Happy holidays to you all! Once again I come bearing the gift of a bonus chapter. Hope you all enjoy!

Class VII stood before Valimar as the time for their journey to Legram had finally arrived. After a day of rest both Rean and his machine were well-rested and he could barely contain his excitement at their next destination. Soon he would be reunited with Emma, Jusis...

And especially Laura. His brain balked at the idea that he had favorites among his friends, but his heart wouldn't be denied. He would have to make it up to the others later, but right now the primary reason for his excitement was seeing the remarkable woman who always managed to inspire him to do better, both as a swordsman and as a human.

There was just one problem. "Two waveforms detected in Legram to the south-southeast. All vital signs appear normal."

"W-Wait a second! Two? Last time I asked, you said there were three!" By this point Rean knew he could trust Valimar, so if he was saying two...

All kinds of worst case scenarios were going on in his head, but both Valimar and Celine assured him that there were other possibilities as to the discrepancy. If someone were on the move he wouldn't be able to detect them, for example. But that just left more questions for Class VII. Who was missing, and why?

Still, despite his worries, idle speculation accomplished nothing and at the very least two of his friends were there waiting for him. They would simply need to find them and from there get an answer as to where their final friend had gone.

With that decided it was time to leave, but Rean found himself the center of many gazes. They needed him to decide upon the traveling team for this mission. "U-Um..." They had already decided to keep the team to four plus Celine, but with more people available now it was a lot harder to pick.

"Already called dibs. I'm coming." He nodded in agreement as Fie approached to stand alongside him, having already expected as much. But as for the other two...

"Ooh! Ooh! Pick me! Pick me!" The excitable Millium shouted. "I wanna see Jusis!" Her enthusiasm was contagious and he couldn't help but nod to her, causing her to let out a cheer as she ran up and high-fived Fie.

"Well, if you're taking volunteers mind if I come?" The bracer in the group offered. "Wouldn't mind the chance at stopping in at the Legram branch and getting some info on what's going on."

Personally Rean was all for it, but glanced towards the others to be sure. "Any objections?" A chorus of negative answers was his answer. "Alright, it looks like we have our team. Everyone, please take care of Ymir for me. Sharon, I entrust my father's health to you."

"Of course, Master Rean. It would be my pleasure."

Knowing that both his home and his family were in good hands the assembled five went to his Divine Knight. "Valimar, open the Spirit Path! Our destination: Legram." The cat ordered.

"Acknowledged. Activating Spirit Path..."

Rean let out a breath as the now familiar sensation of the Spirit Path overtook him. There were still things to worry about, but hopefully soon they would all be together again...

"So what you are saying is if we were to go to the castle and dispatch whatever fiend is causing all of these troubles..."

"Right." Emma agreed with a nod. "While it won't solve the root of Erebonia's problems, it should at least be enough to alleviate the troubles around Legram. It should buy us some time, at the very least."

That was enough for Laura. "Very well. In that case, We shall depart posthaste and take care of it. Please handle things in my stead, Klaus?"

"As you wish Lady Laura, but are you sure that this is the wisest course of action?" He too had been present during Emma's explanation.

And she could understand his concerns. According to her friend there was a very high likelihood that fiends like the one they first encountered in the Old Schoolhouse might be present at Lohengrin Castle. Fiends that took much of Class VII working in tandem to dispatch. Right now it was just her and Emma. Klaus and his students were needed to protect the town, after all. A task that had become increasingly difficult in recent days as the monsters outside continued to grow fiercer and more aggressive.

But that was all the more reason for her to commit to this. "Perhaps not, but it needs to be done. If I cannot do something as simple as this, how can I hope to see our friends again?"

"And I'll be backing her up, of course!" The Arseid heiress could only nod her head gratefully towards her friend.

"Very well." Klaus conceded. Although his words seemed resigned it wasn't hard to notice his mustache was curling upwards in a smile. "You are your father's daughter, after all. I will have a boat prepared for you immediately. But afterwords, with your permission, I would like to stop at the Bracer's Guild and let Miles know what is happening. Perhaps he will be able to send backup."

Although she gave her assent, all present knew it was almost certainly a futile venture. What few bracers were still active in Erebonia were mostly concentrated in the west where the fighting was supposedly fiercest. The odds of someone arriving soon enough to provide assistance were slim to nil. Still, if nothing else she could appreciate the gesture.

With plan in motion the two girls made their preparations for the battle ahead. Something which was easier said than done as the fog had grown so thick that even she was struggling to safely walk around the town despite having lived their her entire life. It was further motivation that the path she had chosen was the correct one as Legram could not survive a situation like this indefinitely.

