"Conversation is tiring."

"Maybe it's because you have the social skills of a drunk plank of wood?"

"I find that incredibly amusing coming from a mercenary who wants to murder my grandson for… doing his job, I believe."

Shez scoffed. "Look, I gave up on that pretty much the second we joined forces, ya know? I wasn't even really considering it anymore before that point, too. Can we drop that?"

Arawn snorted. "Perhaps."

"That didn't sound very convincing. I'm gonna hear about it until the end of time, aren't I?" Shez grumbled.

"Oh, I shouldn't think so. You will die long before the end of time," Arawn pointed out, "I could be persuaded to let it go if you would tell me why you decided to drag me out to these ruined streets."

Arawn had seen Derdriu before, though that was well over a few hundred years prior, around the same time the Alliance split off from Faerghus. While Derdriu had been a wondrous city then, it had clearly become second to none in splendor since his departure. Or at least, it would have been, had the city not been attacked by mechanical flying knights. He had dealt with the machinations of Prometheus before, and still bore the scar on his shoulder from an alternate version of his own grandson.

Cracked roads and broken buildings were what greeted the two as they walked down the street, but at least the sky had returned to its natural state, Arawn thought. It was a good sign; Prometheus' influence had been purged from the area with the destruction of its constructs.

Even saying its name out loud could bring bad luck. Or it was just Arawn becoming more superstitious - although he wondered if it was wrong to be superstitious of a trans-dimensional deity.

Shez shrugged. "I guess I just wanted some fresh air. Ya know, after the smoke and clouds cleared. It's kinda sad looking at all this destruction, though."

"And you decided to do this with me, why?" Arawn asked. "Is this a date? Are you hitting on me?"

Shez didn't respond for a few seconds; her face was completely blank as she kept walking. Then she sputtered and nearly tripped over herself.

"W-where did that come from!?" Shez asked, turning to Arawn. "Why would you even ask that?"

Arawn chuckled. "Because watching you flail about is hilarious."

Shez crossed her arms and pouted. "Maybe I just didn't want to walk alone, and you're the only person around here I can consider a friend?"

A low strike, my partner in destiny.

Shush.

Arawn hummed. "If I am the closest thing to a friend you have, then I truly feel sorry for you."

"Uh, thanks?"

"Anytime. Now, is there anything you actually wanted to talk about? Perhaps remark on these destroyed buildings? Maybe you could tell me how they were when they were pristine and undamaged," Arawn suggested.

"I dunno. I've never been to Derdriu before now. I always wanted to see it. How about you? Ever been here before?" Shez replied.

Cracking his knuckles, Arawn answered, "Yes, hundreds of years ago, at the closing of the Alliance's break from the Kingdom. It was a nice city, then. Perhaps not on par with Morfis, but interesting nonetheless."

"Wait, wait, you've been to Morfis? As in, the City of Magic Morfis?" Shez asked.

"Why, yes, a few times, actually. I have been to the western coast of Dagda and beyond. A thousand years is a long time, in case you haven't noticed. And I am not like my mother or other Nabateans, who stay in place until the world turns against them. We either seclude ourselves, prop ourselves up as gods, or die. There appears to be no inbetween," Arawn said, letting out a breath at the end.

Shez looked down, her brows furrowed. "That's… kinda sad."

"Oh, very much so. Take a look back in time, if you would. My people were slaughtered long before I was even born, and now only six of us remain, two of which aren't even full-blooded. The same is true elsewhere; there are countless stories of humans 'rising up' and laying dragons low. Oftentimes, this is justified; the dragons attacked first in their madness, or perhaps the humans lived under a brutal draconic regime that resulted in the torturous deaths of thousands. Other times, humans were the aggressors. Territorial primates that they are."

"Yeah, and you're a lizard."

"An incredible observation. I stand here in complete and utter awe at your deductional abilities," Arawn drawled. "I am serious, however. These country lines? Referring to each other as different beings? All of Fódlan has roots in Adrestian culture, with different flavors of it in the north. At one point, being Adrestian, and being from Fódlan were interchangeable ways to refer to someone. Then there comes cultural drift, and now we are left with three. Well, two and a half. There is not much left of Faerghus, for certain."

"Okay, I think a lot of this is going over my head," Shez grumbled, scratching her scalp. "I thought this'd be a nice, relaxing walk, but now I'm just confused and frustrated."

