Chapter 55: The Time of Remembrance Hath Come
Goetia would have been lying to himself if he didn't think this encounter had been coming but he would have preferred not to see this particular individual's face for the rest of the day. Not least of all because he had caused him to lose his composure and virtually bring about this sense of emptiness he now felt inside him.
It was only his fault through a technicality but it remained his fault nonetheless.
The least he could do was ignore Von Riegan altogether but seeing as how the boy was keeping his distance and merely staring at him from across the room like some manner of nervous toddler, it was distracting in its own right.
Just the mere feeling of the Golden Deer leader staring at him from a distance with obvious hesitance was more than enough to cause his irritation to once again build up further and further and he was all but certain that if this continued, he would likely snap at the boy once again. The fallout from the previous emotional burst was damaging enough to his mental state, he didn't need more stress piling atop that.
"Either make your statement or leave, Von Riegan." Goetia bluntly called out across the library, seeing the boy flinch out of the corner of his eye at being addressed but not looked at "But do not stand in the corner like a lost child, it is vexing to behold."
"Ha…" Claude let out a nervous chuckle, raising his arm and scratching the back of his neck "Y-yeah…" he sniffed once, closing his eyes and looking as though he was steeling himself for battle. The comparison was hardly amusing in Goetia's mind, he'd yet to sort out his own thoughts.
At least Garreg Mach had a book on minerals and crystals that he could use, along with metals and the like. There was a blacksmith and he had been saving up his monthly pay since he got here. Eating the supplied meals that all students and staff were prescribed free of charge. It was hardly a fortune, amounting to little more than thirty gold pieces in total.
As it turned out, being an assistant librarian was hardly a well-paying job.
It would be logical of him to make minor mystic codes and sell them, fortunate that his memories of Sheba gave him a passing knowledge of how to barter to some meagre extent. He paused, blinking at the wall once. An odd feeling when he thought of the Queen of Sheba passed through him, perhaps the closest to be described was a sense of forlorn attachment.
"Fodlan guide to minerals." Von Riegan's voice entered his ear with a peculiar tinge to it "I didn't know you were interested in rocks?"
"There are many things that interest me, as I'm sure there are things that interest you." Goetia curtly replied, snapping the book shut with his singular hand but still not turning to face the younger boy, another flinch came from Claude in response to the book closing "Speak quickly before I lose what little patience I have reclaimed."
"...I'm sorry about pressuring you." The boy replied in an oddly soft tone of voice, dropping into a slight whisper. Goetia inclined his head ever so slightly in his direction but otherwise gave no further reaction to his words "I…probably should have picked a better time to ask." raising his hand, he scratched his cheek and looked at Goetia with a guilty look on his face. "That was my bad." he paused, then sighed "No. That was wrong of me to put you on the spot like that and I should have picked up on your obvious feelings on the topic."
Shaking his head, Claude lowered his hand back to his side and pursed his lips "I'm not expecting forgiveness, just figured I owed you that much considering the…topic in question. I let my curiosity get the better of me."
Goetia remained silent for a few moments, Claude feeling the sweat starting to build up on the back of his neck the longer the silence strayed on for before the man eventually spoke. "I see."
Claude blinked "...Huh?" he blurted out before he could help himself "I mean…" shaking his head, he looked down "Sorry again about-"
"Stop apologising." Goetia cut him off with an irritated tone of voice, turning to look at him before his eyes grew brighter with clear anger "And stop looking at me like that."
"Like what?"
"With pity." Goetia sneered, "How dare you pity me." He gave a dismissive shake of the head "You don't even know what you're supposed to be lamenting, what I've lost and what it means." his head turned away from him "It disgusts me."
"I mean…" Claude looked around, furrowing his brows before turning back to Goetia "I don't think it's possible not to feel bad for you."
"Why?" Goetia asked, sounding tired again "Why? You know nothing of the culture I came from. The only information you have comes from what scraps of information I bequeath you and even then it is but an inkling of the many cultures and peoples I have seen over the years." he looked back at Claude and merely gave him a tired look "Do you understand? There is nothing to feel sorry for. They are dead and gone. When I die, it dies with me and you assume that to be a sad thing for you?"
"I mean…isn't it?" Claude asked, frowning "The world is a big place and Fodlan is pretty small…you're talking about a culture no ones ever heard of before just quietly disappearing." he sighed and looked away "...I can't imagine a greater tragedy than the history of an entire people just vanishing with no one to care."
Goetia scoffed, looking back "How quaint. Why do you think their disappearance is a tragedy? For all you could know my people were savages who lived their lives by killing for no reason. A cult of blood worshippers."
"...I mean…I doubt that." Claude remarked, gesturing to Goetia "You don't seem crazy."
"Except you can't know that for certain." Goetia sneered "Pitying me. You don't even know the meaning of the word." letting out a long and tired breath, the tanned man returned his attention to his book and opened it up again "You have said what you have come to say, leave me."
"...Sprinkles will probably come to try and speak with you, you know?" Claude replied with a quiet voice "...And she probably will show you pity regardless of what you say."
"...I know." Goetia quietly muttered in reply "But I hope she has more sense than that."
"Who knows." Claude shrugged his shoulders, stepping away from Goetia "...Really though. I am sorry for prying, I'll only do so in future if you give me permission."
Goetia closed his eyes "I shall elucidate you as to a truth I am coming to understand, Von Riegan." he spoke in an exasperated tone of voice "I am finding it increasingly onerous to even find the mental capacity to care what anyone in this monastery even does." his eyes opened and he looked at Claude over his shoulder "You are all as tiresome and aggravating as I remember, contradictory little creatures stumbling blindly in the dark whilst grasping onto whatever meagre scraps of intellect you might come across and clutching it tightly to you whilst the inevitable end comes closing in."
A pause "If you wish to waste your brief time on this earth attempting to understand a perspective that you can never grasp then you are free to do so. I will inform you now of the impossibility of your task in trying to understand either me or my people." another pause "The worst aspect is that it would be through no fault of your own. You just lack the perspective necessary."
His eyes fell back onto his book "Now leave and unless it is a matter of vital importance, I would very much prefer not to see your face for the remainder of this day."
"...That's fair." Claude replied in an accepting tone and a nod of the head, turning away and retreating out of the library. Goetia heard the sound of the retreating steps, then gave a quiet huff when he heard them round the corner of the library door and disappear down the hallway.
