The Holy Mausoleum had been opened to the public, signifying the date the Goddess would return, at least according to the Seiros religion. More importantly to the Dragons though, it was time to enact their plan. The Mausoleum would most likely come under attack, so the team would have to be ready.
"Today's the day." Rhajat began. "Guess it's time to see if we were right."
Corrin nodded. "Right. What do you think, Professor?"
"I'm confident that we're right."
"Oh good, I'd hate to do all this for nothing." Velouria replied.
"Either way, we won't know until we enter." Rhajat did feel rather assured herself, but she also wanted to be realistic. There was a chance that they were barking up the wrong tree. If that were true, they'd all be in trouble. Corrin seemed to notice that Rhajat was a bit nervous, as she placed her hand on top of Rhajat's shoulder. Rhajat turned to her and smiled.
Camilla smiled at everyone. "I'll be with you all. If anything goes wrong, you can count on me."
"You seem a mite too relaxed for my liking." Seteth said as he walked in with Flayn next to him. He folded his arms. "The Goddess's Rite of Rebirth is about to begin. While we are in the Goddess Tower, we are relying on you to secure the locations that are lacking in defense."
"May I let you in on something, Professor?" Flayn requested. "My brother can be a bit...callous. He told me that he was concerned about you, and hinted that perhaps you would be better off patrolling a coffin!" She giggled a bit at the end. Despite the oddities of the situation, Byleth didn't react.
"That was said in jest, Flayn. And in confidence." He said with a twinge of what seemed to be annoyance. "Please just remain by my side and do not cause any more trouble." He then turned over to Byleth. "As a professor, you would do well to remember that it is your duty to guide your students down the path of righteousness."
"Please excuse us, everyone. We shall see you again after the ceremony has concluded!" Flayn said before walking off as quickly as she came with her brother next to her.
"Hm. He reminds me of my uncles..." Corrin mused. "But anyway, we should get going."
"Yeah. First we should head to the Mausoleum. We'll hide there near the entrance. Let them enter, and we'll stop them from retreating. Understand Professor?" Rhajat asked.
"Yes. Let's go." Byleth walked away and the rest of the class followed.
They quickly came across the Holy Mausoleum. Everyone took their positions, hiding from plain sight. A few people would pass by, some would enter, but they saw no one suspicious. They'd look around and leave. Some of the class were starting to wonder if they were wrong after all. Selkie started to get a bit restless in particular. She found herself getting bored, wanting to jump out of the shadows already. Everyone was a bit scared to speak, at risk of giving away their position. Eventually a suspicious looking mage walked in. Everyone looked alert, as more started piling in. Eventually there were a myriad of odd people there. One of the mages started messing with the casket. A sudden powerful aura was felt by everyone. Their hearts dropped as a rather intimidating soldier walked in, and he didn't seem to be on their side. They could hear his breathing, which sounded muffled thanks to his mask. He stopped in his tracks and looked in their direction. No one dared to move. Camilla didn't seem scared, more intrigued. However, she stayed still in order to not draw attention to the students. He didn't seem to see them, as he eventually just kept walking. Byleth was the first to step into view, and made sure it was safe for her students to do so. She looked back at her students and gave a sign that told them they could come out.
"Where'd they come from!?" One of the soldiers exclaimed.
"We were right..." Rhajat was a bit happy, but also concerned. This meant they had a fight on their hands.
The mysterious mage groaned in frustration. "Those Central Church dastards have spotted us... Buy me some time while I open the seal on the casket!"
"I'm on it." One of the soldiers replied.
"Are they after Seiros' bones? Why would they need that in particular?" Rhajat wondered. She wasn't above using bones in hexes, but it still seemed strange to her that they'd want her bones specifically. "We should stop him before he can open it." Rhajat looked downward. "Professor, do you see those odd contraptions? We should pay attention to their weapons and attack carefully."
"Death knight!" The mage in front of the casket exclaimed. "Prove your strength and scatter these fools!"
The Death Knight spoke up, in an incredibly deep voice. "I don't take commands. Or waste my time on weaklings."
