Harpstring Moon. Day 14
The battle, Byleth knew, did not go as well as she had originally planned. Was it her inexperience as a teacher? Or was she so attuned to the mercenary lifestyle that she forgot that these knights in training were just that-in training. They weren't like her and Jeralt, knowing battle and fighting every other day of their lives.
It was probably this mistake that almost killed three of her students, all because she had expected much more from them all.
Byleth growled, beheading a man that tried to stab Dorothea from her side. No, she wasn't a professor, not in this shit show of a battle. Her students had gone and created such a mess of their formations that she was dumbfounded that she didn't have to use a divine pulse to save any of them.
"Professor, are we-?"
"Not now Dorothea. We need to retreat, now. Get behind me. When we meet with another student I want you to backtrack and get the three others you left behind." The Ashen Demon clenched the grip of her sword as she tried to reign in her anger. They were students-they didn't know how to fight in a battlefield. They only knew how to hold a stance, flail their weapons, and play field games. Their crests may assist in battle, but their skills were that of novices.
Dorothea nodded, looking ashamed as the two hurried across the battlefield, killing any who stood in their way.
"Away with you!" Byleth roared as she cut down a bandit, her sword easily killing him where he stood. Turning around, she grinded her teeth as two other bandits ran at her, their weapons drawn and ready to corner her. Yet, just as they were ready to launch an attack upon her, an arrow lodged itself in one of their necks while the other was promptly bisected by a swing of a large hatchet. Taking a quick moment to breathe in peace, she looked at Caspar and Bernadetta's form in pride and frustration
"Both of you, stick together! We're retreating!" Byleth commanded, turning her head around.
There were students in melee with the several of the bandits, all given formations ignored. It was a brawl, plain and simple.
"Professor? Why are we retreating? We're winning." Caspar asked in surprise, his body fatigued. Wait…
Caspar and Hayato are supposed to be at the bridge to funnel these damned brigands.
"Caspar, you were supposed to be at the bridge with Hayato. What are you doing? Actually, where is Hayato?"
Caspar opened his mouth before his eyes widened in realization, his axe dropping from his hand as he realized he had abandoned Hayato.
"Where is he?! He isn't-" Dorothea interrupted him, a look of grief upon her face as she informed him of the situation.
"Hayato is fine, but he, Hachiman, and the adjutant are in grave peril if we leave them alone for too long. They almost died…" Dorothea looked down as Bernadetta gave a squeak of fear.
"W-What? But, we're killing these bandits, right? What's going to happen now?" Bernadetta clutched her bow in fear, with Byleth rubbing her eyes in fatigue. She despised the fact that they would have to retreat, but she knew that it was only a matter of time before a student of her's got cocky. Cocky enough to try and be a hero against several cutthroat men who had killed more in their lives than just a simple afternoon like this.
This was for the best for them all.
Damn it. Damn it!
Byleth clenched her fist before she looked at her three charges.
"You three-I need you to support each other. Please. Dorothea, show Caspar and Bernadetta where the three are at. You two, I want you to secure a checkpoint-a way for the rest of the students to meet and prevent the enemy from passing through. Can I trust you in this?" Byleth pleaded towards her students.
"Don't worry professor-Hachiman, Hayato, and even the Yoshiteru guy are safe in our hands." Caspar grinned as he grabbed his axe from the ground before following Dorothea, Bernadetta lagging just behind him.
Byleth sighed in relief
Okay, good-they're going to be safe for now. All Byleth needed was to gather the rest of her students...that were all over the place. Great.
Beside her, she heard a war cry sounding louder as she heard the footfalls of someone carrying something heavy. Without missing a beat Byleth thrusted her blade upward through the man's neck and into his brain, blood and brain matter slicking upon her blade as she retracted it before moving once more.
She had to get to them all fast, else the bandit leader will show up and take things into his own hands.
Memories of friends dying for the stupid notion of heroism.
Jeralt taking a blade for her in her first outing.
Byleth ignored the memories as she ran across the battlefield, her sword at the ready. Even she, who had been in hundreds of battles, was just human. She couldn't solo an entire gang of bandits, and she needed support against the bandit leader.
