(A/N: Always assume that if Edelgard's talking to Thales alone, she's wearing the Flame Emperor outfit. Saying that as a blanket statement is easier than saying 'she was wearing armor' every time. /shrugs/)

Edelgard met with Thales again near the start of the month. She wanted to keep this short—recent events made it harder for her to come and go without notice. Her luck and excuses would run out eventually.

"What do you want now?"

Thales frowned. "Don't be so forward with me. I have more things to do than you, I'd imagine." He paused for a moment, then continued. "The Death Knight is still under your command, correct?"

"Yes, he is. Why do you ask?"

"I was wondering if I might…borrow him. I have work I need to do, and I think he will carry it out nicely."

"Would you mind sharing what your 'work' is?"

He didn't answer, smiling coldly instead. "You will see, girl. I have far greater plans than what you could even dream of."

"I doubt that. I haven't yet seen a plan of yours that went perfectly."

"I would say that could be said of you as well."

"I'm still in the academy, aren't I? Still hidden from everyone else? The knights are searching for the people who stole the Sword of the Creator; if this 'plan' of yours fails—"

Thales laughed her off. "I don't need your protests. Everything always goes to plan. Everything that happens will be to our advantage in the end. Save your concern for your classmates and professors."

Edelgard sighed. They could solve a lot of trouble if he heard himself sometimes.

"…I suppose you can use the Death Knight," Edelgard decided after a moment. She looked Thales in the eye and frowned, even if he couldn't see it through her mask. "Just don't make me regret it."

He took a step back, smiling again. "Thank you for your cooperation."

She could guess easily enough that Thales wanted the Death Knight for a specific purpose. Edelgard relayed the order back to the weapons instructor, including where Thales wanted to meet with him. She wasn't given any further details about what Thales needed, not from the man himself or Jeritza.

A week into the new month, and she didn't take a step out of her room without noticing the murmurs. Rumors of a man called the Death Knight; some students seemed worried for those who had left the monastery the day before, if not themselves. Many of the Knights of Seiros had left to pursue those who stole the Sword of the Creator—a few students were more perceptive of the lowered protection than others.

Edelgard went about her morning as she would have otherwise, noticing the differences. The dining hall was quieter than usual, and similarly not many people spoke in the classroom. The bell rang for the official start of classes without Manuela coming in.

There were papers on Manuela's desk specifically for if she was late—things Edelgard could to do pass the time and get some work done—due to some previous days where their professor hadn't come at the start of the school day. Edelgard waited another minute or two before looking through them a bit more, and followed their instruction.

Manuela came after Edelgard had marked the names of everyone who was present. Her professor cast her a thankful smile, and Edelgard took her spot at her own seat while Manuela went to the front.

After briefly glancing over the attendance, Manuela nodded and looked at the students.

"First of all, I apologize for the long wait," she said. "Professor Jeritza took an…impromptu vacation, it looks like, and some unrelated trouble happened as well. Hanneman and I had to sort that out before we could come to our classes."

One student spoke up, unashamed by the interruption but still cautious. "Does it have anything to do with the guy who's been going around town at night? That Death Knight person?"

"There is no evidence that anything like that has happened," Manuela assured him and the rest of the class. She briefly sorted through a few papers and sat some aside. "Now, your initial mission for this month was to accompany the knights to look for the Heroes' Relic that was stolen last month. Considering some more recent circumstances, however, all classes have been asked to look around the monastery."

"Why's that?" A single student asked, but many others echoed the sentiment.

Edelgard had a fairly good idea already, only coming closer to certainty with Manuela's reply.

"You've all seen or met Seteth's younger sister, Flayn? She hasn't been seen since last night. It's very unlikely that anything happened—"

The classroom cut her off before she could assure them of anything. The fear of a rumored figure caused most of the room to fall into panic, if not for Flayn's safety than for their own. Manuela's ways to get them to quiet down didn't work—Edelgard silently stood to make her own attempt, and all of them took notice. She seemed to intimidate them more than their professor, needing no words and simply reminding them she was there.

Once the room was completely silent again, the manic fear past, Edelgard sat down again.

"As I tried to say," Manuela tried again, frowning, "It's only been a day. Seteth is very close to and protective of Flayn—there's a good chance that you'll still be accompanying the knights this month as planned. I'm sure she'll come back safe and fine in a couple of hours."

Edelgard couldn't tell if it was a genuine belief, or something said to put the students at ease. Regardless, many of those who burst into chaos earlier fell silent and looked more assured; those who weren't swayed by Manuela's words grew a bit calmer after hearing similar things from their friends.

"One last thing," Manuela said. "Due to Professor Jeritza's absence, we still need to determine how to manage his classes. You kids will have the day off while me, Hanneman, and Lady Rhea figure out how to make due without him, and what we'll do in similar situations going forward."

There were a few celebratory cheers and disappointed sighs, then Manuela officially dismissed them for the day. Manuela left alongside the students, leaving Edelgard and Hubert as the only two students in the classroom after mere minutes.