Chapter 73: Walked right into it…whatever it was.

"...You'd end up on the second floor." The innkeeper remarked with a straight face, not at all put off by the expression on the man standing in front of them. The disinterested look in the eye and the utterly bland tone of voice showcased it.

Quite frankly, he couldn't find it in himself to care at the moment. With most of his current tenants being students of the officers academy and of them, two of those being foreigners, one more being thrown into the mix was hardly that big of a surprise.

"That is acceptable." The man responded to him without even shifting his expression once.

"Along with the students of the officers academy." The Innkeeper, Martin, elaborated further just to get the point across to the tanned man what sort of people he would be dealing with. It was fortunate enough that there weren't others currently staying here apart from the nobles, otherwise he'd most likely have received a noise complaint at this point.

The man's face remained unchanging, there was a slight movement as the right eyebrow rose ever so slightly. The change in expression was barely even perceptible but it was there all the same. Which meant that this guy probably wanted him to explain a little further than that. Martin withheld a sigh, putting on the best smile he could manage as he rested his arms on the desk.

"We've got other tenants at the moment." He explained with a polite tone of voice "Nothing against them, but they are young and somewhat rowdy. They also wake up early in the morning, so you might end up being woken up along with them." Martin searched for any shift in the face at the news he had just delivered.

Just something to show that his words had registered with the man on some level.

The blank face remained, the eyebrow lowered itself back to its original position.

"Most likely." The man stated in that same bored tone of voice "For how long is my stay applicable?"

"As long as you can afford it." The Innkeeper responded after a moment of silence, shrugging his shoulders and leaning back. Evidently the guy didn't care in the least for what the situation was going to be. "Just don't pick a fight with the other guests or cause a disruption and all will be well." he pointed past the man to the large clearing behind him, occupied with half a dozen wooden tables and chairs. "We offer a small restaurant for guests in terms of breakfast, lunch and dinner."

He jerked a thumb upwards "Though…most of it is by the children." Martin exhaled after a moment, rubbing his forehead. "Some of them wouldn't take no for an answer and how am I supposed to deny the next King of Faerghus?"

"Presumably you would not." The man responded to his rhetorical question without breaking face, then reached into his robe and withdrew a small leather pouch. Placing it on the desk and removing the hand. It took Martin a second to realise why he hadn't actually opened the pouch and taken the coins out, mainly because he only had one arm.

"...Do you require any special assistance, sir?"

The look the man gave him was hostile for a split second before it evened out, becoming something more resigned. Or irritated, it was a little difficult for Martin to tell if he was being honest with himself. Either way, he got the answer from the man so that was to be expected in the end. Opting to instead thin his lips and shaking his head from side to side. "I shall take that as a no."

Martin muttered, reaching towards the coin purse on the desk and loosening the straps around the top, pulling it open and turning it upside down. The coins clattered onto the table as he stared at them, raising an eyebrow as he glanced at the amount. Fifty gold coins exactly, which would amount to a week exactly.

Shrugging his shoulders, he slid the coins towards himself while leaving the pouch still present. Pocketing the coins and nodding once to the man, then raising an eyebrow as he noticed that unlike the other tenants, he was without a change of clothes. He quickly dismissed it, however, considering that he wasn't in the business of asking people personal questions like that - and the man had already paid - he wouldn't start asking away like that.

Best to leave that to someone who actually cared in the first place.

"Enjoy your stay here, Sir." Martin gave him the best smile he could muster, turning around and moving towards the rack of keys behind him and taking one of the spare ones off the wall. In truth, he really didn't have many rooms left at all so this was the best that the man was going to get. Turning back around, he moved towards the man as he finished taking back his leather pouch and placing it back into his robe once more.

Then extended his left hand, taking the key from Martin and lowering the arm back down. Moving around the desk, Martin flipped up the barrier and stepped out into the lobby, gesturing to the staircase located behind him. "Right this way, sir. I will show you to your room."

It had been a fairly long day for Claude, all things considered, the boy had been up at the crack of dawn helping out around the Monastery and with everything that came in between.

Considering he and the other houses had all been at the same sort of work, he imagined that they were similarly feeling the muscle pains that he was. Well, with one very obvious exception.

"That was great!" Raphael exclaimed with a thunderous cheer, not even noticing the looks he was receiving from everyone around him. The Golden Deers, Blue Lions and Black Eagles were all temporarily united in one singular goal.

Which was staring at the large blonde boy as though he was a freak of nature, the fact that even Leonie was giving him the incredulous expression as though trying to figure out whether or not he was being serious was telling to Claude. It was telling him that Raphael was somehow an even bigger crazy person than he had guessed was possible.

Well, it meant he fit in with the Golden Deers for being a rather vocal personality but at the same time it also meant that he couldn't even begin to comprehend quite where the opinion of the muscular teenager was coming from. Although he personally suspected it to be a rather simple reason.

"And how - pray tell - did you come to this bewildering conclusion?" Lorenz asked for him, his tone strained as if to hold back just outright chastising the larger teen for his words. Claude suspected that he was actually doing just that. A quick glance over his shoulder revealed the purple haired noble and his rapidly twitching eye. "What part of that-that labour could possibly fall into the category of wondrous?"

Lorenz held up his hands, showing off the calluses now forming on his fingers and palms as though he had caught some manner of terrible illness.

Raphael actually stopped walking, turning to look at Lorenz with a face of perfectly innocent confusion. "Huh? What do you mean?" Looking around, it was as if the boy realised just how many people were looking at him strangely. "Aren't you guys all the same? I thought that was a pretty intense workout."

