the Noble and Reformist factions as they appeared in the media.

"You know, I gotta admit…" Elliot spoke up. "I didn't think too much of the media growing up. After this, though, I think I may have taken a lot of it for granted."

"It's not something the average person thinks about critically, that's for sure," Machias agreed. "But once you start thinking more about it, it's clear that there's a lot more involved than just people reporting the news. In a sense, the media can be just as turbulent as politics."

Nielsen nodded. "Indeed. More often than not, the media is a stirring pot for all sorts of agendas.

Words that would normally hold little sway in the political field are given the chance to run freely on paper and in the public orbal waves. In turn, the audience pressure those in power to act on their will. Thus, the cycle repeats itself again and again."

"It'd be easier if we all could just think on the same page," Morgan grumbled.

"Truly," Nielsen said with a chuckle. "But for as much as we treasure harmony, mankind can't move forward without strife. Part of the miracle of debates is hearing two people with opposing ideals verbally tear each other apart while still respecting the perspectives that they each have developed, and it makes the rare moments where both sides reconcile all the more satisfying."

"Like with Laura and Fie," Elliot muttered.

"Or like with Jusis and Machias," Morgan added.

Machias coughed. "The less we talk about that, the better."

Another chuckle escaped from their client's lips. "Right. Before I forget, let me give you this as thanks for your time today."

He reached under the table and placed a bag with wrapping paper inside it. Morgan decided to peer past the wrapping to see the bag's contents and was surprised to find…

"Is this...a pink Mishy?"

She lifted the plush figurine out of the bag to get a better look at it. It was a cat with a large head like a regular Mishy, but it was colored pink, had small eyelashes attached to its eyes, and wore a small yellow ribbon in front of its left ear.

"Correction: her name is Mishette," Nielsen replied. "She's the younger sister of Mishy, who is the one with gray fur."

"So they come in different colors, too…" Elliot stroked the soft fur of the plush. "How many of these are there?"

"I definitely didn't expect someone like you carrying this around," Machias admitted. "No offense, of course."

"The Mishy family is loved by people of all ages back in Crossbell," the journalist said sincerely. "I used to work for the Crossbell News Service before I went freelance, so I'm all too familiar with them. When I found that they were selling plushes in Erebonia, I bought one on impulse for old times' sake. I'll be returning in a few weeks, so do give that one a new home, will you?"

Morgan smiled. "Yeah, I know someone who's definitely gonna love this. We'll take good care of her, don't worry."

The students said farewell to the journalist and left the room he was staying in. After making a quick stop by the girls' room to drop off their newly acquired Mishette plush, they left the inn and made their way to the shrine.

Once they were there, however, they were surprised to find that not only was the area already well-decorated, there was a large number of people wearing RMP uniforms helping with the setup.

"I definitely wasn't expecting this," Elliot remarked. "But I guess this explains why there was a lack of police back at the inn."

"Ah, you're here a little early," a stern called out to them.

The students turned their heads to see Major Irving walking over to them.

"Major Irving." Morgan saluted out of courtesy, with Elliot and Machias following her example. "We finished our tasks for the morning and thought we'd come and help with the setup, but it looks like you and your team beat us to it."

The stern-faced major let out a rare chuckle. "Well, we're sorry to have rained on your parade. There's been a notable amount of progress with the investigation back on the mainland. I thought that since we caused a great deal of unrest this morning, this would be a good opportunity for my team and I to 'give back' before we leave, so to speak. Rest assured, we can handle things here."

Morgan looked to Elliot and Machias. "So I guess this means we should head back?"

"We don't have much else to do," Machias sighed. "We'll just have to wait for Laura and Fie to get back from their task."

"I have to say, I'm almost a bit disappointed," Elliot admitted. "I wish there was something else we could do to help."

"If you're that willing to lend a helping hand, I've got something in mind!"

As if on cue, Brittany came walking up the path to the shrine.

"Hey, Brittany!" Morgan then noticed someone else who was following her. "And you are…"

"Ah, that's right! I haven't introduced you to her yet." Brittany gestured towards the newcomer, a woman with long red hair wearing a traditional animist garb that covered most of her body. "Everyone, this is Scarlet. She's going to be our dancer for today's ritual."

The dancer bowed her head and smiled. "It's a pleasure to meet all of you."

"The pleasure's all ours." Morgan returned the sentiment, as did Elliot and Machias. "So, what's this something you had in mind, Brittany?"

"Right. So you remember how there's an angler who catches the fish we use in our meals?" Brittany waited for the students to nod their heads before continuing. "Well, as you might have seen, we have a LOT more people than usual today, and that means a lot more mouths to feed come lunch time. Because of that, we're going to need a lot more fish to compensate. I think you know where I'm going with this."

