“......Again.”

Chloe stood motionless in front of a mountain of clothes yet to be ironed. Even though she had been waiting for only a few minutes she had already shot several glances at the overhead clock above the entrance. It was already half past nine with no signs of the front door opening. She definitely didn’t want to leave this mound unchecked until a certain someone comes back, but she also didn’t want to run this solo by herself. Nagi left her little choice in the matter.

“What’s with her lately? Why’s she always waiting right up until the last minute? Usually she just sucks it up early on but...”

It was highly unusual for Nagi to be late. Yes, there were the oddities such as the night before the Snow Festival, but most of the time she’s punctual and diligent, at least in Chloe’s perception. But now there was a considerable change in her behavior. Nagi’s arrival time continued to trail off into the late night as the days passed with Chloe picking up the slack to cover for her.

She bit the nail of her thumb. “Whatever outdoor hobby she picked up, it better be beneficial or else…”

Not that it was against the mill’s policy to be present at all times. A nine-to-five model for a job is only used in the most important positions of the town. Something like this takes the shift route and clock in to do your work and clock out. As long as everything gets done by the end of the day then you are all set for the shift.

Now, however, every single second only added to Chloe’s tipping patience, leaving her wondering how she let Nagi’s strange behavior slide for this long. She let loose a sigh, relaxed her shoulders and cracked her knuckles. “No choice but to start without her…”

That was when the door to the mill creaked open. “Oh? It’s about time...”

However, the one who passed through the doors wasn’t Nagi, but a boy of small stature whose nose was sniffling.

“Hm? Wait. Is that... Tobias?”

Speaking of highly unusual, Tobias was an unfamiliar face to the mill. Chloe didn’t recall anytime where he had last shown his face around here, but there he was being greeted by Rosalind. In Tobias’s hand was a shirt with a rather large tear across the right sleeve. He presented it to her to which Rosalind gave a quick look over and waved over Maddie to take it.

“A rip in his shirt? He never gets so much of a patch of dirt on his clothes.” That’s when it clicked. “Wait, but now that I think about it…”

Nagi wouldn’t be the type of person to hang out with people like those brothers, much less with anyone else. In fact, Chloe couldn’t even remember the last time she saw them in the same room. But she had caught a glimpse of those three together the night of the Snow Festival. A sight far too strange.

No. This was far too odd. And she couldn’t take being in the dark any longer.

Tobias’s business was finished with him giving a bow to Rosalind. As the doors of the mill closed after taking his leave, Chloe followed suit. She rushed out of the door into the cold dark night and darted her eyes around until they landed on the back of the passing boy.

“Tobias!!”

The sudden shout of his name caused Tobias to jolt. “...Eh?! Ch—Chloe?!”

“Where’s Nagi?! Do you know where in the world she is?!” Choe demanded as she made her way towards him. Being suddenly bombarded by questions gave his suddenly overburdened mind little time to think. Enough for him to freeze up.

“N-Nagi? She’s—”

“You know something?! Spit it out!” The boy only trembled in response. “Talk to me!”

But his blank mind didn’t help piecing some kind of reply for her and seeing the look on the boy’s face, the slow realization that her usual coolheaded self completely evaporated. What had just overcome her? A sudden outburst? She didn’t think herself would let something like emotions take over her. “I-I I’m sorry, Tobias. I’m just a bit… overwhelmed.” Chloe backed off and collapsed herself onto a nearby stump regardless of the snow accumulated on it, her head hung low. It was a sight so rare for him to see from someone such as her.

“Shucks, what happened?” he inquired.

For a moment, Chloe wondered why she even accepted that captain’s hat from her on that day. Why give it to her if the chance that she won’t see her

As if it were a parting gift...

She rested her face into her palms. “Nagi.”

The slow realization came to Tobias that the jig was up, that the facade that Nagi has been keeping up since that day was starting to crumble. What… are you doing, Nagi…? He remained silent, unable to come up with a response for Chloe. He was as clueless as her.

“Dammit… she’s neglecting her duties… Doesn’t she know how rude it is to just ghost people?” she clenched her hand, reluctant to speak her mind, “Dammit… dammit…!”

