Lingering Echoes
Leithanien, land of spires, home to wisdom and music.
The shadows of days past are gone, and the light of dawn fills the streets.
Afterglow Hall, Vyseheim.
Strings stretched to the breaking point are about to play their last notes.
Keys of black and white are trapped by the stave lines of destiny.
A forgotten melody begins to grow in obsession.
The sounds of joy drift in the glow, as no one notices that the sun has begun to set.
- LE-ST-1: Grande valse brilliante (Interlude)News of Infected taking a surprise turn for the better comes out of the Afterglow, a district of Vyseheim, Leithanien, where Hibiscus arrives to investigate. Coinciding with famed musician Czerny's farewell concert holding its selections, the noble youth Ebenholz and the wandering Kreide apply to participate in the occasion.
- LE-1: Tritsch-Tratsch-Polka (Before Operation)Ebenholz and Kreide's performance does not gain Czerny's favor. Consequently, Ebenholz leaves to visit Gertrude, concert sponsor, where he learns of a plan she's had waiting in the wings.
- LE-1: Tritsch-Tratsch-Polka (After Operation)Ebenholz and Kreide begin to rehearse for the concert. Hibiscus is conducting her investigation all over the Afterglow, looking to find the truth of the Infected suddenly recovering.
- LE-2: Appassionata, ou Pathétique (Before Operation)The extent of the mysterious recoveries turns out to be greater than Hibiscus foresaw, and the street is filled with uncertain rumors, linking a Sarkaz with calamity. Hibiscus is forced to confront the crowd besieging her.
- LE-2: Appassionata, ou Pathétique (After Operation)While passing by, Ebenholz and Kreide save Hibiscus, but the cello Kreide borrowed from Czerny is damaged in the process. The concert draws closer and closer, but the duo have yet to earn Czerny's acknowledgement.
- LE-3: Der Freischütz (Before Operation)To purchase a new instrument, Ebenholz and Kreide put themselves at risk and enter the Cliffy Patio, an area off-limits to the Infected. Once again, they ask Czerny to assess the fruits of their practice.
- LE-3: Der Freischütz (After Operation)Ebenholz finally gains Czerny's approval. When Czerny goes to the concert hall for a routine pre-concert inspection, he runs into Gertrude by chance.
- LE-4: Surprise (Before Operation)Hibiscus discovers the changes in the conditions of the Infected are related to Ebenholz and Kreide. She speaks out and tries to bar them from performing, and Ebenholz goes to confront Gertrude.
- LE-4: Surprise (After Operation)Ebenholz tries to break free from Gertrude's grasp, but finds himself with nowhere to go. As soon as he returns back home, he collapses with a severe headache.
- LE-ST-2: The Rite of Spring (Interlude)As he listens to the calm cello tune, Ebenholz reminisces about a past he had long sealed away.
- LE-5: Moonlight (Before Operation)Hibiscus tries to convince Czerny to cancel the duet, but to no avail. Having second thoughts, Ebenholz runs into a suspicious person who seems to have a hand in the rumors circulating around the Afterglow.
- LE-5: Moonlight (After Operation)Hibiscus learns some of the Afterglow's history; Ebenholz is about to detain his target, but an agent suddenly appears, giving the rumor-spreader an opportunity to flee into the sewers. The two give chase.
- LE-6: Danse Macabre (Before Operation)Ebenholz and the spy discover a secret laboratory hidden in the sewers, and a large number of special, activated Originium slugs gush out of the ground and threaten the Afterglow, even closing in on Kreide.
- LE-6: Danse Macabre (After Operation)Ebenholz and Kreide use the Resonanz between their Voice of the Mundane to drive the Originium slugs away, but the shadow of the Witch King still looms over them. The mystery has not yet been solved, and everything points to the tampered-with concert hall.
- LE-7: Verklärte Nacht (Before Operation)The party finds an Arts amplification device set up by Gertrude in the concert hall. Gertrude herself appears, and after unsuccessfully trying to persuade Ebenholz, decides to take matters into her own hands.
- LE-7: Verklärte Nacht (After Operation)Gertrude is taken away by the spy, but Kreide's health has deteriorated further. After studying the files obtained from the laboratory, this group of souls draws up a desperate plan.
- LE-8: Schicksals (Before Operation)During the concert, Ebenholz and Kreide follow the plan, but Gertrude already modified the entire concert hall and even directly interferes with their performance. Caught in a desperate situation, Ebenholz and Kreide simultaneously come up with the most direct solution.
- LE-8: Schicksals (After Operation)The crisis in The Afterglow is averted, but an even crueler fate awaits Ebenholz and Kreide.
- LE-ST-3: From the New World (Interlude)The string of events has left different scars on each participant, but Ebenholz has yet to find the strength to understand these scars. He still needs time.