"You want us to help her catch more fish, is that right?" Morgan guessed.

"Got it in one!" Brittany cheered. "Annabelle—that's the name of the angler—should be by the pier. Of course, this isn't an official request, so no one's forcing you to do it, but if you've got the time and patience, we'd greatly appreciate it."

"You know, I don't think I've ever fished before," said Morgan. "Is it hard?"

"It's not too difficult to get started," Machias replied. "It's the waiting and knowing the right time to pull that are the hard parts."

"Rean showed me the basics back at the academy," Elliot told Morgan. "I can show you a thing or two, if you want."

"That'd be great, thanks."

After saying good-bye to Brittany and Major Irving for the time being, the students made the trek back to the inn area and hung a left to go to the pier. Annabelle the angler, a young woman with long pink hair, was standing by the waterside with a fishing rod with her hand. To the group's surprise, Laura and Fie were present with fishing rods in hand as well.

"...So that's what happened after you departed from Celdic. You've had quite the adventure, haven't you, Annabelle?"

"Ahaha…" The angler nervously scratched her cheek with her finger. "That's certainly one way of putting it. Thank you for your concern, Laura, but if it's possible, could you please keep my whereabouts a secret from my family?"

"She's dressed like a noble…" Machias spoke in a hushed whisper.

"If that's going to be a problem, you can always just leave," Morgan responded.

Machias adjusted his glasses by the bridge. "I never said that I'd leave. I'm just...surprised someone like her is all the way out here."

"You mentioned you saw her in Celdic, right?" Elliot remembered. "Is she traveling?"

"And just where is she traveling to, I wonder?" Morgan walked closer to the group by the pier. "Laura? Fie?"

Fie was the first to turn around and greet them. "'Sup."

"Ah, welcome back!" Laura said. "Have you finished your interview?"

"We've been finished for a while now, actually," Machias replied. "More importantly, what are you…"

"I was just talking with Annabelle." Laura smiled at the pink-haired angler. "Both of our fathers are viscounts, so we met on a few occasions in the past. She looked like she needed some help catching some fish, so I offered to lend my aid."

"And I got dragged into it." Despite her choice of words, Fie was concentrating intently on the water. "Give us a few minutes. I want to see if I can catch something."

"Actually, this works perfectly for us," Morgan remarked. "There's been a change of plans."

Morgan filled Laura and Fie in on the situation regarding the shrine setup and what they should be doing now. Machias and Elliot also formally introduced themselves to Annabelle.

"I see." Laura looked at the fishing equipment next to them, which included a spare fishing rod, a bucket full of bait, and a cooler to store all the fish. "Unfortunately, we only have so many fishing rods. We can take turns fishing, if that is alright."

"No objections here." Annabelle reeled her line in. "But before I show the rest of you how to hook a line, would you mind if I asked one of you a question?"

"A question?" Elliot repeated.

"Yes. To you, specifically." The pink-haired angler walked up to him and scanned his face. "I don't mean to pry, you said your last name was Craig, yes? Do you happen to know anyone named Fiona, perchance?"

Elliot widened his eyes in surprise. "Th-That's my sister…"

"I thought so!" Annabelle smiled. "You looked a lot like Miss Fiona, so I couldn't resist satiating my curiosity."

The rest of Group B were surprised as well. "You have a sister, Elliot?" asked Machias.

"Did I not tell you?" Elliot scratched the back of his head. "Whoops. Guess I forgot."

Annabelle looked up fondly in remembrance. "Fiona Craig. She sat in as our substitute music instructor at St. Astraia's when our old instructor was traveling a few years ago. I really enjoyed her lessons."

"You went to St. Astraia's?" Morgan asked. "But wait, school should still be in session. Did you graduate already?"

"Well…" Annabelle pursed her lips. "I have completed all my credits, but I haven't received my certification yet. It's a rather long story…"

"How little or how much you want to tell us is up to you," Laura comforted her. "But my classmates are trustworthy people. Perhaps talking about things will give you some peace of mind."

"...Thank you, Laura." The angler smiled in gratitude. "Once again, you comfort me with your maturity, despite me being one year your senior."

Annabelle helped Morgan get set up with her fishing rod as she told her tale. Just this past spring, her father had notified her that he had arranged a marriage behind her back. This was despite the fact that Annabelle had told him previously that she didn't want to think about marriage until after she had completed her education at St. Astraia's, and even once she reached out to her father, he didn't divulge any details about her future spouse other than that he was a man of status. Naturally, Annabelle was dismayed that her parents went about the arranged marriage without her input, so after making sure that she completed all her credits for the year, she ran away from home.

