The morning slowly rose around the Chamber of the El. The taste of defeat lingered in the Celestial's mouth. Its bitterness was as high as his worry for the fate of this world. The El Shard was gone. The El itself did not give him the strength it was supposed to, and that half-demon had lured them all into a trap.

It was unfathomably shameful.

Ainchase leaned on a wall next to the demoness and her servant. He was the only one who could still stand – albeit barely – as he attempted to bandage the deep cut in his arm. The demoness was having her wounds treated by her servant, and she had treated his wounds first.

"Come here, Celestial," Luciela said as she lazily motioned with her arm for him to sit back down. "You'll bleed out before you figure out how to cover your wounds."

"I won't die from it," he answered. "I can always make a new human shell."

"Then you should do that instead of wasting my bandages," the half-demon grumbled as he immobilised the demoness' broken wrist. "And go disable whatever traps those thieves left behind if there's still some."

"Oh, is the demon slave demanding that I clean up after him?" Ainchase shot back, frowning at the Steel Cross. "You could at least own up for your lack of judgement, you freak of nature."

The indigo-haired man glared back at him, grabbed his gun blades and aimed them at the green-eyed priest.

"Dontcha want to get that new body faster, motherfucker? Here, I'll help ya out," Ciel hissed before pulling the trigger.

Click. Click.

With his left leg broken, the half-demon had no way of getting on his feet to use the blades on his weapons against Ainchase. The Celestial summoned a lance, filled with all the divine energy he could muster, and pointed it at the half-demon.

"I guess today's the day you find out why the simplest of weapons have withstood the test of time," the Celestial growled.

Before Ainchase could pierce the blue-eyed man with it, the divine energy within his weapon grew so unstable that it shattered and then quickly turned to dust. He now had no power left to summon another one.

"Are you two done now?" The demoness groaned.

Neither of them answered. They simply put more distance between them, even if it was just a tiny step and a half.

"Great." Luciela sighed. "Can we think like adults and consider our next move?" She paused, briefly grimacing in pain. "Besides getting treated, of course."

The Celestial limped a few steps forward and found a crumpled parchment on the floor. As much as it hurt, he crouched to pick it up. His legs trembled, and he could not maintain his balance for long. A sharp, piercing pain that spread from his shins to his lower back drew out a groan from him as he crumbled to his knees. Ainchase could not stand up again, at least not until this new wave of pain subsided. He straightened the parchment and noticed a folded note slipped from it.

The parchment depicted a map detailing the secret entry and exit routes within the Tree of El, as well as the ultimate destination of the criminals. The note was stamped with Elder's coat of arms. It detailed the identities of the bandits, as well as the reason behind the theft. Ainchase almost wished he could burn through that paper with his glare.

'These corrupt humans deserve to be culled by my hand.'

"What does it say?" Luciela asked.

"That the bandits weren't just some heretics playing around with Nasods," Ainchase answered. "They're traitors of the highest order."

Elsword had not slept but still found it easy to practise his combat stances as the sun rose above the horizon. The red-haired boy sipped water and ran some laps around the base. Lowe had officially made him a knight of the El Search Party the night before, but Elsword had not been assigned to any unit; it was no different from being given some time off, except he could no longer leave the base as he pleased.

As he ran, the cold morning breeze kept him focused, though not entirely. When he reached the southern gate, he stopped. Half the knights opened the gates for two distinguished knights while the others were wordlessly saluting them. Elsword paid no mind to the tan, black-haired knight that accompanied the Grand Admiral. With a grin plastered, Elsword walked closer to the dignified White Hawk of Velder.

Owen Felford was about an inch taller than Ciel. His slightly wavy white mane barely covered his neck, and his upturned magenta eyes pulled attention away from the royal blue uniform he wore. As the soldiers lined up to salute the Grand Admiral, Elsword squeezed between them to be in the centre of the line. The albino offered him a friendly nod before addressing the rest more formally.

"At ease," Lord Felford ordered. "The Crown has received your distress calls. Commodore Asini and I wish to speak with Captain Evans to evaluate the situation."

"Sir," a silver-haired knight replied, "We forgot to inform you of this, but there's a critical update you should know beforehand."

Owen furrowed his brow. "What is it, soldier?"

"Some of our men, including Captain Evans, vanished on the road to Elder."