He made a show of flexing his arms as he did so, his muscles bulging underneath his shirt "See? I've never felt this invigorated from a workout before and it really stretched me to my limit!" he exclaimed, lowering his arms back to his side "Didn't you all feel the same way?" he frowned ever so slightly, moving his right hand up and scratching his cheek. "I mean…aren't you?"

Dead silence followed in the wake of his question, the entire complement of students has actually stopped walking as one just to stare at the boy.

"Heck yeah!" And Raphael found support in the shape of the blue haired young man from the Black Eagles. Caspar let out a shout of support as he pumped his fist into the air. "I knew someone else felt the exact same-"

"Be quiet." Hubert was quick to call out to the young man, his voice thick with annoyance as the younger boy flinched ever so slightly at the rather imposing visage of the ghoulish man. "It is dark enough that many will be trying to return to their homes, you screaming in the streets like a stray hound benefits none." his expression darkened ever so slightly. "Not to mention it reflects poorly upon our class as a whole."

Caspar wilted ever so slightly before he brightened up "O-okay." He spoke a little quieter, although for him it was around the same volume as a normal person speaking. For Caspar, that might as well have been a whisper.

Turning to Raphael, he nodded to the taller boy "Yeah, I get what you mean though." still nodding his head, he walked towards the boy while they continued their conversation. The pair of them resumed on their way towards the inn. "It's just…you really feel as though you're putting your entire body to work, like you can take on the whole day without concern!"

"I knew you'd get it!" Raphael exclaimed rather cheerfully as they moved away from the group. "It just feels like my entire body is on fire, not to mention the fact that I feel as though I could do way more!" he exhaled "I don't know, I just feel like there's nothing I can't do right now…I mean, obviously there are things I can't do but…"

The conversation trailed away as the pair moved on ahead, Claude watched them for a moment before he shrugged his shoulders and resumed his walk. "Well, at least someone had fun today." He muttered out, putting his hands into his pockets.

Pausing for a brief moment, he eventually spoke up again "So how was everyone else's day?" he looked around to see if anyone was willing to start up a conversation with him, it was already approaching dark and he figured that there would be very few interested in sticking around for dinner before heading off to bed.

Also he hadn't had much in the way of conversation throughout the day, it had mostly been work from start to finish.

"Long." Linhardt actually responded to him, earning a brief noise of surprise from Claude and a smile from the boy. Although the yawn that followed and the disinterested tone of voice from the green haired boy probably meant that there wasn't going to be much more in the way of conversation from him. The next words practically confirmed it. "I'm going to sleep until the morning. Do not wake me."

"...Well, alright then." Claude mumbled quietly to himself, then threw his head back while letting out a loud sigh "...What do you think all those knights coming into the monastery were about?"

"Huh?" The voice came from Ingrid, the woman startling slightly at the words of Claude and moving to catch up with him. Turning her head and looking at the side of him with a raised eyebrow. "Knights? What are you talking about?"

"Yeah." Claude nodded his head "I heard a couple of the guards talking about it-"

"Meaning he eavesdropped." Lysithea called out from somewhere behind him, which was soon followed by a few dry chuckles.

"I believe that such a thing goes without saying." Dimitri's voice came next, chuckling to himself before his tone changed from mirth to curiosity. "Though your method of coming upon this information aside, I admit I share Ingrid's intrigue-"

"Heh." A snort from Sylvain.

"...Intrigue into the situation." Dimitri continued on with only a slight pause as he formulated his next words, not sounding all that put off about the accidental wordplay. "Considering that you brought it up in the first place, I shall assume that you don't refer to a new detachment of Seiros knights arriving?"

"Well…I'm not so sure about it, apparently there was a big fuss about it." Claude further continued on, pulling his hand out of his pocket and waving his hand from side to side. "I believe I overheard someone talking about the Kingdom."

As expected, that caused a reaction from both Dimitri and Ingrid, both of them staring at Claude in full shock as they glanced between the two of them. Glancing over his shoulder, the Golden Deer took in the expressions of shock from both Dimitri and Ingrid, his eyes dancing between the two of them with no small amount of interest.

"So…anything to talk about?" He asked with a subtle prodding edge in his voice, still looking between the two of them. The tone didn't go unnoticed by Dimitri, his stare promptly returning to Claude and flattening out.

"Truly?" Dimitri raised an eyebrow, placing his hands on his hips and staring at Claude as they walked "I had thought you to be far less obvious than this, Claude."

The boy shrugged, making an effort to put out a yawn "Hey, it's been a long day…I'm all tired out so I'm not up to my best game right now." he paused for a moment, then smirked "Though if you'd rather I wait until the morning when I'm all freshened up I could always ask again. I'm sure I'd be able to make it subtle enough for you."

"No, thank you." Dimitri sighed, raising up the flat of his hand towards his counterpart "I believe I could do without the attempts. I can answer your question now in that I have heard very little in terms of any missives from the Kingdom about visits." he lowered the hand "Even if there are visiting knights, they most likely would have reported it to the Church beforehand. I am here as a student, not as a figure of real importance."

"Oh yeah?" Claude snickered, coming upon the entrance to the inn and pulling the door open as he stepped in. "Mr Prince isn't actually all that important, who would have guessed?" as he turned back around to the room, he briefly paused as he noticed the other person sitting in the room.

At a table at the back corner, with a small bowl of soup in front of him and midway through a sip.

Goetia stared at Claude.

Claude stared right back at him.

