The rain was light, tapping the glass ceiling of the greenhouse but barely heard. Amelia and Clarette took a job to harvest grown flowers and plant new seeds however the what would be colorful and vibrant assortment of flowers was instead brown and withered at the edges. Their green stems weak not from a lack of sunlight and water but something else entirely that both girls couldn't figure out.

Not a single flower was healthy. The most healthy looking flower still had traces of withering when seen under a magnifying glass. In the silence, A radio sitting on a table played A speech made by none other than Warui.

"My fellow Imperia citizens. We currently face a crisis not unknown to us on our very soil. Our beautiful cityーbeing invaded by the corrupt Tokyo Magic Government Agency. They have now shown their true colors and plan on annihilating our city like they have always wanted. It is a crime against religion, and I presume that is why France hasn't involved herself with this war."

Amelia could feel his roaring emotion through the radio. His conviction, ideals were all real. He wasn't a warmonger but a man trying to defend his city, the one he cherished.

"We are the closest to heaven! Our strength and determination comes from our desire to do right. The rest of Japan has given in to this sin of magic but we haven't. Society shouldn't build itself on the basis of tools of destruction, it should be built on right ideals! I ask of you all to raise your arms and assist in our efforts to repel the TGA permanentlyーand from there, we will take all of Japan!"

The crowd erupted into cheers. Warui was correct, the TGA were corrupt and their reasons for starting this war were entirely biased. Amelia couldn't disagree with his words, she just wanted this war to end. However, to take over all of Japan...

Amelia let out a small nervous chuckle "He's very charismatic. I'd fall apart if I had to deliver a speech to millions of people. I can't think of any other solution… Maybe this is necessary in order for this war to end."

"You sound so hopeless." Clarette said "The church is supposed to protect and save as many people as they can. Are those people cheering really eager to put their lives on the line or are they just cheering because their fellow man is?"

"Hmm…" Amelia pondered, her fingertips touching the ends of the brown vines the flowers had. She then spurred out a question that had been lingering in the back of her mind for quite some time. "Can you tell me about Midareー"

A click was heard from the radio and the room was left silent. Turning to face the man who came their way, Cardinal Jean Forde, they bowed their heads at his arrival. He held a thick white tulip which he brought close to his nose to sniff the aroma then grinned. "Captain, where are your morals? Why are you withering, just likeーthese flowers?"

"Cardinal Jean." Amelia forced a playful smile, "Unfortunately these flowers are all withered. I don't know why they're dying."

Clarette tried hiding behind the vampire but Forde would quickly step closer, examining her looks and beauty. Circling around Amelia and nodding slowly with the tulip close to his face, he laughed. "Amelia I swear you always manage to find maidens with the fairest skin. Purity as white as heaven. But I feel we have met before, little girl. What is your name?"

Clarette stammered before Amelia answered "Her name is Catherine. We met in Aomori before the TGA came."

"How unfortunate to abandon your home. I hear the flowers that grow down there are blessed." He held out the tulip for Clarette "Don't you agree?"

Clarette closed her eyes expecting to smell the fresh aroma of the lone flower that was fortunate enough to not be affected by whatever plague was preventing the bloom from growing. But instead what she smelled was stagnant and familiar. "Is this plastic?"

"It is. Even though it is not the season for seeds to grow, Imperia used to have this specialty where the flowers that bloomed in winter had a diamond like quality to them. They were more fragile than crystals yet illuminated holy light." Forde tucked the flower in Clarette's hair and stepped back, making a frame with his fingers and smirking. "Yes… I can visualize it now. But I lack a canvas to paint on."

He asked the girls to fetch him a canvas from the lower triads. He wanted to paint something magnificent that could only be produced during a war. It was a simple job Amelia took but odd she specifically was given the task. It was busy work, the kinda given to a secretary or assistant. Amelia believed there to be an ulterior motive the Cardinals were scheming to bring the church to their side. A way to use them without them knowing but Amelia knew and she had plans later for possibly killing the cardinals if they got in her way of peacefully ending the war.

