A look at what the rest of the students are doing right now, the state of the war, and some other things. This is a short one, but the next chapter should make up for it.
"Edelgard had me removed from the von Aegir line of succession?" Ferdinand shouted, incensed at the news. "She says I, Ferdinand von Aegir, have betrayed my duty as a noble? The audacity!"
"Ferdie, it's fine. We'll get you reinstated as soon as we defeat her," Dorothea told him.
"No, it is not all right!" Ferdinand insisted. "She betrayed the Church without provocation in order to take over Fódlan, had Dimitri killed, had Flayn of all people kidnapped and experimented upon her, betrayed and murdered the Professor, and she has the nerve to claim that I have betrayed my duty as a noble? I cannot believe that I ever looked up to her! The woman has to be pure evil!"
"Yeah, I have to concur with Ferdinand here. That is extremely hypocritical," Linhardt agreed. Since they had rescued her from the Death Knight, the remaining Black Eagles had grown to see Flayn as a little sister, and the idea that Edelgard would hurt her was offensive to them. Although perhaps not quite as offensive as killing Byleth, who was more of a parent to most of them than their actual parents. Particularly Ferdinand and Bernadetta's fathers.
"True. But that leaves the question of what we're going to do about it," Yuri Leclerc mused. The former Ashen Wolf had been placed in the Eagles after the Wolves had been disbanded. Meanwhile, Balthus and Constance had been transferred to the Golden Deer under the correct assumption that their strong personalities would fit in well, while Hapi was placed in the Blue Lions as Hanneman worked on a cure for her condition. Ferdinand couldn't help but think Yuri was shady, but his presence seemed to be good for Bernadetta, so he couldn't dislike him too much.
"Do you have a plan?" Ferdinand asked him.
"Of course. I always have a plan," Yuri told him. "I have clout with some of the smugglers in von Aegir territory. We can probably assassinate your father, then you can lead a rebellion against Edelgard." He then noticed the strange looks he was receiving from the others. "What?"
"Suggesting the killing of Ferdinand's father, it is, unstabling?" Petra said.
"Unsettling," Linhardt corrected.
"We could...abduct Duke Aegir?" Yuri suggested.
"Better," Ferdinand conceded. "But we cannot do that. Edelgard would retaliate, likely by having Arundel put down the rebellion. My people would undoubtedly suffer for it. I am not Edelgard. I will not throw away my subjects' lives for my own vendetta, however justified it might be. To do so would be to make Edelgard's lies become true."
"We could all incite rebellions," Caspar offered. "Arundel can't put down five at once."
"No, I was...I was never that popular," Bernadetta spoke up for the first time in the conversation.
"Neither was I," Linhardt agreed. "Our people wouldn't risk themselves on our behalf."
"They wouldn't fight my father either," Caspar realized. "Never mind. Forget I said anything."
Just then, Flayn arrived with a platter of food. "I brought fish!"
Everyone instinctively recoiled, but Flayn clarified, "I didn't cook it. I just caught it. I had the chefs cook it." After she clarified that, her classmates relaxed and allowed her to serve them some. "Unfortunately, with Dimitri's death, Faerghus has been partially destabilized, and the Empire is taking advantage of the chaos. Seteth is doing his best to keep the situation under control, but he's not that well-versed in politics. At least Claude is holding the Alliance together well enough to put up a good resistance, but he can't lead the entire war effort himself. Yuri, have you had any luck locating Lady Rhea?"
"Sadly, no," Yuri told her. "Hubert has hidden her too well. I picked up the trail briefly about a month ago, but I couldn't find where he hid her after smuggling her out of Enbarr."
"Hubert," Ferdinand spat. "I am sure he is hatching one of his wicked schemes right now."
Hubert dodged the Agarthan assassin's blade.
"It's nothing personal," the assassin explained as he kept attacking. "Your death is simply for the benefit of Those Who Slither In The Dark. The Flame Emperor is no threat to us on her own. Even though she intends to betray us, she is not capable of stopping us. She can be dealt with quite easily. You, however, are a threat, and must be eliminated."
"I see. Well, if Those Who Slither In The Dark consider me a threat, I should live up to their expectations," Hubert said, as he parried a blow with his own sword. This assassin was fast; he would have to end the fight quickly.
The opportunity came when the assassin overextended himself. It only lasted a moment, but a moment was all Hubert needed. A well-placed fire blast ended the assassin's life.
Hubert looked at the corpse until it vanished. "This could be a problem."
No matter; he would never allow Edelgard to be a pawn for Thales. He might end up dying for her someday, but for now, he would live for her instead. And the Agarthans would not stop him.