My first meeting with Edelgard was interesting, to say the least, and I'd say we have both grown much since that fateful night as our view of each other has changed with age. Encounters with her set me in motion towards my ultimate goal in Fodlan until now, the day that I'm writing this. It serves as a reminder of what's at stake and why we pursue our dreams so ravenously despite our different upbringings and circumstances.

I look around me quickly to see if anyone else is around on the terrace, but the moonlight only highlights an empty area with the very wary student and I. I casually shrug at her suspicious nature and denote, "You know I don't believe we have been properly acquainted, but it seems you know who I am."

"Yes. You are Santos Capetillo a former mage to the Galatea family of Faergus, Dagdan physician, and a wanted criminal," The girl matter-of-factly states which manages to elicit a huff of annoyance from me. Here I was thinking I would enjoy a nice cool night in the moonlight and stargaze, but instead, I have to deal with problems regarding more of the mess I made for myself.

"Seems like you did your homework on me, and you are…?" I lead on to encourage her to spill the beans, and thankfully she quickly responds, " I'm Edelgard von Hresvelg, leader of the Black Eagle house."

Hresvelg sounds familiar as I can recall some of my political talks with Count Galatea that the family she claims to be from is linked to the Adrestian throne. This means that she probably has a bone to pick with me considering my affiliations and her knowledge of them. Mentally bracing for an argument and possibly worse, I begin to attune my mind to have a spell at the ready just in case and reply, "Ah, Adrestian royal family I take it? It's an honor, for what it's worth."

Edelgard slowly approaches me with one hand pressed tensely against the shaft of her knife asking, "You are not what I was expecting. I thought you would be different somehow. Matters not I suppose."

I see Edelgard is still slowly approaching me, and though she is yet to get within 10 feet of me I prepare the well of my magic dwelling inside of me. Trying to play off my serious inner thoughts I warn her, "You know, I'd relax a bit more if you weren't looking like a cat ready to pounce with that knife. Someone could get hurt."

"That's the intention," Edelgard coldly states as she lunges for me with the stiletto drawn.

Though I'm not physically fast enough to avoid the attack as I witness the girl's incredible burst of speed and strength, I feel fragmented memories of my training with Rigden begin to bubble up as I brace my body with a Fortify spell as Edelgard plunges the knife into my ribs. I stagger as hot piercing pain begins to overwhelm my senses as she continues to drive my back with the 4" knife firmly lodged in me up to the grip.

"This wasn't how I planned it, but now you get what you deserve," Edelgard sneers as she twists the knife in my ribs causing me to wince and hiss. Though the fortify spell is keeping me conscious and not screaming out in pain getting stabbed still hurts like hell, and it won't be getting any better when the spell wears off in a bit.

My fight or flight response kicks in quickly as I raise my leg and deliver a hard front kick to the white-haired girl who stumbles to the ground. I call upon my mana again to cast a powerful Restore on myself to seal up the stab wound, though I will make sure to check it for infection later if I survive this assassination attempt.

"Hmph," Edelgard grunts as she composes herself for another strike as I narrow my eyes on her stance. I briefly remember her being an axe wielder from the training exercise, but I have no idea how she actually fights or to even counter it. Plus I've avoided hand to hand combat nearly my entire life, leaving me with little options besides magic as a way to defend myself.

My breath quickens as I see Edelgard go in for another stab, though being a bit more ready this time I release my Rescue spell and to both of our surprise it works as Edelgard yelps as she goes for her would be finishing blow. Startled and with the beginnings of fear starting to form on her alabaster face she mutters, "H-how did you do that?"

With my spell successful in the nick of time I manage to Rescue the bloody blade out her hand mid-strike and place it into my own. With the awkward positioning from the sudden change, Edelgard managed to impale herself in the shoulder with her blade being held firm in my hand. This only manages to stun Edelgard for a few moments as she pushes off of me staggering backward and tripping onto her back from the uneven paved stone of the terrace.

"I knew you were a powerful mage, though I didn't anticipate you could change the purpose of spells," Edelgard confides as she presses her left hand against the deep wound in her right shoulder that is oozing out blood.