With the current situation, none of that was possible. They had to retreat.
I wanted to laugh at my given situation, surrounded in combat and stuck with two of the combat-oriented units panicking and them dealing with trauma in the most troublesome way possible. In any light novel, fantasy or otherwise, a character's first kill would always be viewed as honorable, an act that gives one either glory or an ideal to fight for, or a way to protect someone they care about.
Those two went and tried to protect me, but even with that in mind, they were still shocked at their actions. If I were to be honest, I wouldn't know how I would react. Thinking about such a thought made me sick when I think about how close an action that can occur to make that a reality. My body was already averse to combat to this degree-me taking another's life would have possibly made me spiral into a hole of darkness that I couldn't get out of, even if I miraculously did return home. Yet the real world wasn't like that-Fodlan wasn't like that. There were no such things as miracles.
I picked up a random sword from the ground, shakily holding it in front of me, by body blocking the path towards Hayama and Zaimokuza. The two were currently huddled in a corner, lost in their own problems from what I could gander. Zaimokuza was staring into his hands whilst Hayama glared at the broken lance in front of him. Sure, breaking one of the few weapons in our possession wasn't the smartest thing to do of course, cathartic or not. Now, one would wonder why the healer is brandishing a sword, when my own skills dictated that I do the exact opposite of what I was doing?
Well, there was a bandit in front of me with murder in his eyes, closing in on me and the other two.
One training session with Felix and Ferdinand had not given me insight to use a sword like a master, nor did it give me the skill to even use it like an ametuer. That one training session only accomplished knowing how to hold a sword up correctly, alongside blocking.
Apparently I was good at blocking, it allowed my survival instincts to take over for the most part, and my survival instincts were above average. That theoretically should allow me to hold the line against a single bandit, right?
"Little shit...:" The grizzled old man growled as he thrusted his blade to my chest, death already aimed at me once more.
Though the blow should have killed me, my body screamed in protest again as I held my sword like a bat, countering the thrust to the side as I tried to push forward, inch by inch. I couldn't let him kill them, or me for that matter. I had subpar skills in everything but healing, and already can hear Felix's voice shouting those same damn lines when he and I first met. That damned smug asshole was right, even when I didn't want to admit it then.
No one is going to hold back Hachiman.
I know that now!
"RAAH! JUST DIE!" The bandit roared as he sliced downwards, and with both hands I pushed my sword above my head to have the two blades meet.
My left side felt like it was in pain, warm fluid flowing down from my side as I stumbled back.
He feinted. He fucking feinted.
The bandit sneered as he pointed his blade at me, shaking it as if he enjoyed my suffering.
Bastard…
"Time to die you dastard." The bandit laughed before he extended his arm, aiming to decapitate me in one swift move.
I was out of choices but one, and quite frankly I was going to die if I did nothing. I wanted to laugh-for all of my skill, I could only do this once a day, like everybody else. No matter how much I studied, I could only extend the range. It would have to do.
"WARP!" My hand was brought up, a green sigil appearing beneath the bandit as his form disappeared, his sword just inches from my throat. I collapsed in exhaustion, my mind ringing from the overuse in magic as I randomly sent my would-be killer somewhere in a chasm. Serves him right…
Collapsing with a hand on the ground to keep me up, I took a breath to make sure I didn't fall. Yet even that was taxing. All of my energy and the nebulous force of my magic was empty. We were sitting ducks, and the damned white mage, our only hope of survival, was out of magic.
Before I could fully appreciate what little break I had, another of the damned bandits decided to try his luck with us. I stood up, a groan of pain erupting from my throat, the sword in my hand pointed downwards. Had I been a protagonist, this would have been my last stand, giving my friends (as if) the chance to run.
Fortunately, a plot convenience stopped me from a stupid last stand.
"GET BACK!" With a large twang in the air, an arrow pierced the bandit's throat, his body falling into a heap.
Eh?
I stumbled backwards, panting for air as my vision began to grow blurry. Were...were we saved?
