The agreed upon time had come, and Eleonora opened the gates for the 4 members of the Crimson Snake that were going to attempt stealing the relic mirror. They wore pitch-black thief-attire, though Eleonora still recognised them.
The tallest was Varus, the demon who had failed to enter the academy during the entrance exam. Despite the mistake he had made during his previous mission, however, he was someone believed to be on the level of an archmage when it came to illusion-magic, and thus most likely chosen by their leader to disable the barrier that was embedded into the storage room in which the relic Vrai Soi was kept.
The smallest among them she knew as Lydia, a professional thief rumoured of being able to even steal a pillow from under the emperor's head without being noticed. Her agility and dexterity was regarded by many as inhuman, and her senses were said to be on par with those of beastkin.
Third was Rum, a bulky giant of a man who prefers to only give one-word answers and grunts in response to others attempting to hold conversations with him. Though many may see themselves offended by his demeanour and lack of manners, his ability to rip out trees together with their roots as well as crushing skulls with his bare fists causes others to overlook his transgressions.
Lastly, the head of the Crimson Snakes himself, who was only known to the rest of his subordinates under the nickname "Red", a man who despite his weak appearance exuded an aura of danger only a seasoned killer could possess, a trait that made those of inferior skill unable to meet his gaze out of fear.
Eleonora knew that the instructors of Rouclier all used to be people who made names for themselves on the battlefield, but she could not imagine them standing a chance against these 4 monsters after having lived a life of retirement for so long.
"Alright, El. Anything we need to know?", Red asked her, causing her to shake her head.
"No, master."
"Alright. Lead us to the door!"
The four silently made their way into the building led by Eleonora. The group stopped every now and then when Rin noticed the presence of one of the instructors to let them pass, but other than that, they managed to reach the door pointed out by Eleonora without problems.
"This is even easier than I thought. Varus, your turn!"
The demon stepped forward, and examined the runes that were engraved into the heavy oaken door, before retrieving a wand from one of his pockets, which he pointed at specific runes, causing them to change or disappear altogether.
"...was that it? That took... what, 2 minutes?", Red asked perplexed, and Varus shrugged in response.
"He may be an archmage, but he might have assumed that no one would dare to break into the academy. Seeing as many archmagi grow quite arrogant with age, he likely thought there wouldn't be a reason to waste high-tier magic on it."
"Heh, I wish I could see his face one he finds out we managed to take the mirror. He might even be blamed for this if we are lucky!", their leader chuckled, before motioning to open the door. However, before he did so, his hand stopped mid-air.
"Ya know what... I don't like it. Something feels off here. El, you open the door.", he demanded, and stepped back.
"Me? Why me? I did what-", Eleonora asked nervously, startled by his sudden change of mind as if knowing something the rest of them did not.
"I command you to open the door!", he ordered her with a smug grin, as if having realized that there might be something about the whole situation that Eleonora omitted from them, and the curse mark on her chest began to light up through her clothes. A pain as if struck by electricity shot through her entire body, as her own hand slowly approached the handle of the door.
"Looks like there was something you did not tell us after all, eh? After this is over, we are going to have a stern talk about you trying to find ways to bypass my orders, my dear El.", Red exclaimed in a sickly sweet tone, which caused all those present a cold shiver down their spine.
However, as Eleonora's hand touched the handle of the door, nothing happened. Even as she opened the door and stepped through, nothing out of the ordinary seemed to happen, which surprised not only the members of the Crimson Snake, but Eleonora herself, who had received information of the first trap installed into the door itself being a fake-out that would make them oblivious to the second, more powerful trap beyond it.
'Huh...nothing? Did I misjudge her behaviour? ', Red thought to himself, before issuing the next command.
"Go further in and tell me in detail what you see."
Moments later, he could hear Eleonora's voice call out from within.
"There are shelves stacked with heavy tomes, two glass display-cases, one filled with potions and the other with magical devices. In the middle of the room, there is only a large mirror, which seems to be the same they used during the examination.", came the answer.
"Is there writing somewhere on the walls or floor?", the leader of the group asked, still unsure of what was going on.
"No."
