The Last Scion of House Ordelia

by kenji1104

Lysithea was said to be bound for greatness when she was born. Join her in her life story as it began in Garreg Mach, forge bonds with various people and eventually find love and a reason to fight on for her life and happiness. A detailed story of Lysithea's journey in the Black Eagles/Crimson Flower route with its own unique take on the route's story.

10. White Clouds: The Specter

White Clouds

The Specter

---

Wyvern Moon of the Imperial Year 1180

The Battle of the Eagle and Lion had ended and as the Black Eagle House celebrated their victory, they weren't alone in such regard as the other houses, despite experiencing another crushing defeat from the dominant house, took it with grace, especially their respective leaders.

It came to the point that Claude proposed a feast to be held between all the houses to celebrate the end of the event and promote camaraderie between each other. An idea that Dimitri and Edelgard were receptive to, it even came to their surprise that Professor Byleth himself was excited for such an event, something that was rare to be seen from the professor infamous for his stoic and emotionless look. For those outside the Black Eagles, at least.

The feast was as the house leaders had intended, instead of the other houses feeling any sense of animosity towards the Black Eagles, the winning house, they bonded over the battle and even joked on the various mistakes or accomplishments they have done during the course of the battle.

Seteth was on the fence on how to feel at the sudden feast in the dining hall without the students asking for permission but he was told by Rhea to let the feast continue as it should as it does promote unity and friendship between all the houses. Even some members of the Knights of Seiros such as Alois and Shamir chimed in with the two interacting more with Byleth who watched his students interact with the others.

All the while wearing a strange proud smile.

As for Lysithea, she had her fill of sweets as she interacted mostly in the company of Annette, Edelgard and her former classmates in the Golden Deer.

Claude joked that if it weren't for Lysithea offering the extra firepower she possesses, the Black Eagles couldn't have defeated the Golden Deer because of how Claude planned his schemes to defeat them, a claim that Lorenz tried to discredit but was sharply reminded by his classmates, specifically Leonie and Hilda that he jeopardized everything by trying to one-up Claude for his own vanity by trying to seize the hill with the ballista.

While Lysithea praised Claude for his strategy, Claude responded that his strategy is only a strategy and that he needed capable people to act on them which he lamented that he and the Golden Deer lacked while eyeing Lysithea and the professor.

"Still thinking of the professor if he chose your house instead?"

Claude shrugged at Lysithea's question. "Isn't that why you were attracted to the Black Eagles in the first place? You were fascinated by Teach's capabilities and his effect on the people under him."

Just before Lysithea could respond to Claude's insinuation, Dimitri interrupted every ongoing interaction by proposing a toast as Edelgard stood beside him.

"For the continual peace between all of us, our houses and beyond that, our nations! May times like this continue on!"

"And to our health and success in the paths we choose!" Edelgard added, raising her cup.

The students cheered as the feast continued on, Lysithea didn't fail to notice Edelgard departing the dining hall and going to the staircase leading to the fishing pond and greenhouse, she was followed by Dimitri as both talked with each other while looking at the night sky above them.

"What's this? The prince and princess having a moment together? Ohohoho…" Claude voiced out with a silly grin plastered across his face as he watched the two house leaders through the open doors.

Lysithea frowned at Claude's antics, she had already begun thinking on how her former house leader was beginning to scheme of teasing the Crown Prince of Faerghus and Imperial Princess of Adrestia in the following days.

"Grow up Claude." Lysithea said as she made her way back to her classmates.

"Shouldn't you be doing the same?" Claude smugly asked which made Lysithea pause.

"Excuse me?" Lysithea asked, trying hard to hide her annoyance at Claude for implying that she should be the one growing up.

"I mean… shouldn't you be celebrating with Teach right now? I mean look at him… he looks uncomfortable with Alois-"

Lysithea looked at the professor's direction to indeed see him having a resigned look at Alois who was laughing at his own jokes, Shamir was nowhere to be seen, probably fed up with Alois' brand of humor that seemed to have sucked out the once proud smile that was present on Byleth's face, he looked like he was begging for anyone to get him out of Alois' company.

The Ordelia heiress sighed and proceeded to come to the professor's silent call for aid by inviting him back to the table of the Black Eagles.

---

"It's finally over… There were way too many strangers at that feast." Bernadetta heaved a huge sigh of relief after she along with her classmates and professor had to rendezvous back to their classroom to have their own small celebration with each other after the festivities in the dining hall ended.

As for Byleth, he intends to give out his own assessments of his students' performance in the battlefield.

"Put your chin high, Bernie. It was a chance for you to have growth." Petra assured the recluse with an encouraging smile.

Bernadetta looked uncertain and clasped her hands together while looking down.

"But… but everyone was acting friendly! It was overwhelming…"

Lysithea sighed at her classmate's rather pathetically low self-esteem. She remembered scolding Annette about her own level of self-esteem but Annette's was nothing compared to Bernadetta or even Marianne's. The Ordelia heiress sighed again as she remembered Marianne and her last known personal interaction with her.

She remembered admonishing the Edmund noblewoman about her extremely low self-esteem to the point that Marianne was insulting and treating herself like she was the cause of the misfortune happening around her. It took some sharp tongue lashing towards Marianne to finally make her decent to talk to. Lysithea remembered how she encouraged Marianne to find a positive in something to go forward with yet she felt hypocritical relaying such a message back then, she had her own grim outlook in life and her giving such advice felt hollow in her heart.

"Is something the matter, Lysie?"

Lysithea turned towards Dorothea who looked concerned on how Lysithea was spacing out, staring at nothing with a forlorn look upon her pinkish red eyes.

"Are you talking to me?" Lysithea asked, unsure if Dorothea was addressing her as she looked around only to see Edelgard beside her who bore a look of mirth she was trying to hold back for some reason.

"Of course it's you I'm referring to, Lysie. Who else has that nickname?" Dorothea giggled, briefly covering her mouth.

Lysithea frowned. "I don't recall having that nickname nor do I want it." She spoke her objection, thinking such a nickname was childish for her.

"Oh don't be like that Lysie-"

"Stop calling me that, please." Lysithea requested, trying desperately to be polite to Dorothea to no avail.

"Ah, Dorothea has finally addressed you directly with her naming scheme. It's about time." Hubert commented from behind Edelgard.

"Naming scheme?"

Edelgard giggled. "I would have thought you have noticed but… Dorothea has this habit of calling us with our own peculiar nicknames."

Dorothea smiled and pointed at Edelgard. "I call her Edie." She then pointed at Hubert.

"And I call him Hubie."

Hubert sighed but didn't say anything, if anything he looked resigned to the fact that Dorothea won't ever stop from calling him by such a nickname anytime soon. Lysithea was amazed and at the same time, horrified by how Dorothea managed to make Hubert of all people, accept such a nickname.

"It took me a few days to get used to it too." Edelgard assured Lysithea with a small smile. "I just gave up one day when I realized how she addresses mostly everyone in the Black Eagles as such."

"The only notable exception to be spared from such fate is Petra." Hubert remarked, closing his only visible eye.

"Would be inappropriate if I started calling Petra: Pet or Petie, especially her status and not to mention… people would get the wrong idea that either of us are into some… questionable things." Dorothea giggled.

Lysithea raised her eyebrows in question, she glanced at Edelgard for answers only for the latter to shake her head to discourage her from finding out what Dorothea meant.

As for Edelgard, she could remember the first few weeks they had together when the school year began.

---

"I am not understanding. Do Fodlan keep humans as pets?" Petra asked Dorothea when the latter attempted to call her by the intended nickname.

Dorothea and Edelgard looked at each other with the Imperial Princess shaking her head and her eyes were telling Dorothea not to push through with it.

"T-That's technically slavery…" Edelgard pointed out with a sigh.

A small sweat slid down Dorothea's rosy cheeks.

"You know what? Petra is fine." Dorothea said to Petra, much to the Brigid Princess' confusion. Dorothea then glanced at Edelgard who gave her a nod.

"Agreed."

---

As the rest of the Black Eagles talked, Byleth was having his own troubles on thinking what to specifically point out on his students.

In his eyes, all of them have managed to achieve what he intended them to attain, be it improvements in their fighting form or using their heads to think for themselves in the heat of middle rather than just await for orders like sitting ducks.

Caspar has fixed his issue of being an open book in a battle, he had come a long way from that time when Byleth instantly disarmed him in their first spar. Byleth also noted that he still let's out his battle cries at times but as he has seen and heard, such action has the effect of intimidating and demoralizing his foes.

Ferdinand had learned to focus on his own capabilities and charge ahead to lead his comrades in battle, fully knowing that his comrades are behind him instead of his past attempts to show off in an attempt to compete with Edelgard. His ridiculous tendency to unnecessarily declare his name to every opponent he encounters has lessened as well.

While he had initially thought little of Dorothea in her capabilities in the battlefield due to her hesitance in hurting someone, Byleth had noticed the former songstress has been rather resolute with willingness to fight for her friends and house especially if it concerns fighting bandits or more recently, the soldiers fighting for the Death Knight. It seems Dorothea only needed a just and probable cause to have a firm resolve to fight.

Linhardt was once one of his main problems when he first started teaching the Black Eagles, he was lazy, slept during class and cut classes often to either nap or be in the library. Byleth lost count of how many of the professors had sent complaints to him about Linhardt's slothful behaviour. While he still continues to exhibit such behavior, Linhardt had more or less made up for his idleness during battle. He has become much more attentive when the situation calls for it and he always makes sure his allies in battle are in better shape and condition.

Petra had become more focused on her task and his issues with the Brigid Princess were minor, the increased concentration had also increased her lethality in battle. It seems her training and unorthodox style of battle has shaped her into a fine warrior. Byleth had just hoped she could at least tone down her strange and misleading taunts a bit more.

There was Bernadetta, the ever so anxious and fearful student of his with an extreme case of low self-esteem. She was particularly the most challenging student he had and dragging her out of her room everyday was a chore until Petra, Edelgard and Dorothea told him they would be the ones to get her in the classroom. In battle, Bernadetta's inclination to keep out of the general battlefield and keep everyone distant had led to her sharpening her marksmanship to accurately hit shots. Her meek experience has also led to people underestimating her which proves to be a huge mistake once they discover the arrows on their back.

Byleth glanced at Flayn, the latest member of their house. While the young girl is indeed talented and knowledgeable in the field of Faith magic… there was something in her that he couldn't figure out… she seemed so experienced in battle despite her fragile appearance... As if she had lived a lifetime fighting. For someone who has been sheltered and protected by Seteth, it was certainly an enigma that she could actually fight and support her comrades so proficiently.

He's had no issue with Hubert except when the latter tries to provoke him with cold and sarcastic remarks, threats that if he ever endangered Edelgard and the ever present doubts Hubert has towards Byleth. Byleth paid no heed to such things and merely carried on to his duties. His tactical mind and schemes were what Byleth valued most.

The same could be said for Edelgard who needs no addressing of her capabilities, she has a natural affinity for leadership and for holding her own in the battlefield. She's not meant to be a leader who would stand behind her army and let them charge… she was meant to lead them even in the heat of battle. A perfect combination of charisma and power.

Lastly, the only transferee of his class from another house and most probably, the best in the field of magic among her peers, Lysithea. Capable since the beginning and with a constant hunger for improvement. Byleth has never seen so much determination in one person until he laid eyes on Lysithea and what she could do. While her raw talent for magic is evident, Byleth was not a fool to believe that talent means everything. He had bore witness to how Lysithea tempered such talent with her own efforts to further better herself. Studying relentlessly to hone herself for what it seems to be a purpose, what purpose she intends to do is still unknown to him.

If there was anything he could point out as a flaw towards Lysithea it was her weak physical abilities, she tires easily and there's also one more, despite her fiery determination being one of the things he admires about her, he could also see it as an obsession of some sorts from her. He discovered many days ago that she would rather skip out on social events and rejected multiple invitations to tea unless it involves important business or its merely having tea and sweets while studying (which she often does with Edelgard).

"Until today, I thought it would fall to me to command and guide our ranks all by myself."

Byleth looked to his side to see Edelgard standing beside him, regarding her classmates with a look of pride to her classmates as well as one of triumph over their achievements.

"But with you leading us, I've gotten to experience what's it like to fight alongside everyone…" The future Emperor of Adrestia then tilted her head to look at her professor.

"And I've realized… how happy it makes me, fighting under your command." Edelgard smiled warmly at Byleth, Edelgard then returned her focus to the Black Eagles, her smile faltering on what she is about to say next.

"The emperor doesn't take orders from anyone. It's their duty to stand alone and lead the entire Empire."

"Edelgard." Byleth muttered as his student faced him once more.