Another lance of pain rang from my side, reminding me of my injury. Right, I was bleeding out.
"Caspar, Yoshiteru right now is in shock! Can you get him up?"
"Hachiman, you're okay right? AH! Your side!"
"Hayato! Are you alright? I'm sorry, I messed up big time."
"Caspar!"
"Ah! Okay I get it!"
"Dorothea I need a Vulnerary!"
Voices of our saviors were heard, and I couldn't help but smile at the sheer absurdness of it all. We're going to survive.
"Hah, you think you little noblings are going to live?" A gruff voice mockingly threatened us, my vision was too blurry to notice the bandit's form. Caspar, Bernadetta, and Dorothea were here-one bandit wouldn't be too difficult for the three of them, allowing me to relax. Suddenly feeling the disgusting taste of a Vulnerary on my lips, I let the medicine do its job as I fell blissfully unconscious.
Zaimokuza clenched a fist as his hand covered his face. The smell of burning hair and flesh. The anguished look upon the brigand as he died. The fires of combat made its way into Zaimokuza's nose, and with it came the memory. No matter how fast the bandit had died, it did not lessen the anguish of him having killed. Looking up, he saw an adversary before him and the students that suddenly came to the rescue. He felt weak, slow. His body and mind still coming to terms of what he was going to do. He felt powerless.
He saw Caspar fly back as the bandit punched him away. He wanted to move.
He saw Bernadett's bow get snapped in half before being pushed aside. He needed to move!
"DIE YOU DAMNED RICH KIDS!" The bandit sliced the air, aiming the edge of his blade at Dorothea's throat. She was too slow to move, until a blur of movement moved within the edges of Zaimokuza's vision.
"GET BACK!" Hayama growled as he pushed the broken half of the lance against the sword strike, his features feral as he used his free hand to punch the bandit.
He flew back with amazing distance, a large cracking sound being heard at the impact. Taking the quick lull in battle to look at Zaimokuza, Hayato's eyes showed a burning desperation beneath them.
"Zaimokuza, this Hayama of the Sands needs your assistance, please." Hayama asked, his voice sounding completely desperate but said in a calm tone.
Did he…?
Zaimokuza gave a small grin as he shook his head, getting up from his position while he wiped his nose with the sleeve of his trench coat. The smell of burning flesh, the anguish of the man he had killed appearing before his mind.
Just ignore it.
Ignore the smells. Ignore the fading body. Don't use Fire. Zaimokuza had plenty of other skills in hand he could use. Just...not Fire.
"The Blademaster, the Bodhisattva of War, has come to your aid oh sandy one." Zaimokuza hollowly chuckled as he halfheartedly pulled a pose, gaining a small smile from Hayama.
"Then we-"
"OI! Yough, Yough bruke mah nose!" The large bandit growled as he stood up. With one hand he pulled and twisted his nose, fixing it as he threw his sword to the ground. With his other hand, he grabbed an iron axe from his back.
"You're all going to die where you stand for this. There won't be any bones when I'm done with you." The man growled as he gripped the axe, his eyes crazed as his nose bled, his grin fierce.
Zaimokuza and Hayama flinched at the bloodlust, but with half a lance and a hand ready, the two held their position as the bandit ran towards them.
"To the sides!" Hayama yelled as he and Zaimokuza split their small wall, causing the bandit to briefly stop and look between the two.
In that split second of hesitance, Hayama threw the lance head at the leg of the bandit. The lance broke through his skin.
The head of the lance was stuck into the ground on the other side of the bandit's wound, immobilizing any movement from him. Hayama held his bile down as he signaled Zaimokuza with his hand.
"YOU BRATS!" He roared, crouching in pain and yelling profanities. Yet with this, it gave Zaimokuza time to prepare.
"To take the lives of my friends and peers, you shall face the magical might of the one who has escaped fate itself! This shining blue is the truth, of which you'll never reach! Meteor!" Zaimokuza roared, throwing a small blue orb into the sky. In moments, a giant ball of glowing blue energy began hurling downwards from the sky.
