The Wind Tribe capital stood at the peak of a tall stone mountain. Now, how smart it was to build one's capital atop such a giant structure, in a land where the wind is harsh enough to potentially knock someone off their feet at its worth, Corrin didn't quite know. Fortunately though, the stairway to the capital had been carved into the mountain itself, and apart from a few small windows that had been carved as well (to give them some air and light, and also show just how high up they were getting), it was hard to feel the wind outside. They wouldn't be in danger of falling off it anytime soon, at the very least.
In fact, when Corrin glanced outside, he felt the odd urge to just unfurl his wings and fly around. He knew that he had an important meeting to attend, and that "I just wanted to fly and have some fun" would perhaps not be a good excuse, but the urge to fly was hard to resist. As a result, he had to look down on the stairs and avoid looking up, so that he may not glance at the horizon. Unfortunately, the people that he picked to accompany him didn't quite seem to understand why he was almost cowering away from sight.
"Lord Corrin, it's perfectly fine to be scared of heights." Reassured Gunter, who politely only told Corrin such things when he was sure that their guides weren't listening. And it's not like the second person, Beruka, would care much, though she glanced a bit at the dragon prince whenever the older man attempted to get him to confess in his fears.
"N-no. I'm fine with the height." Said Corrin. "I've been this high before and I wasn't scared. Heh, remember Beruka, when we flew in Notre Sagesse? I wasn't scared back then." This got Gunter to glance curiously at the wyvern rider, and she contemplated answering with ignorance or implying that he didn't quite take to the flight well. But then, she remembered that unlike Niles, she wasn't the type of person to squander away a question.
"You probably want to fly." She theorized. He looked surprised at that but quickly nodded affirmatively. Gunter smiled a little in disbelief but then remembered that his "son" could, indeed, fly around. Even if he had seen it with his own eyes, it was probably still tough to adapt to it. The last time he met Corrin, the young man was still new and fresh to the ways of the world. He was skilled, but naïve and vulnerable to the manipulations and deceit of those around him, and Gunter honestly wasn't sure that he could survive in the harsh world that awaited him outside.
Now though, he had participated in many battles that shook the continent and had gained a much greater control over his draconic power. Between Gunter's seeming death and their reunion at Izumo, plenty of time had passed after all. Still, he couldn't help but worry a little. He was still his "boy" after all, and he wondered just how well he handled the strain of war.
"Right… my apologies, it's still a little difficult for me to adapt to those changes." He said. "Plenty has happened in my absence, has it not? I truly wish I could've been there to help you along with it."
"You had a mission, right? And besides, don't worry, I had people to help me around. Don't feel guilty about not coming sooner too, since we were moving around so much." He said.
"Regardless, how will you justify hand-picking this seemingly random knight, Corrin?" Said Beruka. "The others looked surprised at your decision, and I'd rather not have to come up with an excuse again like with Mozu."
"Heh… Well, I could always say that I didn't want to surround myself with tough bodyguards to show that I'm confident in my ability to survive if ambushed, but also not dumb enough to go in without companions? Huuh, not that I think of this as a trap!" Their guide simply looked back at them and shook his head. Upon reaching the end of the stairs, he simply opened a large metal door, letting the sun wade in into the tunnel that they used to ascend. Beruka, Corrin and Gunter covered their eyes (or rather, Beruka closed her remaining eye), a bit nonplussed at all that light, but their sights recovered fast enough for them to look at their surroundings, stepping forth out of the tunnel.
Corrin could only stammer out a "Whoah…". The Wind Tribe capital wasn't quite as beautiful as the Hoshidan's, and it obviously wasn't as enormous and decadent as Windmire, but it nonetheless had some very serious charm to it. The buildings, made out of material tough enough to withstand the winds, had some plaforms and balconies between them to cover some streets, making it easy for shops to put forth their products without risks of it being blown away by the wind.
Some less lucky ones were left in the open though, so they had to use some unique means to prevent a thief or the gale from taking away their products. At least one had several green fruits, each tied down by a rope. Whenever someone paid for a fruit, the merchant would untie the rope, hand over the fruit and then tie the rope to another fruit.
"Lord Fuga will be receiving you soon, but he is currently being informed of the progress of your army through the region. Prepare yourself to be invited in the coming minutes but do take the time to experience our culture." Informed the guide. He pointed at a large building, marked with the kanji for "wind". It was smaller than Izumo's castle, but that was probably because of its particular position. While the top of the mountain was large, it couldn't really take too much place nonetheless.
"Hmph, remain close, Corrin and Gunter. We may be summoned soon." Beruka waited for Corrin's answer, but it failed to arrive. She rose an eyebrow and quickly wheeled around, realizing that both men had gone AWOL. Or rather, Corrin had moved towards a merchant within one of the protected streets, and Gunter had decided to follow him. Hiding her irritation (with only a single twitch of her mouth, admittedly), Beruka walked towards them. The crowd was busy, and her small height compared to some of the larger people walking around didn't play in her favor, but she simply pushed her way through the crowd, with the larger specimen being too surprised at the idea of being pushed back by such a small girl to really stop her.
"Hello, how much for that fruit?" Asked Corrin. The particular lady he was speaking to had red hair tied into a ponytail, and her features were akin to a Nohrian. Notably, she seemed to immediately recognize him, or she reacted to his particular features at least. The young woman immediately sprang up from her slumped posture and put her index finger on her cheek, using her left arm as a support for her right arm's elbow.
"Hello, prince Corrin! That fruit? Ah, but which one?! I have the famous Hoshidan Papaya that only grows at a specific time in a specific part of the country. Or the Nohrian apples, of sour taste but able to provide great nutrition nonetheless! But if your tongue yearn for sweet delicacies, then fear none, for I've got some pears grown in the fine grounds of Izumo! But if you desire something a bit rougher, I've got their equivalent with those lemons! I almost feel sad selling them to you, because once you'll be done eating them, you're going to be yearning for more!"