"But maybe it's better to have someone to rely on… so that you can support and guide each other through the darkness…"

Byleth blinked. "And you think I am that someone?" he rhetorically asked, fully knowing it by how Edelgard looked at him.

The professor shook his head. "I don't think I am fit to guide an emperor. I know how to teach and train others to survive in battle…"

Edelgard was the one who shook her head this time to disagree with Byleth's statement.

"I may be heir to the Imperial throne, but first and foremost, I'm your grateful student. That will never change, even when I fulfill my destiny and become the emperor." Edelgard replied, her lavender eyes looking more resolved. "I told you long ago that I wished to enlist you in the service of the Empire. Well, I take it back. Now I wish only for your continued guidance during my eventual reign."

Byleth briefly remembered their first meeting after he and Jeralt assisted the house leaders against the bandits that threatened to kill them. It seemed clear that in their first meeting, Byleth had made an impact on Edelgard as well as Dimitri and Claude which prompted the three to try to recruit him on their side.

In the end, while it wasn't as Edelgard initially proposed, he did choose her and her house when Rhea recruited him as a professor.

Before Byleth could give her an answer, the whole Black Eagles gathered in front of the two, having noticed their professor's absence in their small celebration.

"Don't just hide away in the corner, professor. You're the reason we're celebrating." Linhardt spoke out.

"It's because of you that I've had the courage to leave my room for a bit each day…" Bernadetta initially said with a smile until she was overwhelmed with emotion and began sobbing. "I'm...I'm so grateful, professor!" She cried out as Dorothea wrapped an arm around her shoulder to comfort her.

"We were all just discussing how well you led us. Remarkable!" Ferdinand complimented.

Petra gave Byleth a bow. "Your guidance is without parallel, professor." She said with a proper and rigid tone until she chuckled. "I have had practicing of that phrase." She admitted.

Caspar pumped his fist up, showing some of the muscles that he had developed from training.

"Your training's been top notch. Really!"

Dorothea giggled at her classmates' praises and also towards the professor who was steadily getting overwhelmed by the praises of his students.

"Whatever would we do without you?" She playfully asked.

Flayn nodded in agreement to everyone's endorsement of Byleth's teachings.

"I have had the opportunity to experience much. Please allow me to offer you my gratitude once more, professor."

Then there was Lysithea, face full of smiles and pride… pride at her choice so far in transferring to be under the professor's wing.

"I'm so pleased to be in your class, professor. You truly bring out the best in us." Lysithea said with a nod, her right hand gripping on her chest.

After hearing her classmates' separate sincere commendation towards the professor, Edelgard turned towards Byleth with a warm smile.

"I feel the same... You are something special, my teacher." Edelgard said as Byleth regarded each and every of his students. While he was proud of what they have accomplished over the months, he felt special upon hearing their words of approval towards him. He didn't like to get the praises towards him affect him to a personal degree but at this very moment, seeing the proud and happy faces his students have and their sincere words of gratitude… he couldn't help but flashed a smile of his own.

Without warning, Edelgard wrapped her arms around Byleth's right arm and led him to be encircled by his students who showered him with their words and gestures of fondness.

One particular student didn't join in though… that student did intend to join in but stopped short of doing so when they noticed how Edelgard's arms were around the professor and how sweet the smile is that she wore around her face.

It wasn't Hubert… It was Lysithea who felt something in her heart when she bore witness to Edelgard's actions towards the professor.

---

Red Wolf Moon of the Imperial Year 1180

"I'm done with the exercise ya gave me." Cyril said as he finished writing on the piece of paper, passing the paper towards Lysithea who was seated across one of the tables in the reception hall.

Lysithea looked up from the stacks of paper she was working before taking the paper that Cyril passed towards her. But before she could lay eyes on the paper, she gave Cyril a look.

"Cyril, I told you to say 'you' properly. If you wish to aspire to be more of service to Lady Rhea in the future, you must also speak and act the part." She sternly told him, Cyril felt intimidated by the disciplining look and tone that Lysithea has shown towards him and only nodded.

"R-Right. I'm sorry." Cyril said as he nervously watched Lysithea read through the paper he used as a writing exercise.

It's been a while since Lysithea had begun to teach Cyril how to read and write after she agreed to do so for Cyril's birthday which she missed due to her and the students traveling towards Gronder Field for the hotly anticipated Battle of the Eagle and Lion.

The Battle of the Eagle and Lion... at first when she informed of it and then asked the professor questions regarding it, she was one of the first to complain on how tedious and tiring it is for them to travel along towards Gronder Field just to conduct a three-way battle between the three houses. Similar to the mock battle but on a much grander scale.

"Hmm..."

"Did I do alright?" Cyril asked, hopeful on his progress as Lysithea read through his work.

"Some mistakes there..." Lysithea pointed at something on the paper before sighing. "Cyril, I told you not to mistake writing the small letter of b with h. While they may structurally look nearly the same, the difference is the gap at the bottom."

Cyril looked genuinely confused at what Lysithea was pertaining, prompting Lysithea to explain more.

"You see... the word 'hold', if you made the mistake of writing a missive and used the letter b instead, it will become 'bold' and depending on what the message contains, it may cause a lot of confusion and misunderstanding to the reader. That or it would end as some random gibberish."

The Almyran boy's eyes widened, nodding earnestly as Lysithea's teachings were beginning to finally make sense.

It was fairly difficult for Lysithea to teach him at first but it does seem Cyril has the aptitude to quickly pick up the pace when he puts his mind on something, while his sentence constructions can still need some work... there was no doubt that he got most of his alphabets sorted out, such progress was more than enough for Lysithea to think that the lessons were bearing fruit.

"Like the word 'happy'?" Cyril asked.

"Rightly so. It would just end up as gibberish if you made a mistake on its spelling." Lysithea nodded, checking and encircling multiple parts of Cyril's written exercise and applying corrections on them to act as a guide for her pupil.

"The ones I wrote on would serve as a guide to correct the mistakes you put in here." Lysithea said as she passed the paper to Cyril.

Cyril received it and nervously looked at the Ordelia heiress on her final assessment to his work. While he appreciated Lysithea's effort and patience (despite being infamous for her short fuse of patience), he was terrified by how she strictly teaches him. Criticism from her were sharp and precise yet despite all that, she was someone to encourage him to do better.

"You're doing great. You learn fast for someone who started doing this weeks ago." Lysithea said and finally showed what Cyril hoped to see: a smile, a proud smile from the snow haired girl.

Cyril returned the smile with a grateful one.

"I have a great teacher." He responded which earned a small giggle from Lysithea. "Hey, Lysithea?"

"Yes?" Lysithea asked just as she was beginning to fix her things to go about her own business after teaching Cyril for the day.

"If you don't mind… maybe when we have time we could go-"

Just as Cyril was about to finish saying something, Byleth passed by them which quickly earned Lysithea's attention, prompting the Ordelia girl to turn away from Cyril, breaking contact with her.

"Sorry Cyril, I've been looking for him since class ended, I needed to ask something regarding training and these papers." Lysithea apologized, taking the stacks of paper she was working on earlier before calling Byleth. "Professor!"

Cyril's mouth was agape as he watched Lysithea approached the stoic professor who tilted to his side to entertain Lysithea, while he couldn't hear what they were talking about, he saw Lysithea smile as she reported something towards Byleth who in turn gave her a brief smile.

While Cyril was aware of how highly Lysithea thought of the enigmatic new professor of Garreg Mach, he couldn't help but feel like there was more than just admiration that Lysithea had for him as a professor and capable man. He did quickly dismiss the thought that the only reason why she transferred from the Golden Deer to the Black Eagles was because of Professor Byleth ever since he witnessed her receiving her own share of flak when she defended him from the harassments he received during Flayn's disappearance. He remembered the pained expression she had for being called a turncoat, a traitor and someone who would only pledge loyalty to the winning side by her former classmates.

It was something he didn't want to see from her.

As Cyril watched Lysithea and Byleth talked, Cyril was unknowingly crumpling the edge of the paper that contained his writing exercises when he saw the professor placed a hand on Lysithea's shoulder with a proud smile but that wasn't what prompted him, it was Lysithea's smile afterwards…

Her cheeks were flushed red yet her eyes… her face… the grin across her lips… it was the happiest he had seen her and he felt a twinge of jealousy from how Lysithea reacted towards the professor's actions.

"Sorry for bothering you, professor."

Byleth shook his head. "No need. I did tell all of you to come to me with questions or if you need help in anything." He warmly replied before glancing at the papers. "Thank you for helping me out with these. I'm afraid I don't have much time to finish compiling these reports for the archbishop."

Lysithea giggled. "Professor, you've done so much for me so it's the least I could do to help."

"You always say that." Byleth responded which earned an annoyed pout from Lysithea.

"Hey! It's true!" Lysithea pouted.

Byleth merely chuckled before waving her goodbye to take the report that Lysithea had aided him with while Cyril worked on his writing exercise. Lysithea's pout faded as she watched the professor depart the reception hall before she turned around to find that Cyril was nowhere to be seen.

"Cyril?"

---

Next morning...

"Sorry I couldn't witness that grand victory you won back in Gronder." Jeralt apologized as he and his son stood before a grave in the cemetery of Garreg Mach, flowers of varying kind were offered on the stone tile before the gravestone.

Byleth shook his head as his eyes were glued on to the grave of his mother...

Sitri Eisner

1139-1159

Resting in the warm embrace of cherished memories.

He didn't know what to exactly feel when he first found out about his mother's name after his arrival in Garreg Mach. He remembered Jeralt was looking for him and it led him to nearly circle the entire monastery to find in the cemetery, looking fondly at the grave of a person he never had the opportunity to meet.

His mother… Sitri. Jeralt rarely spoke of her, only mentioning her briefly but never mentioned her name prior to their arrival in Garreg Mach. Even then, whenever Jeralt mentions her, he would always bear a forlorn look on his hardened face. Byleth never truly questioned his father about it and always assumed that his mother's death severely hurt Jeralt.

His interest regarding her flared up considerably when he found out about her name and when Jeralt fondly talked about her… how she was like… gentle… smart… Jeralt emphasized on how smart she was based on how he repeated it with fondness. The meals she cooked for Jeralt…

Then there was her love for flowers… Byleth didn't really know the impact and significance a small thing like a flower could bring to a person. He had always thought flowers were just plants that had colors and scents of varying kinds.

Finally, what Jeralt loved seeing most from Sitri. Her smile… the smile that captivated his father the most about his mother. Byleth wondered… if his mother was still alive… would the Jeralt he now knows would have been different? Would he be full of smiles as well?

In his non-beating heart, Byleth knew and Sothis as well, that he became curious about her. He wanted to know if she was as smart as Jeralt says, if she was really so into flowers and finally if she has the smile that could light up the world.

With the majority of how Jeralt described her… Byleth could feel some similarity between Sitri and a certain person he had just met months ago. She was smart from all the time she poured into reading and learning from various sources, he didn't know if she was fond of flowers but he recalled when he gave her the lily he had just grown back then and the subsequent reaction he received, despite always frowning and having a near antisocial disposition, her smiles were a sight to behold.

"Kid?"

Byleth was snapped back to reality when his father called him, he had lost track of the passage of time when he reminisced about his mother.

"I didn't do it all alone." Byleth responded to Jeralt's statement of not being able to witness the Battle of the Eagle and Lion.

"My students all deserve the credit for their hard work."

Jeralt chuckled and ruffled his son's hair rather roughly. "There you go again, passing credit to others. You don't have to be modest about it. Have some pride."

Byleth lightly frowned at his father's actions, he combed his hair back to its former style with his fingers as he responded.

"I have pride on what my students have accomplished so far-"

"Under your tutelage." Jeralt pressed on, Byleth could only sigh, his father isn't going to stop until he admits the credit.

"Yes. Under my tutelage." Byleth finally admitted, earning a small smirk from his father before both men looked to the grave.

Jeralt fondly looked at the flowers he had brought with him mixed with some of the flowers Byleth had grown in the greenhouse.

"She would be proud of you if she was here." Jeralt muttered with a small smile etched upon his hardened face. "I know I am."

Byleth didn't respond and just looked at the grave. Jeralt knew his son was imagining Sitri being with them and praising him for his latest achievement.

"You know…"

Byleth glanced at his father to see him taking out an object he has never seen before.

It was a ring made out of the finest silver he has ever seen with a particular engraving etched around the exterior but what caught Byleth's attention the most were the amethyst adorning the head of the ring, it was shaped into what seems to be a star or a flower…

"This ring is the only keepsake I have of her." Jeralt fondly stared at the ring resting on the palm of his hand. "In time, it will be yours."

The Blade Breaker then smirked at his son. "One day, I hope you'll give this ring to someone you love as well as I love her." Jeralt finished before glancing at Sitri's grave.

