"Time has passed since the end of the great war between humans and monsters," "and the people have sought prosperity by harnessing the power known as 'aer'." "Crystallized aer forms 'cores' which serve to power 'blastia'." "Many different types of cores, through the use of blastia, now provide us with all the necessities for survival and prosperity." "Magic and monsters..." "In this world ruled by powers beyond human understanding, we are continuously faced with decisions to make:" "What should we protect?" "What should we give up?" "How should we live?" "Hold on!" "You're going too fast!" "Pick up the pace!" "Yuri!" "Over here!" "Okay!" "Next one!" "How many do we have to set?" "!" "Our team has three!" "Over here!" "Let's go, Flynn!" "Right!" "Don't fall behind!" "Do you think the other teams will make it?" "Wait!" "We need to follow the plan!" "Quit rushing ahead!" "We don't have time to wait around!" "They're catching up!" "I'll leave it to you!" "No one said anything about these things..." "Yuri!" "All done here!" "No way!" "How...?" "!" "Has the operation failed?" "No!" "Let's keep going!" "None of the other teams are even here yet!" "Shut up, will you?" "!" "The plan's going just fine!" "What did you just say to me?" "!" "I'm a little scared now..." "Wow!" "There's a ton of 'em!" "Back this way!" "Took you long enough!" "W-What the..." "What in the world?" "Oh, man..." "Chastel!" "Everyone's here!" "Hisca!" "Yurgis!" "Get them back here!" "Yuri!" "Flynn!" "Come back!" "O brilliant light, be as a wall to allay arms!" "Force Field!" "Is it... over?" "Looks like it..." "Yuri!" "Flynn!" "Not too shabby for your first job!" "Yuri!" "What?" "Why didn't you follow the mission plan?" "!" "What's the big deal?" "It all worked out in the end." "We almost paid the price for your selfishness!" "Get off my case!" "You're too fussy about everything!" "You're too irresponsible, Yuri!" "Simmer down, you two!" "Now go take care of the clean-up, on the double!" "Yes, Sir..." "See?" "!" "He hit me, because of you!" "You're the one to blame!" "Shut up!" "Captain!" "Lambert..." "The red trees are rapidly approaching the town..." "Aer..." "How long are you going to stay dressed like that?" "!" "Just for a bit." "No harm in that." "Man, you're fussy... about everything." "And look at this floor!" "Get off my case, will you?" "Talk about bad luck." "Getting assigned to the same post, and even the same room as you..." "Someone definitely has it out for me." "That's my line!" "I still don't understand why you would join the Knights!" "I'm coming in!" "What are you two doing?" "!" "It's time!" "I'm sorry." "Hurry..." "This deserted in only a month..." "Business really dried up once the monsters started appearing." "You're late." "I left Chris behind to wait for you." "Your shift's next." "Yes, Sir." "Yuri." "Don't go tearing off on your own like yesterday." "Hey, you!" "Get back here...!" "Seriously!" "Could you stop causing trouble every chance you get?" "!" "Yuri can't help that he's so popular." "Shut up!" "I'm sick of your snide remarks!" "Man, this thing's annoying." "Don't be like that." "You're in charge of looking after Repede." "Hey." "Show me your magic artes." "Huh?" "There's no need for that right now." "I didn't see it yesterday." "I was face-down in the dirt." "And they won't give us any, since we're still rookies." "I don't think they'll ever give you any." "With your connections, I bet you could get yours quick, Flynn." "Your father was a Knight too, right?" "I'll obtain it through my own skill." "Show me, for educational purposes!" "Only if you change your tone." "Show me it now dammit!" "Show me it now dammit!" "Show me it now dammit!" "Are you trying to mock me?" "!" "Ugh, talk about lame...!" "We specialize in healing and defense artes!" "Chastel!" "You can use blastia this way too!" "Oh!" "What are you doin'?" "That was dangerous..." "Captain!" "What are you doing here, Sir...?" "I just checked out the forest." "Now quit standing around and go on patrol!" "Yes, Sir." "Oh, Captain!" "Take this with you!" "It isn't much, though, since we can't hunt in the forest." "Sorry 'bout that." "We'll have the forest safe again as soon as possible." "I'm going to see Garista." "I leave the rest to you." "Yes, Sir." "O-Oh, Captain!" "Take Repede with you." "He's a real