"Ohh, that's a great pitch!" Said Corrin, right as Beruka reached him.
"You should pick the lemons. They're quite good." Recommended Gunter. "They'll keep you awake too. You really need those in the war. I remember back in the war, when we were in a camp deep in enemy territory. Those lemons saved us from sleeping and potentially allowing our enemies to walk in." He reminded himself of. The three people near him stood in silence before deciding to put aside the fact, Corrin took the lead by pulling out some money and handing it over to the merchant, who answered by swiping them away so fast that the young man's almighty eyes almost failed to keep up with her motion.
"Good, then as the older gentleman said, you should pick out the melons! I can guarantee you, you won't need to sleep for a while! Hey, you won't be sleeping by the time the war ends! That's how powerful that lemon is! It's sour but sweet!"
"Isn't that bad?" Said Corrin. "Not sleeping until after the war is done, I mean. Don't we all need to sleep?"
"Well, you certainly need to live more! And with those lemons, your chances will increase! No risk of pesky ninjas getting in!"
Corrin shrugged and turned around to give the bag to Gunter, though he already picked his own lemon to eat. Indeed, it tasted sour. Perhaps a bit too sour, since his face crunched up as if it was somehow trying to wrap itself into his skull. Seeing this, the merchant giggled, since quite a few customers came her way after seeing the effects of the fruit.
"Pleasure doing business with you!" Thanked the merchant, as Corrin moved away. Gunter and Beruka stared at him. In amusement for the former, though the latter was a bit confused at Corrin's reaction.
"That'll you not to eat anything you see, my boy." Said Gunter. This prompted Corrin to forcibly try to un-crunch his face for the purpose of responding.
"W-well, I didn't know it'd be that sour. And it's because everything is enhanced for me, senses-wise. So whenever I taste something… well, there's a reason why I don't really like spicy things." He muttered at the end. "And, well, we trekked through a while of desert so I thought that you'd like it. Well, maybe I should've picked something else than that lemon because it really is sour."
Gunter bit into it, and smiled a little. "A bit too sweet." He said. Beruka did the same, and while the taste was perhaps a light challenge to overcome, she ultimately didn't find it anywhere near as hard to accept. "Hm, I've drunk sourer water."
"W-whoah. You guys have discipline!" He said. Corrin observed how Beruka did it and promptly began to imitate her, attempting to hide just how sour the taste was by staying stoic no matter what. It obviously didn't work, since Gunter pinched the bridge of his nose (albeit with a small smile), but it seemed to somewhat amuse a bunch of children near him.
"Mom! Look! He has long ears!" Said a child, pointing the prince out to his mother. Gunter glanced at the child in horror, briefly, but then relented.
"Hm… I'm going to admit it, few in Nohr would be bold enough to say something like this." He said, once the children walked past. "But I was still worried about how the world you perceive you once you finally moved away from the fortress."
"I was a bit worried too but it doesn't really matter to me anymore. I'm working hard and proving my worth as a person, so people will know to look past my weird ears." He said. "And red eyes, and, erm, teeth."
"Humans will hate each other for reasons as simple as what they believe in or what skin color they have, Corrin. While I'm glad that you've mostly encountered people who seems tolerant of it, I would still recommend being careful. For some people, what you look like is much more important than what you are." Once he was done, the knight stared away wistfully before focusing. "But few would outright insult a prince of Nohr like this, so I wasn't really worried."
The small trio sat down at a bench, close to the palace. Corrin was still attempting to conquer the lemon, while the other twos were done by now. "Say, how did you meet this particular lady? You seems to trust her."
"We met at Port Dia, erm… I guess she should introduce herself."
"As we've spoken about before, I am Beruka, Lady Camilla's retainer and trusty assassin. I've encountered Lord Corrin at Port Dia, and the war has pushed us to fight alongside each other many times by now." She said. "And I am generally more reliable than some of the quirky fools he has around him, so I assume that he rather wisely decided to depend on me for such an important mission;"
Corrin stammered. "W-well, they're quirky but competent!" He said, scratching the back of his head. "But yes, Beruka has saved my life many times over, and I'd trust her to watch my back."
"Hm… I'd recommend against doing that with an assassin, but it does seems that Miss Beruka is someone to trust. I was hoping that you'd meet someone you could see as this reliable." He declared.
"Yeah, there's also Azura but you know her." Continued Corrin. "I would've taken her along, but her song can help exhausted soldiers carry on and I… I mean, she's always a bit clingy sometimes, so I don't mind having the occasion to breath a little. I mean, she's a good friend." He nodded quickly. "But she can be a bit secretive about things sometimes. I know she means well, but the way she endanger herself with some of her missions at times, it upsets me. Because, well, she's putting her life in danger and also because she's not allowing me to help her out, and it's clear that she needs it!"
"I understand your point." Said Beruka. "You wish she would be somewhat straighter with you, then?"
"Yeah… But I don't, erm, dislike her at all. She's a good friend." He said.
Gunter hesitated a little before he continued the conversation. "And have you ever felt like Azura may want to be a bit more than that?" He asked. Luckily for Corrin's dignity, the people of the tribe were giving the Nohrians something of a wide berth, and the older man decided to keep a pretty low tone of voice so as to avoid being potentially heard by a civilian.
"Hm? She'd want to be my best friend?" Answered the young man. Beruka narrowed her eye, but not because of his denseness… Well, perhaps because of it yes, but her issue was just how artificial it was. It's quite clear that he was putting up a front, either because the issue was a bit complex for him to tackle or simply because he didn't want to get romantically involved while a war was raging about him. She wouldn't mind either, but it was a bit hypocritical of him to chide Azura over her secrets while also playing coy. But at least, she could acknowledge that it was probably tough fo him to speak of it like that.