Before Byleth can peer closer to the ring that Jeralt has decreed to be his in the future, Jeralt closed his hand and pocketed the ring back before taking his leave.

"I'll be reporting to Rhea for the day before resting in my quarters, you know where to find me if you need anything."

Byleth nodded and watched as his father departed from the cemetery, he blinked and looked up at the morning sky, he glanced at Sitri's grave one last time.

"Someone I love as much as he loves you." Byleth murmured towards Sitri's grave, speaking as if his mother was present before him. Goddess, how he wanted to know how she looked like.

Remembering how he has classes to preside over for the entirety of the day, Byleth left the cemetery all while he was unaware Sothis briefly stayed behind, watching him leave. She had taken an unusual interest in what Jeralt and Byleth had talked about.

"You just don't know it yet, you fool." Sothis chuckled with an amused smirk before following her host to his day to day activities.

On the pile of flowers offered to Sitri's grave, a sole white lily is placed above every other flower, the same type of flower that Byleth had kept growing ever since.

---

Lysithea stormed out of Hanneman's office after she verbally lashed against the aged professor for another insensitive comment from him.

Well to give him credit, Hanneman had been rather… relaxed in his research on her lately. Unlike last time, he was actually considerate enough to prepare some tea and sweets for the Ordelia heiress this time as an apology for his rather insensitive comments when Lysithea caught him spying on her in the training grounds.

Wary at first, Lysithea thought Hanneman might have put some concoction in them that would have something to do with his research but Hanneman despite being stung by her apprehension, assured her that drugging someone breaches the ethics of his research and his nature as a human being.

Yet despite the somewhat good start of their time working together for Hanneman's research, it was inevitably soured when Hanneman mentioned his hypothesis that the spike in Lysithea's growth is attributed to her twin Crests. Lysithea tiredly told him it wasn't the case as she mocked his research for being useless if he would come up with such a thought.

Hanneman was insulted by Lysithea's remark on his research being fruitless and further pressed on his theory that Lysithea's achievements and her abilities can only be attributed to the 'boon' that her twin Crests provided her. It was at that moment that Lysithea could clearly see the difference of outlook that Hanneman and Byleth has in terms of someone's growth.

Hanneman was the type to consider natural talents and Crests plays a huge factor in one's growth while Byleth believed that talent and Crests can only take a person so far without effort. Professor Byleth's opinions on such things is what led Lysithea to conclude that she was truly better off with him and his house, such mindset from him would promote more growth for her.

Of course she disputed such a thing against Hanneman, telling him that the abilities she possesses as of now were the results of her own efforts and while the Crests within her had been useful in certain times, they were certainly not a contributing factor in her development. Hanneman acknowledged her efforts but just as it began to turn into a decent conversation for Lysithea, Hanneman argued that her drive to improve… couldn't it be just another form of talent?

Lysithea vehemently denied such a statement before proclaiming that it was from sheer will alone that she was determined to make an effort to better herself. Hanneman appeared to look convinced by her assertion but just as things were cooling down between the two…

Hanneman asked her a question.

"I see... But what drives you to such lengths?"

Being driven by the emotions she felt regarding her Crests and her opinions about them in general, Lysithea told Hanneman without a thought on what it was that plagued her. What drives her to be better, what would cause such a thirst for growth for someone so young like her... She told him how she was not long for this world, why she could never agree with Hanneman's assessment that her twin Crests were such a boon when in reality they weren't.

Lysithea failed to see the shock present on the aged professor's face before she excused herself out of his office, prematurely ending their research for the day.

She didn't stay long to hear Hanneman apologizing for everything.

Lysithea couldn't bear the emotions anymore once she brought up the fact that she has no future, she had to leave Hanneman's presence and get some fresh air to calm herself down.

Just as she left Hanneman's office, she led out a deep sigh.

"My intuition was correct. You do have two Crests."

Lysithea nearly yelped out from the sudden voice behind her, she snapped around to see Linhardt leaning his back on the wall near Hanneman's office door.

Just before Linhardt can begin speaking more about her Crests out in the open, Lysithea ran up towards him to cover his mouth with a frantic look.

"Shut your mouth! Just...ugh. Let's go talk somewhere other than here." Lysithea led out a sigh of defeat as she withdrew her hands from Linhardt's mouth.

Just as expected, when they arrived in a more private and secluded area of Garreg Mach, Linhardt had pressed her for questions once he got Lysithea's words of confirmation straight from her lips.

And while Linhardt didn't do any of the things that Hanneman had resorted to such as blackmailing her, he shared Hanneman's lack of empathy on his questions regarding Lysithea's circumstance.

Their short private conversation ended just as it began, Lysithea stormed out of their conversation when she refused to answer any of his questions. Denying Linhardt of an answer he seeks from her.

Could this day get any worse for her?

---

Later that day… In the training grounds...

"Okay Annette, are you ready to test out what I taught you earlier?" Lysithea asked her classmate.

The Dominic noblewoman nodded. "I'm ready!" She eagerly said, now with their shared schedule as members of the Black Eagles, they could conduct more study and practice sessions together.

"Okay so… imagine the incantation in your mind then focus the energy on your hand." Lysithea stretched out her right arm and produced a sphere of green colored magic as small gusts of wind danced around her palm.

Annette nodded and mimicked Lysithea's action, briefly closing her eyes as she focused her mind on what she must do to recreate the spell that Lysithea was tutoring her with.

"Like this?" Annette asked as she produced the same kind of magic that Lysithea had created.

Lysithea's expression lit up as Annette quickly grasped on the magic she was teaching her, unlike with Cyril, Annette's pace in learning things being taught to her was quite remarkable and it was that trait that made Lysithea enjoy helping her out.

""Yes, you're doing great right now Annette! Don't fire it! Just hold it and concentrate the energy..." Lysithea further instructed. "Casting it is easy but maintaining it before firing it is hard, there's so much power in your hand that-"

As Lysithea was speaking, Annette caught sight of Felix walking in the training grounds with his usual scowl, her blue eyes followed him as he ignored the other people in the training grounds and proceeded to hack away at the training dummy with a training sword. Annette could remember some embarrassing moment she had with her fellow classmate and former member of the Blue Lions, especially in the greenhouse just a few days ago.

While Lysithea was instructing her, Annette all of a sudden fired the wind spell she was maintaining on her palm towards the wall near the gate leading out of the training grounds. What they didn't notice was that there was another person about to come in.

"Alright… what the professor and Petra told me motivated me. You can do this Bernie! So what if there are many people in the training ground? Like Petra said, you are the hunter Bernie! Treat the others as prey!" Bernadetta murmured to herself as she went to the training grounds, all ready and instilling a huge degree of confidence within herself so she can practice on her marksmanship.

Just as she entered, a blade made out of wind hit the stone wall next to her, very narrowly missing her except for a few strands of her messy hair.

"I DIDN'T TELL YOU TO FIRE IT!" Lysithea loudly admonished Annette after the latter absentmindedly fired her spell that she was training to get a grasp on.

Annette realized that her staring at Felix made her fire her spell in an untimely manner.

"I'm sorry! I panicked!" Annette quickly apologized to the fuming Lysithea before her.

"What in the world would you panic about right now?!" Lysithea exclaimed.

Just before Annette could respond, a scream took everyone's attention in the training ground.

"GYAAAAHH! I KNEW I SHOULDN'T HAVE COME HERE!" Bernadetta screamed as her face paled, depriving it of any color while she fell down on the stone floor with both knees. "IT'S A SIGN. I'M NOT MEANT FOR THE OUTSIDE WORLD!"

Lysithea and Annette immediately realized the reason why Bernadetta began her usual hysterical episode when they saw the huge deep gash on the stone wall near Bernadetta.

"Oh my Goddess!" Annette screamed out in horror as she rushed towards Bernadetta. "Are you alright Bernadetta?!"

Lysithea sighed as she watched Annette try to help out their classmate after she was nearly harmed from Annette's magic, she could see the Dominic noblewoman try to reach out for the frightened Varley heiress to stand up.

Bernadetta's frightened eyes looked up at Annette before she stood up and backed away from her as if treating Annette as a threat to her life.

"No! Back away! I know what you're trying to do! Oooohh, you're just trying to pretend that you nearly hit me by accident just so you could catch me off guard again to kill me in a later time!"

Annette looked incredibly baffled and taken aback by Bernadetta's accusation towards her.

"W-What? I-It's not like that! It's just an accident-"

"I am not falling for that! I-I'll report you to the professor for thiiiiisss!" Bernadetta screamed out before rushing out of the training grounds, continually screaming attempted murder.

"Bernadetta, please wait!" Annette pleaded as she followed after her, further aggravating Bernadetta as Lysithea and the others could hear her panicked screams from afar, fading as it continued.

Lysithea sighed as the person she was teaching left, shrugging her shoulders, she left the training grounds to feed Ordelian. She had nothing else left to do for the day.

---

"Ordelian." Lysithea sighed for the nth time of the day as she swept out the hairball her snow white cat had coughed out on the floor of her room.

Her pet cat looked up at her with an apologetic look, its as if his eyes were begging her not to scold him for what he did. Lysithea successfully managed to sweep out the hairball on grassy ground outside.

"I'm not mad at you, don't worry." Lysithea assured her pet cat before setting aside the broom and was about to pick up her cat until she heard another meow, which didn't belong to her cat. This one seemed deeper…

Lysithea and Ordelian looked at the direction of the meow to see a cat with black fur and green eyes, from the looks of it, the cat was a bit overweight. The opposite of Ordelian in terms of fur color and physique.

"This is the first time I've seen that particular cat…" Lysithea murmured, her eyes widened immediately when she saw Ordelian approach the black cat with haste as if he was excited.

The two cats meowed at each other before purring and nuzzling their heads together in an affectionate way. Lysithea smiled at the display, she was glad that despite her time absent in almost the entire day of Ordelian's daily life, he managed to make some friends in the company of his fellow felines.

Lysithea slowly approached the black cat, not wanting to frighten it as Ordelian interacted with his friend. When she came near, the black cat regarded her briefly as Ordelian watched.

"Hello." Lysithea greeted the cat as she bent her knees forward to squat and slowly reached out for it until she was mere inches away from petting the cat, the Ordelia heiress feared the cat would violently attack her until it suddenly nuzzled its head on her right palm before purring.

"Do you live here?" Lysithea softly asked the purring cat while softly brushing its black fur with the silky skin of her hand. "Or are you owned by someone-"

"Whisker? Where are you Whisker?" A voice suddenly called out, Lysithea's eyes widened again as she fully recognized the owner of the voice.

The black cat meowed, withdrawing its head from Lysithea as she approached the person who called out for her, it was a female cat after Lysithea had caught sight of its behind.

"There you are, Whisker." The person knelt on one knee to take the black cat onto her arms who allowed her to.

"Edelgard?"

The Imperial Princess looked back at Lysithea who had picked up Ordelian into her arms, the two girls with hair of ash and snow regarded each other's pets that they gently carried into their arms, black and white fur respectively.

"Hello Ordelian." Edelgard greeted the snow white cat who happily meowed at her, welcoming Edelgard's presence, one of the very few humans who can actually approach and touch him without being hissed, bitten or scratched at.

"Is that yours?" Lysithea asked, looking at the fat black cat that Edelgard carried.

Edelgard smiled as she looked down on her own cat.

"She was normally just a stray here in Garreg Mach... I grew fond of her tailing me every time I went to my room so I just couldn't help but take her in." Edelgard then looked down on her cat.

"Isn't that right, Whisker?" Edelgard cooed playfully at the cat who meowed in agreement.

"Her name's Whisker?" Lysithea asked.

Edelgard giggled before letting the cat go as Lysithea mimicked her action, letting go of Ordelian to let him interact with Whisker.

"Partly, her name is Hresvelgion Whisker." Edelgard proudly declared. "She and Ordelian have been friends since they met."

Lysithea chuckled. "And I just found out about this now?" She playfully asked as Whisker and Ordelian encircled around before playing with each other's noses.

The Imperial Princess shrugged. "You have been pretty busy with your own studies to notice Ordelian sneaking out sometimes." Edelgard quipped.

The snow haired girl was taken aback, glancing at Ordelian. Even if it was a playful quip from Edelgard, she started thinking if she may have unintentionally neglected Ordelian in her pursuit to learn more in Garreg Mach.

"I heard the professor always takes care of these two when we're out doing something."

"He does?" Lysithea asked.

"I do."

Four pairs of eyes turned to see Byleth, appearing a little sweat, both white haired girls thought it was due to training.

"Professor." Lysithea greeted him with a nod.

"My teacher." Edelgard endearingly called him with a smile.

Ordelian and Hresvelgion Whisker both meowed happily to greet him.

