Good afternoon.

Allow me to begin the class with a practical demonstration:

Observe the contents of the glass jar that I am holding.

For those who cannot see, the items inside are as follows:

1. Charcoal

2. Cochineal Ink

3. Halite

Soon, I will cast a fire spell inside and ignite the contents of this jar.

When heated, the contents will burn together and create a highly toxic, crimson colored gas. The Almyrans call it Halabja.

That is a corruption of the name Huelva, seat of the Kupala Lordship.

Students familiar with the geography of Leicester may be familiar with that name.

The town once produced most of Fodlan's red ink.

Cochineal beetles are native to the palm orchards there.

While the trees and beetles remain, the town does not.

The battle there was one I witnessed five years ago with my father's company.

We were under contract with Field Marshal Holst Goneril of Leicester.

Our Almyran opponents provoked their wyverns to cough flames on the objects above.

Then, crimson clouds were carried to the town by the westerly winds.

The troops stationed in the town did not survive.

At the time, I was saved by attending a naval maneuver with Albinea's Red Squadron.

My father's company lost ninety-seven percent of his company.

Holst's household troop was reduced from 300 to twelve of his female bodyguards.

I will grant you two minutes to take notes on this.


Time is up.

I am igniting the items inside now.

Take note of what this cloud looks like.

The lid will prevent any of the contents from escaping.

If you ever see this cloud, run away – and if you cannot – die with honor.

Covering your face with fabric will only prolong your suffering.

Halabja is a nerve agent.

Upon inhaling it, your lungs will bleed uncontrollably.

After two or three breaths, you will then drown in your own blood.

Please hold any questions for the moment.

I would like to disclose new orders that I have received from Cardinal Seteth.

To wit, we are to:

"Deploy to Remire Village immediately… and make a demonstration toward [Lonato's Forces]."

Thanks to a member of the Eagles, we possess field intelligence.

This has been procured from local traders who are selling foodstuffs to the enemy.

Allow me to read the report:

"The force assembled at Remire numbers approximately four-hundred soldiers. They are led by two of Lord Lonato's subordinates, who are commanding wings of two-hundred troops each – the equivalent of two battalions. Primarily equipped with longbows and shortswords."

We are expected to distract one of these wings by demonstrating, and then, per orders:

"Withdraw back to Arundel City if necessary."

Next, allow me to supply some relative distances and topographical facts:

1. We are approximately two days' march from Arundel City.

2. Remire village is one days' march away in the opposite direction.

3. Garegg Mach is two days' distance from Remire.

Now, please note the following circumstances:

1. We have exhausted our supplies.

2. Equidistant between Zanado and Arundel is a Caravanserai with an inn.

3. We are currently in friendly territory, as I am teaching citizens of the Adrestian Empire.

Additionally, let us review the situation at Remire:

1. Between us and the Blue Lions are 400 hostile longbowmen.

2. Remire possesses a large enemy force blocking our ability to resupply ourselves.

3. The surrounding forests are likely to be filled with poachers aligned with the enemy.

In good faith, I cannot march you all in the direction of Remire.

My House Leader, Edelgard, believes it would be expedient to retreat towards Arundel City.

I am in full agreement.

That said, we cannot expect our retreat to be unopposed.

Earlier this morning, Hubert identified a dead messenger two miles East of here.

I can only assume that the killers of this man identified our troupe nearby.

With that in mind, we will need a way to cover your retreat to the Caravanserai.

This nerve agent will be the means to do that.

Your tactical orientation will be as follows:

1. Edelgard will be in overall command of the retreating houses.

2. Claude will be second-in-command.

3. Petra Macneary and Leonie Pinelli will lead scouting parties of three on either flank.

4. House Leaders will be responsible for shifting students in teams to participate in those.

5. Hubert will be responsible for signals and communication between the two groups.

Here are immediate orders regarding the retreat:

1. You are to stay off the roads and retreat with all haste to the Arundel Caravanserai.

2. The ballista will be assembled, limbered, and then attached to two horses.

3. The supply wagons will be burned.

4. I will be taking the warhorse and riding to Remire.

Here is how I will cover the retreat:

1. Once I arrive at a suitable terrain feature, I will assemble several campfires.

2. After lighting one of them in plain view of the enemy, this will feign our arrival.

3. As they deploy towards me, I will ignite the other campfires at a safe distance.

4. These will contain halite charcoal, and ink that I scavenged from the canyon, and release the poison gas.

5. If timed correctly, any troops approaching the mock campsite will die.

At minimum, the toxic clouds will also prevent any opposition from clearing the Oghma passes.

If I survive, I will ride back to join you all at the Caravanserai.

As it stands, the best option to ensure our own survival and relieve any potential attacks on the Lions is to provoke a mass casualty event.

Much like the incendiary artillery bombardment, I suspect some of you will take issue with the means of attack.

Understand that you have no chance to survive under the pretense of a fair fight.

Providing that the usual Northeasterly winds do not shift, the poison gas should not impact the villagers of Remire or your classmates unless they directly approach my position.

Given how they are currently besieged, this eventuality seems quite remote.

This plan is not up for discussion.

As I said, I will protect you all.

Thank you for your time.