Luckily for him, bigger issues stepped forth when their guide met up with them, with a lemon in hand. "Lord Fuga require your presence. You did well in getting closer to the castle." He complimented, prompting Corrin to nod. The Nohrians got up and began to follow their guide, silently putting aside the current conversation for now. Making their way through the crowd was fairly easy, and they quickly reached the gates of Fuga's castle. There wasn't much in the way of defense, aside from one heavy-looking gate and two severe-looking guards. The gates to Krakenburg were already much more well-protected, and even Shirasagi had some of the most fearsome-looking people on the planet guarding its metal doors.
"They tend to be open, but with what happened in Hoshido, we can't really afford to be nonchalant." Said the guide, casting a look at the trio. "Understand that you will likely be watched, and do not see this as hostility. Just take it as precaution, for one, I require that you deposit the weapons you were carrying right after entering. Do not worry, they will not be tampered with and they will be given back to you after the meeting."
The door opened as the guide spoke, and when they entered the castle, they could see that it looked a bit larger than it looked. While Izumo tried to blend in both countries's styles at once, The Wind Tribe had an eastern aesthetic to it, though while Hoshido's architecture was beautiful, the tribe's building was a bit rougher and sharper. The white stone that made up most of the castle truly looked like it had been carved away by the wind, after all, and some tiles were outright cracked. Several windows had been built into the walls, each rather small to prevent someone from sneaking in, but it still allowed the wind to easily pass through. In front of the group, there was a little desk, with about 7 heavily armed guards. At least two held some scrolls, and they were a bit scattered so as not to potentially all get wiped out by a surprise attack.
"Your weapons, please."
Gunter took off his sword and a javelin that he had tied to his back and handed them over. Beruka, meanwhile, just sighed and gave away five tomahawk axes, two silver axes, one small spear, six daggers, a large hunting knife and three poisons pellet. The guard in charge of handling the weapon stared at her dumbly for a moment before daring to speak up. "You'd take this many weapons with you for a diplomatic greeting?"
"Yes." She just replied. "And I still have two more." Before he could order her to deposit them, Beruka raised her hands and clenched them. The guard laughed, but in a genuinely amused manner.
"Ah, I guess that's Nohrian humor for ya." He said, not alarmed by her words. However, he quickly had to end the conversation when Corrin prepared to dump Shadow Yato into the bowl where their weapons were meant to be placed in. "Wait, you have to keep your weapon." He said. "Well, at least that one. If you have some more regular sword or something on your person, please deposit it."
"I don't." Said Corrin, who proved himself correct. "Erm, except maybe that special stone that allows me to turn into a dragon."
"Do place it here then."
Corrin shrugged, picked up his stone and placed it amongst the other weapons. "Please, don't lose it. Or else I might, erm, lose control over my abilities." He said. "That'd be a bit bad. But hey, can I ask why I need to keep Yato?"
"Fuga himself shall tell you." Was his reply, and the three were hushed along. Corrin already missed the warmth that the stone provided him with, but he felt like he had gained enough of a grip not to go berserk. And beyond that, he still had Yato! Gunter, however, was a bit more suspicious, watching the movements in the castle with suspicions. The ambiance was nothing dangerous, but people seemed almost excited for something. Beruka was also watching over the situation, looking at just how eagerly the workers within the castle were trying to finish their task.
The only one who didn't pay much heed to the situation was Corrin, who approached a large red gate.
"Lord Fuga will be seeing you-"
The gates swung open, courtesy of the sudden appearance of a large, muscular bald man. Like his male subordinates, he wasn't wearing anything above his white pants and black sandals, though he had a large black necklace and his stomach was partly covered by a black belt made out of some metal. Some purple cloth was wrapped around his waist, eventually splitting into three sailing cloths of a sort. He had some rather thick black eyebrows in place, and stared sternly at Beruka, Corrin and Gunter. However, he leaned forward all of a sudden upon seemingly recognizing the knight. Gunter, in answer, made a surprisingly sly smile and lowered the hands that he held on his back until now, spreading his arms in a unusually inviting manner.
"Ah, Gunter! You old bastard!" Said Fuga, losing all traces of his stern demeanor and walking up to Gunter to embrace him in a manly hug. Gunter laughed, of all things, and did the same thing. "I was informed that some lowlife thug had gotten the better of you! I'm glad to see that you lived past that!"
"It'll take more than some dimwit's axe and a fall into a canyon to kill me." Retorted Gunter, after scoffing lightly, smirk ever present. "I'm disappointed, but not surprised, that you'd be naïve enough to believe me dead!"
Fuga folded his arms. "Oh, I just know that you're certainly on the fragile side now." He said, unfazed by the insult. If anything, he seemed even happier after hearing Gunter's barb at him. "You certainly let yourself go, you old bastard! In your heyday, you would've eaten a hundred punks like those for breakfast!"
"We can't all be single-mindedly focused on power!" Said Gunter. "While you were running around swearing a storm as mighty as the winds of this tribe, I had quite a few things to take care of." The older men's glances turned towards Corrin, who had been staring at the interaction with a slacked jaw. Beruka helpfully raised her hand and closed it for him, unfazed by the events herself.
"Ah, yes! Corrin" Fuga patted the young man on the shoulder, doing so with such force that the young man was almost surprised the slap didn't slam him through the mountain where the castle stood. "I've heard much about you! You've been taught by Gunter haven't you? I hope this crusty bastard was not too harsh on you!"
"Mister Gunter was, erm." Corrin struggled to find the words. Were all the leaders this side of the continent so casual? It's not that he disliked it, far from it, but it was certainly a bit odd. "He was a very kind father to me!" He said.
