"Pfft, what? You're joking right?" Through a mouth full of food, Caspar snorted. "Hilda, you're, like, crazy strong! I bet you could take down a whole battalion by yourself and not even get scratched!"
"So that thing's just for decoration, eh?" Birdie said, eyeing the axe.
Karin, meanwhile, turned to Ness. Such a shame that a little boy was somehow more competent than her own persinal hires... "If nothing goes wrong, this trip shouldn't be more than a day, going and then returning. It took less than that for those residing there to get there in the first place...but of course, that was because they were running from robots." Karin took a moment for a sip of tea, then continued. "As for ourselves, I plan to set out within an hour after this meeting. We have an additional supply of rations and weaponry, so you won't need to spend too much. Take this hour to prepare...and then we embark."
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Iroha kept herself composed in the presence of this stranger, not batting an eye as he spoke. "Venturing out into the unknown is our only option at this point," she replied. "The people of Snowpoint are almost out of food. Either we take a chance and wait out the storm at sea, or we act."
"Hmph." He sat down beside Angel, arms crossed. "I hate to say it, but you have no idea what you're up against."
"And you do?"
He nodded. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Hubert von Vestra, Minister of the Imperial Household and personal aid to Her Majesty, Emperor Edelgard von Hresvelg. During this Melding catastrophe, I was separated from my home world and my emperor. In my endeavors to return to her side I eventually found a companion. He was on his way to this city, looking for someone he'd been separated from, as well."
There was a sudden rattling in the room, cut short by a loud klink as Iroha set the tea kettle down. Noting this, a slight smirk appeared on Hubert's face, and he continued. "We allied ourselves for the time being, but unfortunately..." The smirk vanished. "What awaited us in the forests was a beast. No, a monster. A demon from Hell itself. There have been few times I have truly feared for my own life, but this devil rattled even me."
"And what...what of your companion?" Iroha's voice shook slightly.
"He held the beast off, and urged me to come here and warn you all of what lurks out there."
"I do hope, sir, that you don't think this will stop me." Iroha stood, a fierce determination in her eyes. "My Master is out there, and I must find him, no matter what."
"Oh, believe me, miss." Hubert smiled.
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"I have no intention of letting that monstrosity live, nor do I plan to sit here while my emperor is still out there. Though I must warn you: my companion and I are both powerful. With his brute strength and my own dark magic combined, we were nearly unstoppable. But the fact that this devil was able to nearly fell us both...well, suffice it to say that we will need more than teddy bears and frying pans if we hope to stop it."
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Hilda just brushed off Caspar's praises. "Oh Caspar you're always so nice but I don't hold a candle to you or anyone else really!" She said as she rather effortlessly removed the ax from its holster as she addressed Birdie. "Yep! Just for decoration." Hilda swung Freikugel around. "It's a family heirloom you see, I can't just leave it anywhere! Father and brother would be really upset if I lost it somewhere. So I simply have it on my back so I don't lose it!"

"Pretty simple really!"
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"You know what the difference is between then and now, Hubbie?" Angel put Hubert's head into a headlock. "You didn't have Angel with you! I'm going to stomp a new hole in this diablo so that we can get proper grub again!" Still in a headlock Angel pulled Hubert's face unintentionally(?) closer to her bosom. "I'm a growing gal after and I need some real sustancia. You feel me?"
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