His eyes darted to the side, staring at the empty doorway for a half second before they returned to his reading material. His mind was still assailed by the simple question that had emerged following the burst of emotion he had felt earlier.
What was he supposed to do now?
Even with all the knowledge he had in his possession, with all the experiences he had accumulated through three thousand years of existence and the temperament of seventy-two Demon Gods buried away in the back of his mind he could produce no answer.
He lowered the book to his side and stared at the wall.
It would have been easier if he had just vanished in the temple.
Flayn would admit that she could be - perhaps - a little bit nosy. Then again, she was a curious young woman. Well, she was younger than the others at any stretch of the imagination at least, maybe not compared to those who currently resided in the Monastery but young nonetheless.
She had spent much of her time as a healer, both the body of the injured and she hoped she brought comfort to their minds as well. She knew for a fact she wasn't exemplary at that particular task but she could still make the attempt. From her conversations with Goetia she believed she had a solid grasp of his personality.
Cynical, intelligent, most certainly very blunt and ultimately logic driven.
Personal feelings did not seem to factor into his decisions, or at least from what she had noticed. Goetia was not one to wear his heart on his sleeve like others. His mask of an expression that he would wear unless he found himself irritated mildly by something was a surefire way of concluding that he just didn't emote as much as other people. The same could be said for the new professor as well, however there were still minor differences between the two of them in that regard.
The original topic was Goetia, he wasn't someone to emote often so when he did that meant clearly something was disturbing him. Would openly confronting him about what was troubling him lead to an answer?
Most certainly not. Flayn was no fool and Goetia was not one to answer that question.
Therefore, she would have to go to someone else who might have the answers. Whispers around the Monastery had been that Goetia - along with the leaders of the three houses and Professor Byleth - had been taken to see Rhea alongside Seteth. Flayn imagined that whatever Goetia's problems, they originated from there.
Meaning if she did want to help, then she would have to go to the source.
Was it wrong to go around and ask about someone's private issues behind their back? It certainly wasn't right but Flayn did feel as though she held some responsibility within the Monastery to do something. Not least of all because Goetia's treatment thus far had been rather disproportionate compared to what he had offered instead.
Rhea was clearly experiencing some manner of private issues as well but Flayn knew better than to pry into those. Seteth was more than capable of asking such questions and it was technically his job to do so as well. How skilled he was at it notwithstanding.
She took a deep breath as she came to a stop in front of the door leading to the office of the man in question, raising her dainty hand she knocked twice upon it.
"...Enter." Flayn could not help but blink at the tone of Seteth's voice, she hadn't heard him sound quite so tired in a long, long time. A frown worked itself onto her face as she grasped the handle on the door and pushed it open, stepping into the office and staring across towards Seteth.
The man was hunched over a desk, his left arm lying flat atop the surface while his right was propped up against it at the elbow, his hand resting on his face and covering his eyes. Seteth positively oozed exhaustion which begged the question as to what precisely was going on. Strange rumours of people from beneath the Monastery floating around aside.
She looked towards the door, turning around and gently closing it behind her before she shifted her focus back to Seteth. "Father?"
Seteth visibly jolted at her soft - and concerned - tone of voice, his hand flying away from his face and his head snapping up to face her with surprise written all over his features. His expression shifted through a multitude of emotions before it finally mirrored his posture. That being complete exasperation, not aimed at her clearly as his eyes still contained a hint of warmth when he stared at her.
"Flayn…" He muttered before shaking his head and leaning back into his chair, a slightly chiding expression on his face "I believe I have told you not to call me that." he reminded her firmly but without any real emotion in it.
"You said I may refer to you as such in public." Flayn reminded him with a raised eyebrow, hands placed on her hips before her mouth curved into an almost smug triumphant expression "You made no mention as to what I might call you in private."
Despite himself, Seteth let out a half chuckle at that, shaking his head at her "You're much too smart and literal for your own good at times." he muttered to himself before a breath left his throat and he faced her again "What can I do for you, Flayn?"
Flayn pursed her lips, this was likely the make or break moment for whether she would get any proper answers. "Has something been occurring in Garreg Mach as of late?" she added on before Seteth could open his mouth to reply "Something that has been playing on the nerves of many of the peoples currently residing here?"
Seteth's eyes screwed themselves shut "There is always something occurring at the Monastery that plays upon the nerves." he replied casually as he opened his eyes "We do function as an academy for adolescent youths as well, many of whom will inherit rather important positions within-"
"That was most certainly not what I meant and you know as such." Flayn remarked dryly, arms folding across her chest and giving the man a rather unimpressed look "I have noticed that within the past few hours there have been a number of troubling rumours circulating as well as several individuals seeming much more troubled than they would usually be."
Shaking his head, Seteth leaned forwards and rested both his arms on his desk "You should not put stock in the idle chatter of the students and their fanciful minds. They would conjure up a great deal of extravagant stories to distract themselves from their current situation, regardless of the validity of their tasks."
Flayn raised an eyebrow before her lip quirked upwards, shaking her head.
"Have I said something to amuse you?"
"It is not that." She denied "It is merely that Goetia said something similar in regards to the telling of history." her expression turned thoughtful as she rested a single finger on her chin and looked upwards "I believe his words were along the lines of, humans tell the stories that are most appealing to them rather than what might actually be. I suppose gossip works in much the same way." her eyes turned back down to Seteth "I believe you two might have some traits in common."
Seteth's expression froze before it scrunched up in discomfort and his eyes darted away for a brief moment, his right hand clenched into a fist as he moved it towards his mouth and coughed once into it "Y-yes." he nodded his head "Goetia does strike me as one who would be…unreceptive to idle gossip as well. It merely makes him smart enough to remove fact from fiction."
Flayn however had caught sight of the odd reaction, narrowing her eyes at Seteth "...I spoke with Goetia this morning during breakfast." she replied slowly, watching Seteth for any further reactions "He seemed rather…distracted."
"...Did he?"
"Yes."
"I am certain he has much to think about." Seteth nodded his head, looking back down at his desk "The Archbishop had allowed him to reinstate his classes on his foreign magics." a pause "Perhaps he is simply concerned with what he will be teaching them next." giving a shrug of his shoulders, he pulled one of the parchments on his desk towards himself and began reading from it.
