Trails of Eastern Steel

by TF1990

This a rewrite of the first Cold Steel game, with some twists concerning Rean Schwarzer, the rest of the story will mostly follow canon. -Instead of training in Ymir, Rean left with his Master to travel the eastern part of the Continent. -Emphasis on Rean/Alisa -A more experienced, but still as dense and insecure (maybe a bit more than canon) Rean. -Can somewhat control his Power

28. Visiting the City of Sin and Training

Hello everyone here is the next chapter of the story, I hope you all enjoy it this original idea of mine. I may have used a different timeframe for the events in Crossbell than the one in canon but I hope I did the characters from there justice.

Like always some info:
Spoken words are between " "
Thoughts are between ( )

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Rean stepped outside the train station and took his first look at Crossbell City, "So this is the so-called City of Sin? Any other time I think I would have enjoyed visiting but not when I have to hunt down some group that was crazy enough to rob the 'Golden Fox' and people tell me that I am suicidal. Still, I wasn't expecting that her favour would bring me here and honestly just how prepared is she? That woman even brought me some new clothes so that I don't have to wear my uniform, along with the train ticket and even some leverage to use here." Shaking his head, he went to ask where the Harbour district was while remembering the events from last night.

-The evening before in Garellia Fortress-

"HELL NO!" Saras shout rang across the room after hearing where her student would be going, "I don't bloody care, if you have the approval of the academy or not. I am not letting Rean go to Crossbell alone, especially right now. The city just had to deal with a terrorist attack and there are more than a few dangerous undercurrents in that city, so the answer is no!" The rest of Class VII nodded their support for their instructor but unfortunately for them it seemed that it fell on deaf ears, while Tamamo looked straight at Rean, "We both know that I can't say no and as you said you have the official approval for me to do this. Alright then, what exactly do you need me to 'retrieve' for you?"

Before she could go into more details, Sara growled at the both of them, "Did you people not hear me?! Rean is not going nowhere at least not without any backup which will include me." Tamamo just smiled at her before glancing at Neithardt, who tried to steer the conversation back into safer territory, "Instructor Valestein, the academy has decided that Schwarzer is allowed to take on this request and if he doesn't want to, he can decline it without any repercussions but you as his Instructor can't do it for him."

"He isn't going to decline this because that woman over there has an IOU over him and she knows that!" At that new information the major looked back at the smiling Tamamo before sighing, "That is unfortunate but in the end the decision is his. So, what are you going to do? Will you accept it or not?" Rean ignored the pointed looks being thrown his way, "Like she said I have no choice but to accept but I am sure that it won't be anything too dangerous or too illegal. Or else she will have to deal with my master later and may Aidios help her then."

"Is that so…Like….I…...care! The situation in Crossbell is already heated enough thanks to today's event, can't you at least wait until that has calmed down enough or at the very least until I can convince the principal to let somebody else come with you?" Seeing that Rean wouldn't budge on the matter Sara tried a different approach but much to her annoyance that damned woman just shook her head at her, "No, we don't have enough time for that, this matter has to be resolved during the next five day or else it will be too late."

"Like I said you don't have to worry too much, Instructor Sara or for that matter neither do you guys. This isn't the first time I am dealing with her requests though it is the first time where I don't have a choice, so I will ask again what exactly am I retrieving for you?" He could see how his classmates weren't happy with him and giving the looks being sent towards to Tamamo neither with her, but he knew that he wasn't getting out of this one without damaging the reputation and pride of the Eight Leaves One Blade School.

"I think that it would be better if went somewhere else to discuss that. Is there a room we could borrow Major Neithardt?" If looks could kill she would have been killed several times over thanks to both Alisa and Saras glares, sighing he just followed her to another room where she told him everything that he needed to know though he would have preferred to not have endured the glares sent his way, though after he heard what she wanted from him the desire to curse grew.

-Back to the present-

(It took me quite a bit of time to assure them that this wouldn't be dangerous or to stop them for missing class just to come with me. However, I should really make sure that I am not going to get hurt or at least get healed before going back to the academy. Yikes, I didn't know that Alisa had such scary ideas for punishments.) Just remembering what would be in store for him in case he got hurt, send shivers down his body, while he was remembering those events, he had arrived at the Harbour District where he could hopefully get some information on his target even if it means having to deal with something like the Heiyue Crime Syndicate.

Thanks to his five days headline, he didn't have much choice in the matter and though Instructor Sara told him to go to the Bracer Guild in the city if he needed help or go to a new division of the Crossbell Policy, the Special Support Section. He would leave that option for last since going there meant involving his Senior Brother Arios MacLaine in this matter or people that he didn't even know.

(Oh well, if worse comes to worst, then I will but until then I am on my own. First however I should get something to eat before having to deal with Heiyue….Is that a ramen stand? Nice, it has been years since I got to eat some.) Rean approached the middle-aged man to make his order, at first the man was sceptic about him but after he took his order, the cook was grinning at the fact that this young man seemed to truly appreciate ramen.

While Rean was enjoying his meal two men approached the food stand one was a tall redhead and the other had brown hair wearing a jacket with the emblem of the Crossbell Police on it, "Good day, Mister Ozelle. How is business today?"

"Hey there Llyod and Randy, I am doing fine. What about you two? I heard you had it rough during the assault on Orchis Tower yesterday. I hope you and the girls aren't injured?"

"Just the usual scratches, Mister Ozelle but thanks for asking." At the mention of the assault Rean started to listen in to their conversation while trying to not make it obvious what he was doing, however the redhead seemed to have notice him, "Seems like you have a new costumer today. First time here, kid?" Rean put down his bowel and chopsticks to face them, "Yes, I have just arrived in Crossbell today and while looking around I luckily stumbled upon the stand here. It looks like I have found my go to restaurant for my short stay here, it has been a while since I was able to eat some high-quality ramen like this."

Upon hearing the praise for his food, the owner grinned from ear to ear, "Thanks, kid. Seems like you have quite the refined tastebud, huh? What about you two, do you want your usual?" They both nodded and sat on the bench alongside Rean with the brown-haired one between him and the redhead. For a while no one spoke, Rean went on eating while the other two waited for their bowels of ramen exchanging discreet looks with each other.

"Ah, since we met like this and share the same good taste, how about we introduce ourselves? The name is Randy Orlando and this baby-faced guy here is my partner, Llyod Bannings." The one named Llyod gave his so called partner an elbow to his side at being called baby faced, chuckling at that Rean stretched out his hand to shake theirs, "The name is Rean Schwarzer, I am from Erebonia though currently I have some business to deal here in Crossbell for the next days and since you already caught onto the fact that I am interested on yesterday's assault, would mind telling me what exactly happened, if you are comfortable with it of course. In exchange, how about I pay for your ramen?"

"You are a bold one, aren't you? Well, we can't go into too many details but if you are fine with that then sure."

"Randy! You heard what the chief said this morning, not to say anything about yesterday's event!"

"Come on, partner. It isn't like I would tell all the gory details beside the chief only said not to tell Grace anything." Rean watched the two grown men bickering with each, he got the feeling that they must be good friends since he could see how at ease they were while talking with each other. "Sorry, if I overstepped but surely you can't blame me for being interested in the assault, I mean I can imagine that everyone in this city is."

"….You are right, you certainly aren't the only one though at least you are better than a certain reporter. Anyway, we can't share anything with the public at the moment, after the Trade conference is done, the Crossbell Police will release an official statement. I hope you understand." Rean understood that he wouldn't get any information about the attack but that was fine. Though he was curious how Gideon had met his end, it wasn't something that he needed to know for the moment.

"It's alright, I was just curious about it. but does that mean that you two are police officers?"

"This guy here is a Detective, as for me I am his partner in the Special Support Section, though if you are from the Empire I imagine that you have not heard about us."

"Ah, the SSS. Actually, before I came here, someone recommend you guys to me in case I ever needed help during my stay here. I was told that you are on the same level as the Bracer Guild in terms of helping the citizens." Before either man could say anything else, Orzelle approached them with their food and having caught the tail end of the conversation, he started to brag about the achievements the SSS has made since their creation months ago and how proud Crossbell was of them. Llyod tried to downplay their actions, but Randy seemed to enjoy the praise even adding details from his side, Rean just ate and listened to the owner stories inwardly impressed by what he was hearing, especially when he heard about the D.G. cult.

(Wow, I must admit that I am impressed. I wasn't excepting them to have such stories to tell and judging from the owners expressions, they are well viewed among the public here, still that is perhaps a reason more to avoid involving them in Tamamos request. For now, I should leave and see if Heiyue can track those people down or not. Should I just go inside the building or use those people following me?)

Before Rean decide on which course to take, he saw two girls followed by a small boy wearing eastern clothes approaching them, the older of the girls seemed upset with the two other sitting beside Rean given the glare she was sending them.

"Seems like you have already finished your patrol for the morning if you are already eating here, hmm Llyod?" He seemed to wilt under her glare though he facepalmed when he heard what Randy said in their defence, "Come now Mademois-Elie. We have just spent the morning in the Entertainment District enjoying the sights, cough, I mean patrolling seriously for anything suspicious. We just stopped here to grab a bite and nothing more."

The glare coming from pearl white haired woman was actually so similar to Alisa's that Rean felt sorry for the two, he did however start to plan his escape when her smile turned dangerous, (again so similar to a certain archers) he did however make the mistake to gulp loudly like Llyod did, that he caught her attention along with the blue haired girl, realising her own actions, the older one coughed into her hand to hide her embarrassment, "I am so sorry, I must have disturbed your meal."