"Has it been tough?" Elliot questioned once Annabelle finished talking. "Traveling on your own, I mean?"

"I must admit, having to fend for myself without any servants to assist me did quite a number on my perception of the world," the noble responded. "There were a great deal of moments where I thought that the best course of action was to return home, apologize to my parents, and follow through with my engagement. However…"

"However…?"

Annabelle had stopped responding. On closer inspection, the reason she went silent was because she had caught a glimpse of a shadow that was hovering near her line. It drifted closer, moving back and forth and giving the hook a small nibble. Finally, the rod arched forward sharply.

"Now!"

She pulled the rod back. The fish on the other end of the line struggled relentlessly, splashing in all different directions. All the students gathered around her in anticipation.

Eventually, Annabelle grunted and pulled even further back. A green fish sailed through the air and landed perfectly in her left hand.

"You caught it!" Morgan congratulated.

"As is to be expected!" Annabelle showed off the fish, which was still writhing from the ordeal. "A Forest Gill! Around 58 rege, too! This shall do nicely."

She knelt by the cooler, opened the lid, and unhooked the fish into it. "We still need plenty of more fish to feed all those hungry mouths, so show me how well each of you can angle!"

"Um, you were saying before?"

"Hm?" Annabelle looked at Elliot oddly. "Ah, that's right. I was talking about why I didn't go back. Well, if I were to put it simply, I've simply found much more enjoyment traveling to places I had only ready about previously in books. Now that I've had my first taste of freedom, I don't see myself returning anytime soon."

"Does fishing have something to do with that?" Morgan questioned.

Annabelle hooked another piece of bait to her line and cast it into the water. "It started as a hobby, to be honest. But as I traveled more and the money in my wallet grew...thin, the more I've come to rely on catching my own meals. What was once my hobby eventually grew into my essential survival skill, and the fact that I find enjoyment out of it does wonders for my stress. Perhaps I should take up angling as my full-time occupation…"

Annabelle stopped talking again to concentrate on another fish that was nearing her line. Elliot decided it was best to end the conversation there.

"Being able to travel around the world, doing the things you love…" he muttered wistfully. "That would be the life…"

"Elliot?"

He looked up to find Fie looking at him curiously. She was holding her rod across her shoulder.

"Ahaha. Nothing. Just talking to myself."

Fie handed him her fishing rod. "Here. You try. I don't think the fish like me."

"Sure. I'll give it a shot."

Elliot took Fie's place, taking the rod from her hands and casting the line into the ocean. Off to the side, Laura had switched places with Machias and was talking with Morgan and Annabelle.

"Who made you come here?"

He blinked at Fie's sudden question. "Huh?"

Fie put her hands behind her back. "You really like music. There's no denying that. As soon as clubs opened, you made a beeline for the orchestra. Then there's your sister, who does music for a living. If music is that big of a deal in your family that two of the kids are musicians, then there has to be a reason why you're at Thors instead of at some...music academy. Annabelle's story got me thinking: did someone make you come here?"

Elliot nervously scratched his cheek. Only Fie was honest enough to challenge social norms and ask the hard questions outright. Or maybe she didn't care about them? "Haha, it's almost scary how well you saw right through me."

Fie crouched low to the ground, facing the ocean. Elliot decided to sit next to her while he waited for his next catch.

"Was it your mom or your dad?" she asked.

Elliot looked down sadly. "It was my dad. My mom...she passed away seven years ago due to an illness."

The silver-haired girl frowned. "Oh."

"It's okay," he assured her. "My mother was a pretty famous pianist. Being raised around music like that, my sister and I ended up sharing her love of music. After Mom died, my sister and I both wanted to follow in her footsteps.

"Fiona enrolled at the Music Academy in Heimdallr and began working toward a career as a pianist. Naturally, I tried to do the same, but Dad wouldn't hear of it. He thought the idea of a man making a living through music was absurd. That's when he started recommending one military academy after another, trying to push me toward a career in the army."

"...Dads are pretty tough to convince," Fie agreed.

"You can say that again." Elliot let out a sigh. "You're right, Fie. I'm no good at fighting. Never have been. I'd get smoked in a real war. But my dad made it clear he wasn't going to take 'no' for an answer, so I had to give up my dream of attending the Music Academy. But after some research, I found that one academy—Thors—offered plenty of music-related classes and that about half of its graduates end up in careers outside the military. In the end, I met him halfway and chose to enroll at Thors."