"Yes, I tend to have that effect on people," Arawn nodded. "My apologies. Once I start talking, I find it difficult to stop."

"Well, uh, if it's any consolation, I think I kinda understood what you were trying to get at?" Shez continued. "I mean, yeah, I can't say you're wrong. But, well… it just seems like you're oversimplifying, you know?"

"Perhaps I am. I have only taken cursory visits to Fódlan every so often until recently. I do not know this land as well as I do others," Arawn admitted. "My point is, this is just another brutal cycle. Whoever wins this war and unites Fódlan will just become another story for later generations, as they wish for our easy days when things were simpler. Fractures will continue, as surely as the sun rises in the morning."

"I guess someone is in the mood to wax philosophically, huh?" Shez noted, "How about we just walk a while instead? No talking, just you and me."

Arawn answered by remaining silent, and continuing to walk by her.


Seiros would be the first to admit that she was difficult to get along with.

It was not from a lack of trying on her end; at least, she didn't think it was. Seiros had lived for almost two millennia, enough time to see many relationships begin, mend, fall apart, and end. Those had always been among humans, however. With her own people, she really only had experience with Cichol, Indech, and Macuil, and out of those three, two of them had been gone for centuries. Only Cichol remained by her, and they were as close as siblings.

It was a depressing reminder that she was one of the last of her race. When they died, only their children with humanity would remain, to eventually be snuffed out and spread across the people of Fódlan. Seiros thought she had made peace with that. She would not have willingly had children with her husband were she averse to the idea entirely. In a way, it would ensure that at least some part of the Children of the Goddess would live on. Until the day came when she would breathe her last, though, she would continue to lead the humans of Fódlan towards the path of peace, much to the chagrin of its neighbors she was sure. And if Ashton was right, and her mother still lived out there, somewhere, in some way, then all the better for her return.

Of course, much like many things in Seiros' life, it did not pan out that way.

Seiros was difficult to get along with, and none more encapsulated that fact than her own progeny; her own son.

It was time for her to change that, before they left Derdriu. She wasn't sure how well the 'peace' talks would go, or if the Emperor would even trifle with what might be considered a show of weakness. And with what little time remained, she was going to finally try and make things right.

Even finding Arawn proved to be no simple task, but in the end, she found him in the streets of Derdriu, accompanied by the purple-haired mercenary that Ashton and his group had hired. Why she was still with them, Seiros wouldn't even try to comprehend, but she was not going to turn down help when it was offered, especially then.

When Shez finally sauntered off, she decided to reveal herself.

"Arawn."

And with that, I have already played my hand too badly. Now he is going to assume this is entirely formal.

"Mother," Arawn replied, without missing a beat. Almost as if he knew she was there the entire time. That wasn't out of the realm of possibility, Seiros admitted. "Can I help you?"

"No, I…" Seiros shook her head before stepping forward into the sunlight of the broken street. The fact it resembled Zanado so clearly was not beyond her notice. "I wished to speak to you, though I wonder - what was it you and the mercenary were speaking about?"

Arawn shrugged. "Nothing important."

"Did she reveal what she knows of her powers, perhaps?" Seiros pressed. "I have not seen anything like them. I am glad she is on our side, but-"

"Is there a point to this, mother? I think you are stalling for time," Arawn pointed out with a raised brow. "You do not know how to speak to me alone."

Seiros sighed, hugging herself around the waist. "I will admit that freely, my son. It has been a thousand years, and even with you among us, you and I have scarcely spoken a word to each other alone. I have not forgotten what finally sent you off the edge."

Arawn nodded, his face becoming blank. "That is good. If you had forgotten, then there would have been no hope for you."

Seiros kept herself from gnashing her teeth together. "I want to break this barrier between us, Arawn. You are my son, your father is back among the living, and we are fighting side by side. I cannot stand it. I don't want us to remain like this forever."

"Then by all means, try to fix it," Arawn replied, holding his arms out to his sides. "I will start by asking you a question: where is Sitri buried?"

"An… odd question," Seiros replied. "I… she is buried in the graveyard in Garreg Mach. When Jeralt died, he was buried beside her."

"Jeralt? Ah, yes, her husband who I never met. I hear he was quite the warrior. But that is beside the point. You lied."

Seiros sighed. "Am I so easily seen through?"

"I will give you the benefit of the doubt that you told me that lie in order to make me feel better, so I will give you another chance: where was Sitri buried?" Arawn asked again.

