Leon looked down at Trace's ashes as the wind scattered them, then turned away. He sheathed his rapier and glanced down at his severed hand lying on the floor beneath him.
He figured there might be a way to reattach it later, so he bent down, picked it up, and placed it inside his Arbiter: Vault.
Leon scanned the mansion's yard, noting the holes in the ground left by his cage. He sighed just as the rain began to pour again. "I guess living near the ocean in Eclipse means constant rain," he thought.
Assuming the threat had passed, Leon rushed into the mansion and shouted, "Is anyone alive?!"
He had no response so he called out again, louder this time, "I'm with Red Dawn! My name is Leon Holdingwell!"
Several minutes passed with no answer. He straightened his posture, leaning back slightly, when small orbs formed along the wall, revealing a hidden hallway and a staircase leading downward.
"There's nothing upstairs… so maybe they were hiding down there this whole time?" He wasn't sure about that guess so he unsheathed his rapier once more, he activated [Electric Enchant], and sparks of electricity rippled across the blade as he descended, prepared for a trap—or worse.
At the bottom of the stairs, he found a group of people. A woman with long black hair stood near a man lying openly on a table, his short hair a deep, oceanic blue. An older man—Roland Richfield, whom Leon recognized—stood protectively near three children.
"Is this everyone?" Leon asked as he began counting. The man on the table. Roland. The woman with black hair and pink eyes. The three children huddled behind Roland.
Roland looked down and shook his head. "We're missing our priestess, Ira. She was here but left to search for the remaining children who hadn't returned. I wanted to go after her, but if I leave, the healing process for that young man on the table will stop—and he'll die instantly. The priestess ordered me to stay, so… that doesn't help."
Leon sighed deeply and turned. "Do you know where they could possibly be?"
"My best guess is the fifth floor," Roland said. "That's where two of the children were sleeping last night, in my office."
Leon nodded and sprinted up the stairs, rushing through the flights until he reached the fifth floor. He spotted Roland's office, ran up to the door, and slammed open the two large oak panels.
The room was completely empty.
He searched thoroughly—beneath the desk, behind the bookshelves, even behind the doors. He checked every chair and nook a second time, then sighed before stepping back into the hallway.
Leon closed the doors behind him before running straight ahead. He turned right down the corridor and spotted a bedroom, then burst into it. The floor was lined with black carpet, but the room was empty.
He stepped inside and checked behind the bed, lifted the sheets, opened the drawers—nothing.
"This day just keeps getting worse. How the hell do I even explain this? This was supposed to be a vacation... then it turned into killing a bastard who killed my friend, and now I'm searching for kids and a priestess. My day cannot get any worse…" Leon sighed to himself as he left the room, closing the door behind him. He turned right and continued down the long hallway before taking another right.
At the end of the next hallway stood a single door. Leon approached it, raised his left leg, and slammed it into the door—breaking it off its hinges.
"Is anyone in here?!" he shouted as he scanned the spacious room.
"Who the hell needs this much space?" he muttered. Leon searched thoroughly—lifting sheets and mattresses, checking behind drawers and bookshelves, opening closets—but again, nothing.
After several minutes of fruitless searching, he stepped out, shutting the broken door behind him. "I have no damn clue where to look," he muttered, then began retracing his steps and rechecking each room on his way back.
He combed through each room again but found nothing. Eventually, he returned to the first floor and made his way down to the mansion's basement.
Roland looked up as Leon entered—alone.
"Did… you find any of them?" he asked, his voice heavy with worry, sadness, and something else Leon couldn't quite place.
"There's nothing. I checked every room I could—twice. Is there anywhere else that might be considered safe?"
Roland bit his lip and closed his eyes. "There is one place we typically only use during invasions from other Orders… the cellar. But be warned—there's a Lex Edict sealed inside."
Leon swallowed hard at the thought of an order having one of those sealed inside of a cellar, then looked Roland in the eyes. "Where is it?"
"Go down the hallway on the first floor, turn right, and keep going straight. The wall will open to reveal stairs, as long as you have this."
Roland raised his hand to the necklace around his neck and unfastened it. He tossed it to Leon, who caught it mid-air and gripped it tightly in his palm.
Without a word, Leon turned and made his way back up the stairs to the first floor. He walked down the hallway, turned right, and approached the wall. As he neared it, the wall shifted and parted silently, revealing a hidden staircase descending into darkness.
He unsheathed his rapier and activated [Flame Enchant], the blade igniting with a controlled blaze. The flickering firelight lit his path as he stepped down the staircase.
At the bottom, Leon emerged into a large open chamber. The space was symmetrical, with four doors lining each side and two more directly ahead. Without hesitation, he turned to his left and approached the first door. Peering through a small barred window, he saw only a single flower plant, tightly bound in chains that pulsed with a thick corruption.
He moved to the second door and peered inside. There, asleep and chained to the floor, was a small amethyst fox. A glowing barrier incantation was scribed into the ceiling above it, humming faintly with aura.
"What the hell is that…?" Leon thought, eyes narrowing.
He stepped to the third door on the left, glanced inside—nothing. The fourth revealed the same: empty silence.
Crossing the chamber, Leon began checking the right side. Through the first door's window, he saw a large wooden crate shaking violently. Beneath and above it, glowing golden circles radiated divinity seals. Whatever was inside, it was dangerous enough to warrant a dual-layer divinity seal.
Leon quickly moved past, wary of disrupting whatever held the crate in check.
The second door showed the same: another violently shaking crate, the divine symbols pulsing in synchronized containment.