The young boy stood in silence. Seeing her defeated like this made his heart wrench, so much so that he clenched the fabric resting between it. She held that same despair his brother Keery had when they returned from that expedition into the Eastern Forest. No one else should have to bear that same emotion.

I’m sorry. Forgive me, Nagi.

“...She went into the Eastern Forest.”

Those words took a few seconds for Chloe to properly process. Words that would be the last thing she wanted to hear.

“The… Eastern Forest?!”

“Yes…”

She jumped to her feet and grabbed him by the collar. “Why didn’t you say anything earlier?!”

“B—Because…” Tobias couldn’t answer. Not that he didn’t want to, but he couldn’t. A promise that he didn’t agree with. An inability to reach out that he hated.

“What if she ends up like those nine in the mountain pass?!”

The nine that died. It wasn’t as if he had forgotten that story. The sleepless nights he had to endure from hearing a story of people who were attacked by some unknown force were not pleasant. And because of that, he considered that possibility as well—whether he wanted to or not.

“Every day. Every single damn day. Tobias.” Shards of ice began accumulating around the nearby walls of buildings, including their own clothing.

“Chloe! Please calm down! You’re forming ice everywhere!” But his plea fell on deaf ears. The ice only continued to spread.

“I can’t believe you. We are talking about the safety of our friend, and you decided to stay quiet knowing what might happen to her? You demonstrate no concern whatsoever.”

“That’s not it! It’s just that… she always comes home with a big smile on her face… just not… tonight.”

Utter nonsense. “I’m letting Rosalind know right now.”

“You can’t…!” Tobias grabbed her by the arm.

“Give me a reason why I shouldn’t.”

But no matter what, words couldn’t form in his mouth. The promise has been broken. Saying anything else would bring no other justification for himself and ultimately nothing to help her or Nagi.

“Hmph. I’m going to the Town Chief himself.”

She shook off Tobias’s grip and marched forward toward the Chief’s living quarters. Despite the calls of her name and the snow crunching behind her, Chloe easily ignored the sounds and continued on. The one thing that gnawed at her the whole way was the cause of this mess. Nagi herself. Why would Nagi be going to the Eastern Forest in the first place, no less almost daily? Not a single reason came to her mind. It was that nonsensical. Just like...

—That was when Chloe took notice of the apparent shadow they were casting onto the path. She stopped in her tracks, Tobias almost bumping into her.

“Eh…? What’s that?”

Through the fog, particles of snow blasted into the air as if an approaching storm was pulverizing the surface of the earth. The only reason they were able to see those particles in the dark of the night was because of the intense illumination. Lights this bright were an anomaly in Sappora. With their current technological level, lanterns would only illuminate about a few couple of meters around them and yet out of nowhere, lights beamed into the two’s vision about a couple hundred meters outside the town. Chloe and Tobias watched with bated breath. If nothing in their realm of technological prowess was able to create anything that bright, then that only left one conclusion, something that had never occurred in the history of the town.

・・・・・

It would not be an exaggeration to call Scandia’s rolling hills and vast plains of snow an obstacle course. No ordinary vehicle would come close to crossing even ten meters before stalling its engine due to the effort required to move a machine through layers of snow. The rocking of the vehicle they were in would be a testament to the land’s safeguarding.

The Träger was engineered to withstand terrain that proposed challenges any other vehicle would be unable to overcome, but if even the land caused this much problem to the vehicle, then it is no wonder this region has been left untouched by humanity as they know it.

As they know it.

Luke could only cling onto the railing and concentrate on the video feed documenting the slew of particles surrounding the Träger. Erratic but it could also be considered beautiful in its form. Through the dances, light spread through the darkness.

There’s actually signs of civilization… he thought, exactly where Admiral Enma had predicted...

Two hundred kilometers from Alkai’s northern sectors, snow trickles and accumulates on roads and tracks almost every single day. Infrastructure is disturbed and people generally prefer not to have their shoes inches in sleet, thus the snow is to be shoveled in the mornings to prevent obstruction. Luke had never experienced snow like this before.

“The Scandians are capable of technology that could light their villages?” Fukuda, who was also trained on the display, asked. She parted a golden hair bang from her eyes, being just as taken back by the dances—that was, until another quick jerk of the vehicle had her hanging onto the railing.