'Bullshit...There has to be something. Eleonora's breathing was irregular, her eyes seemed to actively avoid mine and the others, and her voice was wavering slightly, clear indications of her hiding something. Also, she actively tried to go against my command when I told her to touch the handle... did they find out? However, if we leave now, we might not get another chance...fuck it, let's do it like usual.', Red contemplated his next move.
"Varus, you go in first! If you can't find anything, we will follow you. If everything keeps going as planned, we take the mirror and leave as soon as we can. If it turns out to be a trap, we move as discussed."
"As you wish"
"Yes Sir!"
"Hrm", came the answers, and Varus followed Eleonora into the room. He carefully inspected the floor and walls, even retrieved a few books and items from the shelves to check them for any traces of traps, but found nothing.
"Walls and floor clear, and there does not seem to be any trace of runes anywhere else."
"...alright. Rum, grab the mirror, me and Lydia here will stay outside on the lookout!", Red commanded, causing the bulky man to grunt in response before forcing his large body through the, for him, way too slim doorway.
As soon as he touched the mirror, a spell-circle appeared on it, causing a ripple to course through its surface.
"I FUCKING KNEW IT! ITS A TRAP! RUN!", Red yelled as Rum's hand started to be sucked into the reflective part of the mirror, which seemed to have turned into a liquid metal-like substance. However, as Lydia and Red started running, 4 tendrils made of this liquid now shot out of the mirror at a break-neck speed, with 2 grabbing onto Eleonora and Varus, and two more following after Red and Lydia. Despite the head of the Crimson Snake and the thief splitting up, with each of them being able to cover quite a lot of ground, they were incapable of escaping the tendrils aiming for their legs. They tried to hack at the appendages with knives, but their efforts were for naught, as the blades just passed through the liquid. Shortly afterwards, all 5 of them were dragged into the mirror, the surface of which began to straighten out after devouring all members of the Crimson Snake, returning back to the state it had been before being touched as if nothing happened.
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4 large spell-circles suddenly appeared in the sky above pristinely white platforms, the very same on which those who wanted to attend the academy had demonstrated their abilities mere months ago. Out of each of these spell-circles, except for the fourth one, a member of the Crimson Snake appeared, with each dropping on a different platform, which seemed to glow in a dim light, causing them to illuminate the bodies of those who had just landed on them. They did not drop from a height considered deadly, thought their impact on the hard floor was a less than comfortable one. From the last spell-circle, Eleonora exited together with Red.
Before any of the criminals could process what had transpired, a loud shout was heard across the academy grounds.
"NOW!"
Corvo and Sean jumped onto the platform on which Eleonora had landed, quickly picked her up and dragged her off the platform towards Mira, who had waited nearby in case they needed an additional distraction, leaving behind the dumbfounded leader of the Crimson Snake. He became even more confused once he realised that the four had stopped mere yards away from the platform, instead of trying to get as far away as possible.
Realising their mistake, Red could not help but mockingly laugh at them, before removing his sword from his sheath and pointing it at the three children.
"THAT was your plan? I seriously thought you would come up with something better, El. Tsk tsk tsk. Guess I'll have to teach you and your new friends a lesson, eh?", he exclaimed in a sinister, though still slightly amused tone due to the absurdity of their plan. With a single, swift step, he propelled himself towards the three friends with frightening speed, intending to incapacitate all three of them in one strike. However, as soon as he reached the edge of the platform, he noticed the air in front of him to slightly distort, causing him to dig his heels into the ground and immediately coming to a halt. His suspicions were confirmed after touching the air before him, as it was as if touching a rock-solid wall. A quick look around towards the other platforms showed that his colleagues had similar trouble, with Varus trying to dispel his barrier, Lydia trying to find a hole in hers, and Rum desperately flailing at his, though to no avail.
"Could it be...?", he mumbled to himself, and as if to answer his silently muttered question, each platform now began to emit light, not enough to blind those that looked at them, but just the right amount to illuminate the platforms themselves and the one's standing on top of them.
This was followed by each platform being approached by a different person:
The first to appear was Sir Montell, who gracefully jumped onto the platform occupied by Rum, whom he greeted with a bow, before removing a rapier from the sheath affixed to his belt and holding it in front of his face like a fencer.
