"That was…most interesting…" Hubert dryly remarks.
I've been staring at the page for over a minute, trying to understand My Teacher's thought process. No, I've been trying to find the answer to one question.
What did Professor Robin do to get her respect?
Yes, Professor Robin is a brilliant tactician, a mage more talented than Lysithia, a swordsman able to keep up with Petra and Felix, and beyond all, a truly kind man, even if he did not show it in our first meeting.
But that doesn't inspire respect, does it? Does it? Have I been going at this wrong all this time?
"Your Majesty, are you alright? You've been staring at the page for a long time now,"
"Hmmm? What do you mean, Hubert?" I look to stare at my retainer. I then frown. He looks…even more sapped than usual. Professor Robin had warned him to not be so rash with his black magic and to let his life force rest. It seems that he took that to heart…while Professor Robin was still around to check on him, that is. He's reverted back to the pale and gaunt look that he had at the start of the semester.
"Is anything the matter, Your Majesty? Or have you stumbled on something profound?"
"No, I haven't seen anything that piqued my interest-"
"Edelgard! Edelgard! You have to see this!" I have never heard Linhardt so excited about something since Professor Hanneman discovered Professor Robin's crest.
"Yes, Linhardt?" I look over to where Linhardt is currently looking over some of Professor Robin's notes that he left behind. To be able to translate that quickly… How long has Linhardt been studying Professor Robin's language? And why didn't he inform me about it?
"Professor Robin has a contingency plan for our exact situation! Contingency 144 with Parameters A, D, E, F and AG! Wow, how many parameters did he write up, exactly…?" Linhardt's voice sudden dips and returns to its normal level of excitement.
But still!
This is incredibly useful! Hold on, number 144? How many did he write?
"Linhardt, now many contingencies did Professor Robin write?"
"Seven hundred, more or less?"
"Seven hundred!"
"Yeah, each with around fifty different parameters? Like Contingency 7, Rhea's Betrayal, has different actions depending on how much of the church has turned with her against us, what time of day, how much she is directly targeting us, etcetera, etcetera…"
"Wait, what? Did that include plans against the Immaculate One?"
"Yes?"
"Linhardt, what does it say?"
"Kill like any other Manakete?"
Well, that's not helpful now, is it, Professor Robin? Could you come back and explain to me what exactly that means? Or what in the name of all that is good in this world a Manakete is?
"Linhardt, did Professor Robin tell you what a Manakete is?" Hubert quietly asks.
"Yes. A dragon that can take a human form. Why?"
"And he didn't tell you anything about killing them?"
"Well, when we went over strategy, he said something about hitting them really hard with a Wyrmslayer? Or something called Falchion? I can't remember, we talked about more interesting stuff afterwards,"
"You thought that killing a dragon wasn't interesting enough?"
"We talking about the best way to counter a battalion of Black Mages, so sorry for planning how to deal with the slitherers,"
"O-Oh… I see…" That certainly explains why Linhardt suddenly took control of the situation when we went and burned down my uncle's residence and Professor Robin got separated from us.
"Well, Linhardt? What does the esteemed Professor Robin instruct us to do in this situation?" Hubert asks.
"Defeat in detail. The Empire has enough troops to defeat the Kingdom and the Alliance by themselves, but the two combined together plus the church's troops will make it difficult. He suggests striking at the Alliance first, using our entire force, while leaving the border with the Kingdom relatively weakly defended. Only after then do we strike at the Kingdom and the Church,"
I nod. It is a good plan. However, something doesn't feel right about it-
"That would allow the Kingdom and Dimitri to strike at our supply lines. Our defences on the western border aren't the throat, Linhardt,"
"Yes, and Professor Robin realized this,"
"His solution?"
"...It is an exercise to be completed by the reader…"
I slump down.
Of course, it is. Professor always wanted us to accomplish our feats by our own strengths. Which means he expects me to-
"Which means I'll be retreating to my room to figure out what he means by that," Linhardt slowly nods his head.
"What?"
"Professor Robin always told me that the leader of an army need not concern themselves with the bureaucrat's work. You are our leader, Edelgard. Your job is to inspire the troops, to be able to gather us together and point us to one goal. It's my job to direct us on the way there. Do you remember what Professor Robin said?"
"...A good leader knows how to lead. A great leader knows how to delegate. A brilliant leader knows when to lead and when to delegate,"
Linhardt nods.
"To be completely honest, Edelgard, you were never the best at making plans,"
I chuckle darkly.
"I completely agree,"
"So, do you understand when to delegate?"
"I would certainly hope so. My Teacher called me a brilliant leader. I certainly won't stop being one now,"
"Alright then. I'll see myself out,"
"Yes, you should, Linhardt. I just a reminder: Do know your post," Hubert chuckles darkly, though not in self-deprecation, but rather as a warning. This makes a small bout of flame erupt in my chest. Did Professor Robin tell us to trust our friends and always support them, no matter what they do? Is that not one of the ideals that we had agreed to? Did Hubert really not care about their memory? It hasn't even been a year and he's already turned back to the man I knew at the beginning of the semester before everything happened. Please, My Teacher, come back and set his heart straight.
"Hubert! Did you just threaten Linhardt?"
"Ye- I mean, I did not. I simply reminded him of the difference in station,"
"What difference? We are all Black Eagles, are we not?"
"But you-"
"We are all Black Eagles, are we not?"
"...I understand, Your Majesty,"
"It would be more convincing if you just called her Edelgard, Hubert," Linhardt has a small smile on his lips before he finally leaves the room, leaving just Hubert and me in My Teacher's room.
Hubert has a grimace on his face.
"Linhardt's right, you know?"
Hubert does not answer.
"It would just be a lot easier if you addressed me as a friend, rather than a servant,"
Hubert still does not answer. At this point, I am getting annoyed.
"Hubert!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
"I forbid you from calling me 'Your Majesty' in private or during the sole company of the Black Eagles!"
"I understand, Your- I mean, Lady Edelgard," I sigh.
Better than nothing, I guess?
AN: Wow, that was fast, wasn't it? I've been busy writing. Sorry, it's a bit short; I don't have much to do for Edelgard until Byleth wakes up. Don't worry, Robin's here so that's going fast. No reviews this time. Please review, I love reviews! See you guys next week, where we see more Robin shenanigans.