"What? No! NO!" The bandit held his breath before forcibly grabbing his leg and pulled. The sound of bone cracking and the tearing of flesh ripped through the air as he freed himself, his axe in one hand and his other hand atop of his leg, supporting his weight.
"You won't-!" He tried to cry out, but was consumed by the Meteor as the spell exploded in swathes of blue energy.
Closing their eyes from the dust and rubble, Hayama grunted as he peeked at the bandit, the dust finally settling.
"Guuuh…." The man groaned, his body collapsed in a heap. Taking another look, Hayama let a grin fall upon his face-he wasn't dead. The bandit before them wasn't dead. They took him out without killing him.
"Haha. Hahaha." Zaimokuza laughed as he fell once more, his body shaking in sheer relief as he laid down on the rocky ground.
Caspar groaned as he walked between the two, and Hayama saw Hikigaya unconscious on his back. Similarly, Dorothea was walking beside Dorothea, visibly shaken and her hat nowhere to be found.
"You all did it?" Dorothea meekly asked, her gaze at the body of the bandit. Zaimokuza nodded, his smile and tears visibly showing.
"W-We did it. He's still alive right now for us to arrest." Zaimokuza smiled at Dorothea, who only looked at him in confusion.
"Ah, we should let it be. We need the professor to come back and make the call. What did she say?" Hayama asked as he took a seat on the ground, his hands still shaking and his palms itchy.
Scratching at his palm, Hayama gave a look at Dorothea before she nodded in turn.
"She said that we have to create a checkpoint-we're retreating back to camp." Dorothea looked down as she gazed at Hikigaya's form, before a tear fell on her cheek.
"I...Hayato. Yoshiteru. I'm so sorry. I left you alone, and you both almost died." Dorothea looked at the two, small tears beginning to fall upon her face before Bernadetta awkwardly patted her back once, then recoiling her hand back and muttering.
"Dorothea, you thought of what had to be done. This guy here probably knows how it was necessary for you to go to the professor. It's...Hayato, man. I'm, I'm sorry. I forgot about you…" Caspar glared at the ground as the charge on his back shuffled about.
Hayama shook his head as he sighed.
"But, where is the professor? S-Surely she should have collected all of the students, correct?" Zaimokuza asked the three of them, his voice stuttering out the question.
"Oh! She's-"
"Right here." Byleth said, her voice cracking from the strain of carrying Lindhart in her arms. The rest of the students gave the six in front of them looks of concern, and Hayama really couldn't blame them.
Hikigaya was unconscious. Bernadetta had a visible bruise on her cheek. Bernadetta looked visibly shaken still as Caspar had a black eye and his cheek was a bit swollen. Zaimokuza and he too were visibly damaged, having looked like they had just escaped a mental institution.
"Ah, Professor. We captured the evil-doer who dared try to harm us. He's sitting right here." Zaimokuza tiredly pointed at the unconscious bandit in the small crater as Byleth nodded.
Looking at the bandit's form, Byleth nodded.
"He's most likely the leader, given that he was cowardly enough to not even be in the front lines." Hubert rolled his eyes, his arms over his chest as he looked at the bandit nonplussed.
"What should we do with him professor?" Hayama asked, causing Byleth to give Lindhart's unconscious form to Ferdinand's arms. Giving her free reign to move, she walked up to the bandit before shaking her head.
"Normally, I would say good job to you all. You killed the rest of the bandits before I could get to all of you, thus completing the mission, but." Byleth unsheathed her sword before plunging the blade through the bandit's head, the sounds of quiet breathing ceasing.
Hayama and Zaimokuza looked at the scene, their bodies freezing in place.
Byleth took the sword from the corpse before resheathing it. Looking back at everyone, she glared at them all, her eyes betraying nothing.
"You all could have been killed." They did get killed, a few times over had Byleth did not reverse the throes of fate.
"You disobeyed my orders, you ignored your assigned stations, and you didn't support each other in combat. You're knights in training, not damned Brigands!" Byleth seethed, before composing herself.