At least the fog was enough to mask their departure. While Laura would never hold anything but love for the people of Legram, she could not deny that they could occasionally be a bit overbearing at times, her most ardent fans especially. Not to mention that one strange woman that she had heard had been making trouble at the inn recently...

Arriving at Legram the group was met with... a whole lot of mist. So much so, in fact, that Rean initially had no idea where they were even though it was a place that Group A had been at that summer: The animist ruins where they had their first encounter with an archaism. It was only thanks to Toval and his experience with the area that they had any idea where they were supposed to go.

After finally gaining their bearings the group departed in the general direction of where they hoped Ebel Highway was. It was a treacherous route, as their starting point was on a small plateau and with visibility so poor they could barely see the path down. On the plus side this was a prime location to keep Valimar hidden until they needed it again.

Bringing Fie along was already paying dividends, as the girl and her sharp senses were the only thing that spared them from blindly walking down a steep ledge or into multiple monster encounters. And even those that did attack them only did so after the former jaeger called out the approaching threat, giving them plenty of time to prepare.

After a harrowing few minutes the group arrived at the highway. Although they couldn't fully let their guards down, the road provided two advantages that they had previously been lacking: Orbal lamps to at least deter monsters a little bit, and more importantly a path that would guide them all the way to Legram.

Unlike his excursions to Celdic and Nord, Valimar had dropped them off fairly close to their destination and within an hour or so they had reached Legram, not that they could easily tell given the dense fog. Initially Rean had wanted to go straight to the Arseid mansion or the training school as they were the most likely places Laura would be, but Toval instead suggested they stop at the Bracer Guild first, as that was much closer and would be a good place to gather intel. As they were both valid points, Rean reluctantly agreed and that was where they headed.

As the door was not locked Toval opened it and the group entered. Inside were two men. One was the receptionist, but the other was very familiar to him. "Klaus!"

"Oh, are they acquaintances of yours?" The receptionist asked the butler before doing a double-take as he got a good look at the group. "Wait... Toval?!"

"What's going on, Miles? You're back here, then?" He greeted the receptionist before turning to the older man. "It's great to see you, too, Klaus."

The butler smiled. "It certainly is – and I feel the same way about meeting Lady Laura's classmates. I hadn't expected we would next meet here." Turning to the entire group, Klaus gave a professional bow. "Allow me to reintroduce myself to you. I am Klaus, and I serve Viscount Arseid and his family. I am most relieved to see that you are all well and in good health. I'm certain that Lady Laura will be very happy to see you again."

Although his father was just a minor baron with no servants of his own, Rean wasn't wholly unfamiliar with the professional speech of butlers. But so caught up in it he was just a little slow at catching the implications of the final bit of it. "Laura really is here?" Fie asked, her normally aloof attitude falling away as genuine excitement took hold.

"She certainly is. She has been staying here with Lady Emma for some time. Although I fear you have just missed the two of them. They left not long ago."

Even though he already heard the name from Toval, the receptionist introduced himself as Miles. The bespectacled bracer suggested that they swap info. Toval offered a half-hearted shrug, leaving the decision in his hands.

While Rean was chomping at the bit to get going, he knew that pausing to trade stories was a good idea. And even though Miles was a complete stranger, given his time spent with Instructor Sara and Toval he had come to trust the supporting gauntlet. With help from his classmates he began to describe everything that had happened since his awakening. Briefly during his tale Klaus left the building, but as he was back just a minute later they didn't pay much heed to it.

Once finished Klaus and Miles regaled them with everything that had happened with Laura, Emma, and Legram. How they arrived not long after the Civil War began with Jusis and a couple others Thors students, to the civil war's effects on the town, the missing Viscount, and most ominously the unceasing fog and unusual happenings that had been taking place in the area.

It was a lot to take in at once, but it was Celine of all people who brought the discussion back on topic, reminding the group that Laura and Emma had gone somewhere. Although the cat tried to remain aloof, the swishing of her tail gave away her impatience. Rean couldn't say he didn't understand her feelings, either.

"Indeed. They left not long ago. Emma said she sensed something out of the ordinary over at Lohengrin castle. After that, they hurried there aboard a boat to investigate."

There was a pitiful whine that came from Millium's mouth. "That place again? After everything that went down during our field study, I am NOT a fan..."

"We encountered some pretty strange things when we visited last time..." He mused in agreement with Millium. Fiends, ghosts, and that terrifying Nosferatu... "And only the two of them went there?" Now he was regretting taking the time to trade info since it seemed the two might be in danger.

