Alexander marched, with Christian, Tharja, Olivia, and a few others joining them. Chrom had said it may take some time before they could assault the Mila Tree and free the Voice, so Alex did what he could in relieving that stress by investigating possible leads and threats. As luck would be, ruffians have recently emerged at the Great Gate and have repelled several of Valm's own attacks, the reason being that they await the judgement of the Fell Dragon, more of the Grimleals.
Deep even, he sensed the blood of the dancer and, for the longest time, drilled Christian with a dead-eye stare, that sent chills up his back, it finally reached the point that Christian finally snapped as he threatened Alex with the blade. "Why do you keep giving me that emotionless stare, I have done nothing wrong!" Alexander stared on before he smiled.
"Why, that is simple, to coil you up and to attack when it is time, we are going into battle soon, so I expect that you show some great feats of power." Christian puffed through the nostrils before he broke off and Alex just smiled. "Excellent..."
"Father... y-you're playing with fire..." Noire voiced as Alex answered back to his family gather to see the event while Olivia went off to cool him down.
"I know him and, if I have done my task right, then we are in for a showing of his own prowess." They looked at him with a bit of confusion as they arrived to the edge of the clearing and the sound of battle erupted, Alexander rolling his eyes before they made for the clearing.
This was the last day of these bandits and raiders pillaging and ravaging local towns while the Valm Empire sat on its loins...
They soon arrived to the clearing that was between them and the Gate as Christian exclaimed. "Their hold must be on the other side. it should be..." He trialed off in seeing a young Mercenary taking on the bandits alone, his blonde-brown hair an interesting color, but it was the fluid movement, the subtle step, and the elegant handle of the sword in hand that suddenly had Christian twitching as Tharja blinked before she spoke.
"Oh... and I thought the only magic he could use was of the Levin Sword." Alex smiled before Olivia clued in and gasped as she turned to Alex.
"You did not...!"
"Unleashing the Rage in..." He counted down on his fingers before Christian roared a beastial battle cry and charged, Hammer in hand, but it was specially-made for him when he rose enough into the Hero class as the young man yelped and leapt out of the way as he exclaimed.
"By the Gods...!?" He paled as the Hero that just thrashed through swung his Hammer and a wall shattered to the impact, the bandits going into a panic at the sudden attack as he turned to the coming members as Olivia extended a hand to him.
"Are... Are you all right?" His mind rebooted in the wrong direction, with surprise as he yelped.
"...GYAAARRGH!" Olivia replied in equal embarrassment as she yelped.
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK! Wh-what's wrong?!"
"S-sorry! ...Sorry. You just surprised me."
"I'd say we're even on that count!" The young man quickly took her hand and was helped up as he spoke.
"I shouldn't have shouted, but... Er, yes. Can we please start over?" He cleared his throat and the shift was more of a ladies man as he spoke. "...Ahem! It was your ravishing beauty that caught me so off guard, milady!"
"I don't quite know how to reply to that." The act fell as he spoke.
"Er, please don't look at me so... intently. It makes me terribly bashful." He couldn't take it anymore and rushed to join the fight in clearing out the bandits as Olivia exclaimed.
"What?! W-wait! Don't go!" She huffed in embarrassment as she spoke. "Drat, he's gone. He totally stole my line, too." She hummed as she spoke. "Still, it's weird. I didn't have a problem talking to him... Maybe his shyness countered my own?" Noire facepalmed along with Morgan as Alex spoke to their reactions and Tharja's tight grip on her tome.
"Go on..."
"That was Inigo... Olivia's son..." Noire breathed as she faced her father and spoke. "You riled your own friend up to make an example, didn't you!?"
"At least now, he will think twice before trying his ways with anyone in our company."
"That was not some 'calculated' idea, you made it up." Alex just shrugged to Tharja's accusation before she chuckled as she spoke. "Though... heh heh heh... You're right, it was about time your friend finally broke a wall apart... and some armor with that Hammer."
