Chapter 11: Side Project

"Enter." Seteth's voice called out from the other side of the door, Goetia advanced into the room. The green haired man looked up from his paperwork and raised an inquisitive eyebrow when he saw who it was who had arrived "Goetia? I assume you have a reason to seek me out?"

"You assume correctly." Goetia nodded his head and shut the door "I am here on a matter regarding the upcoming monthly assignment of the Golden Deer house."

"Ah yes." Seteth nodded as he set down the parchment he was reading "The request from Riverside. Displacement of Demonic Beasts if I recall correctly, to what end does this interest you?"

"I have come seeking permission to accompany the Golden Deer house on their expedition." Goetia bluntly stated, Seteth's other eyebrow rose to meet its counterpart further atop his forehead.

"Oh? For what reason?"

"Curiosity." The tanned man replied "If it is elaboration you seek I shall oblige, creatures of more mystical origins were present in my homeland. I was simply curious as to potential similarities and differences between the two. The mission that was assigned to the Golden Deer's merely presented an opportunity for me to take advantage of."

"You request permission to accompany them out of a scientific curiosity then." Seteth summarised and nodded his head "I do not need to remind you of your obligations to the Church's library. This would not be a short trip, it is expected to take at least three days."

"Tomas has agreed to allow my departure, provided I received your permission prior." Goetia replied "I have also agreed to forfeit my allocated pay for the days I am not present."

"Hmmm." Seteth put on a thoughtful expression as he mulled over the words "I assume you realise this mission is to test the capabilities of the students."

"My interference would be kept to a minimal." He replied "I have already spoken with Professor Manuela and have agreed to only act if she believes it necessary."

Seteth narrowed his eyes "I suppose your reason to go is purely out of scientific study and not out of an overprotective concern for a recently acquired pupil."

"You need not be vague, I have made no effort to hide my tutoring of Lysithea." Goetia replied, his expression remaining fixed "I also have faith in her natural talent to survive the ordeal. Although on the possibility that she attempts to utilise the spells I have been teaching her, I would prefer to be present to ensure that the results were not overtly dangerous to herself or the others present. Such an outcome would be unfortunate."

He would lose a potential subject of study and the girl have become a common variable in his routine. It would be...Problematic if her attempt at casting runes incorrectly resulted in the painful and explosive death of herself and her classmates.

"...Very well." Seteth nodded after a few moments "I will allow you to accompany the Golden Deer on their mission." he narrowed his eyes at Goetia "But I will be reading the report that Manuela will provide me at the end of the mission. If it comes to light that you have abused the trust I and the Archbishop have placed in you I will be most displeased."

"Naturally." Goetia nodded his head "I will take my leave of you."

"Good day to you, Goetia." Seteth bid him farewell as the tanned man left the room, Goetia walked out of the rather open room and towards the staircase.

Lysithea had seemed distracted, she had arrived like she had every other day during a free period after her class ended and taken out a book to study on, however it was clear to Goetia that she was only paying a modicum of attention to the literature.

Ordinarily he would have ignored her, he was busy comparing research into Crests and the ability to mix them. Although he quickly found his patience being tested with the consistent dogma of Crests being 'gifts from the Goddess' and the like. He was aware of Crests being a result of some Divine intervention, however very little in-depth research had been conducted on Crests in regards to transference or mixing.

Apparently such fields were considered to be heretical and were severely punished by the Church. Tomas had a number of works in his private collection which were enlightening on the subject. The false librarian had either believed his claim that he was merely curious or didn't care. Frankly, neither did Goetia.

It was Vexing that religious stigma had hampered progress, it was plain to him that Crests could be used for a wider array of purposes than simply upholding a caste system. Humanity disappointing him was nothing new.

He had toyed with the idea that the Archbishop and Seteth were actively preventing such fields of research in order to maintain the Churches control over the populace and the continued existence of a social hierarchy. It made the most sense, the fewer people that had Crests, the easier it was to believe that the 'Goddess herself' chose who received them.

