"You guys wanna take a trip to the Nord Highlands for a couple days?"
"Really, Sara? That's how you greet us?"
Laura ignored Fie's complaints as she stared at the picture of their former instructor and current superior with surprise and interest. That Sara wasn't in Trista – or anywhere else Laura was familiar with – and yet was now able to communicate with the two of them in their home was a testament to the rapid advancement of technology.
She kinda wanted to check out their newly installed terminal for herself at some point. It seemed like there were a lot of fun things they could do with that machine.
But that was something for a later date. Right now her mind was fully on the question presented to them, "The Nord Highlands?"
"Uh huh. There are no bracers stationed up there, but normally that's not an issue as the nomads living there can take care of themselves, but this request came directly from Gaius himself."
"Oh..." Beyond the obvious interest in helping out a friend Laura had been interested almost from the moment Sara mentioned the highlands. Between their field study almost exactly one year prior and the war shortly after every single member of Class VII had gotten a chance to visit Gaius' homeland save for her and Fie. Now they finally had a chance to correct that injustice, "I don't see why not."
"Since you said the two of us I guess you know Rean's off on another of his missions?" Fie questioned.
For a moment their teacher's wide grin faded off her face, "...I kinda suspected it given recent-" Much to both girl's annoyance Sara caught herself with a cough before putting a smile back up, albeit one that didn't quite seem to reach her eyes, "A-Anyways! The two of you will be the only bracers going, but you'll be meeting up with some outside help in Roer."
"Stop being so vague with us, dammit."
Fie's complaint went ignored by her older sister figure, "Can I assume you're taking the request? If so I'll contact Zender Gate and inform them of your arrival. You'll want to take the early morning train tomorrow if you want to meet your help and get to Nord at a reasonable hour. Gaius will fill you in on the rest when you get there."
The Arseid glanced at her partner even though she was already sure what her answer would be. A nod only confirmed it, "Very well. We accept."
"Great!" Some of the earlier fire seemed to return to the older woman's eyes, "I'll make all the preparations for you. Have fun up there!"
After the call ended both girls shared uncertain looks. Clearly something was up with their teacher, and being kept out of the loop was rather aggravating. Still, given everything that had happened Laura was sure they'd figure it out in time, and right now the two of them needed to prepare for a long trip and a reunion with another friend.
"Oh...! That would explain her behavior." Surprisingly, it didn't take long at all for Laura to find the answer to the question that plagued them the night before. All it took was for her to purchase the most recent edition of the Imperial Chronicle to read while on the train ride to Roer.
"Hmm...? What's up?" Fie sleepily murmured.
Laura glanced down from the paper in her hand to the girl who had been resting on her lap, taking a brief moment to note just how much longer her hair had grown since their first meeting, "There was a military coup in North Ambria."
"Wait, what!?" That was enough to rouse Fie from her sleepy state as the younger girl snatched the paper out of Laura's hands before sitting up to read it. Lime eyes darted rapidly across the paper before eventually the girl let out a groan, "Well... damn."
Well, damn indeed. The article painted a bleak picture. Apparently the Northern Jaegers had seized control of the northern country's governmental buildings and dissolved the old parliament.
And to make things worse they had very publicly announced they had no intention of paying reparations for the devastation of Celdic.
"While I believe the Imperial demands were absurd and Duke Albarea deserves most of the blame for Celdic..." She began tentatively.
"...This is just giving Osborne the excuse he needs to invade." Fie finished grimly. "Yep. This is definitely why Sara was acting weird."
"Might also explain why Rean was called to action so suddenly." She postulated, "If the Imperial Army is beginning to plan for another war it'd make sense for them to need him to cover for them."
She watched Fie give a long sigh, "Dunno why Sara wanted to keep this from us, but this sucks. Why couldn't it be like last time when you overreacted to the newspaper story about terrorists dressed like Mishys in Ordis?"