Lysithea glanced at Edelgard, frowning slightly at how Edelgard addressed Byleth. Ever since that night when they celebrated their victory in the Battle of the Eagle and Lion, Lysithea had noticed how Edelgard has a term for Byleth besides professor… my teacher sounded so… possessive as if they were intimately close. It made her feel jealous especially when she remembers how Edelgard touched Byleth during that night.

"Sorry for the interruption but I must speak to you Lysithea." Byleth said, staring at the Ordelia girl.

"M-Me?"

"There is something I wish to discuss with you… in private." Byleth told her. "I'll expect you in my officein a short while, please don't be late."

Before Lysithea could ask for more details, her house professor left them as swiftly as he came, leaving Edelgard and Lysithea with their respective pets alone once more.

Edelgard broke the silence afterwards.

"Well then, I won't keep you that long anymore." Edelgard said as she began to take steps to excuse herself for Lysithea to get ready.

"Wait." Lysithea called out, wanting to discuss something towards Edelgard first.

"Lysithea, what is it you want to discuss now can wait. Don't let the professor wait for you too long." Edelgard said and left before Lysithea could even speak another word, Whisker shortly followed after her master leaving Lysithea and Ordelian together.

---

As Lysithea made her way towards Professor Byleth's office, she couldn't help but ponder what has been going on between her and Edelgard. It wasn't the fact that she was so close to the professor, that can still be explained by the fact that as house leader it was inevitable for her to be close to the house professor.

Lysithea shook her head, that isn't what she's really thinking about that now. It was Edelgard and her rather... Doting propensity. She had noticed recently ever since the end of the Battle of the Eagle and Lion that Edelgard had been frequently asking her if she was alright when there weren't even any signs that she was feeling bad.

---

At first, Lysithea thought Edelgard was just worried of the possible effects of over exhaustion due to the result of her training regimen by the professor to increase her stamina and endurance but that wasn't the case especially during the moment when she was assigned to clean up the library with Annette. She recalled Annette couldn't go and perform their joint task together because she fell ill from pulling an all nighter to finish her homeworks in time after she extensively trained to better herself after she was defeated by Lysithea again in Gronder.

Ironically, Lysithea also felt sick that time but unlike Annette, the sudden weakening of her body came out of nowhere.

Her body suddenly trembled as her entire body felt like jelly, she felt like the weight of the world was thrust on to her back. It hurt to move… to breath… hell, it even hurt to think!

As she felt queasy afterwards, she came close to throwing up as her vision blurred. Lysithea struggled to keep herself up, relying on holding on to the edge of one of the tables in the library to stand up.

The breathings became labored and Lysithea began thinking that she was about to die that time, she felt a terrible feeling of dread within her as the thought of dying so soon without achieving what she intended to began to scare her.

The terrible deathly feeling suddenly rescinded just as it occurred to her earlier, the feeling of weakness in her entire body and the extreme dizziness she felt to the point that she was about to throw up disappeared.

For quite a time as she breathed in the air around her, Lysithea thought that it must have been something she ate… maybe she ate something spoiled? But then again, the other students would have felt the same thing as well as she only ate the food that was served to her along with the other students in the dining hall. Lysithea even theorized that she might have been poisoned by someone to take her out, thinking that it was from another house who was jealous of her and the Black Eagles or an assassin of the Flame Emperor sent to kill her.

All such thoughts ceased when Edelgard arrived and upon seeing the run down state of Lysithea, she just couldn't help but come to her and support her up. Edelgard then pulled up a chair for her to sit down as Lysithea collected herself while Edelgard waited for her to recover.

"Are you alright? You don't look well." Edelgard asked with great concern.

"Huh? Oh! No, no-I'm fine! Really. Just not accustomed to so much manual labor." Lysithea reasoned, not wanting Edelgard to make a fuss over her even though she must lie on what she felt.

Yet for everything Lysithea excelled at, she was a terrible liar. Lysithea herself knew about this flaw in her and she also knew Edelgard had a keen perception on people. It was futile to lie to her.

Edelgard purposely ignored the lie and just looked around to see dusty tomes on the table and equally dusty empty shelves at some parts of the library.

"You were cleaning the entire library… by yourself?" Edelgard questioned the gravity of the task that Lysithea singlehandedly undertook.

The Ordelian heiress nodded as her breathing became more and more stable and the cold sweat she felt had ceased.

"The other student who was assigned to tidy up with me wasn't feeling well, so it's just me." Lysithea for once told Edelgard the truth before following it up with another lie. "I figured I could at least dust the bookshelves or something, but I...uh...I got a little carried away."

Edelgard frowned at Lysithea's decision to do so considering how large the library is and its collection of books, it would take a single person until midnight to finish cleaning up all of the shelves and that includes placing the books back in order.

"So many books... You probably tired yourself out just moving them from the shelves." Edelgard remarked as she glanced at the various piles of books, she could even see some books she used to read.

Lysithea looked down on the library's weathered wooden floor.

"As much as I love books, I can't say I love carrying stacks of them to and fro. They're so heavy." Lysithea said, remembering that time when Cyril had to help her carry some books she borrowed which sparked their interactions and eventual friendship.

Edelgard sighed in exasperation at Lysithea's tendency to overwork herself, it has also been something that Byleth has brought up as a concern earlier after observing Lysithea.

"Well... Maybe you should think things through a little more next time." Edelgard told her with a tone akin to scolding her… like a child. "Surely you can tell how much physical strength a job is going to require before you begin."

While Lysithea would normally flare up and react strongly against such a treatment, she didn't have the energy to spare for such an action. Instead, Lysithea led out a sigh of resignation but didn't bother to hide her dislike of Edelgard's approach.

"I can do without the condescension, thanks." Lysithea weakly and sarcastically replied. "After all, I'm the only one who has to deal with the fact that I've worn myself out." She reasoned, taking responsibility for her situation.

Edelgard was slightly taken aback at how Lysithea mistakenly thought that she was patronizing her but nonetheless remained calm.

The ashen haired princess shook her head to disagree with Lysithea's assumption.

"I only said that you should take care of yourself. Especially considering—" Edelgard barely managed to stop herself from finishing her sentence. Her lavender eyes were briefly wide before returning back to its normal shape.

"Considering what?" Lysithea asked, looking up at her with a frown, waiting for Edelgard to finish.

Edelgard lightly bit her lip, composing herself once more.

"Nothing. Never mind." She shook her head. "How about you return to your quarters? I'll finish cleaning up in here." Edelgard softly suggested.

Lysithea, however, was adamant. She had pride to finish the task herself despite her condition, while such determination was something that has been admired by others, the same determination can also be detrimental to her.

"But I want to finish what I've started!" She protested but Edelgard was having none of it.

"I don't mind, really. Please, don't make me repeat myself." Edelgard pressed on, placing a comforting arm on Lysithea's shoulder.

Seeing the futility of ever making the Imperial Princess think otherwise, Lysithea gave up and sighed.

"Ugh. Fine. As long as you'll finish all this up." Lysithea replied, pinching the bridge of her nose as she stood up from her seat.

Edelgard mirrored her act and gave her a reassuring nod.

"I will. Get some rest, okay?" Edelgard said, her eyes softening at the exhausted form of her classmate.

Lysithea sighed in resignation one last time before she took small steps to get out of the library.

"Stop treating me like a child, Edelgard." Lysithea grumbled as she began to leave, making her way to the doorway out of the library as Edelgard began to pick up on her leftover task.

Lysithea paused as she reached the doorway and looked at Edelgard one last time.

"Thank you, Edelgard." She expressed her gratitude.

Edelgard merely smiled at her as she watched her leave.

---

Ever since that time, Edelgard has been overbearing on her concern for her. Lysithea felt degraded, feeling like she was being treated like a child by Edelgard for her constant worrying. Edelgard coddles her way too much for her liking and despite their growing closeness to each other, Lysithea couldn't help but feel annoyed at her.

In the past, Edelgard wasn't like this. She never treated her as such prior, she treated her as an equal and someone she could have tea and sweets with yet… Now it seems so devoid of any respect to her wish not to be coddled like a child.

Lysithea didn't want to think badly of it anymore, she was just thinking Edelgard was the type to worry about her comrades that much.

In a way despite the different approach, she was like the professor except the latter seemed more understanding and considerate of the people he interacted with. Which was surprising for her initially because she first believed the professor truly was devoid of any kind of emotion or has any capacity to detect what's wrong, a fact she was gladly proven wrong.

The professor… Edelgard… the thought came to her mind again as she approached the former's office doors.

The image of Edelgard hugging the professor's arms, the professor's smile and the warm and happy smile from Edelgard as they looked on to each other… it made her heart wrench for some reason, she might have an idea on such a reason yet she still refuses to acknowledge it. Seeing it as nothing but a fleeting feeling.

Lysithea opened the door to the professor's office, getting greeted by the modestly decorated room, a singular shelf stood behind the table and chair, in front of the table were two chairs on each side and further beyond was a small table and a couch.

Compared to the offices of Seteth, Hanneman and Manuela… Byleth's office appeared sparse which reflects the non-materialistic nature of the professor.

Standing in front of the shelf looking at some records was the professor.

"Come in." Byleth ordered, not facing Lysithea as he looked on the papers he was reading about.

"Please take a seat."

Lysithea silently acquiesced and sat on the couch, sitting properly as she patiently waited for Byleth to turn around and finally face her.

The silence between the two continued and Lysithea was getting nervous on why the professor had called for her. Normally, he would go straight to business when he calls for her or any of the students but this time the silence was unsettling for her, it felt like she did something wrong.

Then it occurred, could he have called her to address something important? Her mind wandered to Hanneman with the way their time earlier ended, she insulted him and his research and stormed out of his office without his permission… could he have talked and revealed her secret out of spite?

Then she also thought of Linhardt when she fiercely rejected his request to learn more about what he overheard, he knew she has two Crests and could have promptly reported it to the professor who was already aware of her Crest of Gloucester that left even Lorenz baffled on how she acquired it despite House Ordelia having no blood ties with House Gloucester.

And finally, her mind wandered to Bernadetta reporting her for the incident earlier but she shook her head on such a thought as Annette would also have to be called in with her.

"Umm… Professor…" Lysithea awkwardly began.

"Apologies for the abrupt call here." Byleth interrupted, finally turning around to face her with an uncertain look.

Lysithea regarded him for a brief moment, she noticed the papers he was holding on to earlier were still in his hands when he sat down on his chair, his arms resting on the table.

"No, it's alright professor… I just finished cleaning up Ordelian's hairball and I was just talking to Edelgard before you came."

Byleth nodded. "Your strategy homework?"

"Finished it shortly after you dismissed us." Lysithea smiled with pride.

The professor wasn't surprised anymore. "Excellent work as always." He complimented her with a solemn look before deciding to move the conversation forward.

"Did you know why I called you here?"

Lysithea shook her head no but she had a dreaded feeling on what this is about.

"I called you here because-"

"Did Professor Hanneman say something?" Lysithea interrupted before her eyes widened at what she just mentioned, she covered her mouth before nervously looking up at Byleth who looked puzzled.

"Professor Hanneman? Why would you mention him?" Byleth asked, his brows furrowed into a questioning frown.

"A-Ah…" Lysithea stammered, she had to come up with something fast. "I mean… I've been ignoring his lectures lately… Y-Yeah! I've been ignoring them!" Lysithea reasoned while mentally slapping herself for such a lame excuse.

Byleth's questioning frown didn't dissipate, if anything, Lysithea's fumble had him curious.

"I haven't received any form of complaint from him and knowing you, you probably know about what he's teaching because of your self-studying."

Lysithea nervously laughed. "I-I guess that's why I want to just d-do something e-else in his class."

"Regardless, it is rude to do so. Professor Hanneman is a decent professor, such behavior in class is disrespectful."

Lysithea looked down and nodded in understanding.

"And you have been assisting him after class since before your transfer, am I correct? If so, I can only surmise he will address such an issue with you in the future if he had noticed." Byleth guessed as Lysithea awkwardly nodded at his wrong guess.

"R-Right, I'm sorry if it would cause you some inconvenience later on, professor."

Byleth nodded before clearing his throat to continue with what he initially wanted to discuss.

"I called you here to discuss your focus."

"My focus?"

"Yes." Byleth confirmed. "I have told you to continue on with your physical exercise even after the Battle of the Eagle and Lion, correct?"

He received a small nod of confirmation.

"And so far, have you noticed any form of change? Do you tire easily as you used to? Any feeling of nearly collapsing?"

Lysithea almost told him about the feeling she felt back in the library until Edelgard-

Her eyes widened in realization all of a sudden, did Edelgard inform him about it? What happened in the library? She didn't want the professor to also fuss about her like Edelgard did.