"When we get back to camp, I want a written report of what you did wrong, in detail, When we head back to the monastery, I'll be personally training you all and your shortcomings for the next month with the help of my father.. Your performance out there was beyond abysmal, and I'm thanking whatever force out there that you lot didn't die." Byleth took a breath before looking at Hayama and Zaimokuza.
"With you two and Hikigaya you'll…" Her words died in her throat when she saw Hayama continuously dry heaving on the ground whilst Zaimokuza's form went limp as he fainted.
Byleth closed her eyes and sighed. Gods damn it.
Magical exhaustion was simultaneously the most welcomed and most horrid feeling that I had to experience in my life, with getting summoned being the second weirdest feeling. It was as if my entire body was paralyzed with the mage in question getting knocked unconscious until their body was able to generate enough mana to not cause the body to fluctuate out of control. Becoming immobile as my mana began to be refilled was terrible, but it did allow me to sleep without any dreams or felt as if my body was being tortured throughout my slumber.
For the first time in months, I woke up feeling akin to refreshed in a tent, with Hayama and Zaimokuza at my sides. Zaimokuza too was sleeping on my right as Hayama was on a stool, his eyes closed but nodding to my existence. Seems as though he didn't want to look at a murderer and a coward, the hypocrite.
"So we lived, huh." I made an obvious remark as I stretched my arms upward. Though I felt even more tired mentally, my body was full of vitality it seems. Even if I wanted to go back to sleep, I would need to burn all of my magic somehow.
"Hikigaya, you know what happened." Hayama opened his eyes and looked downwards, as if ashamed about his actions just earlier today. I felt conflicted-though his assistance would have been heavily appreciated, he had just been traumatized. I left that as frustration and moved on; I'll take more focus on this later. I just need to know what's going on right now.
"And? What about it?" I grumbled as I took myself out of the medieval sleeping bag and hesitantly stood up. Bag-chan, you may not be as great as my bed back at the dorm, or even back at my room, but your services have been appreciated. You're a good filter to help repress the hell that was that battle.
Hayama sighed before taking a moment to compose his answer, his face skewed in grief.
"Zaimokuza and I, we helped to take out the leader. We didn't kill him." Hayama's breath shuddered as he sighed, his hands clasped together.
I quirked an eyebrow-surely we had enough room to hold a bandit prisoner. Maybe he had information that could be proved to be valuable.
"Even then, he still died. Byleth killed him, so callously." Hayama's exhaled sharply, hands going atop his head as he burrowed his face near his knees.
Damn it. Damn this world. Damn whoever took us from Earth to be sent here to do whatever.
"Fuck." I let out a curse before I stood up, my teeth clattering as I brought the blanket from my medieval bag around my frame. Looking at the three of us, a dark chuckle escaped from my lips. Seriously, this was hilarious. The three of us, working together to get back to Earth? When we were like this against killing a single person? It was a tragic comedy to even try to deal with these issues. Even then, if they did go back? These experiences would haunt us forever-we could never be normal high school students after this.
…
"These chuuni thoughts are going to be the death of me." I mumbled aloud, shivering from the cold. Ah, it was most likely night time right? Looking around, I saw a freshly created fire pit, ready to be lit.
"Fire." With a snap, a spark hit the logs before it bursts into flames. Though my magic was weak, it sure made things convenient when I least expected it. Still wasn't worth the suffering of sleepless nights and the badgering of the professor though.
"Wait Hikigaya, put it out-!" Hayama's shout was suddenly drowned out as Zaimokuza awoke.
"WIND! WIND!" Zaimokuza screamed in the quiet tent, blowing out the fire and several of our articles of clothing that were strewn about. When the fire went out, Zaimokuza breathed heavily as he looked at the Hayama and I, slightly blushing,
"A-Ah, sorry. T-the flames of hell hath awakened my slumber, and for a paladin with umbrage against the flame I…I…" Zaimokuza squeezed his eyes shut before shaking his head. "Never mind. I'm sorry."
"...Right." I sighed. Okay, so Zaimokuza has a fear of fire, or the smell of it at least. Fantastic. Alright world, what else do you want to throw at us? I'm ready.
