"I'm sorry, a what now?"

Frederick sounded so prideful about that position, like he was giving away his only child, but I had no idea how to imagine a quartermaster's job. All that came up was just putting things where they were supposed to be and all that, nothing special.

Frederick's deepening scowl made me think otherwise. Again, very little emotion seeped through that stalwart face of his, but the message he was sending me was clear as day.

That I was a goddamn idiot.

"A quartermaster's job is to keep the Shepherds in top condition no matter the importance of missions," he began, putting his hands behind his back. "A position that requires a good memory and perfectionism to make sure no Shepherd leaves the barracks unprepared."

I only stared at him with my mouth slightly agape, trying to take in what he was saying but I hard time just paying attention.

"And as such, it is prudent that yo—," he stopped, and took a quick glance at how I was trying to hide my yawns and unsteady legs caused by the trek uphill I went through moments ago. The fact that he noticed it in the first place was kind of impressive.

He let out a sigh before easing his tensed-up shoulders. "I see briefing you on the basics is basically pointless today. You'd forget more than half of what I said in an instant."

"I—," he stopped me with a raised hand neatly in front of his chest.

"No need for excuses, lady Theresa. It was naive of me to think you would perform miracles right from the start." At first glance, his remark did sound offending, but there was a hint of understanding under that high-and-mighty voice of his. "As I said before, your first goal is to make this office yours. I don't think I have to go too much in detail on how."

"Y-yeah," was all I could say, making Frederick nod.

"I want you to feel like this place is owned by you and you alone. I give you three days to do so," he said before turning to the doors and pulling on the doorknob. He was about to leave, but he tilted his head in my direction. "The first floor is filled with empty bedrooms ready to be used. They have a key right beside them. Also, I left your only possession down in the main hall. Be sure to pick it up."

He really didn't like to mince words.

Once he was finished, Frederick closed the doors behind him, leaving me alone in this dusty old office with the only light illuminating the room coming from outside a window.

As I said, time wasn't kind to this place at all. Dust was everywhere, and I meant everywhere. It didn't matter how high the bookshelves went or if the hanging curtains were ever cleaned, the office was in bad shape.

And Frederick said I had to clean this place up in three days!?

At first glance, I thought I was going to have enough time, but if my instincts were correct, that early morning meeting probably wasn't the only one, cutting the time I could use.

I let out a large sigh before starting to look around the office to see what was urgent and what wasn't, because planning everything out was going to be the key. Just like in architecture, no good foundation was going to be built with no plan in mind.

I started by checking the files and books themselves because even they suffered a bad case of dust. Just opening one sent out waves of specks that threatened to invade my nostrils and force me to cough.

I should have opened the window first.

With creaking steps, I reached the window and unhinged it from its lock before opening them like a set of doors, and to my surprise, it had a beautiful view of the city below.

Unorganized roads seemingly connected were littered with tiny moving specs surrounded by small blocky houses, each sporting its own chimney. Some were lit, others were dormant, yet they didn't block the view at all. I could even hear the chatter of the citizens all the way up here, all encapsulated within the towering walls of the city.

I was so tantalized by the sight that I couldn't help but lean my elbows on the window and stare at the vista. Comparing it to the streets of my place felt like just a giant slap in the face with how different they were.

This was a completely different world, but yet again, I didn't feel like I was going to miss the one I left.

A small lump in my throat formed again every single time whenever I brought up this question. I wondered if that feeling would ever fade away, but I was very doubtful.

I shook my head. Now was not the time to think about that, I had an important task to do.

With the window opened, I began slowly but surely pulling out all the books from the shelves and neatly stacking them into small towers, each ready to be put back once I finished cleaning the shelves.

It was then I realized I didn't have anything to clean it up with, so I went outside the room to find a brush or a rug, or something to help me. To my surprise, when I turned right, I saw a bunch of cleaning equipment ready to be used. I was a bit confused at first, but I had an inkling of who left it here, making me adorn a small smile.

Thanks, Frederick.