nuisance." "Lambert." "Yeah." "Captain!" "I finished what you asked for!" "Oh!" "Toss it down!" "Thanks a bunch!" "He sure is all buddy-buddy with everyone..." "This would never happen with Knights in the capital..." "Well, it is a small town." "We all gotta work together." "But it's also true that he isn't a typical Knight captain." "Making the forest safe soon..." "He promises too much!" "Garista!" "Captain Fedrok." "Hey there, Garista!" "Please keep your voice down in the library." "I want your opinion on somethin'!" "It appears you've subdued most of the monsters in the forest." "All thanks to your strategy." "We noticed an unusual amount of aer there, though." "It has the plants and animals going crazy." "You believe aer is behind the sudden surge in monsters?" "And the unseasonal red foliage?" "Our blastia acted up during the mission, too." "You're saying there's so much aer spewing out that it affects blastia?" "There's no point in subduing these monsters until we stop it first." "Where could it be coming from?" "You know those ruins in the lake upriver?" "Seeing as the red trees are following the river," "I wonder if there's something there..." "Something that's releasing aer, you mean?" "Some sort of blastia, perhaps?" "The place was abandoned, though." "It should be empty." "We'll need to investigate quickly." "A mandate has arrived from the imperial capital." "You're to attend the ceremony three days from now celebrating the tenth anniversary of the end of the Great War." "Our job ain't to stand in lines all formal-like." "If only it were that easy to tell that to Headquarters." "If you're going to attend, you'll need to leave soon." "Say, do you know any aer or blastia experts?" "I believe there's a laboratory nearby belonging to a blastia researcher named Rita Mordio." "Tell me where it is." "You plan to go there?" "What about the ceremony?" "I'll send someone else." "But what about His Excellency Commandant Alexei...?" "!" "I deem this far more urgent." "Very well." "But there is one issue..." "Mordio tends to be a bit... difficult." "You might want to take a present with you..." "Our shift's finally over..." "It's exhausting, being so on-edge lately." "All right." "In that case..." "What are you doing?" "Let's stop by later!" "I'll pass." "Too good to hang out with us?" "!" "He's never going to make it big." "Oh, no." "The guild 's here..." "Talk about bad timing..." "What's a guild?" "I'm sure you had them in the lower quarter of the capital, too." "They act like vigilantes and only care about making money." "They're part of a bigger group called the Union, led by Don Whitehorse." "They're a nasty bunch, basically." "Hold on, Yuri!" "The guy wanted to get to the town on the other side of the forest, so I told 'im to give me all his money up front!" "Don't do it, Yuri." "Welcome!" "Two Mabo Curries." "Oh, and some milk." "Oh, how cute!" "Is this little one a member too?" "It's not official yet." "Just a minute, okay?" "It was a pain in the ass, though, so I ditched the geezer the minute we got outta the forest!" "That wasn't nice." "You were supposed to guard him all the way to town." "Scamming people by doing a crappy job and then boozing it up..." "You're one upstanding guy, all right." "Yo." "You got some real spunk, Mr. Knight." "Let's see you say that to my face this time!" "You two-bit thugs are all alike." "Eh?" "!" "Not so close." "I'm not looking for a boyfriend." "Why, you little...!" "Go stop them, Flynn..." "Yuri started it." "It has nothing to do with" "Don't act all big!" "I just said this has nothing to do with me!" "Whoa..." "Here we go!" "Who the hell are you?" "!" "Hey!" "Bastard!" "Enough!" "You would dare draw a blade in here?" "!" "B-But, Sir..." "Sorry...!" "You've got balls." "It's too bad you're one of the Empire's dogs." "I'm Merzhom Keida." "I run the guild in this town." "Yuri." "Yuri Lowell." "Work's all but dried up lately." "Has everyone high-strung." "I'll make sure they see their jobs all the way through, so I personally ask that you excuse their behavior." "Sure thing, Pops!" "These monsters lately definitely ain't normal." "Nope." "They never used to go near towns with barriers." "What is that bum Niren doing?" "Niren?" "Oh, you mean the captain?" "Sounds like you're on pretty close terms." "It's a boring