8/2 Verdant rain Moon (early morning)
"Where are you going? There are several hours left until dawn" asked Sothis
"To the library"
"I don´t think you will find something of interest there. Besides, you are still weak after what you have just seen"
"Not to that section, I plan to get into the church reserved area."
"You mean to trespass a restricted area. It could end badly for you"
"I have the feeling that I can find something related to these visions I´m having"
"Be careful and don´t get caught."
Byleth sheathed the Sword of the Creator and left his room. The world around him was completely empty, only a few torches could be seen at the walls in the distance. Walking without making any sound Byleth crossed the gardens and headed to the main building. The gates of the building were closed with iron bars and he could see in the distance a patrol approaching.
"What now?"
Byleth unsheathed the Sword of the Creator and using it as a whip aimed to the cornice of the building and then propelled himself, as the Sword of the Creator started to return to its original form. With that maneuver he was able to climb twenty meters.
"I haven´t thought of using your weapon like that. Be careful not to fall to your death now."
He sheathed the sword again as the patrol walked under him. He didn´t want to risk getting exposed so he decided to make his way climbing. Even if the building was well conserved, centuries of rains and blizzards had altered the form of some rocks, making the climbing easier.
He climbed for a while until he arrived to the lower level of the library, its windows having a Seiro´s crest based decoration. He sat for a moment to catch his breath, his legs with no floor under them.
"More than a mercenary you could have been a thief"
"I won´t steal anything. I just want to investigate about what I´ve been seeing"
Before Sothis answered Byleth started to climb again. The windows of the restricted area of the library were smaller than their public counterparts. Byleth touched the surface of each window until he touched one that was badly closed. Opening it carefully to avoid falling to his death, Byleth entered the restricted area of the library.
The room Byleth had just entered was completely dark. He casted a small flame and wandered between the shelves. He spent a couple of hours there searching for the Argarthans or the War of the Heroes, but he found nothing about the firsts and only slightly variations about the second.
"It´s time to give up, if not even high ranked officials have access to the information you are searching for it must be well hidden. Perhaps, the dreams you are having are just that"
"You may be right" said Byleth, his voice filled with disappointment, but he had the feeling they were real somehow.
He climbed to the window again and started the return to the ground. When he was at the middle of it, it started to rain.
"Talking about bad timing"
He tried to continue, but the rocks he was using as points of balance were getting slippery. He looked to his right and noticed an aisle that lead to the students' dormitories. He unsheathed the Sword of the Creator with the only hand he had free and used it as a whip again. When the Sword of the Creator dived in the wall of the aisle, he propelled himself and jumped. The landing wasn´t perfect and he suffered light contusions in his legs and arms, but it could have been worse.
Getting up again he walked across the aisle trying to find the stairs when he heard a young woman´s voice.
"What was that?" asked Sothis
"It came from one of the student´s rooms."
He approached the source of the sound and he identified the woman´s voice. "Edelgard" he thought. Without a second thought he entered her student´s room.
Edelgard was covered in the sheets of her bed, talking in dreams. By the look of her face he knew she was having a nightmare. He gently placed his left hand on her forehead to check if she was having a fever. Raindrops were falling from his head to hers and she finally opened her lilac eyes.
"I´ve just had… My Teacher?! What are you doing here?! Is this still a dream?"
Byleth really didn´t know how to answer, and telling the truth would be too strange when a word he had overheard came to his mind.
"Night crawling" (see note)
"Night crawling?!" said Edelgard, her cheeks getting red. "Do you understand what you are proposing my Teacher?"
"Sorry, I didn´t mean it" apologized Byleth when he realized what he was really saying.
"You shouldn´t joke about something like that." Said Edelgard, still blushed. "You are completely wet. Were you walking outside?"
"Yes"
"You are a strange person, my Teacher, but you should avoid entering a student´s bedroom. It may lead to a misunderstanding" she said while she was toying with her hair.
