Hearing about his brother's fate that awaits him, Ortho says, "We can't let that happen! Please, Headmage, you have to save Idia!"

"But of course," Crowley says, "With a peer's life at stake, I'm sure all of the kind souls here would be more than glad to lend their aid—"

However, the students respond, "Nah."

"What perfect harmony," Briar bluntly says.

Sereia and the twins shake their heads in response.

"But why? You could all help!" Ortho asks, shocked.

Vil answers, "He snubs the company of others, yet we're supposed to fly to his rescue? I see no reason to indulge such selfish behavior."

"This is your bro's problem, not ours. Figure it out yourself," Leona says.

"You guys," Sereia says, upset.

And Ortho says, "...Okay, fine. I can handle it, sure."

But Kalim says in concern, "Hey, wait. You can't possibly think you can do this alone—"

And then Ortho says, "Running simulation of Idia Shroud rescue mission. Priority: Shortest time to achieve objective," and with that, Ortho scans the situation, "Simulation completed successfully. Commencing live operation," And begins to charge his abilities for an attack, "Charging technomantic energy. Target: Night Raven College, main building. Technomantic beam firing in five, four, three, two..."

"Ortho, wait!" Briar cries out.

And Crowley also shouts, "STOOOP!" That causes Ortho to stop, "Were you truly about to vaporize our historic building?! I forbid you from firing that beam!"

"Look, if no one's going to help, then I don't have any other option!" Ortho says.

"Ortho, I'm sure we can find another way to save Idia!" Briar says, deeply concerned, "But you can't use your technomantic energy to blast at the school with Idia still inside, he can get hurt!"

"Really?" Ortho asks, and begins scanning, "Running simulation of Idia Shroud rescue mission. Priority Idia safety with fastest option... simulation complete..." And once he's done, Ortho can see Briar's point, "You are correct Briar, that could cause Idia have serious injuries."

"Or it will turn him into a ghost faster," Jasper points out.

"The point is, we'll find another way to get into the school and rescue him," Briar says.

Crowley nods and turns to the rest of the students, "As for the rest of you—are you absolutely certain you wish to stick with your initial answer? Because if you actually abandon Idia to his fate..."

But Ace asks, "So what if we do? Don't bother threatenin' me, 'cuz—"

Suddenly, Crowley says, "'Why look! There's a Night Raven College student now!'"

All the students are confused.

"Huh? What're you doing?" Ace questions.

Crowley continues, "'Hello there, I'm a reporter with TBC News! You attend Night Raven College, correct?'" and leans close to Ace.

"Uh, yeah... I guess?" Ace says, and feels the headmage closes in on him, "Whoa, geez, ever hear of personal space, Headmage?!"

Crolwey continues, "'Is it true that ghosts took over your campus? Give us an honest answer!' 'Oh, by the way, this is going to be in tomorrow morning's edition. Here, let's get a picture for the article!'" and responds.

He then takes pictures with his phone.

Snap!

Snap!

Ace yelps, "Ack! That flash is making me see stars!"

Sereia turns to the twins, "Uh, what is the headmage doing?"

"I have no idea," Tanzanite says.

"I'm confused," Jasper says.

Crowley continues, "'A student was kidnapped as well, yes? And you abandoned him when he needed you most, isn't that right?'"

"Look, man, I don't know what to tell you! I'm not even in his dorm!" Ace says.

"I have no clue what's he up to," Briar says.

Crowley continues, "'So you deserted him just because you weren't close? How utterly ruthless!' 'This deserves a special feature! Sage's Island Rocked by Horrific Betrayal at Prestigious Academy!'"

Ace shouts, "Dude, cut it out! Stop pointin' that camera at me!"

He continues on with his phone, "Snap-snap-snap! Snap-snap! SNAP!"

Ace then shouts, "QUIT IT!"

And Crowley says, "If Shroud never returns, I can assure you the press will be crawling all over our campus day and night, hounding you with questions. I, being the considerate person I am, have no desire to see my students run ragged with fear and anxiety."

And then Ortho glares at the students and says, "If you won't help, I'll hack the TV stations and remove any censoring from your faces on TV. And I'll make sure to add a ticker that reads: 'Backstabbing student'!"

"Woah! That's harsh, Ortho!" Tanzantien says, shocked.

"I think he's really serious," Jasper says.

"He looks really mad," Sereia says.

"I don't blame him. Ortho will do anything to help his brother, but this is a new level," Briar says.

Trinket nods her head in response.

"But can Ortho even do that?" Sereia asks.

"He might..." Briar says.

Azul then says, "My, the apple doesn't fall far from the twisted tree."

"I suspect the headmage would be held responsible if a scandal broke out. He'd have the most to lose," Riddle says.

"But it'd still be bad for us. My mom would cry if she saw me on the news like that," Deuce says.

And Vil says, "The tabloids would have a field day, ripping my image to shreds. Unacceptable on all levels."

"Looks like they've forced us to lend a helping hand," Lilia says, "I won't stand for any allegations that claimed Briar Valley's heir apparent failed to save a single child of man."

"You're absolutely right, Lilia!" Sebek says.

With that, Crowley says, "Then I believe we've reached a consensus! We'll all work together to rescue poor Shroud from the Ghost Bride! Ahhh, how fortunate I am to have such a kindhearted student body!" and has a smile.

"That's the fakest smile I've ever seen!" Grim points out with a frown.

Briar and the others nod their heads in response.