ol' story." "I hear you conducted a large-scale monster extermination in the forest yesterday." "Yeah." "There are unseasonal red trees in the forest, too." "Seems likely there's some sorta connection, huh?" "Don't know." "But the captain seems to think so." "He's consulting with our strategist." "Keep your big mouth shut!" "You idiot!" "Let's go!" "Oww...!" "I'm not done eating!" "Hey!" "Let go!" "That hurts!" "Okay!" "Okay!" "Raven!" "There's a new job for you." "What?" "!" "Why does he get healing artes?" "!" "This is discrimination!" "Shut up!" "Let that be a lesson to you!" "I feel sorry for you, Flynn." "You're so cold-hearted with me!" "But only a little bit." "Show some respect!" "I'm older than you!" "Oh, your head is hurt too." "Let me see." "Stay still...!" "Why would someone like you join the Knights anyway?" "!" "No real reason." "Nothing else to do, and the pay is decent." "Plus, I'm tough." "In other words, he was wandering around aimlessly, just itching for action." "Shut up!" "He's the same as always!" "He hasn't matured one bit!" "Same for you!" "Your nasty personality hasn't changed at all!" "Childhood friends?" "We grew up together in the lower quarter of the capital, that's all!" "It was like a dream come true when you finally moved away." "And I doubted my eyes when I saw you at the recruitment exam!" "Why did you join?" "!" "Who knows, maybe your old man rubbed off on me." "He was one great guy." "I was a little jealous, not having parents of my own..." "Don't talk about him." "You four." "Go see the captain when you're done." "He's fuming!" "What for?" "!" "We didn't do anything wrong!" "We're members of the Knights, if you haven't forgotten!" "There's a little thing called "discipline"!" "Oh, man!" "My ability to supervise you is gonna be called into question!" "Brawling in a pub..." "Now that's some mundane stupidity..." "I'm sorry, Sir." "It's crazy enough as it is outside the town." "Don't make things any worse on the inside." "But they were way out of line!" "They took an old man's money and then just ditched him!" "I had to teach 'em a lesson!" "I see." "Yeah, I probably would've beat 'em up too." "But the guilds are autonomous groups, free from imperial influence." "They have their good aspects, too." "I find that difficult to believe..." "I'm sure you realize by now that they're handling things that we can't." "For a price, though, of course." "Some guy called Merzhom seemed to know you." "Hmm?" "Oh, yes." "It's a boring ol' story." "What?" "!" "We're not doing business under the table, if that's what you're thinking!" "Are your injuries all better?" "Yes, Sir..." "Then go back to your quarters." "Huh?" "You're not gonna toss us in the stockade?" "What good would that do now?" "That said, I suppose letting you off the hook would serve as a bad example for the others..." "I'll dock the pub's repair costs from your pay." "Oh, and Flynn." "I'm sending you to the imperial capital." "Sir?" "You'll be filling in for me." "I will?" "!" "I have somewhere else to be." "In the meantime, Yurgis is in charge here." "You're to attend the ceremony and deliver this request for reinforcements." "I think something's going on in those lake ruins." "But we lack the manpower to handle it on our own." "Oh, and the "bigger" girl will accompany me." "That's sexual harassment, isn't it?" "It is." "Bigger?" "But they're both the same height." "Right?" "You're to look after Lambert, Yuri." "Again with the dogs?" "!" "Yuri." "What?" "Don't cause any more trouble." "I'm tired of getting dragged into it." "Yeah, yeah..." "You're a member of the Knights." "You need to obey the rules and regulations." "If you can't do that, then you don't belong here." "I don't feel I've done anything wrong!" "Just leave, if you're going to put your own ideas everything else like that!" "Get off my case." "I take it we're lost?" "We're lost." "Can't make heads or tails of it..." "He calls these scribbles a map?" "Sir Garista's so cool, too." "This is a shock..." "Chastel!" "In the grass!" "Looks like an alarm." "Check it out!" "Yes, Sir!" "That way!" "The imperial capital..." "This is a lab?" "Apparently so..." "Hey!" "Anyone here?" "Get lost..." "Wait!" "...you thieves!" "What, is she half-asleep or something?" "A-A child?" "!" "Not so fast." "Rita Mordio, yes?" "We're Niren Fedrok