More likely it had been a result of the Phantasmals ancestors or siblings mixing their blood with the human populace. The existence of twenty two Crests had been confirmed, meaning it had only been a small population of Phantasmals who had mixed their blood with humanity.

Perhaps experimentation on blood samples would yield-

"Teacher?" Lysithea's voice snapped him out of his musings and he realised he had been thinking while staring at her "Is something wrong?"

"No." He replied, closing the book that was in his hand and placing it back on the shelf "That is in regards to myself, Seteth has sanctioned my joining of your class on the mission to Riverside."

"Oh." Lysithea blinked and then nodded her head, cringing slightly "I...I see."

"Does this displease you?"

"No!" Her eyes widened and she waved her hands "No, it doesn't upset me! It's just that…" she bit her lip and looked down "Are you...are you accompanying us because of me?"

"No." The immediate reply made her gape at him "While the task does provide me with the opportunity to see magic of Fodlan utilised in a combat scenario, my reason in joining you is purely zoological...The study of animals." he clarified at her slightly confused expression "As I stated previously, this is an opportunity for me to observe the demonic beasts of your country."

"Did you not have them in your own?" Lysithea titled her head, looking slightly inquisitive.

"Phantasmals and their ilk were common for thousands of years and came in many shapes and forms." Goetia waved her off "Beings of magical origin are rarer than they once were however."

"Why?"

"Hunting." He replied as he took a seat opposite her "For either ingredients, trophies, stories or as a form of pest control."

"That sounds...quite barbaric." Lysithea frowned "But is they are anything like out Demonic Beasts…"

"Many were intelligent towards human standards." Lysithea's eyes widened at the claim "Goblins had their own individual tribes as did the Giants. Cultures that extended back to the creation of the first tribes of men."

"They hunted them to extinction?" Lysithea's face became more shocked "But...why?"

"Why would they not?" Goetia raised an eyebrow "Humans already treat their own race with prejudice over the purity of blood, the pigmentation of their skin, or even which patch of dirt they were born upon. If you treat your own race so poorly is it any wonder why you would treat a completely different species worse." he did pause before continuing "Not that the phantasmals were much better, there were several clans of Fae that devoted themselves to killing humans, purely for enjoyment."

"Thats...thats disgusting…" Lysithea cringed, Goetia hummed and nodded along.

"They have long since retreated to another plane." He clarified, he couldn't say that it was because mysteries were weakening as she would no doubt call him out on the fact that humans could still wield magic "It exists outside of the boundaries of this world."

She narrowed her eyes at him "Are you making fun of me?"

"Not at all. Magic is far more diverse than making fires or shooting beams from swords." He went on "The more in-depth one looks into their study of the mystic world, the more one can understand the complexity of it and its vast potential."

"Am you going to teach me about it?" She eventually asked, then deflated when Goetia shook his head at her.

"Rune Craft will take years for you to master, even at your, albeit impressive, rate of learning. Attempting to learn branches of magecraft you have never even heard of before or studied would be unfeasible." He looked her in the eye "Which is why I would suggest you devote your efforts, after learning Runecraft, to bettering the advances of the magic system you currently have. Understand the spells from their root, and make improvements. That is ultimately what the development of magecraft relies upon, invention of new spells and improvement of old."

Lysithea bit her lip and looked away "How...how long would that take?" there was a hidden meaning in her message which Goetia picked up on, but couldn't quite discern.

"Decades." He clarified, and didn't miss the way her features seemed to become dejected for a few seconds before returning to their usual blank self "However, I sense that answer is not pleasing to you."

"No…" Lysithea muttered under her breath "I-it's just that...there's so much to learn and there probably isn't enough time."

Goetia stared at her silently for a few moments before he replied "No. Imparting all my knowledge on anyone would be quite impossible. Unless they lived for centuries."

Lysithea released a mirthless snort "I suppose everyone else would be as lucky as me with time constraints."

"Indeed." Goetia nodded his head, Lysithea remained silent for a few minutes before her brows furrowed slightly.

