https://youtu.be/k1S0xxTwueQ

The next morning, Inigo woke up rather early, both because he wanted to get the better of Iago and because he could hardly sleep that night. After a point, one just gave up. Yet once he'd gotten up, he noticed Iago was nowhere to be found. Rather than being in the other twin bed in their inn room, or even in the toilet, he had beaten him to the chase, and was presumably on the way to Aurum.

Lamenting the early start, he rose from his bed, stretching his limbs before carrying out his morning routine more quickly than usual. He took a shower and freshened up, making sure he had just the right amount of bed hair before getting changed into a simple grey hoodie and joggers, wrapping his purple scarf around his neck before making his way out of the building to search for Iago.

He tried to remember the map he'd consulted last night, mentally looking at it for directions. He'd remembered that to take the quickest route, he'd have to move through Viren once again. He wasn't sure he liked the thought of that, remembering the last time he went there, and the bad memories almost made him shudder. That confrontation with Makoto in the forest was the exact moment the murky, misty dream he called life turned into a nightmare.

But lives were at stake, so he couldn't put his feelings above that. Taking a deep breath, he took the western exit from Arc for the first time in a while, stepping into the tree-filled forest. He listened to the sounds of the wildlife as he made his way through, moving at a brisk pace, but not so quickly that he couldn't hear the birds chirping, the slimes squelching, the wind blowing against him. The forest sounds he missed, the gentle ambience reminding him why he loved that place so much. But in the distance, he could hear lively footsteps coming from ahead. Someone else was here, and though it was probably innocuous, his curiosity wouldn't allow him to proceed without seeing them in person.

He proceeded on his usual path, listening out for who else was there, but once he made it into the clearing, he saw Scarlett standing in the middle of it, looking around almost nervously. Her clothing was the same as when he last saw her, which made him wonder if fire-based Natura gave some kind of protection against the cold. Food for thought. She spotted him a second or two later and immediately ran towards him, her expression significantly less light and playful than usual, which made him raise an eyebrow. She wasn't even trying to fake a smile this time.

"Inigo, there you are!" she exclaimed, stopping in front of him as he eyed her curiously. Why the panic? Not like he was anything special.

"That is my name, yes. Probably." Inigo replied, glancing up at the dark sky. "Good...morning, I guess."

It was about 5:00 in the AM, so that wasn't technically inaccurate, but most of the people were still fast asleep. Which begged the question of what she was doing so far from Ruben at this time. Putting a hand on his hip, he tilted his head slightly, looking up at her - she was the taller of the two, after all, and whether that was because he was short for a male, she was tall for a female, or both was unclear.

"So, what's the occasion?" he asked coolly, keeping an eye on her, his expression and tone unchanging as he added, "Surely you didn't just come here to gaze upon my pretty face?"

"Haha, no..." Scarlett shook her head, chuckling quietly at the unexpected joke. She then quickly returned to seriousness, her pink eyes meeting his blue ones head-on. "No, I came to warn you."

"How unexpectedly yet expectedly kind." Inigo commented, adjusting his scarf. "What, did Galileo booby-trap the trees?"

"Uh, I don't think so?" she shook her head again. "But you do have to watch out for him. He's not too happy about your last encounter...and I think he's gonna pull out the big guns."

Inigo's expression somehow managed to look even more deadpan than usual at those last two words. "He sent a slasher after me and blew up a gas station and two houses. You're telling me those weren't the big guns?"

"He sent a slasher after you?" Scarlett raised an eyebrow.

"A chainsaw guy, to be specific. Had a hockey mask and everything." Inigo explained.

"Huh. I didn't think we had anyone like that in Libera..." Scarlett mused. "Regardless, I wouldn't go back to Ruben anytime soon. When he's really going after someone, even I can't predict his actions."

"Comforting." Inigo murmured, sighing softly as he shook his head. "Thanks, Scarlett. At this rate, I'm gonna owe you two dinners."

"Ahaha, you don't have to, you know!" Scarlett giggled quietly, taking a deep breath. "I hope you take this to heart, though. I'd rather have you alive than dead."

"Thanks for that." Inigo said. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got an appointment."

"Oh? What kind of appointment?"