and Chastel Aiheap of the Imperial Knights." "This is our bargaining chip." "What do you want to know?" "We've detected a large amount of aer being produced in the forest near Ceazontania." "So much, in fact, that it's affecting plants and gentle creatures in the area." "It seems kinda strange for aer to produce such effects all by itself..." "Meaning...?" "Just a sec..." "Ceazontania..." "There are some ruins on the lake upstream..." "Oh, I 've scoped that place out before." "But the barrier blastia there was missing its core." "The blastia isn't active, then?" "Nope!" "And I'm pretty sure there wasn't an aer krene there, either..." "Aer krene?" "Kinda like a spring, but with aer instead of water." "Aer flows through the land so you can find it pretty much anywhere, but there are some places where it really gushes out of." "But if it's suddenly producing large amounts of aer now, then it's possible someone inserted a core into the blastia to activate it..." "And maybe it's out of control and spewing out the aer..." "Blastia are useful for generating all kinds of power, but they become dangerous when used improperly." "Assuming this blastia is active, would it be possible to destroy it?" "Can't really say without knowing what kind of core it has..." "Isn't there anything we can do?" "I take it this aer is red?" "Yeah." "It's too concentrated." "If oversaturation is affecting the surroundings, then you'll first need to stop it at its source..." "Just a minute!" "Here." "I built this little one to collect aer." "She might be able to clear it up." "How does it work?" "Set her down and activate her near the source of the aer." "She'll do the rest on her own." "I can't guarantee she'll prove useful." "She's a blastia, so she might be affected too." "Plus, this is all just a theory." "Exactly." "Thanks." "I've been looking everywhere for this core!" "Wait, how'd you find me, anyway?" "One of my men, Garista, told me." "Ah." "Yeah, I hate him." "You're on close terms?" "Heck, no!" "I only met him before in the capital!" "He's a real jerk!" "Huh?" "Are you sure?" "He took the cores I found and turned them into weapons!" "The stupid Empire only sees blastia as tools for war!" "Just a minute." "Here." "This formula will make your blastia immune to the aer's effects." "Immune to the aer's effects?" "Or at least keep it from overloading, anyway." "It won't last long, though." "If you're going to check it out, you should probably hurry." "If this blastia goes out of control, it could take out the town, not just the ruins." "Blastia has the power to protect the city." "So the opposite is just as possible, don't you think?" "I appreciate it." "I thank you again." "This is enough thanks for me!" "Incidentally, do you live out here all by yourself?" "This is just a lab." "I live somewhere else..." "Shut the door, will you?" "Your Excellency Commandant Alexei." "The Council has issued a request." "They ask that Lady Estellise be allowed to attend the upcoming ceremony." "Again?" "They claim the celebration is meaningless without her, since she may be the successor to the imperial throne." "Successor?" "She is merely the Council 's nominee, nothing more!" "Do not allow the Council to come into contact with Lady Estellise." "Is that clear?" "Yes, Sir!" "Your Excellency!" "A messenger from Ceazontania has arrived." "Ceazontania..." "I am Flynn Scifo of the Ceazontania Brigade." "I've come to attend the ceremony as Captain Niren Fedrok's proxy." "Why does Fedrok not come himself?" "Inside you will find a document requesting reinforcements." "I ordered all officers ranked captain or higher to attend this ceremony!" "However, Your Excellency, abnormal aer in a forest near the town has caused many vicious monsters to appear!" "I humbly beg that you read the request!" "When is the ceremony rehearsal?" "It will begin shortly." "Your Excellency!" "I will dispatch reinforcements as soon as the ceremony is over." "Your brigade is to hold the fort for now." "The situation is urgent!" "The citizens are in danger!" "Know your place!" "You need only convey my orders to Fedrok!" "Return at once." "This ceremony is not for the likes of an amateur Knight." "Flynn Scifo..." "The son of Finath Scifo?" "I hear you passed the Knights recruitment exam with flying colors." "I'm sure your father would