(A/N: This chapter might be a little confusing because it changes views several times. First part is Claude, then Dimitri, then it ends off with Edelgard. Sorry for the confusion, but all sections follow the same idea, and I wanted to give some non-Edelgard/Byleth focus.)

The mages all disappeared within five minutes of being given the order. The students were given a metaphorical pat on the back and told they could rest for however long they wanted, it being considered their mission for the month.

Claude, for one, went to the monastery gates; most of the other students opted to clean up, maybe get something to eat, then sleep off the excitement, assuming they didn't opt to pray instead. His visit was partly to think, partly to wait for a certain person.

Edelgard had left early in the morning for 'investigation purposes,' after all, but said she'd be back to pray. It wouldn't hurt to check in with her when she came back.

The leader of the Black Eagle house returned about thirty minutes after the battle ended. Hubert walked a few steps behind and to the right of her, scowling as per usual; Edelgard herself looked like she was thinking about something. Both of them noticed Claude as soon as they entered.

He waited to talk to them until they started walking up the steps. "So, where have you two been?"

"Outside of town," Edelgard replied simply. "We saw a few mages that looked like the ones from before and followed them, but we didn't manage to catch any." She actually looked at him and asked, "Did something happen while we were gone?"

He accepted that reasoning—even if they didn't look like they'd been walking for any more than fifteen minutes. Still, Claude did answer her question. It would be rude not to, after all.

"I'm sure you can guess. Me, Dimitri, and some other students saw a few mages in the Holy Mausoleum. They're all gone now."

"Did they manage to take anything?" Edelgard asked, reaching the top of the stairs. She seemed…more evaluating than usual, probably trying to read his expression for any signs of dishonesty. Not like she wouldn't just fact-check with any other student there once they were done talking; he's seen her do it before. She seemed to really like confirming everything.

"Rhea's still performing the rite, so I don't know if it's supposed to be hush-hush," Claude explained nonetheless, lowering his voice a little, "But one mage opened Seiros's casket. There weren't any bones, though—just a sword. Kind of looked like a Hero's Relic, but I wasn't close enough to tell."

"A Relic, hiding in what should be the tomb of a saint?" Hubert mused. "Interesting. I'm curious to see how this is handled."

Edelgard nodded after a moment's consideration. "Thank you for telling me, Claude." She offered a little wave out of courtesy. "We'll be going now, to make sure Professor Manuela knows we returned."

"See you later, then."

The dark duo left not a second later. Claude watched them leave for a little bit, and sighed when they went out of sight.

Something about this just…didn't sit right with him.

Dimitri tried his best to help the knights in whatever way he could. By the time Rhea left the Goddess Tower with Seteth and Flayn, almost everyone in the monastery had heard some variation of the battle. News spread quickly when a place like this felt unsafe.

After a while, the knights insisted they had everything under control. Dimitri was on his way to the dining hall when Claude approached him.

"Hey, Dimitri!" Upon hearing friendly voice, Dimitri paused and offered a nod of greeting. "Have a minute or two? I wanted to talk about a few things."

"I'm not busy," Dimitri replied.

Claude put on some kind of smile. "Good; then I don't have to rush. First things first—you know Edelgard better than I do, right?"

He paused for a moment to decide how to answer. "I briefly knew her in the past," Dimitri decided to say, "But that was several years ago. She's changed since then, in more ways than one."

Claude didn't seem to want that answer, but still accepted it. "All right. She was gone for the entire length of the battle—just trying to see if I could figure out why. Trying to decide if it was a coincidence, or if she'd have a reason to avoid it."

"You could ask her directly," Dimitri pointed out.

"I have a feeling she wouldn't tell me even if I did ask. But I'd be willing to say I could just be overthinking things." He shrugged, maintaining nonchalance. "But on another note—the battle itself. I heard they're not going to bother hiding it."

"It may be more accurate to say that the church doesn't want to trouble the guests and students with a secret," Dimitri suggested.

"I guess it would be a bigger problem if the church tried to hide it and someone let it slip," Claude mused. He paused for a moment, glancing at the dining hall. "Oh, it looks like it's about dinner time already. Huh." Turning back towards Dimitri, he said, "Wanna join me? There's something else I want to talk about too, and I want to hear if Edelgard has any thoughts on it."

Dimitri nodded, having no protests.

Edelgard didn't expect to be asked if she would eat with the other two house leaders. She accepted—she had no excuse not to—but she determined the reason quickly enough. Claude never waited very long to start up his conversations.

"I'm not sure if you heard," he said, looking at Edelgard, "But there was someone else other than mages there."

"The Flame Emperor," Dimitri recalled with a frown.

Claude nodded. "He looked like he was commanding them. Think he's the guy that's been sending mages after the students?"

She didn't want to let them go too far, nor was she willing to have herself be so closely associated with those people. It would be ideal if she could deter them without drawing attention to herself.

"It's a bit early to speculate, isn't it?" Edelgard suggested. "This was the first time this…'Flame Emperor' appeared. He could be a mercenary, a general, or someone completely unrelated."

"He seemed confident that we would cross paths, at least," Dimitri mused.

Claude paused a moment before agreeing. She knew he was watching her in that brief silence. "I might just be getting ahead of myself, but I know there's more to the guy than what we saw today."

She wondered, for a moment, if there would a time when she did reveal such information with them. By then, however, meals like this would be a laughable idea.

…Perhaps it already was, in a way. Full honesty was already a nigh-foreign concept.