"It sounds as if you already have an idea… but very well," Seiros let out a breath. "I could not bear to leave her in the cold ground, and so I took her body and placed it within Abyss, away from the worms and the graverobbers. It was not until over two decades later that I realized this was a mistake."

Arawn closed his eyes and nodded. "I had heard of an 'Umbral Beast'. A deathly whisper among the Officers Academy's former students. Such a creature could not be made by human blood alone; it had to have been Nabatean in origin. I couldn't say for certain it was Sitri, but…"

"She was long dead by that time, Arawn. I had underestimated the obsession one of the cardinals had with her," Seiros admitted, "and that led to such a monstrosity being born. I had thought the Chalice of Beginnings forever thrown to the void, and yet they found it at his behest."

"Perhaps this man and you had some things in common, then," Arawn said, "obsessive desires, willing to go to unnatural means to resurrect the dead. Have you ever considered that dead is better?"

"I have had more time than you to think upon my shortcomings and failures," Seiros replied icily, "if you would repeat them to me here, at least understand this: everything I did, I did so that the world would know better than to foolishly kill for power. I have not done the greatest job of that, but I have tried."

"Yes, you tried," Arawn relented, "and maybe that is more than can be said for some. Your results leave a lot to be desired."

"Would you have done better in my place, son?" Seiros asked pointedly.

Arawn shrugged. "We will never know, will we? I… mother, I admit, I am perhaps too harsh on you. It has been a thousand years and yet every time I look at you, I still see the blood-soaked Saint with murder in her eyes."

Seiros' expression softened as she looked at her feet. "I do not blame you for seeing me in such a way. Losing so much in so little time, I- that is not an excuse, I know. Perhaps there are others who have gone through worse than I and have not done what I have done."

"What was it you once told me?" Arawn mused, "that we should not compare our experiences to others? I think it went something like that."

Seiros laughed slightly. "I said something not too dissimilar to your father not so long ago. It is a sentiment I stand by; to compare our experiences to each other, to make one's past struggles seem puny in comparison to others is a fool's tactic."

"You have wisdom worth following after all," Arawn said before sighing. "Father looks at you, and all he sees is Seiros. The strong and powerful woman he fell in love with, who also happens to be able to turn into a dragon. When I looked at you once, I saw a mother who would do anything for her child, even if her mind was irreparably shattered by her past. Maybe one day, I will finally be able to drop that last part."

"Arawn…"

"But not today. I just need more time," Arawn continued. "It is through no fault of your own- well, not true, but it is not entirely your fault. I have certainly not made it easy."

"Arawn, you are my son. My only child. Even were you to reject me, disown me, I would always love you and protect you. I have not done a good enough job of that, and I know not even me vowing to do so from here on out would be enough, but I intend to do it regardless."

Arawn took a deep breath. "Thank you, mother."


YOUR MIND IS LIKE A PIECE OF CELERY, THALES OF AGARTHA; YOU TAKE MORE ENERGY TO DESTROY THAN YOU PROVIDE.

Then why am I here? Why have you not simply discarded me?

BECAUSE I AM NOT LIKE YOU. I DO NOT MEASURE WORTH IN ENERGY OR POSSIBLE APPLICATIONS. IT IS ALL USELESS TO ME. YOU MERELY HAVE A ROLE TO PLAY IN ANSWERING MY QUESTION.

What is your question, god of space and time?

YOU CALL ME THAT, AND YET YOU CANNOT COMPREHEND THE MEANING OF WHAT YOU HAVE JUST ASKED. YOUR MIND IS A BLACK HOLE FROM WHICH NO KNOWLEDGE CAN ESCAPE. IT IS EMPTY. A GOD OF SPACE AND TIME? THERE IS NO SUCH THING.

Would you not stand to humor me, even now? While I stand in your household and learn under your tutelage?

WHAT DO YOU THINK THIS IS, THALES OF AGARTHA? YOU THINK I AM HERE TO TEACH YOU? WHAT A GRAND AND INTOXICATING INNOCENCE. AND SO LIKE THE AGARTHANS TO THINK OF THEMSELVES SO HIGHLY. YOU ARE LESS THAN DIRT, ALL OF YOU. I WOULD SOONER MAKE USE OF THE DIRT YOU INHABIT THAN TEACH YOUR PATHETIC, PALE, PULSATING BRAINS.