"You were screaming in dreams"
"Ah so you heard me then. Yes, it was a nightmare. I´ve had them since I was a child. Stupid, pointless dreams I can´t control. It´s terribly frustrating."
"What are they about?"
"Just my childhood. A time before I had realized who I was destined to become"
"You can trust me with anything, if you wish to"
Edelgard gave him a light smile.
"I thought you would say something like that. I guess I could try, but only if you swear not to tell a soul. "
"I will tell no one"
Nodding at his response Edelgard breathed deeply, a sad expression on her face.
"I dream of my older brother, paralyzed, helpless…my older sister crying for help that never came…the youngest babbling words beyond meaning. I see my family dying slowly, waiting in the darkest depths for a glimmer of light that never came.
I once had ten siblings, eight older and two younger. Such a large family yet I became the heir to the throne. Do you know why? Every last one of them died, was crippled by disease or lost their mind. In the end I was the only remaining."
Byleth was almost speechless about what he was hearing.
"Why such a tragedy would happen?"
"Things just kept getting worse. The darkness kept getting darker. In the end I was the only one to survive. The nightmares are a reminder to never forget what happened… and to never allow such tragedy to happen again"
"Never again…"
"At this very moment I´m carrying the weight of the empire. The future of the empire and its people, everything…depends on me. I don´t really know why I´m telling you about my past all of a sudden, but I don´t feel uncomfortable about it neither. It may be the air of the night"
"Edelgard…"
Byleth gently hugged her.
"My Teacher…"
"You don´t have to suffer alone anymore"
"I thank you sincerely" Edelgard answered, her hands slowly climbing to his back. "But my Teacher…"
"Yes?"
"Your clothes are still wet"
"Oh, sorry" apologized Byleth taking a step back.
"If you want to protect me you should take more care of yourself" she said. "It can´t be helped, take this" she handed him a towel, avoiding his eyes. "You should at least dry your hair. I don´t want you to fall ill"
"Thank you Edelgard" he said taking the towel she was offering him. After using it he returned it to her.
"I should return now. I hope you can continue sleeping."
"Wait"
"Yes?"
"It would be rude just leaving like that since you were the one to enter my room in the first place. Besides, it is still raining. You should wait until it stops" Edelgard said toying with her hair.
Byleth had recently noticed that new habit of her, although he had never seen her doing it in front of other people.
"I will stay then" he said, a light smile forming on his face.
They spent their time talking, even though the rain stopped after a while they didn´t seem to notice it.
….
Edelgard look to the sky, which was getting clearer.
"I´m afraid you should be leaving my Teacher. Soon the dawn will come and I don´t want to see Hubert´s face if he sees you here"
Byleth nodded to her.
"Bye Edelgard"
"Thank you for this time, it was eventful to me"
"I have the same feeling"
Byleth left Edelgard´s room without looking back. Sothis had remained silent since he entered Edelgard´s room. Wondering if she was sleeping again, Sothis´s voice came to him.
"I´m not sleeping yet. I didn´t want to spoil the moment"
"The burdens of her past still have a heavy influenced on her. That such atrocity was committed to the emperor´s family would be unthinkable"
"She didn´t tell you who were the responsible of those events, but I´m sure she will tell you someday. She trusts you, at least more than in the beginning."
"I´m happy to hear that"
"The fact that you are smiling more often makes me happy too"
"It´s a pity that I learnt nothing about these dreams I´m having. However, I´m happy that I was able to learn something new about my student. I guess that it wasn´t in vain"
"You should take more care of yourself. The old Professor and the little girl are right. You shouldn´t put your health at risk for something that you don´t even know it´s real"
"You are right; I will keep the sword at my room, but not with me, at least for now"
"For now? It seems that you intend to persevere" Sothis sighted. "You can do as you wish, but don´t break your own body in the process"
"I promise I won´t"
Byleth entered his room and changed his clothes. He decided to place the Sword of the Creator under his bed mattress.
"It´s comical to see such a mighty weapon being hidden under your own bed mattress" commented Sothis.