Far above the lower triads, Warui stood outside Imperia HQ representing holy, foot deep in the snow. He looked up at the afternoon skies that were grey and cloudy from the snowfall early. Reaching his hand up he felt he could touch heaven, but it wasn't his time yet.

A woman with brown hair tied in a ponytail and lab coat over her uniform came out of the building to inform him of an experiment he'd be working on. One of the test subjects' conditions had worsened. "She's the only one affected by this fatal disease. None of us know what it is but from the look of things, it's killing her extremely slowly yet the reason she survived the project. For now I recommend she stop using magic."

"Saeko…" Warui muttered the name of the child experiment he kept for himself. She was unique in a way, being the only one with an aptitude for experimental magic and the only girl apart of the project who hadn't lost her mind upon facing God. Warui took her under his wing for this reason and raised her as he would his own child if he married. But with war on his shoulders he reluctantly had to involve her in the duties of soldiers but he forced himself to see it as a divine trial in order to see if she truly was fit for the project or another failure like her predecessors who succumbed to the utterly profound truth of heaven. He lit a cigar, pressing his lips on the dry edge and hating himself for slowly growing addicted to harmful substances that gave brief moments of relief. There was a certain satisfaction in blowing out that grey cloud of smoke or passing out drunk. It was a soldier's escape.

"Stop using magic eh? At this rate she'll become a vegetable with all her symptoms. Has there been any clues as to what this disease is? " Warui questioned in a stern tone. His commanding voice was unwavering, so much so that every question, no matter how casual, seemed like a direct command. The scientist adjusted her glasses, hoping for Warui to not glance upon her exhausted eyes. "I honestly don't know what we should classify it as. It just might be a new unidentified EXover ability."

Warui sighed and changed the topic to lessen his frustrations at Saeko's fatal condition. " How are you daughters holding up?"

"I do not wish to speak about that."

Warui blew out a cloud of smoke. "Hmph… I'll get Kaga and Forde to retrieve Clarette and those guns you created. What were they called again?"

"Zweihander ichii-bal. It's a name... my daughter came up with." The scientist looked downwards with her voice lowering in tone. Before Warui could respond, she turned around declaring that she would return to work. Warui wanted to follow her so he could see Saeko but decided not to after bothering her with questions. He tossed the cigar and started to walk away. Figuring there was no point in acting kind or trying to connect to his subordinates that felt malice towards him. The wrongs he committed were necessary in order to protect Imperia. He viewed himself and the TGA as two sides of the same coin, had they been placed in a similar situation then the same outcome would happen.

The dual pistols laid out on the table had a unique design similar to a sig sauer p226 x6 with a black coating. However their magazine slot was… something else. They tried to slip out the cartridge but this gun didn't have a cartridge and no visible way of loading bullets or shooting. Clarette held these guns close by and said they were extremely powerful but Mark and Sharrion's inspections said otherwise, and Sharrion couldn't disassemble the guns because Clarette wouldn't allow her. She was only able to get this close to the weapons if Mark was there to supervise. The weapon was a strange enigma.

Sharrion alas shrugged and slouched her shoulders, completely defeated and perplexed by the seemingly otherworldly weaponry. "I can't figure it out, Mark. But I trust Clarette's words. I'd hold these guns close by just in case you awaken them like some prophecy."

Mark picked up one of the dual pistols, staring at it for a brief moment. He was about to respond bluntly when they heard the church doors open from below on the lower floor. He holstered both guns on the back of his belt hidden under his coat "That must be Amelia." He left Sharrion's room with her following closely behind. The church had personal bedrooms for Its members on the second floor. This church doubled as Seraphim's home and base, and the cardinals didn't suspect a thing about the secret plans they would conduct here.

They reached the lobby just as Amelia laid the tall canvas on a nearby table. Her eyes and Mark's met and she happily hopped over to him. "Mark-tan! I got some good news for you. We received a mission from Cardinal Jean Forde, an artist, to deliver a canvas to him."