"No, no, it is fine. I was already finished anyway, no need for apologies. (And here I thought that Alisa was the only one that was that dangerous.)" Rean waved her apology away after regaining his composure, the woman seemed relieved at that before she resumed her glare towards the other two, though this time it was the blue haired one that scolded them, "Seriously, me and Elie have been working while you two enjoyed ourselves. I think this warrant some type of punishment for you two, don't you agree Elie?"

"That I do, Tio. How about…hmmm, they must clean the station top to bottom for the next three months without any help?"

"That seems to be a good start and they should also….." Rean could only watch how the two came up with different types of punishments, Lloyd just sighed while murmuring something that caused Randy to laugh though he did stop when two glares were sent their ways, remembering that there were people watching them, the one called Elie stopped discussing things and faced her colleagues though before she could say anything else the little boy that had remained quiet until now spoke up, "How unseemly of you, Llyod Bannings! Elie here is working hard while you are lazing around, shame on you! Elie if you want, I can talk with Cao to hire you and give you a position more befitting of your talents than the Police."

"Thanks for the offer, Xin but I am quite satisfied with my current employment, and I have no plans to change it in the near future." Elie gave the younger boy a gentle smile causing him to blush slightly which didn't go unnoticed by Randy who started teasing him immediately, however Elie cut him off and scolded him again for his immature behaviour, "Sorry about this, we normally take things a lot more serious but…."

The detective approached Rean and tried apologising, but he waved it away, "No worry, this shows just how much trust you four have with each. Actually, this here reminds me of my classmates, we also act like this from time to time. (Geez, it hasn't even been twenty-four hours since we saw each other, and I am already missing them.)"

Llyod looked at him with some surprise that he was still a student, "I thought you looked young, so you are still a student. If you don't mind me asking why exactly did you come to Crossbell? I mean you know what happened yesterday and with you being a student I imagine that you should be rather in a classroom than here." That drew a chuckle from him, but he still didn't have thoughts on dragging other people into this, he did however spot someone approaching them, "That is a fair question Detective Bannings but unfortunately I will have to avoid answering it for now besides I think we should focus on that one instead."

Lloyd followed Reans eyes to see Cao Lee approaching them the rest of the SSS noticed him too, recalling what Arios and Dudley had told them about the way Heiyue had handled the terrorists from Calvard made the fall silent, "Good day members of the SSS, it is a pleasure to see you all in good health after the events from yesterday and my thanks to Miss MacDowell and Miss Plato for having escorted the young master around this morning."

"No need for thanks, Cao. We are always glad to spend time with Xin." Cao nodded with a faint smile on his face at Elie's response, he let his eyes drift away from her to where Rean was sitting, the briefest smirk seemed to appear on his face, but it was gone so fast that it the SSS wonder if they had imagined it. "Oh my, it seems like you all made a new friend here but where are my manners? I am Cao Lee, the president of the Heiyue Trading Company here in Crossbell. I am sure that a strapping young man as yourselves will be able to find that our services are the best. How may I address you?"

Rean sighed and stood up from the bench he was sitting one, leaving enough money behind to pay for his meal, "You can drop the act, Cao Lee. Let's see, that one over there, the one reading a newspaper and the one appearing to be sleeping on the bench there. These three have been following me since I stepped outside the train station and seeing that the way they move have some traces of eastern martial arts I can safely assume that they are yours. So, you know exactly who I am, so how about we don't dance around each other and go straight to business. As loathe am I am to depend on Heiyue for anything, you are right that your services are the best suited for what I need."

"You will have to forgive me but right now all our skilled personnel are occupied with other important tasks as such I was forced to use the less skilled ones to make sure that your arrival here was without any troubles. I do hope that you will accept my apology, Mister Rean Schwarzer."

On glance at Caos face was enough to see how 'sincere' his so-called apology was, deciding that it wasn't worth to discuss that, Rean decided to cut straight into the heart of the reason he was here, "Like I said you can drop the act, I am not interested in your little games. I am in need of certain information and here in Crossbell I only knew of your group that is able to help me out."

Caos eyes displayed some slight interest in what Rean could possibly need for them, "Of course, the Heiyue Trading Company also deals with providing information for the right price of course, however given the fact that your actions yesterday saved me and my employees I am sure that I can give you a discount on our prices. Now that I think about it you have also saved the SSS and the other members of the Police, after all if it hadn't been for you and your classmates Orchis Tower may have been destroyed, resulting in us all dying there. As such you do have my thanks, please let us continue discuss this in my office."

Llyod and the rest were watching the conversation with interest until Cao revealed that last part causing them to frown with confusion, "Now wait a moment, Cao and Mister Schwarzer. What exactly do you mean by that? There was no danger of Orchis Tower being destroyed as far we know."

Llyod narrowed his eyes at the smirk Cao was giving him, though before the conversation between them could go any further, "I see, I had been wondering how you knew of my arrival, especially given the fact that it was only decided last night that I would come here. Seems like you have a spy in Garrelia Fortress, most likely one in the lowest level in the military base or the Intelligence Division would have caught him already. Perhaps he is only capable of giving you information like who will arrive by train in Crossbell but given what happened the day before he should have been able to inform you in the chaos."

Cao neither denied nor confirmed Reans theory but the mention of Garrelia Fortress made Llyod think of a terrifying possibility, "I think we should continue this conversation in another place, I am sure that neither of you will be against the presence of the SSS given that this concerns the terrorist attack from yesterday or would the two of you rather continue this down at the station?" Cao continued smiling while glancing at Rean leaving it to him to decide, after thinking for a moment he came to a decision, "The Military issued a gag order in regard to what happened, but I am sure that you have already sold this information to the Republic for a high price."

Cao still remained quiet, but it was clear for everyone to see that Rean remark was spot on, "Sigh, if the SSS wants to come with us then I have no right to stop them if they are acting upon their rights as a part of Law Enforcement, but I won'tneither confirm nor deny anything Cao Lee will tell you."

"That is fine with us, though I hope that you will understand that we will also listen to whatever business you have here in Crossbell in case it is also connected to the attack, as such I thank you for your cooperation." Rean raised an eyebrow at that but in the end shrugged his shoulders as a sign that he was fine with it, he, the SSS, Cao and Xin made their way towards the Heiyue building, the young boy was escorted to another room for his daily lessons leaving the rest to enter Caos office.

Inside it the Special Support Section learned of what had transpired while Rean remained silent, "As you can see, we all owe Mister Schwarzer over here and his classmates quite the debt. I do admit Class VII of Thors Military Academy does sound like a fascinating class, not only is a renowned person like yourselves there but the rest are quite the interesting group. Perhaps I should plan a visit to Trista to thank them in person….!"

All of the sudden the air in the room became heavy surprising everyone inside, the source of it was Rean who looked straight at Cao without any emotions on his face, "This is your first and last warning, White Orchid Dragon. Stay away from my classmates and Thors!"

Gone was the seemingly harmless young man in his place was someone who meant business, after a short moment to recover Cao grinned at him, "Seems like they must be quite special if one such as yourselves is willing to go this far for them." The pressure continued to mount the colder Reans eyes became, "Oh well, perhaps there will be a chance in the future. Anyway, Mr. Schwarzer mentioned that you are in need of our services, how may we help you?"

The pressure didn't disappear immediately but continued lingering for a bit more before leaving, "I am looking for a specific group that should have entered Crossbell a few days ago. I was asked to reclaim some stolen property that they have in their possession by the rightful owner but as I am unfamiliar with Crossbell and have a very short timeframe for this, the owner told me to look for you to help me out. Here is what I have been told about that group, along with some details that should make it easier to track them down."

Rean took some papers out of his breast pocket and gave them to Cao who seemed quite interesting in them, a cough from the side made both of them look at Llyod, "I am sorry but if this concern theft, then shouldn't the police handle this instead of sending a student like you for this? If you can explain exactly what was stolen and what you know about them, the SSS is more than happy to handle this."

Cao ignored him and returned his attention back to the papers leaving it to Rean to handle this, "In any other situation, I would be more than glad to wash my hands of this and leave, unfortunately I am not allowed to do so. Regarding authorisation for my actions, I have this here that should allow me to act in this matter."

The swordsman was going to show another piece of paper but hesitated as he recalled something that he had noticed on it which didn't go unnoticed by the rest of the room, "Is there a problem? Can you show us that so called authorisation that you have then?" He hesitated for a moment but gave the woman called Elie the paper, "Here it is, and I am sorry."

Confused at that she opened it and read it carefully but when she arrived at the end she grimaced, the others waited for her to explain, "This paper gives Rean Schwarzer the authority to search for the thieves and take back what was stolen. The empire and the republic both consent to this as such we have no legal ground to intervene in this matter unless we are asked to."

Llyod, Randy and Tio were displeased at that as this meant that both governments just decided to leave them out of this matter without even doing them the basic courtesy to inform them beforehand, though their expressions eased a bit as they understood why Rean had hesitated to show this and apologised, he seemed to understand the slight Crossbell was given in this matter. "With that out the way, I think that we can help you with finding them and we can even provide support in subduing them, for the right price of course."

Not caring about the SSS Cao offered Rean Heiyues services, "No need for that, just find their location that will be enough, as for the price for your services this here should be more than enough."

Instead of taking out money like they had expected he took out a small wooden plaque with the symbol of Heiyue engraved in eastern writing upon seeing that Cao adopted a more serious expression, "Where did you get that if you don't mind me asking? I wasn't aware that something like that was here in the West."

"I was given this by the person who request the retrieval of their property, I assume that this will suffice as payment for you, right Cao Lee?" The plaque was taken by him and inspected to make sure that it wasn't a fake, "That normally would be the case though in this I will have to ask who exactly that person is. I am sure that one as yourself know exactly what this represents and that being the case I must make sure who is requesting our help." Having already expected this reaction, Rean just told a name and watched as the colour drain from his face, "Tamamo no Mae."

