The shadow ceased to move after a while, and Dia eyed it with the others. It had apparently been stationed in Claud’s room or something when he left at that time. If it hadn’t opened the door on its own and handed them a letter that had been written beforehand, Dia and the others wouldn’t have known that this was Claud’s method of keeping in touch with them.

“Still, a shadow? I think we might be executed as traitors if the Moons noticed this,” Dia muttered.

“It’s a different kind of Shadow. And we’re in Moon territory. You think they won’t know this?” Nero replied. “You’re looking down on their strength, Dia. More importantly…what exactly is this thing? Claud could have left a few more details, right?”

“Is it just Claud?” Schwarz replied. “Look at the letter this shadow wrote earlier. There are two distinct styles of writing. I bet this shadow can be commanded by both Claud and Lily.”

Dia nodded once, having understood why there were two distinct styles now. She hadn’t thought much about it back then, but…

“Mhm. So it’s an artefact, then. I thought maybe Claud had a weird skill or something,” Dia replied automatically.

“Huh? What makes you say that?”

“I’m just spouting things randomly…still, what skills does Claud have?” Dia asked. “Now that I think about it, he was really secretive with his skills. He didn’t even tell us much when we were doing our introductions back then.”

“Life-saving skills, naturally,” Schwarz replied. “I bet he has weird skills like Molting Shell, Ground Shrinker and other escape skills. That guy is the ultimate coward, after all. And he definitely has multiple teleportation skillsticks on him too. And as for artefacts…well, he’s armed with barriers.”

“Fighting with him sounds like an absolute pain,” Farah chimed.

Risti, who was chatting about something with her father, abruptly turned and joined in the conversation. “I won’t want to fight him. He’s not just the ultimate coward. I’m sure he’s the sneaky kind too. If you chase him long enough, maybe you’ll fall into a trap!”

Everyone laughed.

“Well, that’s the kind of guy we have looking out for us,” Schwarz concluded. “He’s the worst enemy one can face, but as an ally…well, one can’t probably ask for a better one. After all, there’s this saying about how the worst enemy is a shitty teammate. Those two are the last guys that will invite trouble for us.”

“Yeah, true,” Risti replied. “Anyway…well, it’s nearly lunch. My dad’s free now. He’s agreed to tell you guys more about the Second Tutorial!”

“Daddy Cadenza here, yes.” The President of the Folders’ Association winked at them. “My lovely little Risti wanted you guys to stay friends with her forever, but that means that you guys have to survive whatever storm that is about to break. Therefore, she got me to teach you guys how to become stronger!”

“Dad…”

President Cadenza patted her head. “Come now, they must know your contributions. If you keep things in your heart, it can lead to misunderstandings. And other than romantic comedies, nothing else good comes out of misunderstandings. Therefore, I must speak out loud. After all, if anyone here gets into a romantic comedy with my Risti…”

The pressure that emanated from the last few words were palpable, but it receded as quickly as it came. Eyes shining, the older Cadenza clapped his hands and said, “Don’t read too much into that, though!”

Yeah, sure. Dia rolled her eyes at Risti’s father, who was doing a damn good job at making sure his daughter stayed single. It wasn’t like they were nobles anyway, so what was wrong with getting a partner at a young age?

Chuckling inwardly, she joined the others in teasing Risti for a while, before they moved to lunch. Lunch today was prepared by Schwarz, as usual, but the bartender had learned how to prepare the savoury soup that the two lovebirds had cooked up. It was an improvement from yesterday’s leftovers, so…

As plates clattered, Risti said, “Isn’t it odd that we’re still eating in the garden, even though we can eat inside now? Claud specifically said that we can use the house, except their room.”

“Well, it feels odd. And we’ll need to be a bit more careful,” Schwarz replied. “We’ll need to do things like cleaning the table, not spilling drinks…out here, it’s a lot simpler!”

Dia looked at the bartender and sighed. “Right, you’re the guy who never cleaned the bar counter for a decade or so. Makes sense that you’re lazy.”