Goetia loudly slurped his soup, then glanced back down to his meal as though nothing had happened and resumed eating.

"Evening, Sparkles." Claude nodded to the man, wandering inside and away from the doorway so he didn't block it up anymore. A curious look coming upon his face before he paused as he considered the situation. Goetia was sitting here late at night. The dining area here was something that was available for those who were residing here in a more extended capacity, or at least that is the only reason someone would come here late and night to do just that.

"You staying here tonight?" Claude asked after a moment, tilting his head ever so slightly. "We're gonna be neighbours then?" he beamed "Sure Sprinkles will be pleased."

Goetia glanced back at him with an almost bored expression "Do you make an effort to harass all patrons of this location, or am I the sole exception to this Von Riegan?"

A chuckle was the response "You're just special to me, Sparkles." Claude assured him with a perfectly innocent smile, something that was hardly mirrored by Goetia as he stared at him with an almost annoyed face for a moment before it vanished.

"Teacher?" The voice of Lysithea soon followed, evidently few others were interested as they shuffled past Claude towards the stairs, the procession of teenagers vanishing into the upper floors with a few waves of greeting being sent towards Goetia as they walked past.

The voice of Lysithea briefly brought about a pause to Goetia, the man's eyes darted away from his soup and towards the white haired girl, staring at him with no small amount of shock at seeing him here of all places. Claude looked down to the girl from the corner of his eye, then back to Goetia and was briefly surprised to see a different emotion flash through Goetia's eyes for a brief moment. ]

He couldn't quite pin down what this particular emotion was, but all the same he could tell that it wasn't a usual one he was used to. If he had to make a rough guess, he would almost call it unease. Though it lasted for such a brief moment and was such a strange thing to consider being on Goetia that he almost dismissed it immediately.

"What are…?" Lysithea stepped forwards, moving past Claude and tilting her head ever so slightly. Then she pursed her lips and stopped herself from asking whatever it was that was on the tip of her tongue. She glanced over her shoulder in his direction, Claude raised an eyebrow at the look she sent him. Looking as though she was trying to not so subtly tell him to get lost.

"...My room was damaged in the attack." Goetia explained for the benefit of those present, though it wasn't as though the explanation was unexpected in the least. Claude had seen the upper levels of the dorms ripped asunder from where something had smashed through the top of them, hardly a surprise that Goetia's room had also been damaged in the attack. Even if it hadn't, that entire row of buildings was going through a complete renovation.

"I am staying in this place for the time being." He carried on, straightening himself out in his seat and staring across to the audience in front of him. "You have had a tiring day, I suspect. One that was physically demanding, I would suggest you return to your rooms and rest yourselves."

Lysithea looked as though she wanted to protest for a moment, then snapped her jaw shut and thought better of it. Not to mention that there was something about Goetia's voice that made it sound less like a suggestion and more like a command.

Claude wasn't too concerned about it right now, however. Whatever else, Goetia was right enough in that it was starting to get late and he really was quite tired. So moving off to get some sleep was likely the best thing he could do right now.

"Well…I'll see you in the morning then." Claude waved to the man, his smile shifting from being sly to being more genuine. "Have a good night, Sparkles." With one final parting look, Claude turned towards the staircase and walked towards it, making an effort to keep his footsteps as silent as possible as he moved to the upper floors and further along.

Lysithea and Goetia stared at one another in silence.

"...Good night, Teacher." Lysithea nodded her head to him, briefly pausing as she turned so she was no facing side on to him. Her lips drawn into a thin line as she thought of what she could say. There were so many things she wanted to ask him since their last talk together, there were so many things that she wanted to talk about as well.

The list was so expansive that she didn't think there was a place that she could start in the first place.

After what felt like hours, she blurted out the first words that came to mind. "I don't care where you're from!"

Goetia paused midway through raising his spoon to his mouth once more, staring at the young girl with an expression of brief surprise for a split second. Then the expression vanished as though it had never been there at all. An eyebrow was raised in her direction, confusion bleeding through the mask.

"I-I mean…that is to say…" Lysithea's face scrunched up as she realised she hadn't worded it quite as well as she had intended. Internally hitting herself at making such a childish blunder. "I mean that I do not care where you are from. You are still my Teacher." She nodded her head in absolution, fixing Goetia with a determined gaze. "That is what I declared I would be. Your student so…that's all I wished to say."

"...Very well." The response was apathetic, but Lysithea had expected such a thing from Goetia at this point. In fact, she was fully expecting that to be his response to whatever she said. He was just not a very emotional person for the most part.

Nodding her head once, she turned away from the man and moved towards the stairs.

She was resting her foot upon the first one when the words of the man reached her ear from the far corner of the room. They were little more than a whisper, yet they impacted her far greater than any shout.

"Your loyalty to your word is…appreciated."

Lysithea did not turn around, but she already felt the smile bubbling on her face. If she turned around now, Goetia might well have seen her grinning like an idiot, but that wasn't the sort of image she wanted to present herself as. A child who would cheer for whatever stray compliment was sent her way.

"...I see." She nodded her head up and down, giving a similar enough response to the sort that her teacher would have given. Though she internally winced at the slight crack in the start of her reply where a small hint of her joy bled through. Clearing her throat, she moved up the stairs with a touch of haste. Not before calling back down. "I wish you a pleasant night, Teacher."

"Rest well." Goetia's voice called back through, not even missing a beat as he responded to her. Lysithea didn't even attempt to fight the smile on her features as she ascended the stairs.

Sleep was restless, he could not make sense of how humans would endure this every single day.

