From weeks turned months. Within those months, news about Chrom's death reached the village where Olivia and Inigo stay. Olivia was shocked about this news.
'This can't be real. It's impossible.' Olivia thought. 'Exalt Chrom can't be beaten like that, especially if Robin's with him... Robin's the greatest tactician I've ever known. How could she fail? What happened? How could everything go wrong?
Olivia can't answer her questions. So does Virion and Cherche when they visited her again. Olivia was shocked to see the couple look weary and sad. Especially Virion. The charming, noble rogue is gone, replaced by a serious man who is angry at the world. Seeing a changed Virion made Inigo nervous and he decided to stay in his room.
Virion shakes his head. "... When Robin refused to accept to become Grima's vessel, she and Exalt Chrom were surrounded with a magic barrier created by Validar. Even with my sharp eyes, I could not see through the barrier. Nor I dare charge through it when a fight for survival is happening..."
When Virion never continued, Cherche did it for him. "After the barrier vanished... We saw Exalt Chrom lying on the ground, while Robin was on her knees and her head on the ground. Both are not moving... Virion then told Frederick to command everyone to retreat."
"It was a wrong decision." Virion as he controlled his anger. "I should have said to retrieve their bodies before retreating."
Cherche looks at her husband with disapproval. "No, it's not. You knew the battle is lost and trying to take their bodies will result to more casualties."
But Virion refuses to be comforted with her words, even though she's right. "Yet it is still wrong. And Plegia insulted Ylisse by sending the Falchion back, but not the bodies of Chrom and Robin." Virion stands up. "I'm sorry for insulting your hospitality with my foul mood, Olivia. It's better if we leave right away... We need to go back to Rosanne, attend to my subjects before helping Ylisse."
Olivia is surprised of Virion's sudden burst and decision. "O-okay... But what of your son?"
"Lucina needs a friend to help her. Among the other children, Gerome is a better companion."
Before the couple left, Virion turned to Olivia. "Remember our warnings. Be careful. Bandits are getting bolder even with the threat of Risen attacks."
As Olivia watches them fly away, she can't help but worry about the latest threat, about the dead walking again called Risen.
...
"Mother! C'mon! Let's hurry!" said a merry and excited Inigo as he pulls Olivia's hand. "I can't wait to meet the others!"
Olivia laughs. "Okay, okay. Can't you see I'm trying to hurry?" For a year, Olivia's advice to Inigo was successful. From his first success, Inigo continued to talk with any girl he meets. She's so happy and proud to see her shy boy filled with confidence now. Lon'qu would also be proud, if only he's here to see his son right now...
"Mother!" Inigo interrupts Olivia's musings. "Look, girls!" he adds as he pointed at a small group of mothers with their daughters. Inigo hurries his steps, with Olivia in tow.
Reaching the group, Inigo puts up a brave front before greeting them. "Hello! It's a fine day, but finer still when such beauties are present." The girls giggle and the mothers chuckle, pleased to be praised by a young boy.
One of the mothers faces Olivia. "Olivia, your son is such a sweet boy."
Olivia blushes with pleasure. "Thank you."
Another mother speaks to her. "My daughter and I watched your performances and they're so beautiful! You inspired my little girl to become a dancer. Can you give us a performance, even a little?"
Olivia is taken by surprise of the request. "H-huh? Now?" she blushes in embarrassment and turns her eyes away. "Oh, but I'm not prepared. And maybe I'll just flail my arms and skip..."
The little girl pleads. "Can you show us a dance, please?"
The other mothers and daughters began pleading to Olivia to give them a dance. Inigo, too, wanted Olivia to dance. "Mother, please dance. I want to see you dance!"
Olivia continues to blush. "Ohhh... But. This is so embarrassing! Ohh!" she goes behind Inigo, acting like a child hiding from prying eyes.
Inigo is blushing with embarrassment, too. "Mother! You're embarrassing both of us!"
"Why don't you dance for them, Inigo?"
"What? Me!? Dance in front of them!? But Mother, you're the dancer. And they want you to dance."
"But I taught you most of my dances. You can perform them."
"Mother-"
Screams interrupt Inigo. Olivia, Inigo, and the small group look where the shouts came from. They could see people running and screaming. One man came to them. "Run for your lives! Bandits!" he said before leaving. The mothers started to grab their daughters and flee for their lives.
Olivia, too, grabs Inigo's hand and flees. She passes through alley ways while avoiding danger, until she finds the path that leads home. She is about to run to it when two bandits block her way. The first bandit wields an axe, the second an iron sword. With mother's instinct, Olivia puts Inigo behind her and bravely faces the bandits.
The bandit holding a sword chuckles. "Well, well. Look what we got here. What a pretty little filly. How about we have a little fun? Don't worry, the boy can stay behind and watch."
His companion snickers. "Yeah. If you don't obey, we'll kill the boy."