I took it inside, and began the long and arduous process of cleaning every single shelf from accumulated dust and grime. My rug was so dirty just from a single swipe, but I pressed on and used it to the fullest.

I let out a sneeze before using the bucket filled with water to wash all the dirt and dust from the rug. There was enough water that it didn't discolor, but I knew I was going to change the water regularly because it wouldn't last long enough.

Swipe after swipe, I was able to clean up the first half of the bookshelves, proudly staring at my small accomplishment. Yes, there was still a lot to clean up, but at least I knew I was making a dent, no matter how small. Once I turned to the window and saw the sun setting, it was then I realized just how little time I had to clean this place up.

I let out a sigh before picking up the bucket full of dirty water and going down the stairs to find a place where I could throw it out. I guessed this place still had primitive plumbing, so getting rid of it outside wasn't going to be the problem.

No, the problem —I realized once I was outside the barracks, standing with an empty bucket in hand— that I had no idea where I could get fresh water. I didn't see a well anywhere, so I began wandering haphazardly through the barracks, hoping to stumble my way into a water source.

I knew I was wasting my time, but I was too stubborn to ask somebody for help, and…

I should ask somebody for help.

What I didn't expect was just how huge the barracks were. Sure, I knew Chrom's militia wasn't going to be just five or six people big, but with how empty this place was, I had a feeling it wasn't as large as I had imagined.

Thankfully, I heard a set of steps near me, and picked up the pace to find whoever was making that noise. They were on the same floor as the bedrooms Frederick mentioned and once I climbed the stairs, I spotted a woman.

She was on the shorter side, roughly the same size as me with long gray locks that reached her waist. Sporting a set of light pinkish armor with a mini skirt that failed to hide her thighs, her skin was glistening slightly under the light coming from the windows. She also looked surprisingly beautiful, despite the fact she looked a little exhausted.

She noticed me approaching and turned to me instead of going inside her room, if I had to guess, making me stiffen under her gaze. I suddenly couldn't move at all while growing redder with each passing moment from embarrassment. The woman gave me a small sheepish smile.

"Can I help you in any way?" She asked, her words making me snap back to reality.

"I…" I let out a cough, giving myself time to form the damn question. "I just need to know where I can get fresh water. Is there a well nearby, or something?"

"Oh, are you the new maid for hire? The well is right by the training grounds," she said, quite sure of her guess, but I could only gape at her dumbfoundedly.

"Um, why are you staring at me like that?" She said, backing up slightly. "Did I say something to offend you?"

Why yes, yes you did, but I didn't have it in me to blame her. Besides, if a random person wearing similar stuff to mine with a bucket in hand would pass right by me, I would probably think they're a maid as well.

"No, it's just I didn't expect you to say that I'm a maid," I said with a sigh. "I just got enlisted as a Shepherd actually."

The woman stayed motionless for a moment before her face quickly heated up and started frantically bowing up and down.

"I'm so sorry! That was extremely inconsiderate of me! I shouldn't be making assumptions! I—"

"Alright, alright, let's calm down here," I said, trying my best to calm her down with my hands while looking away. "It was a misunderstanding. Just lift your head up, please."

She eventually did, brushing her face off before taking one last bow. "I'm truly sorry. I just wasn't expecting new faces any time soon. It's been awfully long without anybody new."

"From what I've heard from Chrom and Lissa, yeah, I can't blame you," I remarked before extending my hand that didn't have the bucket. "My name is Theresa, a pleasure to meet you."

She gave me a smile while taking my hand. "It's Sumia. It's a pleasure to have you here."

She then looked down at the bucket. "Do you need me to show you the way?"

I gave her a small nod. "Yeah, that would be nice."

{*}{*}{*}{*}{*}{*}

"So, you've been enlisted after the attack at Southtown? Well, that is what Chrom usually does," Sumia said while I kept cranking the wheel to bring the bucket of water back up.

"Yeah, with my current situation, I honestly didn't have any other choice other than living in the streets." I picked up the bucket once it reached the surface. "And I don't think I would last long there."

