With the situation concerning the Death Knight taken care of, many of the students seemed more at ease. Jeritza was implicated in the whole ordeal with Flayn—Edelgard received a letter from Arundel explaining that Jeritza hadn't been near that territory in a while, and no one from House Hrym had seen him either. Until proven otherwise, he would be assumed to have something to do with Flayn's disappearance and would be considered a wanted criminal.
They weren't any classes for the rest of the month to allow Manuela, Flayn, and the other girl—Monica, as Hanneman told her—time to recover. All three had some form of injuries, or had otherwise been kept in that space for nearly two weeks. The last time anyone saw Monica, it seemed, was at the end of the previous school year.
Edelgard looked over some papers in the Black Eagles' classroom; she offered to help Manuela grade a few things, and her professor accepted the assistance. Hubert watched anyone walking past the window, likely scaring them in the process. There weren't many more things left to grade at this point, so there wasn't anything she could ask him to do.
Just as she got to the last paper, Hubert moved from his spot. She looked up to see Monica standing at the doorway, visibly unsteady but determined.
"May I speak with you, Your Highness?" Monica asked, her voice wavering some. Only a few days had passed since she was discovered, and only recently was she considered well enough to wander.
"You should rest," Edelgard replied, shaking her head. "Whatever it is can wait until you've fully recovered."
Monica took a single step farther into the room. "Please, I just want one moment of your time. I've been under the watch of strange people since the end of last year. I know you have plans greater than this—I can help!"
Edelgard paused, but after a moment she gestured the fellow student further inside. Monica gave her a grateful look, and Hubert closed the door behind her.
"First," she said, bowing, "As you might have heard, I am Monica von Ochs. I was a student last year, but was kidnapped before I could graduate."
When she stood straight again, she continued. "Those people who took me—they were mages. I was stuck in a place with no knowledge of where I was located. I overheard things while there; I was to be used for some kind of dark ritual, if not as leverage to manipulate my family should that fail. The Knights of Seiros came and killed most of my attackers, but one mage brought me back to the monastery when their original plan couldn't be fulfilled, thinking I would succumb to my own wounds shortly thereafter. I know things that can help you."
"What do you claim to know?" Hubert asked darkly. Edelgard knew by the way he held himself that he was prepared to remove a threat. Regardless of Monica's intentions, even so little as a mention to knowing their goals was enough to warrant some kind of watchful gaze.
"They talked, quite often, about a Flame Emperor," Monica recalled confidently. "The woman meant to take my place even said the name 'Edelgard,' once, and some of the mages spoke about the imperial princess—how she fought with them because she needed their power, but swore outright she would still endeavor to end them once their use ran out. I'm aware you're working with them to some degree, at least."
Neither of them showed any signs if she was right or wrong. Monica frowned and carried on.
"I also know," she maintained, "Some version of what you hope for. You want to remove both the church's corrupted ideals and the kind of people that trapped me for so many months. Nothing seems like a nobler goal in my mind."
"What makes you think those supposed goals are so worthy?" Edelgard asked. She was both curious and cautious; she hesitated to trust her, even if having another ally was an appealing thought.
"I have been waiting for my death for months," Monica replied simply, looking right at her. "I didn't even know how long I had been there until Professor Hanneman told me when I first awoke. When you wait for that long, you begin to wonder if anyone would ever come; after realizing that you're ready to die, you start to hate the people that will cut your life short."
She frowned, carrying on a bit darker, "The knights didn't come because they wanted to rescue me. After they killed my captures, the first thing one said was 'it looks like that Relic isn't here.' They did nothing as one last mage came behind me, took me somewhere else, then bled dry. The first people I saw outside of my captures, and they didn't even care if I was injured or trapped; they barely even acknowledged I was there. I got stuck in the crossfire and nearly died because of it."
Edelgard understood, to some extent. No matter what, Monica seemed to know Edelgard's intentions and must have gone to her first. That allowed for some measure of trust, if not simple tolerance. A quick glance towards Hubert assured her that it wasn't misplaced, although he did not looked pleased per se.
"And you would follow that logic, based on your observations?" Edelgard asked. "You believe in those ideals?"
"If you truly wish to do things that men like those spoke ill of," Monica said, lowering herself into a kneeling position, "Then I will follow you without question, Your Highness. I will help you in whatever way my humble skills can."
"Very well. For now, you are an ally."
There was a moment of silence until Monica stood, more assured of herself now, and the solemnity wore off after another second.
"Get some rest," Edelgard repeated, "And keep this to yourself if you wish to remain among the living."
"I will, Your Highness. Thank you."
When Monica left, Hubert didn't even accept a nod before he followed after her—an unspoken agreement to watch her for any signs of deceit. Edelgard finished grading papers, then opted to leave the monastery. She knew Hubert would find a way to ask him if she didn't; some time would be spared if she just went now.
…
Thales frowned when he saw her. "I didn't expect you to come. You should've given me a warning."
As per usual, she didn't bother entertaining small talk. "I want to confirm some things with you," Edelgard said firmly. "I knew you had someone hiding in some location or another. You never said what you would do to them, just that you had 'plans.'"
He didn't directly answer. "That. You don't need to explain—I know that noble girl returned. Consider it an unforeseen boon for your goals; she seems quite determined to stand by your side."
"You aren't concerned?"
"It doesn't matter if one experiment ran away," Thales replied, smiling coldly. "You're still here, and you can't be rid of us until you've been rid of them. A puppet cannot so easily cut its strings."
"I am no puppet of yours, Thales. I made that clear when we agreed to this."
"We will see. Your family does quite well in obeying orders."
Edelgard wished she didn't have to wait so long until she could finally be done with the man. She didn't enjoy it whenever he sounded so satisfied.
(A/N: With Monica's introduction, things start slowing down a bit. There will be less fight-fight-fight and a little more character interactions. Both Monica and the timing of the chapters are the reasons for this.
Nonetheless, I hope you've been enjoying this so far!)