With my injuries sealed and for the most part healed, though the pain has only subsided minimally, I stride forward with foreign yet surreal confidence in myself and respond, "I've proven to be deceptively hard to kill."

I finally stop a few feet in front of the girl with the knife in hand, to which I notice it's ornate and almost regal design to the blade. As I grasp the blade I feel a twitch inside myself to finish the job that she would have done to me. I stare down at the once confident noble to only see a terrified and befuddled teenager, which stirs my emotions into a strange melancholy and desire to end her life.

"Do it," Edelgard breathes out as more blood spurts from her wound as I eye her curiously and pocket the blade.

"As you wish," I apathetically reply as a torrent of Thoron extends from my hand and yellow lightning sporadically jumps across Edelgard's skin. A strong metallic iron smell permeates the air as I end the spell to witness an unconscious Edelgard with her academy outfit a bit frayed and her shoulder wound has been partially cauterized from the electricity.

I let out a deep breath that I didn't realize I was holding in and mutter to myself, "Well that was less than ideal...though why did I feel that way when she stabbed me? Was it my adrenaline?"

I look around and still see no patrols around, but it may not be that way for long as Thoron isn't exactly quiet and I don't need to add to my uneasy reputation with being seen with an unconscious student, or worse dead, let alone someone of her renown.

"And yet…" I look back to Edelgard lying prone on the ground. She seemed to know a decent amount about me. Enough to have the motive to kill me outright and I've felt like I've been in the dark about much of the information that's been passed around since arriving back in Fodlan.

I walk over to Edelgard and feel for her pulse, and while week it is there indicating I didn't kill her, so I apply a Heal to her body to help stabilize her and then cast Warp to put her on my shoulder so I can fireman's carry her back to my room. My legs wobble a bit with the extra weight now being pressed onto me and I can feel myself beginning to sweat from the excessive use of spells and the pain of trying to heal my injuries.

I walk carefully as I can with Edelgard on my shoulder and my arm wrapped around her waist to keep her in place as I peek around corners of the cathedral to get to the main gate. I look past the main gate and see a group of 3 knights of Seiros standing on the bridge chatting away with their lanterns strapped to their waists.

"No way I'll be able to walk past them…" I muse to myself as I look for an alternative passage, though it seems like the bridge is the only path to take.

I brace myself and channel another spell of Warp to place myself and Edelgard on the opposite side of the bridge leading into the main administration building. I complete the spell with excellent control, but as I reappear on the other side I feel my legs begin to burn and wobble a bit under the extra weight I'm carrying and the stress of taking two people with one warp. I take on look at the soldiers now behind me, and they are still chatting none the wiser of my little skip, so I power on ahead towards the medical ward. Going up the stairs is the most difficult as reaching the top my legs are on fire as I nearly stumble my way down the corridors towards the medical ward. I feel Edelgard beginning to stir a bit, so I try to work a bit more quickly to get inside the dark infirmary.

After fumbling with the keys for a moment I get inside with Edelgard still held tightly and I walk over to a medical table and try to gently place her down, though it's more of a plop than a nice placement. I go back to lock the door grumbling, "I really need to work out or something…"

I trudge my way back to the plain medical table and begin to pull up the straps that would normally be used to restrain someone during surgery, but for now, it's my safety so I proceed to strap Edelgard to the surgical table. Not the easiest task as I seem to manage in the nick of time as I'm finishing the final strap she begins to come to and groggily asks, "Where am I?"

"Not going to stab me again hopefully," I remark as I light a nearby candle and place it on the tool tray next to the operating table. Edelgard's eyes go wide with panic as she cries out, "What are you going to do?"

"Hopefully nothing, I just want some answers. For starters, why were you trying to kill me?" I query, but Edelgard seems to be having none of it as she yells out, "Help! Let me go! Not again!"

Observing her frenetic actions I'd guess she is slightly delirious so I dash over to the medical cabinet to get a sedative to help calm her down as she is fighting against the restraints like a rabid animal and may end up winning. I manage to find my concoction quickly and make my way back to the struggling Edelgard and try to soothe her by saying, "Easy, it's not my intention to hurt you. I just want some answers and hopefully, we can resolve this debacle."