"N-No, no incident so far." Lysithea replied unconvincingly.

Byleth didn't seem to notice her lie as he looked more into the papers.

"Good, with your exercise… I can at least say your stamina and endurance has considerably improved. I want you to continue on your daily exercises."

Lysithea's mouth hung open for a bit, she has to endure those running exercises in the morning for a prolonged time?

"Professor, pardon my rudeness but haven't I done enough with the results from the Battle of the Eagle and Lion?" She questioned his judgment on the matter.

Byleth moved his eyes up to glance at her before looking back at what he's reading.

"I will not deny the results you have shown in that battle, you held yourself in a prolonged battle against Annette and her allies… but you still lack something."

Lysithea gave him a questioning look.

"Lacking in what?"

"Mobility." Byleth responded. "Remember that I had to defend you from Felix and other students specializing in melee combat to keep you up during the battle."

Lysithea recoiled from the mention, she couldn't deny she just stood there like a chicken waiting to be slaughtered when Felix rushed towards her in an effort to eliminate her from the battle due to the damage she had caused against the Blue Lions, if it were a real battle she would have been cut down from where she stood if it weren't for the professor defending her.

"I need to let your muscles get used to moving constantly especially in the eve of battle so you won't end up being a burden to others in battle." Byleth reasoned. "While you excel in long range combat, you fall short of expectations up close."

Lysithea flinched, despite her distaste of strenuous physical activity due to the frailness of her body, what the professor had said were all on point. She could only look down with nothing to respond with.

"A battlefield is not just a place but it's also a moment of life and death. One wrong movement or doing nothing will end up getting you killed." Byleth lectured. "I only wish you would improve your physical flaw."

She bit her lip, the professor was right. She doesn't begrudge him for the training regimen he had subjected her to. In fact, she actually liked how the professor addressed her flaw… it gave credit to his attentive nature to his students. She felt challenged much like how she wanted him to when she accepted his invitation.

"What about your magical prowess?"

"Fine, I'm at the cusp of learning this particular kind of magic." Lysithea replied, eager to report her progress on the field of magic.

"Reason?"

Lysithea confirmed with a nod. "It's the only field of magic I have thoroughly studied in."

Byleth repeatedly nodded as he finally set down the papers he was holding, clasping his hands together as his arms rested on the table.

"The real reason why I wanted you to come here is to propose something." Byleth said. "To you."

Lysithea gestured to him to continue, waiting nervously on what the professor intends for her. While she was welcoming of any challenge, she feared that he would give her another straining exercise to fix her stamina issue. While such a thing is useful in battle, she thinks that later on after graduating… she might have no use for it no matter how hard she exercises to be healthy due to her impending fate.

"Lysithea, I think it would be beneficial for you and the others if you started learning Faith magic."

The snow haired girl looked up. "Huh? Faith magic?"

She was aware of Faith magic or White magic as some call it, she had always thought of it as a healer or a priest' magic that contrasted her affinity for Dark magic. She decided to forego learning it because of how others in her class have such a thing covered, especially Flayn and Linhardt, Dorothea was also beginning to dabble in it as well.

So why would the professor want a fourth one in the class to learn it?

"Professor, wouldn't learning something so late in the school year be just detrimental to my progress on Reason magic?" Lysithea argued.

"While what you say is true, there is a particular reason why I want you to learn it."

"Such as?"

Byleth nodded and stood up from his seat, taking a book from the bookshelf before sitting down beside Lysithea at the couch.

Lysithea caught a glimpse of the book Byleth took and saw it: The Encyclopedia of Magic.

Wordlessly opening the book to reveal its content, Byleth traced the passages in the pages, flipping once in a while until he found what he was looking for.

"Here." Byleth tapped his finger for Lysithea to focus her eyes on.

"Warp?" Lysithea uttered the name while closing the distance between their bodies as she peered closer.

Byleth nodded. "I believe this may serve you well in and out of battle. Assuming you know what it does."

Lysithea confirmed the latter statement with a short nod. While Lysithea could think of the merits of the Warp spell… the complication of it and the rough learning process… could she actually achieve it in the remaining days of her academy life?

"Professor, don't you think this is a bit too late to learn now? Considering how advanced the spell is… I don't think I could learn it in time for you to see it." Lysithea questioned as she's focused on the spell's description and some of its incantations. Unaware of how their shoulders are rubbing at each other and how her hair is almost brushing on her teacher's face.

As for Byleth, he could smell the sweet scent of Lysithea's snow haired hair, seeing how properly and smooth it was when he laid eyes on her, this was the first time he had caught the scent of her hair.

He began to think what kind of soap she uses to make her hair so smooth and silky, does she use perfume? Wait, is there even such things for the hair? Or oils, what kind of hair oil does she use?

"Professor? Professor?"

Byleth blinked and looked at Lysithea, both their eyes widened at how close in proximity their faces are. Lysithea's cheeks flushed red before she returned to sitting up straight and looked away from Byleth.

"What is it?" Byleth asked, acting as if nothing happened.

'Just what was that?' Byleth asked himself as he felt an unusual heat in his chest when he stared directly into Lysithea's pinkish red eyes and felt her warm breath on his face. Byleth could have sworn he heard Sothis snort from inside his mind.

"Do you really think it is wise to expect this from me?" Lysithea asked as she glanced back at the passage, managing to compose herself.

Byleth raised his eyebrows questioningly at her. "Are you balking away from a challenge?"

Lysithea perked up and frowned at Byleth. Did he just…?

"I'm only trying to be realistic here, professor." Lysithea argued, crossing her arms under her chest.

"Aren't you the one who told me to keep on challenging you to improve?" Byleth asked with a calculating gaze, analyzing her bewildered reaction.

"Professor, that's not fair!" Lysithea exclaimed, her eyes glaring at him.

"I'm just living by my promise to help you improve yourself, Lysithea." Byleth reasoned as Lysithea sighed.

The Ordelia heiress bit her lip, maybe she had refused a bit too early. She knew the professor had her when he used her own words against her and the professor had never pushed a matter to her as much as this before, he seemed adamant.

Come to think of it, the professor must have thought of this very clearly prior to inviting her to the office. Does he really have such faith in her? She had noticed how he had come to depend on her as well over the time that followed when she joined… He had counted on her watching his back in battle, he had asked her for input on the lesson plans he had made prior to classes and he always took her opinion on the faults of what he was teaching into consideration and improved upon it.

"Lysithea, you are the most determined student I have ever known." Byleth reasoned while looking softly at her.

"You really think I'm that determined?" Lysithea asked, seeking validation from him further.

Byleth gave her a nod. "Yes. You are always pushing yourself to be better and rise above the challenge."

Lysithea looked down the simple carpet below her, a blush creeping upon her cheeks. She always loves it when the professor would compliment her for her efforts and determination, it gives her the feeling of vindication she has wanted to hear from her peers ever since she came into the academy.

The professor softly placed a hand on her shoulder.

"You can learn Faith magic and excel at it, Lysithea." Byleth said with a confident voice as Lysithea looked at him. "I have faith in you."

The encouraging smile he gave to her did no favor in deterring her away from this proposition. Lysithea could only blush deeper at the amount of confidence the professor has in her capabilities and the fact that he often smiles as such towards her. She could feel her beat faster the more she looked at him.

"Professor… I..." Lysithea couldn't find the proper words until she realized something familiar… and irritating on what the professor just said.

"Professor."

"Yes?"

"Did you just make a pun?"

Byleth stared at her before realizing what she meant. His eyes slightly widened.

"I didn't realize…"

"You spent too much time with Alois that you're picking up his habit."

"I'm sorry."

Then there was silence… Awkward silence.

Except in Byleth's mind as the voice of a young girl was laughing in amusement at his expense.

---

15th day of the Red Wolf Moon of the Imperial Year 1180

"So… cooking duty."

"Yes."

Lysithea and Annette looked at the various utensils and kitchenware on the counters made out of bricks and stones, they could feel the heat of the stove caused by the small chopped firewood burning.

""Who thought it was a good idea to make us handle cooking for breakfast?" Lysithea complained, frowning from the hassle of being given the task of doing something she has no proper practice on. While she could make basic recipes such as those baked biscuits that Edelgard, Cyril and even the professor had come to like, her knowledge of the culinary world was only limited to the art of making sweets.

That and basic tea making… but to make her cook a full meal for their fellow students? What kind of idiot would suggest such a thing for her to do?

"The professor?" Annette stated. "Some of the cooking staff got sick from food poisoning so Seteth asked the professors to allot some of the students to cooking until the staff are okay."

"Ugh." Lysithea grimaced, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"I don't think the professor was aware of us lacking in the kitchen…" Annette guessed as she looked at each and every available ingredients for them to cook for the other students.

Waking up early didn't do Lysithea any favors, in fact she does wake up early to conduct her physical exercises but waking up early to do something like cooking anything outside of sweets just made her more crankier than usual.

Annette noticed the increasing frown on her cooking partner and friend's face.

"Hey cheer up, breakfast meals are easier to do than lunch!" Annette said with her boundless cheer, trying to psyche herself up as well as Lysithea.

Lysithea gave her a look, a mix of annoyance and doubt present on her.

"You speak as if you know your way in the kitchen."

A sweat slowly slid down from Annette's brow to her cheek, averting her eyes away from the snow haired girl.

"Weeeeell... Ummm..."

"You don't." Lysithea firmly said as if she already knew the answer based on her friend's reaction.

Annette couldn't keep up the cheer and confidence she had in the face of seeing Lysithea's judging eyes.

"Yes." She finally admitted with a sigh of defeat.

Lysithea followed with her own exasperated sigh on their current predicament.

"I only know how to make sweets." She mentioned.

Annette shook her head. "And we can't serve that. Maybe some fried or scrambled eggs?" She suggested.

"Seems simple enough." Lysithea agreed but not without her own doubts on the possible reception of their choice but in the end, she really didn't care if it was too simple, she just wanted to do what she wanted to do in her free time.

As Annette briefly taught Lysithea how to cook some scrambled eggs with a pan, things had seemed to go well for the two until Lysithea realized they were going too slow, especially her. Despite how easy the task is, making too many and having a timeframe was the challenge, she couldn't ask Annette for help as she was taking care of making a side dish to come with the eggs.

Lysithea watched the eggs cook on the various pans on the stoves until she realized something. She thought that with the rate on how the eggs cook fast, she could expedite the process with some aid from the arcane arts. The time for breakfast is fast approaching and she knew this was her only shot to make it on time.

"I have an idea how to cook them all fast!" Lysithea said with a tone as if she had found a major discovery no one has ever achieved.

Annette turned her head away from what she was doing to glance at Lysithea.

"What is it- Wait, is that a fire spell?! Lysithea don't-"

A fiery explosion boomed across the kitchen and dining hall, reverberating on the nearby areas of the monastery as the knights, staff and students all looked on in worry and fear at the smoke coming from the kitchens.

---

"We are so getting in trouble for this."

"The eggs are all over my hair and clothes! YUCK!"

"For someone who scolded me for firing that spell on Bernadetta the other day, you surely have some 'restraint' using a fire spell for COOKING!"

"I thought it was a good idea!"

"Since when did you hear of a mage using a fireball to cook a bunch of eggs?!"

"ENOUGH." A tired but stern voice silenced the two girls.

Byleth sighed and looked at Annette and Lysithea, both of which have eggs be it raw or cooked staining their bodies from head to toe, their uniform were further blackened as it was and their faces were smeared with black ash, Lysithea's white hair now has contrasting colors of white and black due to the explosion.

The professor thought that both his students, being the most studious and intelligent members of his house would think better on what they did, especially Lysithea. The rash action had caused the entire student body to go about their day without breakfast with some having to go out to the town outside Garreg Mach to eat, some like Petra and Leonie went out to hunt instead to save money.

"You two have caused enough damage in the kitchens that they won't be operational for a day or two."

Annette and Lysithea hung their heads low in shame, especially the latter.

"I'm sorry professor…" Annette apologized, looking at the professor with downcast eyes.

"I didn't mean to cause any problem for you or anyone for that matter. I'm sorry." Lysithea added, unable to even face the professor for her the huge offence she had caused.

Both she and Annette had come to terms with the possible punishment they would receive, to the point of suspension even.

Byleth frowned before sighing again. He had to punish them, Seteth demanded such a course of action from Byleth because they were his students… he had never seen the man so infuriated when he scolded the two who just looked down in shame.

He didn't like to use detention as a punishment and instead decided to make their sentences fair but productive for them and the others.

"For the destruction of school property and facilities, I am sentencing you to various tasks and responsibilities for thirty days. Annette, you will be sentenced to tend on the plants of the greenhouse as well as keeping the fish fed in the fish pond."

Annette looked up with a surprised look.

