<span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="text-decoration: underline"><div style="text-align: center;">Gless - Caletta, Residential District</div></span></span><br/><br/><br/>"How many times do I have to say this guys?!" roared an irritated Alona towards her friends. "Lance had himself reinstated in the knighthood!" she slammed a balled fist on the table aimed at a particular document, nearly toppling over their coffee cups in the process. "And he did it without even telling us! Had I not found this reinstatement letter, we never would have known!" she continued in heated breath before falling back down to her seat, arms immediately folding over her chest.<br/><br/>Silver who was in the process of stilling his coffee cup shifted his gaze towards Alona, a questioning look landing on the eyes of the other. "And why are you so upset?" he asked the fuming woman.<br/><br/>"Why wouldn't I be?!" she retorted. "It was him who convinced us that our business with the knighthood is over after the first war—that we should live out our lives in peace! Now he had himself reinstated and kept us in the dark about it! After everything we all have been through, I think we deserve the right to know his reasons for doing so!"<br/><br/>Akira sighed. It was clear that Alona was just worried about Lance. "I get it Alona, I really do." he started followed by a long breath. "But let me correct you on one point, Lance did not convince any of us to leave the knighthood, and you know this." he leveled his stare at her. "We have all seen things, experienced things that may very well drive an ordinary man insane, but over the course of that harsh journey, we have all made our choices deep down to leave the knighthood. What Lance did was simply taking the lead."<br/><br/>"I...I know that! But still!"<br/><br/>"Alona." Silver called out to her, a certain air of sharpness mixed in his tone. "Whatever his reasons are for re-joining the knighthood, it must have been important to him. Why he chose to remain silent about it was probably because he didn't want us to worry about him." he took a sip of coffee and set his cup down once more. "Or he simply might not have gotten the chance to do so. If you're still worried about him, let's talk to him before he departs to his post."<br/><br/>Cora stretched her arms followed by a wide yawn. All this scowling and growling so early in the morning was making her want to sleep more. "You know..." she trailed off, letting a yawn loose before folding her hands around her warm coffee cup. "If you think about it, maybe Lance left his reinstatement documents on purpose. This might just be his way of telling us that he reinstated." she mumbled mindlessly and lifted her cup slowly to take a sip. "Still, I know Alona isn't going to settle down with just this, let's just go talk to him later. I heard from a group of knights yesterday that "The Lion" will be commanding a squad of his own and about how they're excited to be included in the selection."<br/><br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________</div><br/><br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="text-decoration: underline"><div style="text-align: center;">Grand Cathedral - Council Chambers</div></span></span><br/><br/><br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"Councilors, I propose that we rebuild Santa Olivia."</span><br/><br/>Guilford's words echoed within the chamber amidst the heavy gloom in the air inside it. Both Seraphs had recounted their progress from their last mission with all of the Councilors, stressing every important detail that needed to be mentioned. Now it was time to move on to the last topic on the list, Palaugrim's Great Seal and one of its Anchor Points in Santa Olivia.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"Or at least have an active hand in making sure Santa Olivia remains under our control."</span>he added, realizing that they may not be able to spare the time, resources or even manpower for the effort given that the thirteenth is but a night away.<br/><br/>"Why the sudden interest in Santa Olivia?" Margarette asked the male Seraph.<br/><br/>Guilford inhaled sharply before turning his gaze towards the only female councilor.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Our knights found an Anchor Point in Santa Olivia."</span>he answered calmly.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Lethe and I both confirmed it ourselves."</span><br/><br/>The revelation prompted a stir among the other Councilors, their eyes trying to confirm what they already know from the two Seraphs. Cornelius on the other hand simply remained calm and composed. He pushed away several documents laid out before him and turned his gaze towards Guilford and Lethe. "I trust you kept this information amongst yourselves?" he finally asked the two.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"We did what was necessary Councilor..."</span>Guilford paused, he didn't like the idea of keeping information from people, especially from the ones under his wings.<span style="color: #0080FF">"we made an official statement saying that it was an unknown seal as per our orders."</span><br/><br/>"Good." the leader of the High Council exhaled. "We have already considered your proposal of rebuilding Santa Olivia. However, circumstance prevents us from doing so. Instead, we shall take the initiative at its defense, or as you have put it, having an active hand at making sure it remains within our control." he then shuffled the documents before him expertly. "For now, I need you two to focus on the task at hand." a grim expression befell his features. "The thirteenth moon is almost at hand. I trust our preparations are complete?"