"No! No no no no no, not like the others!" Edelgard screams out as she flails violently as I try to find an opening to put the syringe in. The poor girl is a stark contrast to the confident warrior that nearly killed me a few minutes ago as she seems to be hallucinating or experiencing horrible PTSD triggers.

I stick the syringe into her thigh and empty its contents hoping that it will be enough to relax her and give her mind some clarity. Modifying vulnerary formulas with other local herbs and remedies has probably been one of my most successful medical ventures in this world, and now I'm hoping it comes through right now as the medical bay is well closed off but far from soundproof.

A few moments after the syringe has been emptied I notice the struggling and shouting stop as Edelgard's breathing slows down as her now glazed over eyes aimlessly look around. We've gone from violent episodes to catatonic, and while I won't classify that as a success it is at least quieter. I begin to pace around the table, "What to do, what to do…"

Edelgard's gaze doesn't seem to follow me as she looks around the room in no discernable pattern as I wrack my brain for an answer, and a familiar voice from behind me responds, "Perhaps you would like some help, seems you are working late as ever,"

I whip around quickly to notice that Tomas is at the door just now shutting it and relocking the door. Caught off guard and unprepared I ask, "What are you doing here Tomas?"

The old man smiles at me, "Working late as usual. I was walking down the hallway and heard the screams so I decided to pop in to see if everything is alright. Are they?"

"Could be better. She's catatonic right now," I reply still trying to figure out how I didn't hear him unlock the door and enter, but I push that thought aside as I'm feeling weary myself and was focused with the syringe and the struggling Edelgard.

"Hmmm, perhaps something repressed has bubbled up, like a bad dream? And my, you're both covered in blood. How did that come to be?"

"There was a little incident. I don't think she was in the right state of mind," I respond as honestly as I can muster and continue, "But that doesn't matter right now. Right now I need to get her in the right state of mind."

Tomas slowly walks over remarking, "Ah, I understand. I think I may have just the trick. It's an old archaic spell I once found in a tome. It was once used to help ease soldiers after the war, but it has long since been forgotten."

"What does it do exactly?" I curiously inquire as Tomas draws closer and looks at Edelgard with pity drawn all over his face.

Tomas faces me and replies, "It doesn't make people forget, but it does make experiences seem less real, almost like a dream. It's called Soothe. I'm not a competent enough caster to use such a technique, but I think you may have the talent."

"Tell me how to do it," I request as my gaze holds firm on Edelgard's drowsy form.

"The old magic has its roots in the caster's desire and power, so you must impose your will on the target. Reach out and feel for her being," Tomas instructs as I close my eyes and extend my hand as if to help me find what I'm looking for within Edelgard.

"I can't sense her, she's not a mage," I state as I try to open up my senses and Tomas sternly replies, "No, you must press harder. Create a picture in your mind and seek out her soul, once you do that the magic can begin."

I furrow my brow more and clench my teeth as I flare my magical power searching for something like an energy source or feeling in front of me, and just as I'm about to give up to focus again I feel a faint pulse in front of me that almost feels warm, like the soft glow of a sun. The picture forms within my mind of an orb dimly glowing in the darkness and pulsing like a heart. I hold onto that feeling and open my eyes to see Tomas staring at me with a grin, "...Remarkable."

"Now what? I don't think I can remain like this for long," I stressfully intone as I close my eyes to redouble my efforts to stay immersed within the proper mind space.

"Good. Now you must reach out with your soul and power to sense her feelings. Impose your will to create a sense of calm. Find the most erratic emotions and smoother them. Push them down below the rest," Tomas instructs as I follow suit and try to replicate the very thing. As I extend my aura to Edelgard's soul I feel myself becoming overwhelmed by her fear, hatred, and panic causing me to take on those facets.

"I...don't think I can do this. It's just so much…" I groan as my thoughts feel like they are coated in a thick tar, but Tomas snaps at me in a quick and commanding voice I've yet to hear from the elderly librarian, "Focus, Santos. You must overcome her emotions with a stronger one of your own. Draw it out and push her down. Feed on that raw emotion and it shall become your power, but do it quickly."