Klaus nodded with a serious expression on his face. "Yes. I did try and convince them to do otherwise, but they remained adamant. They insisted 'If we cannot do something as simple as this, how can we hope to see our friends again?" I could hardly bring myself to press the matter further after hearing as much."

Despite the urgency of their situation Fie couldn't help but grin. "Sounds like something they'd say."

"Well, our course is set." Toval stated before glancing towards the swordsman. "We're gonna help them out, right?"

"I agree. Let's head to Lohengrin Castle!"

Klaus gave a grateful bow. "Please, assist them however you can. I have already passed on a message to have a boat prepared for you. As soon as you are ready to depart, make your way toward the pier."

"Thank you. We will."

And with that the group filed out. As much as he would have liked to tour the lakeside town, now was regrettably not the time for it. Together the three members of Class VII, bracer, and cat made their way to the dock, where as promised a boat was waiting for them.

After a boat ride that was a lot more difficult than it needed to be thanks to the almost impenetrable fog covering Lake Ebel, the swordmaiden and witch silently began the ascent up the long windy path to the castle. The only other time Laura could recall the castle feeling quite so oppressive was the last time they had been here on that field study, and given how that turned out she was sure that a hard battle awaited them.

Undaunted by those grim prospects the two entered the castle, not meeting any opposition along the way. Unlike the earlier excursion, there were no fiends roaming the halls, but neither dared let their guard down. From those excursions into the Old Schoolhouse they understood that enemies like the one they were looking for had a habit of appearing out of thin air-

As if mocking her thoughts, the area in front of them shined as a massive monster formed into existence. She vaguely recalled seeing the same beast during their trials in what felt like another life, but was actually barely over a month in the past.

"Unsurtr..." Emma mumbled, reminding Laura of the name of the monster that appeared in front of them. The large ice monster gave a roar as it gazed upon them. The Arseid practitioner and class president formed a combat link as they prepared themselves for battle.

It wouldn't be easy with just the two of them, but she refused to lose. The safety of Legram had been entrusted to her and this was merely an obstacle to be removed in pursuit of that mission No mere cryptid would be enough to stop her. This she swore, both as one carrying the Sandlot name and as a proud member of Class VII.

As they crossed the lake Rean listened to Celine talk about what she knew of Lohengrin Castle. The news that she had secretly tagged along on their field study back in August was less surprising than he had expected, but the revelation that a Divine Knight once slept in the fortress threw him for a total loop.

Since she claimed it hadn't been his Ashen Knight or Crow's Azure Knight... just how many Divine Knights existed? And where was this mysterious machine now? It wasn't as if one could easily hide something like that, especially if they have been around for hundreds of years! None of it made much sense to him.

He knew he couldn't doubt her words either, as he vividly recalled the door at the bottom of the castle that was very similar to the one that had held Valimar. It seemed that the more he learned about this mysterious burden he found himself with the more he realized that he didn't actually know much at all. It was disconcerting, but as the news that they were nearing landfall had arrived he knew that he had no choice but to shelve those thoughts until later.

Arriving at the castle they saw a second boat already docked there, confirming that they were on the right path. After securing their own ride the group began their ascent. As much as Rean wanted to go quicker, given how hazardous the path was normally he knew they had to take it slow. Fie didn't seem to get that memo, however, as the surefooted girl was well ahead of the rest of the group as they climbed up the path, curious eyes taking in the legendary fortress for the first time.

As they neared the gate Celine stiffened. "Something's with her. I think Emma's fighting!" The normally aloof cat actually sounded quite worried.

"There's no time to waste! Let's move!"

Rushing in the group soon heard the sounds of battle, which guided them to their destination. Entering the main hall Rean soon bore witness to the two they had been looking for... along with a now very familiar cryptid. "Laura! Emma!"

Neither of them appeared to hear his cry, which might have been for the best as they were locked in deadly combat with their enemy. Not wanting to become a distraction his group instead set themselves up to attack, but only when they saw an opening.

Something which never came to pass, as his two classmates once again reminded him just how skilled they actually were. Laura - with her massive sword - was easily strong enough to pierce the Unsurtr's thick hide while Emma's unique magic was unlike anything like they had seen before. "Lux Lamina!" She yelled as she fired what appeared to be blades of light at the cryptid, staggering it and leaving it wide open. "Now, Laura!"

"Of course!" Rean was not at all surprised when her blade started glowing brightly. He had seen her Radiant Waltz technique enough times to know just how powerful it was. Instead he just chose to sit back and enjoy the awe-inspiring spectacle, knowing that this fight was over. "Begone!" She yelled as she began her strike, carving through the fiend like it was simply made of paper.