Rhajat looked a bit intimidated, but she tried to hide it. "That guy can probably kill us easily. Let's stay out of his way while we try and get to that mage."
Despite Rhajat's words, Camilla flew past everyone at an incredible speed. Rhajat couldn't help but facepalm.
Corrin walked up to her with a smile and a shake of the head. "She'll be fine. We should focus on our battle."
Camilla waited in front of the knight. He looked her up and down. "You... you're of the Nohrian royal family."
"So you know of me. If you're as strong as you look cutie, this will be fun." Camilla smiled softly, but there was a fire in her eyes.
"Hmph. If you find me cute now, you'll find me adorable as I watch you beg for death."
"It is adorable! Adorable that you think you have a chance."
The death knight charged at Camilla, who dodged. She jumped off of her Wyvern and kicked him, knocking him back. Byleth proceeded to lead her class through the opposing army as Camilla handled the death knight.
Camilla back on her Wyvern, used a ragnarok spell. He attacked again in retaliation, and she dodged again.
"Stand still damn you!" The death knight exclaimed.
Camilla seemed even more amused. "Well since you asked nicely…" Camilla's Wyvern sat down, and Camilla decided to throw her axe this time. The death knight recoiled and Camilla flew over to grab her axe back. The Death Knight was infuriated, feeling like he was being toyed with.
While the two were dueling, Byleth led the class towards the leader. An archer shot an arrow towards Caeldori. Byleth hit the arrow with her sword before it hit her student. Selkie transformed and dashed at them. They shot an arrow at her, but she dodged it and it landed harmlessly. She grabbed the enemy with her tail and threw them into the air. Caeldori quickly flew towards them and stabbed them before they could hit the ground. They didn't notice a mage approaching them, and the mage shot a fireball at them. Asugi jumped in the way and managed to take the hit. He retaliated with a shuriken, then threw another. The enemy nearly fell over, and Velouria ran over to slash at them, defeating them.
The team looked at the death knight and Camilla, who were still engrossed in their battle. Camilla didn't look too worse for wear, but the death knight didn't either.
"If we stick around here, we might get sucked into the fight." Byleth said. "Rhajat, take Corrin, Forrest, Velouria, and Asugi and head east. Caeldori, Shiro, and Selkie, you're with me. We're going west. We'll reconvene by the casket."
Rhajat nodded. "See you there Professor."
Rhajat and the others ran off to take on the enemies on the right side of the area. Byleth looked at her remaining students and ran off as well to handle her side. Nearby was another mage that shot a burst of magic at Caeldori. She took the hit without hurting too much. Byleth and Shiro ran towards the mage and both stabbed at them with their weapons. The mage staggered, and Selkie kicked them with her hind legs to finish them off.
"You good Caeldori?" Shiro asked with concern.
"I am, thank you. Don't worry, remember that I can handle magic." Caeldori explained.
"Right." Shiro grinned and nodded at her.
A sword and an axe charged the four, and Caeldori quickly stabbed at the latter with her lance. She attacked again before the axe could counter. Shiro stabbed at the sword, but the sword managed to barely dodge. Shiro's eyes widened in surprise, and the sword used the opportunity to slash downward on Shiro's body. Byleth stabbed the sword in the back, and Caeldori finished off her axe opponent before stabbing at the sword to finish him off.
"Shiro! Are you okay!?" Selkie exclaimed.
Shiro pulled out a drink and chugged it, healing his wounds. "Yeah, I'm good!"
"Be careful Shiro." Byleth reprimanded. "If someone dodges, you need to adapt."
"Right..." Shiro rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry."
Meanwhile, the other team had to deal with an archer, a lance, and an axe. Velouria stood in front to take hits from all 3. Forrest stood behind her to heal her. Asugi crouched down and put his hand out for Corrin. Corrin stepped on his hand and he threw her into the air. She flew over Velouria as well as the lance and axe. She spun and slammed her sword down onto the archer, instantly defeating them. She turned around and slashed at the axe, but the sword stopped her with their own. Rhajat and Asugi blasted the distracted axe with their respective projectiles. Forrest launched an attack of his own at the axe, which defeated them. The sword was still fighting with Corrin, and Rhajat blasted them as well. This created an opening for Corrin to finish them off. Corrin smiled at Rhajat as a thank you, which made Rhajat's chest tighten. She dismissed the feeling and looked ahead, with two mages in front of them. She also noticed that the other team was about to go up against two mages of their own.