"Attempting to steal one of Merdelum's national treasures is to be punished by immediate execution. Your sentence shall be carried out by myself, Knight Leroy Cameron Montell.", he proclaimed, before assuming a fighting stance. Him mentioning the 12 Zodiacs caused his opponent's eyes to grow wide in shock.
Next to the two, onto the platform on which Lydia was standing, Calros slowly climbed the stairs while unsheathing his sword, a plain arming-sword.
"For various crimes against Merdelum and its people, you are to be interrogated and swiftly disposed of by myself, Knight-Commander Alexander Cheldric Calros.", he followed Montell's example.
Calros was followed by Kassandra Lambert, who slowly floated onto the platform of Varus and repeated that very same line. She introduced herself as Grandmaster Merdelum's Army, her voice devoid of her usual cheerfulness and replaced with anger over what these criminals had done to one of her students.
Lastly, Irene Karm appeared on Red's platform, carrying a similar sword to that of Calros in her right hand instead of the greatsword she usually is never seen without, which she had rested on her shoulder.
"For countless crimes against Merdelum and its people as well as conspiring against the empire itself, you shall be apprehended by myself, Knight-Commander Irene Karm, for questioning and subsequent public execution. Lay down your arms and surrender!", was her demand, to which Red only responded with a scoff.
"As if I would surrender to you bastards! Everyone knows the 12 Zodiacs are just a title handed out to make it seem as if Merdelum has an elite force on par with that of Domitor, though it's nothing more than a name. We, however, are the Crimson Snake of the 7-Headed-Hydra, a name which is feared all across the continent! Also, I still got a hostage don't I? Eleonora! If any of these clowns as much as move a finger, kill your friends and then yourself! DRAW YOUR KNIFE!", he howled triumphantly and as loud as he could to make sure his slave would be able to hear him. However, Eleonora did not budge.
"ELEONORA! I COMMAND YOU TO DO AS I SAY!", Red began to scream, but still, nothing.
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"What is he doing?", Corvo asked as the four looked at the man standing on the platform, who seemed to wordlessly scream at them.
"Do not worry about it.", came the voice of an old man behind them, and the three quickly turned their heads towards it. It was Salazar Blanche, who managed to approach them without being noticed, similarly to how he had appeared on the first day they met at their entrance exam.
"I fine-tuned the barriers of my colleague so nothing can leave them without my permission, not even sound. This should solve the problem of Miss Boreas, seeing as she can no longer receive any commands.", he continued while proudly stroking his beard, and the four returned their focus towards the platforms.
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
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First to move was Rum, who decided to charge Montell to run him over with his massive body. However, he was quickly sidestepped by the fencer, whose blade started to glow as he did so. In one fluid motion, Montell slashed the neck of the giant, who then crushed loudly into the barrier. From there, Rum slowly slid to the floor, blood gushing from his carotid artery, Montell removed the blood from his sword and sheathed the blade before exiting the platform.
"Elegant and efficient as always, Sir Montell.", Blanche called out to the approaching man, causing a small smile to appear on his otherwise stoic face.
"I aim to please. Let this be a lesson for you cadets as well! No matter how strong you are, if you just aimlessly flail around, you will just create opportunities for your enemy to take you out."
As he looked at them, he noticed their faces having turned pale as they fixated the bloody mess that had become the corpse of Rum.
"First time seeing someone fall in combat? It is not something one wishes to encounter, but this is the reality all soldiers have to face. Do not avert your gaze, as you might have to face such sights more often in the future if you get deployed to the front-lines, though I hope the war will have ended by then. However, getting used to it sooner rather than later may not be such a bad idea.", Montell explained, and the four nodded.
"Hmm... Looks like Lady Lambert might be finished soon as well!", he continued, and all eyes followed his look towards her.
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"Are you done yet? I asked you who the one responsible for the slave-crest is!", Lambert asked the thief who desperately tried to find an opening in her defences as she hacked away at the barrier which protected the mage.
"Fuck you!", Lydia cried out before putting some distance between her and Lambert, before taking out a small crossbow and aiming it at the mage, who just smirked at her.
"A crossbow? Too broke to afford a gun, hm? Go on, try it! I assure you, it will do you no more good than your flimsy knife."
"We'll see about that!", the thief mumbled and released the bolt, which now aimed for Lambert's head.