Off to the side, Machias had snagged something on his line. As he struggled to pull the fish out of the water, Morgan and Laura started cheering him on. Finally, he successfully yanked a purple-colored fish from out of the water. Machias shouted in triumph, but in the midst of his post-victory stupor, he forgot to catch the fish on the way down, causing it to land smack dab in the middle of his face. The surprise impact caused him to topple over and his glasses to fall from his face.

Elliot couldn't help but crack a smile at the sight. Laura tried to secure the purple fish before it could retreat back into the water. Morgan pushed her rod into Annabelle's hands to help Machias search for his glasses.

"Do you regret it?" Fie asked. "Coming to Thors, I mean."

"Of course not," Elliot replied without hesitation.

Fie let her surprise show on her face. "...Huh?"

"Life at the academy keeps me busy, but I still have time to perform with the Wind Orchestra after class is out. And…" He looked back at his other classmates, who had successfully secured Machias's catch and helped him find his glasses. "I feel like I really broaden my horizons every time we go on a field study. Honestly, I feel like I get more out of Thors than if I just enrolled at the Music Academy without much thought."

Fie grunted. "That's an understatement."

Elliot laughed in response. "So, yeah. Even with that, I've got no regrets about coming to Thors. None at all. Besides…" He turned to look at her. "If I hadn't come, I never would've met all of you guys, would I? I'd regret that way more."

Fie silently stared at him for a good few seconds before replying, "Did you really just say that with a straight face?"

Elliot tilted his head in confusion. "I didn't think I was saying anything particularly embarrassing…"

She shook her head in exasperation. "Morgan, Rean, you've made yourself a disciple in the way of corny speeches."

"It wasn't that bad…" Elliot scratched the back of his head. "Was it?"

Any chance of continuing the conversation was halted when the pair saw the tip of Elliot's rod move forward.

"Oh! I got a nibble!"

Elliot quickly stood up and got into position. "That looks like a big one, too!"

"Quiet," Fie told him. "Any louder and you'll scare it away."

Elliot nodded and waited patiently, his hands gripped firmly around the handle of the fishing rod. He took a deep breath to calm himself.

After a few small nibbles on the line, the fish finally yanked on the line hard.

"Now!" Fie signaled.

Elliot pulled back on his rod, trying to bring the fish closer to him.

"Yeah, it's definitely a big one!" he remarked. "I'm not sure if I…"

Unfortunately for Elliot, his fair build meant that he lacked the raw physical strength necessary to handle physical tasks like wrestling with this particular fish. Try as he might, it was clear that he was fighting a losing battle. With each passing second, the fish pulled him closer to the pier.

"Not good…!"

Suddenly, he felt a small pair of arms wrap around his waist. The surprise feeling almost made him let go of his rod.

"Focus," he heard Fie say from behind him. "Find your footing, then get ready to pull on three."

"R-Right!" Elliot nodded in compliance. He put one foot in front of the other, hard. Thanks to his classmate holding him back, he was able to maintain his ground. He heard the voices of his other classmates cheering them on.

"One…"

"Two…"

"Three!"

Elliot pulled the rod with all the strength he could muster while Fie clung tightly to his waist. A blue fish with a dorsal fin and long nose erupted out of the water and sailed through the air like a boat out at sea. Realizing he only had seconds to catch the fish before it landed, Elliot dropped his rod, opened his arms wide open, and caught the fish with a bear hug. In doing so, however, he lost his balance, causing him to topple over backwards before Fie could move out of the way.

"Yikes! That looked like it hurt!" Morgan said as she came running over. "You two okay?"

Elliot's arms were wrapped tightly around the still-flailing fish. His head ended up settling on Fie's midsection, and his eyes were closed shut as a result.

The silver-haired girl slowly sat up to find Elliot on top of her. If she felt any embarrassment, she wasn't showing it on her face. "Could be worse."

Elliot slowly opened an eye. "Did I get it?"

"You sure did!" Morgan's hands secured the fish. "Hold still. I'll help you with that."

"That's a Blue Marlin!" Annabelle recognized. "I didn't think I'd see another one. You're all better anglers than I gave you credit for!"

Elliot breathed a sigh of relief as the marlin was taken from his hands. Wrestling with the fish had left him both wet and winded, so much so that he forgot where his head was currently on until he heard a voice from directly above him.

"I'll try not to have any regrets either."

Elliot opened both his eyes and looked up. In spite of their...compromised position, Fie had a rare smile on her face.

"That was a nice catch."

Elliot mustered up the courage to smile back. "All thanks to you!"

By the time Brittany came over to tell Group B that the ritual was about to begin, they had caught more than enough fish for lunch. Annabelle insisted that she could carry the cooler back to the inn and told them to go to the shrine, but not without thanking the students for their assistance.