The bandit made the mistake of threatening to kill Inigo. The uneasiness Olivia feels vanishes. "Don't you dare harm my son!" she said in an angry tone. She finds a tree branch near her foot and picks it up. Holding the end of the branch with two hands, she puts it in front of her like a sword. "Inigo." she said without removing her eyes from the bandits. "I want you to find a safe place to hide."
"But, Mother..."
"Don't worry. I'll be okay. Just go, Inigo."
"... Be careful, Mother." Inigo finds an empty stall and quickly goes to it. After going behind the stall, he takes a peak to check on Olivia. He sees she remains as she is, ready for combat. Inigo keeps on worrying for his mother. Mother is delicate, kind, and gentle, not meant for fighting bad guys like today. Also, she's using a tree branch, not a sword. But seeing how serious Mother looks and knowing how quick she is, Inigo puts his hopes that she'll win and be safe.
Olivia conditions her mind and body to stay alert and be ready. She studies the bandits as they slowly close in and encircle her. She knew she's at a disadvantage, but as what Lon'qu taught her, she must use her speed to dodge and initiate an attack. The bandit holding a sword is on her right, and she could feel the second bandit is behind her. And she feels the motion of the bandit behind her moving to strike her down. Before the axe lands, Olivia sidesteps, twists her body, spins, and smacks the bandit on his back before facing the bandits again. As the bandit staggers, his companion attacks. He's too slow and Olivia dodges his attack, then retaliates by striking his face twice before retreating.
The bandits grit their teeth in pain. They look and nod at each other before facing Olivia again. Together, they raise their weapons and charge at Olivia. Olivia waits for them to attack. Again, she dodges their attacks by side-stepping the bandit wielding the sword. Then she brings down her tree branch, striking the bandit's hands. The bandit yelps in pain and drops his sword. Quickly, Olivia picks it up before keeping her distance and throwing away the tree branch. Now she has a decent weapon.
Olivia never lets her guard down. She continues to pose a battle stance. She looks determined, but at the same time, bothered. "You guys better leave this place. If you don't, I-I'll be forced to kill, even if I don't want to."
The bandits are troubled because they can't land a blow on Olivia. The disarmed bandit thinks about what she said. He decides she's not easy to kill and he doesn't have a weapon, so he slowly retreats. His companion, however, is determined to kill Olivia. He charges at her.
Olivia has no choice. The bandit raises his arms and readies to bring down his axe, Olivia quickly moves in for the kill by slicing open his belly. The bandit drops on his knees before lying flat on his face. Witnessing his companion fall, the other bandit runs away.
Olivia looks at the fallen bandit. She sniffs, then, "I'm sorry!" she cries.
Inigo watched the whole thing. He can't believe Mother actually killed a man. But he reasoned that she has to do it or both of them will be in trouble. Inigo leaves his hiding place and runs to Olivia. "Mother!" he calls out.
Olivia looks at Inigo, drops the sword she's holding, and opens her arms. Mother and son hug each other.
"Mother!" Inigo looks at Olivia with shining eyes. "You're alright! And wow! You're amazing! Not only you can dance, you can fight, too!"
Olivia gives Inigo a watery smile. "Y-You think so?"
Inigo nods. "Uh-huh."
"Oh, thanks." Olivia wears a worried look. "But, you shouldn't have seen what I did." she looks at the dead bandit and sniffs before facing Inigo again. "I really feel bad killing anyone. Lon'qu would keep on reminding me that it's either to kill or be killed, especially in war." she becomes serious. "But if anyone will ever hurt you, I'll gladly do it again." she hugs him again.
They separate when some armed male villagers come to them. Learning that Olivia killed in self-defense, they told her to return home and recuperate. Olivia is grateful and holds Inigo's hand as they walk towards home.
...
After the bandit incident, things are not the same again. Day and night, the male villagers roam the streets and borders. Olivia continues Inigo's schooling and training, and at the same time, dance to earn a living.
As the years passed, Inigo learns all of Olivia's fighting style and most of her dancing routines. But the uneventful happened...
One late afternoon, Olivia is about to teach Inigo the final steps when she notices black smoke coming from the village.
"Mother, what do you think is happening?" Inigo asks as he also notices the smoke.
"I think the village is under attack." she goes to a cupboard, takes out a killer edge, and goes to the front door. She notices that Inigo is following her, so she faces him. "Inigo, I'm going to help the villagers."
"I'll come with you, Mother."
"No. You stay here." Olivia firmly said.
Inigo worries. "But, Mother. I want to help you. I can fight. Let me come with you."
"No. You're still too young to fight. And knowing you're safe makes me feel at ease. Don't worry, I'll be okay. After this, we'll continue our lesson, okay?"
Still worried, Inigo slowly nods his head. "Okay."
"Good. Oh, wait." she goes back to the cupboard, takes out another killer edge, and gives it to Inigo. "Take this in case bad guys come here. Remember the hiding places I showed you. If bad guys found you, you run first before you fight. Okay?"