"All magic where your from can't be based on Runes, can it?"

"No." Goetia admitted "Most Magi have more personal craft, they work on it and make improvements and then pass it down through their crest."

"Crests?" She raised an eyebrow and rolled her eyes "It's always Crests…"

"Not in the type you envisage." He replied "Magic Crests are more akin to journals. A mage will record their progress in the Crest, and then pass it onto their heir, who will have access to the knowledge and continue on with the work."

"Pass it on?" Lysithea blinked in surprise "They aren't born with them?"

"Hardly." Goetia shook his head "It would be impractical for a toddler to be in possession of centuries of knowledge in regards to spells. Most family Crests are generations old and contain a great amount of information in regards to the families unique spells and history."

"Huh." The white haired girl made a noise of surprise "So how does a person decide who to pass their Crest onto?"

"Typically the first born." Goetia remarked "Although if the first born is weaker than the younger sibling, then it will go to them."

"So its the more talented of the two?" Lysithea frowned "That doesn't sound much different from selecting an heir based on being born with a crest."

"It is more to avoid losing the Crest itself." Goetia waved off that argument "A magic Crest is linked to their Magic Circuits which is linked to the soul, thus it is grafted onto the body. The procedure is painful and if the heir isn't strong enough, fatal."

Lysithea frowned but said nothing, it made sense for the child who was best suited to carry the crest be the one to be named heir, but at the same time it seemed far too cold blooded to make a child go through that pain due to generational pressure.

"I guess nothing really changes with children being passed over because of birth rather than skill." Lysithea muttered, Goetia raised a single eyebrow.

"Biologically it makes sense, there are several species of birds who will actively kill the weakest offspring to allow the strongest to live. You only find it disturbing because you have the intelligence to recognise that a person could have value beyond birth, the bird does not." He shrugged "Still, I will admit that the human fascination with genetic strength is consistent as it is disappointing."

"Disappointing?" Lysithea crossed her arms and looked at Goetia inquisitively "Do you not approve of the Crest system, Teacher?"

Goetia looked down at her with a blank expression "To speak ill of the caste system I am currently employed in, especially as a foreigner, would be unwise. I understand the logic behind its inception, however it is wasteful in its practice. Solomon's skill at statecraft and his Kingship were not based upon his ability to fling fireballs. No matter how impressive the peasant masses may have found it."

"Solomon?" Lysithea blinked in confusion "Was he a King where you were from?"

"He was." Goetia nodded, and cringed at his slip. It seemed as though being with the girl had made him slightly loose lipped "He was the King of my homeland. Von Riegan could tell you more. I...dislike speaking of him."

"Alright." Lysithea nodded her head, she hadn't seen him make and expression like that before, although she decided it would have been rude of her to try and pry the information out of him, and leave it to Claude to completely ignore personal privacy and ask anyway. She'd probably need to reprimand the oaf herself later.

After she got the information on Solomon, of course.

She looked over at the shelf that Goetia had returned the book to and recognised the section "Researching Crests?" she inquired, a slightly curious expression on her face.

Goetia nodded his head "Divine blood within mortals is not a common trait, thus I decided to investigate its effects on humans." he explained "However most works suffer from religious bias and a lack of factual exploration." he frowned "Although I suspect that the Church would likely quell more exploratory research on the subject."

"Really?" She titled her head and then looked around suspiciously before she leaned in closer to him "Why?" she whispered to him, fully aware that he was coming dangerously close to insulting the Church, but was still slightly curious.

Goetia decided to humour her, she was open to new ideas. Not a bad trait he supposed "Crests are only as powerful and well regarded because they are mysterious in nature. However, if their effects could be fully understood and replicated, they would lose their power in society." he leaned back "I was already familiar within several spells which could enhance strength, similar to the Blaiddyd Crest. Although such were active rather than passive and came with risks of their own." he acquiesced "However, the lack of information into Crests means I will be forced to conduct first hand research."