The SSS was stunned to see the ever-smiling Cao turn so pale at the mere mention of a name, they watched as he gulped and tried to regain his composure but at a closer look, they saw that his hand was shaking slightly, "I thought her Ladyship had already returned to the East, I wasn't aware that she still was in the West."

The swordsman let him stew for a moment or two, "She apparently returned to deal with this, I think we are both in agreement that the faster I can take care of this the faster she will leave the West therefor I want to deal with this in less than three days and I am sure that you know how much trouble she can make if she wants to or if she gets bored."

"Sigh, never would I have thought that there are people stupid enough to steal from her Ladyship, talk about idiocy. As the president I assure you that we will use every resource at our disposal to provide you with their location as soon as possible. Please return tomorrow we should have something for you by then, if you will excuse me now."

Having grasped the seriousness of the matter with Tamamos involvement Cao seemed eager to get started with this, Rean and the confused SSS were being lead out of the office but Rean stopped at the door and looked towards one corner of the room, "I am sure that you wouldn't be so stupid as to get involved more than necessary with this, though fair warning that one is good but not good enough if he wants to follow me without me noticing."

Hearing this Cao understood immediately who he was referring to, "Please rest assured after knowing that Lady Tamamo is the one pulling the strings in this, I wouldn't dream of overstepping." Giving him and the corner one last long look, Rean finally left the room. The moment the door was closed the space around the corner started to fluctuate revealing a person wearing a mask and shawl of ebony making it unsure if it was a man or a woman, "Even if he hadn't said anything, I won't get involved in this no matter what our contract says. With the 'Golden Fox' involved it is better to stay as far away as possible, though who exactly was he? I can count on one hand the number of people who are capable of sensing me, when I try to hide myself. Of course, I wasn't doing my outmost just now since this level of stealth is enough to even deceive the senses of people on your level."

"He is the last disciple of the Sword Hermit; he is quite famous in certain circles in the East perhaps you have heard of him under the name 'The Rampaging Demon'?"

"In passing, yes, though they were more wild rumours than facts. If you don't have anything else for me, I will take my leave then." With that Yin disappeared from the room leaving Cao alone with his thoughts. Outside the building Rean faced the SSS, "Can't say I was expecting this when we followed you, however I guess that we owe you and your classmates our thanks for your help. If the terrorists had managed to get the railways guns working, we would have all died, so thank you."

He waved Llyod and the others gratitude away, "I can't accept that since nothing happened yesterday that would warrant anything like that, but please let me apologise for wasting your time with this." They knew that with that gag order he couldn't acknowledge the incident still they thanked him, "I know that we can't get involved with this unless asked but should you need our help, the Special Support Section will help you at any time. By the way, Llyod and Randy seemed to have already introduced themselves so let us do the same, I am Elie MacDowell, and this here is Tio Plato."

He introduced himself to them and after that he left the Harbour District under their watchful eyes, "I must agree with you, partner. Definitely wasn't expecting this when we sat down to eat some ramen though I have to say he seems rather interesting but are we sure that he is just a student? That pressure from before was no joke even to me."

"I have heard of Thors Military Academy before, apparently it is very famous in Erebonia."

"Thors isn't just famous, Tio. That school was built by one of the most famous emperors of the empire, Dreichels the Lionheart. He was the one who ended the War of the Lions two hundred and fifty years ago. Thors is the most prestigious academy in Erebonia where only the best of the best are allowed to enrol." The other three looked at Elie, "Was that one of the schools you visited while studying abroad?"

"No, with my background I wasn't allowed to study there, instead I went to St. Astraia in Heimdallr. What should we do now? I mean officially we can't do anything about this but seeing how Cao reacted to this, I am not sure that I am comfortable leaving it to a student."

They looked at their leader waiting for his decision, "Like you said Elie officially we can't act however that doesn't mean we can't keep our eyes and ears open to see if we can't pick up some clues. Perhaps we should also get Michel and the guilds opinion in this, I mean any person that can get Cao Lee to react like that, is to be feared, no?"

"What was her name again? Tamamo no Mae?...Sorry doesn't ring a bell but going by their conversation perhaps she is from the eastern part of the continent. We could ask Imelda if she knows anything, that old lady seems to have her fingers in every pie."

"Not a bad idea, Randy. For now, we should go see Michel and later Imelda. I just hope that whatever is going on isn't going to disturb the trade conference." The four left in the direction of the East Street where the Bracer Guild was located, steeping inside they found only the reception Michel, "If it isn't the SSS, how are you doing darlings?"

"We are fine, are you the only one here? Where are the others?" Michel stepped form behind the counter and lead his guest upstairs to a table to speak more comfortable, "Arios is now searching the Geofront for other entrances into Orchis Tower, to prevent anything like yesterday from happening again. Lynn, Aeolia and Scott are taking care of the daily requests while patrolling the city leaving me all alone here, though I am lucky that you passed by since I wanted to talk with you about something. But is there a reason why came by besides visiting little old me?"

"We also wanted to talk to you about something, but I imagine that can wait. How can we help you, Michel?" Chuckling at Lloyds eagerness to help Michel couldn't resist teasing him for a bit, "Always so willing to help aren't Llyod? How about we discuss that eagerness over dinner and perhaps some late-night drinks?" Michel enjoyed the way the detective started to sweat in front of his offer, but he stopped from going further when he saw Elie sending him a miffed look his way.

"(Looks like she is finally starting to act on her feelings, though perhaps a little push here and there will motivate her further but that is something for another day.) The reason why I wanted to talk to you four is because an old friend of mine called me today to ask for a favour regarding one of her students who seems to have arrived today in Crossbell….What is with that look?"

The moment Michel mentioned a student that had arrived today, the four immediately connected it to the one that had just parted ways with, "Are you perhaps talking about someone called Rean Schwarzer? If so, we just met him, and he is also the reason why we are here." Surprised at that Michel asked what exactly had happened while getting up to fetch some drinks, a bit later the SSS had told them everything that had just transpired inside Heiyue building.

"I see, that does line up with what Sara told me, however she didn't mention that he was going to see Heiyue. To recapitulate, Rean Schwarzer is here in Crossbell to retrieve something that was stolen from a lady called Tamamo who is apparently scary enough to put the fear of Aidios into Cao Lee. Didn't think that one was possible nevertheless we have no idea what the stolen object is, nor do we have any information regarding the thieves. Seems like quite the difficult puzzle."

"His instructors name is Sara and she is an old friend of yours?...Wait, are you talking about Sara Valestein?! The Purple Lighting?! I heard she left the Bracer Guild, but I wasn't aware that she had become an instructor in a military academy."

"Yes, she is the one who called, she is doing quite well from what I heard. Anyway, regarding her student, she asked me to keep an eye on him at least until she could come here herself. From what she told me, he does seem like a good kid just a bit too selfless and reckless with his wellbeing." Tio drank a bit of her juice before asking, "How so?"

"Well, in Sara's own words, he would rather bleed out while taking care of other people before taking care of himself. A shame that Arios isn't here now, he would make this a lot easier."

"Is Arios acquainted with the kid?" Michel shook his head at Randy, "Oh no, as far as I know they have never met but Rean is also a practitioner of the Eight Leaves One Blade School who studied under the same master as Arios, making him Arios Junior Brother. This matter started because this Tamamo has an IOU over the Eight Leaves making impossible for the kid to refuse her request but if we can get Arios involved then we can get more out of him."

"Huh, that would explain that heavy pressure that he was able to emit, practitioners of the Eight Leaves really are strong. Cassius Bright who led the attack against the Cult years ago is also a member of that style, correct?"

"Yes, Tio. The Guild has always had the support of that sword style, combined with the rest Sara told me about him, I am sure that whatever is going on it won't be anything illegal. We can rest assured in that regard, for now we should keep our eyes open to see if we can help him. I will talk with the other members about this but in case you see him again, please tell him to come by and say hi and that if he doesn't a certain blonde archer would be sent here in the first flight possible along with permission to do her worst. Don't ask me what that is about, Sara just told me to say that to him in case he refuses to come here."

A bit confused at that cryptic message, Llyod and the rest promised to pass it on in case they see him, the rest of the time was spent on sharing information regarding security for the conference along with anything that Heiyue and the Red Constellation were up to. Later that evening Rean after having walked around the city to gather information stepped inside a building called Long Lao Tavern & Inn, (Hmm, that was a quite interesting day. The SSS does deserve their title as hometown heroes, according from what I heard today, they drove out Revache, the local Mafia, stopped fights between the two gangs in downtown and defended the IBC from cult member and other fascinating stories.)

Inside the inn he found that it was full of people, (This must the evening rush hour around here, seems like it is a popular place, good thing I was here earlier to reserve a room for my stay in Crossbell. I should grab something to eat and go to my room to plan my next steps.) Rean squeezed his way towards the counter to order his food, he decided to try the specialty of the inn called Long Lao Tanmen. They told him that his order would soon be ready and served to him, luckily for him he spotted a free table where a group of men had just left, acting quickly he took a seat and waited for his food to arrive giving him time to observe the bustling inn.

A few minutes later two women approached his table and asked if they and two other people could seat here, having no reason to refuse Rean just nodded. However, he couldn't help but noticed something particular about them, the older woman had bright blue eyes with short green hair and was hiding some type of thin weapon inside her coat, perhaps a rapier. The younger one was perhaps one or two years with purple eyes and hair and like the other one had a rapier hidden on her, (What are the odds that the only armed people in the entire inn chose to sit here, this is here the perfect example that I don't go searching for trouble, but that trouble finds me!)