Now grinding my teeth together I look inward and think rapidly, what is an emotion I can truly latch to in an attempt to overpower the wave of feelings pulsating from the young student, I struggle to find anything worthwhile. With my mind muddied and under assault I feel hopeless as thoughts of redemption and desires to heal are dashed away by the brunt of Edelgard's fearfulness and delirium.

Feeling trapped in the spell on the verge of losing the mental battle I hear a voice within my head, "Use our feelings of betrayal. We are linked and share a common sentiment. Each of us betrayed by the world we thought we belonged in. Use that as your fuel."

With Sothal's guidance, I cling to the last parts of my mind not muddied by Edelgard's presence as all external senses begin to fade away and push with desperation to drive her back. I manage to stall her soul's aura for a moment, and as I give in to my frustration and dissatisfaction I drive her presence back into her soul with a thunderous jolt of power and do my best to smother her intent until they lay still like cinders of a dying flame.

I open my eyes while gasping and stepping back, not realizing I wasn't breathing for those last moments and turn away from Tomas and Edelgard to vomit on the ground. It's not much, but I feel sick in a way I can't explain that hurt my head, unlike any other headache I've ever experienced as I hunch my weak body over one of the medical beds.

I feel a firm hand be placed on my shoulder, "You did well, boy. Never did I think I would witness the magic of old be used so successfully by another in this day, and in doing so you have eased young Edelgard's heart."

I wearily turn around to look over at Edelgard who's body is now calm and she appears to be sleeping comfortably with a smile on her face. I crane my head around to look at Tomas as he is standing above me, though his face is shrouded by the darkness of the room.

"I almost lost it. I could feel her hatred and fear as if it were my own. Like it was trying to invade my mind like a virus."

"Yes, the old magic carries risks, which is why only the strongest were allowed to perform magic back then. It was a very different time than the magic we have now," Tomas adds with an almost somber reminiscent tone.

"You almost sound like you've seen it before," I remark to which Tomas sighs, "Books are portals to other places. With all the history I've read I might as well have been at Shambala or Zanado."

I try to stand up, but Tomas helps me up gently as I croak out, "I think that's good for tonight. I've had enough action," I lethargically make my way to Edelgard and undo the straps holding her body in place now that the threat is no longer imminent I hear Tomas comment, "You can go back to bed, you must be tired. I can watch over Edelgard tonight if you wish as you've done more than enough tonight."

"Heh, yeah I think I'm just going to crash here tonight. I don't think I have the energy to make it back to my room," I declare as I stumble back to one of the medical cots and plop my body onto it.

Tomas nods, "I understand. I shall leave things in your capable hands. Until next time, Santos."

Just as Tomas is about to open the door to leave I beseech him, "Wait, before you leave, I have to ask. Where can I learn more about skills like these? They would be beneficial to my medical practice."

Though it is the truth, it is only a half-truth as I do see the benefits of spells like Soothe, though they seem to carry inherent risks if the caster is to lapse in focus. Even more terrifying than the backlash though is in the moment of crushing down Edelgard's memories and emotions is that it felt powerful. While harnessing my frustration with Sothal's help I felt a strange high out of the whole ordeal, like I had taken a shot of mental epinephrine. Perhaps that's what intrigues me the most and what I should be most careful of. The rawness of the emotions and desire that lingers after the spell has ended.

Tomas turns his head partially as he prepares to make his exit showing only the lower part of his face smiling through the moonlight, "Stop by my quarters some time. I can help provide what you seek. Good night."

The door shuts quietly and I roll my back to stare at the ceiling and then my eyes drift over once again to Edelgard, the girl who had almost killed me tonight. Perhaps I'll get an answer in the morning. And hopefully, she won't be homicidal towards me.

"Ugh, what is that smell," I groggily moan as rub the crust out of my eyes to look around the medical bay that has the smallest beam of light entering from the large window at the end of the bay. Edelgard still seems to be sleeping blissfully as well with a steady rhythm to her breathing.