"G-Greenhouse?" She asked with an apprehensive look. She remembered a sudden memory that flashed in her mind the moment Byleth sentenced her to work in the greenhouse, especially one concerning a blue haired man in her class who had listened in to her 'ridiculous' singing.

Byleth and Lysithea both raised an eyebrow in question.

"Is there something the matter?" Byleth asked.

Annette shook her head. "N-Nothing! I can take it! Thirty days isn't a problem!" Annette nervously laughed as both her professor and classmate looked on with doubt.

Byleth then went on to stare at Lysithea's regretful eyes, eyes that still averted its gaze from him.

"Lysithea, you will be working as my personal assistant in the coming days, you will assist me in various duties." Byleth said as Lysithea's eyes widened and looked at him in shock.

Hearing no objection, Byleth decided to send them off on their way.

"Both of you are dismissed. Lysithea, there are things I need of your assistance later, come find me after lunch."

---

"When you meant tasks…"

"I meant everything."

Lysithea groaned as she carried bags of items the professor had bought at the market later in the day, she impatiently tapped her foot as the professor tried to barter for a good deal on the ores.

"Professor, if I may ask…" Lysithea started after seeing the professor finished settling for a price with one of the merchants about his purchase of ores.

"What is it?" Byleth asked without looking at her, instead taking out his coin purse from his pockets and paid the merchant for the ores he had given him.

"Why are you also handling the weapon maintenance for the students?" Lysithea questioned, frowning at the thought of how lazy some of her classmates could be if they would ask the professor such a thing.

Byleth placed his order of ores into the small cart he had borrowed from Cyril earlier as he and Lysithea were about to head out, in the cart were the worn out weapons of his students, either damaged or were in the process of doing so.

"I was the one who told them to give any of their worn out weapons to me for repair." Byleth replied, pushing the small cart that got heavier due to the bags of ores he bought. Lysithea slowly followed her teacher as they went to the blacksmith.

"I personally think broken weapons could be fixed and improved further." Byleth explained.

"But what about the cost? Wouldn't the maintenance be- wait…" Lysithea paused herself as she realized something. "It would be more economical if you had them repaired rather than buying new ones and constantly replacing them…"

Byleth gave her a smile. "Very good. We save more money improving them. Your classmates didn't really like the idea of me undertaking the extra burden but in the end-"

"You were too stubborn." Lysithea giggled which earned her a frown from Byleth. "And you sometimes call me the stubborn one when I push myself!"

"That's because you are." Byleth stated as if it was an established and incontestable fact before speaking with the blacksmith who greeted him warmly, recognizing the professor as one of her frequent patrons.

As the professor spoke with the blacksmith, giving her a list of the specifics he wanted, Lysithea looked around the market. Unlike her classmates, she barely goes to the market to buy something unless it's ingredients for the treats she makes or a tasty fish for Ordelian to eat with, she mostly gets her fish from buying it off from the kitchen or a catch of a student.

She could even remember Jeralt giving her one when he noticed Ordelian watching him intently while the latter accompanied Lysithea around the monastery.

Lysithea could recall that one time Hilda had asked her to come with her shopping at the market, she wanted to drag Lysithea in finding some of the best hair oils and perfume, and despite Lysithea's protests, she found herself in the market with Hilda.

The day ended with Lysithea buying nothing and Hilda buying many of the oils and perfumes she could get her hands on, they parted with Hilda giving her a few bottles saying it was thanks for accompanying her.

Those bottles of oil and perfume she was given were the sweet scent that she had been using the cover herself with which, unknown to her, had just caught the professor's nose days ago.

"A Wo Dao?"

"Yes, can you refine it into that?"

"I can but a Wo Dao… that's not something people usually order-"

Lysithea ignored the ongoing negotiation between the professor and the blacksmith, she just held on to the bags that she was tasked to hold on to and surveyed the entire market on the various goods every stall offers.

Most of which were of no interest to her until she spotted something that caught her eye.

It was an Armored Bear Stuffy, a popular favorite among girls due to how well made and adorable it was, only a few were made back then and the last time Lysithea saw one was… during her childhood… she remembered the mages in black ripping it away from her as they dragged her from her cell for another set of experimentations.

Remembering those days of being imprisoned under her own home, the smell of blood, the sight of the lifeless bodies of her siblings and cousins… Lysithea began to take deep breaths in rapid succession. Her grip on the bags tightening, her fingers twitched followed by her body shaking.

"Lysithea."

The Ordelia girl snapped out of her stupor when the professor placed a hand on her shoulder, standing by her side.

"Are you alright?" Byleth asked with concern.

Lysithea found herself back in the market, looking surprised as if she was someplace else before.

"I-I'm fine, professor." Lysithea replied.

"Are the bags too heavy for you?"

"I said I'm fine, professor! Stop treating me like I'm some helpless child!" Lysithea snapped which caught the professor off-guard by her sudden outburst.

Lysithea realized what she did and hung her head low.

"I-I'm sorry about that professor." She apologized while looking down in shame.

"Pay it no mind." Byleth said, shaking his head but in his mind, he was still worried for her. What could have caused her to snap like that out of nowhere? Was she so upset on the task he had her help him with right now?

"Did you need something?" Lysithea asked, pertaining to why the professor was calling for her earlier.

"I was asking you if you could place the bags on the cart, we're done." Byleth said before looking back at the blacksmith who unloaded all the worn out weapons in the cart, leaving space for the bags Lysithea were carrying.

"Double check this list and see if we forgot something." Byleth said and placed a paper in one of the bags for Lysithea to check later.

Lysithea wordlessly nodded and went towards the cart to put down the bags of supplies the professor had bought. She then took the list that Byleth put in one of the bags to check if they have missed anything.

"Everything seems to be in order."

The Ordelia girl felt a wave of relief at the fact that they were immediately done with their time in the market. She thought that maybe she could finally start with her study on Faith magic just as she originally intended.

"Lysithea."

Lysithea turned around to face the professor. "We have everything we need, profe-" Lysithea cut herself short when she saw what the professor was holding.

The professor stood before her, holding something she never expected him to hold on to. It was the Armored Bear Stuffy she had been staring at earlier until she was lost in her own dark thoughts. Her eyes sparkled at how close it was to her yet the lingering question remained.

"W-What… w-why do you-"

Byleth looked at her questioningly. "Why? You seemed like you wanted it badly judging by how you were staring into it so I bought it for you." Byleth reasoned yet it still didn't make sense for Lysithea on why he bought it.

"Professor… why? I've only caused you trouble recently and-"

"Treat it as a gift for helping me out prior to this task. Also… I've never truly given you a token of my appreciation for saving me back then with the Death Knight." Byleth responded before gently handing the Armored Bear Stuffy to Lysithea.

Lysithea could only take it as her hands shook, remembering the sensation of the Armored Bear Stuffy on the happier days of her childhood. To feel that kind of joy again on a toy... Lysithea could barely hold in the tears at bay.

"Professor, I….. thank you…" Lysithea was at loss for words yet Byleth didn't need to hear much more as the big smile upon her face was enough for him to know what she felt.

"Let's get back to my room." Byleth said as he took the cart and pushed it with Lysithea absentmindedly following him as she held on to the stuffed bear she had acquired.

Unknown to them, a boy watched from a distance, in one of his hands was a piece of paper that was meant to be a letter… he ended up crumpling it when he clenched his fists on what he saw.

---

"That's everything." Byleth said after putting down the last of the bags from the cart, containing seeds he would give to Annette later to plant for her task. He then went and closed the door to his room.

Byleth didn't receive an answer as Lysithea was still too engrossed in the Armored Bear Stuffy she received, looking at it so fondly as if she had bonded with it for quite a while now.

"Enjoying it?" Byleth asked.

Lysithea looked up at him and after seeing him smile at her display of fondness for her gift, she blushed and covered the lower half of her face with the stuffed bear's head.

Byleth didn't want to say it but in that moment, he saw Lysithea like a young girl excited with her new toy. He knew she would lose her temper if he ever dared utter it out yet he can't help but see her as…

"Cute…"

"H-H-Huh?!"

Byleth's eyes widened, did he just say that out loud?

"My my… Just what in the world have you uttered now?" Sothis teasingly said within his mind.

Lysithea's face has basically turned to a tomato at this point based on how red her face is because of what the professor just said. Her entire body shook at how unexpected the remark was, never did she imagine the professor would even speak the word.

"I said the stuffy bear is cute." Byleth said, opting to correct the blunder.

"H-Huh…" Lysithea murmured, the redness of her face lessening and her tense hold on the stuffed bear loosening.

"Coward." Sothis mocked him with a teasing giggle.

Byleth turned his back on her, taking the cart again by the handles and began to push it.

"I'll be returning this to Cyril, you can go now." Byleth told her as he pushed the cart forward.

Lysithea watched him leave, never leaving her spot as she hugged on the Armored Bear Stuffy. She still couldn't believe what the professor just said earlier and while he said it was the stuffed bear that was cute… she couldn't help but detect something off from the professor's tone… was he actually… lying?

Nonetheless, she couldn't help but feel giddy that she was barely holding it in.

"That's quite a thing you got there."

Lysithea gasped out loud when she was caught by surprise when Edelgard remarked on what she was holding.

"E-Edelgard! Don't sneak up on me like that!" Lysithea exclaimed out in embarrassment.

The Imperial Princess gave her a puzzled look.

"I wasn't…?" Edelgard replied. "I heard what happened in the kitchen-"

"Ugh, please don't remind me of that." Lysithea winced at the foolish blunder that got her and Annette in trouble.

"You didn't hurt yourself, did you?" Edelgard asked out in concern.

Lysithea frowned at her, there's that concern towards her despite Edelgard seeing for herself that she was fine. Now that they are alone outside of the dorms with little to no people, Lysithea decided to confront her.

"Edelgard, about how you've been-"

"That Armored Bear Stuffy… reminds me of some fond memories I have." Edelgard said, ignoring or not noticing what Lysithea was saying, her eyes focused on the stuffed bear that Lysithea was hugging.

Lysithea frowned but Edelgard continued nonetheless.

"Last time I had held such a toy was during my childhood…" Edelgard's smile faltered for a bit as she remembered something that caused her sorrow.

"Did you lose it?" Lysithea asked, unable to resist the urge to ask her out of curiosity about Edelgard's past.

Edelgard shook her head. "No, I left it behind while I was in Faerghus with my mother…" Edelgard trailed off at the mention of her mother and this made Lysithea more curious about her as well, in all the months she knew her… never did the Imperial Princess mention something about her family.

"So you forgot about it?"

"More like left it in the care of a special person I met in Faerghus." Edelgard replied, maintaining her sad smile. "But enough of that, Ordelian's with me right now."

Just as Edelgard mentioned his name, Ordelian meowed to get Lysithea's attention, looking annoyed at how his presence was ignored by his own master. Lysithea looked down to see her pet cat standing near the side of Edelgard's boot with Hresvelgion Whisker on the other side.

"Oh, hello Ordelian." Lysithea greeted her cat. "I'm sorry if I couldn't be with you today… I messed up on something…"

Ordelian didn't bother to listen and just nuzzled his head on her leg which prompted his master to smile.

"Well, I shan't bother you anymore, I only walked Ordelian home… he's been with me since morning." Edelgard said as she and Whisker departed to go someplace else.

Lysithea wasn't done with her, she still needed to talk to her.

"W-Wait-"

Ordelian suddenly hissed aggressively at someone which prompted Lysithea to turn around to see who was the unfortunate recipient of Ordelian's picky hostility.

"Ordelian!" Lysithea scolded her cat after seeing the person he was hissing at was no other than Cyril. Ordelian continued meowing aggressively at the Almyran boy despite his master's displeasure.

"Sorry about that, Cyril." Lysithea apologized for her cat's behavior. "I just can't see why he won't like you…"

"Nah, it's alright." Cyril replied before giving Ordelian a look. "I gave up a long ago trying to get along with him."

Lysithea frowned, hugging the Armored Beat Stuffy closer. "It's so strange… he quickly got taken to Edelgard and the professor… especially the professor." Lysithea mentioned, remembering the time she saw Byleth and Ordelian interacting, it was as if Ordelian fell in love with the professor at first sight.

The Ordelia heiress didn't see Cyril flinched when she mentioned the professor.

"Anyway, do you need something?" Lysithea asked before noticing the paper that Cyril held in his right hand.

"I did some practicing writing earlier and I figured if you could review it?" Cyril asked with a small smile, passing the paper to Lysithea who freed her left hand from holding the stuffed bear to receive Cyril's paper.

The snow haired girl smiled. "I will… as soon as I set my things back to my room. I'll tell you about it tomorrow."

The Almyran boy nodded in thanks. "Thanks, Lysithea. Same time tomorrow?"