"Death. Hopefully the prevention thereof." Inigo said, mirroring the only clue Iago had given him. "I'll be in Aurum if you need me."

"Alright, then. Stay safe!" Scarlett waved at him, smiling happily as she watched him begin to walk past, flashing his half-wave as he heeded her words.

"Likewise."

.........

https://youtu.be/pjKsNuCRha4

"Welcome to Aurum City", read the sign at the entrance, and seeing how fancy it was almost made Inigo want to gag. The cleanliness was fine, but the pavements were, of all things, white? That just reeked of trying too hard, and any dirt or blood would instantly stand out. The houses were way too tall and pretentious, and they represented the town pretty well, thought Inigo. And, of course, the overall motif colour was gold - which went decently with the rising sun, but they surely didn't account for that. This wasn't Han'ei. The people wore suits and hats - like fedoras - so Inigo in his hoodie stuck out like a sore thumb here, and the arrogant expressions on people's faces as they turned their noses up at him only made that clearer to him.

Not like he had anything to prove to them. He stepped further in, hoping to ignore this for the time being, and looked around the place. There was no real trick to locating Iago when he played these little games, he thought. He had initially thought of following the trail of corpses in suits, but people in suits seemed to be a dime a dozen here, and none of them were corpses. So now he had to think about the clue he had given him - "Death".

Could it have meant the deaths of Libera? That was a possibility, but when he encountered some of them in Viren today, he had made sure to interrogate them, and it appeared Iago had passed through that day, but had managed to evade their attacks. Which seemed...uncharacteristic, but oh well. Knowing he had passed through Viren convinced him he was on the right track. But why would he leave them alive? Was it a clue? Could he be trying to tell him that he wasn't there for Libera?

Well, he'd already considered that possibility - but what could he have been there for, and how did 'death' tie into it? Unless there was a cemetery nearby, he wasn't sure if there were any leads. He walked through the street, ignoring the silent judgement issued by its civilians, and looked around. 'Cemetery' was his only lead, and by the religious vibes this place gave off, it was bound to have one. He was already seeing churches and statues, after all.

As he wandered through the place, he decided it would be good to ask around, but that train of thought quickly left the station once he actually started approaching people. He didn't hesitate to back off once people saw him coming and didn't bother to hide the looks on their faces. Looks that clearly said things like, "Oh my GODS, who is that filthy, depressed little commoner? How did he enter our prestigious town looking like that? He isn't even wearing a suit!"

Surely there had to be other visitors, right? Iago, at least, would blend in perfectly in a crowd like this, unless they had reason to judge him for his haircut or something. Keeping this in mind, he decided to approach the first person not wearing a suit that he could find. And eventually, he spotted someone, in the form of a white-haired young man with dark pink eyes. Seemingly about Makoto's age, and probably either mixed-race or Han'eian, for his skin was dark, but lighter than, say, Jude's. His clothing was casual, consisting of a thin black jacket - unzipped to show his white shirt - along with an equally black pair of trousers and a scarf.

He approached the young man, tapping him on the shoulder to get his attention, and upon seeing him, his eyes seemed to widen a little, almost studying Inigo. Inigo almost found this weird, but then again, he did this to almost everyone he met, so he couldn't really complain. Even now, he was putting this black-clad stranger under just as much scrutiny.

"Uh, excuse me?" he asked, to which the stranger raised an eyebrow. "Do you know this place well?"

"Sort of." was the raspy response. "Why, did you need a tour guide? It's plain to see you're not from around here."

"Look who's talking." Inigo snarked, shaking his head slowly. "I just need directions."

"Oh. Well, those, I can provide." the man stated cheerfully, smiling at him. "You're going to want to turn-"

"I haven't told you where I want to go yet." Inigo narrowed his eyes, silencing the man at once. "I'm trying to get to the cemetery. Know where that is?"

"Of course! You'll want to head to the big Deus statue at the centre - look, you can see it from here!" the man exclaimed, pointing to a large white statue in the distance, featuring a blank, androgynous person with one arm crossed over their heart and the other held out in front of them. "Once you're in front of it, you're gonna want to turn right. Head out to the edge of the city, and it should be right there."