"ARDEAT!", Lambert called out, and roaring blue flames exited her left hand, incinerating the wooden part of the bolt before it got close to her and thus causing the tip of the bolt to miss its mark, though it did disrupt her barrier.
"WHAT?", is all Lydia could yell out, before a fireball made of the same blue flames hurtled towards her, seeing as reloading her crossbow with another akyronium-tipped bolt would not be possible before being hit, she decided to throw the weapon at the approaching mass of blue fire instead.
"Wise choice.", Lambert commended her, as the fireball exploded loudly upon impact, scorching the floor between the two.
Lydia was not given any time to recover, as Lambert quickly closed the distance between the two, with both of her hands covered in blue flames and now aimed at the thief.
Dodging with the swiftness only rogues possessed naturally, Lydia kept evading the fiery claws before seeing herself backed up against the wall.
"End of the line! Now for the last time: Who was it?", the irate mage barked at her, but the only response she got was one last, desperate attempt at her life, as Lydia aimed a crossbow bolt, which she held like a dagger in her hand, at Lambert's head, an attack which only managed to knock her hat off, revealing two wolf-like ears peaking through her blue hair.
Seeing as her opponent was still uncooperative, Lambert decided to end the fight. She quickly grabbed the throat of the thief with her right claw, causing Lydia to burst asunder as she screamed in agony, before Lambert let go of her so she could sink to the floor and succumb to the flames while desperately flailing as she tried to put them out. As Lydia's still burning body ceased all movement, Lambert picked up her hat, and, after dusting it off in a theatrical manner, placed it back on her head, before joining the group which had followed her battle from afar.
Before either Montell or Blanche could comment on the fight, Eleonora burst out with a question.
"Professor, you are a beastman? Why did you never tell us?", she asked.
This caused Lambert to sheepishly rub the back of her head as the question seemed to cause her discomfort.
"Mixed-bloods still have a hard time becoming recognised for their achievements as magi within the Three Thrones due to the strict rules of the Magician's Guild, since they do not accept anyone but full-blooded humans. And since many people, especially nobles, prefer their children to be taught by those officially recognised by the Guild, disclosing my race would instantly clue them in on me not being part of Edenia and thus 'unfit for my position', despite me having been offered this position by the previous emperor himself.", she explained, which earned a sympathetic look from Blanche.
"Indeed. The Magician's Guild's biases have caused many exceptionally talented scholars to go unrecognised and fade into obscurity ever since its conception. It is one of the many reasons why countless magi, myself included, had cut all ties with Edenia after receiving an official title. In my eyes, Professor Lambert's discoveries in the field of fire-elemental magic far surpass the criteria needed to call oneself an archmage, despite the continued dismissal of her application due to her not being a full-blooded human.", Blanche praised her, causing Lambert to blush.
"You mean those blue flames? I've never seen fire like that! Will you teach us how to do that?", Corvo asked, prompting a giggle from Lambert.
"I'm afraid that it would be quite hard to teach, seeing how complicated the spells are. But who knows, starting next year you will be in my advanced elemental-magic course, right? Maybe you'll be able to learn how to do it? However, you should focus on the basics first. As you may remember, the practical exam at the end of the year will be harder than the entrance exam, and I would hate to see one of you fail because you tried to bite off more than you can chew.", she pointed out as she ruffled the hair on his head.
"Are the others not done yet? I mean, I can understand Calros taking his time, but Ira as well? Usually she would finish things in one hit...", Lambert asked worriedly as she watched Karm clash against the leader of the Crimson Snakes.
"Since she wanted to deal with their leader, I told her to just subdue him so we can find out who afflicted Cadet Boreas with the mark. She's probably trying to tire him out first so she doesn't accidentally kill him.", a blood drenched Calros pointed out next to her, causing all 7 of them to flinch, as they did not realise he had already finished his fight as well.
"Let your guard down, eh? You'd better fix that habit real soon. We might not be on the front-lines yet, but this might as well be a battlefield, seeing how we do not know if their comrades might be lurking nearby.", he chastised them, but Blanche waved him off.
"If there was someone who could get past my detection magic without triggering any of the alarms I set in place, I do not think we would stand much of a chance anyway.", the archmage replied.