It had been fine enough in the beginning, but ever since his encounter with Sitri it had changed. He'd awaken with his hand clenched into a fist, sweat dripping down his forehead and his blanket thrown from his body onto the floor.

A breath left him as he realised that he was no longer staring into the menacing snarl of Sitri and was, in fact, staring at his ceiling. No sounds could be heard, save for his breathing. It wasn't as calm as he would have liked, coming out as greedy gulps as he re-acquainted himself with his surroundings. His head turned from left to right as he scanned his room, then let out a final breath.

What manner of vision was that supposed to be? For what purpose would his memories play in repeat in his head?

It didn't matter, it would likely leave him soon enough so there was no reason to be concerned about it.

A grunt passed his lips, pushing himself up into a sitting position on the bed and gazing out across the darkened room he was in. There was precious little in the way of utilities within this place, a wardrobe for his clothes - he only had his one robe left, all others had been destroyed and repairing them with spells did not make much sense. Why bother with more than one set of clothes when his current attire performed their task? - a desk in the corner of the room with a mirror in front of it.

He wasn't sure what the mirror was supposed to be used for, perhaps for those who cared more for their physical appearance than him? He recalled Dorothea mentioning the importance of aesthetic during their first encounter with one another, but he had given it as much thought then as he was inclined to give it now.

That was to say, none at all.

He turned his body, swinging his legs over the side of his bed and resting them on the floor. The wooden boards gave gentle creaks as he applied a little of his weight onto them, his left arm rested atop his knees as he stared once more at the black marks running up the length of his arm.

They itched.

They'd never stopped itching.

Like something that didn't belong, like they were growing on him.

Some foreign body that had to be removed from him, yet repeated examinations of his body found no signs of effects from the marks. There were no detrimental influences on his health and the marks themselves were mundane. They simply existed upon him, as natural on his body as the hair atop his head was.

There was not even an ounce of magical energy about them, nor on the marks that rested on his legs.

Nothing but appearance.

That is what they were.

His left hand came away from his leg, moving towards his forehead and pressing itself against his face. His eyes closed as he rubbed away the sweat from his body, it was cold. Or perhaps he was cold, one of the two. Yet further examinations of his body's condition revealed nothing malignant. There was no sign of virus or pathogen.

It was a foolish notion to even consider it in the first place, but he had to eliminate any and all possibilities.

What, then, was the cause of the state he was in?

It was nothing physical, his senses had confirmed that.

That left one singular reason, something in his mental state affecting his body? He would have dismissed it if he could have found any other reason to replace it. Was this what he was experiencing?

His heart rate was slightly elevated from the norm, his breathing was irregular and his brain chemistry was inconsistent.

A result of the vision from last night.

It had affected him in some way, a manner that he was not inclined to experience again and yet he could not dissuade himself of the belief that it was something that might well occur again.

"...Tch." The noise left his mouth quickly, almost as though he was trying to spit the thoughts from his mind. It did not work, only furthering his annoyance at the state he was in. He still needed something else to focus on, however. Fortunately, such an opportunity was sitting several rooms away from him.

And they were currently waking up.

Rising to his feet, Goetia moved across the room towards the wardrobe and pulled it open. Taking hold of his brown robe and slipping it on.

Dorothea bit back a yawn as she awoke, rubbing her eyes as the rays of sunlight filtered through the curtains and barely illuminated the room she resided in. Hilda was stirring somewhere in the background, letting out a low groan before she fell back into silence.

The movement almost elicited a smirk from the brunette, the proclivities of Hilda were hardly a secret and it made little surprise that she was not a morning person, so to speak. Though having stayed in the same room with her for the past few days it was hardly something she was going to complain about.

Waking up at different times meant that Dorothea didn't have to share the mirror with anyone as she spruced herself up.

Pulling herself out of her bed, she stretched her arms until she heard a gentle click in her bones before shaking her arms, willing life back into the weary limbs and running her hands through her hair. Something else she was rather pleased about was the fact that waking up early meant that no one else had to see her bed hair.

She would rather no one witness that sight.

Something knocked on her door, it wasn't very loud but it was still obvious enough that she could tell it was their door. An eyebrow was raised in the direction of the entrance, evidently someone wanted to speak with either her or Hilda.

There was a reign of silence, then the door was knocked on once again with a slightly faster tapping than before. Dorothea thinned her lips at the somewhat impatient guest, with a sigh she threw the blanket off herself and then stepped onto the floor, wincing at the creak that echoed about the otherwise silent room.

Shaking her head and rubbing her face once more, she moved across the room towards the door and took hold of the handle, twisting it as slowly and silently as she could to avoid disturbing Hilda. When she heard the latch click, she pulled it open ever so slightly but didn't peer around the corner, instead speaking through the small gap.

"Hello?"

"Dorothea."

She blinked, not expecting this guest in the early hours of the morning.

"Gotie." Despite that, she greeted him with the nickname all the same. If Goetia was coming to their room in the early hours, there was clearly something that he wanted. He didn't seem the type to seek you out unless he needed you for something. It was one of the things she liked about him, aside from his brutal honesty, he didn't like to socialise unless he had to. No need in speaking with people he didn't like.

"I was waking to have breakfast." Goetia responded after a few moments, his words echoed around in her head as her thoughts moved at the speed of a soaring arrow. Goetia was going to have breakfast, he was coming to her room at the start of the day.

No…

No way…

"I am asking that you join me, there is something I would…speak with you about." She raised an eyebrow at his tone, though she couldn't see his face she imagined that those words were forced out of him. Pursing her lips, he gave a small hum in response to him. "I believe your opinion on this matter will offer the clarity that I seek."