"Ah, he's had experience with it, haven't he? But what of your wife and child?" Said Fuga, turning towards Gunter. "Did you ditch them to raise that dragon kid?" The Wind Tribe's leader frowned a bit when he noticed the way Gunter's smile dropped.
"Well." He said. "I'm quite afraid that something happened to them in the interim." Said Gunter.
"Ah… I apologize, my friend." Declared Fuga immediately. "I spoke too quickly, it would appear."
"I do not blame you. Getting informations on the on-going in Nohr is always a bit complicated." Said Gunter. "… Well, a bit too complicated for a knucklehead like you to get." He said, straining his smile a little. Fuga, seeing an opportunity to escape the conversation before it got too awkward, smiled as well. "I'm surprised you even learned about my apparent, and highly exaggerated, demise and status as counselor to the boy." He said.
"I was informed of both by Mikoto. I'm quite glad to know you live, though." Said Fuga. "Just as I'm happy to finally meet you, Prince Corrin. Some matters kept me from visiting you in Hoshido, and I'm glad that you accepted my invitation." He said. "I've heard much of your exploits."
"I… I'm glad, but do know that some are a bit, erm, exaggerated or twisted around." Said Corrin.
"You're humble!" Said Fuga. "This is good. For the youth, hubris can more dangerous than blades or spells are."
"Pot calling the kettle black, heh?" Gunter made a more genuine smirk and Fuga seemed to agree a little with his words, as attested by his knowing nod.
"I know that we probably ought to speak of the matters that summoned you here, but allow me to ask who's the third girl accompanying you?" Said Fuga. "She must be quite competent if you handpicked her to accompany you."
"I'm Beruka." She said. "It is an honor to see you."
"Beruka? Ah, you're the one who defeated Mikoto's retainers in combat." Said Fuga. "You've made a little name for yourself as well! I can see why he would select a combatant as capable as you to accompany him." Beruka tilted her head slightly and nodded.
"Thank you for your praises." She said, as politely as possible. She knew that Fuga wouldn't mind familiarity, but she rather disliked interacting casually with anybody, really. And Gunter, surprisingly, was already dishing out more of it than she was confortable with. When the older man asked to join Corrin, she excepted that he'd do so because he could use his experience to guide them around. Was it to reunite with an old friend?
"Well, now that this is dealt with… This will only take us perhaps one or two hours, and I will arrange for an escort to quickly bring you back to your army." He said. "The matter that I would like to discuss relate to your particular sword, Yato." They glanced at Corrin's weapon, and all three understood why that guard was insistent about the youth keeping it. "It has been decades ever since my eyes beheld the weapon, but never under such a particular form. How did you discover it, if I may know?"
"I, erm… obtained it…" Corrin stammered. He was confused by Fuga apparently witnessing the weapon beforehand, but his lapses were also caused by the memories of that scene. The sheer devastation in the capital and all those dead people... He would be happy if some shock to his head caused him to lose his memory of that particular event. "It was buried beneath the statue of the dragon at the main square. When that hooded man…" He choked a bit. "Did his crime, the statue was destroyed, and Yato was burned beneath. Then, it flew to my hand."
"I see… I apologize for making you trudge through such a memory." Said Fuga. "I assume you're aware of the nature of this sword, right? It emerges in time to help the hero at a time when the world is threatened. There is a rather heavy duty on your shoulders, boy, and I would very much like to see if you can live up to it. Follow me."
Corrin nodded, though he was curious at what Fuga would mean. Nonetheless, all three Nohrians started to follow Fuga through a straight path. Curiously, the room they just left had no ceiling: The clear blue sky was hanging right above their head. This quite confused the youngest people within the little group. They could understand why there would be that hole, since it brought them closer to the wind (or whatever excuses they could come up with) but it made Corrin smile rather than look awed. The people below probably looked a bit silly whenever it started to rain. Beruka, meanwhile, just thought that it would be very easy to deal devastating damage to the castle itself with an attack from above. Being located in a mountain helped with that, perhaps, but with the power of magic, Nohrian mages could use fire orbs to accurately fire projectiles easily able to cross the distance and strike directly into the capital. Those projectiles were both faster and stronger than regular rocks while also exploding on impact, further causing damage. While not necessary for sieges, they were useful when one wished to lay waste to a structure.
"If you ask, the ceiling can be powered through magic." Said Gunter. "The people at the Wind Tribe are a bit too reliant on flashiness, but not even Fuga would allow this hole in his defense to remain."
"Not even me, heh? Remember who coordinated the defense when that Qliphoth strike team laid a surprise attack on us?" Fuga, who had been listening, turned around. "I shudder to think of the stories of me that you taught to Lord Corrin."
"You did fight them off, but you also did so by pulling out your sword and running into them." Chuckled Gunter. "But I will admit you saved us right then."
"So… Well, I knew you were friends with Lord Fuga, but you know, I never realized you were this friendly with him!" Corrin laughed a little. "It's a bit weird, i-if you don't mind me saying that! I'm just so used to you being… Erm…"
"Serious." Said Beruka, completing it for him. Corrin snapped his fingers and pointed at her in gratitude. Fuga laughed all the more loudly, his voice alone being stronger than any storm.
"Well, one changes as they age, Corrin." Taught Gunter. "Back when I was your age, perhaps a little less, I was quite a bit more, erm, relaxed, so to say, then I used to be."
"Heh, you were as stern as you currently are." Declared Fuga. "Whenever we partied, you were always the one who ended up requiring us to stop! You always had an old man's soul, my friend."
"I was just making sure you wouldn't walk into a fight with a nasty hangover, my friend." Declared Gunter. "Had we stuck by you, the Qliphoth army would've stumbled upon half our camp drowning in their bile! You can excuse my somewhat stern behavior… But even then, I was a rather ambitious knight. And Fuga was a young monk." The old knight smirked in triumph. "With a head full of hair."