"I can certainly imagine," she remarked.

I put the bucket down, swiping away any accumulated sweat on me before turning to Sumia. "So, do you have anything to do right now, or…?"

She shook her head. "No, I'm done with my daily training. Do you mind if I come with you?"

I smiled at her. "No, not at all. Come on."

She gave me a nod and we headed back inside the barracks. On our way there, Sumia asked, "So, what exactly has Chrom enlisted you for? I don't want to sound rude, but you don't look like you fight often."

A dry chuckle escaped my lips. "Yeah, I'm not a fighter at all. If anything, I'm glad Chrom found me something that doesn't deal with battling on the field. Although I don't know what my job is going to be as the new quartermaster."

"A quartermaster?" Sumia parroted before tapping her chin. "We haven't had one for a long time actually."

"You didn't?" I asked, curious to say the least.

"Well, Frederick was usually the one that took care of all the supplies and such. I honestly don't know how he was able to handle it on top of all the other things he does," she said.

"Wait, what does Frederick do anyway? I know he is keeping Chrom and Lissa under his wing, but that's it."

She turned her head to me while adorning a proud smile. "He actually has the entirety of the Shepherds under his wing."

My eyes bulged out. "Really? I thought Chrom was the leader."

"Yes, he is, but Frederick is the one that keeps tabs on everyone. From training everyone to making sure everyone is prepared for their next mission." Her shoulders sagged. "It makes me feel a little guilty that he has to do pretty much everything on his own."

"I mean, have you tried helping?" I caught myself on that question. "Actually, scratch that, you already did but Frederick is a perfectionist, isn't he?"

She let out a laugh. "What makes you say that?"

"Do I really have to explain why? It just oozes out of him," I said before looking at the barracks in front of us, realizing that I might as well take the staff on my way to my soon-to-be office.

"Anyway, thanks for taking your time with me, Sumia."

She waved it off. "Oh don't worry about it, the Shepherds are more like a big family than a militia. If you need any help, you just have to ask."

"Yeah, thanks."

"I'll see you again then, Theresa," Sumia said before disappearing from view behind the barracks. I didn't know where she was going, but it wasn't like I was privy to what she was doing.

After picking up my staff resting on the table in the main hall, I went back inside the office to resume my cleaning. Once I got inside and saw just how messy the place still was, I let out a huff.

"Let's just get this over with."

It seemed that one bucket was enough to clean the other half of the bookshelves, but it took way more time than I would have liked. Once I rinsed out the rug, the water full of dust and grime, I sat down on the only chair this room provided and let out an exhausted groan.

It was very comfy. Since I hadn't done anything with the seat yet, the dust settled on my clothes, but I couldn't care less at that point. It was getting dark outside, and it was getting harder to see what was dirty and what wasn't anymore.

I began staring at that staff I was left with and picked it up before slacking in the chair, tilting the staff in every direction to see if anything was out of the ordinary just in case I missed something, but I found nothing.

The socket was empty, the imagery somehow matched the earring I got on my birthday, and it allowed me to heal seemingly incurable wounds in an instant.

At the expense of my own health though.

Again, everything so far still felt surreal, no matter how much I tried to convince myself. It was like all the laws of nature I was used to were flipped on their head, making the information overload all the more suffocating.

Not only that, but these sudden expectations thrown on me were just…

A sudden knock on the door interrupted my thoughts. "The door is open."

The knob turned once with a click, revealing long blond hair behind the doors before I saw Lissa's head pop out of the other side. She fully opened her way in, revealing a candle in one hand and a wooden tray of goods in the other.

"Do you mind?" She asked, to which I shook my head.

"If you're fine with how messy this place is," I said, earning a chuckle from her.

"Please, I've seen worse."

She ungracefully tiptoed her way to the table over the stacks of books and files, somehow able to balance the fully stacked tray before putting the candle down first. It let out a pleasant warm light, illuminating the room well enough before Lissa laid the tray on the table as well.