The mages on Byleth's side noticed them and immediately fired off some sort of dark magic. Caeldori rushed forward and took the hits. Selkie ran up to them and grabbed one with her teeth. Shiro ran towards the other and slashed at them. The mage attempted to dodge, leaving Shiro's attack only scraping them. They retaliated with another shot of magic, which Shiro barely dodged. Selkie threw the mage in her mouth at the other, and they both landed on the floor. Byleth quickly slashed at them, finishing them off.
A mage on the other side also fired dark magic, but Asugi threw a shuriken which destroyed the magic and hit the mage. He ran up to the mage and slashed at them. Corrin shot magic at the enemy as well. The other nearby mage started attacking, but Velouria ran in and took the hit. She then slashed at the mage, then grabbed them. She smashed him onto the other mage. She then grabbed the other and threw them away.
Both teams progressed, and came across one lance and one mage each. Rhajat and Forrest blasted the mage with magic. Byleth did the same to the one in her way, and Selkie attacked by rolling into them. The mage on Rhajat's side was still conscious, and attacked Velouria. Velouria was pushed back a bit, but Forrest quickly healed her up. Corrin and Asugi both ran towards the mage. Corrin struck them and they fell, while Asugi ran past to slash at the lance. The lance quickly retaliated, but Asugi was able to dodge. Shiro ran towards the lance on his side, and slid under the stab directed at him. Caeldori flew in and stabbed the lance, then Shiro finished them off with his own weapon. Corrin blasted her lance with magic, defeating them as well.
The teams made it to the end of their paths, and the mage with the casket was in sight. Byleth looked towards Rhajat and nodded, and Rhajat did the same. They both slowly walked up to him in order to get the jump on him. They stopped in their tracks upon hearing a scream. From above, they saw the death knight falling. They all moved out of the way, and the knight landed on top of the mage.
"What a workout~" Camilla joked. "You almost gave me a challenge."
"Ugh..." The death knight groaned. He was still alive, but seemed exhausted as he laid on the ground.
The mage slid from underneath the knight, still alive. "It's no use! The seal is broken. You can't- Huh? A sword?" The mage pulled out a bony looking sword. It seemed to be a hero's relic, despite not having a crest stone.
Byleth ran towards the mage, who tried to defend himself. She easily knocked the sword out of his hands, and it went flying. Byleth caught it, and looked at it with interest. The mage charged a fireball and sent it Byleth's way. Byleth looked up and slashed at the fireball with the new sword out of instinct.
"Huh... What!?" The mage exclaimed. Despite the lack of crest stone, the sword was working perfectly.
The mage shot another fire ball, but Byleth after dropping her other sword countered with ease. The mage began to back up, seeing the tide of battle shifting. He created a shield to protect himself. Byleth ran towards the enemy and slashed at it. Sparks began to fly and cracks began to form. Byleth soon broke it, and slashed upwards at the mage, killing him.
"That sword is... I see. What a pleasant surprise." The death knight muttered before teleporting away.
"Damn, he escaped." Rhajat folded her arms in frustration. She then looked to her professor. "That sword is glowing... could it be-"
Interrupting her, the knights ran in, with Catherine leading them. "Is the intruder here?! Oh... Looks like you have this under control. You! Round up any stragglers."
"Will do!" One of the knights replied.
"As all of you have committed a breach of faith, the archbishop will now pass judgment." Seteth began. He, Rhea, and Shamir all were face to face with the culprits of the assault.
"Inciting a Kingdom noble to rebel. Unlawful entry. The attempted assassination of the archbishop. An attack on the Holy Mausoleum. It is unnecessary to go on, followers of the Western Church." Shamir wasn't the most devout of the knights, but even she couldn't tolerate what they've done.