"A rather low blow, old man!" Retorted an amused Fuga, his mighty eyebrows raised in surprise. He decided to turn away to focus on higher matters, like ensuring that they'd enter some form of room hidden away by a black gate.
"Well, as I said, I was a bit different from what you know. In my younger days, I was a knight eager to reach glory, so I volunteered to join Garon in his raid against Qliphoth." Said Gunter. "I met this young monk from the wind tribe, and we worked together to defeat those madmen. It was quite a sight to behold. Hoshido, Nohr and the countless other nations working together to defeat a threat to our lives… Never in this continent's history had such a thing happened." The old man sighed. "And I fear that such a sight will not be beheld by future generations until long."
"Hm… I was led to believe that Nohr defeated Qliphoth while Hoshido merely provided the materials." Said Beruka. "But it always made no sense to me. As mighty as Nohr is, they could not have beaten a formidable nation on their own."
"N-not much of a patriot, heh?" Teased Corrin. Beruka glanced at him with one eye, but then understood it to be a "joke", so she decided to react to his joke by simply looking away. He looked horrified for a moment. "S-sorry Beruka!"
"Well, both countries would rather not reveal that they worked together so closely nowadays. Nowadays, Nohr is seen as the leader of the front, yes, but Hoshidan stories depict brilliant generals and skillful soldiers leading brutish hordes unto their foes and generously granting them their resources to ensure that their shoddy equipment would not break upon encountering any manner of armor." Gunter stroked his chin.
"What really happened then?" Said Corrin. "Does this means that Garon worked with King Sumeragi? And when did you see Yato?"
"Ah, patience, my boy! You'll soon learn what truly happened." Declared Fuga. "I'm interested in telling you the whole truth, just as I'm interested in telling you about the sword that you wield. You are a child of two worlds, who met a crossroads, and your nature is quite… unique. It would please me to accompany you in battle again." He then glanced at his subjects. "But I have higher priorities right now, so I will give you the truth about Garon and Sumeragi, as well as the sword that empowers you, and see what you will do with such informations."
"With all due respect, my friend, you assume that I haven't told him the full truth." Said Gunter.
"And with all my considerable respect for you, I've seen Yato up close. You were a skillful knight and a high-ranked member of the army for a good reason, but I have beheld the power of the royals more closely." Said Fuga. "Please, do trust me on this, Lord Corrin. I would like to see the sword's power up close."
"And you will do so by… having me fight your tribe, right?" Said a wary Corrin. Of course, things were going too well for a fight not to be present somewhere. However, Fuga noticed Corrin's irritation and decided to reassure him. Though how exactly the following reassurance would help, Beruka didn't know.
"No. I merely intend to have a duel with you." He said, almost casually. "We will have a short fight to determine your strength and worthiness. I ask only for this, Lord Corrin. Should I prove satisfied, then I shall heal you of course, but I will also explain to you the full context behind this war… As well as the way to unlock Yato's potential." He gestured to the sword. "You can always refuse, of course. But I will withhold the information."
Corrin looked at Fuga as if the latter had just swallowed a hairy spider. "W-what?! You… you'd want me to fight you?!"
"Of course." Said Fuga. "It will be a duel between you and I. No cheating. No intervention from a third-party and no transformation into a dragon. It ends when one of the combatants is knocked out, unable to fight any longer due to exhaustion or tap out." He continued. "I do know that the offer can be suspicious, but I promise that I intend to have an honorable fight, and will honor the end of my bargain."
Corrin bit his lips. What if he hurt Fuga? He seemed strong but if he was a contemporary of Gunter, then he was probably old. By this point, the dragon prince was confident that he'd accidentally harm the wind tribe leader further than he intended. He actually didn't care much about the full context too, but he figured that this could help him find a way to prevent another war in the future? The talk about Yato did interest Corrin though, and he threw a look at his sword.
He had always felt it incomplete, but not because he read up on it. He just "knew", it was an evidence to him, like knowing how to breathes or walk. But he didn't know the mechanic behind its evolution. And since it provided great power, it would be undeniably useful to learn how to use it.
"Would I not hurt you?" Said Corrin.
"Hehe… We will see when it'll be time to fight." Answered Fuga. "I apologize for surprising you with this question, but I felt that having my diplomats precise the exact condition of the duel would cause Lord Xander to keep you close. I'm already quite lucky that he accepted to send you with three people." Said the bald man.
"You did somewhat force his hand by denying him the opportunity to pass through." Said Gunter. "And you waited until they entered the territory to do so. And you knew that Lord Xander would be too honorable to simply force his way through, and would need your guides to cross the country's ferocious winds." The older man folded his arms. "You've become a bit of a trickster, haven't you?"
"One does need some guile when politics are involved…. But I do regret my little trick on you all. Regardless, do know that I respect Prince Xander." Said Fuga. "He did manage to overcome Hoshido at Goemon's Trap, and has treated the captured villages well. Anyway, Corrin, I can assure you that I am quite capable of weathering your blows. In fact, I would be greatly offended if you held back on me." Fuga's stare grew stern. "Understood?"
"O-of course." Said Corrin, a bit intimidated. Fuga instantly regained his more jovial manners, but the young man still turned towards Beruka. "S-should I do it?"
"Yes." Said Beruka. "You've grown stronger, and he has useful informations to give." The assassin turned to fully face Corrin. "You have bested tough foes and overcame great danger numerous times. I do not believe that he is frail." She said. "But if you focus, you will be able to overpower him and seize victory by crushing his skull and hopes." Beruka pumped her fist a little, but relented when Corrin stared at her with wide eyes. "… You will get him to say "ow". Certainly."
"Ah, a Nohrian motivation speech!" Declared Fuga. "Well, I do believe that we are decided. Come on, Corrin, do show me the power of a prince of Nohr!"