be most delighted." "My father..." "Don't go dying a pointless death, like your father did." "Don't forget that you're a member of the Knights now." "Flynn..." "Lady Estellise..." "It's good to see you again." "Thank you for coming all the way from Ceazontania." "I pray for the citizens' safety." "Thank you, milady." "The imperial capital is maintaining an uneasy balance right now." "I know it's a lot to ask, but just hang on a little longer." "I'm glad I was the one sent here." "Yuri would've punched His Excellency for sure." "Yuri?" "Who's that?" "Oh, he's just..." "Well, then." "Please be careful." "He's really botched things." "Have them taken care of." "Y-Yes, Sir!" "See?" "I still say taking on a monster in the forest would be way better than this lousy training." "I told you, not until reinforcements from the capital arrive!" "I've never seen anything like that before!" "The barrier will protect the town!" "Hurry!" "Hurry into town!" "Kansuke!" "Fall back to the town!" "Elvin!" "Fall back!" "Yuri!" "That's enough!" "Retreat!" "My daughter Emma..." "She's in the carriage..." "Emma..." "Emma!" "We're going to see your mommy now." "Lambert!" "Lead the way!" "Carry back anyone who's hurt!" "Momma!" "Emma..." "Emma..." "Yuri!" "Retreat back to town!" "Yuri!" "You sure about this?" "There's no money in it for you." "I'll send the bill to your boss." "John!" "Lambert!" "Lambert?" "Lambert!" "Wait!" "Yuri!" "Everyone who can help, come!" "Damn!" "Elvin!" "Hisca!" "Let's go!" "Damn..." "Can't make 'em out, they're all mixed in with the monsters'..." "Lambert!" "Lambert!" "Argus!" "The aer is even thicker than before." "This is aer?" "Normal aer is green, but it apparently turns red when it's abnormally dense." "Is this aer what's caused the trees to wither and animals to turn violent?" "Hey!" "That's our belief." "There's no point in keeping it under wraps now, jeez!" "Boss!" "Bastard!" "Merzhom!" "Stop, Yuri!" "Urgh!" "He never listens!" "Be on your guard!" "Damn!" "I can't believe something this dangerous appeared so close to town..." "Lambert!" "Wait, Yuri!" "Lambert..." "Lambert!" "Stop, Lambert!" "Stop..." "Lambert..." "Lambert..." "Lambert!" "I'm sorry..." "Lambert!" "Damn it!" "I'm sorry, Repede..." "Your dad..." "I had to..." "What happened?" "!" "The monsters have made it all the way to the bridge!" "Hisca!" "Hisca!" "Are you all right?" "!" "Hisca!" "Lambert and the others..." "Suddenly they were like monsters..." "Then they all..." "And then Yuri..." "Hisca..." "I heard what happened." "Look after Repede." "I bet he's gonna feel lonely for a good while..." "I'm sorry." "Nothin' to apologize about." "Head back to your room now." "Don't catch a cold." "W-Wait!" "This path sure is rough on an old guy like me..." "What's going on this late?" "I-It's the truth!" "Our blastia suddenly exploded when we tried to use magic artes!" "Exploding blastia?" "!" "One of Alexei's Royal Guard!" "Who's he talking to?" "!" "Damn!" "What?" "!" "Thank you;" "I'll take charge of the report." "Looks like things are starting to get a little complicated..." "Mister!" "You can have this." "Thank you for yesterday." "Flynn..." "You sure have it easy, taking care of some dogs..." "What?" "I'd say you have it easy." "I hope standing in line at the ceremony wasn't too tough for you." "Move!" "I'm busy!" "Must be nice getting pampered just because your dad was a Knight too!" "You..." "I guess that's the one thing you're good at, huh?" "!" "How many times do we have to go through this?" "Go hit the baths." "Then we'll talk!" "There's no time to be so laid-back!" "We gotta do something!" "We can't for now." "He said they can't send reinforcements until after the ceremony." "His orders are to hold the fort." "I will bring you the documents later." "I see." "Thank you." "Did you even explain the situation to them?" "!" "I did!" "But this is what Headquarters decided!" "Wait until after the ceremony?" "We can't just sit around doing nothing!" "I said the same thing!" "They just don't see us as a priority!" "There's nothing we can do!" "People have died, you know!" "Are you suggesting I didn't try hard enough?" "!" "That's enough!" "Flynn." "Sounds like I gave you an unpleasant task." "That was inconsiderate of me." "I apologize." "Captain!" "The situation is continuing to worsen." "We