The tan, black-haired man beside Owen glared at the knight who had just spoken. "You let your Captain vanish on the road?" He looked around at the rest of the knights gathered around them, glaring at them, too. "Are you turncoats, soldiers?"

Nobody spoke. Their gazes all sank to their feet. However, Elsword met Commodore Asini's onyx glare head-on.

"Sir, with all due respect," the boy began, "We've been dealing with many uhm, unpara, uhm…unparalah…"

He pressed his lips together, feeling his heart beat even faster at the thought he was making a fool of himself—in front of Lord Felford.

"Unparalleled," Owen gently corrected him.

"Yes, many unparalleled crises," the red-haired boy repeated. The albino's nod gave him the courage to continue talking. "We do what we can to keep the main roads safe, sir, but our forces haven't recovered from all the losses caused by last month's attack. Our quick action to deal with yesterday's crisis before it was too late should be all the proof you need to know that we aren't traitors, sir. We're just overwhelmed."

The Commodore's expression softened, and he glanced at Owen, "I wonder who taught this boy to speak like that."

"I can't take all the credit, Lento," Owen chuckled. "Elsword's a precocious kid. Rhetoric classes would be lost on him if he wasn't."

"I can see that," Commodore Asini agreed with a tiny smirk before eyeing the other knights disapprovingly. "His seniors would do well to learn a thing or two from him." Then he turned his attention back to Elsword. "Do you have duties awaiting you, soldier?"

"No, sir."

"Then you shall escort us to your Acting Captain's office."

The red-haired boy proudly saluted him. "Yes, sir!"

Late morning rolled in, bringing a strangely dry and cold climate. Although Elsword was tempted to stay next to the door to Lowe's office and wait for Lord Owen, getting praised by two flag officers made him want to continue training even harder. He had to prove they were not praising him simply because he was Lord Felford's adoptive son.

'Well, maybe not officially his adopted son,' Elsword mentally corrected himself, 'But I'll soon be part of his House. I'll make him proud!'

The boy planted his wooden sword on the ground, sweeping away the sweat on his brow and took a sip of water. He looked around him, and the vast, empty training grounds were a bad reminder of all those who would never return. It was here that he talked with Wyll for the first time. Elsword wondered if the blonde was caught in that dangerous El energy collapse that Lu and Ain stopped in the nick of time. He pushed that thought away, telling himself that Liam and the Captain would have never allowed him to get hurt.

"Ah, there you are, Elsword," Owen's voice called behind him.

The red-haired boy turned around with a smile, "Lord Owen! How was the meeting?"

"Very productive," the man answered. "Like your training so far. Did you have breakfast?"

Elsword did not answer, but his stomach answered for him, loud and clear.

The albino shook his head at him, putting on a more serious face that the boy knew was not a sign of annoyance. "Soldier, what are you thinking? Running on an empty stomach and no sleep is unacceptable."

"Was it obvious that I didn't sleep?" Elsword asked, scratching his head. "I really don't feel that tired."

"Lowe told me," Owen informed him before turning away. "Now, come along. You can't skip lunch, too."

"Is it already midday?" The boy gasped as he rushed to walk by the Grand Admiral's side.

"It's ten thirty, but the way back home is long," the albino said. "We'll be right on time for lunch."

Elsword's eyes widened, "Lord Owen, uhm, are you sure I can leave the base with you?"

The magenta-eyed Admiral chuckled. "I wonder who'd tell me that I can't take my son out for lunch."

My son. The boy felt his cheeks warm up at the sound of those words. "Then, um, should I start calling you Lord Father?"

"If that's what you wish to use from now on, I'm fine with it." He paused briefly, looking down. "But I don't think Seris appreciates hearing that kind of etiquette very often."

"So, should I ask her what she prefers?"

The Grand Admiral ruffled his hair. "Don't worry too much about it. Whatever you choose to call her, it'll make her day."

Father and son left the base, not talking much beyond the burning questions on Elsword's mind. He was excited to be officially adopted, though he also had questions about the deal between the Felfords and Elkashu.

"It was an informal arrangement," Owen answered. "A friend of mine and I thought the Grand Admiral was only joking to get me and Seris to rest for a few months. I agreed to it, thinking my superior would only give me some time off instead."

"Your friend, Commodore Asini?"