"I'm coming in." The arrival of Byleth's voice made me cringe before hiding myself further into the soft confines of my blanket. Please not right now.
Byleth walked into our tent, bending slightly downwards to get in as she held several sheets of papers in her hands.
"You three, we need a talk. Not for later, not for when we get back to the monastery-now." Byleth's eyes made me shiver before I sat upon my bag.
"Professor, what's wrong?" Hayama eyed our teacher, confused just like me. Was she about to take us for her own, seeing as we were at our weakest? Or did she find out we were from another world because she did some kind of magical blood test?
"We need to discuss your future within the monastery, and as knights." She eyed all three of us in worry, and I bit my lip at her words. This was worse actually-she wanted to talk about what we were doing at the monastery. A good question to be sure, but even I knew that I had no idea as to why. We were summoned just a little under a mile away from the monastery before being taken in by some of the knights that found us.
"What's there to discuss then? We're here-"
"On a scholarship of sorts, yes. But I need to know, from everyone here. Are you really trying to be knights?" Byleth cut my explanation with a question of her own.
Unfortunately, Hayama decided to answer her.
"We do Professor. We want to become knights of Seiros, but today...today was just…" Hayama rolled his hands around, gesturing how truly bad today was.
Byleth nodded in agreement before she took a seat on the tent floor, sighing as she placed the stack of papers beside her.
"It was abysmal, I won't lie. But it was tough for all three of you, wasn't it?" Byleth gave us a small smile as she took out a note from a pocket of hers.
"I never want this to be done to a student, but what I have here in my hands is a way for you to escape." Instinctively, all of us paid attention to the word. My back stiffened and my ears were focusing on her next words.
"You most likely don't want to be knights, but are keeping this up as to not anger the church, correct?" Byleth tilted her head as my body deflated. Right, that was what she meant.
"Professor, we truly do want to stay as knights, to protect the people of Fodlan and spread the word of Sothis!" Zaimokuza explained, his chuuni serious voice leaking through to ruin our moment.
Byleth blinked in slight shock, making me tilt my head in confusion. Were we really that obvious in heresy to surprise you?
"R-Right. So then, you wish to still be knights under my tutelage? Even with the amount of blood, death, and violence you'll see in the future? Are you sure you don't want to go home to your families?" Byleth once more asked us, a small hint of worry in her voice.
I looked at the other two, wondering if we should really take this free chance to leave.
Unfortunately, they both looked at me as if I knew what we needed. That stupid handsome blondie and fat freaking child.
I covered my eyes with hand-we had a chance to leave, but we'd be stuck in a world even more unfamiliar than Gareg Mach. We would, quite literally, be homeless.
Our families? They were on another planet-we had no home. As sad as it may be, Gareg Mach was our home in Fodlan. It was the only place we all had any meaningful connection to, alongside the abuse we've done to the resources provided.
"Sorry professor, but you're going to be stuck with us-we won't be leaving." I made sure to smile at her, even when I knew my eyes looked beadier than usual. Hayama and Zaimokuza nodded to my answer, signing our fates to be further traumatized and abused by the damned school.
Byleth sighed once more before rising, collecting her papers as she pocketed her note.
"As admirable as you all are trying to be, you're not cut out for this." With eyes of sorrow, she left our tent without her usual exuberance.
No we aren't, but we had to make do with what we had. And all we had was the knowledge to throw someone across a field with a portal.
"I'm going to sleep." Hayama sighed as he rubbed his eyes, taking a bag from the corner before settling in just inches above my own bag. Oi, give me some space!
"Hayama, sleep with your hands curled up. It...helps." Zaimokuza awkwardly advised as he fell back into his own bag.
"Ah, thank you Zaimokuza." Hayama nodded as he too went inside his bag, leaving me alone to be awake for who knows how long.
…
"Alright, I'll be outside." I rolled my eyes as I too made my escape from the tent, my blanket in tow as I stepped outside into the cold night. It was late, my brain obviously deduced. I trekked my body away from the tents and approached the small grove of trees across the encampment. If I wanted any chance to sleep, I would have to use up all of my magic and energy before I could even think to do so.