"Really?" She didn't make an effort to fight back her curiosity, tilting her head ever so slightly and fighting back the urge to poke her head through the gap. If only so she could see what manner of expression he was currently making. She was curious, but she was no so curious that she would expose her morning features to the world.

"My, my…" She a giggle accompanied her words, her voice coming out with a teasing note. "Are you asking me out to have breakfast with you so early in the morning? What would people say if they saw us?" Dorothea's mirth bled through the conversation further still. "What if they believe us to be on a date?"

"Date? This is me asking for your opinion on a subject with the use of sustenance as an incentive."

"...Does that mean you're paying?"

"I would have have asked otherwise." His response was quick as it was monotone, she imagined he was deadpanning at the door.

Still, she heard all she really needed to hear.

"Give me twenty minutes, I'll be right out."

"Those two statements contradict one-" She closed the door before he could finish, smiling to herself as she moved across the room to her wardrobe. Something about this day was already promising to be rather interesting.

Twenty-eight minutes and fifteen seconds.

That was the length of time that he waited at the table on the ground floor, his gaze fixed upon the staircase as he waited for Dorothea to come down. He would usually have been more irritated by the length of time but he couldn't find it within himself to be surprised by the action.

Humans finding new ways to let him down was hardly anything to be surprised about. It also gave him some time to run continued checks on his body to ensure that there was nothing wrong with him in the least.

As expected, every single result turned up negative as to any ailments that might have assaulted him. Which did indeed make his awakening this morning something that was brought about by his own mental condition. If he was to guess what the result was, he would assume it was lingering turmoil over the end results of Sitri.

He could not even claim that his reaction was illogical, making peace with the death of Sitri and understanding his motives were two things that still eluded him even now. Try as he might to ignore it, he found himself continually falling back into the circle of questioning the actions of his former aspect. He found no answer.

He didn't think he would ever find the answer, the actions had been rooted in complete stupidity. Even his own desire to fight Ritsuka as the temple collapsed had been solely motivated to kill the human who had aided in his plan's destruction. It was not aimed at humanity as a whole, but the last Master who had stood against him.

Perhaps if Ritsuka were here and Sitri had been plotting his revenge against him then the actions would have made more logical sense to him. Or perhaps it would have been an emotional response that he would have understood much easier, rather than it being a response of logic. A logically illogical course of action.

A contradiction that made perfect sense to him.

It was natural, he had experienced it himself therefore it was wholly possible for other parts of him to experience it as well. However, he could never imagine taking vengeance on the entire human race, nor could he consider doing so on a human race he bore no connection to.

The distant creak of footsteps on wood reached his ears, his head turned towards the direction of the descending steps and watched as the figure of Dorothea came down from the upper floor. An eyebrow was raised at her state of dress. She wasn't wearing her school uniform, instead she was wearing a completely different state of clothing than what he had usually seen her adorned in.

Her upper top was a tight fitting white shirt, a small brown leather sash going across her right shoulder to her left side waist. The lower half - from the underside of her breasts down - was a beige coloured dress that ended in a short skirt around her thighs. Shin high black leather boots with a golden trim around the top was expected, however.

"Ah, you're early." Dorothea spoke cordially as she came around the staircase, smiling at him from across the room and approaching him with what almost looked to be a spring in her step. He would have raised an eyebrow at her joke if he had thought it humorous. Or perhaps she was making some manner of comment about how her perception of time differed so violently from his own. "Not even a peep, eh?"

"Were you looking for a meaningful response?"

"Maybe." She answered with a disinterested shrug of the shoulders, then glanced down at his clothes with a raised eyebrow, her hands going to her hips. "I'm going to feel a little silly having gotten all dressed up if you're going to wear the same old robe." there was a note of exasperation in her voice. "Haven't you a sense of occasion?"

Goetia wasn't sure what manner of response she was expecting, he wasn't even sure why she had gone with an entirely different outfit to her usual one. Still, he would prefer that the conversation hastened along. "These are the only clothes I have."

That brought a look of surprise upon her face, taking half a step back as though she had been visibly struck by him. Then her expression scrunched up before a look of…what was that supposed to be?

He didn't know nor did he feel the need to know. It looked for a split second as though it was pity but then it shifted into resigned acceptance.

"...I'm going to assume that all your other clothes looked like that as well?"

"What other clothes?"

"...Are you joking to try and set the tone?" She asked, there was a strange hint of desperation in her voice as though she was almost begging that he rescind his words. She was going to be sorely disappointed if that was the case.

"No."

"...I've seen you wear that exact set of robes for the…actually, I've never seen you wear a different outfit to that." Dorothea stated after a moment, now looking at him as though he had just said something completely baffling to her. Resuming her previous posture of her hands on her hips, now leaning forwards slightly with her eyes narrowed a touch. "Have you…have you seriously been wearing the exact same set of clothes ever since you got here?"

"I have never once deviated from these clothes since my arrival to Fodlan."

"...Seriously?"

"For what reason would I spread falsehoods?" Goetia frowned ever so slightly, then tilted his head to the side and gave her a look of bewilderment. "For that matter, why would you change your attire from the usual set I have seen you move around the Monastery in?"

Dorothea was silent for a moment.

Then a moment longer.

"...You mean my school uniform?"

"Yes."

"You want to know why I wouldn't wear my school uniform for a date?"