Flayn's eyes narrowed further "Really? Because he seemed to be much more in line with the word…irritated."
"...Is that so?"
"I also heard some rumours that Goetia was seen with you and the other youths heading for a meeting with the Archbishop, so I am left to wonder what transpired that has caused Goetia to be so-"
"Flayn." Seteth cut her off with a clipped tone, looking up from his desk with hard eyes "I know what you are doing and you are several hundred years too early to attempt such methods of getting information from me."
"I don't know what you mea-"
"Flayn, what was said between Goetia, myself, the Archbishop and the others present is to remain in private company unless Goetia himself wishes to discuss it." His voice was stern, his expression tense "I would ask - no, Implore - you not to confront him about his issues. I will say nothing more on this matter." he looked back down at his papers "You might also hear some rumours circulating about Aelfric, rest assured that all will be well."
"Aelfric?" Flayn tilted her head in puzzlement as she searched for the name "Is he not-"
"One of the more senior members of the Church? Yes." Seteth confirmed with a nod "Now…is there anything else besides Goetia you wished to discuss?"
Flayn frowned but eventually shook her head, Seteth clearly wasn't going to be much help in this regard and clearly whatever had been discussed was something that few were going to be revealing anytime soon. Which only added to her concern, some manner of secret which had Goetia in a frightful state of annoyance and that had no one willing to speak openly about.
The possibilities were vast and all were rather concerning. Going to Goetia today of all days wasn't going to be something she could do. Whatever had caused his irritation and discomfort was still fresh in the mind for him. She would wait a few more days until he had settled down and then try and ease him into the conversation.
The alternative was that the Professor speak to him. The two of them seemed to be rather close so it was always an option for the pair of them to discuss the matter. As Flayn left Seteth's office, she paused and blinked once as she considered how emotional the pair of them were.
Perhaps it would be better if Flayn made an attempt at some point.
The remainder of Goetia's day had passed with relative ease, few had made the attempt to communicate with him and he - for one - was thankful to be rid of distractions and annoyances. The concern they showed him would inevitably manifest in pity and that was one thing he would never be able to stomach.
The mere thought of someone gazing upon him with that particular emotion was almost physically repulsive for him. Whatever his mental concerns were aside, he had managed to deduce the best resources he could use in the construction of a rather simple telescope and stand.
Becoming a stargazer for no other reason than to simply document constellations for the sake of having a task to perform was a great fall from all his previous plans. However, he just wanted something to do that he could at least know of. There were also many astronomy based Magecraft spells that required knowledge of the constellations and the stars in order to work.
Such an endeavour would likely benefit him in the future.
Either that or he might teach someone who cared for the stars about astromancy magecraft.
It was partly why he found himself descending down the steps in the direction of the market once again.
"Afternoon, Goetia."
"Harold."
Those were the only words passed between them, nothing more than a simple greeting. Harold was smart enough not to press him and Goetia was moderately grateful the man had the common sense to do so. His mind drifted back to his original purpose of being here, he had already located the individual he wanted to speak with at the far end of the market square. The red haired woman was already finishing up with a customer when she caught sight of him marching towards her with a determined look in his eyes.
She had that odd twinkle when she stared at him out of the corner of her eye, it reminded him eerily of the Queen of Sheba and her previous role before she became Solomon's wife. Even afterwards she still kept many of her odd traits.
"Welcome back!" Anna greeted with a wide and rather practised smile as he approached, her hands gripping themselves in front of her body as she stared at him "What can I get for you today?"
"Do you sell glasses?"
"I do indeed!" Anna replied with a nod of the head "What manner of glasses do you want however?" she inquired further, tilting her head "Because quality is naturally going to change in accordance with pricing." she paused before her smile shifted into a knowing one "Just so you are aware, obviously."
"Obviously." Goetia replied with a nod of the head "I shall also assume that even your cheapest would be rather more expensive than the average common man could afford."
"Oh…I wouldn't say that." Anna shook her head in response before she raised an eyebrow "You aren't going to be complaining about my prices, are you?"
"How you charge your customers is of no concern of mine, your business exists to create a profit for you and it would be stupid of any merchant to cheat their customer base." Goetia replied with a dull look aimed her way "Beyond that, glasses are still a luxury item meant for the richer families of Fodlan."
Anna stared at him before she shrugged "True enough, but considering you are asking I suppose you would already know about it?"
"Hmm." Goetia gave a non-committal hum in response "Another reason was a proposal."
Anna's eyes sharpened ever so slightly, her shoulders tensing "A…proposal?" her lip quirked in amusement. "A business proposal, I should hope."
Goetia stared at her blankly for a few moments before he reached into his cloak, pulling out a small wooden box with a square cutout at the top with a glass window placed in it to see the contents, then set it on the countertop of her stall "Storage for long distance hauling of meats and other perishable goods." he simply stated.
Anna raised a lone eyebrow as she stared at the tub before looking back up at him "...Really? You know people can just use salt."
"This negates the purpose of salt." Goetia replied before he shrugged "Whether or not you believe me does not matter, it was an idle suggestion and nothing more." He reached his lone hand towards the box, then halted it when Anna placed her own hand atop it.
"...I've heard of you and your fancy magics from across the sea." Anna replied in a quiet voice, her eyes flickered down towards the box with a cursory glance before they returned to him "And you're saying this is a magic box?"
"It slows the ageing process of items placed within it, yes. A minor enhancement, nothing more."
Anna looked down at the box before back at him "...I am going to obviously need proof of this."
"Naturally." Goetia withdrew his hand from her direction "Which is why I offer this version as a mere test. You may place whatever it is you wish inside and then observe it. Presumably something with a short life when exposed to the elements. In the unlikely event it fails then I will appear as nothing more than a fraud."
"Unlikely." Anna parroted back with a hint of intrigue mixed with suspicion "Someone's confident." there was a pause "And if it were to work? What then?"
"It would be more prudent to await the results before deciding that, no?" Goetia replied with a raised eyebrow "First I would prefer you be aware of the capabilities." a pause "Before we were to enter into any form of agreement, that way there would be an understanding on both sides. You are aware of what I offer and I become aware of what you would be willing to trade for it."
"And how do you know I won't just take this and find a way to replicate it?" Anna asked with a curious look in her eyes "I could very easily do that and then just avoid making a deal with you altogether."
