Edelgard had known for a long time that her path forward would be one soaked in blood. That hadn't completely changed, but now it seemed a lot brighter. Of course, there was still work to be done, which was why she, Hubert, Rhea, Dimitri, and Dedue were about to eat dinner together and discuss plans for after the war.
"Of course, none of the plans we make here will be final," she clarified. "This discussion is simply to see where we all stand."
Dedue was preparing the food (Hubert had volunteered to "help" him; Edelgard thought he was being overly paranoid, but that was how Hubert was), and placed a delicious-looking dish in front of her. She looked up to thank him, only to see the tears in his eyes. In silence, she watched him place what looked like a fruit cobbler in front of Rhea—except it had pieces of fried chicken mixed in. He wept the entire time.
Edelgard had no idea how to react to that.
When the entire meal had been served, and Dedue and Hubert were both seated, Edelgard decided to just start the discussion. "Let's start with the dismantling of the Crest system. The concept of Crests as a divine right to rule has to go."
"Obviously, we can't let the truth of their origins become known either," Dimitri said.
"No, we cannot," Edelgard agreed. "Though a lie closer to the truth could work. For instance, that the Crests were created during the War of Heroes as weapons, for the then-rulers of Fódlan. Not by the Goddess, but by Seiros and Nemesis for those who fought on their respective sides. The idea that they act as a sign of divine right can be attributed to doctrine fabricated for political purposes after Seiros's death."
Dimitri frowned. "Perhaps it should be attributed to Nemesis instead. As a way to justify his rule."
"No, she is right," Rhea contradicted. "Nemesis deserves every possible stain on his name, but attributing the lie to him would raise questions about why Seiros allowed it to carry on. Which could potentially lead to the truth. And then, another Nemesis."
"Shortly before Garreg Mach, the Eagles mentioned having met Saint Indech in our absence, and that he gave Bernadetta his bow as a gift," Hubert added. "Would he, and Macuil if he still lives, be willing to help fight Those Who Slither In The Dark, and support the story?"
"Indech? Probably," Rhea mused. "Macuil would also be helpful, but of him I am less sure. He was embittered by the war...and my decision to claim that Nemesis and the Elites had once been heroes. He wants nothing to do with humanity now."
"He would not even fight to strike back at Thales, and denounce the Elites as having never been heroes at all?" Hubert asked.
Rhea thought for a moment. "He might find it tempting."
"Even if not, we can sell the story without him," Edelgard said. "Speaking of which, that brings us to the Church. The Church's position is politically awkward, and most of its hard power is dependent on preventing societal change. No offense."
Rhea shrugged. It was true, and they all knew it.
"To make the political situation less awkward, I suggest that the Church and the government of Garreg Mach, once it is rebuilt, be officially separated," Edelgard continued. "Seteth can serve as governor, and the Knights of Seiros as local military, but they will be responsible for enforcing the law within Garreg Mach and its surrounding territory, rather than the commandments of the Goddess."
"Regarding heresy, instead of the Knights hunting heretics down, scholars and clerics from the central Church leadership can be sent to observe suspected heretics, and deliver reports," Hubert continued. "Priests found to be teaching heretical doctrine can be excommunicated, and those preaching violence or other illegal actions can be reported to law enforcers."
"That is a dangerous suggestion," Rhea warned. "Heretics hunted by the Knights of Seiros are not simply people who see no issue with taking the Goddess's name in vain. Heretics who preach things like rebellion, such as the late Lord Lonato, can be dealt with by ordinary knights. But the Knights of Seiros are also specially trained to face threats of a less mundane nature. Blood sacrifices, eldritch sorcery, Agarthan technology. The sort of things that ordinary knights are unequipped to deal with."
"You do have a point," Edelgard admitted. After thinking for a moment, she thought of a solution. "Perhaps the Knights of Seiros can act as a special task force for dealing with such threats. Of course, they would have to report the threats they deal with to the government, and work with security agents to ensure their work is above board. More mundane heresy can be met with less extreme action."
Rhea nodded. "That's reasonable."
"Regarding the removal of the Crest system," Dimitri said, "What would you suggest as an alternative?"
"My original plan was to have a system of merit-based appointment," Edelgard said. "But..."
"Aurane," Hubert explained. Given that Dimitri and Dedue had already been told what happened, it was easy to hear the unspoken meaning: that merit did not necessarily translate to trustworthiness.
"The entire plan was terrible anyway," Dimitri declared. "Going on a path of conquest to try to reunify the continent would only have bred resentment among the people of Faerghus and Leicester, which would to revolts."
"Additionally, the idea would simply be replacing one system where the people have no say in who rules them with another system where the people have no say in who rules them," Dedue added. "The government of Duscur had a system where the people of individual towns would choose someone to act as a middleman between them and their lord. Something similar could be implemented in Fódlan."
"That could work," Edelgard conceded. They spent the next hour discussing specifics—what the representatives' official responsibilities should be, how much power they should have, that sort of thing.
Afterwards, Edelgard said, "I have one more thing I have to discuss with Dimitri. In private."
"Certainly," Dimitri agreed. The two of them left the room.
Once they were away from the others, Dimitri looked at her questioningly.
"Dimitri, once the war is over, I intend to hand over the leadership of the Adestrian Empire to you," she said.
"Me? Why?" Dimitri asked.
"Because I cannot be the leader that Fódlan deserves. You are a wiser leader than I, and a better person."
Dimitri looked at her as if she had two heads. "Edelgard, I am a monster driven only for my desire for revenge—"
"No," Edelgard insisted, with such intensity that Dimitri fell silent. "When your father was killed, and the people of Duscur were blamed, you tried to protect them."
"I failed," Dimitri said.
"But you did try. You were not blinded by your hate," Edelgard told him. "I was. In your place, I would likely have wiped them out. I was going to do just that to the Nabateans, and even if my initial belief for why my siblings were killed had been true, the Nabateans were not the ones responsible. And while Hubert believes otherwise, Byleth died because of me. Because I, blinded by my hatred, attacked Garreg Mach, the world lost one of its most caring and compassionate people, and Rhea lost the love of her life, the father of her child. And even so, even though she has every right to despise me, she still chose to reach out to me, is still trying to help me heal, and...I cannot help but remember everything I did to her and her family, that I would have done. Everything I have done to the continent, to countless other families who would otherwise be living in peace. Simply because I could not accept the truth, that my siblings all died for nothing." She held back her tears, if just barely. "I am the monster, not you."
"Maybe she chose to try to save you because she saw that you were someone worth saving," Dimitri suggested.
Edelgard simply shook her head. "You are the leader Fódlan deserves, not me. Even today, you have demonstrated that you are wiser than I am."
"If you truly want me to lead the Empire, I will accept," Dimitri agreed. "But what about you?"
"I will die a glorious death in battle against Those Who Slither In The Dark," Edelgard said. "As long as I live, rebellions against your rule will take place in my name. It is better for Fódlan if I perish. Besides, after everything I have done, would anyone truly care if I died?"
"I would care, El," Dimitri said, using the nickname from her no-longer-forgotten past in hopes of reaching her.
Edelgard closed her eyes to try to stop the tears. Too late; one ran down her cheek. "I'm sorry, Dimitri. This is the way it has to be."
Before he could try to respond, she walked away in a fashion that could be called brisk by someone who wasn't being very honest. And she finally let the tears pour out.
Dimitri and Edelgard have achieved C Support.