"...Touché. Anyway, Lambert, would you send Karm the signal to end it? This thug here sung like a bird, and it seems like their leader was the only one who could use the curse-seal.", Calros continued while pointing at the decapitated corpse of Varus he left behind on his platform, the face of whom was still distorted into a grimace of pain and suffering due to the methods that were used to coax information out of him.
"On it!", Lambert called out, her right hand pointed at the barrier Karm was facing, a small spell-circle forming in her palm, before the cartoonish drawing of a skull appeared on it.
Within the barrier, Karm looked up from her opponent, whose sword was currently pushing against hers, and a vicious smile formed on her face.
"Finally! They managed to find the guy. You are no longer needed!", Karm stated matter of factly, before pushing Red away from her.
"Hah, big words from someone who's barely able to defend against me since the beginning. I didn't even need to use any skills yet! Pathetic!", he mocked her, though her not even twitching in response to his remark caused him to grow uneasy. If he had to be honest, ever since the two first crossed swords, he had the feeling that something was off about the fight. Since his class was not made for long, drawn out battles, he had waited until now to find an opening to use his trump-card, but even so, his opponent did not manage to land a single hit on him until now. She just kept evading and parrying blow after blow without fail but also without retaliating. It was as if she was actually avoiding counter-attacks for some reason, even at times when he himself noticed that he had made a mistake and left an opening for her to exploit.
"Believe what you want, as this is the end!", Karm stated calmly as she pushed him backwards, before switching up her stance. At the beginning of the fight, she had used the fighting style most commonly taught in Merdelum, known as the Ardent Blade. However, when she needed to get serious, she would use a style she came up with herself, which, though it came natural to her from the first day she picked up her signature great-sword, was actually reminiscent of the unique swordsmanship techniques from a certain desert-nation bordering Merdelum in the north-west.
She started to bend her knees as if preparing for a sprint, her sword propped on her shoulders with her right hand while her left hand was balled to a fist and touched the ground.
'That stance...the first form of the Lion's Fang? She's a berserk from Ceruceil? Shit, I have to strike first or I'm done for! ', Red's thoughts began to race as he recognised the pose, causing him to charge Karm, his sword starting to visibly glow as he infused it with energy, the tell-tale sign of someone using one of the basic skills of close-quarter-combatants, [Weapon Aura], which increased the durability of one's weapon as well as reducing its air-resistance, thus making it easier to swing and therefore increase its damage potential. However, seeing as Red's aura flowed violently and without proper focus, his control of the skill seemed poor and unrefined.
"Too slow!", Karm declared, before jumping forward and bringing down her sword upon his head.
"As if a sword without aura could get past-", Red retorted, trying to redirect the blow with his sword, but he was cut off mid-sentence, as Karm's sword easily shattered the reinforced blade and tore into him, bisecting Red in a single diagonal swing.
"...-my...shit.", where the last words of Red, as the upper half of his body slid to the floor.
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"Quite the mess, as usual!", Montell chastised his approaching colleague, though he was ignored.
"Well? Who was the one who used the curse? I could hunt them down immediately, seeing as this barely counted as a warm-up.", Karm stated, but Calros just shook his head.
"It was the one you were up against."
"...Oh. If I knew that, I would have drawn this out a bit longer.", she huffed, before retrieving a piece of cloth from one of her pockets and wiping the blood off her blade.
"But if he's dead, doesn't that mean that he can't undo the curse?", Sean asked her, and looked at Eleonora worriedly.
"Usually, if the one who used the spell dies, the curse vanishes with them, if the ownership was not split among multiple people, or the curse was done by someone on the level of an archmage. Is it gone?", Lambert asked, causing Eleonora to look down her shirt.
"It...it's gone! IT'S REALLY GONE!", she cried out in joy as she realised that she no longer had to serve as a slave. Overwhelmed by emotion, she hugged Sean, Corvo, and Mira, as tears streamed down her face.
The instructors decided to let the 4 enjoy the moment for a while, before Calros decided to interrupt them by clearing his throat, reminding them where they were.
"Thank you so much! All of you!", Eleonora said with a deep bow to show her thanks.
"Now that this situation has been cleared up, there are still a few things left to sort out. At attention you four!", he called out, and the group followed his command, standing next to each other with their backs straight and waiting for orders.