"If you found a mage capable of replicating my works, I would be surprised." Goetia responded with a mere huff "We both know that Fodlan's talent for making mystic codes extends purely to weapons with simple lightning spells."
Anna stared at him for a few moments before she sighed and nodded her head "I suppose you would be sharp, wouldn't you?" she muttered under her breath before nodding her head "Alright then." she smiled, this one slightly more honest than her previous ones "I suppose I lose nothing if it turns out to be a waste." she slid the box towards herself and examined it "And I suppose you just open and close it?"
"Yes. Naturally the enchantment is broken when it is opened and resumes when it is closed." Goetia replied with a nod of the head "Destruction of the box notwithstanding."
"Naturally." Anna hummed again, giving Goetia a look out of the corner of her eye "...Fine." shrugging to herself, she slid the box underneath her stall and rested her hands against the surface "Glasses was it?"
"Yes."
The glasses had been more expensive than he had been expecting them to be, at least the lower end issues of them. Not too much of a problem however, the mystic code he gave the merchant would most certainly catch her interest and they were always looking for an edge over their competitors.
Why select Anna?
She had a well known reputation and a pre-established customer base that she could exploit. His storage boxes would most certainly benefit her in expanding her operations further across Fodlan without the need to be concerned about the timetable of perishable goods. To say nothing of storing them for extended periods of time.
Who would have thought that the Queen of Sheba's mutterings about economics and finances to him would eventually pay off. Her established wisdom and care for the people aside, she would also occasionally regale him with the methods by which one could become a successful merchant.
He doubted she truly meant anything by it, she just enjoyed the topic and wanted to speak to someone who would sit there and listen to her. Both he and Solomon served in that regard but he doubted that the fool managed to take anything away from the topic. Goetia only recalled because it was impossible to forget any manner of knowledge he had learned.
Once he had purchased the glasses from Anna, he had supplied the local blacksmith with the measurements and designs of his telescope. The body would be made of brass - because it was cheap and he had little in the way of money - with the stand being made of wood. All in all, he could expect his design completed within the next week or so, perhaps more.
It was of no real concern for him, he could spend that time with the glasses lenses and enhancing them further to the point where they would be suitable for a much more powerful telescope.
What was it that Sheba would say?
Buy low and sell high.
His lips drew themselves into a thin line.
He did wonder what she saw in Solomon at times.
"There he is!" He stopped walking at the shrill voice that could belong to none other than the resident Divine Spirit.
"Shrill voice!?" Sothis sounded positively indignant, occurring to him that he had broadcasted those previous thoughts over a mental link. "Is that what you think I sound like?"
He must still have been mentally distracted to overlook a simple error such as that, the day had been exhausting to him from beginning to end.
"Yes." Goetia muttered aloud, turning his head to see Byleth and Sothis approaching him, the former with her usual blank expression while the latter looked rather aggrieved about his statements. Her irritated expression gradually faded away into a slightly annoyed frown before that too tapered off.
"...You look as though you've been busy." Sothis commented as she nodded towards him, then stared down at the glasses he had in his hand, raising an eyebrow at him "You need glasses now do you?"
"Of course not." Goetia bluntly replied to her with a frown "My eyes might be damaged by I am not incapable of seeing clearly."
Sothis blinked "Your eyes are damaged?"
"Not in a manner you would understand." He clarified as he turned away from her and started to walk "If you have come to offer pity or sympathetic words I would prefer you keep them to yourself."
"Hm. Told you he'd say that." Sothis grunted, crossing her arms and giving him a blank look "So what are the glasses for?"
"I am crafting something that requires the lenses." Goetia explained as he continued to walk forwards, Byleth following until she fell into step with him. "It was simpler to purchase glasses and improve the lenses within them than to create my own."
Byleth nodded her head "Makes sense. Saves time."
"Quite."
"...What are you making?"
"Something to observe the stars."
"Why?"
"Because there are branches of magecraft that require knowledge of the star alignments in order to work, therefore it would be remiss of me to ignore a potential branch that any of my students could use." A pause "That being said, it was used for navigational magecraft as a primary purpose as well as determining locations."
"Spells for map reading?"
Goetia looked at Byleth out of the corner of his eye, staring at the shorter woman "...Yes."
"Hmph." Sothis hummed in response "And here I thought you might have found a hobby."
"Do not put me on the same level as these base creatures who need to find distractions to occupy their existence." Goetia replied swiftly, much too swiftly in Sothis' mind. "My actions are rooted in common sense not flights of fancy."
"...Alright then." Sothis shrugged "...So, we're off to rescue Aelfric tomorrow."
"You are, yes."
"...I don't suppose wishing luck would be possible?"
Goetia gave her an arctic glare.
"Fair enough." Sothis shrugged, looking around for a few moments before she looked back at Goetia "...How long ago did-"
"Several weeks before our first encounter." He stopped walking and turned to her "I did mention that I arrived in Fodlan recently. I spent the first time travelling between villages and building up my knowledge of the land where I could. Remire was the first village that had something in the way of a library, hence my reasoning for remaining a few days longer than I usually would have."
"...Several weeks?" Sothis repeated in a quiet voice, looking away from Goetia for a moment then back towards him "...That is…disturbingly recent."
"What were you expecting?" Goetia raised an eyebrow before his pupils narrowed "Do you expect me to drop to my knees and weep? Some pathetic display of lamentation at the death of my kindred because it occurred so recently?" he scoffed, looking away "You will find yourself disappointed…as will I at times."
"Do you miss them?"
"...Do I…miss them?" Goetia repeated the words back slowly, staring off at nothing. He didn't answer, merely walking off without saying another word. Byleth stopped walking, watching as Goetia retreated further and further away from her in the direction of his room.
Clearly he was done speaking for the evening. Her lips pulled themselves into a thin line, looking up at Sothis "What is it like to lose someone?" she found herself asking. She hadn't lost anyone dear to her, she had little to no memories of her mother and beyond her father no existing family members.
Sothis stared at her in surprise before her expression turned troubled "...I do not know myself." the Goddess admitted with a sigh "Perhaps if I reclaim my memories I will understand the answer but even without them…I would imagine it is not an experience one would wish to understand."
Byleth looked down at the ground.
She knew that would be the answer.