Upon arriving at their destination, the students were met with a sizable crowd of people in front of the altar. Most of the crowd were people that they saw at the inn, but there were also some new faces that just arrived earlier today from the mainland. Morgan could've sworn she saw an elderly couple that resembled Count Egret and Lady Suzanne blended in with the crowd. Manager Tom stepped on to the altar with a megaphone in his hand.

First, he brought to attention the efforts of the Railway Military Police in helping to set up the ritual and thanked them. He and the crowd applauded the various members of the RMP that were stationed all around the outer perimeter of the shrine area. Major Irving briefly stepped forward and saluted everyone before falling back into place.

The ritual then began in earnest. Tom led the crowd in a brief word of thanks to the earth and elements in allowing them to come together today. As he spoke, Brittany came onto the altar with a small candle in hand and lit the two torches located at the back of the shrine. Once both torches were lit, Tom spoke a few words about the importance of harmony and asked everyone to hold a brief moment of silence The purpose was to invite everyone to let go of their previous biases and prejudices so that they can better commune with each other and the natural elements around them.

After a short while, the ritual transitioned into the next phase. Tom asked the crowd to gather themselves in a single-file line and offer up one belonging that they have to the front of the altar, signifying the renouncement of worldly possessions. For those that felt uncomfortable with leaving a possession of theirs behind or simply didn't have anything on hand, there was also a basket of flowers off to the side that people could take from to offer instead.

Class VII situated themselves near the back of the line and watched as the people in front of them started putting an assortment of trinkets, accessories, and flowers in front of the shrine. Morgan deliberated between putting down a flower or putting down something personal. When it came to their turn, Elliot didn't waste any time in moving forward and placing down his ARCUS. Machias picked a flower from the flower basket and set it down next to Elliot's ARCUS. Fie retrieved her grappling hook gun and placed it next to her classmates' offerings, though her choice of object did raise a few eyebrows. Laura started to pull out her sword with the intent of setting it down, but after some deliberate words of reconsideration from her classmates, she settled for untying her hair ribbon and placing that in the pile instead. In a split second decision, Morgan retrieved her personal orbment from her shirt pocket and set it down.

Finally, the last person in line set their belongings down and returned to their place in the crowd. Tom called Scarlet up to begin the final phase of the ritual. With a ceremonial torch that was as long as a polearm in hand, she walked to the center of the podium and knelt in the direction of lit torches. After a short prayer, she lit her torch and began moving to the other four torches around the dais. With each light that she lit, Scarlet would twirl her torch once and bow before moving to the next light.

"Hmm…"

Morgan noticed that Fie was eyeing the dancer with a great deal of suspicion. "What's wrong?"

Fie narrowed her eyes. "That person...I haven't seen her before."

"Oh, that's right. You and Laura weren't there when we met her the first time." Morgan told Fie about their brief encounter with the dancer from earlier.

"Scarlet, huh?" The silver-haired girl hummed to herself. 'Her movements look a bit familiar…'

The dancer finished lighting the last torch and returned to the center of the podium. She spun the pole in her hands three times before setting it down and kneeling. With that, the ritual came to an end.

...

After partaking in a lively lunch made from the fish they had caught earlier, the members of Group B went back up to their respective rooms to refresh and prepare themselves for the tasks that awaited them in the afternoon.

"Laura? Fie? Do you have a moment?"

The two teens stopped what they were doing upon hearing their names. Fie had been restocking her supply of portable explosives while Laura was admiring the new Mishette plush Morgan had acquired for her.

"Is something the matter?" Laura inquired.

"Just wanted to check in with you two before we set out again," Morgan responded. "You know, how you two felt about being by yourselves and all that."

"Ah, yes. One moment, please."

Laura set the Mishette plush comfortably next to her pillow and made her way to the table where Morgan was sitting by. Fie performed one last double-check of her equipment before doing the same.

"Right…" Morgan said once her classmates were seated. "How did things go out in the field?"

"Piece of cake," Fie replied. "We went in there, we found some herbs for Holly, we got out. Didn't run into any frenzied monsters."

"And furthermore…" Laura continued. "As promised, Fie divulged the full details of her background to me. I think it is safe to say that our issues with each other have been resolved."

It had only been two nights ago that Laura had been fretting over the lack of time they had at their disposal. Now, she was able to hold a normal conversation with the person she had struggled to understand the most. The days of Laura and Fie hostilely avoiding each other seemed like a distant memory.

"You know, I honestly thought that we'd have to wait till the last minute to get you two to cooperate," Morgan admitted. "But here we are. I'm surprised that we've made this much progress."

"Can't wait to see the look on everyone's faces when we get back," Fie commented.