won't be able to protect the town should the monsters attack again!" "Tomorrow, we'll investigate the ruins." "You can't be serious!" "People will die if we go ahead with this!" "We can't disobey an order from Headquarters!" "Thinking of your old man?" "My father, he ignored orders." "Headquarters had stopped the attack, yet he..." "People in the lower quarter were dying." "He did it to protect you and the citizens." "My father died disobeying orders!" "There was nothing left of him afterward..." "I don't want to make the same mistake my father did!" "Our job is to protect the people who live here." "That is my duty as a Knight." "Perhaps you should wait until you've been a Knight for a while before deciding if your old man's actions were really a mistake?" "We leave early tomorrow morning." "Understood?" "Garista." "Inform the others." "Yes, Sir." "Sorry about earlier." "I didn't know Lambert had died..." "No, I should apologize." "I was just shocked they refused to send reinforcements..." "They never brought back my father's body." "Only a few of his personal effects." "Once you die, it's all over." "There's nothing left." "That's why I don't agree with tomorrow's mission." "The monsters are practically on our heels now." "What happens if they get inside the town?" "The barrier's there." "They can't get inside that easily." "I'm with the captain on this one." "We asked for reinforcements in the first place because it's too much to handle on our own!" "It's our duty to wait!" "More people will get hurt if we do." "I've had enough of people dying!" "It's all over if we die too!" "I'm going to see Repede." "Have you reconsidered your decision at all?" "The ceremony will end tomorrow." "Wouldn't it be wiser to wait?" "It'll take 'em days to assemble a unit and send 'em here." "Even so..." "Besides, I'd prefer to take care of this before they arrive." "Why is that?" "I hear Alexei is really interested in blastia." "If there is a powerful blastia in the ruins, he might order us to bring it back in working condition." "It's wreaking havoc with the aer and turning living creatures violent." "The citizens, Knights, and livestock were all harmed while we were away." "I want to avoid any more casualties." "I understand." "I'll formulate a route for you." "Thanks." "I'm also worried about taking blastia with us." "Should the effects of the aer cause them to go haywire..." "Not having magic artes could affect the squad's morale, however." "We still haven't learned to fully control the way in which cores provide blastia with energy." "I'm sure they activated a little late last time, that's all." "All right." "We'll take blastia then." "It's me, Yuri." "It's open." "What's up?" "Oh, just couldn't sleep..." "That ain't like you." "Here." "Some juice for you." "Thanks..." "Your wife and daughter?" "Oh, yeah." "They're both dead, though." "Happened in another incident." "I wasn't able to protect them." "Back then, I was a firm believer that the Empire's orders were absolute." "Even when acting on my own might've saved their lives..." "Anyway, a lot happened after that, and I got sent to the middle of nowhere." "It's actually pretty nice and easy out here, so far away from the capital..." "It's sure biting us in the ass now, though." "Still, I don't want this to be a repeat of the past." "Flynn's old man was really something..." "He was a real negative guy, but I have a lot of respect for him." "Guess it boils down to wanting to personally protect what's dear to you." "Yes?" "I'm sorry to bother you at this hour..." "What can I do for you?" "Won't you sit?" "N-No, thank you." "We have an early morning ahead of us..." "You don't seem to agree with tomorrow's mission." "I'm a member of the Knights." "My personal feelings are beside the point." "I, too, am a little troubled by Captain Fedrok's decision." "Why does he insist on placing the brigade in danger?" "I believe we should obey Headquarters orders and protect the town until reinforcements arrive." "It appears you don't take after your father." "I met him once before, you see..." "Captain Fedrok's actions actually remind me a lot of your father." "However, His Excellency's orders are absolute." "Captain Fedrok should obey orders, just as your father should have." "Flynn Scifo." "Are you still going to go, knowing you're