The night had passed with considerable difficulty for Seteth, he had been worried more about what Flayn was going to do rather than anything else. She was always stubborn when she wanted to be regardless of what he told her. She took after her mother in that regard.
Shaking his head, he proceeded through the monastery towards the assembled group who were awaiting at the time, already preparing to leave. Despite the danger facing Aelfric, Professor Esiner had already proven herself to be a skilled individual and the students had most definitely shown improvement in the last few weeks under her tutelage.
He was confident they would be able to rescue the Cardinal.
Seteth stared at the assembled group in front of him, his arms crossed and his expression set in a tense frown as he watched the students ready their horses and pegasus. It wasn't the best situation he could think of but they were left with little alternative. Either they confronted the situation directly or they would be out of options, deviations would undoubtedly end in Aelfric dying.
"Professor." He called out, Byleth turned away from the horse she had been preparing and looked towards him with a tilt of the head to show she acknowledged him "I don't need to remind you of the importance of this, and I would also expect that you have a plan."
Byleth nodded once to him.
"Good." Seteth rubbed his forehead and exhaled "That being said, I do question the wisdom of bringing more of the students along with you on this expedition." he paused, directing his attention to the other two houses aside from the Blue Lions who were present as well "And trust that you obtained the consent of both Professors Manuela and Hanneman beforehand."
Byleth gave another nod of the head.
Seteth placed his hands on his hips, grunting once "In that case, I wish you the best of luck and hope for a rapid - and triumphant - return to the Monastery so that we might put this ugly business behind us."
The Professor gave a final grunt in affirmation, Seteth turned away from her and made his way back towards the monastery itself, climbing up the stairs and moving further along the path until he disappeared through the main gates and out of sight.
Once he vanished, Byleth turned back around to the assembled class - which now included the Ashen Wolves - and strode towards them, waving her hand above her head towards Dimitri and signalling him. The blonde Prince noticed her before cupping his hands on either side of his mouth "Blue Lions! Attend!" he called out, bringing the attention of everyone onto him and striding towards the small clearing.
"Black Eagles." Edelgard similarly alerted her own class and brought them forwards, Claude doing much the same.
"...Come on guys." Yuri stepped away from his horse and strode forwards, Constance, Hapi and Balthus striding forwards after him.
"You have all been informed, yes?" Byleth checked first, looking around at the new faces of their rescue squad, upon seeing the affirmative nods and the murmurs of the students she gave a single grunt towards them. "The plan is simple. Get close to Aelfric." she then pointed towards Hapi "You will sigh. Bringing forth Demonic Beasts, in the chaos we grab Aelfric and depart swiftly." she paused for a moment "Expect chaos, we may need to fight both mercenaries and Demonic Beasts." another pause "They might also be western church. Well trained. Don't fight alone."
"Forgive me for sounding overly concerned." Ferdinand raised his hand, stepping forwards with a frown on his face "But are we not likely to alarm the ones who currently hold sir Aelfric hostage?" He gestured around them at the group which now numbered in the double digits "Most of us are new additions and - while we are most certainly not the Knights - we are still well trained and represent a rather formidable fighting force."
"I concur." Lorenz supported with a nod of the head, his lips pulled into a frown "Any force bold enough to perform such a blatant attack on the Church would clearly see this as some manner of threat against them. Even then, we have no assurance that upon obtaining the Chalice they would not kill sir Aelfric."
"If they did that, they would lose what little bargaining power they have." Ignatz cut in "Right now, we're listening to their demands because they have Aelfric. If they kill him then we don't have anything stopping us from…" he trailed off meaningfully.
"But what's to stop them from keeping Aelfric and the Chalice?" Raphael asked, scratching the back of his head and looking around in confusion "What if they take the Chalice and keep Aelfric?"
"That is why we are summoning the Demonic Beasts." Hubert stated with a sinister smile "The onset of such a formidable force will no doubt sow confusion amongst the ranks, more so when the Beasts fall upon them. Even the most well trained force would find it difficult to protect both themselves and hold onto whatever hostage they have at their disposal." his eyes flickered to Byleth "A rather brutal strategy Professor." his lip curled upwards "I approve."
"...Well, that's a little creepy." Claude whispered quietly before he shook his head "But Ferdinand raises a good point." he pointed out, gesturing to the boy in question "Seeing all of us show up, armed and ready to fight would probably put them on alert. People can do crazy things when they're scared."
Dimitri thinned his lips "We would need to keep around half our forces hidden." he paused. "Fortunately the ruins near the old chapel have a rather sizable patch of woodlands to them." placing his hands on his hips, he turned his head to Byleth "We could use the forests to camouflage our allies until the time is right, after which we could make some manner of signal."
"You mean like blowing a horn?" Claude paused, then nodded his head "That would probably work, we'd have to keep it hidden, mind you."
"So our plan is basically, meet them, summon some monsters, blow a horn, grab Aelfric and the Chalice, then run?" Yuri listed off, raising a finger at each step before he smirked and looked around. "Did I miss anything or are we all set?"
"I'd say you got all of it." Caspar replied from the back of the group, shrugging his shoulders "Anyway…do we leave now?"
Byleth turned towards him and nodded once.
Goetia watched from the wall as the convoy left the Monastery, staring down at them with a blank expression before he grunted and turned away. They would inevitably be back and then he could put this wretched business behind him.
What had started as idle curiosity had bloomed into an escalating mess. He just wanted it to be over at this point and the Grail destroyed so he would never have to lay eyes upon it ever again. As he descended down the stairwell out of the wall and back into the monastery grounds, he immediately caught sight of Flayn at the far end. The girl noticed him and waved in his general direction.
He offered a single nod before ignoring her completely and walking further into the Monastery in the direction of the library. He knew she was following him though, what she wanted to ask him wasn't something he was actually interested in but he would prefer to imagine it related to the work she was putting in before she would officially join the monastery.
He heard her tapping feet come to a slower rhythm as she caught up to him, he spared her a single glance out of the corner of his eye and saw her walking in step with him. "Flayn."
"Goetia."
The pair continued to walk in silence towards the library, Goetia suspected something was wrong with Flayn considering the fact she usually would have attempted conversation with him at this point. He wasn't foolish enough to believe that Flayn had merely learned not to pester him with questions, nor were her questions truly so intrusive.
Merely irritating to think about after she had asked them.