Despite the grave situation Laura couldn't help but gasp dramatically, "B-But that was a big deal! Why would people want to besmirch Mishy's good name with their vile schemes!? A-And maybe there's a connection going on between all this!"
"A connection between terrorists dressed like a cat mascot and a potential war brewing up north? You really are a weirdo." With her piece said Fie once again laid back onto Laura's lap, "Well, not like we can do anything about it. I'm going back to bed. Wake me when we reach Roer."
Once again Laura could only marvel at just how utterly unflappable Fie was. Mere moments after learning about a potential disaster in the making and the girl was already snoring silently. Even though she understood the gravity of the situation she also was wise enough to understand just how little they could do about it in the moment.
The Arseid couldn't help but envy that levelheadedness.
She wasn't Fie, sadly. So while her companion slept away peacefully she could do little but stare out the window and ponder where the turning of the times would take them. Hopefully their arrival in Roer and upcoming mission would provide some sort of welcome distraction.
"Alisa! It's so good to see you again!" Laura was quick to give her friend a hug at the unexpected reunion just after getting off the train.
"Heehee. Hey, Laura. Hey, Fie." The blonde girl was equally quick to return the gesture.
Fie didn't join in the hug, but the smile on her face spoke volumes, "Guessing you're the helper Sara told us about?"
"You'd be guessing correctly." Alisa confirmed as the two girls finally separated, "Any messages from Nord have to pass through Roer first, so Gaius asked me to pass his along to Instructor Sara. Given it's been a few months since Grandfather returned back home, and even longer since I last visited the Nord Highlands..." Her voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper, "And just between you and me I really need a vacation right now."
"Has work been that bad?" Laura asked in concern.
"I wouldn't say it's been bad, but..." The archer trailed off before glancing around, "I'll tell you about it later, alright?"
Made sense considering they were standing in the middle of the train station.
Alisa gave a little cough before standing up straighter, "Anyway. I know there's still a long ways to go before we get to Nord, but would the two of you like to join me at my home for lunch? Sharon should be just about finished-."
"Definitely." Fie answered before Laura could even consider the question, "I've missed Sharon's cooking so much."
Despite shaking her head in mild annoyance the Arseid couldn't help but agree. Having Sharon around had been one of the best perks of being in Class VII. Her absence had been felt keenly since.
"Great! Mother's out of the city on a business trip so we'll have the entire suite to ourselves."
The three made small talk as they traveled through Erebonia's most advanced city towards the Reinford Building. Laura – with some input from Fie – regaled their classmate with their second year experiences alongside some of the bracer missions they had done. For her part Alisa seemed to skirt over her work in Reinford's Development Division in favor of talking about their other friends. Given her connections to House Rogner and the Roer Institute of Technology she had been able to track both Angelica and George as they crossed the continent on their trips, and she even maintained some contact with some of the other former second year students.
Eventually they reached Erebonia's tallest building. Although she had witnessed the taller Orchis Tower while in Crossbell, it had been at a distance, so the Reinford Headquarters were still an awe-inspiring sight for the blue-haired warrior.
The main lobby was far busier than any building had the right to be, but fortunately the three girls weren't there for long as Alisa led them to an elevator. Passing the guards who gave respectful nods the Reinford heiress pushed the button leading to her family home at the top. It was only after the doors closed that she allowed herself to slump slightly as the tension left her body.
"Sooo..." Fie drawled out, "Been busy, I take it?"
Although her words had been said in a teasing manner the concern was genuine regardless, "You don't know the half of it." Alisa complained good-naturedly, "The entire company has been going through a complete restructuring so that nothing like the war can happen again. Sitting at a computer for twelve hours a day has made me miss the insanity of our field studies!"
"Thus the decision to come with us to Nord." Laura finished. The Arseid couldn't imagine enduring office work for such a long period of time like her friend had. The need for action would drive her absolutely insane.
