Jeritza had to warn the Emperor.
Arundel had waited for her to leave Enbarr before he made his move. He and Duke Aegir had led a coup against Lady Edelgard, having smuggled a significant number of their men into the city and taken it over when Edelgard was gone.
He rode as fast as he could to the farmhouse. When he got there, he knocked until he was let in. "Emperor! Arundel and Aegir have rebelled!"
"Thales must have caught on to our plans," Edelgard inferred. "We need to-"
Jeritza suddenly sensed danger and leapt to the side, just in time to avoid a blow from the biggest sword he had ever seen.
"You." Rhea spat, her eyes suddenly burning with anger at the sight of the wielder. "How many times must I kill you before you stay dead, Nemesis?"
"Seiros," Nemesis snarled. "This is a surprise." The baby in her arms began to cry, and Nemesis's eyes drifted to her. "I think I'll kill the small one first," he said, smiling cruelly.
Jeritza's vision turned red. He didn't know who this man was, or where he came from. All he knew was that this man had tried to cut him in half. He had to kill him! He needed to watch this man's blood spill out! He was barely cognizant of the Emperor and the prince drawing Amyr and Areadbhar, of Rhea handing her baby to the nurse and calling forth a spell, and of the guards leveling their spears at the man. Instead, as his blue eyes turned purple, all he saw was his scythe raining down blows on the man.
For about ten seconds, after which the man simply swatted him aside.
Seeing Nemesis defeat the Death Knight with almost contemptuous ease struck fear into the hearts of most of those watching. The Death Knight was a terror, a demon on the battlefield. The warriors capable of fighting him on even terms could be counted on one hand. Yet Nemesis had brushed him aside as if he was no more than an irksome insect. What chance did they have?
A significant one, it turned out, as Rhea unleashed a Thoron blast that not only sent Nemesis flying, but also destroyed most of the wall behind him. Nemesis simply got up, however, seemingly not even fazed.
Rhea kept up the pressure, casting powerful spell after powerful spell. Nemesis had no sooner blocked a Meteor spell with Hate Eternal before Rhea casted Agnea's Arrow, then Bolganone.
Dimitri, Edelgard, and Jeritza were terrifying on the battlefield. But watching Rhea and Nemesis fight was like watching two hurricanes do battle, if one wielded a sword as tall as a man.
Not that that would prevent them from contributing. Even storms had moments where they let up, and in one brief moment where Nemesis was vulnerable, Dimitri scored a shallow cut with his lance. Nemesis had no time to retaliate before Rhea's magical assault continued.
The cut itself was shallow, nothing even remotely close to telling. But seeing the blood on the lance gave the heroes confidence. "If he bleeds, we can kill him."
The battle continued that way, with Rhea keeping Nemesis occupied, while Edelgard, Dimitri, and even the guards scored hits while he couldn't retaliate. The strategy didn't work perfectly, though. One unlucky guard overcommitted to his spear thrust and was sliced in half for his mistake. Rhea made brief mistakes as well, one of which almost proved fatal. Nemesis came very close to splitting her head in half at one point in the fight, and might have if Jeritza hadn't chosen that moment to get back up and strike at Nemesis's sword arm, throwing off his aim.
Rhea felt blood run down the side of her head, and when she felt for its origin with her hand, she realized he had cut off a piece of her ear.
"I remember when we fought, Seiros. You always seemed so untouchable. No matter how quickly I struck, I could never so much as scratch you. But you have grown soft, and weak, while I have only gotten stronger. I will slay you, and all will know that I, Nemesis, am the strongest!" Nemesis gloated, catching Jeritza's attempted follow-up with ease and tossing him aside.
"You are nothing!" Rhea shouted. "A thief and murderer, pretending to be a god! Die like the vermin you are!" She cast a powerful Agnea's Arrow, only for Nemesis to brush it off with ease.
"Perhaps," Nemesis said. "But if there are no gods left, who will stop me?"
Rhea's anger reached its breaking point. "I'm going to erase you!" An enormous blast of verdant light gathered in her hands, growing in size until it dwarfed even Nemesis. With all of her might, she hurled it at Nemesis.
But the so-called King of Liberation was undaunted, meeting the blast head-on and striking at it with Hate Eternal. And when the smoke cleared, Nemesis had remained standing. He was hurt, but not badly enough.
The wicked king strode toward Rhea, lifting his blade. "Pitiful." However, before he could reach her, Edelgard tried to decapitate him with Amyr in one last-ditch attempt to end his life. Nemesis merely caught the axe and kicked her to the ground.
"You care about this human, Seiros?" he asked. "Then you can watch her die first."
However, before he could plunge the blade into the Emperor, he was hit by several arrows, multiple spells, and one whiplike blade. None of which were serious injuries, but the last drew his attention.
He looked to see the green-haired man wielding the Sword of the Creator, with a number of warriors behind him.
"That sword. It's mine," Nemesis snarled.
Byleth held the Sword in front of him. "I will not let you harm my wife, nor my students. If you want the sword so badly, you can have it." He held it threateningly, making it very clear that he intended to give it to Nemesis through the chest.
Nemesis quickly took stock of the odds. Counting Seiros and the three Crest bearers (the other guards weren't worthy of notice), his attackers numbered thirty-seven humans, three Nabateans, and the Hand of Sothis. Seiros had exhausted herself, but it would not be long before she got her second wind, and if the Hand could match her power, Nemesis would not be able to fight them both alone.
"Hiding behind your numbers?" he taunted. "A cowardly tactic. But so be it. I shall depart for now. When we next meet, however, I will take your life, and the Sword of the Creator will be mine once more!" With that, he warped away.
Byleth rushed to Rhea's side. She stared at his face. "Byleth. You came back to me," she said, almost as if she didn't believe it.
"I did, and I always will," he promised.
Then a baby cried out, and a nurse handed the baby to Rhea. "It's okay, Leraye. The bad man is gone, and your father came back to us."
"Father?" Byleth took in the sight of the baby. She was tiny, tinier than he thought a person could be. Her skin had a slightly greenish tint, her ears were pointed, and she had a tuft of green hair. And once Rhea had calmed her down, she opened her eyes, revealing that they also were green. "I'm a father," Byleth said, scarcely believing it.
For some time, no one spoke. Finally, Sylvain broke the silence. "Damn, Professor, I did not give you enough credit. How did you manage that catch?" Ingrid forestalled any response by punching him in the stomach. Either from the absurdity or just relief, Byleth started laughing, and several others joined in.
"Wife? I didn't hear that you two had married," Flayn asked, suddenly remembering what Byleth had said.
"Well, technically, we aren't," Byleth admitted. "But I want to be." He reached into the pocket of his uniform, and pulled out a ring.
"This is…Sitri's ring," Rhea realized.
"My father gave it to me, and told me to give it to the woman I choose to marry," Byleth told her. "I want you to wear it."
Rhea's eyes teared up with joy. "Nothing would make me happier, my love."
Next chapter will begin the interactions between Edelgard, Dimitri, and everyone else that I know you have all been waiting for.