As the pair entered the library, Flayn suddenly spoke up "Goetia?"
"What?"
"If it is not too much trouble, I have noticed that I have neglected to ask you about your home." She spoke after a few moments, shaking her head "It feels like an opportunity to learn about a place I have not been."
Goetia paused, then looked at her out of the corner of his eye "...Why? You would not visit it."
"True." Flayn admitted with a nod of the head "But I often like to speak of home at times and I feel as though you might not have had the opportunity to speak of your own home frequently."
Goetia turned to her and narrowed his eyes "Who told you?"
Flayn blinked "T-told me?" she repeated with a baffled look "Was someone supposed to tell me something?"
Goetia studied her expression closely, his lips eventually forming a thin line "...No. This is mere inane curiosity on your part, is it not?"
"I-inane?" Flayn repeated with a gape "W-what do you mean inane!?"
Goetia made a face at her before he turned away, staring at nothing in particular. "...Fine." he said after a few moments "You can ask as I work." he paused "Ensure you do not forget your own studies while you ask me. I will inform you of the basics if you truly find it so intriguing."
"Wonderful!" Flayn exclaimed, clapping her hands once before she followed after him "I find myself rather stumped as to what to ask first…" she admitted with an almost sheepish expression.
"Ask whatever you will, I care not-"
"What type of fish dishes did you have?" She blurted out, wincing as she watched Goetia halt his movements and slowly turn to face her with a blank expression.
"...Fish."
"W-well…you said I could ask you anything." She reminded him with a light shrug of the shoulders.
"...I did." Goetia replied, although his eyes seemed to betray a sense of regret almost immediately after he heard what she asked.
Flayn proceeded to ask him a great deal more questions, all more baffling than the last and few of which had to do with the culture of Judah.
Byleth halted her horse, staring across the ruins of the old chapel in the direction she could make out; a group stood there with Aelfric in the centre of the mercenaries, several men standing behind him with their swords drawn.
Turning in the direction of Hapi, she nodded once before turning back to face the men and dismounting from her horse and removing the satchel containing the Chalice of beginnings from it. The students behind her similarly dismounted.
She had already sent the reinforcements away from her and towards the forest to await the signal. All they needed to do now was await the perfect opportunity.
As they approached, she noted that Aelfric's expression looked tense, his eyes drifting towards the satchel slung over her shoulder with clear concern before they snapped back to her and looked between all of the students.
"Aelfric looks unharmed." Dimitri quietly noted as they moved closer "That much is a blessing."
"Would be stupid of them to hurt him." Claude muttered back in an equally hushed tone "He's too valuable a hostage to let some thug slap around. Also does terrible things for their credibility."
"Got a point." Yuri added on "If you can't even keep your hostage safe, then there's no way anyone is going to trust a word you say otherwise. Then again, Aelfric is lucky at times."
"I would not refer to this current situation as lucky." Ashe stated with a confused tone of voice.
"He's not got a scratch on him and we're about to save him. That's probably about as lucky as you can get." Linhardt replied back with a nod of the head.
"That's close enough." The lead mercenary called back, his hair was slicked down and he wore a sneer on his face that looked as though it had grown there. Raising his hand to halt the approaching convoy, the group came to a halt a few feet away from them. The man stared at them before turning to Byleth and pointedly looking at her satchel "Do you have it?"
Byleth wordlessly flipped the satchel open, sticking her hand inside she then withdrew the golden chalice.
Aelfric did a sharp intake of breath, his eyes widening "The Chalice of beginnings?" he said in surprise "When I told you of the legend…" he shook his head, then fixed them all with a desperate expression "No! You must not hand the Chalice over to them, it is too valuable a relic to-"
"Hush now." The mercenary drew his sword, raising it to Aelfric's throat and silencing him, he gave him a narrowed look of his eyes "I'm sure your pals would hate to see any harm befall you after they came all this way."
"I'm certain you'd hate what happens to you if you hurt him." Balthus growled, cracking his knuckles and glaring at the man who responded with scoff and a smirk.
"Now, now…no one has spilled any blood yet and we're not looking to start now provided you do as we say." He smiled at them with an utterly fake smile "Here's the plan. You throw over the Chalice and we let the Cardinal go, simple?"
"Not until you hand over your hostage." Yuri replied back in a firm voice "There needs to be some semblance of a trusting exchange here."
"You don't seem to understand your predicament here." The man shook his head in disbelief, giving a mocking chuckle at them "Quite frankly, it is no issue to kill all of you and merely take the Chalice from your cold, lifeless hands."
Dimitri frowned heavily "Then we would appear to be at a stalemate." the boy stated as his hand fell slowly to the sword on his hip "As long as you hold Aelfric, we will not surrender the Chalice and if you kill him then you lose your only bargaining chip, so to speak."
"I fear you are wasting your breath." Edelgard shook her head "Thugs such as these are much better at following demands than giving them."
"Fine, we'll make this demand simple then." The man pressed the sword further against Aelfric's chin "Either you surrender the Chalice, or we open him up and then see if that little cup is all its cracked up to be."
Byleth frowned "Hapi."
"I won't be happy until you hand over that-"
"She means me, dullard." Hapi cut the man off with a frown before rolling her eyes "Honestly people like you really make me want to…" she took in a deep breath, Aelfric widened his eyes in realisation before they darted back to Byleth, then went skywards.
Hapi let out a long sigh.
The man with the sword held up to Aelfric's neck raised an eyebrow at her "...Are you done? Because my patience is starting to wear-"
A caw cutting through the air cut him off, his jaw snapped shut with an audible click before he looked towards the direction of the sound with wide eyes "What the-"
An eagle over twice the size of a pegasus shot through the sky, talons extended outwards towards the ground before it clasped around the body of one of the lookout mercs, the man barely had enough time to scream as the bird shot back off into the air with its prize. That managed to kick the remaining mercenaries into high-gear, especially when dozens more caws split through the sky and shadows started to pass above head.
"What have yo-" The man's accusation was buried in his throat, along with Byleth's dagger as she cleared the distance between the two of them in a quick lunge and swiftly unsteahed the dagger from her hip before resheathing it in the mans' jugular, then pulled forwards and kicked the body away while snatching the sword from his hand.