And yet despite that Laura's intuition was telling her that wasn't the sole reason for Alisa's exhaustion. But an elevator was no place to discuss what she imagined to be a more personal topic of discussion.
With a ding the elevator came to a stop and the door opened. As this was her first time visiting Alisa's penthouse suite Laura couldn't help but stare in wide-eyed surprise at the living area atop Erebonia's largest building. Sure she'd heard about it from Fie and the others, but words did not do the suite justice! It was like her entire family mansion, but sitting a hundred arge in the sky!
"Welcome back, My Lady. And how wonderful it is to see you again, Lady Laura and Lady Fie."
The blue-haired girl was broken from her observations – although she was still fully intent on exploring the place later if possible – by the arrival of Alisa's maid and Class VII's former caretaker, Sharon. Questionable employers aside, it was good to see her again.
"I've just finished preparing lunch. Please, right this way if you will." ...Especially with the news that they were about to experience one of her delightful meals again.
"Wanna make a trade?" Fie asked as she finished up her lunch, "Give us Sharon and we'll give you Rean."
"Fie!"
"Oh, my. That sounds like a good deal. I recommend you accept, Lady Alisa."
"Sharon!"
All in all the lunch between friends was a good one. The food was good, the conversation entertaining, and a good time was had by all.
Which was why it pained Laura to end it so abruptly, "I take it to assume your earlier words had something to do with your mother?"
The archer let out a humorless sigh, "Nothing gets past you, does it? Yeah, one of the main reasons I decided to join you guys was because I need a few days away from Mother and our constant discussions. Not that they can be really called as such considering she doesn't hear a word I say..."
"Rest assured, Lady Alisa, that Lady Irina hears every word you say."
"Somehow I doubt that..." The Reinford groused, "but regardless, even though we've been talking more, we've also been disagreeing more. A lot more."
She glanced down at her empty plate with a scowl before recomposing herself and refocusing back on the two bracers, "I had hoped that the war would lead her away from her commitment to weapons development, but I think it had the opposite effect. She's consolidated the divisions so nobody can operate without at least some oversight from her, yes, but that just means she has greater influence on how everything operates."
Alisa held up a finger, "The secret Fifth Division that was responsible for so much of what happened? On paper it was dissolved, but in reality Mother simply repurposed it into the other divisions before letting it resume operations. Soldat production is currently running at three-hundred percent at what the Noble Alliance was capable of achieving, and she hired Professor Schmidt and the Roer Institute to help develop a second generation of soldats making use of lessons learned from the war."
Second finger, "Same goes for the Pantagruel. Although mother hasn't mentioned anything specific to me, I'm positive she's taken the schematics for that ship and turned it into a next-generation battleship that can compete with Calvard's famed Baten Kaitos class airships. Producing a single craft of that size would take the resources of a small city and I doubt mother's going to stop at one."
Laura grimaced as a third finger was raised, "Weapons? Tanks? Archaisms? All are being produced at record levels." And a fourth, "But the worst of it might be one project that she's kept a complete secret even from me. Which probably means it's something I'm really gonna loathe when I find out."
Despite herself Laura couldn't help but glance towards the maid that had been silently standing behind Alisa with a neutral expression on her face. Naturally the enforcer noticed and shook her head, "My apologies, but Lady Irina has ordered my silence on the matter."
"Yikes. " Fie muttered as a fuming Reinford worked to catch her breath after her long outburst, "My old family tried to kill us during the war and I still think they're more enjoyable to be around than your mom. No offense."
"None taken." Alisa laughed humorlessly, "All things considered I think I'd prefer the honesty of jaegers right now. Whenever I try to question her about this weapon expansion she brushes me off as being naive. 'We've entered a period of great opportunity, Alisa, and we would be fools to not capitalize on it.' Is how she always replies. I get the need to rebuild the army after the war, but this goes well beyond it. It's like..."