"Man, Laura's gotten even stronger." An amused Fie commented from her position next to him as the cryptid dissolved into light. Rean couldn't help but snort at the understatement.

"And Emma's kicking butt with her weird powers, too!" How Laura and Emma didn't hear them with Millium being so loud he would never know. "Guess we didn't need to come after all."

He was about to go over and greet the two, but stopped short. He felt it. Celine must have too as she warned the group. "They're not out of the woods yet!"

Toval already had his ARCUS in hand. "Look sharp! Somethin' big's coming!"

Somethin' big indeed. Rean was not expecting to see a second cryptid appear right where the first one had been vanquished. This one was unfamiliar to him, as it appeared to be a massive lizard with large spores on its body. His assessment was brief, but it was enough for him to realize that this one would be an even bigger threat than the Unsurtr had been. And considering just how tired Laura and Emma looked...

Drawing his tachi, Rean raced to intervene, Fie and the others right behind him. "Laura! Emma!"

Laura couldn't help but grimace at the situation she found herself in. Defeating the cryptid had been a challenge. Its thick hide turned the fight into a rather exhausting struggle. Fortunately her Radiant Waltz was enough to finish the beast for good, as while she had been practicing an even stronger technique in her spare time, it wasn't quite ready for combat purposes yet.

But now she found herself facing a second cryptid, one that looked even more dangerous in her eyes. All of the exhaustion and injuries she had taken in the previous battle were now keenly felt as her sword felt heavy in her hand. Behind her she could tell from Emma's labored breaths that she was in a similar situation.

Still, she raised her blade and prepared for combat. As dire as the situation seemed, giving up was not something she would do. She would not allow something like this to stand between her and the day she would reunite with her friends. As long as there was strength in her body she would continue to fight, even if the situation appeared hopeless-

"Laura! Emma!"

It was quite fortunate that the cryptid wasn't immediately attacking as her guard wavered in that moment. That voice was... Was this merely a dream or had her current state of exhaustion cause her to hallucinate? As much as her instincts as a warrior protested looking away from the enemy, she couldn't resist the urge to give a sidelong glance towards the direction the voice came from.

Her heart skipped a beat. Unless her eyes were also deceiving her... that was Rean standing there, completely unharmed. And it wasn't just him, either. Beside him was Toval, Millium, Emma's cat, and even Fie!

She could not believe it. As much as she had been waiting for her day of reunions, having it appear like this was nearly more than she could handle.

"Rean? Celine?!" Credit to Emma for recovering from her shock quicker. Laura felt like she still needed another minute to fully process everything that was happening.

"We can explain after we've taken care of things here!" It was unfortunate that she didn't have that minute as the cryptid reared its head back, preparing to strike.

Despite the situation Rean still managed to send her a warm smile that caused her heart to leap in joy. "We'll back you two up! Ready?"

"We're right here with you, Laura!" As if Fie's words hadn't been enough, the telltale sensation of her trying to form a combat link was proof enough of their presence and intentions. Accepting it without hesitation Laura allowed herself to bask in the feeling of her closest friend.

"I can't believe you're here..." She blinked to clear her eyes from the tears that threatened to hinder her vision. There was a time and place for that later, once the threat was eliminated. "Very well. Then lend me your strength!"

As she watched the cryptid begin its attack she felt unworried. Her earlier exhaustion was now a thing in the past as a second wind renewed her body with vigor. In fact, right now couldn't remember the last time her blade felt this light. In that moment, situated in the dark of Castle Lohengrin facing an immensely powerful creature from another world, Laura was truly at peace.

Watching the second cryptid fade back into nothingness after being soundly defeated by Class VII was a satisfying sight. Even though it had been a fierce opponent, utilizing both its massive bulk and poison clouds to keep them at bay, it could not hope to stand against the six of them for long. With its defeat Laura finally allowed the adrenaline to fade from her body, but found herself once again remembering one crucial detail about second winds:

They never lasted long and once it was gone the repercussions could be severe.

Although her heart remained light her body had become heavy and her legs turned to jelly. Without the energy to remain standing she found herself to be no match for gravity and soon found herself falling to her knees.

"Laura!" Glancing upwards from her position on the ground she was greeted with concerned lilac and chartreuse.

"Haha..." She laughed in relief as it all finally began to sink in for her. But that laughter was accompanied by tears of joy and relief. "I-I'm fine. I'm just so happy that my legs appear to have stopped working."