"If that is what you wish to call this meeting, then you may." He responded with a voice so toneless and bereft of emotion that if it had been anyone else, they would have assumed he was a master of sarcasm. He wasn't, and he was quite serious. "My earlier question still stands."

"Gotie." Dorothea's voice shifted, Goetia found his brows raised at the new tone of her speech. There was an air of seriousness about her that had not been there previously, the mirth was all but eradicated and replaced with an expression and aura of complete and total focus.

If Goetia was to be honest, he found the change much more preferable.

"You have no idea about social interactions, do you?"

"This is not an answer to my question."

"I just felt like changing up my outfit." She replied without missing a beat, now crossing her arms over her chest and staring down at him as though he was the biggest fool on the planet. A part of him felt insulted by the look she was now giving him, a bigger part of him was now curious if this was one of those strange human customs he had never bothered to study further. In all his time in the Clocktower, Flauros had worn the exact same outfit and none had ever commented on it.

Was that not the norm?

"As I said in the past, appearances are very important." Her right hand swept forth at incredible speeds, as if she had been drawing a sword and pointed her index finger straight towards his face from across the table. "You have a lot to learn about these sorts of things, Gotie."

"I doubt-"

"Up, up, up!" The finger shot upwards, wagging from side to side as she cut off whatever he was going to say. The interruption aside, he was more baffled as to where this change in personality had come from and why it had originated from a simple question about her change in clothes. He wasn't even that interested in the first place, it had been an idle observation.

"This is no trivial matter Gotie."

It was.

"This is a matter of life and death - at least from a social perspective - and to let you walk around without understanding the battlefield would really be quite embarrassing to watch."

It wouldn't be for him. He didn't care.

A smile played upon her lips "So that makes me the teacher now, doesn't it?" she found something amusing, leaning forwards and pressing her hand against the table as her body angled itself closer to him. He remained unmoved even as she closed the distance between the pair of them to the point where he could feel her breath upon his face. "Right?~"

"...A teacher of what?" Goetia couldn't help but ask with a note of incredulity, his eyebrows furrowing ever so slightly. "And what manner of student would you even attract?"

"A teacher in personal beauty." She replied without missing a beat, her smile turning sharp and her eyes gleaming with mirth. "And the student would be you."

"...I shall pass-"

"Mandatory."

"It is not-"

"You would like my help?" Dorothea cocked her head to the side "You were the one who came to me, this is merely me asking for a favour in return for my most gracious opinion on the matter."

Goetia gave her a slow blink. "What you describe is extortion."

"That is such an ugly word…I'd think of it more as a mutually beneficial trade." She stepped back, offering an innocent shrug of the shoulders all while the amused smile was still plastered upon her lips. "Unless you had something else you would rather be doing as of this moment?"

"...My initial plan was to have you eat food while I asked you for an opinion."

Dorothea nodded her head up and down "And we can still do all that-" she paused for a moment, then narrowed her eyes at him. The finger was raised once more, her head turning on a swivel as she glanced around the room with that same look of suspicion before she looked back down at him. "...You were going to have us eat here, weren't you?"

"Is there some issue with that?"

Dorothea looked at him strangely, then reached up and rubbed her temples with her hand all while letting out a long and sorrowful breath. "Oh Gotie…"

He was now convinced that this was going to be far more troublesome than it was ultimately worth. "Upon further consideration, I believe that our discussion is not as important as I-"

"What's this?" Dorothea lowered her hand, then raised an eyebrow at Goetia "The second I ask for something in return, suddenly you aren't so willing?"

"Your stipulations and discussions thus far are wholly irrelevant and I have little interest in understanding them."

"Is that because you've never done them before?" There was a knowing tinge in her words, her expression awash with a sense of understanding that only came when you knew more information than the other person. Goetia was now understanding what it was like to be on the receiving end of that look and it was something that he now despised. If he didn't understand or know of these actions, then they simply weren't worth knowing or understanding.

The silence he offered in response was telling.

"My, my…" Dorothea placed a hand over her heart, her face awash with faux shock "Don't tell me that a little date with me is so frightening?"

A scoff "You do not inspire fear within me."

"Then what's the harm in coming along with me on a short morning date?" Dorothea inquired with a raised eyebrow, then cupped her chin between her fingers. "Unless…" She closed her eyes, acceptance coming upon her features. "Ah, now I see. You're worried that I would just be so much better than you at this and don't want to risk the embarrassment."

Goetia's thoughts came to a screeching halt.

Dorothea cracked an eye open, staring at him through the now parted eyelids and watching his expression carefully. It cycled through several extremes of shock, then followed by a flash of anger and then finally settling on determination. There was a sharp noise as the chair scraped along the floorboards, Goetia rising to his feet and slamming his hand on the table.

"...Let us go."

He marched past her without waiting for her acceptance.

Dorothea, meanwhile, gave a victorious smile as she turned on her heel and followed after Goetia while humming a pleasant tune to herself. It would seem she'd pegged him correctly. All she had to do was press the 'pride button' and he would just fall right into her palm. Still, she did have ample reason to be concerned about him.

What sort of person only had one outfit?

Dorothea wasn't the frivolous type and understood full well the value of money, but at the same time there was such a thing as looking the part of a noble. Even if she wasn't one, she did still have to fit in with her peers.

Also she suspected that this was going to be fun and couldn't wait to tell Claude about it later.

It wasn't quite known to Byleth why she had been summoned to the meet with Rhea at such short notice, though the fact that it was just herself with the expectation that Dimitri and Sylvain would soon be arriving as well was met with a touch more surprise than she would ever showcase.