"They're building up for the next war." Laura finished as her mind drifted back to the rising tension with North Ambria and the Calvard Republic. "...And maybe the ones after that as well."
The heiress let out a tired sigh, "She even had the gall to call me a hypocrite because I've chosen to involve myself with the creation of a new ARCUS model and Orbal Staff. And it's not like I can refute her on that either..."
"I'm not sure I would agree with that assessment." Laura felt the need to chime in, "While they can indeed be used as weapons of war, that isn't their only purpose. Similar to the sword, the spear, or the bow they can be used in more noble ways. I'm not sure you can say that about the tank or the soldat."
"Especially since we know you got involved with those projects thanks to Class VII. I'm sure Emma and Elliot will love the new staves, but I wanna know more about the new orbment. Is it awesome?"
While she hid her eagerness better than Fie, Laura too was curious to hear about the new orbment model to replace their ARCUS. Their old orbment had become such an integral part of both her fighting style and her growth as a human, so any improvements to the original would be of great benefit to her.
Their words must have been at least marginally effective in cheering Alisa up as she let out a giggle, "Well, I can't tell you much just yet since it's still in the planning stages, but if even half the features we're trying to incorporate end up working it'll be a massive improvement. My only role in the project is to liaison with the Epstein Foundation as they are the primary ones designing it. Speaking of, I'd love to introduce you to the girl I'm working with over there – She's actually younger than Fie, but a total genius. And she's probably the biggest Mishy fan to ever exist."
"How curious..." Laura would indeed very much like to meet this girl. As someone who just recently went to Mishelam Wonderland and ended up a card-carrying member of the Mishy Fan-club she was very intrigued by the possibility of a kindred soul.
"And where do you stand on all this?" Fie asked Sharon even as the busy maid worked to clear the tables of their meal.
"As always I remain an impartial observer in the discussions between Lady Irina and Lady Alisa. But even if I am unwilling to take a side just know how proud I am of my Lady Alisa for gaining the strength to stand on her own two feet on these matters."
"Gee. Thanks, Sharon." Although Alisa's response was sarcastic it was impossible for the blonde girl to keep the tiniest hint of a smile off her face. Despite everything she truly valued her maid.
The Reinford family was truly unique in how it operated, but Laura supposed that was the case for most families. Fie, Rean, Jusis, Emma, and so forth...
Once again she found herself grateful to her father for everything he's done for her.
Alisa clapped her hands, "It's still a little early, but do you want to head out now?" If she hadn't already explained the reasons she wanted to go on this trip the excitement and impatience on her face would've done the trick.
"Sure." Fie agreed readily, "But I wanna stop by the orbal shop before we get on the train."
"Huh?" Laura was confused. Fie had made no hint prior about this, "I don't mind, but why do you need to go there?"
"Wanna see if they actually banned you from the store."
The Arseid let out a miserable groan. Of course that was her reason. She was never gonna live that minor incident down, was she?
It was all she could do to avert her eyes from a giggling Alisa.
"Very well. I wish the three of you luck on your missions. I shall ensure nothing goes wrong in your absence, My Lady."
"She was able to recruit quite a few new members. Four or five, I think. I have seen them on occasion playing in the field together."
"Heehee. I'm glad Ferris was able to keep the Lacrosse Club going. Maybe the next time work takes me into the capital I'll stop in and see if they'll let me play with them."
""I am sure Ferris would love that. She misses you dearly." Laura paused as she tilted her head in thought, "...Although don't be surprised if she gives you an earful first."
Alisa's smile dimmed slightly, "I'm not surprised. I'd have felt pretty betrayed if she had been the one to up and leave me like that, especially with Emily and Theresa graduating." But she perked up right after, "How have your clubs been going. I heard you both ended up as club captains...?"
"We did." Laura confirmed with a smile of her own, "The Swimming Club is doing well. We didn't get too many new members this year, but with Monica and Caspar there we still have a full club. And I know I can trust them to handle things during my absences."