Using my nose I stand up and follow the scent until I hear a mushy splash underneath my shoe, "Right. I puked. Probably should clean that up before anyone comes in…"

I get right to work and clean up my mess from the night before and go around checking to make sure the clinic is ready for daily operations. I go through my normal morning routine in about 10 minutes while periodically checking on Edelgard who is still fast asleep. I manage to be fully ready by 6:50 am and manage to sneak a snack of grains from Manuela's 'hidden' stash of food and booze.

As I'm over at the alchemy table cleaning the surface I begin to hear Edelgard stir awake, so I peek over to see that she is resting on her left forearm and covering her eyes from the sunlight. I walk over slowly while trying to be mindful of my distance and ask, "So, how do you feel?"

Edelgard turns toward me slowly and replies in a light yet regal tone, "I...feel good. Better than I have in a while, but I had a horrible dream. I-wait how did I get here?"

Edelgard's posture seems to go a bit more rigid as her eyes quickly scan the room so I try and reassure her, "You're safe. I found you last night having a waking nightmare of sorts. We both managed to get a little banged up, but I got you back to the clinic safely."

"I see," Edelgard curiously states as she inspects my blood-stained robe and continues, "Did I do that? And how did you get me here?"

"Just a scratch, nothing major. And I'm a mage as well as a doctor, so use your imagination. You're not the first patient that's been difficult, and I doubt you'll be the last, haha!" I chuckle trying to help ease the mood which seems to work as she smiles back at me.

"Well it seems I am in your debt, so thank you, Dr. Capetillo."

"There is no debt as I was just doing my job. Just take care of yourself and if you do feel off don't be afraid to stop by," I chatter away with a smile as Edelgard heaves herself out of bed and replies, "Thank you. Perhaps my initial assessment of you was wrong."

"Assessment? Didn't know I was taking a test," I tease as I cross my arms and raise an eyebrow at her quip, to which she shakes her head replying, "Yes. I thought you were perhaps you were...something else. That you had wormed your way into the church to avoid execution for your deeds, but now I'm not so sure. I feel...nevermind, I'm getting off track. I need to go get changed and get to class. Hubert is probably having a fit right now."

I stride over to the door and open it for her with an overly exaggerated bow, "After you, your Majesty," which manages to get a slight blush from Edelgard's pale complexion and a hesitant reply, "Thank you. I'll be going now."

The embarrassed teen makes her get away from the clinic and jogs down the corridor towards the student rooms as I watch her leave briefly before leaving in the opposite direction towards my quarters. Wearing bloodied robes is going to cause a lot more questions than I'd like, so a change is needed. Plus, On my way back I'll snag some breakfast and then run the clerics through some more medical training and perhaps see Hanneman later as I did promise him I would stop by, barring no more surprises such as my impromptu murder.

I step into Hanneman's office to see the old scholar scouring his bookshelf in search of something vital by the desperate nature of his search. In his room unlike Manuela's office is a large orb that looks like a smaller version of the crest analyzer I saw at Fhirdiad's magic academy. And his office is much tidier and organized than the flirty songstress's quarters as well.

"Hello? Hanneman, it's me, Santos,"

Hanneman whips around quickly, so much so that his monocle falls out and he has to fumble with it for a moment to put it back into place, "Ah, yes! Dr. Capetillo, it is good to see you! I take it you are here for business?"

"You guessed it. You're the crest expert around these parts and wanted to look at mine, so I figured maybe you could share some of that knowledge with me," I reply as I stand across from Hanneman by the crest analyzer.

"You flatter me. You are quite the crestologist yourself, but I will do what I can discover the nature of your crest. Place your hand on the analyzer. It'll take a small blood sample."

"I know the drill," I snicker as I place my hand on the center of the globe. It pricks the middle of my hand and begins to rotate rapidly to process the new sample. Hanneman giddily moves to the viewing window that will display the results.

As the results generate Hanneman takes a step back and elates, "My my my! Your crest is incredible. I can tell by the size and detail it is indeed a major crest, but the origin is a mystery at first glance. The shape of the trails doesn't follow any common pathways most common crests do. Truly fascinating that in such a short time I have not one, but two mystery crests to research!"

"Two?" I curiously pry as the man rushes to his bookshelf and pulls down a large encyclopedia.