He shook his head and stepped to the third door.
Inside, a man was chained to the wall, his body sealed within a hardened barrel-like casing made of some dried, resinous material. The man looked up. His eyes locked with Leon's—and for a moment, it felt as if that stare pierced straight through him, cutting into his thoughts like a blade of silence.
The man laughed, his pupils crackling like bolts of white lightning. "Aren't you an interesting one. A man unbound by time... in a way... HAHAHA!"
He erupted into manic laughter—and the violently shaking crates suddenly stilled, as if silenced by fear.
"Open this door. Free me… and I'll grant you a quick death," he said, the laughter fading into a chilling calm.
Leon's hand trembled slightly. There was a power radiating from the man—something familiar, like the divinity granted by a contract, yet it felt different. Purer. More absolute.
'It's like I'm staring into the eyes of a law itself—one that demands to be obeyed…'
For a moment, Leon was frozen, caught in awe of the man's gaze. There was undeniable weight behind those eyes—strength without mercy.
He finally stepped back and moved on, approaching the fourth and final door. Through the small window, he saw a figure dressed entirely in white, crouched with her back facing him.
Leon raised the necklace to the lock. A soft click echoed as the door unlatched.
The woman slowly turned, rising to her feet. Her arms were spread protectively over several children gathered behind her.
Leon spoke immediately. "My name is Leon Holdingwell. I'm from Red Dawn, and I was asked to find someone… What's your name?"
The woman stared at him in silence for several seconds. When she saw the necklace in his hand, recognition flickered in her eyes, she knew it belonged to Roland. She slowly raised her hands and pulled back her hood. Her snow-white hair flowed down over her robe.
"Ira," she replied quietly, a faint cut visible across her cheek.
Leon noticed the wound but said nothing. He turned away. "Roland is looking for you and the children. The threat's been dealt with." He deactivated [Flame Enchant], sighed, and sheathed his rapier.
Ira knelt down to speak to the children. Her voice was soft and reassuring as she told them, "The evil man is gone now, thanks to a hero." She smiled gently and pointed toward Leon.
One of the children, Ben Moons, looked up. His eyes sparkled as he stared at Leon—tall, upright, with hair not too different from his own.
"I want to be a hero too!" Ben said, his voice filled with excitement.
Leon turned around and crouched to meet the boy's eyes. "To become a hero," he said warmly, then added, "you have to study hard and follow the rules. You can't cause problems for others if you want to be the one who saves the day, right?"
Ben nodded eagerly, inspired by the words.
'Such amazing times… being a child. Feeling the warmth of those around you. Living with simple joys, eating, playing, dreaming… I miss those days,' Leon thought, his smile lingering for a moment longer. Then he rose back to his feet and began walking toward the staircase, ignoring the other doors entirely.
Ira looked down at Ben, then turned her gaze to his twin sister, Elizabeth Moons. She gave both of them a gentle pat on the head, then stood and followed Leon. The twins each reached out to grab one of her hands.
She held their small hands tightly as they ascended the stairs, quietly trailing behind Leon.
The four of them reached the top of the stairs after a few minutes of walking and made their way to another staircase—one that led down to the chamber where they kept all medical knowledge and sacred artifacts. Together, they descended.
Upon reaching the bottom, Roland rushed over and crouched down, wrapping his arms tightly around the children.
"Thank the gods you three are alive," he whispered, his voice thick with emotion.
After a long moment, he stood and embraced Ira as well. He had feared he'd never see her alive again—but here she was.
Leon, standing a short distance away, stepped forward and handed Roland the necklace. Then he turned.
"It's about time I leave. Send a note to this address with how much It'll cost to repair everything. I'll cover it." He reached into his Arbiter: Vault and pulled out a small piece of paper bearing the address.
Roland gently let go of Ira, took the note, and gave a solemn nod. "Thank you."
Leon said nothing more as he ascended the stairs in silence. He stepped out of the mansion and into the rain, the sky weeping along with him. Cold droplets soaked his hair and clothes, but he didn't care. His eyes immediately found Fisher's body, lying motionless in the mud—his friend's lifeless form slowly being swallowed by the storm.
Leon walked toward him and dropped to his knees, the splash of water around him drowned out by the quiet, choked breath caught in his throat. He reached out with his trembling hand and gently touched Fisher's chest, as if half-expecting it to rise again with breath.
Tears welled in his eyes, blurring his vision, mixing with the rainfall that streamed down his cheeks. He stared down at Fisher's pale, rain-soaked face, his lips quivering.
"…You stupid fool," he whispered, voice cracking. "You should've made the signal earlier…"
He stopped, shaking his head as more tears fell. "No... it's my fault. I should've been faster. I should've gotten here sooner and saved you."
His voice broke completely, and a sob escaped. "I'm sorry… please forgive me…"
Leon bowed his head, his tears indistinguishable from the rain as they both dripped into the earth below. He clasped his hand around where the stump of where his hand once was and closed his eyes, whispering a quiet prayer—one filled with guilt, sorrow, and the weight of too many regrets. He remained like that for over a minute.
At last, Leon opened his eyes and reached forward, slipping his arms beneath Fisher's body. He rose slowly, cradling his friend against his chest, ignoring the sting in his muscles and the ache in his soul.
He didn't look back.
Step by step, Leon began to walk, the mud pulling at his boots and the rain continuing to fall. He would carry Fisher all the way back to base—no matter how far, no matter how long. His friend wouldn't be left behind. He deserved more than a forgotten end in the middle of a ruined battlefield.