The albino shook his head, "No, Lento's a friend, alright, but I met him much later. The man I'm talking about was exceptional. He rose through the ranks without any noble titles or money until he became a Vice Admiral. He even led his own mercenary company, but that's a story for another time."

Owen continued to retell the details of his arrangement with Elkashu. The head of the Felfords was recovering in a medical ward from some wounds he sustained after a battle next to Seris when a red-haired girl brought a baby boy to them. The girl said that she was Elesis Sieghart. The albino was shocked to see that the highest-ranked officer in the Centurion Guard was not only asking his daughter to give her brother away but that Elesis was a soldier herself.

"Things are different now," Owen added, "But, back then, it was usually orphans or bastards that filled up the ranks as meat shields for the infantry. I hated the practice regardless, but most nobles were willing to turn a blind eye to it. When she came along, though, it caused an uproar."

Elsword's gaze sank momentarily, "How old was she?"

"Six, maybe seven," Owen took a deep breath in, looking at the quiet, chilly forest around them with suspicion. "Elsword, is the forest usually this cold this time of the year?"

"Hm? Well, it's my first time feeling it, but Lowe said yesterday that we shouldn't worry if it gets chilly."

"Is that so?" the Grand Admiral drawled. "He's probably right. Come to think of it, fall should be around the corner. I'll chop some firewood tomorrow."

The red-haired boy tilted his head. "Are you gonna stay?"

"Just for a little while," the Grand Admiral answered. He smiled at the boy by his side. "Say, do you want to train with me again? I think you're ready to start practising spells."

Owen did not need to ask twice for Elsword to enthusiastically agree.

A week went by, and Owen and his Commodore had kept an eye on the El Search Party. It was the last day of the week, which meant everyone got a free day. Owen Felford sat down with his wife and Lento around Lake Noahz on a picnic. The sun was hanging low in the sky, and the children were still toying around with their homemade fishing rods, explaining to each other how to put the bait properly.

They had not caught a single fish so far. Amelie was knee-deep in mud, explaining to the boys that they had to look in that spot to get the "good worms." Elsword quickly believed her and started to look, while Elias hesitated far more to get his hands dirty.

"He's taking it well," Lento noted. "Elsword, I mean. Was he ever nervous about moving in with you?"

"Not really. We've raised him, more or less, since his birth," Seris proudly said. "We couldn't officially take him in because of his sister but, well, things are different now."

The black-haired Commodore tilted his head. "What changed? Why would his sister let him go?"

"She's the one with the Divinus Manus," Owen explained. "I talked with her the other day. She was very emotional, but she remembered who she was. I got her permission, as the head of the Siegharts, to take her brother in. I think it's better this way, for both of them."

"Yeah, but, still," Lento huffed. "Talk about a hard conversation to be having at her young age."

Seris chuckled, "At her young age, he says…"

The Commodore frowned at the blonde, but refrained from saying anything, opting to take another bite off his half-eaten sandwich.

"Lento, you're two years older than her," Owen said with a smirk. "If she's young to you, what does that make us? We're barely thirty-two, young man."

The tan man swallowed his bite, shaking his head at his superior with a faint smile. "Okay, old man. It's not my fault your hair's already white."

"Hmm…are we sure about that?" Seris queried with a smug grin on her face. "I remember someone who forgot to turn off the overclocking of the engine on his then-captain's ship a few years back…"

"Oh, yeah, that definitely made my hair whiter than snow!"

"You will never let me live that down, will you?" Lento asked, chuckling at the memory even if he still hid his face behind his hands. "I was fresh on the job, come on, cut me some slack!"

"You're asking me, the Chief Engineer, to cut you some slack? Never!"

The three of them laughed, continued to banter about the past, and shared some hopes about their future. Lento had thought about proposing to Vanessa, but he could not find the courage for it.

"Aw, why not?" Seris asked, "She's waiting for it, but she won't wait forever, you know?"

A chill breeze – colder and drier than it had every right to be – made Lento's smile run away from his face. The two other adults also felt it, and their smiles too, quickly faded away. On their end, the kids only briefly stopped their play before going back to their innocent fun. They had seemingly given up on fishing rods and were trying to catch fish with their bare hands.

"That man is still denying that there's anything wrong," Owen grumbled. "It's infuriating."