Dimitri perhaps, he was the house leader and as such he bore a fair portion or responsibility in terms of presenting her with the wellbeing of the students, such as their concerns or potential ideas for training. It was also the case that he would be the first to be informed about the monthly mission that they would usually have been expected to undertake, though the truth of it was that recent events had made the 'monthly mission' the cleanup of the Monastery.

All the same, it was early in the morning and she had been caught in the middle of her workout when someone knocked upon her door to deliver her news that the Archbishop was summoning herself and the aforementioned pupils.

"I suspect something is afoul." Sothis helpfully chimed in, though Byleth couldn't see her - on account of the Goddess floating behind her head - she imagined that Sothis was wearing a troubled frown. Or perhaps it was a thoughtful frown? Either one of the two worked as Sothis normally made the same sort of frown when she was both troubled and thoughtful. "Perhaps that is simply because what I think of usually spells trouble."

Byleth refrained from replying to that immediately, though it was true in a sense.

"Regardless, I suspect we shall find out soon enough and the presence of the youths tells me that this is not a concern of our heritage…Though it would be best that we speak with her about this after whatever message she has is delivered." Sothis made the statement with finality, making it clear that she would not broker a negative as an answer.

Once more, Byleth did not answer her with words though she made a noise of agreement in the form of a quiet hum. Though further conversation between the two ended as the mercenary came upon the doors leading to the Archbishops private chamber. Extending her right hand out, she pressed it against the door and pushed it open with a loud creaking noise.

Stepping through the gap, she became aware of two individuals she did not recognise stood in the room already, there was Seteth, Rhea, her father and then the two currently unnamed men.

The one on the right side of the Archbishop - closest to her - was a man approaching her height or perhaps a touch taller. He wore a dark blue tunic that extended down to his ankles, dark leather belt wrapped around his waist. Mounted on his shoulders was a white rimmed teal blue cape, the collar being thick fur from a wolf of some description.

The face of the man looked somewhat familiar, though his features were slightly more refined than the person she already knew. Long wavy blue hair flowed from his head, a cordial expression upon his face shifting upwards into an almost excited smile, wisps of matching hair around his mouth reaching from his chin to the upper limits of his lips without meeting.

The second man was approaching the height of her father, his face set in a stern scowl, his own dress being a bulk tunic of a dark grey colouration, a strip of a lighter dyed fabric moving up the front of his body from the base to the top. On either hand were two large steel gauntlets, bulky rounded pauldrons on his shoulders and a strip of orange fabric draped over his collarbone from one side to the other.

The hair of the man was a flaming orange, tied back or so she assumed and facing her with something akin to critical curiosity.

"Professor." Seteth greeted her first as she entered the room, she could already tell something was amiss judging by the tone of the man. It only ever sounded that strained when something was wrong and considering there were people here she didn't know, that could only be the case. "Thank you for joining us at such short notice."

While Rhea was looking in her general direction, she was pointedly avoiding looking Byleth in the eye.

"Fine." Byleth responded in her usual manner of speech, she took notice of the blue haired man raising a single eyebrow at her briefly before his expression composed itself once more.

"I suppose you will be curious as to the identity of the men to the side of the Archbishop." Seteth continued on, then stepped forwards and turned his left hand to gesture to them "This is Duke Fraldarius, of the Kingdom of Faerghus."

She blinked once. "Like Felix?"

"Ah, yes." The man nodded his head in response to the name, a somewhat light tone to his words as he brought her attention to him. "That is my son. I hear you're his Professor at the academy?"

"I am."

"How is he doing?"

"...He's skilled."

The Duke made a somewhat strained face for a few moments, then shook his head from side to side as if he could tell there was something more to her answer. Then again, he was Felix father so it was only natural that he understood the nature of his son better than she did.

"Quite." Seteth cleared his throat "And this is Sir Gilbert, of the Seiros Knights." he gestured to the orange haired man. "Though he is of our order, he has been away commanding other installations until recently. Both he and Duke Fraldarius arrived at us with…troubling news." Seteth grimaced, turning back to her "It is also the reason why both Prince Dimitri and Sylvain Gautier are to attend this meeting as well."

Byleth frowned lightly for a moment "Serious?"

"Deadly."

"Hmmm."

Silence spread throughout the room.

Duke Fraldarius cleared his throat in a manner that seemed to be reminiscent of him holding back a laugh. "I see you are just as the Prince described."

Byleth slowly turned her head to him "Dimitri?"

"Yes, yes." The man nodded his head, an amused smile still playing upon his lips as he spoke. He glanced around the room for a moment. "Though this might not be the best place and time for us to discuss the wellbeing of the Prince and my son…perhaps another time?" he offered with a tilt of the head.

"I wonder what happened with his child?" Sothis asked without any sense of hesitation for her rather brutal words. "This man seems quite polite and hospitable, while his son remains cold and brash…" a hum soon followed "Perhaps this is merely a case of rebelling against his parentage?"

Whatever it was, Byleth didn't think it would be appropriate of her to comment on it without further context. "Maybe later."

The man nodded his head in response.

Byleth, sensing the conversation was over, turned her head towards the direction of the Archbishop and stared towards her. She found it unsurprising when an almost imperceptible shudder coursed through the woman's body, then noticed that her father was doing the same thing from the corner of her eye. Though he had his arms crossed over his chest and a look that could have been mistaken for complete focus, though Byleth recognised his annoyed scowl anywhere.

Either way, she suspected that today was just going to be one of those days.

AN: Nice date, fool. You got played like a fiddle.

