As the Blue Lions moved away from the trees, the winged horses closed in on their position. Felix saw them and spat. 'Come out the damn woods already you bunch of cowards!'
'Don't goad them, Felix,' Dimitri said.
'He better show himself,' Felix said. He bared his teeth. 'And for what it's worth, boar prince, I hope he's as good as you say he is, because I won't be holding back. If he's any less than what you say he is then he'll be torn to shreds.'
'Ah c'mon Felix, remember it's a mock battle,' Sylvain said.
'He'll live,' Felix replied. 'That's what the magic healers are for.'
Kingdom of Faerghus chants continued to sound out from the spectating crowd on the observation point as the Blue Lions side neared victory. Flayn ignored them.
'Come on Byleth,' she whispered out of earshot of Seteth. 'You can do it!'
Byleth's breaths are long and loud, and his chest rises and falls like a tidal wave. A hunger fills him. He is suddenly a man who hasn't eaten in days and who now must do so.
Moments before, he'd felt ready to slump to the ground with exhaustion. Now, he feels ready to take on a man twice the size of Bayen the giant. He is grounded, his sword is gripped in hand. It is wooden, but in his mind, he sees and feels silver. Blood surges through him and suddenly he can see everything in crystal-clear detail. He sees the scraggly veins lined along the surrounding leaves, and the droplets of water dripping and patting them and the overgrowth below. He can see a black beetle scurrying up along a trunk and a small bird flapping its wings in the distance. A gentle breeze shakes the trees and suddenly he can hear the creaking movement of every branch in the area. He counts the seconds of Bernadetta' timid breaths and he smells pine, soil and sweat. In the distance, he hears the Blue Lions' footsteps and the distant flapping of the winged horses.
The timid girl beside him finally opens her mouth again.
'Prof'-
'Listen carefully,' Byleth says.
The girl turns fully, her eyes wide.
Byleth gives his instructions and the girl responds with a trembling nod.
Suddenly, he is thrashing through the overgrowth. His eyes are fixed on the four men out in the open grassland. He is a predator who's spotted its prey. He closes in.