“Best not to think highly of ourselves.” With a turn of the wheel, Nishimura managed to avoid another mound of snow that would’ve otherwise buried the vehicle. “Speaking of, the suspension unit is being pushed to its limits as is. We’re lucky we’re not stuck camping in the middle of winter.”

Their steel-blue uniforms accented with white were more or less capable of handling the cold inside the interior—yet even the coats they were issued to be worn over may not be enough to sustain their body temperature. The three would need to limit contact with the outside as much as possible, but that’s only if they would let them in.

“Second Lieutenant, you have studied this in the academy, correct? Concentrating in anthropology? How does it feel to finally do some fieldwork?” Fukuda was surprised to be asked to carry out this mission considering she has only ever worked in an office, crunching numbers into a sheet. To her left, Luke too was fresh out of training. She awaited a response but was met with silence. It wasn’t until a jab to the arm that snapped him back into reality.

“Apologies. I was just… taking in the view.” Despite the excuse, Luke didn’t break his gaze from the monitor. “Really, this doesn’t feel like work at all.”

“Ah, Luke. You hopeless fool.” Fukuda smiled wryly. “At this rate, we’ll just be sightseeing and getting no such work done.”

“Certainly you don’t see these sights every day.”

Especially not in the officer academy. The one based in Central Alkai hasn’t seen a snow day since the three months Luke has attended there. Three months of bonding with people of all walks of life and not letting a care in the world get in their way—only for it to end and lead into a military term that began with a special reconnaissance mission separating from those faces across a cruel distance. That said, he was appointed Second Lieutenant before he could legally drink alcohol. Though he wished that his friend was appointed the same way.

Two Lieutenant Colonel ranked officers were his superiors in this mission. Due to how abnormal the state of affairs was, this setup was deemed necessary by Enma. As such, she employed data scientists to extract knowledge and insights on the people up north—hoping to get an answer for a question they’ve been wanting for so long.

“If the Scandians are capable of light fixtures, how well versed are they in tech?” Fukuda inquired, “Do you two think they have hair dryers that run on electricity?”

“You’re the only one who wants to know this type of stuff, Fuku.”

Though, even their knowledge of upper Scandia was limited. In terms of the material being taught in the Academy, only geography and basic wildlife are reasonably presented.

“The situation of the Scandians, who have occupied the north of the region since prehistory, is special to put it bluntly. They have been left uncontacted ever since the group of people migrated there.” That was the only piece of information Luke learned, and the one that he had to regurgitate constantly to quell the lieutenant colonel’s stream of questions.

“To think we’re going to meet these indigenous people… I’m not ready to be written in the history books, I haven’t accomplished anything meaningful to make me look good!”

Ignoring Fukuda’s quarrel, Nishimura made another sharp turn of the wheel, but not due to sighting another potentially hazardous mound of snow. “...‘Indigenous people’, huh? Pretty crude for a name to give to other human beings. It’s as if being labeled a name automatically makes you perceived as lesser.”

“Should we not refer to them as native?”

“It’s a matter of perspective. Let them be called however they like.”

After all, they weren’t the main goal of this mission. Luke stared at the palm of his hand; a white spark jumped from each finger.

・・・・・

When they saw those lights, Chloe and Tobias froze. Emitted by a beast barreling down straight towards where they were standing, it was as if they were to be coerced into silence on this day. As if Niebieski had chosen to reap humanity.

“Ch—Chloe… I’m scared…” Tobias’s hand shook as the lights from the vehicle grew bright enough that he had to shield his eyes.

“Shh. Keep quiet. Don’t panic. We don’t want to offend any of our... guests.”

“Oh? Seems like two village children are here to greet us.”

Well within a few hundred meters of the Träger, the display picked up more details of the vicinity, including the buildings’ architecture and landmarks that seemingly have paths shoveled to. The most striking were the statues of various mythical beings. Nishimura, Fukuda, and Luke had never seen depictions of such winged animals, three-headed beasts, and dragons of unimaginable length. And especially… the two natives that stood in the center of the headlights.

“Aw… they look cute huddled up together. Or rather, one is huddled up against the other.”

As they wore their coats, the thought occurred to them that the layers the children had didn’t even come close to the layers they were putting on right now. Yet they were able to stand there without losing a limb.