"There, I thought you'd be hungry," she said while I eyed the plate with all sorts of things. Bread, cheese, smoked meat, grapes, pretty much a platter similar to the one used in a buffe.

"Where did you get this?" I asked her.

She formed a grin, leaned in, and whispered, "I snuck it out of the castle just for you."

"What?" I shook my head. "No, Lissa, I can't eat this."

"Why not? It's not like they'll find out one tray went missing," she said before pushing the plate closer to me. "Eat up. I'm sure you didn't have anything up until now."

I hated to admit it, but she was right. I completely forgot I spent the other half of the day just cleaning this place up.

I stared at the tray for far longer than I should have, to which Lissa frowned. She turned to one of the stacks of books and used it as an impromptu chair before leaning both of her elbows on the table.

"What are you doing?" I asked her with half-lidded eyes.

"I'm waiting," she said plainly.

"For what?"

"For you to eat the whole thing, obviously."

"You don't have to stare at me like that though. I know how to eat. You can leave," I said, but Lissa was having none of that.

"And risk the fact you're just going to leave it there? Not a chance," she proclaimed adamantly before her frown fell. "I just want to make sure you're doing alright. You've been locked up in here the whole day."

I glanced at the window one more time. "Hard not to do that when Frederick said I have three days to clean this place up."

Lissa's eyes widened. "This mess in three days!?"

She looked around the room, taking the candle in the process before tilting her head to me. "This isn't a job for three days! Let me talk to him! I'm sure he will—"

"No, Lissa," I interrupted her, hiding my face behind my palms. "Just, don't."

She put the candle back before sitting down. "But why?"

I gave her the best stare I could muster, even if there was a lump forming in my neck. "I need to prove to Frederick I'm not deadweight. If I can't finish this in those three days, then what use am I to the Shepherds if I can't even clean a single damn room?"

"This isn't about being useful, Theresa."

"IT IS!" I screamed at her, standing up in the process before immediately regretting it once I saw how Lissa flinched. I gazed at her with my mouth slightly agape before plopping back down in my seat, my body exceedingly heavy all of a sudden.

"It is…" A single tear started to trickle down my cheek. I was trying to hold back my sobs with quick shallow breaths, but it didn't amount to anything. Lissa asked possibly the worst question at the worst possible time. I hated the feeling of uselessness. It always hung on me like a bad omen, no matter what I did. It seemed that even when I was transported to this world, it didn't cure it.

I would argue it made things worse.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Lissa asked gently, making me lift my head. I was scared however, scared that I would get judged for being too weak, too… useless.

I hated that word.

"I don't want to," I whispered. "I really don't want to."

"But then we won't be able to help you, Theresa. Come on, speak up," she urged, but that only made me click my tongue.

"Why do you want to help me? It's not like I'm that importa—"

"You are important!" She suddenly proclaimed. "You are a part of the Shepherds now! A part of the family! I wouldn't hear the end of it from Chrom that I didn't help you with your problems!"

I could only stare at her with my jaw hanging open, unable to comprehend her words.

Until it clicked with me.

I let out a dry chuckle, the lump relentlessly scratching the walls of my throat. "You know? Sumia told me the same thing."

Lissa paused. "You've met Sumia already?" She shook her head. "That isn't important. What is important is the fact she is right! We're here for you, even if Frederick doesn't look like it."

"That's the thing though, I'm trying to impress Frederick," I said, making Lissa lean in closer.

"Go on."

I took a deep breath before gulping down whatever I had in my mouth. "He told me that I have no redeeming qualities, that he expects me to not show him a miracle or something that I'm good at."

I gazed down at the cleaning equipment he prepared for me. "This feels like his first test, and if I can't even pass that, then what business do I have here anyway? Someone like me, a quartermaster, who can't even clean their own office?"

I scoffed. "I think I'm failing already."

Lissa, ever the beacon of hope that she was being right now, cupped my hands while giving the best smile she could muster. "I think I know something you might want to know."

I lifted my head, giving Lissa a subtle nod.

