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Dr. {@nickname}, I saw...her.

Doctor... Miss Rockrock really was talking about her.

Kal'tsit said she already...;Kal'tsit said I...

And W's attitude towards me...

Four years ago, Theresa passed away.

Even though Dr. Kal'tsit and W may disagree with me about the truth behind this... There's one thing we definitely wouldn't get wrong.

That day, we really lost her.

What's this about...?

...I don’t know.

But... the moment I saw her at the train station, I finally understood... why I felt those emotions in Londinium.

Besides anger... sorrow. An endlessly infinite sorrow.

Yes... to the Sarkaz, anger and sorrow are symbiotic. It's just that they choose to dry their tears with anger most of the time.

And all of those emotions seemed to converge in her eyes.

Even Theresa had never...

You're hurting.

Hurting? Maybe, but compared to them... those Sarkaz shattered by hate and prejudice, this is nothing.

I can feel it... It's too little, far too little...

I glimpsed it for a moment, but I was nearly drowned under that turbulent wave of emotion.

What did Theresa go through?

That's not your responsibility.

Is it really not?

Doctor, I said before that I really couldn't believe it was her.

But... when I saw her with my own two eyes, I found it wasn't very difficult at all to accept.

Since I'm here, I need to know the truth.

Not just the truth behind Theresa, but also the Sarkaz within the city... What exactly did they experience, that they would be burdened with such anger and sorrow?

And if the truth brings about more pain?

Dr. {@nickname}...

You can be afraid, Amiya.;I'm afraid too, Amiya.

But we will walk onwards together.

Yeah!

Dr. {@nickname}, together...

Let's look for the answer.

This is also an answer I need.

I apologize for interrupting you——

There's an urgent matter concerning Alexandrina... I mean Vina, as well as our Self-Salvation Corps.

Based on a letter from Lady Heidi, we've confirmed that this matter relates to you.

Dr. {@nickname}——

Is Edward Artorius's relic in your possession?

st04

'...Next, turn your textbooks to page 132.

Terran Calendar 31, the Empire of Hippogryph was officially renamed the Empire of Ursus. We have already spent two lectures talking about and analyzing this piece of history.

Historians believe that the cause of the Hippogryphs' fall from power was primarily its ruling class's corruption and incompetence, as well as the rise of Ursus and the forces of production that it represents.

This war is often referred to as Ursus's uprising, representing the Ancients' standing up against the Elders' authority. From this point onward, the legitimacy of the Elders' rulership across Terra gradually waned.

Yet if we look back on this war from a different perspective, we'll find a set of questions that naturally follow.

Suppose it was another Ursus race that had been ruling the country instead of the Hippogryphs. Would the revolution still have taken place?

If, as the rulers, the Hippogryphs had not insisted on a policy of racial discrimination, if they stopped taking Ursus wealth as their own and gave the Ursus equal opportunity...

Would the Hippogryph Empire's downfall have been averted, or would it have come sooner?

What if... the Khagan's cavalry never set foot on these lands?'

Hello, are you here to listen in on Miss Koshelna's lecture?

Miss... Koshelna?

That's right. Her lectures on imperial history are very popular.

I've been noticing young men and women such as yourself listening in from the hallway. You aren't one of our students, are you? You don't look like a college student.

You can actually go inside if you'd like. She's not going to mind if you stand in the back of the classroom. You'll be able to hear her more clearly.

No need. Her voice is pretty clear as is.

Okay, then. This lecture is almost over anyway. I still have other lectures to attend, so please excuse me.

By all means, please.

'You may not be able to find the answers to these questions in any textbooks.

But I hope you will give them some thought. Let them occupy your brain as you eat, as you bathe, and even as you sleep...

And when an idea has lingered in your brain long enough, write it down. I'm very interested in your opinions.

Okay, let's wrap it up here. Enjoy your brief freedom until the next bell.'

Do you have any questions, Miss?

Found you.

Why did she go into the city?

To look for someone.

And why is this someone worth the risk?

Nine, you said it yourself. We can't get anywhere close to the nomadic cities while we're in Ursus.

We want to pass judgment on her, don't we? Before she talks, she needs an answer still.

Without this answer, she won't even believe half a word she says herself, and neither will we.

We shouldn't be believing her to begin with!

She went into the city herself. What if she makes a run for it? All the efforts and sacrifices that went into rescuing her and all our plans about her going forward will all go to waste!

They won't.

She knows very well that she has nowhere to go.

Besides, as long as you still trust me, I can guarantee you this. No matter where she goes, I will take her in again.

I trust you... but that's based on everything you've done for us in the past year.

You're not like her. You don't talk big. This is something that all of us like about you. It's a good thing, and you should make sure you don't start picking up that habit.

Are you worried I'll be influenced by her?

I don't think that'll happen so easily.

Nine, a patrol unit is approaching—

Stay hidden.

Just as we predicted. In half an hour, this route won't be so safe anymore.

She better come back in time.

I thought I would've seen you much sooner—

—Talulah.

Koshelna... Couldn't have picked a more obvious name, could you, Kashchey?

Ah... Names. Names are just a way to refer to people. If the sound of this name reminds you of certain unpleasant memories, you can call me Fiolet.

Never mind. Your name is of little importance to me. Just like your appearance, your name is not worth remembering.

Why have you come then, Talulah?

Because you want a definite answer from me? Because you want me to tell you that, yes, Kashchey has left your body, and you're just Talulah and no one else?

In that case, you will get what you want. I can tell you exactly what you want to hear right now.

The question then is... are you willing to believe me?

You want me to believe a Black Snake?

Is this a new trick you're playing, Kashchey?

You gave me more than enough information to find you in the shortest amount of time. I can only assume that you were luring me here.

Have you gone back to our home, then? Our home, both yours and mine?

That's not my home. It's nothing more than ground zero of a conspiracy, a nest beloved of venomous snakes.

That's an awfully hurtful way to describe it.

But you read my letter nonetheless, didn't you? You remembered the channels through which Duke Kashchey received the Scales' correspondence. Not even the Secret Police who took over the dukedom could figure it out.

A letter sent ten years ago, and its sender is tenured here at this college.

I don't know if I should be gasping in admiration of how well prepared you are, or if I should be grateful that this channel stayed hidden for ten years while your Scales have long been reduced to nothing?

Does it make you happy that the territory has fallen into such neglect? Talulah, under your rule, they could have lived a much better life. They shouldn't have been torn to shreds by the Fourth Army.