Fuga opened the last gate, leading to a room with a circular arena in it. It was lit by some torches, and some benches stood on the side, presumably for spectators. Gunter and Beruka sat upon them, and noticed a young man on another bench. Unlike the beefcakes that seemingly made up the entirety of the palace's male staff, he was quite tiny and frail-looking, though his first order of business when the two Nohrians spotted him was to pump his chest.
"Ah, Hayato!" Said Fuga. "I apologize for reserving the room. I do hope that you're here to cheer on your old man."
"Of course." Reported the young mage. "I'm here to continue the fight if you strain your back!" When Gunter scoffed, however, the diviner's composed tone made way for childish rage quickly. "H-hey! What who you're speaking to, geezer! I'm the son of the chieftain!"
"I don't care." Said Beruka, turning away to focus on the fight. Hayato said a few more insults but they failed to be heard by her or Gunter. Fuga chuckled and pulled a katana out of its sheath, while Corrin also did the same but with Yato. The two fighters, in accordance with the rule of a duel, bowed and then took their respective fighting stances. Fuga held out his weapon in front of him with both hands, while Corrin leaned backwards slightly and held Yato close to his face with both hands, blade turned towards Fuga.
"He's about Gunter's age. I'm going to try to tire him out and then end it-"
Corrin couldn't really describe what happened next. At one moment, he was holding his weapon and steeling himself for the fight. The very next one though, the young prince was stumbling backward and pressing his gloved hand against a bloody nose, blinking in surprise and tossing a confused glance the way of Fuga. The older man had easily crossed the distance separating them, and had his fist held out. His affable attitude had quickly made way for a stern glare, hinting at his focus, and his usual enthusiasm was not present in his following words. "Too slow."
Fuga moved swiftly with a punishing slice, but Corrin intercepted it with Yato. The two blades clashed, but to Corrin's surprise, the rather regular blade held its own fine against the weapon crafted by the hands of a dragon god. His senses allowed him to see a swirling wind current around the sword though. Yato wasn't really touching the blade: It was "touching" the wind against it. Aghast by the most unusual technique, Corrin left himself wind open for the bald man to raise his leg and smash his midsection with his knee. The impact was already more painful than Corrin had expected it to be, given his nature and the armor he had on, but then the air around him warped and even outright imploded, catching the youth off-guard and hurling him meters away. Corrin flipped in mid-air and stabbed his feet into the ground, sliding off several meters backwards until he managed to come to a skidding halt. He sighed in relief but then heard the sound of raging wind, and his trained eyes spotted Fuga just above him, holding his sword as if he was prepared to smash the young dragon with it.
Instead of blocking, Corrin avoided the blow and leapt past his foe a few seconds before impact. Then, he whipped around and leapt again but right at his back this time, aiming to try to slash him in the shoulder. The wind blew forth again before such endeavor could be reached though, and once again, their blades met. The two men then immediately did their best to try to overpower their attacks, swinging their weapons many times over in a blinding display of skill. Neither actually tried to hit the others in key spots such as the head or heart, but for outsiders it very much looked so. Their clashes didn't quite create sparkles, thanks to Fuga's unusual techniques, but it did send a lot of cold air current around the room, causing Hayato to shiver a little. Eventually, Corrin saw an opening and ducked in a manner that allowed him to dodge Fuga's slice and he immediately moved to uppercut him. To his surprise, the blow actually worked, and the wind tribe leader was blown off his feet. At the same time, it felt a bit "odd", like he was punching something else than him. That was likely the wind, though the element seemingly failed to protect Fuga from the uppercut's full effect.
It did allow his jaw to hold strong, though at the same time, Corrin made sure not to make the blow too potent. He was seemingly a bit stunned though, being unable to get back on his feet while rolling and seemingly taking two seconds to recover from his daze once he managed to stop rolling away. Corrin smiled, sensing an opportunity, and leapt at his foe!
The young man put one hand on his weapon and leapt towards the downed Fuga, intending to knock him on his bald head with the pommel of his sword. Then, before he could manage to actually make contact, a muscular hand shot up and grabbed his wrist. The momentum and strength behind the blow allowed it to almost hit Fuga's head anyway, but he was spared from the wrath of Yato's pommel regardless. Stunned by this, the prince once again left himself exposed for a direct hit to the stomach, courtesy of the older man's fist. Instead of being blown off his feet though, the dragon simply kneeled this time, almost letting go of his weapon but managing to keep it in his grasp.
He wasn't actually all that wounded, but the bald man's blows nonetheless packed a huge punch. He could actually feel that lemon from earlier going up his throat, and his eyes were so wide open that they could almost fall off. Seeing thus, the older man mercifully decided not to strike and simply got up. "You're a bit stronger than I thought!" He admitted, before pointing at the back of his head with his thumb. "I was actually a little scared when I grabbed your hand and it kept moving anyway!"
"A… gack…" Corrin took a few steps back but almost fell on his bottom. In a bid not to further humiliate himself in front of the three spectators though, he gathered the willpower to stand on his own two feet and eventually stood up straight. "You… how are you doing this?"
"I'll tell you after the fight!" Fuga winked. "Ready?"
"Ready fo-oof!" Said Corrin, receiving a surprise jab to the face by Fuga.
Gunter winced in sympathy while the wind tribe leader quickly threw his katana into the hand that just socked Corrin, and used his now free hand to sock him across the face once more, actually knocking the youth off his feet. The dragon prince landed on his feet again, but was immediately attacked with a swing of Fuga's sword. And the very next blow quickly put the youth on the defensive, forcing him to fend off the assault without being able to strike back, constantly having to fend off whatever attacks came his way while hoping that he could place one. Unfortunately, Fuga was skillful with his sword, too much for Corrin to overcome at this point. So instead, he hoped that the older man would tire himself out while attacking, and set on the defense.