"Is that a bad thing?" Lysithea wondered, she didn't personally dislike studying.

"More tedious than a negative." Goetia shook his head before looking back to the library "I believe I have shirked from my duties long enough." he stood up "I will return to my task and leave you to yours."

"Oh." Lysithea nodded her head "Alright...Would I be able to ask more questions about your magic in our next session?" she quizzed.

"You might." Goetia nodded "However, I will ask you provide specific questions to ensure I can concisely answer them. Else the subject could last hours."

"Alright." The white haired girl nodded with a serious expression, although her eyes clearly revealed her excitement at the prospect "I'll think of some."

"Hmm." The tanned man hummed in reply before he returned to filling away the library books.

"You're visit is most unexpected." Goetia called out, the white haired girl behind him froze slightly in surprise "What brings you here beyond the knowledge of this library, Lady Edelgard?"

"You knew who it was?" Edelgard asked in surprise, as well she should have been, considering his back was facing her.

Goetia turned around and regarded her for a few moments "I have my ways." he idly replied "As does your retainer, I assume he has been passing along his reports of my person to you?"

"Hubert?" Edelgard blinked "Why would he be reporting to me about you?"

"He has been following me for over a week." Goetia raised an eyebrow in mild puzzlement "I would assume that the length of his investigation into me was at your behest."

Edelgard released a sigh of exasperation "I must apologise for Huberts...fervour. He takes his role as my retainer quite seriously. I hope he has caused no offence."

"You will make for a poor Empress if you apologise for your agents fulfilling their tasks." Was the quick reply she received, which almost had her gape in shock although she was did well to mask it "If nothing else, you should at least ask for him to make reports on persons of interest. It will make dealing with them far easier."

"Dealing with them?"

"Blackmail or assassination works best." He replied just as swiftly, in a rather cold voice "Depending on their usefulness. Although it would work best if you were unaware of such dealings, it makes it far easier to cover up and provides you with blissful ignorance if such events were revealed."

"You seem rather cavalier with the topic of blackmail and assassination." Edelgard replied with a frown and narrowed eyes "Especially for a humble traveller."

"I have observed many dealings in courts." He gave her a sideways glance "They are consistent in their inner workings, regardless of who sits upon the throne." he turned and gave her his full attention "However, you have not come here for my observations on the workings of a royal court."

"No…" She said after a moment "Although now that you have begun, I do find myself curious." she admitted "However, I am more interested in yourself as a person."

"Myself?" He tilted his head, then nodded along with her words "I see. A foreigner is a rare thing, and often unwelcome." he raised his lone hand "You need not deny it, I have seen the way many of the clerics look upon me. My appointment by the Archbishop is likely the only thing that prevents them from openly insulting me."

"I see." Edelgard frowned "You have my sympathy."

"Hm." Goetia have a short grunt in affirmation before gesturing her to continue.

"You said you were a traveller?" At his nod she went on "What were you before that?"

"Before?" Goetia looked past her "An observer. It was my official role in Jerusalem. I was to observe the people...Those closely affiliated with Solomon referred to me as his Shadow."

"You held a position in court?"

"No, I held no sway over the masses. I was, quite literally, an observer. That was the role Solomon bestowed upon me from the moment of I was aware." He continued to file away books, without looking at them, his full attention on Edelgard "After I left the city, I continued in my function of observation, I looked upon many different civilisations and Kingdoms in my journeys."

"Given your...indifference towards them-"

"They were remarkably similar to eachother, yes." He cut her off "To a boring degree. At this rate, I am beginning to wonder if it is human nature to assign itself a Caste system."

"Rather a pessimistic view, is it not?"

"Perhaps, although I would think of it as a conclusion which draws upon empirical evidence." He countered "Regardless, I would assume that you were expecting something more specific in regards to my history?"

"Not quite." Edelgard replied, a slightly more relaxed look "I would consider it quite the breach of privacy to demand answers from you in our second meeting. I was, however, more curious how the Church appears from your outside perspective."