Suppressing a sigh Rean tried to mind his own business but apparently their companions were late so the younger of the two women tried to talk with him, "Thanks for sharing the table with us, we weren't expecting that it would be so full here."

"No problem, there is enough space for everyone to eat comfortable."

"You don't look like are from Crossbell, are you perhaps from the Empire?"

"That is right and judging by your slight accent you must from Liberl?" That remark seemed to make the elder one tense for a moment, but she relaxed shortly after, "That is correct, people from Liberl and from Erebonia meeting like this what are the odds of that? I am Kloe Rinz by the way and this here is my elder sister Ellen Rinz."

Rean stretched out his hand to shake theirs though the name Kloe Rinz seemed familiar to him, "(Why do I have the feeling I heard that name once before and where? I never visited Liberl, perhaps it is just my imagination?) My name is Rean Schwarzer, a pleasure to meet you both."

The woman called Ellen just nodded at him, she tried to hide it but she seemed to be wary of him, why that was he had no idea still he didn't let it bother and just hoped that he could end the evening without getting into any trouble, that thought however disappeared when Kloe asked Ellen something, "It seems like Olivier and Mueller are quite late do you think we should wait for them before eating or…? Is everything alright, Mr Schwarzer?"

Both women noticed that Rean had stiffened up while they were talking, the names Olivier and Mueller were what prompted Rean to remember where he had heard the name Kloe Rinz before, "Hahaha…it is nothing just recalled something just now. But if you don't mind me asking you wouldn't be waiting for a certain musician that goes by the name of Olivier Lenheim, or would you?"

The sudden caution in their body language was answer enough for him, now Ellen didn't even brother to hide her wariness against him while her hand went inside her coat probably ready to draw her weapon against him, "Who exactly are you?!"

Sighing Rean was raised his hands to show that he meant no harm but before he could explain a loud voice called out to them, "Kloe, I am sorry for my late arrival but on the way, I couldn't help myself but play a few songs for the people." Two men were approaching their table one had blonde hair worn loosely over his shoulder wearing a fancy white vest and a red necktie scarf and the other had short brown hair and was wearing sunglasses and a grey suit.

Both men stopped when they sensed that the atmosphere wasn't right though Olivier was the most surprised one as he noticed Rean sitting there wearing a strained smile on his face, "Well colour me impressed, Rean! I certainly didn't expect that you would skip school like this just to come see my concerts here in Crossbell! No, I am touched truly but…..bah who am I kidding, if you braved all that trouble then it is my duty as a musician to respond to your love for my music. Come, I will now do an impromptu show here as thanks, let's see where would a good spot be? Perhaps right in the middle of the inn, I could put some tables together…urgh!"

While Olivier was trying to plan his concert stage he was ruthlessly hit by Mueller on the back of his hand and then dragged to table and made to sit, "You have already caused enough trouble for one day, Olivier! Besides this here was supposed to be a secret meeting between you and Kloe, not a reason for you to play around….are you listening to me?!" The musician was rubbing the big bump on his head while ignoring the scolding, "Still, did something happened? Last I heard you were in Garrelia Fortress and should already be back in Trista."

"Well Prince Oliviert, I…."

"No, no, I am not the devilishly handsome debaucherous prince but the seeker of Love and Beauty Olivier Lenheim at your service." Before Rean could speak further, he was interrupted by the blonde who winked at him, "Sorry Mr Lenheim but before we can get into the reason on why I am here perhaps we should explain who I am to these ladies and that I mean no harm."

Rean pointed at the women who were rightly confused by what was happening though it was clear that the young man was at least familiar with their friend, so they lowered their guard while waiting. "How rude of me, I do apologise Kloe and Ellen. This young man here is Rean Schwarzer of Class VII, the new class I told you about, remember?"

"That project of yours where you put commoners and nobles in one class? Yes, I recall you mentioning it, so he is a member then. That would explain where he knows you however that doesn't explain how knows us unless you have been telling him stories about your time in Liberl, Olivier?"

"Actually, the storyteller in this case is our dear Anelance, apparently she spent some time in Rean's hometown regaling him with those stories and I am sure that is where is recognised you from, am I right Rean?" At that point the swordsman could only nod and from there he explained why he was Crossbell.

"Hmm, can't say that I am happy with the board of directors right now. I can understand if they give you tasks during your field study but sending you outside the country for an errand that has nothing to do with your studies, now that isn't something they should do. I will have a talk with them next month regarding this, however your friend Tamamo must be quite something to have been able to arrange this matter."

"She most likely gave Chairman Irina some benefits regarding their deal with the East, as for Gouverneur Regnitz and Rufus Albarea, she probably gave them information they could use against the other faction. As such you don't need to bother much with this, it isn't the first time she did something like this and probably won't be the last. But should I leave? I mean this here is probably important if it warrants the four of you meeting secretly like this."

"No need to worry about that, we are just four old friends meeting away from all those boring talks to enjoy Crossbell unhindered…...That cough of yours seems to get worse from day to day, my friend. Perhaps you should get that checked out, Ellen would you be so kind as to accompany him on his way to a doctor and don't worry about coming back you can spend the entire night away…..ouch!"

Mueller had been coughing while Olivier talked to remind him why they were really here, but he couldn't resist hitting him again, "Olivier how about you take this seriously or perhaps you would like to return to your room right now? On the other hand, this is a good opportunity for me to thank you for saving our lives yesterday, if it hadn't been for you and your classmates who knows what would have happened. The name is Mueller Vander, I am delighted to meet another disciple of the Eight Leaves."

"No need for that Major, we were just in the right place at the right time or the opposite depending on who you ask and were also quite luckily that both Instructor Sara and Instructor Neithardt were there to help us out. Speaking of which perhaps you could pass a message to him when you have the opportunity regarding the fact that what transpired in the military base is already making its rounds here in Crossbell while the Republic is already aware of it thanks to Heiyue." That seemed to get the attention of everyone at the table, so Rean explained what he had learned from Cao Lee this morning causing Mueller to leave the table to immediately call Neithardt to inform him of this.

"I can already see how President Rocksmith is going to use this incident to his advantage tomorrow, still at least we got a early warning thanks to you which could be used to lessen the damage of it but enough boring talks about politics! Tell me Rean, are you enjoying your youth like I told you to? Did one of the lovely ladies of Class VII managed to grab your heart?!" It was just a short moment but Rean recalled a certain archer causing him to avert his eyes for a bit yet that was enough for the musician to guess something.

"Oh my, the flower of love is blooming in Class VII! How it warms my heart to see this." The grin on his face made Rean lean away from him and start thinking of ways to escape from this, though fortunately someone came to his aid, "Come now Olivier stop teasing the poor guy. Though I also wouldn't mind hearing about young love." Kloe winked at him with a mischievous grin on her face.

"Watching you act like this, it seems like Anelance didn't exaggerate about your adventures at all. I know that this isn't something that a student like me should ask but Mr Lenheim, do you have any way to avert the Civil War that is brewing in the Empire?" That seemed to deflate the grin of his face, "Tension may be high between the two factions right now, but I doubt that it would lead to war, Rean."

"No need to sugar-coat it, you and I know that it is just a matter of time until the pot boils over. The Noble Faction is already in movement to gather every noble in the country that they can, the incident yesterday and the one in the capital while the ILF were the ones attacking and are targeting the chancellor I wouldn't be surprised if they were being backed by the Noble Faction given how many airships they seem to have at their disposal and that can't be cheap. Even if they aren't supplying money to them, I wouldn't be surprised if the Intelligence Division started a rumour like that just to saw the public to their side."

Both royals were amazed at his logic which sadly was more than possible given what Olivier knew of the Chancellor or the Noble Faction, "You may be right that they would do something like that, nonetheless I have already talked with the Viscount about protecting the neutral nobles and I also have still an ace hidden away that I plan to unveil next month to deter both factions from going too far. But for now, I think that you should concentrate on your task here and leave the matter of politics to the adults, I already said it back then you are first most a student and your job is to enjoy your school life and not try to avert a crisis in the country."

From that point the conversation turned toward lighter themes though Rean did surprise them with his insights into the political world, this went on until Mueller dragged the blonde away stating that it was getting late and that they had work to do in the morning, after that he also said goodbye to the two women from Liberl leaving him to return to his room and turn in for the night.

The next morning after getting some light breakfast Rean made his way towards the harbour to see if Cao Lee had any news though he found his way blocked by Llyod who seemed to have been waiting for him, "Good morning, Mr. Schwarzer. I hope you had a restful night?"

"Good morning, Detective Bannings. I am well rested and ready to start the day, but something tells me that it isn't a coincidence that you are here waiting for me or am I wrong?" Chuckling Llyod inclined his head as an answer, "You aren't wrong, the SSS received a request from a certain musician who was worried about leaving you on your own, he asked if we could provide some support. After talking about it with the rest, it was decided that I would be your guide during your stay here. Happy to be working with you."

He stretched out his hand towards Rean who looked at it and was going to decline but the next sentence from Llyod changed his mind, "By the way, we should go to the Bracer Guild to report or else your Instructor said she would send a certain blonde archer after you." Much to his amusement Rean went wide eyed and pale at that threat, the swordsman groaned and reluctantly accepted the help grumbling to himself about getting some more tea herbs in Crossbell for his instructor. The duo made their way towards the guild in silence until Rean broke it, "Is there a way that I can convince you not to waste your time with this?"

"Nope, once the Special Support Section has accepted a request we see it through till the end, you are stuck with me until you are done here."

"Thought so, ok since we are going to be working together, you can call Rean instead of Mr. Schwarzer."