"... Okay."
Olivia kisses Inigo's forehead and gives him a gentle smile. "Keep safe, Inigo. Remember, I love you." she stands up and opens the door.
Inigo stays where he stands, watching with worried and wide eyes. "Be careful, Mother!" he said.
Olivia looks at him and gives a reassuring smile. After that, she turns her back to him and closes the door behind her.
To Inigo, what Mother did just now is like what Father did when he leaves.
...
Olivia arrives in the village to see some houses burning, some villagers running for their lives and fending off bandits with strange skin color. A bandit charges at her. Olivia unsheathed her sword and stabs the bandit in the stomach. After killing the bandit that turned into smoke, she realized Risens have come to attack the village. Without wondering how they came, Olivia continues to fight.
The battle lasted for two hours. Olivia looks on as surviving villagers gather dead villagers. She's tired from the fighting, but at least the village is safe again. She has nothing to do here, she better go back home and check on Inigo.
As Olivia turns her back, she never notices a Risen notches his arrow and points it at her. A few villagers see this and start shouting warnings at Olivia. Puzzled, Olivia turns just in time to see the arrow flying towards her. Too tired to react fast, Olivia could do is watch in horror as the arrow pierces her heart.
'Inigo...' Olivia closes her eyes and gently falls like a pink orchid that detaches from its stem, coloring the snow-covered ground with her life.
...
"What's keeping Mother so long?" wonders Inigo as he continues to sit on a chair and checking outside the window that faces the village. No bandits arrive at the house, so Inigo didn't hide, but he holds the killer edge close to him with confidence of his fighting skills. He keeps on worrying for Mother. It's almost dusk and the black smoke is long gone, still she hasn't come home yet.
His nervousness also makes him thirsty. He gets down from his seat, passes the small dining hall, and goes to the kitchen. After quenching his thirst, Inigo goes back to resume his vigil. But a gentle knock sounded at the front door.
Thinking it's Mother, the excited Inigo hurries. Reaching the door, he quickly opens it. "Mother!" he happily greets. His happy face turns into surprise when he sees that it's not Olivia standing in front of him. It's the Elder who visited before, and with him are two young men. And they look sorrowful.
Confused, Inigo searches for Olivia but he didn't find her. He faces the Elder. "Hello, Elder. What are you doing here? And is Mother with you?" he asks. "She should be home now."
The two men standing behind the Elder bow their heads. The Elder sorrowfully shakes his head. "I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, son. But... Your mother... She's gone. I'm sorry."
Inigo mistaken what the Elder means. "Huh? Gone where? Where did Mother go, Elder? I'll go there."
"No son... What I mean is... Your mother is dead."
The news shocks Inigo. "D-Dead? B-But that can't be! Mother can't be dead! She can fight those bandits without getting hurt!"
The Elder never bothered to correct Inigo. "We know. If she haven't helped, most of the villagers will be dead. But we never saw it coming. A bandit shot her with an arrow and it hits her heart."
'To kill instantly, you pierce the head and heart.' Inigo remembers what Mother taught him. His mother is hit in the heart, that means she died instantly. Still, Inigo denies the truth. "NO! You lie! She can't be dead! She's fast! She can dodge! She can't be easily hit by an arrow!" he angrily shouts at the three adults. When the adults stay silent, Inigo bursts into tears.
The adults give Inigo some time before the Elder gently puts a gnarled hand on Inigo's shoulder. "Come, son. We'll lead you to your mother." the Elder guides a crying Inigo back to the village.
...
Night came, the village is in mourning. The Elder leads Inigo to a small cottage where a small throng of sad people stands outside. Seeing the Elder and Inigo, they slowly parted to let them through.
The door closes behind the Elder and Inigo. Inside the room are three women and a female Elder. The women surrounds a table covered with white cloth. Beneath the cloth is a shape of an adult female. The female Elder comes near Inigo and guides him towards the table. She lets Inigo stand on a stool. The crying Inigo is looking down on the cloth with the shape of a head. The Elders squeeze his shoulder gently before signaling the women to pull down the cloth. The cloth is pulled down to reveal a head whom Inigo recognizes. It's his mother, Olivia.
Inigo sniffs, looking at his mother with stricken eyes. She looks so beautiful and peaceful, like she's only sleeping. "M-Mother..." he calls out softly. "Mother... You're just sleeping, right? Wake up, Mother... Let's go home... You have to teach me your final dance... Wake up, Mother... Please, wake up... Mother..." he hugs Olivia's shoulders and buries his head on her neck, never minding how cold she is.
"Mother! Mother! Why!? You can't be dead!" Inigo said between heart-wrenching sobs. "You can't be dead! Why!? Why did you leave!? Father's gone and now you!? Mother, please wake up! Mother! You can't leave me! Please don't leave me! Mother! MOTHER!"
Inigo continues to cry until he falls asleep. The adults have to pry his arms from his tight hold on Olivia, and carry him to a bed.