After that, he decided to head to the greenhouse to check his plants.
"Morning Teach, where are you going?" someone asked.
Byleth turned his head and saw Claude leaning on the column next to his room.
"Heading to the greenhouse and you?"
"Nothing really, sometimes I feel like relaxing. I was thinking about going to the sauna. It helps the circulation of blood in your body and leaves you completely ready for a good sleep. Would you like to take one?"
"I wouldn´t mind, but first I want to check my plants"
"I will accompany you then." He said elegantly catching his walking speed. "It has been a while since the last time we talked like this. Edelgard must had you really busy, but I thank you for training with Lysithea. I told you we are more relaxed over here"
"She is a good student and helps me to learn too". It had been a while since the last time he trained with Manuela, but she seemed really busy dealing with ill students due to the unstable weather of the last weeks and he didn´t want to bother her so training with Lysithea had been very useful.
"I´m sure she would love to hear that from you. She is studying really hard. If Raphael had the same will to sit and study…" he sighted. "By the way Teach, I heard you are heading to the north this month. I wanted to take part in it, but I heard that they are already students accompanying you. Can I know their names?"
"I´m sorry to hear that. This month I´ll be going with Felix and Sylvain".
"In the case of Felix I can understand, but Sylvain?" he laughed. "Isn´t he the guy that is trying to seduce every single woman in Fódlan? There may be more to him if you are taking him to the battlefield"
They arrived to the greenhouse, where Byleth watered his plants.
"You have quite a bunch of flowers Teach"
"I plan to use it as birthday presents." He was trying to make a list of the birthdays of the students of the different houses to send them present for their birthday.
"I see. In the case of Raphael a well done steak would do better, though"
"You can take one if you want"
"Then I will pick one of these" Claude said picking a Carnation.
"I didn´t know you like that kind of flower"
"Not in particular, but I know someone who does" he said winking at him "I hope the imperial princess doesn´t get mad because of this. Let´s go to the sauna now"
With nothing urgent in particular to do, Byleth accompanied Claude to the sauna.
On their way to it they came across with Dimitri, who was talking with Dedue, his closest confidant.
"Good morning Professor. I see that you also like to get up early. Good morning to you too Claude"
"Good morning, your Highness. I was taking Teach to the sauna. Do you want to come too?"
"A sauna? I´m afraid that I´m not used to hot environments"
"If you never try, you will never know. That´s my saying"
"You don´t have to worry, your Highness. If you faint I will be there for you" promised Dedue.
"If the Professor is also coming it would be rude to decline your invitation Claude. I will accept it"
"Our numbers have doubled Teach. In a short while we will be having an army" laughed Claude.
They entered the sauna building and went to the locker room. Byleth received a short sleeved shirt and a pair of trousers that matched the color of his hair. When he changed his clothes, he saw that Claude was wearing similar clothes, except the shirt, which was yellow.
"You look like another student Teach" said Claude while smiling.
Dimitri was also wearing a blue shirt and Dedue´s was comically small. "They didn´t have a good size for me" he lamented.
They entered the sauna, each one taking a seat. Dimitri and Dedue sat together as they did Byleth and Claude.
"What are you supposed to do now?" asked Byleth
"Absolutely nothing, that´s the key" Claude smiled to him. "We can use this time to chat and relax. It will be good for you Teach. Now you have the Sword of the Creator. I didn´t expect that weapon to appear here in the monastery. Did you see something interesting down there?"
"I was focused on fighting the western church members, but there were numerous tombs located there."
"I see. That means that there could be more weapons down there…or just old bones. How are you doing Dimitri, you are a bit too quiet"
"It´s hot, but not intolerable. Professor, I heard from Sylvain that he and Felix will be taking part in your next task. They can be troublesome at times, but I´m sure that you will get used to them"
"Regarding your mission assistances you are taking way too much favoritism with the Blue Lions students Teach. You should give us some love too. I would like to lend a hand and I´m sure that Lysithea would also like to, since she is training with you. Hilda is lazy, but I can persuade her. Raphael is ready for everything regarding fighting and Ignatz is an extremely accurate archer. Leonie would surely want to compete against you and Marianne is sweet when you spend time with her. And Lorenz is just Lorenz I guess"
"The next time we leave on a mission I will take that into account"
"It´s settled then. No need to be so formal" he laughed.