Laura nodded, sharing Fie's sentiments. "Indeed. Will they have looks of surprise? Relief?"

"However…"

Her group members abruptly turned their heads toward her as she said that. "This leads me to a question that I've been meaning to ask you two."

Laura cupped her chin with her fist. "A question?"

Morgan took a deep breath and asked, "How difficult was it to become honest with each other?"

Both of her classmates hummed to themselves as they thought. It was a difficult question to think about right as they were about to head out again, but it was something that Morgan needed to know.

After a while, Laura was the first to respond. "Being straightforward and honest was simply the way I was brought up. Having to sort my own feelings was the part that took me the most time. Once I made it past that first step, however, I didn't feel like I had any troubles communicating with Fie."

"Guess that makes me the opposite," Fie said. "I knew how I felt; I just didn't think there'd be much point in talking about it. I told you guys before, but being honest isn't exactly the jaeger way of life."

The ex-jaeger then leaned forward. "So why do you want to know? There has to be more to this, right?"

"Fie?"

Morgan sighed in resignation. Fie knew her all too well, it seemed. "It's something I've been thinking about…ever since I saw you two fight this morning. You confronted your pasts head-on, with the intent of showing off everything you had to offer to each other. I guess it made me realize how...dishonest I've been in comparison."

"Are you referring to your own background?" inquired Laura.

"...Yeah."

Morgan clasped her hands together on the table. "I kept telling you two to be honest about yourselves, and yet I wasn't doing the same for you guys. All I did was keep feeding you little snippets of my past whenever you asked, but when you add them all together, it doesn't result in anything coherent. It even made me wonder if all the things I've done to help others in the past was just an excuse to keep looking away from myself."

She shook her head and closed her eyes. "I must seem like a hypocrite to you two…"

Laura reached out her hand to touch Morgan's. The suddenness of the gesture almost made her flinch.

"How little or how much you want to tell us is up to you," Laura assured her. "I told Annabelle this earlier, and I shall tell it to you again now. If your intention isn't to harm or trick us, which I am certain it isn't, then it is not our place to bear any ill will for the secrets you hold from us. You are among people you can trust, and we will accept you regardless of who you are."

"...That's not entirely true."

Laura looked at Fie confusedly.

"You never know what could happen," she said. "When Rean revealed he was a noble, he and Machias were on edge around each other for a few weeks. And when I told everyone I was a jaeger...well, you know how that went. The point is, if Morgan talks about her background, there's a chance it could backfire in her face."

"That's…"

Laura looked to the side. She tried to find a rebuttal, but she couldn't deny the logic in the younger girl's argument, especially not when she was guilty as charged.

"But with that said…" Fie took in a deep breath. "It won't do anyone any good if you keep your guilt to yourself. Sooner or later, your secrets could get spilled out without you even knowing. Then you start getting caught up over what could have been while everything around you keeps moving forward. Take your time in assessing the risks, but don't wait."

"Fie…" Morgan could tell from the softness of her voice that Fie was talking from a personal experience.

"I will admit my faults this past month," Laura relented. "Hence, moving forward, I will approach things with a clearer mind. Even if there are those who might shun you for who you are, you have my word that I will lend my ear if you want someone to talk to, Morgan."

"Same." Fie nodded her head. "You took the time to know me better even after I told you who I was. Now I want to do the same as a fellow auslander. I want to understand...what makes you feel guilty."

"You guys…"

Morgan could feel the trust the two of them had placed in her. Holly's words rang in her head once again.

"Now is the time to turn those relationships into ones of give and take."

"...I'll do it, then." she said. "Give and take."

Laura and Fie looked at her oddly, not understanding what she had just said.

"I've made my choice," Morgan clarified. "Thanks to you two, I have an idea of what I want to do. I'm thinking of having another team-building exercise between the three of us. Sometime later today or tomorrow."

Laura nodded in understanding. "We can aim for after our afternoon tasks are finished, then. If I may ask, what do you have in mind?"

Before Morgan could speak a word about her intentions, however, a knock came from the door to their room.

"Who is it?" Morgan called out. She stood up from her seat and made her way to the door. Upon opening it, she found Machias out of breath.

"Glad I could find all of you," he panted.

"What's up?" Morgan asked him. "Did something happen?"

Machias straightened his posture. "We've found a lead on that hooded figure."

Morgan, Laura, and Fie gathered their equipment and went downstairs with Machias. There, they found Elliot along with Scarlet, the latter of whom had witnessed a suspicious figure wandering around the island.

"It was just as I was coming back from my post-ritual rites," the dancer explained. "I was walking from the waterfall when I witnessed a robed figure walking to the east direction of the island. I couldn't see their face, however."