"And you can call me Llyod, I am just a year older than you. Nice to be working with you Rean."

"Likewise, Llyod." The two entered the building just to be greeted by Michel, "Morning Llyod, ah you must be the famous Rean. Hmm, hmm, seems like the Eight Leaves School accepts only the handsome ones. The name is Michel, I work here as the receptionist and as you can already imagine it Sara already called me to make sure that someone keeps an eye on you."

A bit embarrassed that both Instructor Sara and Prince Olivert were that keen that he wasn't left alone, the swordsman could only helplessly smile about the entire situation while Michel seemed to devour him with his eyes.

"That is already covered, Llyod here took the short straw for that duty. Though if you don't mind me asking is Arios MacLaine here?"

"Arios is unfortunately occupied for the duration of the trade conference, of course if you stay longer, you should be able to meet him." Rean quickly shook his head at that, "That is alright, while I would love to meet him and ask for advice regarding our style, I am just glad that he is able to avoid this mess altogether." Michel shared a short glance with Llyod who asked the unspoken question, "Since we are going to be working together for this, perhaps you can share some more details about what is going on with the object that you have to retrieve and the thieves?"

"Sure, that is fair but please keep this here between us, at least until this mess is over with." Both men nodded at that, "I am not sure what exactly that object is, but I am pretty much sure that it is some sort of artifact." That amazed them since artifacts were something that was handled solely by the church and possession of them was frowned upon by the church, "Rean I am sorry, but the Bracer Guild is obligated to inform the church of any possible artifact that they come across. I don't know what that woman called Tamamo is thinking but this isn't something that a student like yourself should be involved with."

"Normally, you would be right, sadly Tamamo is allowed to keep some artifacts by the Spetian Church themselves, in case I come across someone from the church I should just show this document that is signed by the current head of the Gralsritter and the current Pope." Not believing what they were hearing, the two examined the official looking papers in front of them, "First, the matter with Cao and then this, just who is that lady to have so much power?!"

Rean could only try to explain who Tamamo was while trying to keep them from digging too deep, "Let's just say that she has a lot of political power in the eastern part of the continent both in the upside and underside of the world and leave it at that. She isn't what I would call a criminal or an upstanding citizen, she deals mostly in grey areas. The Guild is aware of her but since she hasn't broken any laws, they can do anything against her, as for the church I don't know what kind of deal she has with them, but they let her keep some artifacts as long as they aren't too dangerous."

"Sorry if this comes across as rude Rean, but if she has that much clout why ask you, a normal student to deal with this?"

"Don't worry that is a legitimate question, as for the answer it could either because she is bored, and this will provide some amusement for her, or she has a hidden agenda. Personally, I am betting that it is both. Still want to get involved in this, Llyod?" A look of determination appeared on his face at that repeated question, "I already told the SSS follows through every request till the end, besides this has just strengthen my resolve on not letting you deal with this alone, as a member of the police force, I am obligated to help wherever and whenever I can."

Seeing this Rean had no choice but to give up on getting him involved in this though he would make sure that Llyod wouldn't be hurt, after talking some more about what he knew and after Michel had made sure that the document was legit, they left the guild and finally made their way towards the Heiyue building where Cao gave them, the location on where the group of thieves was much to the chagrin of the detective.

Sometime later both stood before a steel door, "Of course the place where they are is the Geofront, where else would they be? I know that you are a practitioner of the Eight Leaves like Arios and a member of a military academy but inside here are a lot of monsters, think you can handle them if not I can always call for back up."

Rean gave the worried looking Llyod a grin, "No need to worry on that account while I am still far away from Senior Brother Arios level of swordsmanship, I am at the intermediate level of my style, plus I deal with fighting against monsters almost daily back at the academy."

Seeing that he wasn't entirely convinced Rean assured him that it would be fine and after both had checked their equipment, healing items and Battle Orbments, they went inside the door and took an elevator down, making Rean get a déjà vu as the Geofront was somewhat like the old schoolhouse. The section where the thieves were was one that the SSS hadn't explored until now since according to the files it had been sealed away five years ago. The duo came across a group of four monsters that resembled giant flies, "Alright then, let me take the lead and you support me from behind with Orbal Arts, ok Rean?"

"How about you let me take this on alone? That way you can see for yourself that I can handle the monsters down here." Llyod was going to protest but, in the end, he reluctantly accepted this proposal though he did give him a warning that he would jump in case Rean was in danger. The swordsman approached the monsters while keeping a hand on his tachi, upon noticing him the monster attacked all together, releasing breaths of fire towards Rean who made no attempt to defend himself. Llyod got ready to intervene but stopped when Rean disappeared from his sight just to appear behind the monsters sheathing his sword, "Fifth Form, Morning Moon!"

The monsters that had stopped moving in mid air were suddenly cut in half leaving behind a stunned Llyod, "It looks like I have been underestimating you just because of you are younger than me, in the end Tio was right the swordsmen of the Eight Leaves are strong."

"Thanks, but like I said in the beginning I still have a long way to go, I may have said that I am at the intermediate level, but I just recently realised that I haven't much progress since I got that rank. As such I will have to rely on your help Llyod to navigate through the Geofront until we find them."

"Alright then Rean, you got my help till the end. Let me show you what I can do in the next battle." Their next encounter was with some rat like monsters who were quite fast on their feet and good at using hit and run tactics against their opponent, but they underestimated him. The moment they attacked, Llyod whirled his tonfas around unleashing a series of shockwaves hitting every monster at the same time and killing them. "So, what do you think? It meant not be as good as your sword style, but it works for me."

"I wouldn't say that, the person who taught you on how to use your tonfas must quite strong."

"Haha, he is. After all he is called Douglas the Demon, he works as an instructor at the Crossbell Police Academy."

"Demon, huh?" Perhaps it was a trick of the light, but Llyod could have sworn that Rean looked amused at the nickname, putting that aside for now the two went deeper into the Geofront fighting against the monsters they encountered. Several fights later, they took a short break in one of the unused rooms, "It has been a while since I fought alongside someone without a Combat Link. I nearly forgot how that is like, you use the Enigma Model as a battle Orbment correct?"

He took it out and showed it to Rean, "Yes, it is a newly made fifth generation model. With it we can cast new Orbal Arts, use it for portable communication and recently they added a Master Quartz System. You mention something like a combat link, so I take that you use a different model?" Reciprocate his gesture, the swordsman took out his Arcus Unit to show him, "This one is called the Arcus Unit, it has the same functions that you mentioned along with the Master Quartz. The only difference would be the lack of Combat Links, along with the abilities that come with it."

Noticing the confused look on his face, Rean explained about them, "Wow, those combat links sound real useful, I bet Tio would love to get her hands on that Orbment and see how that works. Anyway, I think we have rested enough ready to go back at it?" They both stood up and returned into searching for their target, even without a combat link connecting them together they managed to work together well enough to overcome every encounter in their way till they finally found a clue of the thieves.

Following it they managed to track down the location of their hideout but there was one final obstruction in their way namely, a big sized red monster. Its appearance was that of a red snake warped around a jewel floating in the air.

"That monster is called Inferno Domina, watch out of his flames! I saw them melt steel down in one go with its attack, whatever you do, don't let it hit you. Water Orbal Arts work best against it but since neither of us have any water quartz, we will have to do this the old fashion way by beating it down until it dies."

"Alright then, Llyod. Since you have experience with it, I will follow your lead!" Both fighters assumed their stance, with Llyod attacking first by swing down his tonfas at the head of the snack with Rean close behind to slash at its body, to his surprise its body was so hard that sparks appeared with his attacks leaving not even a scratch behind.

Seeing an opening the monster released a jet of flames towards its attackers forcing them to dodge before they could attack again. Both fighters dodged to side quickly while they approached the monster at the same time making it unsure which side to defend first. Rean used his 'Autumn Leaf Cutter' as the same time as Llyod used his Craft 'Brave Smash' resulting in their attacks landing at the same moment causing the monster to cry out in agony from the sudden pain.

Sensing the danger it was in, stimulated its survival instincts causing it to burst forth with more power than before unleashing flames around it which caused the temperature in the vicinity to rise, seeing the danger it could cause if he let the temperature grow any higher, Rean tapped into his power for a bit and used it to strengthen his 'Arc Slash' to the point it became a 'Crimson Slash'.

The burning shockwave travelled through the air unhindered hitting the monster causing it for falter for a moment not willing to miss that opportunity Llyod unleashed his full power and attacked with a barrage of attacks further overwhelming it and causing cracks to appear on the jewel, as a finisher Llyod jumped back just to charge forward a second later, enveloped in a blue aura that took on the form of a tiger.

The moment the tiger bit down the jewel was broken into countless pieces causing the monster to die, Llyod took a moment before he turned around to face the swordsman, "Phew, that was one intense battle thanks for the assist there, Rean. That was quite the fierce attack, its flames seemed to be even hotter than the ones from the monster." Putting his tachi in its sheath, he just shrugged his shoulders, "You are welcome, as for my 'Crimson Slash' that is something like a trick of mine. Do you need a break before we advance? We should be pretty close to them, could be our last chance to rest."

"No, I am fine. Do you think we will have to fight them?"

"Chances are that they won't give up the artifact without a fight but let's first see with what we are dealing with here before we make a move." The duo walked forward while trying to make no noise, the moment they stepped inside the next room they found two people sitting on the ground between them was a chest. They were wearing black eastern clothes that resembled the attires of ninjas along with masks that covered their faces, it wasn't even clear if they were man or woman.