"What?! We have nothing to do with the Western Church!" one of the culprits exclaimed.
"You have already been identified. Please spare us your second-rate theater." Seteth said, annoyed.
"Dishonoring a holy ceremony is worthy of death for a member of the church. You are well past the hope of redemption. If you have any grace remaining, you will willingly offer your life as atonement for this crime." Rhea coldly told them.
The priest's eyes widened in horror. "No! This isn't what we were told would happen! We've been deceived!"
"It's no use arguing. Whatever your excuse, the punishment stands." Shamir was finding it hard to feel any sympathy for the priests.
"May your souls find peace as they return to the goddess..." Despite her words, Rhea didn't seem too upset.
"Wait! Please! The goddess would never forgive you for our execution!" One of the priests yelled.
"Monster! We know you've already slaughtered many of our fellow brethren like this!" Another said accusingly.
`"This concludes the investigation. Please remove these poor, lost souls from my sight." At Rhea's command, the priests were forced to leave.
Rhajat watched it happen, filled with conflicting emotions. "..."
"The assassination attempt... the attack on the holy mausoleum... it was all the western church it seems." Rhajat explained. "And that masked knight left to who knows where..."
"I have no idea why the western church would do that..." Shiro said, folding his arms. "What did they have to gain from that? Aren't they all followers?"
"Well they are, but they're not all united." Rhajat answered. She had been doing a bit more research on how Fodlan worked. "The church as a whole is led right here at Garreg Mach, and the Western Church doesn't have much of a say. Wouldn't be shocked if they'd been angry with the central church for a while..."
"The central church?" Byleth tilted her head.
"Right. You somehow avoided the church's influence..." Rhajat still wasn't entirely sure if she bought that, but Byleth hadn't given her much reason to doubt her either. "There are multiple branches of the church. The central church is the largest, and you know where it's led. The Western Church is west of Castle Gaspard. Where we fought Lonato if you remember. It's on the far side of Arianrhod, part of the kingdom. The western church probably wanted to gain control over Rhea."
"I mean no disrespect Professor but... how do you not know all this?" Caeldori asked. "It's so unbelievable."
"What's even stranger is how Lady Rhea hired her in spite of that..." Rhajat mused.
"...Lady Rhea had those guys killed..." Corrin said barely audibly.
"Yeah..." Forrest added. "I... get that they did some awful things but... still... it's a bit much..."
"I can get it." Selkie said, oddly calm. "What they did was super wrong right? They had to be punished."
"I guess..." Velouria said stretching. "What do you think Professor?"
Before she could reply, Seteth walked into the classroom. "There you are, Professor. It seems Lady Rhea would like a word with you. Come with me."
Byleth nodded and walked off with him. There was a bit of an awkward and tense mood in the air. Corrin walked away without saying a word. She looked like she was crying, which got Rhajat's attention. Rhajat followed her, worried about her. Rhajat could understand that it was unnerving, even for her. She still had respect for Lady Rhea, but she wasn't entirely sure how much she trusted her.
Corrin wiped her tears away as she searched for Camilla. After her mother passed, Camilla had been the closest thing to one that she had. She always went to her with problems. It helped that Camilla missed Mikoto too. So she could understand what she was going through when familial problems came up.
"Corrin...?"
Corrin turned around and saw her house leader with a worried expression. "Ah... Rhajat..." she wiped more of her tears away.
"So you were crying..."
"Yeah... sorry, I didn't mean to worry you."
Rhajat put her hands on her hips. "We're friends right? Of course I'll worry."
Corrin smiled. "You're so sweet..."
Rhajat blushed and looked away. "Not really... but whatever. Do you wanna talk about it?"
Corrin's smile vanished just as quickly as it appeared. "It's... about what happened with the western church." She said sadly. "I... don't think I told you but... I lost my Mom when I was young. I don't know who did it but... someone killed them. This person in a black robe killed her, as well as a friend of hers and her daughter... my friend... Azura."
