Edelgard had considered keeping Rhea waiting, but ultimately decided against it. While she had no shortage of duties to attend to, none of them were so immediate that they couldn't either wait or be delegated to someone else. And if whatever information Rhea was offering was important, she might need to act on it soon. And, if she was being honest with herself, she had questions.

"Why now? If she wants to share information now, why would she not do so before? What could the information be? I'm assuming it concerns Those Who Slither In the Dark, as I doubt she would want to give away information on the Church or its allies. But why wait? Did she think I was working with them in good faith?" The more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed; Edelgard had kept the aspects of her plan concerning them secret. Thales could guess that she planned to turn on him, but as long as he didn't know how, he wouldn't be able to do anything about it.

Of course, if Rhea were to expose his weaknesses to her, the task would be easier. She had sources of information on Those Who Slither, but the group guarded its secrets religiously, and any useful information would be a benefit.

"Well, I suppose it's time to find out for sure," she thought as she entered the Archbishop's cell, Hubert staying outside to guard the door.

Even before Rhea spoke, Edelgard was surprised by her. Previously, she had reacted to her imprisonment with defiance, responding in kind to any insults thrown at her, and staring daggers at her jailers. Now, though, the hatred had been replaced by terror, which simply felt wrong. Had something happened to her while she was imprisoned? Edelgard had given strict orders that prisoners were not to be mistreated, but perhaps some of the guards had decided the rules didn't apply to them.

"Is it safe to speak? Are you absolutely sure that there is no chance at all that Thales could learn of anything I am about to tell you?" Ah, that explained it. If Thales found out that she had told Edelgard his weaknesses, he could lead her into a trap. And then it would be over for the entire continent.

"I have dismissed the guards, and Hubert is looking out for anyone who might be listening in," she assured the frantic former clergywoman. "Our words will not leave this room."

"Good. That's good," Rhea said, though she showed no signs of getting less tense. "Byleth...he still had hope for you. Still has, I think. It's not like him to give up on people."

Byleth. Edelgard had hoped her teacher would side with her when the time came. They could have changed the world together. But in the end, he had chosen Rhea. Edelgard would never admit it, but that hurt. "No, don't think about the Professor," Edelgard thought to herself. "He chose his path, and you chose yours." To Rhea, she asked, "Are you trying to appeal to my better nature? I won't be dissuaded from my current path. If you wish to surrender, though, I can be merciful."

"Merciful," Rhea repeated, as if trying to determine what she meant. "Well, it's better than her being dismissive, at least."

Eventually, Rhea seemed to come to a decision. "I do not want to tell you this, but I am out of options." She took a deep breath. "I am with child."

What.

Actually, it made her behavior make sense. But the Archbishop, pregnant? True, the Church of Seiros didn't require chastity among its clergy, but even so, Rhea being pregnant...it just felt unnatural, somehow. It just didn't fit with either her holy façade, nor with Edelgard's image of her as a shadowy tyrant, manipulating Fódlan for her own benefit.

Certainly the tears welling up in her eyes didn't fit. "I trust you can see the implications yourself?" she asked, seemingly barely holding back from breaking down.

"I do see them," Edelgard affirmed. Rhea knew that if Thales found out that she was pregnant, her baby would die. Even if Edelgard tried to protect the baby, Thales would find a way. He had already tried to get Edelgard to allow him to use Rhea as fuel for his dark magic, and the only thing preventing him from pressing the issue was that Rhea was a valuable hostage and having her as potential collateral against the Church was infinitely preferable over allowing her to become a martyr and inspiring the Church to fight to the last man. If he found out about the baby, he would take it.

Rhea's forced composure finally broke, and the tears began to flow. "Please, I have nowhere else to turn! I need you to save my baby! If you do not help me, my baby will die! Please, I'll do anything, just don't let him kill my baby!"

"Anything?" Edelgard thought. For a moment, she considered milking the offer. She could get a surrender from the Church, maybe even its outright support. With the full support of the Church of Seiros, dismantling the Crest system would be far easier. It would be a simple matter to bring her vision of Fódlan to reality.

"But would I want to live under a ruler who would use a baby's life as leverage? What kind of person would I become if I did? Surely not one worthy of a crown. Could I truly create a better future that way?"

Edelgard hated the Archbishop. But the woman in front of her wasn't Rhea, the Archbishop. She was Rhea, the mother begging for her child's life. And Edelgard didn't have it in her to refuse. For better or worse, she couldn't hate this Rhea.

"All right. Don't worry. I won't let him get your baby. I'll keep you and your baby safe," Edelgard finally conceded. Rhea broke down again, but this time it was in relief. "Thank you...thank you..."

Edelgard left the cell, contemplating the fact that she had just committed to protecting the person she hated second-most in the world. "I can only hope this doesn't go badly."

Well, at least it was a way to kick Thales in the teeth, even if he would never know.

Kicking Thales in the teeth would never be a bad thing.

A/N: For anyone wondering why Edelgard is shying away from more morally dubious actions at the moment when she would go on to turn soldiers into Demonic Beats in canon, I'll give a quick reminder that Edelgard has only been at war for less than two months at this point. She has yet to be driven past her limits.