committing insubordination?" "As a Knight, I will obey the person in charge of this town." "I don't fully agree with him, but I also wish to learn the meaning behind the captain's words." "Good night." "A shame." "He might have made a fine servant for His Excellency..." "Are you all right?" "I have to drink for my dead pal too...!" "Okay!" "Time to drink more!" "You need to go home." "Let's go back." "Our brigade will now follow the river and enter the ruins on the lake." "Our objective is to investigate the ruins and identify and resolve the cause of the aer disturbance." "I'd prefer to wait for reinforcements from the imperial capital, but this is a matter of emergency." "The city will be in grave danger if we don't stop the aer now." "We must protect the people!" "So, um..." "Shall we go?" "Yuri." "What's the matter?" "Why are you up so early?" "Are you guys going somewhere dangerous?" "Sheesh, where'd you hear that?" "Don't worry." "You know how tough I am." "Captain..." "C'mon." "Don't look like a bunch of grumps." "We'll be gone for a bit." "Wait for us, and don't leave the barrier, okay?" "Life will be back to normal soon." "Just hang on a little longer." "Let's go." "Talk about reckless." "They have no idea what they're up against..." "After we went and warned 'em, too..." "That's Niren for ya..." "But, y'know, having them owe us one doesn't sound half-bad..." "You serious?" "You need to report to the Don!" "Scram!" "Yeah, yeah!" "Well, take care." "Captain?" "Yurgis." "Give your blastia a try." "Huh?" "Yes, Sir..." "What the?" "!" "It's the aer here." "We can't use our blastia?" "!" "That's where these come in." "These formulas will keep them from overloading." "I made enough copies for everyone." "They don't last long, though." "Use 'em as a last resort." "You knew our blastia would go out of control, Sir?" "!" "Yeah." "That's why I said this is an emergency." "We can't let the town's Barrier Blastia go haywire." "Let's move." "You're only telling us now?" "!" "Could've prepared us before we left!" "My bad." "I forgot." "Huh?" "!" "You're unbelievable!" "You gotta be kidding me!" "Is it really okay to leave this old guy in charge?" "Shut up!" "Let's go!" "Come on!" "I guess this explains why we haven't run into any monsters..." "Hey, I dunno about this..." "Are we gonna end up like that too?" "Stay alert!" "There's no telling what might happen!" "Frozen Arrows, ready!" "Don't hit David now!" "Fire!" "Pull him out!" "Away from the swamp!" "Hurry!" "That swamp monster seemed to react to sound and movement." "We'll split into two teams now." "One will cross the bridge and enter the ruins; the other will give support." "The support team will provide cover all the way to the entrance, secure a return route, and then wait for the infiltration team to return." "Captain!" "Let me avenge Lambert." "I'm counting on it." "Yurgis!" "Assign the teams!" "Yes, Sir!" "Those with crossbows, you're on support." "Those with swords, axes, or defensive artes, you're on infiltration." "Support team!" "Use the formulas the captain gave you!" "Flynn!" "Get over here!" "Over here, Flynn." "Thought you didn't agree with this?" "It's still my duty." "Everyone ready?" "There it is!" "Hurry!" "You're dealing with us!" "Let's go!" "Now comes the real challenge." "Stay sharp!" "Captain!" "It's flowing from there..." "Let's follow it to the source!" "What is it?" "Careful, Flynn." "Yes, Sir." "Even further down, huh..." "There's the entrance." "Oww..." "Yo." "Merzhom!" "You're getting old, Niren..." "Right back at ya." "Hey, Yuri." "You look like your back's against the wall." "You sure like to butt in, huh?" "You have no charm at all!" "If the town bites the dust, we're outta work too!" "Plus some of my men need avenging." "Let's finish this once and for all." "Captain!" "The pain's gone now." "I'll be fine." "Take off your blastia." "Huh?" "But..." "If it goes off, it'll take us all out!" "Y-Yes, Sir!" "This is it, all right." "I'm counting on you two!" "Niren!" "Swords don't work!" "Flynn!" "Yuri!" "Cut the red cords!" "Yuri!" "Right!" "Let's go!" "There's no end to 'em!" "Go on ahead!" "I appreciate it!" "Now that's big..." "Oww..." "Oh, no!" "No!" "Help!" "Yuri!" "I'll toss you up there!" "Come on!" "Yuri!" "I take it you're all right?" "Yeah..." "So this thing's sucking up aer