(Only two? Tamamo reports stated that they were at least six of them, are the rest hiding or did they leave to gather resources from outside? Hmm, no I can't sense anyone in this room besides them and that chest does it contain the artifact? Something is wrong here but what?)

Rean exchanged looks with Llyod who also found the current situation suspicious though he left the decision to Rean since he was here only as support, they waited for a while but they saw no movements from the thieves, Rean narrowed his eyes as a sudden possibility popped inside his head, (The five days deadline, that Heiyue was able to find them in just one day along with fact that they came to Crossbell just in time for me to be near and most importantly the fact that they had the courage to steal from Tamamo. I swear if this is what I think it is then she won't get away with it, this time!)

Suppressing his anger Rean signalled to the detective that he would stop hiding but that he should remain hidden in case this was a trap, a raised eyebrow was the only sign that Llyod was surprised by that, but he followed his suggestion looking as Rean walked out of hiding with one hand already on his tachi, "Good day, if I am not wrong you have something for me, and I suspect that you won't give it to me without a fight."

No sooner had he finished speaking than he was attacked by them with short swords for weapons, but he was ready before they even couldn't come close to him, he used the 'Autumn Leaf Cutter' to bypass them while attacking at the same cutting them up just to reveal the body armour inside their clothes.

Not letting up Rean followed up with an 'Arcane Gale' not letting them regain their balance, however one of them managed to let a smoke bomb fall to the ground causing smoke to fill the room impairing the view of the swordsman. Though it was useless since he simply closed his eyes and used his inner eye to 'sees' them, sure that they had now the advantage they once again attacked the same time.

However Rean was once again ready for them with his sword raised in the air, the moment their weapons were close enough he swung his tachi down with a flame dragon on it. The force behind it was strong enough to snap the two short swords, the training of the two showed when they immediately let go of their now broken weapons and assumed a stance for engaging in hand-to-hand combat.

His suspicions became stronger when they didn't flee immediately or at least tried to stall him while the other fled with the chest, not willing to play along anymore with Tamamos little game, though he was at least a bit thankful for the smoke since he now could call upon the ogre to attack with his new S-Craft, (Asura Slash – Void!) He disappeared in a flash just to appear behind his two opponents much to their surprise, he unleashed several slashes so fast that he appeared to have multiple arms attacking from different directions until each slash formed the word Void in eastern writing. But unlike in his fight against the Radiant Blademaster he held back his strength, he used just enough to destroy their body armour leaving only their masks untouched and thanks to his actions the smoke had disappeared from the room.

Releasing a pent-up breath, Rean sheathed his sword at looked away from his opponents who were still frozen in shock from his attack towards an empty spot up in the air, "That is enough playing around Tamamo, you can show yourself!"

Llyod walked out of his hiding place after he saw that the fight was over though he was confused why Rean was talking to an empty place, that is until the air around it started to fluctuate to reveal a beautiful woman sitting there while drinking what appeared to be sake from an eastern drinking cup. "Forget about the eight forms, the most annoying thing about your style is the 'Unclouded Eye'. Since you learned it has become way harder to trick you, what happened to the adorable little Rean who used to believe everything this big sister said. How cruel time is!"

One could see a vein appearing on Rean head at that comment, but he chose to ignore it, "Care to explain what in Aidioses name you are doing?! I can't believe you would use a favour just for a bit of amusement like this!"

"Come now Rean, you know me better than that. I would never waste a favour for something this small." The grin she gave him was enough to make him grind his teeth, but something finally clicked with that statement, resulting in him grimacing, "Himari never gave you that medallion but since I checked if it was a fake, it could only be a true one…..Master Ka-Fai was the one who gave it to you, but why?"

Sighing Tamamo drained her cup of sake in one go, "And that is why I say that the 'Unclouded Eyes' is the most annoying one! This was test from Yun for you and you passed which means that you can advance to the next step. Open the chest and you should understand what you must do next." Curious about what his master had planned for him, he approached but a loud cough got his attention, "I am sorry for butting in, but can someone explain to me what is going on?"

Llyod had watched the exchange until now, but he couldn't hold himself back from asking that question any longer, "Sorry, Llyod. It seems like all this was just something my master and she put together to test me. I am truly sorry for having wasted your time with this."

"That part is alright since you didn't know and besides, I already told that this is an official request and I see my requests through until the end. What I don't understand is why go to all this trouble just to test you?" Rean glared at Tamamo for a moment before he answered, "Do you remember what I told you about her this morning? It seems like I was right, and it was both reasons. As for my master that is something I am also curious to know."

"To be honest, I thought that you would make your way down here alone, Rean. May I ask how you managed to convince this stubborn kid to let you tag alone, Detective Llyod Bannings?" If he was surprised that the woman in front of him knew his occupation and his name, he hid it well, "I had to threaten him with a blonde archer for that to happen." His answer caused Rean to groan and Tamamo to giggle, "Oh my, seems like little Alisa is quite formidable to make you behave Rean."

Alarm bells rang in his head when she addressed the archer as little Alisa, "OH HELL NO! Tamamo I am warning you, don't even think about messing with her or any of my classmates!" The swordsman nearly growled his warning at her though it made her giggle some more, before she seemed already interested in Alisa but when she starts calling people like that it meant that her interest has reached the next level.

Afraid of what kind of tricks she could try to pull on her, Rean was going to warn her further, but it seemed to be unnecessary, "Don't worry your head over that, I won't have any possibility to meet with her or you after we are done here. Some people are apparently getting bold enough to try to mess with my domains in the East while I am gone, thanks to that I have to go back for real this time at least until I remind them who exactly they are dealing with."

Something in her voice caused shivers down the two men causing them to feel sorry for whoever was messing with her, for Llyod that was an instinctual reaction but for Rean he knew that despite her easy-going manner that she was displaying now, she could be a very cruel woman to her enemies.

"Anyway, Detective as thanks for that information and for having helped little Rean out, I will give you some advice regarding your city. Be ready for what is to come after the Trade Conference is done, there is a seed in this city that is going to sprout into a big tree that could change the future of this land, if you aren't careful and strong enough you may end up losing everything you hold dear."

Tamamo didn't pay any attention to Llyod's alarmed expressions and looked at Rean, "I already said that you will know what to do next when you opened that chest. Before leaving for the East, I will come to you to say goodbye after you are done with it. Until then, Rean." With that done she winked at him and disappeared in a flash of light after pulling out an eastern talisman from her bosom, "Was she serious or just playing around?"

"I would really like to believe that she was joking but when she gives advice like that it is better to take it seriously though I am aware that she didn't reveal much. I can see if she is willing to share more later when I meet her again." Llyod struggled for a moment but shook his head, "No need for that, I will just have to become much stronger if I want to protect what I hold dear to me, for them I will overcome any barrier that is placed in front of me!"

Images of his comrades, Kea and various people flashed in his mind, nourishing his resolve causing it to become stronger, "For now I think I will finish escorting you back to the surface after we are done. Are you going to open that chest now or later?"

Rean approached it letting his action speak for him but the moment he opened what was inside caused his mouth to fall open in astonishment, "You have got to be kidding me! Master must have really gone to great lengths to get her to part with this!" Curious about what was inside Llyod peered over Reans shoulder just to see a small black cube not bigger than his Battle Orbment, not understanding what was so special about it, he waited until the younger man recovered from his surprise.

Noticing the unspoken question on his face, Rean thought on how best to explain it, "Like I suspected this here is an artifact, which has rather interesting functions regarding training purposes. The best way to describe it would be that it can create a separate space, inside that space certain conditions can be programmed into it, that would normally be impossible otherwise. Those conditions can vary depending on what kind of training you want to do, for example it can create a space where you recover from exhaustion rather quickly instead of having to wait for hours or even create monsters that help you hone your techniques and so on. In the East these are pretty popular since contrary to most artifacts found, there are several of the same kind, my master told me once that during a black-market auction one of these was sold for one hundred million mira."

"!How much?!" Llyod could only stare blankly at the small cube that was apparently worth so much money he couldn't even imagine what to do with that amount, "I will just ignore that amount for now, but does that mean that all this was just so that your master could give you some training with that? Seems a bit…. exaggerated, no?"

"Not when Tamamo is involved Master Ka-Fai probably asked her to deliver this to me but like always she must have her fun, leading to this. By the way, did you notice when those people left? I was so focused on her that I completely forgot about them." Only with that reminder did Llyod recall that there had been two other people with them in the room but looking around now they had disappeared at some point, putting that aside for the moment they left the Geofront after Rean had a short rest to recover from using his S-Craft. On the way back Rean managed to convince Llyod to accept mira and sepith as a reward for his help, the moment they were back they saw that it was already night.

"I think I am going to swing by the Guild to report to Michel about what happened since it is on my way to the inn I am staying at. What about you Llyod?"

"I think that I will head home and see if the others are back already, are you leaving tomorrow then?"

"Yeah, but I am not returning to Thors immediately, she got me five days off for this. I think I will use the remaining three for using the artifact to train and see what my master wants to tell me. I would love to stay more and return your favour from today but like you heard yesterday there is trouble brewing in the Empire and while I hope that me and my classmates won't get involved into it, my past experiences and luck suggest otherwise."

"Yeah, I know that feeling all too well. I mean people tell me that I always get into trouble but that is not the case at all! Trouble just seems to have a knack to find me."

"I know! I mean, once I was helping out with transporting some food to another city, is it my fault that suddenly bandits are attacking me for it and that I had to take them down which was followed by me tracking their base and catch them all in one go?!"