Anyway, next chapter is the explanation on the Lance, a mix of Goetia's "Not Date." and will probably lead into the chapter after that being the discussion you're all waiting for. Most likely, rest assured that it is certainly close now.

Also this is me…

Throwing the Tomahawk that is 'Goetia and Dorothea' at the wall for shits and giggles.

Omake: It's card games, nothing serious.

Goetia glanced towards his opponent, already pulling out his next card "I draw!" The card was held between his fingers, his eyes narrowed ever so slightly at the image on front of it before he glanced from the card to the person standing opposite him.

With a grunt of amusement, he slammed the card down face up. "By tribute summoning Skeleton Archer and Werewolf, I summon [Demon God Raum] in attack position!"

Draco curled her lips as the two monsters burned away in front of her, soon replaced by a gigantic pillar of flesh rising from the ground, the tentacle swirled and writhed, circular eyes lining the side of it opened up and glared down at the Beast.

She then glared at the values of the Card.

[Demon God Raum]

ATK - 2500

DEF - 1600

"Hmph." She scoffed under her breath "That might be all well and good, but your pitiful little Demon God stands no chance against my [Crown of Luxuria]!"

That much was true, on paper at least, the attack points of the Demonic Beast - the monstrous serpent of spiked scales with a skull that split open like a flower to reveal rows and rows of teeth - were much higher than Raums at 3000.

"Perhaps that is true, but I have no interest in engaging you in battle like an oaf." Goetia announced with an aura of confidence. Something Draco instantly took notice of as her eyes narrowed slightly towards him. A sense of trepidation started to run through her at the confidence of the Beast.

"What do you mean?" She demanded, whether or not she truly expected an answer did not matter as much as the fact she received one regardless. Goetia's lips curled upwards in a confident smirk. It was then that Draco noticed the aura surrounding the Demon God Raum was starting to shift, the air wobbled and projected a feeling of sheer wrongess that had her hold back a shudder.

"For this one moment, the stupidity of Raum will work to my advantage!" Goetia exclaimed with his confidence never once fading from his words, rather they only seemed to grow more intense as he thrust his left hand towards the direction of the Demon God in front of him. "For I activate [Demon God Raum]'s special ability!"

"Nani!?"

"This allows [Demon God Raum] to special summon a card from my deck, this one I had not truly thought to use…Yet I acted on a whim and included it regardless." Goetia smirked, "Though for the likes of you, that will all but cripple your tactical ability as a fighter for the rest of the turn."

"Tch!"

"Now then [Demon God Raum] break loose the chains of the world, shatter the locks that shackle the sane minds, open the gates to the edge of madness!" He chanted, thrusting his hand to the space next to the Demon God "Come forth [Dreamland Pancake Girl]!"

The space next to the Demon God shimmered ever so slightly, then a small girl manifested next to him. Long blonde hair, piercing blue eyes and a black dress that almost looked like a bobble matched with a similarly coloured bonnet upon her head.

[Dreamland Pancake Girl]

ATK - 1200

DEF - 1500

Draco looked at the girl for a moment, then registered the attack power and scoffed "So what? What do you intend to do with such meagre values!?"

"Hahahaha! As expected of a fool, you underestimate the value of a card and focus purely on the metric values they offer!" Goetia all but sneered at her "Now then, [Dreamland Pancake Girl], activate your special ability!"

"What?"

"The special ability of dreamland pancake girl is to change the position of whatever monster it targets and lower it's values by three hundred points!" Goetia announced "Now then, Target [Crown of Luxuria]!"

"No!"

The small girl giggled for a moment, then brought forth what looked like a giant key and thrust it forwards. Space shattered like glass, with an almost cute noise, she snapped the key to the side and widened the crunching noise.

As if on cue, [Crown of Luxuria] curled their body down as they entered defence position, something that horrified Draco as she watched the values of her cards go down.

[Crown of Luxuria]

ATK - 2700

DEF - 1000

"And with your defence reduced to such an extent…" Goetia continued onwards "I can turn you to dust!" he declared, thrusting his left hand forwards "Now then, playtime is ove-"

"What in the-are you playing Yu Gi Oh in here!?" The shocked voice of Ritsuka echoed around the room, the heads of all the occupants turned towards the door and found the young man standing with a flabbergasted expression plastered upon his face, stood by his side were both Da Vinci and Mash who looked similarly dumbfounded.

"Yeah!" Claude shouted out from the crowd "They said it was the ultimate art in comparing the strength of a summoner and thought it was the best idea to compare while you were gone…How was your trip by the way?"

"Ultimate art of a…" Ritsuka opened and closed his mouth like a fish as he stared at the man, then looked to Goetia and raised his brows before closing his eyes and throwing his head back, taking in a deep breath. "...I hate that I can't even argue against that definition. I want you to know that…and where did you even get a Yu Gi Oh deck in the first place."

"I am the ultimate in summoning spells." Goetia declared with an utterly toneless voice "There is no ritual or craft in relation to summoning that eludes me. Even one such as this."

"...I just can't even…" Ritsuka lowered his head and stared at Goetia for a moment "...Can I play?"

"...Once I defeat this oaf, yes."

"Alri-Is that Abigail!?"

"No." Dimitri announced from somewhere "Goetia said it was Dreamland Pancake girl."

Ritsuka made a hacking noise as he stumbled backwards, hands flying to his mouth to stop his laughter spilling forth. His eyes fell upon Goetia for a half second, then turned around and stumbled back out of the room, his laughter soon echoing through the hallways as he could contain it no longer.