Beruka was watching this from her spot. While she was initially content to lay back and watch, the surprising strength deployed by Corrin's adversary quickly got her interest in the fight, and she now watched it with her arms folded, curious as to how he could keep up. Gunter wasn't surprised though, rather, he seemed to be expecting it. Not that this made watching it any easier for him. While Fuga wasn't going too hard on Corrin, he was still being pushed back and struck. Not a comforting sight for the man who taught the boy how to fight.
It also wasn't too pleasant for Beruka perhaps, but she was a Nohrian and she knew that he had recovered from worse damage.
"How can he be so strong?" She openly questioned. "I've seen Corrin easily tear his way through Facelesses and armies, why is he being pushed back?"
"Fuga is a crafty warrior, is he not? He's trained ever since our younger days. And for whatever reason, it seems that it paid off." Said Gunter. "Not only is he as agile and strong as he was in his prime, but he's using some sort of odd wind technique to protect himself while also allowing his attacks to pack more of a punch. And I doubt that Corrin is going all out… Though by that same token, it is very unlikely that Fuga is giving it his all either."
"What a cheap trick." Said Beruka, folding her arms. "… But useful, nonetheless."
"I'd be sad too if my prince got so easily bested in direct combat!" Said Hayato. "Fuga's been training before that Corrin guy was even born! No wonder he's beating him!"
Beruka ignored Hayato and focused back on the fight. Corrin's mighty defense was meeting its match with Fuga's offense or perhaps… perhaps it'd be more correct to say that he was outmatched. After landing a blow strong enough to mess up Corrin's footing and let his stomach wide open in spite of the parry that he put forth, the bald man clenched his fist and once again landed a blow on Corrin's chest, buffeting him away with the miniature tornado that was created by the strike. The prince harshly landed on his back, disoriented, and shook his head, attempting to regain his bearing before Fuga struck again.
"Do you give up?" Asked the bald man, from out of Corrin's vision.
"N-never! Not in any lifetime!" Answered the prince, defiantly, as if he was fighting for his life. Admittedly, being this roughed up in front of Gunter and Beruka was still an humiliation for him, and the pride born from his victories against the Faceless, the Hoshidan or even those reanimated corpses was feeling very threatened by this beatdown. As he put his hand against his hip, he felt like there was a sudden weight on his pocket, causing him to glance down to notice that his stone was back in its pocket, as if it had teleported straight into it. Time slowed down as he recognized the weapon, and his eyes widened slightly as its calling. It didn't matter what the conditions were, wasn't it? He could just transform into a mighty beast and force the older man to reveal his secrets. He had tricked him and everyone in the first place, why hold back?
But then Corrin shook his head. It wouldn't be proper to do so to a friend of Gunter and someone who had been courteous enough until the last five minutes. And while he could surely heed more arguments, Fuga was already back on the attack, jumping up and attempting to hit him with a downward, wind-coated punch. Casting his doubts aside, the young man dodged the attack and grabbed the arm, using all his available power to overpower the wind current, and successfully breaching it before the leader could pull his arm back. Then, he stabbed Yato into the ground and swung the tall man over his shoulder and into the ground, with so much power that he bounced off it, though he suspected that his wind armor helped with that. The older man then skillfully spun around and landed on his feet, only to be promptly attacked again and again by Corrin with Yato!
This time, the younger man put more effort into his attacks, and struck effectively, seemingly overpowering his foe with each sword swing. The more he continued his attack, the more the wind barrier was breached. Fuga realized this and attempted to back off but the young prince constantly followed him, and prevented him from gaining any respite. Soon, the gale vanished from Fuga's katana, and Corrin saw an opportunity to win the fight by getting his foe to surrender. Raising his sword above his head but also making sure that he wouldn't accidentally strike the older man, the prince cleaved Fuga's katana in half with a firm strike. The strength of such an impact broke Fuga's footing and he leaned to the right, allowing Corrin to hit him directly with his shoulder. Once more, the wind barrier didn't do so well at blocking the attack and its owner was sent to the ground, with his sword ruined.
"Do you give up?" Asked Corrin, with a content smile in his face, glad that he managed to get his revenge. Fuga, however, wasn't nearly as bothered by the demand as the dragon prince was, and chuckled lightly.
"Absolutely not, young man." He said. "I've trained to measure up against the wielder of Yato, and I'm only getting started!"
"You'd fight me with a broken weapon?" Asked Corrin, shortly before Fuga socked him in the face. This time, the young man managed to block with his elbow but he was nonetheless driven backward a little. Fuga then used his wind-boosted agility to leap over to the other half of his shattered sword and yanked it in his hands before turning around. It was a rather sharp piece of metal, and he seemingly willingly allowed its edge to stab into the palm of his hand. Some blood leaked into the ground before that wind armor appeared over his arm and hand and into the sword itself. The other broken half, with the handle and hilt, also had some wind appear over it, though it took a precise shape instead of vaguely hovering over whatever it was protecting, forming the end of a sword. In practice, Fuga now had two swords to deal with his enemy.
"With two!" Taunted the bald man. He had looked stern before, but now he had swung at the reverse of that and bore a worrying grin and large wide eyes. That, combined with his willingness to hurt his hand to grip a weapon, made Corrin wonder just how much he remembered his own rules. "The first time I fought Yato's wielder, I received the quickest defeat of my life! I yearn to see how far my training has taken me! Please, do not hold back! Give it everything you have!" And with this brief bout of encouragement, Fuga swung back into action, skillfully using his two swords to attempts to overwhelm Corrin with a storm of attack, with "storm" being both literal and figurative in this case.