“Damn, I ain’t good with children. Fuku, can I entrust you with this?” To his word, Nishimura couldn’t recall the last time a child had not screamed in terror seeing his face with a short yet deep gash near his right eyebrow. He wouldn’t want to risk alienating those that are already alien to him to begin with.

“I mean sure but… do we even speak the same language?”

For that matter, were they still too young to comprehend societal relations? Let alone the meaning behind their entrance tonight?

Luke placed his hand into his coat’s pocket. Two culturally different civilizations meeting would result in the destruction of the weaker. “...There’s one way to find out.”

The Träger turned, its right door facing towards the town and thus, towards the two children. The officers stepped into the snow one by one, each of which were caught off-guard by the frigidness of the air and reflexively dug into their collars. But that surprise soon disappeared in place of curiosity at the sight of the children staring right back at them. They’re terrified. And who could fault them? A world outside their realm of knowledge has eluded the group for so long.

“T-Their hair is indeed a bleached white and their skin c-completely pale...” Fukuda let out a comment between shivers, the puff of clouds hiding her clattering teeth. It was that comment that Chloe and Tobias realized just how strange their tongue spoke—almost comparable to their own appearances.

They’re already shivering even with all of those layers of protection.

As she had lived in arctic conditions for her entire life, the thought didn’t occur to Chloe that they may have resided in a less chilling environment and thus not acclimated to such temperatures.

“C-Could you children take us to the people who are in ch-charge of everyone?” It was a gamble but Fukuda at least hoped that language even exists here and that their confused responses would allow them a sample of their speech. At first, the two were silent. Not a word was shared as fallen snow clung onto their fabrics. Though, this was due to how off-put Chloe felt being called ‘children’. Regardless, she took the initiative. Choe nodded, to the surprise of the three, and gestured to follow her. Tobias, on the other hand, grew wide-eyed at her as if she had invited the very beast of the Eastern Forest.

“Can’t offend our guests, right?” She said and began walking without another word. Fukuda looked as if she had won the lottery and realizing this, Nishimura grabbed her by the collar and began dragging the infatuated woman.

With the knowledge in his hands, the only thing Tobias could do now was to notify everyone that the unthinkable has happened. That was what he should have done from the very beginning.

“Apologies for the unannounced visit.”

“I’ve seen the snow flying around into the air. ‘Unannounced visit’ would be an understatement, is it not? Who do you think you folks are, barging in here without warning?”

In the quarters of the Chief’s office, the three stood shoulder to shoulder, not due to them sharing body heat but because of how little space there was facing the mahogany desk where the old man sat behind. Though, the close quarters was the least of their concerns. The citizens had every right to be troubled by the abruptness of their appearance in their own home—the Chief of the town was no exception. Nishimura knew this, and formalities were all that he could depend on.

“Lieutenant Colonel Nishimura and Fukuda, and Second Lieutenant Luke. If possible, us three would like to ask a few questions regarding your village. We promise we won’t take too much out of your time.”

The Chief narrowed his eyes in scrutiny at that answer. “So I’m dealing with a buncha military goons, eh? Got anything to back up your claims then, Lieutenant?”

Ah yes. Thick coats don't offer much in terms of communication.

Nishimura reached out his hand and on it rested a cobalt blue emblem that reflected its color across the walls of the quarters. An insignia of the A, stargazers of the sea.

“—Oh my. This really is an official emblem...”

Seeing the town chief lessening his usually empowering grip on those who speak to him, of which she grew to fear, Chloe could only remain speechless.

Even the Elder is backing down? Who are these people?

Seeing the less hostile expression on the old man’s face, Nishimura nodded. “Pay it no mind. These are extraordinary circumstances. I’d prefer to give long introductions, but time is not on our side. In short, we are employed in an organization known as ‘Azure’.”

・・・・・

News spread around Sappora as fast as a wave enveloping its shore. As for the mill, the children were all but knocked out to invade the state of affairs. But for everyone else, most if not all have shut their windows and locked their doors in fear of the unknown. As a result, the entire town felt as if it stood still in time, not a movement in sight, not even any light trickling from the many houses. Never had the town been so silent.