"Lieutenant Lowe, at the very least, is responsible for his Captain's disappearance," Lento quietly said as he finished the last bite of his sandwich. "The soldiers told me he sent the priest, the Steel Cross and the shape-shifter to check on some bandits a week ago. The thing is, nobody else saw anything. There were no scouts out, nothing. Lowe made it all up."

"Do we have to talk about work now?" Seris sighed. "I'm not denying it's important, but, you know, it's our only free day. Work could wait until tomorrow."

Lento shrugged. "As much as I'd like to talk about other things, Commander, I can't focus on them when the issues at hand are this severe."

"Oh, don't you Commander me here, Lento!" Seris pouted, tapping the tan man on the back of his head.

"Ouch! It's just a habit, Com—Uhh, Chief Engineer Felford?"

Another tap.

"Stop being so formal." The blonde giggled. "If you really can't let go of those useless titles, just call me Lady Seris."

"Okay, okay, Lady Seris, it is," Lento capitulated, rubbing the back of his head, looking for any bumps. Owen already knew he would find none.

Seris acquiesced with a smile. "That's much better." Her smile went away with a heavy sigh. "Since we must talk about the issues at hand, as Lento put it, I think Lowe has a guilty conscience."

"Why do you think so, love?"

"Oh, I've made some friends around town, including Chief Hagus," she mused.

Seris explained that a few villagers, including Hagus and Ann, the owner of the local general store, had seen Lowe and the Lord of Elder meeting up incognito. Though their disguises were excellent, the village chief knew both men well enough to tell them apart. Their last meeting had turned into a rather loud argument, with Lowe arguing the loudest about how much the other man was taking.

"Taking too much, huh?" Owen echoed pensively. "There's only one thing here that would be worth taking and that Lowe wouldn't be willing to set on the table."

Lento furrowed his brow, but before he found the words to say, Seris spoke again. "That's why he couldn't have made the theft up. He chose to send them alone because they aren't loyal to Captain Evans, unlike the other knights." She sipped on the wine that was still in her wooden cup. "Two birds with one stone. He avoids mutiny, and he ensures that Lord Evans has as little chances as he can get to survive a direct confrontation. The priest and the woman are stronger and more vicious than anyone else, or so I've heard."

Lento agreed with Seris, adding that the knights were divided in two camps: those who admired the duo and those who feared them. He took the last grape from the basket and ate it.

"If the missing soldiers stole the El," the black-haired man said before spitting the seeds in his hand, "it could explain the climate, but nothing's dead yet. We'd see more of what those heretics caused if it was gone for good."

Owen shook his head. "Not necessarily. If we assume Captain Evans is the thief, then he's only biding his time to expose the traitor," the albino looked at his wife. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but the El has a radius within which it'll still sustain life to a degree, right?"

The blonde nodded. "You're right on the money, darling. It's strange to see the thief have more morals than a Lord and the new Acting Captain, right?"

"Indeed it is," Lento agreed, "but can Lord Evans keep this up? As much as I'd like to stay and ensure his safety, we still haven't caught the Black Crow's Mothership. They may launch an unprecedented attack after their defeat in Clock Tower Square."

"I highly doubt they have more than two warships left," the Grand Admiral sighed. "Even if both Sander's Emir and the Rod family combined the fortunes of their kingdoms, there's no way they could afford to rebuild everything we've destroyed."

"That's true," Lento conceded. "And if one of their Steel Crosses is missing here, they'd have more incentives to stop their attacks and—"

"And what if they aren't the ones behind it?"

Seris's question caught both men off-guard.

"Huh? What do you mean, Com— Lady Seris? Who else would it be?"

The woman shrugged. "I don't know, but if the Rod family had to be involved in anything, maybe it would be the El's disappearance."

She told them about Elsword's friend, Wyll, and the elegant Black Mass outfit only he had worn for the ceremony. It was made of such fine silk that it had caused an impression in the village.

Owen furrowed his brow. "What did Elsword say that Wyll's House was?"

"Gesson."

The Vice Admiral and his Commodore looked at each other, their eyes briefly widening at the realisation.

"Gesson, huh?" the albino sighed, his head hanging low. "The sons of Gess; Rod Gess. Why didn't I think of it sooner? Those kids are the perfect blackmail material." He passed his hands over his face. "If they stay missing, or if they're killed, that's the second war knocking on our doors…"

"Owen," Lento called him. "Should I contact the White Colossus?"