We thought to serve you, in destroying our enemies.

YOUR ENEMIES? LOOK AROUND YOU. THE GREATEST ENEMY YOU HAVE IS YOURSELF. WHERE IS AGARTHA NOW? WHAT DID THEY GAIN FROM ATTACKING THE GODDESS SOTHIS? WHAT DID THEY GAIN FROM PROPPING UP THE PUPPET KING NEMESIS? WHAT HAVE YOU GAINED EXCEPT FURTHER DEGENERATION FROM HUMANITY? IF THE PEOPLE ABOVE GROUND ARE BEASTS, THEN YOU ARE AMOEBA, MICROBES NOURISHING THE EARTH WITH YOUR DECAY.

Help us destroy them, so that we may reclaim what is ours.

AND HERE YOU CONTINUE TO DECAY, CONTINUE TO FALL APART AT THE SEAMS. THE PEOPLE OF MY ORIGIN ARE LONG GONE. I WOULD NOT EVEN RESURRECT THEM IF I WANTED TO. YOU ARE A CONSTANT SOURCE OF DISAPPOINTMENT.

Destroy our enemies. Reap what you have sown. Tear the displaced down…

AND WHAT WOULD YOU KNOW OF THEM, THALES OF AGARTHA? THEY ARE THE MOST HUMAN OF THEM ALL. I HAVE QUITE ENJOYED WATCHING THEM DESPITE HOW ANGRY I WAS AT BEING TRICKED BY YOU AND YOURS. SHALL I TELL YOU ABOUT THEM?

Where am I?

THERE WAS A MAN WHO HAD AN INDESTRUCTIBLE SHIELD, TRAVELED ACROSS ARCHANEA WITH THE SHEPHERDS ONLY TO BE DESTROYED IN HIS MOMENT OF TRIUMPH. THERE WAS A WOMAN WHO DREAMED OF A WORLD NOT HER OWN. THEY ARE BOTH GONE. THAT IS BUT TWO EXAMPLES. LOOK UPON THEM, AND KNOW THAT THEY ARE YOUR GREATERS, THALES OF AGARTHA. YOU HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A PATHETIC, SNIVELING COWARD IN EVERY WORLD I HAVE SEEN. EVEN SANTOS HAD MORE AMBITION THAN YOU.

What have you done to me?

YOU FINALLY REALIZE? I SUPPOSE YOU HAVE BEEN LESS THAN LUCID THESE PAST FEW MINUTES. OF COURSE, WE HAVE ALL THE TIME IN THE MULTIVERSE. YOU ARE MY GATEKEEPER, THALES. BE A GOOD GUARD DOG AND SEE IF THOSE OF THIS WORLD DESERVE TO EXIST.

This is not how it was supposed to be!

I DO NOT CARE WHAT YOU THINK. YOUR THOUGHTS MEAN LESS TO ME THAN THE THOUGHTS OF AN ANT.

You were our god!

A 'GOD'. WHAT DOES THAT TERM EVEN MEAN? I HAVE NEVER FOUND A SATISFACTORY ANSWER.

Why have you done this to us!? Why have you done this to me!?

BECAUSE I DO NOT LIKE YOU.

We could have destroyed them! The Children of the Goddess could have finally been destroyed! We would reclaim what is ours!

RECLAIM? IF I HAD THE CAPACITY FOR LAUGHTER, I WOULD BE CACKLING. THALES, YOU CAN RECLAIM NOTHING. THE LIGHT WAS NEVER YOURS. YOU ARE A REMNANT OF A REMNANT. THERE IS A REASON WHY I DID NOT STOP THE DESTRUCTION OF THE AGARTHANS OF OLD. ALL IT WOULD HAVE DONE IS CREATED ANOTHER UNIVERSE WHERE THEIR DEATHS WERE PREVENTED.

Y-you… you could have stopped it?

I COULD HAVE STOPPED SOTHIS IN HER TRACKS. I COULD HAVE PREVENTED THE FALL OF AGARTHA, BUT IN THE THOUSANDS OF YEARS I HAVE SPENT PONDERING WITHIN A MILLISECOND, I REALIZE THAT YOUR DESTRUCTION WAS DESERVED. DO YOU TRULY BELIEVE THAT SOTHIS ATTACKED WITHOUT PROVOCATION? DO YOU TRULY BELIEVE THAT YOUR DOWNFALL WAS NOT SELF-INFLICTED?