"Same time and place tomorrow." Lysithea agreed and watched Cyril leave her, no doubt returning to his daily duties. The moment Cyril left, Ordelian ceased his aggressive behavior and promptly followed his master back to her room. Lysithea however, was wondering... why was the paper Cyril gave to her was crumpled on one side?

---

"You are just… another failure…"

"Kill her… Such a rebellious heart cannot be allowed to keep beating."

"I have… passed… Judgement!"

An inhuman roar, never heard before, echoed across what seemed to be a tomb, the sheer power of such a roar threatened to collapse the stone ceilings yet Lysithea couldn't even see anything as she was blinded by a green light.

Next thing she saw, she found herself at the edge of the cliff… the briny breeze from the ocean gracing her nose once more…

She was familiar with this place yet she's never been here in her entire life, the sounds of seagulls filled the air as well as the waves of the ocean crashing on the rocks below the cliff.

Then she saw her…

A lone girl standing on the edge of the cliff, Lysithea's eyes widened when she finally caught sight of her hair for the first time.

It was green, as green as the grassy meadows that graced the lands of Ordelia territory… She also wore dark blue garments of strange origin.

She hasn't met this girl yet why does she feel so… familiar?

Before Lysithea can ask her who she is, a hand placed itself on her shoulder.

The moment Lysithea turned to face the person behind her, the entire world became dark and she found herself back in the underground basement where her misery began…

But it wasn't the place that terrified her, it was the group of children before her. All of them looking at her with their eyeless eye sockets, the pitch black hollow holes on their faces glaring at her.

"Why did you survive…?"

"And not us…?"

"I only wanted to play…"

"Save us big sister…"

"Please…"

Lysithea shook her head. "No… no…" she repeated as tears rushed down her eyes at the sight of her dead siblings and cousins limping their way towards her, each of them having the insides of their chest or stomach opened, showing their gruesome insides as blood flowed from them.

Lysithea kept backing away from them with terrified eyes.

"No… please… no…" As soon as Lysithea blinked, she found herself lying face first on the table with her arms and legs shackled to every corner.

"NO! LET ME GO!" Lysithea screamed as she realized what was happening. The mages in black emerged from the darkness, each of them carrying sharp knives with the intention to cut her back open once again.

---

Lysithea led out a terrified scream as she woke up from the horrifying nightmare she had just experienced, she looked at her surroundings to see herself back within her room in the dormitory.

Breathing heavily and rapidly to the point of hyperventilation, Lysithea tried to calm herself down as she brought her hands on to her face, feeling the warm tears and sweat on her face.

Beside her bed, Ordelian worriedly meowed for his master. Lysithea silently looked at Ordelian before leaving her bed to hug the cat.

"I'm sorry, Ordelian… I woke you up again." She apologized but Ordelian didn't pay it any mind and just softly nuzzled his head on her cheek, drying any leftover tears and sweat from her face.

Lysithea was thankful Ordelian was with her every time she experiences her nightmares that still haunts her at her most vulnerable. She wanted such dreams to end yet no matter how she looks it up in tomes, there was no such magic that could manipulate one's dreams.

Still continuously sweating, Lysithea decided to briefly get out of her room to cool herself down with the fresh air of the night.

Going out of her room with only a pair of slippers and her nightgown, she quickly lost herself on the nightly breeze gracing her, providing the air she needed to feel better from her nightmares.

As Lysithea's eyes opened, she noticed an individual walking past the greenhouse, apparently coming from the stairs at the edge of the dormitory that leads up to the second floor.

Despite the darkness of the night, Lysithea could easily make out the person.

"Edelgard?" Lysithea murmured as Edelgard continued walking along the fishing pond.

Lysithea thought just what could Edelgard be doing in the middle of the night? She became worried for her house leader and friend due to the strict curfew that was still in effect for the students, she knew that despite Edelgard's status as the heir of the Empire, she wouldn't be granted leniency.

Deciding to follow Edelgard to wherever she was going to, Lysithea closed the door to her room after ushering Ordelian in, she then took off to follow Edelgard in the darkness.

As she followed her, Lysithea had begun to regret her choice when she became increasingly aware of the dreadful silence that accompanied the darkness of the night. She remembered the various ghost stories she heard from the others especially Claude.

Such as the ghost of Saint Cethleann being unable to find peace after her untimely death in the war a millenia ago, the phantom of the market whose spirit haunts the market at night to find justice to the corrupt merchant who had him killed…

Lysithea didn't want to recall the ghost stories anymore as she followed Edelgard through the stables, unable to call her out loud due to the possibility of patrolling guards around the monastery and for being curious where Edelgard was planning to go to in the dead of the night.

Lysithea was forced to hide in one of the walls as a patrolling guard passed by with a lamp, yawning as he went on his way inside the monastery building.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Lysithea continued to tail Edelgard from where she last saw her until she realized she was in the monastery's cemetery.

The Ordelia heiress looked around the cemetery to find where Edelgard was yet there was no one to be seen… there was no other person here besides her… and the people buried underneath their graves.

Lysithea's eyes widened in horrific realization that she was standing alone in the middle of the cemetery dotted with the graves of those long deceased as the silence of the night had begun to unnerve her. It was then that she realized that the person she must have been tailing could possibly not be Edelgard all along…

Her body shook at the possibility that the individual she was following all along was none other than the Widow Who Haunts Beyond The Grave, perhaps the most bone chilling ghost story Lysithea has heard of from the students while she was studying alone in the reception hall.

Widow Who Haunts Beyond The Grave was said to be a malevolent ghost tricks her victims, mostly men, to follow her by assuming the form of someone they know towards the cemetery and there she would steal the soul of her intended victim and use their likeness for her next victim.

The fact that Lysithea followed 'Edelgard' to the cemetery and the latter disappeared without a trace made Lysithea shake in total fear, the eerie silence of the night didn't help. Slowly, Lysithea backed away from the cemetery, being careful not to stop on someone's grave before making a run for it.

Panting in terror, Lysithea decided to make her way inside the monastery building towards the reception hall while looking behind her to see if the infamous ghost had been following her to claim her soul.

Unknown to her, there was someone ahead of her who quickly grabbed her by the arm with so much force before dragging her to a corner of the wall.

Lysithea wanted to scream immediately as she feared Widow Who Haunts Beyond The Grave had finally caught up to her but she was immediately silenced by a firm gloved hand covering her mouth.

"Don't be loud or you'll get caught."

Lysithea's eyes lit up with hope as she looked up at Byleth who saved her from getting caught as a patrolling guard walked past them.

"Hmm, must be me hearing things." The guard said, scratching the back of his head as he looked around at the dark and empty reception hall, unaware that Byleth and Lysithea were hiding on a wall near him.

"See? I told you it's just your dumbass hearing things. I'm inclined to believe something's haunting you." Another unseen guard spoke from beyond the doorway leading out of the reception hall.

"Cut it out! You know how much I hate night duties because of those damnable ghost stories here!"

"Heh, you'll just have to pray Sir Alois would approve of your shift change soon if you're that much of a scaredy cat."

The conversing guards' voices steadily faded away from Byleth and Lysithea's earshot until none could be heard and they couldn't see any more hints of illumination from their lamps.

Taking a sigh of relief, Byleth removed his hand from covering Lysithea's mouth and gently released the other that tugged to her arm.

"Lysithea, are you-"

Without warning, Lysithea tightly hugged the professor, catching Byleth off-guard at the sudden action. She was silent at first but then Byleth became more and more concerned when he heard her sobs and the feeling of her warm tears soaking his shirt.

"Are you alright?" Byleth gently asked, placing his hands on her shoulder while trying to pry her off as gently as he could to face her but Lysithea latched on to him even tighter.

Lysithea shook her head while her face was buried onto Byleth's chest.

"Lysithea, we can't stay here. Let me accompany you to your room." Byleth said but Lysithea just shook her head as her entire body began to shake.

Byleth sighed, he didn't know how to deal with this. He just knows one of his most brilliant students needed him and it pained him to see her so… vulnerable and scared. It was almost the image of the proud and serious Lysithea had all but faded before him, instead she was replaced by a terrified girl who needed help from him.

"We'll get caught at this rate." Byleth said, worried about the possible punishment Lysithea would garner if she got caught. As for him, being a staff of Garreg Mach he was allowed to bypass the curfew which he did as he was busy finishing on his lesson plans for the next month in his office before he decided to call it a night, it was as if fate itself that led Lysithea to him just as he was about to go to his quarters otherwise she would have been caught.

Why she was afraid was not something of importance right now, Byleth needed to bring her somewhere where she can't be seen by the guards as she recovers from whatever she experienced.

"Come, let's go to my office." Byleth decided, Lysithea only nodded as she hung her head low, her hands holding on to one of his as Byleth discreetly led her to his office at the second floor of the building.

Closing the door behind him, Byleth accompanied his student to the couch while she still clung to him. The professor wished he had some water he could offer for his student to help her calm down but alas, he could only just sit and let Lysithea collect herself.

"What happened to you?" He asked with great concern, despite the darkness in his office, he could see Lysithea look up at him with tearful eyes… It was a contrast of what he usually sees from her serious and mostly no-nonsense eyes of pinkish red color.

Continually stuttering and hiccuping, Lysithea told him of her nightmares (which she didn't specify) that awoke her in the first place, she then told him about seeing a person resembling Edelgard and following her towards the cemetery before Lysithea realized the horrifying truth that she was following a ghost all along.

As Lysithea relayed her story, Byleth himself got to think on the possibility of Lysithea seeing a ghost or could it be truly Edelgard? Besides Lysithea, she was after all the only girl in the monastery to possess white hair… But if it was Edelgard then that wouldn't explain why she would disappear without a trace.

Byleth didn't want to think more about it, he just wanted to help Lysithea by being there for her. He is aware of her irrational fear of the supernatural ever since he helped her find her things back in the earliest months of his tenure as a professor. But this was the first time he saw her so filled with fear that she was just a tearful mess.

"Lysithea, I need to take you back to the dorms." Byleth said but he received no answers.

He looked at her more closely, felt her steady breaths and realized she was asleep, crying herself to sleep as she still clung to his arm.

Byleth sighed, he couldn't possibly carry her all the way to the dorms with all the guards scrambled about, he had to be careful which would consequently slow him down if he ever attempted to carry her while she's asleep.

Resigning to the fact that they may have to spend the night in his office, Byleth gently laid Lysithea down to the couch, careful not to wake her up before taking the folded blanket from the drawer in his table that he uses when he gets tired working late at night to even go to his room.

Quietly dusting the blanket of any dust, Byleth gently laid it on top of Lysithea to shield her from the cold of the night.

Byleth then moved one of the two chairs that was in front of his table towards the side of the couch before also deciding to get some sleep. He positioned himself near Lysithea's spot so that she wouldn't feel alone or scared when she woke up. Wanting to keep her company until the morning.

---

The next morning, rumors began to circulate among the entire student body in Garreg Mach.

Edelgard and the Black Eagles were the last to find out what the rumors were about as they gathered and asked among themselves until the shocking news was relayed to them by Flayn's arrival, who bore an alarmed look.

They found out about the scandal that just happened, while the Black Eagles didn't care much about rumors and scandals, it was the alleged participants of the said scandal that shocked all of them.

"So… you are not denying that Lysithea von Ordelia spent the night with you in your office, professor?" Seteth asked as he paced back and forth behind Byleth, questioning the latter in his office after he caught Lysithea in her nightgown trying to wake the professor up from his sleep early in the morning.

Byleth shook his head. "I don't. She spent the night with me in my office."

Jeralt, who leaned his back on the walls near the closed door of Seteth's office, sighed at the sudden turn of events that took the school by storm. He didn't think his son would get involved in a scandal with one of his students that he teaches of all people. To be awoken and informed of it by Alois was one way to wake him up in the morning.

"Are you even aware of the gravity of the situation and the consequences it would bring if a staff of the monastery would be involved in such a way with a student? Someone even under the age of all things!" Seteth pressed on, glaring in disapproval at the professor's deeds, he may have been Rhea's favorite in terms of how he handles his duties but such favoritism does not make him immune to the consequences of such malicious actions.

"I was more concerned about the state of my student late at night rather than myself." Byleth responded with his usual emotionless tone.

"Don't try to dress this… this… event like you did the student a favor. What possessed you to commit such a thing?!"

"I am not making it seem that way because it is the truth." Byleth responded. "I found Lysithea afraid and alone in the middle of the night just as I was about to go to my own quarters."

"And you were up because…?"

"Because I was finishing making up the lesson plans I would be doing for the Ethereal Moon." Byleth firmly responded. "This wasn't the first time I stayed up late at night."

"Ignoring the fact that Lysithea violated the student curfew, why did you decide against better judgement to bring her into your office instead of accompanying her back to her quarters?"