"Right. Thanks." Inigo nodded, looking at the statue and memorising the directions. "Have a good one, I guess."

"Likewise!" the cheerful man waved at him, watching him as he walked in the directions given. Once he was gone, he smiled to himself, looking around before walking off as well. He paid no mind to the eyes that were on him - eyes that betrayed condescending thoughts like "Look, the riffraff came together. Isn't that just lovely? Maybe they're discussing ways they can get on our level."

They didn't matter to him, after all. Only his fellow riffraff did.

.........

https://youtu.be/8vMpc-eB7js

Inigo's walk took him to the outskirts of the city, where he came across a sight that immediately made him wish he'd brought something with which to pay respects. It was a far cry from the gold and white his eyes had been assaulted with since he got here - this was a field, and it was positively green, with a grey, branching path sprouting out from the entrance, where he was standing. Meticulously-trimmed hedges with black roses growing on them could be seen lined up, and next to each one was a tall gravestone, each one with words carved into its face and flowers at its feet. At the very end of the path up ahead laid a large stone, shaped like a grasping hand. That one was probably important.

There was no doubting it - this was the cemetery. A few people strolled the paths, among them the black trickster himself, picking a rose and holding it by its stem, a reflective smile gracing his face. So he was right, then - Iago had come to visit the cemetery. And given the lack of corpses encountered on the way, it was safe to assume that was all he'd come to do. Taking a deep breath, he approached him, trekking the front of the path and coming up behind him, who was blissfully sniffing his rose while standing in front of a grave. Without warning, he called out to him - quietly, so as to be respectful - "Found you."

Hearing him, Iago immediately perked up, turning around and grinning merrily at his grey-clad companion. He held out the rose to him, causing him to raise an eyebrow. "Good morrow, my dear." he greeted. "I hope the journey wasn't too arduous."

"It was quite a walk." Inigo admitted, ignoring the rose and putting his hand on his hip. "But I managed."

"Good! I would much loathe to send you into an early grave." Iago stated calmly.

"If you really care, maybe you should stop sneaking off like that." Inigo narrowed his eyes. "Libera's everywhere these days."

"Well, clearly it wasn't that inconvenient, was it?" Iago shrugged. "You have arrived, after all."

"Yeah, no, they were actually a big help." Inigo noted, looking around the graveyard and tapping his foot on the ground, taking note of the peaceful atmosphere. At least Libera wasn't ruining this. "Can't say I expected to see you in a cemetery, though." he added, turning his attention back to Iago. "What's up with that? Do you have any loved ones you want to pay respects to?"

Inigo's question was genuine, but Iago, upon hearing it, sighed desolately and shook his head, holding the rose up to his own face. "Sadly, everyone I could once call a 'loved one' is still alive."

"Sadly?"

"Indeed! The ones who spawned me are the greatest evils to ever plague this world!" Iago announced dramatically, gesturing appropriately with the rose. "But not for long. First, Laeterra shall be liberated from Libera, and then I will climb to the apex, and their flag will wilt!"

As he said that, a black miasma started rising off the rose, and its petals began to wilt and scatter one by one. Inigo watched him, beginning to wonder if he'd only picked that rose for the sake of theatrical monologuing. "Climb to the ape- oh, I get it."

He then tapped his foot slowly on the ground, taking in everything Iago was saying, before thinking about what he hadn't said. He now knew Iago's parents were somehow linked with Apex, but... "That doesn't tell me why you are here, though..."

"Is a man not permitted to relax, even just for a little while?" Iago questioned, now holding his hand to his forehead and continuing his melodramatic posing with the naked rose stem. Inigo stared at him as if he'd said something strange, because...well, he had.

"A graveyard isn't really what comes to mind when I need some R&R."

"Of course, I understand perfectly. You are not me, after all." Iago grinned. "Two words, my dear; memento mori."

Inigo stared at him blankly, a nonverbal cue for him to elaborate, which he instantly picked up on. "Death comes for everyone, you see. I am one who takes pleasure in surrounding myself with the macabre, for it reminds me that, while I may be an exceptional man, I am no exception to this rule of nature." he explained. "It reminds me that in this life, I still have things to do. And that puts me at ease."