"..." Came Fie's own response, which wasn't surprising considering she had once again fallen asleep the second the three had boarded the freight train. They still had a couple hours until reaching the border separating Erebonia from the Nord Highlands.
Of course Fie was Fie. Laura knew there was a very real chance the girl was simply faking being asleep while she listened to their every word.
There was one way for Laura to test that theory, "As for this one, I'm honestly surprised the Gardening Club is doing as well as it is. Between her and Vivi I'd expect nothing to get accomplished, but somehow that club is surviving. Barely. They only got a couple new members and I'm not sure they're actually growing much, so we'll see if it survives the year."
Heh. There it was. The slightest twitch of Fie's expression as she listened to her pillow show disrespect towards her club.
The two descended into a companionable silence for a few minutes. The blue-haired noblewoman took the time to glance out the train's window, "It's hard to believe we're still in Erebonia..." She muttered at last as she took in the scenic view.
"Yeah. There are very few settlements past Roer, so it's just a lot of hills and nature until we reached the mountains." Alisa agreed, "I think you'll like the Nord Highlands. It's a great place to get away from everything. Despite all the chaos and uncertainty the month I spent here with Gaius and Millium was a special one for me. It's no wonder my grandfather moved out here."
"I am most certainly looking forward to it." The Arseid replied truthfully, "I've spent the past year listening to you and the rest of Group A talk about how amazing the place was. You're the lucky those of us in Group B had the restraint to avoid talking about the beauty of Bryonia Island constantly." She retorted good-naturedly.
...Although the main reason for that might have been because none of her group was truly able to appreciate the deserted island due to a childish and juvenile feud that felt like a different lifetime ago.
"Did you know they've discontinued Blade?" Alisa asked out of the blue a few minutes later.
"Wait, really? Blade II as well?" Laura asked in surprise. The 'sleeping' girl on her lap shifted slightly at the news, "Rean is going to be devastated..."
The Reinford heiress giggled at that comment, "It's true! I represented my division at a trade expo last month and met with the developers. There they unveiled a new card game that is more focused on tactics and deck-building over raw luck. The working title is Pocket Monsters but I expect a name that uninspired to change before release."
"Were you able to learn anything about the game?" Although her interest in Blade wasn't nearly to the same level as Rean's, there was no denying the game had a lot of sentimental value to her. So many of their field studies had their train rides marked with the game, after all.
"I did! They had a couple decks out for guests to try out and I was fortunate enough to try a game for myself. It's quite unique. Basically each player has a deck filled with monster cards and magic cards, with the goal being to kill the opposing player's leader monster before they do the same to you. There's a lot of strategy involved as each monster has an elemental affinity and they can only attack from certain spots on the game board."
"Huh. How intriguing. I will need to keep an eye out for when the game is released."
Alisa bobbed her head in agreement, "I may or may not have used my position to secure multiple decks upon release. I was thinking about sending them to all of Class VII."
Laura smiled gratefully, both at her friends foresight and at her authority. "I think we'd all like that."
Fie seemed to agree judging by the way she relaxed.
"I'll make sure it happens, then. In that case..." The blonde girl reached into a pocket before pulling out a very familiar deck and showing it to the Arseid, "How about a few final games for old time's sake?"
Zender Gate marked the end of the line and was the place where the three girls disembarked. It was already late in the afternoon, but Alisa assured them they only needed an hour or two before reaching their final destination by horseback. A few soldiers on duty gave them curious looks, but since nobody bothered to approach them Laura could only assume either they had been briefed as to their arrival or the military base was simply in such a peaceful state that civilian travelers coming to and fro were nothing unusual despite the lingering hostilities with the Calvard Republic.
"Gaius said he'd arrange to have horses available for us." Alisa stated.
"I see." Laura muttered. That made sense. The nomads of Nord were synonymous with horse travel, after all. "I suppose that means we should find an officer and see if they are ready?"