"This is perfect for us," said Machias. "Now's our chance to catch the culprit!"

"Wait." Morgan remained apprehensive. "Did you notify the RMP yet?"

Scarlet shook her head. "I haven't. It looked like Major Irving was busy communicating with his squad about something, so I didn't want to interrupt him. I was on my way to speak to Manager Kono when I saw you two boys asking people about a mysterious hooded figure."

"It would be best if we at least notify Tom or Brittany about this first," Laura suggested. "We were going to procure our afternoon tasks from them anyways."

"Are you certain?" Scarlet questioned. "For every moment that you spend here, the culprit could be getting farther away from us."

"She has a point…" Elliot grumbled.

"But we can't afford to be reckless," Fie argued. "Who knows what that guy has up his sleeve? Plus, Morgan's on probation."

"That's also true…"

The group mulled over their predicament for a short while. Eventually, Morgan was the first to break the silence.

"Okay. Let's do this." She pointed to the rest of Group B. "You four go with Scarlet. Get a head start on finding that guy."

"And what about you?" Elliot asked.

"I'll stay behind to let Tom and Brittany know where you guys went. Maybe even get the police in on this. If enough people convince them to stay, we could have a serious edge in this."

"Will you be alright by yourself?" Laura queried.

"You don't need to worry about me. I've dealt with negotiations like this before. Besides…" Morgan looked down at her feet. "My ankle's still feeling a bit sore from all that dodging I had to do earlier. I'll catch up with you later."

"Let's go with that, then." Machias turned to Scarlet. "You said that the figure was heading to the east, correct?"

Scarlet nodded. "That's correct. They were going in the direction of the fossil site, to be precise."

"Then we have our objectives," said Laura. "Shall we all be off?"

With a collective nod, the students and Scarlet walked towards the exit of the inn.

"Fie. A word?"

Fie turned her head to Morgan, who whispered something in her ear. She nodded in affirmation and said, "Will do."

Morgan waved good-bye to her companions for the time being. She turned around and headed straight to the management house, where she found Brittany standing by her desk.

"Ah! I was about to come get you guys." Brittany greeted Morgan with a smile, but her expression turned into one of inquisition when she noticed Morgan was the only student present. "Where's everyone else?"

Morgan took a deep breath. Hopefully she wouldn't get too much of an earful on her end. "So there's been a change of plans…"

The rest of Group B along with Scarlet continued along the island path, actively being on the lookout for any signs of the mysterious figure. They hung a right at the waterfall and made another right to enter the fossil excavation site.

"Okay!" Machias loaded his shotgun. "Hands where I can see 'em!"

He and the rest of the group readied their weapons, only to be met with the sight of an empty excavation site.

"There's...no one here," Elliot observed.

Laura furrowed her eyebrows. "How peculiar…"

"That's weird. Miss Scarlet, didn't you say the figure was-"

Before Machias could finish his sentence, he was shoved to the ground by Fie, who blocked a surprise attack with her gunswords.

"Wh-What was that for?!" Machias exclaimed in surprise.

"You should be saying that to her." Fie was facing Scarlet, who had dashed in front of them and was now brandishing a sword.

"My, aren't you a quick little kitty?" she remarked at Fie.

"What's going on?" Elliot hesitantly asked. "Why are you attacking us?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Fie pointed her weapons at Scarlet. "The person we're looking for is right in front of us!"

"Impossible!"

"So the perpetrator behind all of the strange happenings across the island is-!"

Scarlet chuckled to herself. "Oh, dear. I suppose now I know who was stalking me a few nights ago. I should have expected this wouldn't have been easy, seeing as you all defeated the Ancient Ossa."

"Well, you weren't exactly being discreet," Fie quipped. "Morgan telling me to keep my guard up was all the proof I needed."

"That girl…" Another chuckle from Scarlet's lips. "But now you're one member short. Do you think you'll be able to catch me now that you've found me?"

"Four on one seems like pretty good odds, if you ask me." Machias got over his initial surprise and recomposed himself. "Now start talking! Why were you using those bugs to spread a virus?"

Scarlet hummed to herself. "I suppose I could afford to tell you a little bit…"

She restrapped her sword to her waist before speaking again. "It was an experiment. Merely a test to see how my new artifact worked, as well as how quickly authorities would respond."

"An experiment?" Laura said, bewildered. "Turning the island's wildlife into depraved monsters for the sake of getting attention is your idea of an experiment?!"

"One that should have gotten more awareness, to be sure. However…" Scarlet's expression became annoyed. "It was because a certain dragon kept getting in the way! Always roaming around the island and searching for infected creatures to kill before they could spread the virus! I ended up having to target larger creatures just to wear it down!"

