The tower itself is a signal tower, but inside Rubues conducts his experiments and keeps prisoners. The worst of the worst are held there: they are constantly given anti‑mana drugs that weaken their magic, fitted with death collars, and chained to their cells. These men still retain some magical power, but in there they are basically left to die and are barely fed once a day.
"It won't be long until they find us. We have a maximum of thirty‑six hours before they discover us," Ragnus said.
"But how will they find us?" Inazuma asked.
"They can monitor every square inch of this island from the Obsidian Tower," Ragnus replied.
Then a mysterious, robotic female voice said, "I will be sure to offer my aid as much as possible."
"Who was that?" Alia asked.
"I don't know," Inazuma said. "Don't worry—you're probably imagining it."
"For the uniform, it's best if you wear this, Ragnus," someone said.
"Wouldn't it be better for Orion to use it, since his star magic can heal, support, and go on the offensive?" Ragnus asked.
Orion answered, "If the commander can't survive or is weak, it's pointless. We need you at your strongest to battle Rubues. Otherwise we can only try our best. Remember, this entire place is designed to kill us. We aren't here for a mass prison break—we're here to take back one of our own. Tomorrow we reach the tower; today we prepare."
Meanwhile at Existforger HQ, Elizabeth said, "We have set up camp, but our home is gone. The last memories we had of our mothers and the final fragments of the Black Rose that we loved so dearly are gone."
Lucifer said, "It's unfortunate. I feel the same way. Every remnant of my mother and everything I had from my past seems to be leaving me—my mother, my father, Gelda... even the last pieces I had are gone. I can finally say I have nothing left; all of my past is gone."
"When Alysa, Platia, and Irene return, she will rebuild the base," Elizabeth said.
"Understood. Brother, I will be visiting Mother's grave in the Black Rose cemetery," Lucifer said.
"I understand," Elizabeth replied. "I will drop a bouquet of black roses at the former captain's grave as well."
"Thank you—I appreciate it. And give my apologies to former Captain Lilith Faust," Lucifer added.
"Is it still the same?" Elizabeth asked.
"Yes, it is. Now, how are the camps progressing? Is everyone safe on the fifth floor?" Elizabeth asked.
"Yes," Lucifer said.
The following day, while wearing the uniform, Ragnus appeared before the Obsidian Tower and tried to enter under the pretext that he was transporting prisoners. The new inmates—so evil they had been directly sent to the Obsidian Tower for containment—were presented as part of the ruse. As they entered, Alia, Inazuma, and Orion were shown in chains to pose as prisoners.
Someone called out, "Report."
"Ragnus, unit 115111114114121 reporting for duty," Ragnus said.
"Are these the prisoners the director asked for?" an officer asked.
"Yes, sir," Ragnus replied.
"Good. These are the test subjects for the new drugs," the officer said.
Ragnus nodded. "Understood."
"Inject them. It will make them quite calm. Take them to Experimental Lab Alpha. The experiment is supposed to take place in two hours. Also, clean your uniform— I understand you're returning from patrol and the prisoners can be quite needy, but we must always be ready for any form of prison break," the officer ordered.
"Sir, are you suggesting there might be a prison break?" Ragnus asked.
"The director told us to be on alert—there might be an attempt this week. Also, stay away from the power core and the processing room; as of right now the director has declared those places off limits," the officer said.
"Understood," Ragnus said.
As they made their way toward Laboratory Gamma, Inazuma asked, "Ragnus, we're supposed to have a few allies in the prison. Why did they seal off the power core and the processor? That's where we should start."
"But we didn't find Klaus out there—shouldn't we try looking in the containment cells?" Inazuma continued.
"It's best to look in the processor room first; all the records are maintained there," Ragnus said.
Meanwhile, in a separate chamber, Rubues murmured, "What a fine treasure indeed."
Talking to an unseen accomplice, the other person replied, "Yes—he will do nicely. If you follow my instructions, he will truly succeed. Rubues, you truly are my angel."
Rubues began his surgery on Klaus.