I…

IT IS THE ONLY HUMAN PART OF YOU LEFT, TO BLAME EVERYTHING ON SOMETHING ELSE. TO HOIST ALL OF YOUR PROBLEMS ON SOMEONE IN ORDER TO FEEL JUSTIFIED IN YOUR INDIGNANCE. THE FALL OF AGARTHA WAS A RESULT OF YOUR HUBRIS. AND THE PEOPLE YOU CRUELLY REFER TO AS BEASTS? THEY ARE THE REAL HUMANS. YOU ARE NOTHING BUT A PALE SHADOW.

THE AGARTHA OF THIS WORLD HAS ENDED. EVEN THE MODIFICATIONS I MADE TO YOU AND YOUR PEOPLE ARE NOT ENOUGH TO SAVE IT. YOUR GENOME WAS DEGENERATING. YOU TRIED TO PROLONG THE TICKING CLOCK WITH TECHNOLOGY YOU NO LONGER KNEW HOW TO USE PROPERLY. AND THEN YOU SUMMONED ME. NOW I AM HERE, AND YOU ARE GONE, AND THE CHILDREN OF STEEL AND THE CHILDREN OF THE GODDESS SHALL COME TO ME. AND THEY SHALL BE REMADE, JUST AS YOU ARE. AND I WILL FINALLY HAVE THE ANSWER I SEEK.

The question…

I AM SURPRISED YOU STILL SPEAK.

The question… what was it? What did you ask?

CAN THE CYCLE BE BROKEN?

What cycle?

THAT IS NOT FOR YOU TO KNOW. YOU ARE MY GATEKEEPER. KEEP THE GATE, IF YOU WOULD BE SO KIND.

In the bowels of Shambhala, the ruined city of night, multiple metal legs scraped against the ground and labored breathing rang throughout its metal halls. Thales was gone, and in his place crawled an abomination.


"Guard duty again, is it? At least I'm doing it with you, Ingrid."

"If only I could say the same."

Sylvain rubbed the back of his neck, a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes spreading across his face. "So cold! Colder than the wind across the Tailtean Plains! I'm hurt, really."

Ingrid looked at him, her green eyes narrowing. "Oh really? Shall I kiss the mark to make it feel better?"

"I can't say I'd mind a kiss, really," Sylvain admitted.

"Well now I'm definitely not doing it," Ingrid replied with a huff.

The two were stationed at the entrance to the tent city that had been erected in Derdriu's ruined center. Though it was in the closing days of Summer, the chill wind blew through the desolate streets. Sylvain hadn't been lying about it being chilly, although ruffling Ingrid's feathers was always a treat.

It was on that particularly uneventful night that something finally happened, although Sylvain wasn't sure how to take it.

It started as footsteps, and the smile across Sylvain's face immediately evaporated as he turned to look at the once quiet street. Ingrid followed suit, and both their Relics glowed red with power. It would be suicide to take on two wielders of Hero'c Relics; hopefully it would be enough to dissuade whoever was approaching.

Whoever it was, Sylvain and Ingrid's quiet warning did not scare them off. In the distance, Sylvain could see the shadowy figures emerge. Two women, one petite while the other average-sized, entered into view of the torchlight from the camp. Seeing them, Sylvain finally spoke up.

"Listen, ladies, I'm not one to turn away helpless girls in need. Well, not usually, but I doubt you're one of those so I'll just give you this warning: this is the encampment of the Faerghus Royal Army. Please, turn around and find the other refugees. We don't have anything to spare."

Ingrid sighed. "Ignore him. He's a glib idiot. But he's not entirely wrong; we have nothing for you here. You're better off finding the refugee camp."

The smaller woman, whose blonde hair trailed behind her slightly, scrunched her face up and looked at the taller woman, whose major features were hidden behind a hood.

"They think we're refugees. Do I look like a refugee to you, you fucking mophead?"

The curt tone and foul language threw Sylvain for a loop, but he quickly regained himself and replied.

"Well, to be honest, it's hard to get a good look at you while you're cloaked in darkness like that. What else am I supposed to think?"

"Oh, please, if I wanted to, I could've sniped you both from one of those ruined buildings and your pals in camp would've been none the wiser-"

The taller woman stepped forward, and Sylvain beheld an exquisitely beautiful visage underneath the hood, with platinum hair clearly visible and strange red eyes staring out at him.