Determined not to lose as well, the dragon prince threw himself into the fight, swinging with abandon. His foe was powerful, but his wind sword was brittle, easily being destroyed whenever it encountered Yato in a direct confrontation. However, it would then easily reform and swing back. And most of the time, it hardly encountered Yato, being used for aggressive swings instead. The sword that encountered Yato was the one on his left, which was more durable and could encounter the legendary blade more often.
Corrin narrowly dodged several blows and recognized a pattern of several powerful yet quick blows with the right hand, and defense with the left one. While Fuga could create wind blades of a sort, the prince would be at an advantage if he destroyed the remaining sword. After all, if Yato could slice through them, Fuga wouldn't be able to defend with them, and would either need to dodge all of Corrin's attacks, which seemed to be difficult for him, or manage to subdue him using nothing but offensive moves.
The prince ducked beneath a blade and moved to try to blow apart the sword on the right, but his weapon actually met some resistance, with the prince realizing too late that the wind blade was coming at him. Luckily, even in his rather excited state, Fuga knew not to harm the youth, and a light slice was done to his cheek instead! The crafty old fox had switched both his weapons so as to trick Corrin! Instead of being worried though, the blue-haired youth smiled and swung back into the action, using his sole sword to fend off two, both men going at with everything they had while the spectators watched.
As the match dwelled though, it was clear that Fuga was looking to end the fight, deploying more and more eccentric attacks using his two-handed style. As powerful as he was, he was still somewhat bound by human rules, and his stamina was failing him. Corrin could keep up though, and in fact, he'd still be here by the end of the day if he felt like it. This difference in their stamina was realized by both fighters, and as a result, Corrin fought defensively, repelling the older man's strikes and constantly dodging his blows.
But he wasn't satisfied yet. He wanted to make it decisive. That hidden part of him that craved for a fight wanted to have the chance to beat Fuga while he was still at his best! Words couldn't describe the humiliation that he'd feel if he won using the older man's limited stamina. So Corrin decided to take the bait and slowed down ever so slightly, making it look like his adversary's rush was slowly chipping away at his defense. The veteran knew that this was mere acting, but his smile made it clear that he intended to take Corrin by surprise and overwhelm him while he wasn't expecting it. And he quickly made good on his implied threat, grasping both his weapons and swinging with an overhead strike with all his available strength! Corrin could even see that his arms, and only his arms, were coated in wind, as if to maximize his striking power. Yato was raised so as to counter it but the young man fell to his knee quickly, almost overtaken by the power raised against him!
But the strike hadn't been enough to truly best him, and while he was initially beaten, Corrin was only encouraged to grasp his weapon with his second hand. Fuga's composure quickly fell aside when he noticed that his full-power strike, already fended off by Corrin's one-handed defense, was about to be answered in kind, and he backed off right as he swung his sword upwards, backing off promptly to try to gain distance and time. But Corrin saw an opportunity and followed him, striking downward with one hand again. The cornered leader of the Wind Tribe deployed his swords in a cross formation to block, using his the more durable blade to block and the other blade to try and provide a "boost" of a sort to the other. This allowed him to block, but the bald man couldn't enjoy his earned respite, not when Corrin moved with his free hand and swung his fist at the two gathered swords. His fist easily tore through the weakened steel and the wind that made up the other sword, casting such a shock that Fuga took several steps backwards in shock. Shards of the sword flew at Corrin but he ignored them for now, and they only provided him with light cuts anyway.
And then, with a triumphant scream, the young man grabbed Yato and used its handle to uppercut Fuga. Devoid of his wind armor and fatigued, the older man flew in the air briefly before almost falling unto his back. "Almost" because Corrin chose to grab him so as to prevent the fall in question, leaping up to the leader and stopping his fall with his hand before both landed on their two feet. However, the bald man's legs quivered and he eventually knelt, with a satisfied smile.
"I guess that defeating the user of this legendary blade would take more than one lifetime of training." The wind tribe elder moved to get up, but then fell on his backside, prompting him to simply sit as if he were meditating. "I forfeit. You've won, Corrin!"
The prince of Nohr smiled and raised his weapon over his head, pointing it at the ceiling. He was out of breath, and had a pretty bad cut on his cheek… But he had won! He kept repeating that to himself in his head. He had triumphed!
"You did well, Corrin." Said a voice, pulling him out of his stupor. The youth blinked and lowered his head, noticing that Beruka had rejoined him. She was actually smiling at him, as if proud. "Don't ever forget that feeling, alright?"
"Well done, Corrin." Continued Gunter, clapping after having taken off his metal gauntlets. "Few men on the continent could beat Fuga in a one on one!"
"… You did sort of well at the end." Piped in Hayato. The youth hadn't left his bench.
"Well… I guess that it's time for me to say the truth, since you've earned it." Said Fuga. "What would you like to know? And would you want for your wounds to be treated first?"
"O-oh, it'll close on its own." He said. "Well, maybe we should get you some bandages though. But first, if you don't mind it, erm… When did you see Yato for the last time? I mean, I knew there had to be previous owners but…" The prince stopped when he noticed Fuga's quizzical stare. "Is there something wrong?"
"Well, I thought you'd know that." Fuga glanced at Gunter. "The previous owner of Yato, and the person who wielded it in the war against Qliphoth… was Queen Mikoto, your mother."
…
A/N: Dundundun! Here we are! Big twist!
I intended for the fight against Fuga to be a bit longer but it'd drag out the pacing, so I cut it a bit shorter. I do hope you enjoyed the battle sequence with him though. It's probably a bit wild by FE standards though!
Anna cameo! I like her too much to skip her and it was one of the last times when I could have her be relevant as a merchant, since Corrin and Friends probably won't be shopping anytime soon now.
This weekend, we're going to get some things about Qliphoth, and things will get back on track for a shorter version of chapter 21! As usual, I love reviews, so keep them coming guys!
See ya next time!