Because of the lack of hierarchical importance, no other facility was designed to house so many people at once, no less an invitation of ranked officers from a foreign land—with the exception of the town hall. Within the somewhat cramped space of the brightly-lit room, the table of the conference room was filled on each side. It was behind that door that Chloe felt the pressure of the room from. If anything else, she was far too curious as to what these foreigners wanted from a town like theirs and thus, placed her ear onto the wooden door.

“And? Going through the trouble to pay a visit all the way up here just to ask a few questions, you folks seem to be part of an interesting company. Why don’t you tell me more about this ‘Azure’ you are oh-so a part of.”

“Gladly.” Despite beginning with sudden pressure from the Chief, Nishimura maintained his directness and spoke without strain. “Azure can be considered a non-governmental military organization. We stations all throughout the continent. Almost all, at least. Territories that are occupied by other forces or areas with conditions too harsh such as yours are deemed too risky to pursue. However, that it is to say we do not exist without a nation to protect—”

“Well I’ll be. The world is in no such state of war much to my knowledge. Why the occupation?” The Chief’s interruption surprised him at first, but eventually subsided. They would always ask this, and he would always give the same response.

“...To maintain the balance of Humanity.”

A short, concise, if not simplistic answer that communicates very little and yet, just enough of the organization’s purpose. No matter what person that line is delivered to, they would raise an eyebrow, saying that wording is far too fantastical for merely protecting regions with a standing army.

“And so you folks are telling me that the reason you have been sent here is to notify us Azure will occupy this part of Scandia as well?” the Chief continued.

“Actually, that is not our intention. Rather, it is more of a ‘search’, I should say. We’re looking for a specific target we believe has fled into the Northern Regions.”

This was news to him. Who knew Azure had an additional division tasked with pursuing high-profile individuals? More surprisingly, it also implied they reduced down the search options to such a remote part of the region, let alone the Scandia region in its entirety.

“And here is the most likely location that ‘target’ could be is here in this exact town of ours?”

He nodded.

“Just so we’re on the same page here, this target doesn't happen to be one of our people?”

“Rest assured, sir. It’s actually quite the opposite, they’re one of our own.”

“Ha. In that case, I don’t think we can provide that much information. We haven’t had so much of a glimpse of a foreigner in years until you folks showed up in that hulking tractor. What makes you think Sappora is housing one of you Alkai citizens?”

“That specific target has been seen traveling with a female of your people’s ethnicity.”

A lean forward. “...Oh? Now that’s interesting.”

Behind the door, Chloe’s breathing grew irregular. Children were not allowed to travel outside the boundaries of the town and adults weren’t reckless enough to become involved with dangerous matters, no less travel that far out and stumble upon another civilization. Combined with Chloe’s observations and what Tobias had just brought up, it was far too connected to be a coincidence. Yes, and if that was true…

In that moment, it clicked. Chloe only had assumed the only reason that something triggered in her thoughts was the mention of a female of her blood, that some adult went and invited some war criminal to their town. But that was denial.

Wait… does that mean… Nagi… You…

Her friend. She had not explicitly said it, but Chloe regarded Nagi as her friend. Hell, sisters could be more appropriate. So then, the thought of Nagi involved in activities that would violate what they have been taught since birth was inconceivable. And yet… she was giving every reason for that to be the case. The undeniable truth was staring right in her face.

Do I bring her up…? No, of course I have to. She’s definitely in danger.

She clenched her arm. It was the only way to get her back.

“In hindsight, if one such foreigner found themselves in a group of people considered foreigners to them, relations and technological developments would quickly be established.” Luke mentioned, “Even so, hiding one of different blood without the knowledge of others for this long is bar none impossible.”

“And considering there are no hair dryers here…”

“I see… You have a point, Second Lieutenant.” Nishimura leaned back on his chair, head tilted back and hands clasped. Was this also a dead end? “The one we are dealing with wouldn’t merely show their face and run the risk of revealing themselves after all. That much should’ve been obvious. Just about removes every possibility of an Alkain living among here...”

While the Chief felt disappointed in his lacking ability to offer more assistance, he felt relieved he could rid these foreigners that showed up without invitation from Sappora. The only thing in his mind now was to send them back to wherever they came from. “Apologies, we can’t provide what you officers are looking for—”

A creak behind them. The door to the conference room opened, and Chloe stepped in. Everyone around the table turned around and shifted their attention to the singular girl. She cleared her throat.

“I may have a lead.”