"It is for the best that I gave him the outlet to do so." They picked up the pace to clear out the Gate, Christian still rampaging and ripping through the numbers before them with the few weakened getting stabbed by Inigo before they joined in with launching arrows and magic spells into the ranks as the leader, an Assassin, exclaimed for victory in the name of their dark deity.
"All who defy the will of Grima will be purged in the flames of destruction!" He went in with trying to kill Christian, but even in his berserk state, the Hero didn't flinch to the arrows that lodged into his shield or the blade that came for his neck as he bashed his foe off and used the moment of daze to pull free his Blade and run the man through as he pleaded in zealot nature. "Lord Grima... Rain down...retribution..." With their leader killed and the forces shattered, peace had returned for the villages around them while the gate was secured for additional supplies, members sending messages to Ylisse to confirm it from a site further up in Regna Ferox...
"Well, that's done." Alex hummed with sorting through the rewards that the villagers gave in thanks, likely in connection to Inigo's own efforts as Morgan cheered.
"I'm sure the villagers will sleep a lot easier with these bandits done in!" Alex rubbed her head as they turned to ensuring that the Gate is held until more forces rolled in to help them stabilize the location, no one knowing where Christian had headed off to, but Alex had a feeling as to why as, in another part of the camp, Inigo steeled himself and approached Olivia as he asked.
"Um... Olivia? Might I have a moment?"
"Wh-what? With me? Why?!" Olivia paused on this stranger actually knowing her name, it must be connected to the others that Alex had sensed and had... Suddenly, the stare made a lot more sense as she spoke. "...Wait, how did you know my name?"
"A little bird tweeted it out. So is that a yes?"
"Um, all right, I guess."
"...Er, yes. You see..." Inigo started to trip over his words as he spoke. "What I mean to say is... Goodness, this is much harder than chatting up other girls I've met. I suppose it would be quickest to just show you this..." The quickest way was reaching for his sword, but undoing a chain that was attached to the hilt and held it up to reveal a ring, but a familiar ring as Olivia gasped.
"M-my ring? But...I'm wearing it! How did you...?"
"Indeed. How does Inigo have your ring when there is only one in all the world? Unless it IS your ring and I brought it back from the future!"
"What? You mean, like Lucina...?" Inigo nodded with putting the chain back on the sword, firmly.
"Exactly. I knew my mother was a dancer, you see. So I've been scouring the land looking for all the dancers I could find. Not the worst job in the world, mind." He chuckled as she continued. "But now I've finally found you, Mother! And my dancing is all the better for it!"
"Oh! You dance?"
"Er, sort of, yes. That is to say, I try my best. But some people don't appreciate male dancers. Not that I care! I'm content to just shake my hips for the ladies."
"Oh, don't listen to them! I think it's wonderful. I'd... love to watch you dance sometime."
"N-no! Impossible! I'd be far too embarrassed for that! Besides, I'd rather watch you dance."
"What?! N-no! I couldn't possibly!"
"I'm shyer than you are, Mother!"
"You are not!" Their meek silence would have continued, if it weren't for Christian suddenly arriving and gripping Inigo's shoulder, he paling as Olivia got worried before the Hero spoke.
"Good to see you two are getting along, but now, if you will excuse me..." The grip tightened and Inigo was praying for safety. "I will teach our SON how to handle a sword better than how he walks!" Inigo whispered to Olivia.
"Help me...!" But Olivia just blinked as Inigo was dragged off and the camp heard the pains of a son getting a tough life in swordplay from his father as Olivia hummed with a hand on her cheek.
"I suppose what Alex was doing was... saying congratulations...? In a 'I am proud of you, but your son makes me doubt' type of way...?" She hummed before she headed off to find them, she wasn't bold, but with Christian, she was coming out of her shell so she wouldn't be shy and be confident in who she is and her skills...
Alex didn't want to travel west, that could cut them off from the main force, despite there being another presence that way, they would check it out with the full force.
Besides, the two others had connections to both Lissa and Sumia, so it was sensible to return to Valm Harbor and head off to collect the other two in the process before Chrom called them back for the task.
Still, this was something to handle, Valm could be slow on the upkeep, but if they get moving, then they had to prepared for what was to come in the march...