She reached forwards with her free hand, clasping Aelfric's shoulder and pulling him behind her while she advanced forwards on the dumbfounded mercenaries whose attention was split between her or the demonic beasts. She caught the first man completely by surprise, his sword effortlessly parried aside as she then took her bloodied dagger and stuck it in the side of his head before twisting it to the side, being rewarded with a cracking sound as his body fell limply to the ground before charging off to the next.
Aelfric found himself in the arms of Balthus, blinking surprisedly before he stepped back and frowned at them "That was incredibly risky!" he chided them all "They could have taken the Chalice, worse you could have ended up dead."
"Could have been." Hapi admitted with a shrug before she smiled "But we're not."
Aelfric sighed before shaking his head "Quite so…that predictability of you all is so very grating at times but…I cannot help but be thankful in this particular instance."
"You should save your praise for when we have departed from here!" Constance replied, firing off a spell towards a group of mercenaries and striking one of them before another was grabbed by a giant bird and taken away screaming "Preferably before we fulfil the adage of the worm and the early bird."
"It's evening, so we should be safe!" Claude joked as he nocked an arrow and aimed skywards "Might want to blow that horn, Hilda!"
"On it!" Hilda pulled the horn from behind her back, taking in a deep breath before blowing hard on it, the rumbling echoed out across the ruins before the girl repeated the gesture several times.
"Demonic Beasts as a distraction…" Aelfric shook his head "I cannot help but be surprised at this reckless nature of yours…all over one man as well and willing to lose such a rare trinket." closing his eyes, he straightened himself out before sighing "...You humans truly are incorrigible."
"Yeah we might be a bit reckless this time, Aelfric, but what did you expect from us?" Balthus joked as he ducked down and grabbed Aelfric to lead him away.
"It is one thing to be made aware via memories, but to see it first hand is another altogether." Aelfric's voice had tapered off as his eyes darted to Byleth "...And a Pseudo-Servant as well."
"A what-"
"No matter." Aelfric pushed himself out of Balthus grasp and backed away from him, his expression blank "This form has served its purpose long enough and with the Holy Grail now in my possession, I no longer need to entertain this foolery."
"Holy what…" Claude snapped his head in Aelfric's direction and furrowed his brows "What did you just-"
"Honestly…to think that the solution to all of my problems would drop down into my lap." Aelfric shook his head, his voice dropping several octaves and completely shifting in tone "Is this what humans refer to as luck? Random chance that happens to work in your favour? Initially I had planned on adhering to the simple plan Aelfric had concocted but minor alterations will yield better results."
It was at this point the students noticed that the Demonic Beasts had halted their attack, now staring in the direction of Aelfric with almost frantic movements before they made to turn around.
Aelfric's head snapped up "I think not." His eyes shifted colours, flashing bright red before circles formed around him and blasted beams of pure crimson light in the direction of the fleeing Demonic Beasts, the attacks instantly ripped through their bodies and sent their burning remains crashing back towards the ground.
His hand snapped out, Linhardt - who Byleth has thrown the Chalice to - suddenly found it ripped from his hands and shooting across the air into Aelfric's waiting grasp.
"Its lack of mana is unfortunate but easily rectified." Aelfric stated as he stared at it "The magical energy of the monstrous beasts combined with the sacrifice of the four major crests and a divine spirit will be more than enough to fulfil the wish of Aelfric."
His eyes looked back towards the group, now noticing that Claude was aiming an arrow at him "...Who the heck are you?"
Aelfric stared at him in silence.
Then his body started to shimmer, his clothes and skin cracked and flaked away as if they had been some manner of cocoon.
The students took a collective gasp and stepped back as a new figure slowly rose from the remains. Standing around the height of Balthus, was the new figure.
Their skin was bleached, its texture appeared armoured like that of a lizard with small square shaped scales, their face was featureless with a thin veil covering it with two red orbs shining through where the eyes would be. Resting atop the head were two obsidian curved horns, spiralling inwards.
Their lower half looked to be a mismatch of black threads woven together to form some manner of dress which twitched as if alive.
Floating behind their body was a ring of bright red diamond shaped gems connected together to form the circle, it was turning without being prompted and all of them contained a single black dot in their centre which almost looked as though they were focusing on each individual.
The being stared at them in silence, taking in their utter shock before turning their attention towards Byleth and flashing their eyes red.
The woman had turned when she heard Sothis let out a baffled call, then widened her eyes in alarm when pitch black projectiles flew in her direction, striking her dead on and knocking her to the ground, twitching violently and writhing in pain.
"It would appear that possession is not yet available to you, thus your true abilities remain locked. Fortunate." The being stated with complete confidence as they floated into the air nearly a foot off the ground and approached Byleth, watching as she coughed and sputtered before raising their hand and forming a circle around their palm before they snapped it shut. Byleth's eyes rolled into the back of her head and she flopped down onto the ground.
The white being turned their body around to face the others, their hand clenched a second time as bright red rings formed around the Ashen wolves and held them in place, dragging them through the air towards them. Eventually their head shifted and stared down at Yuri who was now ghostly pale.
"Aelfric had some manner of agreement with you in order to complete this task." They muttered aloud before shaking their head "No matter, it means nothing to me. My task-"
They paused, then stared at the arrow which had struck the centre of their chest with a quiet thud and bounced off without even leaving a mark on their skin. Their eyes moved towards the owner and stared at Claude.
"Ah, yes…you are still present are you not?" The being spoke as if they had suddenly realised, then flashed their eyes red once again. The ring on their back suddenly picked up speed and raised itself until it was hovering above their body rather than behind it. The gems glowed a brilliant red and started to hiss as the magical energy in the spell built up.
They suddenly paused, eyes snapping upwards as if sensing something.
"...Phantasmal." They merely stated before a bright light consumed the being, his hostages and Byleth before vanishing.
"Professor!" Dimitri let out a shocked cry as he rushed towards the light, sliding to a halt and staring down in shock when he saw nothing. "No!"
"What the fuck was that!?" Claude blurted out, "And where did it go!?"
"What are we supposed to do now?" Hilda exclaimed, placing her hands on her head "It took the Professor and the Chalice!"
Before anyone could say anything else, they heard the familiar beats of pegasus wings and turned their eyes skywards, promptly doing a double take as they watched a consortium of knights approach their position with the Archbishop in the centre of them. The moment they landed, the green haired woman dismounted and turned to them.