"So Morgan was right," Elliot remarked. "The Scalyptera was defending the islanders all along!"

"I thought for sure that once it was out of the equation, I would be able to act more freely, but it seems that I underestimated your capabilities." Scarlet sighed. "But no longer."

She reached from behind her and pulled out an ornate jar. All the students widened their eyes.

"I was hoping to use the four of you as hostages," said Scarlet, "but now that you've learned my secret, I see little point in letting you stay alive."

In one swift motion, Scarlet opened the jar. A malevolent cloud of smoke protruded from the jar, which was then followed by a small bug leaping out of the jar and onto the ground.

"Stop!"

Fie aimed at the bug, but just as swiftly as Scarlet opened the jar, she had closed it and put her hand on her sword. As she swung it, the sword suddenly broke into several parts, elongating into a whip. The students were forced to retreat lest they get hit by the attack.

"Is that a templar sword?" Laura recognized.

"A...what, now?" Machias asked.

"A weapon used by squires of the Septian Church, according to Father," Laura hurriedly explained. "I never thought I'd see it here, of all places!"

Scarlet's weapon returned to its sword form. "As expected of the Radiant Blademaster's daughter. You know your weapons. Unfortunately for you, though, it's already too late."

Her display of her weapon had bought the bug she had released enough time to scurry along the ground and attach itself to the closest thing it could find: the colossal skeleton of the Tehra Gigant. A malevolent aura started emanating from the arthropod and soon enveloped the entire fossil. The ground started to quake as an ethereal glow appeared in each of the empty eye sockets of the monster's skull.

"Earthen Titan, Tehra Gigant!" Scarlet called out. "Rise and serve!"

The separate parts of the fossil that were loosely lying in the ground were pulled together through the use of magic to assemble the upper half of the monster's skeleton, which easily towered above the students by a significant margin. The reanimated fossil pressed its wide arms onto the ground to maintain its balance, as its spine was firmly rooted into the ground, before letting out an earth-shaking roar that could be heard all across the island.

Scarlet outstretched her hand. "Run amok," she commanded it.

At her word, the skeleton of the Tehra Gigant raised its right arm and curled it into a ball. Realizing what it was going to do, the students dove out of the way as the monster's fist slammed into the ground. The force of the impact was enough to make cracks appear on the ground.

As the students recovered, they noticed that Scarlet had vanished from her place beside the fossil. Turning behind them, they saw that the perpetrator had used the attack as a distraction to make her swift escape.

"She's getting away!" Fie got up to run after her, but she hesitated when she saw the skeleton raise its other arm. She narrowly avoided the attack by running and rolling to the side.

"Fie! Go after her!" Laura called out to her. "We shall hold off the beast!"

Laura raised her sword high above her head and slammed it into the ground, sending a shockwave hurtling forward towards the reanimated fossil. In retaliation, it thrust its palm forward at Laura, who raised her sword to block the oncoming attack.

"Rrgh!" Somehow, Laura was able to stand her ground against the giant limb, but the force of the attack had pushed her back. As she continued to press against the monster, she noticed in her peripheral vision that Fie hadn't moved from where she had stood a minute before.

"Fie…?" Laura was confused as to why her partner hadn't run away.

The younger girl crossed her gunswords in front of her. "I told you before…"

Fie leapt forward in the blink of an eye and slashed furiously at the monster's arm, releasing its hold on Laura. Then, just as quickly, she kicked off it and landed by the swordswoman, who was kneeling on the ground.

"...Worry about yourself."

Laura looked up from her kneeling position at Fie's eyes. "You're being obstinate once again."

"You know me," Fie quipped. "But I'm not running. You guys are more important right now."

"Fie…"

Fie outstretched her hand. "Now's our chance to really make things right."

That sort of unpredictability was what Laura had come to expect from Fie. At the same time, however, she didn't dislike this outcome. The moment they touched hands, an ARCUS link was tied between the two of them.

Machias and Elliot joined them on each side, also ready to fight. "We'll need to hold it off until Morgan arrives with help," the former said.

"I have to admit, I'm scared out of my mind!" True to Elliot's words, his legs were shaking. "But if I ran away now and left you all behind, I'd regret that even more!"

"Then we shall hold our defensive line here!" Laura proclaimed. "For the sake of those who helped us during our field study, we cannot afford to lose!"

Fie readied her gunswords and nodded. "Failure's not an option."

Author's note: The perpetrator has been found and we are now reaching the climax of the arc! I hope you all are looking forward to seeing what's in store for next time, because it's looking to be a lengthy one. Thank you for being patient with this, and as always, stay safe and stay healthy!