Mark stared at her plainly "This is good news..?"

Amelia smirked, "It means I can take you close to the cardinals, close to Kaga so you can rough em up a little."

Mark had a clear opportunity to meet his old friend face to face. The chance he'd been waiting for so he could fully understand his side of the war. But something was urging him not to take it. Was it fear? Nervousness? Mark didn't have the conviction to face Kaga, not yet at least. Though turning away this opportunity ment he and his friends were going to meet with a gun pointed at each other instead of as mutuals. He turned his head "Not yet." Said in a stoic as ever voice, holding back unease and tension.

Reasonably Amelia was confused by his choice but she couldn't pry any answers out of Mark. Her disappointment showed through her averted gaze.

Clarette was also disappointed that she was unable to meet her brother. Viewing him partially as an obstacle to their goals and a sibling that could help their goals. It was a toss up, but one she wasn't willing to take. Amelia had to go alone to the higher triads, not that she was a stranger to this. She had visited many of Imperia's facilities through invitations as a formal guest. That's how she and Beatrice grew to know each other well and how she met the other cardinals who thought favorably of her. Had they found out Seraphim's underlying motive they would no doubt feel betrayed and hurt like Amelia had intended to wound them all along. Maybe that same feelings of a terrible misunderstanding was the same thing Mark felt, which is why he couldn't face Kaga until he had found… a purpose? To war...

Amelia walked the white snow alone towards a cathedral-like building, passing a group of children throwing snowballs at each other outside. The snow was endless on the higher triads even in summer this area remained white and the architecture never aging. She thought of it to be the kingdom of heaven manifest, hence the name Imperia HQ representing holy. Then a snowball struck the back of her head.

"Ohー I-I'm sorry miss!" One of the children cried out.

She laughed it off and brushed the snow out of her hair before entering the HQ to find Cardinal Jean. Thankfully she wouldn't have to go far as he was seated in a stool in front of a wide unfinished painting, a mural depicting mankind reaching angel-hood, absolved of all sin and reaching God to stand side by side in his grace. The idea of ever reaching a feat seemed too farfetched to Amelia but not entirely impossible for few to reach such a height. However the path to reach an angelic status is one of martyrdom and there's no guarantee a person will live to see the results of their efforts afterwards.

"Do you think it's possible for mankind to purify itself from sin?" Jean poked his cheek with his paintbrush, getting dark paint on his face. "We're all born with a disease so ingrained in us that it has become apart of us. Figures of the past had such noble lives. Untouchable by this disease, makes me think one has to be formed directly from God and not man."

Amelia tilted her head confused by which figures he was talking about as even the most righteous kings still had hidden faults. But Jean would laugh quietly at his ramblings and cross his arms. "Thank you Amelia for retrieving a canvas for me. I hope you can understand that us cardinals are busy most of the time given the state of affairs."

"Busy painting..?" Not wanting her words to come off as rude, she added "I thought you were helping push off the TGA at the lower triads."

"I guess you could call it propaganda. The people of Imperia never harbored animosity towards Japan and followed the teachings of God since the city's inception. News networks will try to depict us as war hungry crusaders but to those who search for the truth on their own, they will find that the TGA is religiously persecuting us." Jean stretched his arms high, "This holy war is in our favor. We're not going to lose."

Amelia nodded firmly. "Right. I don't want to imagine what would happen if Imperia fell completely." Though curiously she asked, "What did you need this canvas for if you're already working on something?"

"To create something unremarkable. To paint a beautiful maiden that will inspire soldiers to remember what they're fighting for." Jean stood up from his stool and took the canvas Amelia handed to him. "Not just for their wives and family at home but for beauty itself. As for this mural here, I'm having my apprentices take care of it."

Finished with the mission, Amelia gave a final bow to Jean then went their separate ways. Her payment would later come in the mail a few days later.