Rean knelt down next to her, a warm smile on his face. "I'm so happy to see you too." He held out a hand to her. "But c'mon. Let's get you off that cold floor."

Looking at the outstretched hand and genuine smile behind it caused Laura to feel surprisingly meek. Mustering her courage, the proud warrior shyly placed her hand in his and allowed his warmth and strength to pull her back to her feet. Briefly she wobbled, but Rean caught her in a hug before she could lose her balance again.

Now firmly enveloped in his warmth she could no longer reign in her emotions. All of the feelings she had bottled in while protecting Legram. All the worry, fear, and feelings of hopelessness. All of that she released as she buried her face into him and cried freely while he continued to hold her tight.

It took a few minutes, but eventually she ran out of tears to shed. Reluctantly, she pulled herself away. "I-I'm so sorry. This was supposed to be such a happy reunion and here I am causing such a scene. I must look like such a mess..."

"Nonsense. I think you look positively radiant right now."

"I think we're all entitled to one sappy cry." An amused Fie drawled from next to them. "Kinda think you still might have handled it better than I did."

"Fie!" The Arseid smiled warmly as she moved to hug her shorter friend, which the usually aloof girl surprisingly allowed. "I missed you so much too."

The silver-hair speedster returned the hug. "Same. It's been boring without you around." The faint sound of sniffling caught her attention. "Damn... Look at what you've done. Now you got me going too."

"Thank you, Laura." Confused, she turned back to look at Rean. "For keeping your promise to me. It really kept me going during those lonely days."

"And I swear to you, this blade shall not be broken! Not before it returns to your side!"

"Of course. I gave you my word. Even if I had no idea where you were, I would never think to leave you behind. My place is at your side."

Fie let out an amused snort. "Not very smooth, Rean. Saying the same thing to her that you said to me just a few days ago, especially when I'm right here."

As Laura joined Fie in giggling at a bemused Rean she couldn't help but feel a sense of normalcy return to her life that had been missing since that day at Trista over a month ago. What the future held she knew not, but for the first time in a while she found herself looking forward to it. She had her friends at her side and that was all that mattered.

"Awwww!" She was reminded of the fact that they weren't alone thanks to Millium's voice. She couldn't help but stiffen as awkward embarrassment took hold of her. "That's soooo cute!"

"Right? I consider myself lucky to see both of these little reunions. Real tearjerkers if you ask me." Wait. Why was Toval even present with the group?!

Emma let out a giggle. "I think it's really sweet. It was painful to watch her bottle everything up this entire month without being able to help. I'm so glad everything turned out alright." She turned to the struggling feline in her arms. "See, Celine? Doesn't it make you feel good seeing your hard work pay off like this?"

"Hmph! You wouldn't be saying that if you had gone through half of the crap I did! Can't believe you left me to handle all the explanations...!" Her master only responded by scratching the disgruntled cat behind the ear. "Oooh, that's nice. I suppose it wasn't entirely awful..." It was impossible for Laura to tell if she was being genuine about it or if she simply really liked being pampered.

Under the amused gaze of her friends Laura did her best to regain her composure and wipe away the lingering tear droplets from her face. She knew it was a futile effort, but she had to at least try. "Ahem." She coughed awkwardly. "I am so pleased to see you well, Millium. And you as well Toval, although I have absolutely no idea why you are with them in the first place..."

"Haha. Let's just say it's a long story. I'd be happy to tell you guys, but perhaps that should wait until the ride back to Legram? Not a fan of big scary ruins like this. In my experience there are plenty of things hanging around places like this that wanna kill us..."

"He's right." Emma supported. "With both cryptids gone the situation around Legram should start to improve for some time. I don't think that there's anything more for us to do here."

A part of Laura wasn't entirely sold on that, as she had a feeling that this castle still held more secrets that needed to be resolved, but for now at least she was perfectly content with that suggestion. It was time to return home, but now with friends and loved ones at her side. She couldn't be happier with how the day had turned out.

Whew. Doing this last year was a breeze as I was a weirdo who had kept two chapters in reserve in case of emergencies. This year I did not have that luxury so December had been a lot of extra writing. Not to mention how much it screwed with my scheduling...

I briefly considered doing a holiday special for this story as the events of Cold Steel 2 do take place at the end of the year, but ultimately decided against it. It would mean moving ahead in the story, not to mention there's not much cheer to be had in Erebonia right now. Instead you get the gift of the crew finally reuniting with Laura, which is probably better for you anyways.

Especially with the next scheduled update in only a few days which will feature even more happy reunion moments!