<br/><br/>There was a slight wince from Guilford at the blatant dismissal of the topic by Cornelius. Why do they appear less caring about the enemy's discovery of one such anchor point? The mystery behind the four Great Seals was simply too deep. Even if Guilford wanted to press for answers, the councilors would probably just dismiss any further inquiries.<br/><br/>"Master Guilford?"<br/><br/>The question jogged the Seraph back to his senses, shaking his head just a little in an attempt to refocus himself and stay on track.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Yes councilor, the preparations have been made..."</span><br/><br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________</div><br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="text-decoration: underline"><div style="text-align: center;">Palaugrim - Santa Olivia (Flashback)</div></span></span><br/><br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"This is it."</span>Gil panned around a moment before turning his gaze at a hefty pile of rubble.<span style="color: #0080FF">"According to the point where Hyu marked it, <span style="font-style: italic">that</span> should be around here somewhere..."</span>he scratched his head, slightly irritated for forgetting to ask Hyuga about any specific markers to indicate the exact location. Finding himself in a fix, Gil kicked a loose rock away. He was tired, too damn tired to even try sensing for those Magnus Vibrations Hyuga spoke of. The male Seraph began walking around, trying to find what they were looking for through the devastation and rubble before them. If he was a master mage, where would he hide a seal point? Guilford was already in the process of sifting through some loose rocks in places that appeared odd to him when a thought crossed his mind. It was way back in a time when his father showed him a rare breed of insects that visits Rosetta once a year, his words were: "The best place to hide, is in plain sight."<br/><br/>A frown emerged on his features as he sighed.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Great... like that will help me find it easier."</span>he sighed in defeat and turned to his female comapnion.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Any luck on your side?"</span><br/><br/>Lethe watched her fellow Seraph for a few moments as he kicked at the rubble uselessly. Did he think it was under the collapsed building or something..? If Hyuuga had seen the seal like the other Knight claimed, wouldn’t it suggest that the seal was in plain sight? Or, if hidden, there was an already created path that led to its hiding spot. Gil, however, was already stamping around irritably so she said nothing. He must not have gotten as much sleep as her given that she’d left first. Instead of saying anything, the female Knight simply turned around to look as well.<br/><br/>She rather doubted it was out in the open—someone would have said something before now if that was the case—so she was probably looking for a door or a tunnel of sorts? She wandered away from Guilford, searching for any opened doors or unusual openings. A shout had her turning back towards where she’d come from. It sounded like Gil. She was walking back when something caught her eye. Lethe paused to look at it: a destroyed gate that used to border the garrison. There was no easy entrance so she’d ignored it earlier and yet.. something about it…<br/><br/>When she got closer, her confusion both deepened and lessened. This was her symbol on one of the fallen blocks; no doubt its familiar image had been the source of her interest. But why was her symbol on a random piece of rubble in Santa Olivia? She traced the etching with a gloved finger feeling—oh.<br/><br/><span style="color: silver">“Gil!”</span>She shouted to catch his attention, waiting until he was in speaking distance to continue,<span style="color: silver">“Was Leon with Knight Hyuga when he found this?”</span>One hand prodded at the wreckage around her, trying to find the entrance. It had to be close by.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"Yes he was."</span>Gil answered immediately just as he got to her side. Purple eyes immediately fell to the object of her interest and sure enough, there was the presence of lingering magic in the form of her seal. From the way she asked if her subordinate was with Hyuga, it could only mean that it was Leon who did this. Gil sighed, if only Hyuga was more thoughtful like Leon. Then again, there was simply no diverting that man's attention when it comes to something that snags his interest. It was natural of Hyuga to skip meals when in the middle of research so this much was hardly surprising.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Here, let me take a look at that."</span>he said and moved in closer to Lethe, snagging the piece of rock from her hand.<br/><br/>Hailing from a family of blacksmiths, it wasn't that hard for him to tell if a rock came from under the earth, even if it had been exposed to the outside air for quite some time. One glance at it and he immediately knew that this piece of rock was foreign from Santa Olivia's surface.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Unearthed no doubt."</span>he informed his fellow Seraph and handed the rock back to her.<span style="color: #0080FF">"It's possible that we should be looking for a tunnel."