"Okay...I understand, but also, I really don't." Inigo replied, crossing his arms, to which Iago extended the rose stem towards him, smiling graciously.

"Then walk with me, Inigo. Perhaps you'll get it then."

.........

And unfortunately, his curiosity would not let him reject the offer, so Inigo ended up traversing the path by Iago's side. Though he was curious about the big grave at the end, he didn't see the harm in waiting until they got there naturally. For now, he focused on reading the various epitaphs he saw inscribed on the gravestones on the way, while listening to Iago talk.

"A life, my friend, is a duty. By living one's life to the fullest, you are performing your duty doing what it is you choose!"

"And a death...is an unfinished duty, I guess..."

"So then...what's my duty?"

He kept this question in mind as he skimmed the elegies that came and went, most of which were about the tragedy of loss and the love they had in life, or what great and lovely people they were while they still drew breath. He avoided thinking too hard about the veracity of those claims, lest he speak ill of the dead.

He saw a few crows perched on the bushes and sighed, wondering if that was a sign of things to come. With how bad his luck usually was, maybe spotting corvids in a cemetery was a good omen. "If that's why you came here, then why invite me, too?"

"Why? He asks why?"

"Yes, he does. Please answer him."

Iago chuckled quietly at that, nodding in concession. "I was listening just yesternight, you know. You seemed stressed - moreso than is typical for you!" he explained. "The cogs in my baneful brain turned like clockwork, and I concluded a little parley and stroll were just what the proverbial doctor ordered."

"...you noticed, huh?"

"Indeed! I see all!" Iago announced, a black card materialising in his hand. He tapped the edge on his palm, and the card disappeared, a small, round, copper coin appearing in its place. He held it out to Inigo, smiling. "Varia for your thoughts?"

"...this is weirdly considerate of you." Inigo noted, snatching the coin and pocketing it before Iago could clarify that he was allowed to. "Sure you don't have any ulterior motives?"

"Perish the thought! I simply feared the prospect of finding my last loved one crushed under the burden he shoulders alone!" Iago declared. "It's plain to see you're going through a lot, so allow me to share in your feelings, whatever they may be!"

Inigo eyed him closely, still unsure whether or not Iago was someone he could trust with his vulnerable side. At the same time, though, the chance to reveal to someone how he'd been feeling this whole time was tempting. He wasn't sure if Silas or Azurine would be willing to commiserate, and though Scarlett was nice, she was still an enemy. If Iago was reaching out to him...then maybe some kind of middle ground could be reached.

"...I'll indulge you a little, then." was his sighing response, cool as ice. "At the root of it all would be my amnesia."

"Truly? One would assume your position on Libera's hit-list would be more pressing..."

"Yeah, but that's the thing, I don't even know why they're after me. They just saddled me with a nickname and since then, it's been nothing but fighting." Inigo said, slowly pressing his fingers to one of his temples. "I can't just run from it, either, because they're the only lead I've got regarding my identity."

Iago raised an eyebrow at that, but Inigo remained focused on his own words. "Joining them is out of the question, too. They've been trying to kidnap me, and I'm pretty sure if I gave in, the Mikado or Galileo would kill me on the spot." he continued. "Not that I'd want to - not while that Mikado has an asshole like Grant on their payroll."

"And here I was, thinking you wouldn't concern yourself with all those silly little morals." Iago commented, and Inigo raised an eyebrow, quickly considering what he was saying, before sighing, shaking his head.

"You and me both. But that guy just pisses me off." he frowned. "And to top it off, there's the actually fairly decent chance that all this fighting is pointless and that they're right to want me gone, anyway. I killed a guy's father in front of him, Iago. How much more suffering have I caused?"

As he spoke, Iago noted that while he took caution to keep his volume down, his emotions managed to break through to an extent, and he could hear the pain and remorse that he was trying not to make clear. He nodded along, listening attentively before looking around the quiet necropolis, spotting the hand-shaped grave at the end. He smiled slightly, looking back at the subtly-despairing Inigo, and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I know not the answer to that question," he said, gently patting his shoulder, which Inigo did not react to, instead more interested in what it was Iago had to say. "But I have recalled a part of that proverbial doctor's prescription. And I sincerely hope that it provides you with the answer you seek."