"Well, I don't think it's the problem with Frederick, but with the task itself," she said.

I lifted both of my brows. "What?"

"I think he knows it too, that this is pretty much impossible, but gave it to you anyway to see if you can deal with the pressure. If anything, he wants you to steel yourself and do as much as you can before the deadline," she said. "If you'll just simply do what you can, he has no reason to beret you for it."

"You… really think so?" I asked, turning my head away. "All my life, I never was able to live up to someone's expectations just because somebody always did it better than me."

"Well, is there anybody you know of here that could do it better than you?" She asked pointedly.

"No, or at least I haven't met them yet."

"Then you have nothing to worry about," she said before giving me a toothy smile. "Besides, the Shepherds are probably the worst when it comes to cleaning anything. You've already impressed me, and Frederick will be no different."

"You make it sound so easy."

"Yeah, I know it isn't, but that should only push you to do your best."

Was that really all there was to it? Just to do my best? It was hard to believe that when my best never amounted to anything. It was always brought down by a peer because they either were better, or worse, gifted.

Then again, this task was only given to me…

"I don't want to sound rude, but how do you even know this? The test's purpose I mean."

She shrugged. "It's kind of Frederick's thing. There were a lot of people who tried to get in the Shepherds just to get close to me and Chrom since, you know, we're kind of important," she said, in no way sounding smug, or arrogant. "In his eyes, this is the best way to get rid of frauds, but you? You're no fraud! If anything, the fact that you can heal without a gem is already something amazing!"

Her smile curved sheepishly. "Well, even if it makes you want to pass out."

For some reason, I couldn't look her in the eyes and I lift my hands from the table before turning my chair to face the night's sky.

I let one of my hands fall on my forehead. "I don't deserve you, Lissa."

She let out a small laugh. "Hey, that's what a family is supposed to do, right? Help you when you need it."

I hummed. "I guess."

I tilted my head in her direction. "I need a moment alone, Lissa. I'll eat what you gave me, but I need some time alone right now."

She gave me a nod. "Alright, but I want to see that tray empty by tomorrow, okay?"

A small churn from my stomach made itself known, making me look away once more.

Why do you always do this to me?

"I don't think you have to worry about that," I said, making Lissa chuckle.

"Alright, just make sure you don't stay up too late, okay?" She said before opening the doors with a tiny creak.

"Hey, Lissa?" I said, stopping her before she left. A smile formed on my features. "Thank you."

One last giggle escaped her lips before she said, "Good night, Theresa," and closed the doors behind her, leaving me to stew in my thoughts.

It was something I wanted however, and after picking up the tray with the food, I slowly but surely ate everything, thinking over what she said to me all the while.

I bit down a piece of cheese, but then I felt another tear flow down my cheek, then the second, then a third. It all came crashing down once again as I let them flow naturally this time. I had no reason to hold them back anymore, not even the sobs.

Because Lissa gave me something I didn't know I needed.

{*}{*}{*}{*}{*}{*}

As you would have expected, time didn't wait for anyone. I continued my relentless cleanup, but this time, after an hour or two of reflection, I followed Lissa's advice and just did not care about the deadline at all.

I was shocked at just how… effective it was.

Sure, I needed to always remind myself that this wasn't a test of speed but will, but still, it made things a whole lot easier. I took my time with every single nook and cranny of the office, not sparing a single speck of dust from my rug. The more detail I put into my work however, the more prone I became to forget what time of the day it was, even with the window always showing me the sun.

That was where Lissa came in.

She was a godsend, keeping me in check and making sure I, at least, took a break or two between my vigorous sessions. Not to mention she always brought a fresh plate full of food that lasted me for the rest of the day.

I started to feel bad for the people who made these platters though.

Eventually, the last day Frederick gave me came to a close, yet I was still far from done. The books and files were still full of dust that still needed to be sorted through, but I didn't have any idea where to start. They were just piles of paper stacked next to each other in front of me, ruining my presentation. Everything else was fine, the bookshelves, the table, the floor…

Well, the floor was filled with those books, but still!