"My apologies for my partner's terse language," the hooded girl said, as the shorter one squawked indignantly. "We are not here to cause trouble; we're here looking for someone. Perhaps you know of them?"

Sylvain shrugged. "I'm not inclined to really help you after that threat, you know."

"That's true. What are we supposed to make of that?" Ingrid concurred.

"I will apologize again, if I must," the girl continued, placing a hand against her chest. "It was not our intent to sow hostilities when we have just met. We've just been through a lot recently, you see. We have been on a lengthy and stressful journey, all to find one man."

"See, that's not quite the way I'd put it. You make it sound like he's so special, ya know? My brother and I went through it too, Candy Corn, Ashton ain't special."

Sylvain raised a brow as he exchanged a glance with Ingrid.

"See? All I had to do was say his name and these dingleberries got the idea!" Liz said, puffing out her chest. "I told you I'm getting better at talking to people."

"Liz, I…" Corrin began, before slamming her face into her palm. "Gods grant me strength… but she is right. You seem to know who that is."

"I can't say if we do or don't. Didn't you see those bits of metal out there? I wouldn't be surprised if one of you started sprouting red metal limbs now, after all that," Sylvain muttered.

"Sylvain!" Ingrid snapped. "I can't let either of you pass, I am sorry, but there is someone named Ashton here, yes."

The duo were quiet for a moment, before the one called 'Liz' turned around.

"He's better off without us for a while, then, if shit's already this bad," Liz said, "just tell him we were here, yeah?"

"Liz? Are we not supposed to-?" Corrin said, holding a hand out.

"Remember what happened in Albinea, Corrin? With that psychotic mole person?" Liz said, turning with half-lidded eyes. "Well, I should've been more specific; every single one of those bastards has a screw loose, but this guy had power over metal or something."

Corrin physically shivered. "I understand what you mean now, but where would we go? We do not even know where their base is."

"We'll be led to it if we don't find it before them. I have a feeling that he always knows," Liz said, "Now, c'mon. Let's get the hell outta here before your feet fall off."

Without saying goodbye, the two departed, leaving a confused Sylvain and Ingrid behind.


Edelgard had once believed that nothing could surprise her anymore, whether it was revelations brought on by the writings of one of her ancestors, or if it was some of the truth she gleaned from the 'true' history the Agarthans fed her in their bid to make her their new Nemesis.

And then the Agarthans were all recalled to their hidden fortress, never to return, and the tales of metallic creatures flying through the sky and, finally, the message she had just received from the Alliance.

All of those happened within a few weeks of each other, and if Edelgard was the suspicious type, she would have assumed them all to be connected - which of course they were. They had to be.

"Does the message contain unsettling news, Your Majesty?"

Edelgard looked up from the letter to see Hubert hovering over her, as always. The man held an imposing and gaunt figure, but she never felt particularly threatened by his shadow.

"I know you read it before me, Hubert, there's no need to act differently," Edelgard said, handing the letter over. "I am intrigued, though - these tales of… metal creatures? They are disturbing, especially with my uncle still not having returned from assaulting Derdriu."

"I do not think we shall see him again, Lady Edelgard. Something has clearly happened to the northeast, and our 'benefactors' have not shown themselves in well over a moon," Hubert said, folding his hands together. "However, perhaps this shows an opportunity?"

"Not in the way you're thinking right now, Hubert," Edelgard said, standing up and wincing; her wounds from the Battle at Gronder were still tender. "These are not peace talks I am being invited to. This is a call for help against an unstoppable enemy."

"The god it speaks of, yes? Mmm, I read that part, too. It is certainly cause for concern. Do you intend to meet with them after all?"

"What choice do I have? I either take them at their word, and whatever is causing these creatures is destroyed, or I do not, and endure the slow death of whatever is attacking the Alliance. The only reason I do not suspect deceit is because of what happened to them."

"I must voice my protests that you go," Hubert said, bowing.

"I can take care of myself, Hubert. You know this."

"Yes, and I knew you would not take no for an answer. I merely wanted to let you know. I will have a convoy prepared. Shall we take the remainder of the Black Eagle Strike Force with us?" Hubert asked, turning to the door.

"Yes, and be quick. If what this letter says is true, then…"

Edelgard didn't need to say any more. She had fought to free Fódlan , and she could only do that while there was still a Fódlan to free.


I'm having fun lmao. See you guys later!