Fortunately for me, I had a lot of pent up aggression to unleash, non-combat magic be damned.
A small hare ran across from me, and with a pitiful sigh I used the maximum amount of magic I could use on a healing spell before casting my hand towards the hare's direction.
Instinct let me calculate the mana dispersion within activation, the focus of the spell needed, and the incantation.
"Recover." I chanted blandly, catching the hare in its tracks as it stopped. It squeaked before it collapsed, causing me to groan.
That wasn't even a fifth of my reserves! Come on Hare-kun, just walk the excess magic off.
"Squeeeeeeee." The pitiful noises from the hare gave me pause, my face surely frowning even more so. Was that...a cry of pain? Did I accidentally misfire somehow?
Jogging to the hare's position, what greeted me was something that once more today, made me dry heave.
The hare's body was misshapen, clumps of flesh building up around it that made the animal look like it was a sack of rocks. Blood pooled from its lips as something exploded from inside it, causing it to suffer slowly from the pain.
"What the hell?" I coughed out, cringing at the sight. What kind of magical bullshit is this? I just wanted to waste energy and get some sleep!
With a glance away, I hovered my hand over the hare before softly chanting "Fire."
The brief smell of delicious meat made me wince as the hare was turned to ashes. Today was just the worst.
"Hachiman?" I groaned at the familiar voice of Edelgard coming from behind me. Turning around, I saw the empress look at the ash-laden ground in surprise. Sure, go ahead and complain about the injustice of killing small animals.
"What? Shouldn't the princess be getting her beauty sleep?"
Edelgard gave Hachiman a flat look, adjusting a strand of hair behind her ear as she crossed her arms.
"And shouldn't you be sleeping? You were drained of your magic, weren't you?" Edelgard shook her head while Hachiman snorted, as if he heard a funny joke.
"I'll have you know that I'm already at full. Thus no sleep is needed." Is that so?
"Yet you'll stay up and worsen your eyes, is that it? Or are you trying to use all your magic so you could go to sleep?" Edelgard giggled as Hachiman shot off a weak heal at a tree, his annoyance becoming palpable to her. Edelgard gave her fellow peer a smile as she walked closer, unsheathing a sword from her waist before pointing it at Hachiman.
"You know if you're going to kill me, you should have done that when I was looking away." He rolled his eyes as he took the iron sword, adjusting his grip on the pommel.
Edelgard sighed as she took out a hatchet from her back, twirling it around her hand as she prepared a strike.
"Always thinking of those rotten thoughts still? As you should know, I am merely wanting to train with you. I...heard what happened from Dorothea. Are you-"
"I'm fine." Hachiman interjected, frustration seeping into his tone. Edelgard sighed, expecting the response.
"Not fine enough if you're murdering small animals in your anger apparently."
"Oh quiet you. You killed several of those bandits-what's one small animal compared to that?" Hachiman glared at her, but brought his sword. Smiling Edelgard held back some of her strength as she smashed the hatchet towards Hachiman's heart. In a quick motion, Hachiman met her strike, sparks flying as the two tried to vie for dominance.
Stepping back as she took her hatchet away from the block, she swung the edge at Hachiman's side, aiming to nick a rib or two. Predictably, he clumsily threw the sword to the side, hoping to block the strike. With a smirk Edelgard pulled back, swinging the hatchet in front of Hachiman before stepping forward, her weapon aiming at Hachiman's head.
She had enough strength to stop the hatchet from its tracks, but it was unnecessary for her partner had blocked the incoming strike.
"Oh? That's a surprise." Edelgard gave a single laugh as she tried to strike once more, but missed as Hachiman dodged.
"Not again." Hachiman mumbled as his tired eyes gazed at Edelgard's, his pupils straining to keep up with Edelgard's speed.
A strike to his head once more, yet it was blocked. She aimed a thrust, useless as it was but good for training-he dodged by stepping backwards before striking her arm with the flat side of the blade. Edelgard brought her arm up to block the blade, smiling at the surprised look on Hachiman's face. She felt a little guilty though-beneath her uniform laid some of the armor she wore earlier, but he didn't need to know that.