"Where is the Professor and Aelfric?" She demanded, looking around before grimacing "...Then Aelfric has indeed done what I dreaded…"
"...I-it wasn't Aelfric." Claude shook his head, swallowing adubily "I…I don't know what it was."
Rhea frowned at him before she stepped forwards "Tell me everything."
AN: Wait a fucking moment…that ain't Aelfric!
Goetia: "Why are all my people dead?"
Random Demon God: "Yo."
Goetia: "...What the fuc-"
Why is a Demon God here?! Is he Leme?! Well…no but that's besides the point.
All will be revealed in the next chapter!
Omake: Everything is idiotic and we're surrounded by clowns. Welcome to GudaGuda Hell.
Goetia stared at the freakish Claude abomination in Seteth's hands with a blank look before he slowly raised his head and stared at the green haired man who looked back with an expectant expression.
"...I have no part in this."
"I find that claim dubious." Seteth responded with a flat look aimed at him, then watched as Goetia jerked his head slightly in the direction of Ritsuka. The boy nodded and gave him an irritated glare.
"Did you seriously just throw me under the bus?"
"I have done nothing but throw you under a bus since we first met." Goetia responded casually "This is tame considering our previous encounters."
"Please don't bully Senpai, Goetia-nii-chan." Mash chided the man with a disappointed expression.
Goetia coughed up blood when he heard the title, snapping his head in the direction of Mash and staring at her with wide eyes "W-wh-what did you-"
He was cut off by a roaring laughter from Da Vinci, the smaller Rider was almost rolling around on the floor while clutching her belly, it almost looked as though she was about to start crying in response.
"What?" Mash nervously asked, looking around "Should I just call him Onii-chan then?"
"S-stop calling me that!" Goetia demanded with wide eyes, then pointed at Ritsuka "Do not think for a moment that expression of yours escaped me, Fujimaru Ritsuka!"
"Whatever you say…Aniki." Ritsuka replied with a smirk and a shrug of his shoulders, Goetia grimaced at him before shaking his head.
"I will curse you."
"Mash gives me magic resistance."
"...Tch."
"Will someone please explain this!" Seteth waved the Nobu!Claude in the air with an annoyed expression "This is…these things are everywhere!"
"...Right…" Ritsuka nodded his head with a completely serious look on his face. "First thing is first…we're gonna have to talk about these things called Guda particles."
Draco stared at the small creature in front of her with a raised eyebrow, then looked across to see the other Beasts looking similarly dumbfounded as well.
"...What are we supposed to do with these things?" Draco asked with a disgusted look aimed at the small one wearing black with a red cape and white hair, swatting it away with the back of her hand as it approached. Releasing a loud 'Nobbu!' as it soared through the air and crashed into a table.
"You probably just answered that question." Kama bluntly stated with a roll of her eyes, floating across the room and opening up the door before sticking her head out "...This has Chaldea written all over it."
"You think so?" Tiamat asked as she sat Nobu!Bernadetta in her lap and started to stroke its hair, she smiled down at it before looking back up "I wonder why they would do something like this?"
"...What are you doing?" Vitch asked, looking at her with a raised eyebrow and pointedly nodding at the Nobu!Bernadetta in her lap.
"She seemed sad, so I'm comforting them." Tiamat replied as if it was the most obvious answer in the world.
"Forget sadness." Vitch shook her head before her lips curled into a vicious sneer "I would suggest they need taming-"
"Fou!"
"Ouch!" Vitch clasped the back of her head and stumbled forward as Fou landed a two footed kick on the back of her head, she scowled at the white haired rodent as it barked at her again before sprinting out of the open door and into the monastery.
"That vile little-" She was halfway through a curse when she noticed Kama back away from the door, the familiar form of Goetia then loomed in the archway.
"Oh, there you all are." He muttered out, then turned around and waved his hand "This is the help we have on hand."
"Help, huh?" Another voice called out "This is going to be-...what in the-!?" Ritsuka appeared in the doorway, then stumbled back with wide eyes as he beheld the occupants of the room "What is this!?"
"...Help."
"This isn't help!" Ritsuka hissed at Goetia "This is the opposite of help! This is sabotage!"
"So, we meet again Master of Chaldea!" Draco boasted as she stood up, grinning at him "I am-"
"Shut up whore." Goetia scowled at her, cutting off her introduction and looking at Ritsuka "I fail to see the issue."
"...Bringing former Beasts into a GudaGuda event is a recipe for troub-" He then paused, slowly looking back at the room and squinting at Draco "...Nero?"
"Nero!?" Draco scoffed "I am not that weak little girl! I am the Beast of Sodom! The one who will-"
"She's a worthless copycat." Goetia once again cut her off, giving Ritsuka another blunt statement "Imagine my incineration of humanity…but that's all I did."
Ritsuka blinked "...So just killing everyone and nothing else?"
"Yes."
"...Ummmm…" Ritsuka looked at Draco and then back at Goetia "How is that any sort of love again?"
"I love consuming humans!" Draco indignantly called out "I represent the sin of depravity!"
"Shut up harlot!" Goetia called back without looking at her "She's effectively me but with the personality of Kiara and the intelligence of Kama."
"""Hey!""" The three other beasts called out at once.
Ritsuka blinked once "...I'm going to assume some other version of me dealt with her?"
"Yes, most likely."
"Right, right…" Ritsuka nodded his head, then looked at her once again before back at Goetia "...Is this really all we have?"
"Unfortunately so." Goetia nodded before he paused. "There are the students we could call upon."
"You want me to let kids near this ensemble?" Ritsuka raised an incredulous eyebrow "Are you serious?"
"How rude." Vitch frowned before she smirked "I'll have you know that we at NFF services offer a very lucrative apprenticeship programme for all ages." she paused before smiling wider "As we know you'll love it so much it has five compulsory years of service added on with all manner of benefits."
"I swear to however many Gods we have in Chaldea, if you come near me with another contract I am locking you in a room with Orion."
The smile on Vitch's face was sapped of energy almost immediately.
"But seriously…we have no one else?"
"I would state that having upwards of six Beasts to call upon for aid is a generous number." A pause "Seven if you were to count Cath Palug…but he has let himself go."
"...This is going to end in disaster. I just know it." Ritsuka groaned, rubbing his brows in exasperation.