They kept chatting like that for a while. Dedue and Dimitri were the first to leave when Dimitri felt he was reaching his limit.
Byleth was starting to feel a bit of dizziness, he was feeling sleepy. He closed his eyes for a moment.
When he opened his eyes, he wasn´t in the sauna, but at the top of a mountain. The wind was roaring around him, but he didn´t matter.
A man was approaching him, accompanied by two guards.
"Hello Riegan, it´s been a while since the last time I saw you"
"The pleasure is mine Nemesis, or should I call you Your Highness?"
"Do as you please. I want you to join me"
"You aren´t the negotiator type, don´t you? If the rumors are true, you were able to sack the city of the gods. How did you do that?"
"With this" Nemesis said unsheathing the Sword of the Creator.
The Sword shined with a violent light. It was almost blinding.
"Really impressive I must admit." Riegan said, admiring the sword.
"I plan to consolidate my position in Fódlan. To achieve that I want the most important leaders of this part of the continent to join me"
"I´m flattened to be included in such category"
"We have known each other for years Riegan. Even if our paths weren´t the same I offer you to serve me. In exchange I have much to offer you"
"I´m all ears"
"First of all, this bow" he said showing him a golden bow that transmitted a magnificent power. "I know that you are found of bows and this weapon is incomparable to the rest of bows in this world"
"I must admit that I sense a powerful aura coming from it. Is this a weapon from the city you sacked?"
"It is, but a mere mortal is unable to wield it or he will find his death"
"You are offering a poisonous gift then Nemesis. A weapon that has no use to a mortal like me"
"It is true that in your current state you wouldn´t be able to wield it, but that can be changed"
"What do you mean?"
"The child of the Goddess excelled in lots of areas, including magic. Among them were those who were unable to use such magnificent weapons, but their research allowed them to discover a way to overcome this impossibility" he said showing him a potion with a strange glowing green liquid inside. "This potion will allow you to use the weapon that I offer you. If you swear to serve me with loyalty"
"How do I know it won´t kill me?"
"I drank it too" he said, showing him the Sword of the Creator again.
"I guess that you are not lying. Very well I will take your word on that." Riegan said taking the potion that Nemesis was offering to him. After drinking it he touched the bow, which lightly shined.
"It´s all yours if you serve me"
"I will do it, but my clan only controls a small portion of this land. What will you do?"
"In the case of warriors of great renown I will offer them the same conditions I offered you. Those who decline my offer or oppose me will face my wrath"
"Understood, I will be telling my clan that we are joining you"
After Riegan left, Nemesis looked to the sky. "Day after day I grow stronger. I will be the king of this region of Fódlan and no one will ever stop me"
"You are right" said a man covered in black clothes. "With that power no one will be able to oppose you. You have the gratitude of my kin"
"I hope that we can cooperate from now on"
"Of course, the Argarthans and humans share deep ties between each other. With the disappearance of the fake Goddess, humanity will see a new age of development. I hope that both of our dreams come to true."
"Together we will be unstoppable. Those who oppose us will perish" Nemesis said as he grinned
….
"His body is burning"
"What have you done to my Teacher, Claude?"
"I´m really sorry Edelgard, he looked fine until he suddenly fell to the ground"
"Will he get better Professor Manuela?"
"You don´t have to worry Edelgard, he is in good hands with me"
"I agree with Manuela, you don´t have to worry I´ll help him to get better too, he is a colleague after all"
Byleth opened his eyes. He tried to incorporate himself, but he was stopped by a woman´s hands.