"Given the Churches view of those who do not believe in the Goddess, I would hesitate to make statements which could be misconstrued." Her lip twitched slightly at his statement, although he continued before she could reply to him "However, I doubt you were asking me this as a means of outing my Heresy for a Church inquisition. If you must know, the social structure the Church has created is one I have seen many times. It is neither as tame as some in the past, nor as overtly zealous as other devoted to their Gods."

"Then...your opinion is that the Church is nothing special?" Her eyebrows raised slightly and her face shifted into one of puzzlement mixed with, something Goetia couldn't quite place.

"A rather blunt simplification, but not entirely incorrect." He replied "Another metaphor I would draw upon would be that of a Raven and a Sparrow. Despite being different to eachother, they are ultimately both birds and carry out the exact same basic function. The Church of Seiros is, ultimately, a Church dedicated to their Goddess. They do no more and no less than I would expect them to."

Edelgard put on a thoughtful expression on her face "There are probably many in the Church who would disagree with that, likely claiming that the Church of Seiros would be a lion while other Churches are house cats."

"Despite being felines, the Lion is undoubtedly superior to the house cat." He surmised "An apt and wholly unoriginal thought. All who worship Gods are normally under the belief that theirs is superior to others. The Church of Seiros are not the first to believe this and they will not be the last."

"Do you believe in the Goddess existence?" Edelgard asked "I will not judge you for your answer."

"I have no doubt she exists." He replied, much to the Edelgards surprise, although he had the benefit of actually speaking with her and her vessel. Or rather, the failed Vessel at this point it seemed that Byleth was more akin to a conduit to communicate with than a Vessel for Divine possession "However, I find the more important question would be 'If the Goddess exists, who is to say the other Gods do not?"

"This has been...an interesting conversation." Edelgard replied after a few moments "I will also see to it that Hubert refrains from bothering you."

"It is hardly a concern for me, I was somewhat surprised at his skill in subterfuge for a retainer of his age." Goetia waved her off.

Edelgard's face became slightly amused "I will be sure to pass along the message that his stalking impressed you. I hope we have the opportunity to-"

"Excuse me." The pair turned to see a cleric enter the library, the man immediately fixed his gaze on the one armed tanned man "Are you Assistant Goetia?"

"I am." The aforementioned man replied "Is there an issue?"

"The Archbishop requests your presence." The cleric replied, his face still blank "I was sent to escort you."

"I see." He turned to Edelgard and bowed his head slightly "If you will excuse me, it seems I am required."

"Of course." Edelgard bowed her head slightly in reply "I hope we have the opportunity to speak again in the future."

Goetia's eyes darted over to the cleric in a meaningful way "We shall see…"

"I suppose we shall."

AN: The meeting between the Rhea and Goetia...How exciting.

Also another brief conversation with Goetia and Edelgard. Also, in case any were wondering about the timeframe we are in right now.

We'll say that the Golden Deer mission is in one week.

Now then…

Answering the Questions!

Terumi Gremory: Yes...Yes I do play FGO, also I will work on future interactions with the other Golden Deer as the story progresses, as well as the other Houses.

Hyperalax2000: Goetia strength wise, physically he isn't much stronger than a human. I was debating giving him E rank strength but decided against it. The 10 rings are still in Solomon's Reality Marble. I was basically running with that the destruction of the Temple of Time has left him with only a sliver of his original power because that was basically what made him so powerful to begin with. He's Goetia, the individual rather than the collection of Demons. He isn't weak though, he still has the knowledge of Solomon and 3000 years of observing human magecraft. Skill wise, he doesn't have clairvoyance, from my understanding he only had it because he nested himself in Solomon's corpse (Although I might be wrong) but skills like Territory creation and Item construction are still available to him. He's also mortal.

IHev9Sun: That would be telling...I'm not adverse to the idea of other Fate Characters although I would need to find a way to implement them in a way that isn't hamfisted.

Zelenin-02: I was either going to make a Fire Emblem Heroes fic with my Fate characters, or more likely a Fire Emblem Warriors fic with the Fate characters.