"Uh yes, professor Byleth came by the other day and had similarly interesting results."

"Really? That is interesting." I muse as I watch Hanneman pour over the pages of the book in search of something, though he does pause and look up to me, "Ah, I shouldn't have divulged that information. I promise to keep everyone's data confidential, so can I ask you to do the same? The nature of one's crest is a fairly private matter."

"From one crest scholar to another, you have my word," I respond, to which Hanneman looks up from his text and smiles, "Thank you. Now, I can't find anything immediately, so it may take time to find out more if there is anything to find out. But, I do have a request."

"And what would that be?"

"To start a journal. To help piece things together to help discover the nature of your crest. Record things you've done, or experienced, or even found odd. Anything you believe that might be crest related could push us in the right direction to discovering the truth," Hanneman explains as he digs through his desk and pulls out two bound journals and places them on the desk.

I pick up the journals from Hanneman and respond, "Thanks, I'll see what I can remember."

"Splendid. Was there anything else you wish to discuss?"

I shake my head, "Not that I can think of. I'll leave you to your research, I'm going to go to bed. Been a long day in the clinic."

"Understandable. I shall find you if I discover anything! Farewell."

I head off towards my quarters unabated by any other distractions or people and quietly enter my room. I kick off my shoes and do my small evening ritual of hanging up my robes, lighting a few candles and cracking open the window. I set the journals down on my study desk and take a seat on my bed and stretch my arm out a little bit.

I cover myself up in bed and close my eyes trying to get to sleep, but I can't seem to get comfortable as I fidget to get in the right position. With my duties and goals done for the day, my mind has taken it upon itself to drift back to last night and the power that I wielded. It was a surreal experience in how I used Soothe to subdue Edelgard, though just barely, and she woke up in the morning like a person who had spent their time at a weekend spa retreat. Such power comes with a cost, but with my crest and abilities does that matter?

Still feeling restless I face upward towards the ceiling and release an annoyed huff and open my eyes, and almost piss myself at the face hovering only about an inch in front of mine.

"Open your eyes to the truth, Santos," Sothal whispers above me, and still petrified he continues, "You will see it as I do. Soon you will see it too."

Scared and unmoving I blink and in that instant, Sothal has vanished and I can feel my heart wanting to explode out of my chest. I sit up and look around my room frantically to see if Sothal or anybody else is around, but all I hear is the subtle burning of the candles.

Relieved and still relatively unnerved I fall back onto my bed and mutter, "Well now I'm not going to get any damn sleep tonight."

A/N: Brief side note before I get started, is anybody having issues with viewing stats for stories, forums, etc. in the past few days? I've been active in the forums looking for answers, and while I just got them back today but lots seem to be missing. Just reaching out and seeing how we are all doing on that front. Now, onto the other notes...

That's a wrap for this week folks! A bit shorter than some of the previous chapters, but I felt it was a good stopping point with the next arc just on the horizon since most of the big players at Garreg Mach have been introduced more or less. I also hope I portrayed trauma correctly in this chapter considering I went through a few rewrites of how events played out, but I digress. Next up is the continuation of 'White Clouds' and how things will shake out with the western church rebellion, TWSITD, and how this Byleth will play into events with Santos mucking things up more. Not all may be what it seems.

Review Response:

SyncroX: understandable, but both will be key players in the events to come. stay tuned and thanks for reading and reviewing!

rotuxxxxd: Gracias amigo, agradezco los comentarios! Espero que la construcción del mundo sea lo suficientemente buena aunque no hayas jugado el juego. Three Houses es el mejor de la serie IMO y recomiendo probarlo.

Greyjedi449t: Glad the interactions are going well, dialogue is something I'm constantly trying to refine (and make believable with all the established characters people know of). I'll go back through and comb for grammar mistakes, stuff usually slips through the cracks or I get too excited when writing and I don't notice certain things haha. Thanks again for the feedback.

Bonefish: Glad I managed to surprise you, but hopefully it was entertaining as a predictable story wouldn't be quite as enjoyable, no? Everyone has their reasons for liking or disliking him, Petra being the weirdest but considering her being close to her grandfather she knows more about the truth about the events at Fodlan's Fangs than most, that's why the unbridled resentment isn't there. As for TWSITD, they will be relevant and people like Lysithea are right to be suspicious. Thanks for the reviews and feedback!