"How is that your fault?! You were just doing the right thing! Listen to this, just the other day I was helping an old friend of mine out by tracking down some ingredients for his bread competition and when I found them, they were inside the forest right by where some small-time criminals were hiding. Sure, I could have called in for back up, but they noticed me immediately, so I had to take them down alone!" Both guys looked at each other happy that they found someone that could understand that they weren't truly reckless just a tiny bit unlucky sometimes.

"I take it the mentioned Alisa is the one who scolds you when that happens? Thought so, in my case it is Elie, I can appreciate that she is worried about me as a colleague and friend, but it isn't like I always get hurt that badly just some scratches here and there, which are I might add, normal in the line of duty. Sure, most of the time I take the most dangerous option in a fight, but I can take the hits and they can't do that as well as I can."

Rean was nodding alongside Llyod completely understanding him, after another look full of understanding each other, they shook hands and said goodbye, promising each other that if the other was visiting that they should drop by.

After that Rean gave Michel his report along with a message to pass on to Instructor Sara that he would return in three days, after making a small detour and that he would be unavailable during that time, he ignored to weird look Michel gave him when he gave him the message, finally done with that he returned to the inn and went to sleep. At the crack of dawn he took the train back to the empire, getting off in Celdic where he walked towards Trista looking for a good place to use the artifact.

(This should do, it is hidden away from the main road with a river close by for water and washing. I don't know what to expect from this, but I think that it is a good idea to be close by Trista in case this takes longer than I anticipate, or I could go back to school right now and do this at the dorm? Nay, better not get the others involved in this. I think I just have to press it like this to make it work?)

Rean touched the cube which began to glow until it disappeared, and he found himself at the top of a mountain the surroundings were devoid of colour, appearing in shades of grey. (Hmm, this summit is quite wide perfect for sparring and training. Is that for me?)

Some arges away was a letter and a small hut, picking it up he opened it to find his Masters handwriting, "Hello Rean, if you are reading this it means that you have finally understood what I have been telling you for years regarding your power. I asked Tamamo for this training cube to help you out by giving you some rather demanding training exercises, knowing you as well as I do you must be thinking that you haven't made much progress after I gave you the intermediate rank."

Reading this far Rean could only sigh at how well his Master knew him, though he couldn't help but feel delighted that he would get some training to truly advance in his swordsmanship, "You were always a hard-working pupil, perhaps a tad bit too hardworking but that is a matter for another time. Let me explain how this going to work, you will face a phantom of me in combat. I will only use the first seven forms, your goal will be to defeat me by also using the seven forms and you don't have to worry about getting hurt, my phantom won't be able to really hurt you. You will just feel the pain but won't have any wounds and Tamamo manged to make it so that you also won't get exhausted inside here, though you will still get hungry which is why she should have left some food for you. This training will take three days, at the end of the third day you will be expelled out of this space even if you haven't managed to defeat me. Of course, if you manage to overcome my phantom before the three days are up, there will a bonus training so to speak but as for what it is you will have to find out yourself.

P.S.: I set the level of the phantom to be in the intermediate level of our style, so don't go worry thinking that you can't overcome it. Regarding the Ogre inside you, this training has also accounted for it so you can use it if you want to but if you do, the difficulty will rise to match its power. This training is to further hone your technique first most. Good luck Rean and remember that there are a lot of people, me included, that believe in you.

Your Master Yun Ka-Fai."

The moment he finished reading the letter a phantom of his master appeared in the middle of the summit with his sword already drawn, putting the letter and his backpack away, he joined his opponent with his tachi drawn. Facing him Rean put away any distracting thoughts and fully focused on the phantom. A few moments passed by with two staring at each other until both executed the same form, Helix, though the phantom was faster than Rean hitting him first.

That managed to disturb his technique, resulting in him being cut up with as the rotary motion speed up, true to his masters letter that attack didn't leave any physical damages on Reans body though he felt the pain as if he had been slashed. Repressing a groan Ran took his stance again and both fighters repeated the same movement resulting in the same outcome as before.

The outcome was the same no matter which form he tried out from the first to the seventh one, each time his adversary managed to hit him first and no matter how much he tried to power trough the pain, his technique was always defeated without being fully executed. After several hours of being subjected to the pain, Rean took a small break to rest and eat something while thinking on how he could improve by recalling his defeats, "Is it a question of speed? No, the difference isn't that big, so why is it that I get hit first no matter what? Hmm forget it if I can't figure it out by thinking about it then, I should just pay attention to his movements first."

It took him several more attempts before he finally found a clue, (I see, in contrast to me the phantom doesn't make any wasteful movements and not only that, but the forms it is using are the most basic ones without anything added to it. Intermediate rank, yeah right! Master, this is clearly returning from complexity to simplicity, do you really think that I am nowhere near that level of skill!?)

The young swordsman could only grumble at his Master unreasonable training method while sitting in a small Onsen in the training space, letting its warm water soothe his weary spirit after having suffered the pain of being slashed and cut up numerous times during the entire day.

(No, after having understood that he was telling me everything I needed to know about my ogre power for years, he should also have a reason for doing this. So, what am I missing? After achieving the beginner rank, one should adapt the different forms to fit ones fighting style while honing the form that one is best suited for. The intermediate is about taking it a step further by going beyond the simple forms by adding a touch of complexity, like I did with my Asura Slash and my other crafts.) Rean started washing his body while going everything he knew about the intermediate level.

(I am nowhere the level of returning from complexity to simplicity, so why is Master showing me this? Should I try to do the same? No, that would be useless I am not ready to even try that…..Since Master said in his letter that I can overcome this training it means that there is a way, I will just have to try and see if I can find it or not. Even if I don't just the fact that I can sharpen my techniques against Master is something worth celebrating.) Rean tried to convince himself that as long as he could become stronger by the end of this training session it was worth it even if couldn't clear it but deep inside his heart was the small desire to prove his master right by passing it.

Since he didn't get exhausted in this realm he didn't try to sleep and continued challenging his master at every moment just to be beaten back every single time, the second day passed like this without him noticing it and most of the third day passed in this manner. It was worth to mention that despite Rean not defeating the phantom even once some of his unnecessary movements were gone, resulting in his forms becoming sharper and faster along with his endurance of pain. A flash of light in the darkness cut him but he didn't fall down to the ground, he gritted his teeth and finished his own attack and for the first time since the beginning he manged to touch a small corner of his master clothes.

Rean was panting for breath but couldn't stop a grin from appearing on his face at that small success, "It isn't much but at least it is a small improvement now if I only could at least get a draw between our forms that would a huge improvement. Still, I shouldn't be too greedy just the fact that I managed to cut down on unnecessary movements is a good thing, I should try to cut it down even more after returning back to the academy. It is almost a shame that this is coming to an end, still I should have some hours left before I am kicked out of here."

He decided to take small break and eat since after that point on he wouldn't stop until time was up, while eating the letter fell from his breast pocket unfurling in the process. Bending down he picked it up and gave it another glance before freezing up and quickly read it again just to make sure of something.

After reading it three times just to be sure, Rean started laughing out loud, "I can't believe I made a mistake like this! Of course that was the goal for this, how could I be so stupid!" Energised after finally seeing a way to pass this training, he started to strategize what was the best way for him to succeed. Half an hour later, he resumed his stance before his opponent who used the first form Helix against him, but Rean didn't do the same instead his used the fourth form, Autumn Leaf Cutter. The slashes from that attack managed to slow the rotation down enough for him to pass by the phantom while getting a single slash in though like before the damage was just on the clothes.

Unknown to Rean an imagine of a leaf appeared on the sheath of the phantom, who didn't stop but followed with the second from Gale which was encountered by the sixth form Scarlet Sky with the phantom having no choice but to cut the incoming energy slash down, causing him to stop from moving for a short moment. (It is working, Master never said that I have to defeat his forms using the same ones, from the beginning this was all about reducing my wastefull movements, improve my forms and counter each form with another. That would require observing him closely and study his technique to find its weak points, now I just have to keep going.)

From that moment on, Rean countered or stopped each attack from the phantom with each success another leaf appeared on the sheath until he managed to counter the seventh form with the second from, though during last clash he made it through by a hair. They may have only exchanged seven moves but still Rean expanded every ounce of his strength to keep up and to use his techniques to their fullest causing him to fall down on the ground while looking up at the sky grinning. The moment the seventh leaf appeared on the phantoms sheath, a light engulfed it drawing Reans attention to just to find out that the lifeless face he had been sparring with for the last three days was now looking at him with a smirk and approval in its eyes.

"Well, well looks like you managed to pass my test before the three days are up. Well done, Rean! This is just a recorded message that I put in this copy of mine, so I won't be able to really interact with you. If you reached this point that means you understood the point of all this and as such, I will reward you with the bonus training. In short, I will now repeat the way you defeat me with your moves, and you must try to defeat me going from the first form to the seventh. I think you are smart enough to understand why I am doing this, correct?" Rean stood there with his mouth open as the implications of this sank in.

"Find the flaws in my own techniques and either eliminate them or improve the technique till it stops being a flaw, sigh Master you are really putting me through the wringer here, if I didn't know any better, I would say that you are just bullying for me for having beaten this copy of yours."

Despite his complaints Rean was aware that this was a good opportunity for further improvement as such he went for it, like he expected he was once again soundly beaten. However, during the last sparring, he decided to throw caution to the wind and follow his instincts while ignoring the pain he was in just to unleash every bit of his combat prowess. From Helix till Void, he was able to follow up each attack with the next one like a chain attack however the moment he completed the seventh form his body gave out and he passed out but not before a bit of enlightenment appeared inside his mind.

Sometime later he opened his eyes to see the sky being coloured by the dawn, he searched his memories to see what had happened, but a reproachful voice came from somewhere behind him, "I have half a mind to beat you up, young man. What in Gehenna were you doing inside there that resulted in your body ending like this?!"