"First of all, at 0700 sharp, Cadet Boreas will have to appear in my office to answer a few questions."
"Sir, 0700 sharp, Sir!", she responded with a salute.
"Next, your punishment for what transpired. Lady Karm?", he called out to his colleague, who stepped forward.
"Just like Cadet Boreas, you will appear at 0700, though in front of my office instead. Seeing as the weekend starts tomorrow, you three will clean these platforms until one can eat off of them before you can enjoy the rest of the day off. After Cadet Boreas has finished her business, she is to join you in your task. Do not worry, the corpses themselves will be disposed of in the appropriate manner before you report to duty tomorrow. As a follow up, you will be assigned to additional physical training after your regular classes for 4 months, which will start on the day of our return from the battlefield. Understood?"
"Ma'am, yes, ma'am!", the four answered in unison, and Karm returned the word to Calros.
"That settles that. You four are hereby dismissed!", Calros continued, and the four left after saluting one last time.
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After being cleared of her crimes due to her having acted under the influence of the Slave-Crest, Eleonora provided law-enforcement with information about the hideouts of the Crimson Snake, and, within the next few days, the remaining members of the group were eliminated.
On the last day before the instructors of Rouclier left for the front-lines, Eleonora met up with Corvo's group to keep them up to date about what happened.
"-so Calros told me to keep the bounty that was put on the heads of the four to give me a little head-start while trying to get used to being away from the Crimson Snakes, along with some of the belongings of my late father they had found, which even includes a letter from my mother! Additionally, from now on I will be receiving a salary for assisting the instructors whenever there is a need to, so I will be able to afford living on my own while not at Rouclier. If you had not caught me that day while talking to that... that fiend, I would have probably never been able to escape from these horrible monsters. Thank you.", she explained, then threw her hands around Sean for a quick hug, causing his face to turn beet-red.
"Y-YES! I mean, it was nothing.", he stammered nervously as he awkwardly tried to reciprocate the hug, causing Mira and Corvo to giggle.
Once they separated, they noticed that Eleonora's face also showed a slight red tint, with her nervously avoiding eye-contact with Sean.
"W-Well then. Can we see each other during our break?", she asked, and her eyes grew wide as she realised what she just said.
"...I MEAN ALL OF US! You know! Together! As a group! Not just you and me!"
To break through the air of awkwardness, Mira decided to jump in and forced them all into a group hug.
"Of course! Let's all exchange addresses after the speech of headmaster Calros so we can see each other as often as possible!", she exclaimed cheerfully, before breaking up the hug and motioning the others to follow her.
"Come on, we only have a few minutes left!", she reminded them, and the four hurried towards the front-gate of Rouclier, where headmaster Calros would hold his final speech before he would, together with the other instructors of Rouclier, board the carriages which already waited for them to drive them towards the front-lines.
As more and more cadets appeared, Calros took a quick glance at his pocket-watch, and waited until the time had come to start his speech.
"ATTENTION!", he called out, and all cadets immediately assumed their positions.
"As you already know, all instructors have been called in to assist the war-effort for a month. Today we will start our journey to the front-lines. During our absence, you are free to do as you please. However, if at the day following our return, which should be the 7th day of the month of Nix, you have not returned to your barracks at exactly 0800 and without having informed staff members of Rouclier, you will be considered away without orderly leave, a crime which will land you in military confinement as soon as you are found. If, by chance, none of us were to return from the battlefield by that day, instructors from the surrounding dukedoms will be sent to Rouclier as substitutes, so even if the worst was to come, you are to return to your barracks regardless. If you were to get injured or sick on that day, you are to send a letter to Rouclier explaining your absence together with your medical records as proof for your claims. Any questions?"
No one dared moving a muscle.
"You are hereby dismissed. May the Light of Order guide you on the Ardent Path!", he finished his speech with a salute, which was followed by his colleagues doing the same and the cadets reciprocating, before all instructors started boarding the carriages.
As the carriages left, Corvo asked his friends what they should do now.
"...Hmm, how about we get some ice-cream? We can write down our addresses while we eat!", Sean proposed, an idea which earned the approval of the entire group.
"Yeah, let's go to the one we went to last time!", Corvo replied, and the four left the academy.