"Noir..." "It is the name of an ancient fate." "Two maidens who govern death." "The peace of the newly born, their black hands protect." "Shoot..." "Shoot me." "Please!" "Mireille!" "Kill me!" "Mireille!" "Mireille..." "Kill me..." "Mireille..." "Mireille..." "Why?" "Why?" "Why was it?" "I couldn't shoot." "This flower never turned black." "It just wilted." "Kirika won't be coming back." "Where am..." "You are awake." "Where am I?" "This is my home." "You were found collapsed at the edge of the village." "I am Tristan, and this is my wife Margaret." "I..." "I am..." "We knew that you would come to this village someday." "What do you mean?" "This village?" "Where is this place?" "I don't even know where I was trying to go." "You will know soon enough." "You came because you were meant to come." "Have you met me before somewhere?" "Do you know me?" "No, but that is not an issue." "I've brought you a change of clothing." "Breakfast is ready." "Right!" "This is a small village near the border." "Yes, the place you will be heading towards..." "This village is the entrance to that place, if you will." "The place I will be heading towards?" "On the western edge of the village, there is an old stone monument." "You should first go there." "Oops!" "Wait!" "This way!" "Wait!" "Hey, wait up!" "Did you get..." "Hey, wait up!" "Why did I end up coming to this village?" "They all know me." "The only one who doesn't know me is me." "What are you doing?" "!" "Thank you!" "I..." "I killed them." "I killed your family." "Mireille..." "My name is not Mireille." "But I killed them." "Of course, because you are Noir." "Hurry up!" "Hurry up and come back!" "Ah, you have returned." "What did you think of this village?" "It is a very beautiful village." "I see." "Let me introduce you." "This is our village chief, Thibault." "Welcome, we have been waiting for you." "And these guests are..." "No need." "Let us continue our talk instead." "Have you conveyed our suggestion to her?" "No." "I see, then we shall tell her ourselves." "There is no need for that." "What?" "Our beliefs have not changed." "Not for a thousand years." "Please, go out to the front." "This is..." "Those guests were people who opposed the Grand Retour." "They did not wish for you to see the Lady." "We have lived here, together with a great cause." "And we will continue to do so." "What in the world is this village?" "Who are you people?" "Pardon the belated introduction." "We are all..." "Soldats." "Far beyond the rocky mountains rising behind this village." "The borderland between Spain and France." "That place does not belong to any country and is not on any map." "A place forgotten by time." "There are several such places in the world." "The place beyond this village is one of them." "That place is now only known as the Manor." "You unconsciously followed the path to the Manor, for you are Noir." "Past this point is sacred ground for the Soldats, if you will." "Interfering in affairs there is considered strictly taboo." "That is why they are trying to keep you from leaving this village." "They?" "You mean the people from this afternoon?" "Yes..." "As we are descendants of the Soldats, so are they." "Starting in the tenth century, like scarlet fever, the Soldats went to lie dormant, deep within society." "And the Soldats' funds played a part in all sorts of human dealings." "The blood of the Soldats will seep throughout the wilderness and flow into the great river." "Exactly." "The blood of the Soldats permeated throughout the world." "But at the end of a long, long time, the Soldats had become something different." "Something that blanketed the world..." "The Grand Retour means a return to the roots of the Soldats." "But there are those among the Soldats who do not desire change." "Because to them, the Soldats is already the world itself." "I understand." "We approve the execution of the plan." "Is everyone fine with that?" "Blood will always be shed, even if it be the blood of our brethren of the Soldats." "Yes, and that is the truth the Soldats have always known." "You said before that it's been a thousand years." "We were charged with an ancient task." "That task is to guard the Manor." "The Soldats are with truth." "We are those who know the truth of the world of man." "And so does that Lady." "You mean Altena?" "Yes..." "She guards the ways of the medieval times at the Manor, awaiting the time of the ritual." "In the midst of the darkness in history, when the Soldats went underground, two hands were left behind on the dark surface." "Noir..." "The Soldats must regain these hands which have been lost." "The revival of the ritual of accession to Noir will truly symbolize the Grand Retour." "Please get ready." "We must hurry." "They will come, probably within the night." "Please leave immediately." "My wife will show you the way." "But I..." "Please hurry." "There is no time." "Please hurry!" "Put both hands behind your head and get down on your stomach!" "The woman's already gotten away!" "There was only one old man here!" "Please hurry!" "Get back, Erich!" "You're blocking the line of fire!" "Get back!" "Something's very wrong with this village!" "This isn't right." "So many people are dying." "Why?" "Because that is the truth of man." "I don't understand!" "No, I believe you do understand." "After all, you are Noir." "Man commits sin." "It comes very naturally." "The Soldats commit sin as men do, but also shed their own blood." "But that's..." "The woman's not there!" "Noisy dog!" "Where's it coming from?" "!" "From behind?" "!" "Above!" "That is how you should..."