Rean tried to slowly get up from the ground, but a hand pushed him back while Tamamo appeared above him, glaring, "I swear, I thought you were past this! Haven't you learned not to push your body beyond its limits?! If it wasn't for me, you would have to spend the next week in bed to recover, now don't move and let me give another round of healing."

Letting out a breath, he closed his eyes and felt Tamamo Ki enter his body soothing every ache it came across, recalling what had happened he couldn't help but softly laugh which made Tamamo twist his ear in annoyance, "This isn't a laughing matter, Rean. I am serious the damage you did to your body was truly dangerous just what kind of training did that old fool make you do to cause this?!"

Not caring about the pain in his ear, Rean just enjoyed the moment knowing that after this training and the duel against the Radiant Blademaster he was truly certain of the path he should follow, "Hey Tamamo do you know why Master Ka-Fai called our style the Eight Leaves One Blade?" The sudden question made her stop ranting though she did glare at him before answering, "You will have to ask that master of yours that, besides why do you care about the name right now?"

"Just something I just thought of at the moment. Eight Leaves One Blade, could it be that master wanted to use the eight forms together to create one blade?" If his eyes had been opened, he would have seen the stunned expression of Tamamo no Mae before it quickly transformed into a snarl filled with rage while her eyes started to glow golden, her voice remained calm however, "Hmm, did that old goat inside tell you anything that would led to that question?"

"No, just a thought that appeared in my head when I tried to use the seven forms as a chain attack which led me to my current state. What would happen if someone managed to combine them into one single attack while the eight form serves as the body for that attack, what do you think about that?"

Rean sensed that Tamamos hands started to shake causing him to open his eyes to look at her, unfortunately for him she evaded his gaze by turning her head or else he would have seen how shocked she was at the moment, "Forget about that unrealistic idea of yours, just trying a chain attack damaged your body to this extent what do you think would happen to it if you combined them? Anyway, just try to relax until I am done healing you! (Yun Ka-Fai, you better not be trying to recreate your obsession through your student or so help me you won't live to see the next day!)"

Thinking that he must have imagined it, Rean closed his eyes and let her work on him. It took her nearly two hours until he was able to move without any pain, "You know the drill, no training for you for the next three days, just take it easy. As for the training cube, I will take it back. I had been playing with the idea to leave it to you since you appeared to have matured somewhat but after this you can forget about it." Rean obediently handed it back to her, "Geez no need to be like that, I will try to pay more attention next time."

"That would be more believable if this situation hadn't happened several times before. You should get going now or you will be late for class, I don't know how long it will be until I can come visit again but Rean be careful! I am sure that you know how delicate the current situation is in the Empire, one wrong move from either faction and you will have a civil war on your hands. Make no mistake though sooner or later someone will do something that will spark that conflict, it isn't a matter of if but of when. I would love to drag you back with me, but I know that this your home, as such you want to protect it, just remember that there are people, me included, that will be worried and angry with you if you do something reckless, ok?"

"I would love to promise you that I am going to stay out of trouble but we both know that I would be lying, instead I will promise to be more careful in the future."

Snorting at that promise Tamamo hugged right into her chest, smirking at the way he was trying to get out it, "Yeah, yeah, I heard that one before. Just try to stay safe, if not for yourself then for your parents, classmates and for little Alisa who would be devasted if something happened to you. Still be doubly careful with the Iron and Blood Chancellor, somehow, even I can't seem to see through him." That comment managed to stop him from moving, he just looked at her with a stunned expression knowing that this was this was the first time, that he knew of, that she couldn't see through someone.

After teasing him some more, she left in the direction of the East vowing that she would have a little chat with a certain Sword Hermit before returning for her domain though it remained to see if the Sword Hermit would leave that conversation alive or not.

Seeing the time Rean adopted a slight jog back to Trista, since he wasn't that far from the town he arrived in it shortly with enough time for a shower, changing his clothes and eat a light breakfast before class started. The moment he opened the door to the dormitory he was greeted with sight of the entire Class VII sitting there as if waiting for him to arrive. He was going to greet them but one look into Alisa's eyes who started to slowly get up from her seat, he decided that perhaps following Tamamo to the East wasn't such a bad idea after all and closed the door.

Before he could move away from it, he could hear Crow snickering from inside, "I don't know why you guys say that Rean doesn't have any survival instincts. What just happened just proved that he has them, though if they were better developed, he would have knelt and begged for mercy immediately."

Sounds of laughter that sounded like Sharon and Millium followed that remark though Rean was more preoccupied by the sudden opening of the door revealing Alisa who glared at him before reaching out and twisting his ear hard while at the same time dragging him inside ignoring his shouts of pain, "Good morning, Rean how have you been these five days? By the way since we have homeroom during the first hour, Instructor Sara was so kind as to give it to us so that you to explain just what you were doing in Crossbell and why you thought that it was a good idea to be unreachable for the last three days? Do you know how worried I was?!"

(Yep, definitely rethinking Tamamo offer to move to the east, perhaps I could convince my parents and Elsie to move there too.) Such were Reans thought as he looked at unamused faces of his classmates, he did ignore the gloating ones from Crow and Millium, resigning himself to what is to come he could just weakly smile at the furious archer.

Four days later at night in the eastern part of the continent, at the summit of a mountain that Rean would have recognised as the one used for the training space though this one had their colours, a lone old man was enjoying his cup of sake while gazing at the moon when he noticed that someone was quickly making her way up the mountain. Frowning as he sensed the anger rolling of his approaching visitor, he put the cup down and reached for his sword just to slightly relax when he saw who it was, "Good evening Tamamo. Who angered the famous 'Golden Fox' to such a degree?"

"That would be you and believe me depending on your answers, you won't live to see the next sunrise." It was a good thing he hadn't been drinking just or else he would spit it out thereby wasting good sake, he would have tried to make a joke to lighten the mood but seeing how serious she looked when she made that threat, the Sword Hermit decided that he should quickly try to clear whatever misunderstanding was going here, "Ok, what did I do? I have been meditating here for the last two weeks after I asked you for that favour regarding Rean."

"It concerns exactly that! I want you to tell me precisely what kind of training you made him do and don't even try to hide anything or else…" She didn't need to finish the sentence the killing intent coming of her was enough to show him how serious she was, however, that seemed to confuse him even more until Yun told her exactly what training he had given his disciple, "That is it? No hidden meaning in there?"

"No, I assure you that was everything. Can you please explain to me what happened? Is Rean alright?" Seeing that the danger was gone, he relaxed and offered her some of his sake, taking the cup Tamamo took a seat in front of him before drowning it in one go, "You sure know how to pick them, Yun. He is fine for the moment and seems to have found his path to achieve mastery though I am afraid that he won't stop there."

"And that is bad because? You know as well as I do that achieving mastery is just the beginning of a new chapter in swordsmanship. What he does next will determine how far he can go, so why does that notion fill you with such anger?" She looked straight at him as he filled his cup, "Because he asked me why you named your sword style Eight Leaves One Blade and followed that by thinking that you perhaps wanted to combine them into one single attack." Tamamo saw a mixture of shock, concern and confusion inside his eyes but what caused her to sigh internally with relief was the fact that there was no tiny bit of joy in there, though it was a bit funny to see that he was so shocked that he didn't even notice that his cup was overflowing, "How? Why?"

"Don't ask me, I also have no idea how he reached that conclusion." Yun finally noticed that he was wasting good sake and stopped pouring while giving her an offended look, "So the reason why you were so angry was because you thought that I had somehow passed on my obsession from my younger days to Rean?" Without any shame she just nodded, "You have to admit you were consumed by those thoughts of creating a technique that could reach the realm of the divine."

"That is true, but I gave that up when I took on the title of 'Sword Hermit'! As you well know, after that I used my knowledge to create the Eight Leaves One Blade style, I do admit that I could have chosen a different title than Divine Blade when one reaches mastery in one form. Perhaps I had been feeling a bit reluctant to give up on my dream and wanted to keep at least a part of it alive, back then however now that I am older, I can see that it was somewhat arrogant of my part."

Tamamo snickered into her hand, "If the first Dominion from two generation ago heard you said that I am sure that he would rise from the grave just to strangle you. In case you forgot, the Septian Church wasn't happy that you had chosen that title which caused you to fight them and beat them up until they agreed to it."

"This coming from the woman who jumped into the chance to fight them without being asked to I might add, just because she wanted to keep her artifacts? And do I need to remind you of the event where you nearly destroyed all of their Merkabahs?" She waved that remark while avoiding eye contact, "That is already in the past who cares about that! More importantly what should we do about Rean?"

Yun allowed the change of topics since it concerned his disciple, he took a moment or two to ponder on what to do, "For now, I don't think we have to worry about that. Unlike me he doesn't have neither the dream nor the ambition to amaze the world by creating a truly divine technique besides I only taught him the first to the eight forms without even mentioning the zeroth form to him. Though who know perhaps he will create a divine technique in the end but the meaning behind it will be different than the one I had wanted, I won't interfere in his life if that is something he wants to unless he tries to repeat my mistakes."

Both knew what kind of mistakes he was talking; they were one of the reasons why he became a hermit and wandered the continent, "But it seems like a I really underestimated my last disciple if he without even knowing anything about the origin of the Eight Leaves was able to see that far, now I am filled with even more of anticipation for his future. Come Tamamo let's drink to his future accomplishments!"

Yun took out a bottle of his precious sake causing Tamamo to eagerly hand her cup to him to fill it, both toasted to the young swordsman in Erebonia, they were filled with both the hope and the desire that he would finally find some happiness for himself while striving towards the height of skill.