"Look to the sky, reach the heights... A planet hangs in the night sky..." "...They will return, and humanity will discover..." "Rising from the seabed, coming from the land... They will return!" The fish-man continued laughing and speaking words that both Sean and Freya struggled to understand, his state one of [Extreme Madness!]. In the end, he couldn't even communicate properly. Sean tried several times, but the other just kept laughing and refused to speak. "Sean..." Turning around, he saw Freya's alluring face, marked with [Hesitation to Speak!]. "Let's head out first. I'll explain later..." Figuring there was no valuable information to be gained from the fish-man, Sean decided to let it go for now. The creature looked exactly like those fanatical believers, now in a state of utter delirium. Glancing at the cell's environment, it made sense that such dark, oppressive conditions could drive someone insane. "Sean." After stepping out of the cell, Freya called out again. "Yeah, I know what you're asking. I was just trying to deceive him earlier. Didn't expect he could actually understand us. That means whatever you all said to him before, he probably understood." "I see." Seeing the clear [Suspicion!] in Freya's eyes, she didn't press further. After all, she was still one of the team's leaders, and on the battlefield, her focus had to be on the immediate enemy. "We haven't said much of anything, but what do you make of what he just said, Sean?" Freya suddenly asked, then realized she was asking the same question again. It seemed that whenever he was around, she casually asked for his opinions on all sorts of things. Last time, Prince Philip had even subtly inquired about their relationship because of it. She hadn't known how to answer then, and inwardly felt it was inappropriate. After all, her identity was always under scrutiny across the empire. Even if many dared not target her directly, they would subconsciously go after those close to her. Once someone got too close, they became a target for many. And Sean was just a minor baron, unlikely to live peacefully amidst so many nobles and powers. From Freya's years of judging people, this man had always preferred a quiet, ordinary life. If she hadn't dragged him to Rietis, he might have gone back then. Sean noticed Freya's [Pondering!] state, unaware she was thinking so much... He simply answered based on the matter at hand. "You heard him too, right? He kept talking about summoning. Doesn't that sound familiar?" Sean looked at her. Freya's face showed [Confusion!] but quickly shifted to [Understanding!]. "You mean..." "You fought against it back then." Summoning, madness—if he extracted those keywords, what came to Sean's mind was the battle in Koga City. That chaotic, garbled creature was summoned by the wizard Weissman, wasn't it? "It seems the empire has really run into trouble. Two such incidents in just one month." Sean blurted out his earlier thought. This couldn't be explained by coincidence anymore. "You think it's the Immortals again?" "Maybe..." "What we're facing now might be a similar situation. I wonder if you can still fight it then." Sean looked at Freya. She had been able to face the Eye of Chaos head-on because the monster's appearance was time-limited. But with so many 'sacrifices' involved, who knew what would happen! Freya lowered her head in thought for a moment before speaking. "Actually, there's something else I want to show you, Sean." Huh? Why so many things to show me! "What else?" For a split second, Sean felt like a tool. "Follow me." Freya returned to the command post, which was essentially her room, and pulled out a small square box from under her bed. "Open it..." She gestured for Sean to do so. It was an ordinary box, small enough to hold with one hand. When Sean opened it, inside lay a palm-sized stone slab... covered in intricate patterns and some strange-looking text. "What's this?" "This is the Caine Tablet," Freya said. "This is it!" Sean looked again in surprise. It was just an ordinary stone slab with markings, nothing special except for the incomprehensible text... Oh, and the material was unique, but much smaller than he'd imagined. This was the thing that caused the Koga City incident and was coveted by so many wizards?! "Yeah. I brought it from Prince Philip because I thought it might be connected to this event. What you just mentioned was actually brought up in our meeting, so I took it with me." Freya hadn't mentioned this before. But if she hadn't, why show it to him today? "I want to ask you for a favor, Sean." "What?" "Can you keep this tablet for me? I don't want it falling into anyone's hands. If the Black Feather Knight Legion fails this mission, I hope it disappears from this story forever, never to be possessed by anyone." Freya's words sounded almost like a farewell. "What do you mean?" "Just saying... but I want to entrust this tablet to you. We've studied it for a long time but can't explain what's on it. If you can ever decipher it!" Freya closed the box and pressed it into Sean's hands. "Keep it safe." ... Night fell again, signaling the approach of danger once more. Truth be told, Sean couldn't figure out how to counter the summoning or those unknown creatures. The ten stars in the sky kept moving. According to them, when they aligned correctly, whatever was waiting would appear. If it was that eye monster again, he had no idea how to fight it this time. Stall for time, or just run? He really couldn't see what he could do in such a battle... Before nightfall, there was always a banquet in the camp. Sean spent it lost in thought. Many mercenaries came to thank him, but he paid them no mind, until Freya appeared with several leaders and announced that the team would launch another attack on Takoma City tomorrow.