“Hey, my house is very neat,” Schwarz replied. “The only reason why I hadn’t cleaned that thing was because I made a bet with my old man, okay? Sheesh.”

“A bet?” Nero asked.

“It’s nothing much,” Schwarz replied. “Anyway, let’s hurry and eat. This is definitely going to be our last gathering. We need to all become mid-ranked folders before the Trial of Aeons.”

The happy atmosphere weakened as everyone else made a face. It wasn’t as if Dia didn’t have the intention to close herself up in her room and deal with the Second Tutorial, but putting it out this bluntly wasn’t good for the atmosphere.

“What’s with that face? Moons, you guys…” Schwarz rolled his eyes. “Anyway, President Cadenza, you can actually begin your briefing here. I am of the opinion that people remember things best when they’re eating.”

Neo Cadenza, who was sipping on some soup leisurely, raised an eyebrow. “A lesson during lunch? Boy, in schools, lunch is kept separate from classes!”

“Which is why there are so many delinquents and failures in Licencia,” Schwarz replied.

Dia was sure that there were definitely a few logical fallacies that let him to make such an assertion with so much confidence, but she couldn’t name any right now.

President Cadenza, however, simply nodded. “True. Alright, the—”

“You’re supposed to rebut that!” Risti smacked her forehead. “Don’t just go with the flow! We’ll have the lessons after lunch! After, got it! Now go back to the soup before it gets cold! You’re old! It’ll be bad if you get indigestion!”

“You do know that your father is one of the few septa-folders in the current era, right?” President Cadenza muttered, dejection written all over his face. “I can eat food however I want to!”

“Dad, you’re getting old.”

Dia watched on with relish as the father-daughter pair bickered over food hygiene, something that the others rapidly copied too. It made for good entertainment while eating, so it was with some sorrow when the older Cadenza finally gave in and promised to eat properly cooked food from now on.

“Ah, family.” Schwarz let out a chuckle that came from his stomach. “It’s nice, really.”

Farah looked at him. “You…”

“Yeah. I miss my old man too,” Schwarz sighed. “But at least he died happy and contented. He lived a good long life. Never touched a lifestone, though. Never needed one either.”

The president of the Folders’ Association turned to look at him. “We sometimes get people who are contented with their life and decided not to prolong it. There is both joy and wonder in coming to terms with death.”

“Joy and wonder, huh.” Schwarz had a complicated look on his face, and he ran his fingers through his hair. “Well, I suppose…but Claud would definitely disagree. Happiness comes with being alive. If you’re dead…how can you seek out more happiness?”

“True, what happens after death is not something we can figure out just yet,” Neo Cadenza replied. “And there is indeed a good chance that what comes after that final threshold is more suffering and pain. But these are just possibilities. Hypotheses. What comes after death? That is a good question.”

“It is. And there are different ways of looking at it too,” Nero replied. “Death can be the cessation of all thought and sensation. It may mean reincarnation. It may mean ascending to the great beyond, to the dark beyond the stars. While the Coloured Gods and the divinities do pick out souls of the faithful dead and send them into their own paradises, no one truly knows what happens to the remaining unchosen.”

He paused. “Probably the five grand skies do, but they…”

Nero shook his head and chosen not to speak any further.

“Alright, enough about this gloomy stuff,” Risti replied. “Let’s wrap this up and then start the lecture. There’s not much time left, and Dia, you’re already ready for the Second Tutorial, yes? Every moment counts. We need to get everyone up and working.”

She looked at the table. “Eh, we’ve polished most of it anyway. Let’s just save the rest for dinner or something. Dad, can you…?”

Dia eyed the food that had been turned into leftovers to be used in dinner later, and then frowned. Didn’t Risti just talk about food safety to her father just minutes ago? No matter how she looked at it, this was definitely not the way to go.

“Well then…let’s get started, shall we?” said President Cadenza. “We should talk about the Second Tutorial first.”

Dia promptly tossed her concerns about food safety out of her mind, devoting her full attention to the middle-aged man.

After all, she too had her own priorities.