Now then…

Onto the Omake!

Omake: See you yesterday!

Ritsuka released a breath of exhaustion as he and Mash continued their sprint through the Temple of Time.

"Roman!" Ritsuka barked "Are you still picking up Archer, Caster and Saber's signals?"

"I am! Why, where are they!?" The medic replied, confusion in his tone.

"I don't know! They won't reply to me, the second they caught sight of the Throne they sprinted towards it." He looked around "Me, Mash and Berserker are trying to get to them before they rush Solomon by themselves!"

"What about a command seal?"

"I can't risk using it, I've only got one left."

"They signals are still pretty weak, but they're definitely there! Hurry!"

"Come on Mash!" Ritsuka bellowed, the pink haired servant shouted an affirmative and continued on in their sprint towards them.

"I must say...This was unexpected." The Tanned servant in white hair stared down at the trio with barely concealed amusement, as well as disgust "I had expected the Master of Chaldea to come blundering his way in here, instead I'm approached by his Servants." he raised an eyebrow and smirked, looking behind them "He's not dead is he?"

"Why?"

"Why?" He parroted, giving the white haired Caster in purple robes a strange look "That should be my question." his face changed into one of anger "Why couldn't you just restrain yourselves for a few minutes. We were almost ready to complete the First Virtual Nobel Phantas-"

"Get out of that skin suit." The Archer spoke up with a rather lazy tone, although his eyes showed a more serious glint in them "We all know you aren't really Solomon."

"Hmph." 'Solomon' let out a huff "Well...I'm close enough to the real thing without his weakness or incompetency. Although I suppose I should spare some praise for Chaldea for figuring it out. Not that it will do you much good."

"I didn't need to." Caster replied in a surprisingly calm voice "I always knew."

"Did you really?" 'Solomon' raised an amused eyebrow "That's certainly unexpected, and you kept this from Chaldea for so long? Quite the disloyal servant that the boy has-"

"Goetia." The Saber spoke for the first time, the green haired woman with violet eyes wielding the bone like sword stepped forwards "Your true name."

Goetia's arms fell to their side, his eyes narrowed at the Saber "...Hm. Perhaps I did underestimate Chaldea's deductive skills. Although the other two servants seem to be just as informed." his eyes swept over them "I have no knowledge of your legends. I shall only assume it is something related to the Kaleidoscope which brought you here. An unexpected but ultimately irrelevant event. We cannot be stopped now."

"Its a wish no one wants." Caster stepped forwards "Your committing everything to something that no one desires."

Goetia bristled at the comment "It is desired and if no one else will see the task completed, then we will. I will ensure that humanity no longer burdens my sight with its pitiful existence."

"Huh…" Archer let out a small sigh and shook his head "I guess he was right...I really can't perceive how an immortal would view life."

Goetia's head snapped to him "Exactly. Your limited, mortal, existence struggled against the inevitable. Everything you ever achieved will have amounted to nothing. I will no longer allow it."

"I can't allow you to continue." Caster eventually spoke, speaking in a strange language which briefly had Goetia's eyes widen in surprise and recognition as golden ring emerged behind her "And for the sake of everyone and for my Teacher, I will stop you."

"...Who taught you that spell?" Goetia growled out, eyes glowing "Teacher!? Are you one of that fools apprentices? Some parallel version of Solomon taught you did he!?"

"No." Caster narrowed her eyes "You'll have to find out yourself."

Goetia looked at the other two "Then I shall assume you are equally familiar with her Teacher?"

"Well...I wouldn't say familiar. Guy could be a real piece of work sometimes, let me tell you." The Archer chuckled "He had a few choice things to say about you as well." Saber remained silent, but did nod along with him.

"...Very well." Goetia replied in a calm tone, hiding his rage. The temple began to shake as black clouds surrounded the Servant "Then before I shall grant you the privilege of seeing my true form. The only mercy you can pray for now…is a swift death."