Byleth turned to look at Seteth's green eyes straight.

"Because she was terrified of something she experienced that night." Byleth responded, his azure blue eyes almost glaring at Seteth's.

"I will not deny that I attempted to shield her from any consequences of violating the curfew but she was too terrified to go back to her quarters that night and my initial plan was for us to go somewhere she could safely collect herself before I send her back to her quarters but before that could happen, she cried herself to sleep." Byleth admitted.

Seteth broke away from his glare towards Byleth, sighing deeply.

"While I have little reason to doubt you, professor… Rumors has started to circulate around the monastery… if word came out no matter how false it is, that a staff… a professor of Garreg Mach was involved in such an… abhorrent event with a student, a noble of all people then the integrity of the Officer's Academy would be put into question."

Seteth wanted to believe the professor but the evidence… the circumstance he found them in… it was hard to believe. As a personal favor, he wanted to repay the professor for saving Flayn but with his position as the advisor and upholder of the rules of the monastery, he couldn't do such a thing with impunity.

Byleth deeply sighed before nodding. "I understand. If anything is to happen, I take full responsibility for this incident. If I am asked to be removed from my post, I will accept it without complaints. My only request is Lysithea to be spared of any punishment."

Jeralt sighed once again. "Kid, while that is admirable… I don't think such a thing would be easy for that student of yours. Even before this, I had overheard of other students and staff talking about rumors of any kind of illicit relationship you have with that girl."

"There are such things?" Seteth questioned, unaware of such things.

"It even came to the point that the only reason why she transferred to your house is to be much closer to you… the nastiest part I heard of is that the girl was simply manipulating you to keep her grades above everyone."

Byleth tightly held on to the armrest of the chair he was sitting on, he cared little on the rumors about him, especially his allegedly alter ego as the Ashen Demon who relishes the taste of battle, a reputation he had acquired in his time as a mercenary. But for them to think so badly of one of his students that he knew was honest, hardworking and determined among all the others, it made him angry.

"I don't believe you are capable of that, being with you for years after all… I should know." Jeralt added.

There was silence between the three men in the room. Byleth was quietly seething at the rumors, Seteth was unsure of what to do while Jeralt was feeling concerned about his son's state right now.

"What will become of me then?" Byleth asked, restraining the feeling of anger in him.

Seteth glanced at the professor, despite his first impression that the man couldn't be trusted, time and time again did Byleth prove Seteth wrong. All the tasks given to him, he had performed admirably… His colleagues had great respect for him while his students loved him. Saving Flayn was the final push he needed to stop doubting him and put his trust in the professor.

But this was a difficult situation for him.

"I may have to consult this with the archbishop-"

"That won't be necessary."

All eyes turned towards Rhea who stood by the open doorway, looking as serene as ever, she gave Jeralt and Byleth a smile before allowing herself in.

"Lady Rhea! I-"

Seteth paused when he saw Lysithea and Flayn accompanying Rhea from behind, Flayn looked angry and determined while Lysithea was just looking down on the floor in shame.

"Lysithea has come to me asking for help on what just occurred." Rhea stated. "While Flayn here is ready to vouch for the professor's innocence on such vile rumors regarding him."

Lysithea swallowed within her throat before looking up to face Seteth.

"Sir Seteth, please don't punish the professor for this. He did nothing wrong nor touched me inappropriately last night!" Lysithea began. "If anyone is to be punished then it should be me! I caused the professor trouble because I violated curfew last night... "

"And may I ask why?" Seteth questioned.

"I was following someone that resembled Edelgard while I was trying to get some fresh air. I-I was worried she would get caught for violating curfew but I'm afraid my curiosity had gotten the best of me… I trailed this person and before I knew it, she had disappeared upon arriving in the cemetery."

Seteth seemed unconvinced. "Are you saying you were following a ghost?"

Lysithea looked down and nodded in shame.

"Brother, in my time in the Black Eagles, I have come to know that Lysithea has an irrational fear of the darkness and of the supernatural. Wouldn't it be convincing to say the reason that she is unable to think clearly because of such a phobia?" Flayn spoke up, wanting to say her piece to reinforce the defense of Byleth and Lysithea.

"I-I was too terrified when I was reminded of a ghost story so I panicked and ran… I would have been caught by the patrolling guards if the professor didn't see me as he was about to go to his room…"

Seteth nodded, wanting to confirm something.

"And is it true that the professor has asked if he could accompany you to your quarters?"

Lysithea meekly nodded. "He intended to escort me to my room but I was too afraid at that point… The professor didn't want us to be seen by any of the guards so he decided to bring me to his office so I can calm myself first…"

Lysithea bit her lip before speaking up again. "We spent the night together in the office because I fell asleep while he was waiting for me to calm down." Lysithea reasoned before looking up to face Seteth once more.

"If my testimony and word of honor isn't enough then I don't know what to tell you anymore!" Lysithea exclaimed, trying to keep herself together. She just wanted to go into her room and cry for the huge amount of trouble she burdened the professor with, if it weren't for her childish fear of ghosts… none of this could have happened…

Rhea had enough, she wanted to finally pass her own judgement on the matter at hand.

"I believe the professor and Lysithea is innocent on the accusation of being in an illicit relationship." Rhea said. "We have seen time and time again how the professor has proved his honor and good intentions ever since his arrival here in Garreg Mach, I believe he is not a man that such vile rumors suggest him to be."

"Lady Rhea…" Lysithea muttered.

"But with the testimonies brought to light, I do find Lysithea guilty of violating the curfew for the students. I also find the professor guilty of obstruction of justice for trying to shield Lysithea away from the consequences of her offense in violating curfew."

Jeralt shrugged. "Seems like a fair judgement to me." He said as he glanced at Byleth and Lysithea.

"But in light of the merits that the professor has done throughout his time here and for Lysithea's heroism against the Death Knight, I am inclined to show them leniency for such offenses." Rhea finished which brought light back into the despondent eyes of the accused parties.

Flayn looked relieved at Rhea's decision, even coming to hold hands with Lysithea, shaking it and telling her how relieved she is, which is a sentiment Lysithea was thankful for.

Seteth sighed. "But if rumors reached the people… the nobility… to Count Ordelia-"

"I will write a letter to my father to deny such rumors. My father isn't foolish enough to listen to such unfounded rumors alone… I don't mean to ask too much but would it be fine if I could ask for a supporting letter from you?" Lysithea asked while looking at both Seteth and Rhea.

Seteth nodded. "Very well, if it would help in dispelling such rumors and the possible fallout of such things then I will help you in that regard."

---

After the matter has been settled between all of them, Lysithea swiftly left Seteth's office. Despite narrowly escaping their predicament due to the leniency of the archbishop which was made possible with help by Flayn, she couldn't face the professor for the nearly catastrophic problem she had caused him.

She felt extremely guilty for nearly causing the professor to lose his job as well as staining his otherwise clean reputation in the monastery. She didn't care for her own reputation but she did care of the inconveniences the scandal would have brought towards her parents back in Ordelia territory.

"Hey look, it's that Ordelia girl…" A student from another house whispered to her other classmate as Lysithea walked past them with a despondent look, she had just come out of her room to head for the dining hall.

Prior to this, Edelgard had assured her that they don't believe such rumors and that the professor was capable of doing such a thing. Edelgard assured her that the Black Eagles will stand by her and the professor no matter what, to which Lysithea took comfort with.

"Can you believe it? She just transferred houses from the Golden Deer to the Black Eagles just so she could be closer to the professor…"

"So shameless…"

"I always thought so highly of her as a student but she disgusts me now."

Lysithea ignored anything they say against her, they didn't know the truth and she could care less what the insignificant fools would think of her. Her main concern was what the people would think of the professor now… The thought saddens her that the reputation the professor has built as a person who cared for his students, his dedication to them and all the good he has done in service to Rhea would be stained in the eyes of those who are ignorant of the truth.

"I idolized the professor before all of this but now… I just can't anymore..."

"Does anyone think the professor tried to build an image as that good and respected professor just so he could… you know… prey on a student he would engage in such an affair in?"

She may try to convince them but she knew the nature of most people, they would still continue to doubt the validity of her word or the others who would defend her and the professor from the rumors.

Lysithea tightly held on to her books as she went on her way to the dining hall, she decided in the last minute to avoid the place for now due to the many number of students and staff at this time, she couldn't afford to listen in to people talking behind her and the professor's backs, not having the strength to control herself from hurting them should she get fed up.

She wasn't even hungry in the first place, having lost her appetite on the recent events, she hasn't even washed her tear stained face either due to crying in her room after that time in Seteth's office.

As she went on her way to the classrooms, going to the path that would make her avoid more students along the way, she…

"Lysithea…"

The snow haired girl looked up to see Cyril with a worried look upon his face.

"C-Cyril, if this is about the writing practice you gave me yesterday… Can it wait along with our lessons tomorrow?" Lysithea weakly asked, not having the energy nor mood to talk with the Almyran boy or anyone for that matter. "I don't think today's a good time."

Cyril shook his head, he didn't approach her for that.

"I just want to ask if you're okay." Cyril said, trying to speak properly as Lysithea had instructed him prior.

Lysithea forced herself to nod. "Y-Yes, I'm fine… I just need some time…"

"I was worried when I saw you with the professor earlier… so I-"

Lysithea flinched, looking up at Cyril's worried expression.

"You… saw me and professor…?"

The Almyran boy nodded in affirmation. "I was just supposed to clean the professor's office as well…. I was shocked to see him sleeping beside you and touching your hand… I thought he did something to you last night like something inappropriate so I reported it to the knights and Seteth."

Lysithea's pinkish red eyes widened in shock, shock turned to realization, realization that everything about this scandal and rumor originated from the boy before her all because he…

"Y-You told various people what you saw… w-without checking first on the validity of-"

Cyril nodded again but didn't particularly catch on to what Lysithea was talking about in the latter part.

"I did… are you alright? What did Seteth do-"

Lysithea's realization soon turned to anger… pure seething anger as she gritted her teeth together and swiftly raised her right hand to viciously slap Cyril across his face with so much force that Lysithea's palm swelled red from pain while Cyril was knocked down to the ground.

Cyril was shocked by the sudden strike from Lysithea, touching his reddened cheek as he looked up at Lysithea who was glaring at him, if Cyril thought that Lysithea had the best and brightest smile among all the people he had met… she also had the worst of a smile's opposite, she looked terrifying as her eyes seethed with rage, tears spilling from her already reddened eyes and her hands shaking in anger.

The Almyran boy feared Lysithea would even cast a spell on him out of anger yet he didn't know why she was so enraged at him, if anything he thought she would be thankful of him for reporting the professor's inappropriate behavior with her.

"L-Lysithea…?" Cyril nervously called out.

"If it weren't for you… if it weren't for you…" Lysithea repeated as she started panting for air. "If it weren't for you being so assuming then the professor wouldn't have been dragged into this mess!" She shouted at him, her voice almost echoing around them. Cyril hasn't heard her shout so loudly, it even surprised Lysithea herself yet she barely cared for it and unloaded every bit of contempt she now has towards Cyril.

"The professor didn't do anything to me! He saved me from my own stupid fears last night!" She continued shouting at him. "I caused him trouble but to think you worsened all of this because you couldn't think clearly and assumed he did something bad to me… you are the worst!" She vented on.

"You mean he didn't-"

"WHY WOULD HE?!" Lysithea yelled loudly. "The professor isn't a vile man… he worked hard for his students and he was kind to everyone! He isn't a man capable of doing any of what you accused him of!"

Cyril's eyes widened, hearing all of this revelation now… shocked him, he may have acted rashly but his most pressing concern now was the consequence of his action, it made Lysithea upset… especially towards him for what he caused.

Standing up, Cyril tried to assuage her intense feeling of anger and guilt… to apologize but Lysithea rebuffed him.

"Stay away from me for now on, Cyril!" Lysithea spat at him. "Don't you ever talk to me or ask me for anything again!"

With those resentful words, Lysithea ran towards the classroom in tears, leaving Cyril alone as he realized what he had just done.

This month, if anything, is Lysithea's worst time in the academy… It was the first time she felt hopeless...

---

Phew! This chapter dragged on and on as I wrote it! To be honest, I was planning to split this chapter off into two parts but I decided to stick to my current plan of writing the events of a month to one chapter.

I'm sorry if this chapter felt too dragged out, I couldn't help myself expanding on it more and more as I wrote it and it honestly exhausted me XD

Anyhow, I will focus on writing the update for The Bubbly and Surly, hopefully that doesn't drag out as much as this one did. Hopefully Last Scion's next chapter wouldn't be too far from this!

As usual, faves and reviews are very much appreciated! Thank you!