A loud knock on the doors interrupted my thoughts, one that made me almost skip a beat because I knew who it was.

"Enter," I said, making the doorknob turn once before the hulking mass that was Frederick entered the room.

With each step he made, his armor rang through the room like a pair of bells, echoing in my ears. He gazed from one bookshelf to another, wordlessly circling the room through those stacks that he didn't even look at. Once he reached the table, he glided his hand across the wooden surface. His gloves faintly screeched, sending shivers down my spine before he fiddled around with his fingers.

He gave me one small glance before he opened the window and stared down at the city below. "It is tough to breathe here, lady Theresa. Be sure to keep the window open."

I gave him a small nod but could otherwise only stand still like a brick, waiting for anything Frederick would send my way.

He let out an uncharacteristic sigh. "I do have to admit this room is cleaned up well. At first glance, you didn't seem to miss anything important."

I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out. I took a deep breath before saying, "But I did." I motioned my hand to the ground. "These books, I didn't know what to do with them."

"That's fine," he said plainly, taking me aback.

"Wait, what?"

He switched his attention to the shelves under the table, gently opening one before his eyes widened slightly. "Where did you put the scripts from this shelf?"

I jolted slightly in my spot before pointing at the stack right next to his right. "They're there."

He let out a hum before tilting his head to that particular stack. He took his time shifting from one book to another, laying each on the table, spilling dust everywhere. I wanted to tell him that he could at least brush off the excess but I decided to stay silent.

Once he was done, he turned to me with his hands behind his back. "I want you to restore these books to their original form. The brittle paper won't last long."

"Oh, alright," I said, but I had a weird feeling this wasn't all to it. "But then what about the rest?"

Frederick raised a single eyebrow. "What 'rest'?"

"You know, these?" I said, emphasizing the stacks of paper all over the room. "There's like… kilos of scrap here and I have no idea what to do with it."

His brow didn't come down. In fact, it went higher up. "Shouldn't it be rather obvious? Those are old files of the Shepherds' supplies. They are basically useless."

"Wait." I stared at him with half-lidded eyes, mouth slightly agape. "So what you're telling me is that they are…"

"Waste, yes," he said, his brow finally easing. "No reason to keep them pristine when all they will become is fuel for a fire."

…I had a strong urge to strangle someone right now. I was wasting my energy thinking over something that didn't even matter!? I even made a scene because of it too!

I let out a large groan before burying my head in my hands. "For fuck's sake."

"Is there something wrong?" Frederick asked.

I shook my head. "No no, nothing's wrong. I'm just a damn idiot, that's all."

I took a quick breath before meeting Frederick eye to eye, even if it was harder than I thought. "So? How did I do?"

Frederick lowered his head, touching his chin in the process before taking one last glance of the room. "I think you did better than I expected if I discount your slight blunder. But there is always room for improvement."

Hearing those words made me suddenly feel very light, like I would fly away at any moment. It felt really nice to hear that, the effort I put in was appreciated to some degree. I breathed a relieved sigh before a smile crept onto my features.

"Now, come with me," he said, breaking me away from my thoughts. "I think it's about time we start." He walked past me to the doors and gently opened them before turning back to me. "We have no time to lose, lady Theresa."

"Right," I said with a nod before following Frederick down the stairs to the underground of the barracks.

Once we entered, I was met with a dark stone hall lit by torches that barely gave enough light for me to see. Even though the torches themselves should be able to heat up the place, it was surprisingly cold and humid down here. It became harder to breathe while specks of dust that I took my time removing from my office came back with a vengeance, invading my nostrils once more.

Frederick took one of the torches right by the entrance and led me through the hall without wasting a single step. He probably had this place memorized at this point, which shouldn't be surprising. He then stopped at one of the doors, acquired a set of keys from one of his pockets and opened the lock with a single click.

Once he pushed the doors aside, we found ourselves in a large room filled to the brim with boxes and racks with weapons neatly arranged like battalions of soldiers. Now, this place could have been anything, but even with just a faint idea of what my job was supposed to be, I had to guess this was the supply room.