Rhajat nodded in understanding, while Azura listened silently.
"Camilla... She saved me. I think... part of the reason why she dotes on me is because she thinks I hate her for not saving the others... I don't. I never could. But sometimes I... wish I died with them."
"Corrin..." Azura mumbled.
Rhajat took a second to think. She wasn't sure what to say exactly. "You... I'm not the best at this, but you shouldn't think like that. That's stupid. I'm... I'm sure they're all happy that you're still here."
"...Do you think so?"
"I know so. I'm positive." While Azura hadn't said so, she knew that she thought so highly of Corrin. She couldn't fathom Azura being angry because Corrin got to live.
Corrin looked down at her feet. She wanted to believe Rhajat, but it was also hard. "I appreciate it. I don't even know if I want revenge... I hate the person that did it. I hate them… so much…" She bawled her fists. It was the angriest she'd ever seen Corrin. She took a deep breath to keep herself together. "I just... don't know if it's right. To be possessed by my sorrow like that. Besides... I don't know if I'll ever see them again anyway... That's why I'm here actually. I never want to lose anyone important to me again. I want to get strong enough to protect everyone dear to me."
"Hm. I respect that. If anyone killed someone I loved, I wouldn't rest until they were in the ground." Rhajat said. She didn't really think there was anything wrong with revenge, but she also didn't think that was appropriate to say at the moment.
Corrin smiled again. "Thank you. Sorry, I derailed a bit. The reason why I got so upset was that those people being killed just made me think of it. Not falling in battle, they were just... murdered. I know there was a reason. It wasn't bloodshed for the sake of bloodshed. And yet... it just hit so close to home."
Rhajat nodded. "Do you want me to hex her?"
Corrin paused as if it took her a few seconds to comprehend what she was saying. Then she started giggling. "You have no fear huh... but no. Please don't. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you..."
Rhajat blushed, but then smiled. "I'm not going anywhere."
Corrin reached over and hugged Rhajat tightly. Rhajat reciprocated, which surprised even her a bit. Corrin put her head on Rhajat's shoulder. Despite Corrin being taller. "I'll hold you to that. Please... don't leave me." She started quietly crying again. Rhajat held her tightly. She hated the idea of Corrin crying with a passion. She knew how kind she was, and she didn't think someone so sweet should be so miserable. It was then she realized she had something to protect too. She had to protect Corrin's smile.
A lord from the empire, Arundel, stood in a valley with a heavily masked person.
"The archbishop lives. Not that I had ever placed much faith in those swine from the Western Church." The lord said.
"I have news, both good and bad. The remains of Seiros were not in the tomb. However, something else was. The Sword of the Creator." The masked individual replied.
"Ah, the weapon wielded by that thief, the King of Liberation." He mused.
"Thief? Hm." They didn't seem interested in discussing that further. "At any rate, it is now in the hands of the academy's new professor. I doubt you will be surprised to hear that the Crest Stone had already been removed from the sword when it was found."
"Hmph. As expected. It would be foolish to keep both in the same location." He reasoned.
"There's more." They continued. "The professor was able to awaken the sword's true power. Even without the Crest Stone, the sword glowed red. The professor's Crest is compatible. There is no mistaking it."
"Absurd. Using a Relic without its Crest Stone should be impossible... The King of Liberation's bloodline should not even... Hmm." He seemed lost in thought.
"She must be allowed to keep it, for now. I do not have enough information about the professor to act. As for your request, I assent. The Death Knight is at your command. Use him well."
"Good. I believe I will enjoy this a great deal... One last thing though."
"Yes?" The masked individual asked.
"Are there any updates on the dragon?"
"Hm? Ah, her. Yes, he did mention that to me. A dragon unlike himself. She hasn't transformed again yet. There's not much we can get out of her either. I think it's safe to say she's not connected to the church either. We've been looking into them and found nothing. So where she got that power... it's a mystery."
"Well Anankos despises uncertainties, as do I. Keep tabs on her, and if she proves to be too great a threat, you know what to do."
"...Yes."