to act in place of a core?" "That's a pretty big gizmo." "You okay?" "Lost one of my men." "I'm sorry to hear it." "Who built this?" "We can look into it later." "This ought to stop the flow of aer." "What is it?" "It stopped!" "Chastel!" "This is not good!" "Yuri!" "Let's get outta here!" "Hold this!" "What are you doing?" "!" "Captain!" "Look!" "This core..." "Later!" "Yuri!" "Chastel!" "Chastel!" "She's okay!" "She's breathing!" "Captain!" "Give me your hand!" "We'll hold you!" "I'll help you!" "Just hold on...!" "Damn it!" "It's no use." "Go." "Shut up!" "Give me your hand, dammit!" "Can't do much of anything now..." "That can be fixed!" "Give me your hand!" "Yuri..." "I can't reach him at all!" "Can't we use anything else?" "!" "Yuri!" "You know it's too late for me." "Go save everyone who can be saved." "Take this." "Flynn." "Look after everyone." "Become a great Knight." "Surpass your old man." "No!" "Captain!" "Captain!" "Go..." "Farewell." "Chastel..." "Thank goodness..." "Oww..." "We're alive..." "Yeah..." "It's over." "Oh, you're awake." "Huh?" "Where's the captain?" "Flynn!" "Where's the captain?" "!" "Yuri..." "He went out in style." "I know it's a formality, but it seems silly when there's nothing inside..." "The captain said making his mission his priority was what kept him from protecting his family." "He said he respected your dad." "What, you're still not done yet?" "You were ordered to hold the fort, you know!" "How dare he harm the brigade His Excellency gave him..." "Incompetent fool." "Did he think he was a hero of the people or something?" "How could you work for a lousy captain" "Yuri!" "Stop, Yuri!" "How dare you waltz in here now and trash talk him!" "You little..." "It's time to carry the casket out." "Lend a hand, you two." "What kind of brigade is this?" "!" "Captain..." "When the captain died, I think he did leave something behind." "He's the reason everyone is still alive." "Right?" "So I'm absolutely sure your dad left something behind when he died too!" "Salute Captain Niren Fedrok of the Imperial Knights!" "Yuri..." "It isn't over yet." "We found it planted inside the ruins." "Only you use that type of core." "Why did you do it?" "!" "Were you trying to destroy the town?" "!" "Don't be silly." "Those ruins were simply a test bed for a new type of blastia." "A new type of blastia?" "That's right." "Our way of life demands that we control aer and blastia, yet excavation is our only method for obtaining crystallized aer cores." "But if we could create an artificial replacement for cores, it'd free us from the fear of monsters and usher in even greater prosperity." "But then your blastia went out of control, so you tried to destroy it all and take the brigade out with it!" "At present, we don't even have full control over normal blastia." "Luckily for us, that's how we were able to bring back that core as proof." "Actually, there were other experiments with some measure of success." "There were casualties then too, of course..." "You don't mean..." "You have my sympathies." "It appears a blastia explosion is in order here, too." "That hurts..." "You're really starting to annoy me..." "Damn it..." "Flynn!" "It's sink or swim!" "Create an opening!" "Got it!" "Such nonsense!" "Take this!" "That's..." "The captain's blastia." "Captain..." "It's over." "Hisca..." "Seeing me off?" "Yeah." "It's not like me at all." "Looks like everyone else is leaving too." "It's only natural, with the Empire abandoning this place." "Plus all the guild guys are long gone." "Having the captain around must've been why Merzhom liked it here too." "Yeah, with the captain gone, I don't think I'm cut out for the Knights." "Sorry." "I leave the clean-up work to you." "Vice Captain Yurgis quietly accepted our report that said Garista Luodor died in a blastia explosion accident." "It seems he was suspicious of Garista too, after the captain filled him in." "That's why he's given his silent approval." "You're tough, Flynn." "I can never hope to be like you." "Likewise, Yuri." "Choosing to make it in the world all alone..." "That's you, all right." "I'll try to find what the captain sought by staying with the Knights." "That's what he asked me to do, too." "Sorry." "I shouldn't have said "alone", Repede." "Take good care of him." "See ya." "Yeah." "See you later."