Which made me realize what was in store for me, and I wasn't looking forward to it at all.

"This will be your first task. To make a new file of all the supplies the Shepherds currently have," Frederick said before turning to a single table with multiple sheets of ready-to-use paper and an ink pen. "All things that you need to start are over there, ready for use."

A sigh escaped my lips. "God, this is going to take a while."

Frederick gave me a nod. "Yes, and I would be glad if you acclimate to your new position quickly."

"But how fast do you want me to be?" I asked him. "I have no idea where to start. Not to mention I don't even know what is inside these boxes."

"Rations, leather, vulneraries, and such, but we would be here for a while if I had to name everything out loud," he said. "And if you believe I'm going to give you a deadline then that would only make you blunder more than necessary."

"O-kay? But you will at least teach me what to do, right?" I said, trying to find at least something to help me get a headstart, but Frederick shook his head, much to my dismay.

"Frankly, I don't have that much time to hold you by your hand, which is why I told you to restore the scripts I put down on your table in the office."

"But that will take me even longer before I can start with this… I don't want to say mess, but it's up there."

"Don't be in a rush, lady Theresa. A quartermaster's job is to keep the barracks well organized and ready. It wouldn't bode well if said quartermaster was impatient, and lacked thoroughness."

At first, I didn't know why he said that. It felt more like a far off remark than anything, but then it clicked with me.

"Wait, so the reason you gave me a deadline back then was to—"

He nodded. "To test exactly those two virtues, yes. The added deadline was there to make sure you wouldn't fall under pressure, but that isn't important now. What is important is to restore those scripts and I want you to know them like the back of your hand."

"Now," Frederick turned to me before extending his hand with the keys and prompting me to take them. I stared at them while they dangled in his hand, contemplating if this was truly something I wanted to undertake.

However, now that Frederick at least told me the gist of this position, it weighed on me all the more how truly important the job was. On one hand, it had many responsibilities that I wasn't used to. Such things weren't really put on me and made me question if I could handle all the pressure without breaking.

On the other, I didn't find Frederick as someone who would just give away something like this for nothing. Sure, he was influenced by Chrom, but even then, it would mean that Chrom believed I had what it took to do said job.

With how indecisive I was, I didn't know what was the right call anymore.

What I didn't expect was that Frederick beat me to it.

He took my hand and put the cold keys in my palm without me being able to do anything about it. I was too stunned to give them back.

"Lady Theresa," Frederick called me, making me lift my head. "Tell me why you didn't take the keys yourself."

I turned away, looking down at the dimly lit ground. "I don't know if I can do it."

"Then I have a simple answer," he said, putting his hands behind his back once again. "There is no such thing as knowing you can do something or not. Not until you try and find out yourself. Most of us weren't masters right from the start, and that applies to you too. While I do doubt milord's intuition sometimes, there was never a time when applying the right tools for the job didn't yield results."

He closed his eyes. "As of this day forward, lady Theresa, you are in control of all the supplies the Shepherds have at their disposal. Now is certainly not the time to doubt, only to act. Be responsible, and don't let milord's trust be misplaced."

Why did he always know what to say? Did it come from years of experience? Or was he just that good with words? I honestly couldn't tell.

I looked down at the keys in my hands and gave them a light squeeze before looking up. "Alright. If you and Chrom think I have what it takes, then I will do it."

He opened his eyes and gave me a slight nod. "Good. Now, get to it, quartermaster Theresa."

"Yes sir!"

AN: Hello again. Sorry for the long wait, but I'm glad I was able to finish this chapter. I'm pretty proud of this one if I do say so myself.

Anyway, I'd like to thank Cavik for beta reading this chapter and my god, did I leave the state of the fic in a very bad shape beforehand. Thanks to him, it is quite polished. If you want to hang out in the Treehouse discord server, feel free to use the link right here: gg/9XG3U7a

Thanks for reading today's chapter.

God's speed.