"You have to rest Byleth"
"You passed out in the sauna Teach, I didn´t expect something like that to happen. I´m really sorry"
"My Teacher I´m glad to see you awakened again" said Edelgard with a faint smile on her face.
"This weather is to blame. I think that you are demanding too much from your body. You should rest for a while"
"Manuela is right. I´m glad that, at least you were accompanied by someone. It could have been worse" observed Hanemann.
"For the time being you should try to get some rest" said Manuela. "And you must drink this" she said, offering him a cup filled with a bright blue liquid. It will boost your recuperation.
"When can I leave this place?"
"I expected that question coming from you Byleth" Manuela smiled. "I recommend at least a few days of rest. We are at the beginning of the month so you don´t have to worry about your students been underprepared"
"Manuela and I will substitute you for the following days. Just leave it to us"
"Thank you" Byleth said with a faint smile.
"Seeing your smile is enough repayment for me" smiled Manuela. "We must let Byleth rest today."
"I´ll inform the rest of the Black Eagle´s about your condition my Teacher. I promise I´ll return tomorrow"
"I´ll do the same with my class. And sorry about that Teach. I didn´t expect something like that to happen" apologized again Claude.
"It´s not your fault Claude. Don´t blame yourself" reassured him Byleth.
One by one they started to leave, the last one of them Edelgard, who still looked worried. When he was the last one remaining in the room a familiar voice came to him.
"You are pushing yourself to the limit. You should worry more about your wellbeing"
"I swear it wasn´t my intention. I wasn´t even taking the Sword of the Creator with me"
"It may be that your weakened physical state made you see that kind of dream again. We are facing forces we don´t know, but you heard them. Your skin felt like it was burning. Even if we don´t know the complete truth you can´t exhaust yourself like that"
"You are completely right" Byleth sighted "I was too busy trying to find out my relation with the Sword of the Creator and I forgot the wellbeing of my own body"
"Don´t let that search of knowledge consume you. It´s not worth it"
"Thank you for worrying about me Sothis"
"What could you do without me Byleth." She sighed "We share the same body, but I must say that we are something more than that, we are friends as the smiley student usually says"
"Friends" Byleth thought. When he first arrived to the monastery, he considered that concept alien to him, but after spending all these months with different people he had come to understand more of it.
"I consider you a friend too Sothis"
"In that case promise me that you won´t hurt yourself in your seek of answers"
"…"
"Listen Byleth, I´m as intrigued as you, but if the price for it is watching people that care about you get worried it is simply not worth it"
Among the faces of the people that came to his mind were his father´s and Edelgard´s.
"I must admit that you are right. I will be more careful from now on. I don´t want them to suffer"
"I´m always right didn´t you know that?" smiled Sothis "It´s a promise then"
"Yes, of course"
"There is something you should know"
"What kind of thing?"
"You are not Nemesis, neither Seiros. You are just Byleth, a former mercenary working as a Professor now, that has trouble expressing his own feelings but that is perfect the way he is. Don´t ever forget who you are"
Hearing that, Byleth felt an intense feeling of happiness that made him feel pain in his heart.
"Thank you Sothis, from the bottom of my heart, I really appreciate your kind words"
"Don´t be so solemn about that" said Sothis, a bit embarrassed. "It´s my only way to help you, since I have no body of my own. Friends exist to support each other and overcome difficulties, right?"
"I didn´t expect you to be so nice"
"How cruel!"
"It was a joke"
"Your sense of humor is nonexistent. You need a lot to learn yet"
Byleth watched the sun hiding behind the mountains. He closed his eyes and for the first time in a while he was able rest without the torment of visions. "I´m Byleth, and my path in this life is mine to decide" he thought as he entered the realm of dreams.
Night crawling is the meaning of the word 夜這い (Yobai). It basically consists in a man sneaking into a woman´s room at night. The surprising thing is that it was a tolerated practice in ancient Japan, although the tradition (could you call it that?) varied from place to place.
I hope that everyone is enjoying the story as I do. See you next chapter!