</span>he continued and began looking around once more. Now that they have an idea of what to look for, it wasn't that difficult finding the said tunnel. Underneath a thick brush from a garden that used to belong to someone, lies the entrance. The two Seraphs stood before the tunnel, Guilford glancing at Lethe in a non-verbal conversation of who should go in first. She was smaller so it would have made more sense for her to take the lead but the idea of walking into a tunnel dug by Sinners? It wasn't the best there is out there but both knew that this needed to be done. With a deep breath, Guilford drew his sword with one smooth motion and took the lead.<br/><br/>Just a few paces into the tunnel and the meager afternoon light was robbed almost instantly. Guilford reached a hand forward and channeled magic into it, firing a toned down banish bolt that illuminated the length of the one path that led deeper into the tunnel. It took a while before his magic collided with something, enough to tell Guilford the distance they would have to tread until they reach the end. Sword drawn and path lighted by his glowing hand, the two made their way deeper until they reached a large chamber, man-made and large enough to hold the contraption in the middle that held what they were looking for. Guilford sheathed his sword and looked at the Seal Point.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Okay..."</span>he sighed.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Deep down I was hoping not to find this in here..."</span><br/><br/>Ten years, it had been that long since he last laid eyes on a Seal Amplifier. The first time the two of them saw this was during the earlier phase of the Rising. Having just completed their Rite of Transcendence to becoming Seraphs, Guilford and Lethe were both tasked with joining an unknown sect of master mages to take part in raising the four islands. It was a grueling task that lasted for a month, a week of non-stop magic weaving spent for each island raised. Shaking the memory off, Gil turned to his companion.<span style="color: #0080FF">"What now?"</span><br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________</div><br/><br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="text-decoration: underline"><div style="text-align: center;">Gless - Caletta, Grand Cathedral Barracks</div></span></span><br/><br/><br/>"Ooookay! That about concludes this interview. Thank you for your time and you will be notified of the results." Lance hurriedly shooed away the second to the last knight interviewee of the day. Bemused and a little confused, the knight stood slowly, gave courtesy to Lance and proudly walked out the door; an attempt to show Lance that he deserved a spot on the squad that he was forming. The other in turn, was having the time of his life selecting candidates from the not-so-fresh pool of potential entrusted to his discretion. Lance rubbed his temples rythmically to soothe away the forming headache from this effort. It had only been a few days since they returned from Palaugrim and had it not been for that miracle powder Hyuga gave him, he would probably still be in bed right now trying to recover his magic reserves.<br/><br/>He was supposed to form a new squad, orient them with his way of running things, and ultimately lead them into combat faster than he could blink. So far, the High Council had been nice enough to shove responsibility of taming oddballs and certain squad misfits unto him—like a bad joke he deserved for coming back now after all the summons they sent his way. "The pains of the knighthood Lance..." he sighed to himself while shuffling the prowess reports laid out before him to a neat stack. "the pains of the knighthood." he repeated to himself before focusing on the last prowess report. Brown eyes widened for a moment before falling back to their normal size and finally into a squint. "You have got to be kidding me!" he raised both hands in the air, letting the prowess report fall to his desk. The name Yulia Schneider was listed on the prowess report.<br/><br/>Whatever emotions he had earlier faded away, nostalgia sinking into a sepia-colored past. Lance refused to lay his hands on Yulia's prowess report, unsure if he should call her in or disregard the reality and deny that her document was actually right before his eyes. He has not yet come to a decision when his attention was pulled towards the door when a female knight clad in familiar silver armor, lined with gold trimmings along with her trademark blue scarf walked in. He must have had a dreadful expression for when their eyes met, she was visibly startled just a bit.<br/><br/>"I'm sorry! I saw the other knight come out and I thought you were ready for me. Should I come back?" she asked, her tone professional.<br/><br/>At least she was being respectful this time around. The last time they met, she was feisty and didn't seem to take a liking towards him. Lance felt suspicious at the act but decided to play along. She didn't seem to recognize who he was back at Palaugrim, perhaps that still remains? A smile erased whatever negative expression he had earlier as he motioned for the female knight to come in and have a seat. Lance mindlessly picked up her prowess report once more and began perusing it, keeping a close watch on Yulia as he did so.<br/><br/>"Yulia Schnieder." he called her name, prompting the female knight to stiffen a bit. "You are Knight Commander Sigfried's Vice Captain right? Does he know you're here?"