Just as Hachiman went to try and swing his sword, Edelgard aimed her hatchet to catch the sword's blade on the underside before twisting it with all of her strength.
As expected, the blade flew through the air, spinning out of sight. Edelgard turned to Hachiman to see him panting for air, his body hunched over.
"That was...cheating...hah." Hachiman gasped, his breaths labored.
"I'm sure Felix would say otherwise. 'A viable strategy' one might say." Edelgard withheld a giggle at seeing Hachiman's exasperated face.
"Does everyone know…?" Hachiman covered his face with a hand, his cheeks reddening in embarrassment.
Feeling some form of pity, she decided to lie for his sake.
"No, just all of Black Eagle." Alongside Golden Deer, and Blue Lions obviously. She was sure a couple of the girls were happy to see Felix beat another man into submission-possibly Dorothea with catharsis by proxy.
Well, before today at least.
"That's great." Hachiman drawled, sitting on the ground as he sighed. Edelgard shook her head as she sat next to him, wrapping her arms around her knees.
The two sat there for a few moments, unwilling to talk to the other.
"...Hachiman, I have to ask. Why are you at the academy? What do you hope to accomplish with Hayato and Yoshiteru?" Edelgard asked, her eyes looking at Hachiman's face.
He exhaled, before he too brought his knees up and leaned into them. Looking downward, he answered, either due to his trust in her or because he was too tired to care, Edelgard never knew.
"You probably wouldn't know what it's like, getting kidnapped from your home. To be...a prisoner here in Fodlan."
Edelgard sharply inhaled.
"I knew you weren't from Fodlan but...to that extent?"
Hachiman nodded, his eyes glaring now at the darkness of the trees beside them. His body stiffened before he took a breath.
"Yeah. That's why we're here-to see if we could go back home and find a way."
"The land of the east, yes?"
"...Correct."
Edelgard grew silent, digesting the information. He wasn't here out of his free will, but out of necessity. He couldn't leave Fodlan for some reason, and had to go to Gareg Mach to..what? Find a way to transport themselves back? Such a thing was impossible-Warp was the only known spatial magic to do such a thing, and it was created just decades prior.
Perhaps…?
"Hachiman, if you want, I can take you and the other two back to my home. You'll have all the resources there and enough support to advance any ideas that you have. Give it a year, and you'll be back to this land of the east." I reached out my hand for a handshake, hoping that he would take it. Within the year, things will change. Within the year, she would need people like Hachiman, Hayato, Yoshiteru, and the professor by her side. She would need-
Hachiman snorted as he brushed away Edelgard's hand.
"No thanks-I don't take such deals from a devil of a woman like yourself." Hachiman turned away, sulking in his little cocoon.
Edelgard sighed before she stood up, brushing away the dirt from her bottom. She really shouldn't be surprised, but she had hoped otherwise…
"I see. While a shame, I hope your future endeavors are successful Hachiman. I'm sure you'll be able to go back home." Edelgard smiled at her peer for a moment before walking back to camp, content for the time being.
"One year." Hachiman said aloud.
Edelgard looked back. "What?"
"After one year, and if we still haven't found a way home, I'll think about your offer." Hachiman grumbled, picking himself up as he began to walk back.
Edelgard's eyes widened before nodding once in agreement.
"I'll accept that then. Do we have an agreement?" Edelgard once more reached out her hand before Hachiman took it, giving it a shake.
Recoiling his hand into his pocket, he sneered at her.
"I thought you would have said something like 'Ah he touched me-I would forever have to wash this hand.' or something."
Edelgard laughed as she raised her hand up, wiggling her fingers.
"I have gloves on, or were you perving on my hands enough to believe my skin was this smooth?"
Hachiman gave her a look of disgust, causing Edelgard to laugh once more. Hachiman really was so amusing.
Within minutes, the two were back at the encampment, bidding the other in farewell before separating. Though she was calm, Edelgard felt a form of giddiness in her body, finally feeling successful in something.
Just a year more.
She was almost at the starting line of it all.