Before he could think of an answer, the three adults were interrupted by the shouts of victory from the children. They had caught a Lizard Bass. The pointy fish was still struggling in Elias' hands. The boy was still not strong enough to hold it and had cuts on his fingers caused by the fish's horns. Owen saw his son frowning at his sister's and Elsword's teasing. The blood on Elias' fingers rolled into the fish's eye and began to turn into small crystals that hurt the animal even more. The bass began to struggle even harder against his son.

Owen immediately walked towards the children. He had to stop this before Elias' unintentional use of his curse became too obvious.

"What did you guys catch there?" he asked the three children with a smile. "Can you let me see?"

The fish slapped Elias and broke free from his grasp. Owen subtly used his curse to make it fall in his hands instead of the muddy shore. Both Elsword and Amelie gasped, amazed by his reflexes. The ashen-blonde boy, in turn, simply lowered his head and apologised.

"It's okay, Elias. Fishing for the first time is always tough," Owen reassured his son. "Go to your mother and tell her to patch up those cuts."

Elias nodded and did as he had asked. The day was growing dim, and Owen still had a few things to investigate before he took his family back to the Capital.

After two weeks of rigorous training, Elsword had mastered a few spells. Lord Ow—nay, his father, was surprised by the result. The red-haired boy could not explain it either; he had never had a natural ability for magic, unlike his brother Elias. The night was waning, and the only people awake in the boy's home were the Grand Admiral and Elsword. The albino man put two boxes in front of him; it was both his parting gift and to celebrate his ascension from recruit to a knight of the El Search Party.

Even if hearing about his family's departure hurt a little, Elsword knew it would not be for long. Once Owen formalised his adoption, the boy would be flown into Velder without delay.

Elsword opened the boxes; in one, there were two twin swords, one red and another silver. In the other, there was only a gorgeously decorated sheath. The red-haired boy naturally took the red sword, expecting it to be lighter than his training sword. He soon discovered he was mistaken and thought it best to start training with one as heavy as this.

As he was about to place it in the Sheath Owen gave him, the albino stopped him. "The Sheath is a weapon in its own right."

The red-haired boy tilted his head. "How?"

"Use your mana," his father ordered. "Find out for yourself."

With a nod, Elsword hovered his hands over the Sheath, closing his eyes as he guided his mana around the object. He did not get far before feeling a shock course through his fingers. The boy jumped back, looking at his hand and then back at the Sheath.

"That thing hurt!" Elsword murmured, doing his best to only grit his teeth instead of raising his voice. "Fuck!"

Owen frowned at him. "Where did you hear that word?"

The red-haired boy tilted his head, "You mean fuck? Is it a bad word?"

The head of the Felfords gravely nodded. Elsword gulped, pressing his lips together as he thought about what to say. He could understand it was perhaps not a nice word, but if a distinguished Steel Cross used it…

"Uhm, is it really that bad? Ciel used it, so…"

The Grand Admiral looked even less amused by that information but did not let it linger too long. "You shouldn't use it, that's all. Just like you shouldn't be using the Sheath yet. Keep practising your spells, get used to the twin blades, and then, you'll slowly get used to the Sheath. I'll help you carry it and your other things to the base."

"Ah, okay," Elsword said with a heavy heart as he closed the two boxes again. He felt Owen's hand over his head and looked up at him again.

"We're not saying our farewells just yet, Elsword. I said I'll accompany you to base, didn't I?"

The boy nodded and tiptoed back to his room to gather his things. Once father and son were out the door, Elsword looked back at the cottage. He would leave it for good this time around. The brief memories of his sister did not linger as much as those he shared with the Felfords. When, or rather if, he returned, would the memories remain as bright as they were now?

He hoped not. Elsword wished the new memories he would forge once he was a Felford would outweigh everything else. Once he set his belongings in his shared quarters with squad four, Elsword accompanied the Admiral back to the gate.

"See you soon, Elsword," the Grand Admiral said before patting him over the shoulder.

"See you soon, father," the boy said as he waved back at the albino.

The boy watched his adoptive father cross the door and walk downhill. Grand Admiral Felford – the White Hawk of the Centurion Guard, the pride of Velder's fleet – took his last flight into the skies of Elrios.