"Nah." Fie disagreed even as kept up the facade of a girl who had just woken up by giving a stretch and a yawn, "I have a funny feeling those horses over there are ours."
Naturally both she and Alisa followed their companion's pointed finger to see a trio of horses grazing peacefully on the grassy plains just outside the base. That in itself wouldn't necessarily mean they were for Class VII, but the figure standing near them told a different story.
Gaius must have noticed that they had spotted him as he gave a wide smile and a nod of his head.
The trio of girls approached their friend, eager for another long overdue meeting between Class VII members. Fie – ever the swiftest of them all – was the first to exit the tunnel and step forth into the sun, "Sup, Gaius? How's it... oh."
The Arseid blinked in surprised confusion. Fie wasn't normally the type of person to get distracted like that, especially while greeting a friend after so long. What could have caused such a-
Oh. Wow.
Come to find out the stories she'd constantly heard about the Nord Highlands hadn't done it justice. Green plains and hills as far as the eye could see with very few signs of human presence. She could make out many monsters in the distance, but even they for the most part seemed to be peacefully coexisting upon the vast sea of grass.
There truly was nothing like this in the many places she'd visited in Erebonia.
A giggle from Alisa broke her from her reverie, "Were we like this when we came here on our field study?"
Gaius too let out a laugh, which was enough for Laura to color slightly in embarrassment, "Pretty similar, yes. Still, it warms my heart each time I see one of my classmates appreciating the beauty of my home."
Bashfully Laura looked away from her still grinning friends, "I-It's good to see you again, Gaius. And thank you for inviting us into your home."
"I believe I should be the one thanking you all. You are the ones who've traveled a great distance to assist me, after all."
"It's our job. Plus, it gets us out of school for a few days. Kinda missed having long field studies like this." Fie waved off his gratitude with casual ease, "We still don't know what we're here to do, by the way..."
The unspoken question was clear, but Gaius merely shook his head, "How about I save the details until we reach my home? I'm sure the three of you are tired after such a long journey and we still have a fair distance to go."
Despite her own curiosity Laura nodded her ascent. It had been a long trip, after all. Fie seemed slightly miffed at being told to wait, but it was her own fault for sleeping most of the trip.
"Is your home still at the foot of the hills?" Alisa asked, earning a nod from their friend. Turning to the two bracers she explained, "It's only about an hour from here on horseback."
"In that case I see no reason for us to delay."
Laura wasted little time in mounting one of the horses, with Alisa and Gaius both doing the same. The only one who didn't... "Three horses." Fie muttered with disdain.
"As far as I was aware you didn't know how to ride a horse. Was I mistaken?"
"Nah, you're right," The short girl answered Gaius with a frown, "but it still sucks being someone's backpack."
"I wouldn't mind teaching you the basics if we get a free moment." The Nord offered helpfully.
The lithe bracer offered a shrug, "Maybe, but I have a bad feeling that horses and I won't agree with each other. Feels like the kind of thing that'd happen. Think I'll just stick with orbal bikes."
"At least you don't need to worry about killing your mount thanks to your reckless driving on a bike." Laura groused, "Now will you hurry up and get on a horse?"
Fie glared spitefully at her, but did as she said regardless. Except instead of Laura's horse the petty girl climbed up behind Alisa, "I bet you don't drive a horse like an old man like a certain someone here does."
Laura couldn't help but twitch in mild annoyance, "First of all I don't drive like an old man. Secondly a horse is different from a bike. You don't drive it. And lastly, Alisa make sure her grip remains tight. It'd be pretty embarrassing if she were to fall off the horse because she fell asleep while riding."
Was it equally petty of her to get in the last shot? Probably. Did she care? Not in the least.
With a chuckle Gaius spurred his horse into action. Laura and Alisa were quick to follow suit, and together the four of them began what they hoped to be a pleasant trek through the Nord Highlands.