VGBlackwing: Well, I actually plotted out some of Santos' stats if he were to be a unit in the game, so feast your eyes. I confirm this; I'm not a game developer so don't rag on me about balance as it's not in my wheelhouse of knowledge, but here's what I put Santos at right now with general stats. Here goes,

Unit: Santos Capetillo

Class: Dark Bishop (previous classes being Priest & Commoner)

Crest: Major Crest of Sothal (allow for user to target any unit with a spell, i.e. Warp, Rescue, Heal on Enemies or Fire on an ally)

Abilities: HP +5, White Magic Uses x2, Heartseeker, Miasma Delta, Fiendish Blow, Poison Strike, Lifetaker, Miracle, White Magic Heal +5, Faith lv 4, Reason lv 4, Authority lv 1, Rally Luck (remember, only the normal limit for abilities in combat, this is just what would be available)

Personal Skill: Surgical Precision (+2 range of White Magic)

Stats: Varies on when recruited, but here's his Level 15- Where I would deem him 'recruitable' by in-game since in this scenario he would be at a similar level set with the rest of the teaching staff when you could recruit them for help, like Manuela and Hanneman.

Level 15:

HP: 30 Str: 8 Mag: 26 Dex: 15 Spd: 10 Lck: 7 Def: 6 Res: 18 Cha: 8

Growth Rates- HP: 25% Str: 15% Mag: 75% Dex: 60% Spd: 20% Lck: 40% Def: 15% Res: 45% Cha: 25%

Skill Levels-

Sword: E

Lance: E (Weak)

Axe: E (Weak)

Bow: F (Cannot use-Only 1 arm :/)

Brawl: E+

Reason: A (Strong)

Faith: A (Strong)

Authority: D

Armor: E

Riding: E+ (Weak) (Budding Talent: Pass)

Flying: E

Starting Items: Elixer

Learned Spells: Heal, Physic, Nosferatu, Recover, Rescue, Warp, Fortify, Fire, Thunder, Thoron, Cutting Gale, Miasma Delta

Combat Art: Healing Focus (obtained through training with Rigden & Sevihn)

Overall Breakdown: Santos as a doctor & scholar serves as a premiere battlefield medic and occasional magic powerhouse, though he does come with his set of flaws. While he would boast the largest Magic stat in the game with his growths and high starting magic, he falls into some pitfalls with being physical feeble with low Strength, Speed, and Defense in both base stats and growths making him relatively unviable for any physical classes and very squishy on the battlefield when up against any physical attacker and at huge risk of being double attacked. With no access to the Bow skill, Santos loses out on the Close Counter ability and the mastery of +20 to hit. Having weaknesses in most other physical combat skills besides sword makes for an uphill battle to scale those up. Dark Knight would be an option but requires lots of work to level up all prerequisites to make that happen, but the increased mobility would be an immense upgrade for the slow Santos. Other class up options would include Holy Knight to double down on Healing magic or Mortal Servant to increase combat options, though only would recommend use with a Levin Sword & investment in his Def & HP.

Santos comes with one of the most support heavy spell lists, and with increased range (helped even more if one were to have the Thyrsus staff or Caduceus staff) makes him an excellent backline mage. The only caveat for Santos when fighting other mage units, which is a good match up generally with High Mag and Res, is the Silence spell hinders most of his capabilities (as we've seen used against him previously in the story to keep him caged up). His overall goal is to control battlefield flow from the distance with Warp & Rescue on allies and enemies alike while pumping out powerful heals for his allies and even helping with some weird strategies by attacking his allied units to trigger the skills Desperation, Defiant Avoid, Vantage, and/or Wrath...granted they can withstand the brunt of his magical power.

Alright...I think that covers his character as a unit. It was fun to make, and tell me what you think! Remember, I'm not trying to break the game but tried to make what I think would be reasonable considering his feats and such. Anyways, new chapter next week and thanks for reading as always! Peace!

Next Chapter: 2/14-2/16

Have a wonderful day!