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It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. Byleth had wanted to avoid fighting the Death Knight altogether, but then Caspar had ventured in too close, and… Well, what kind of professor would she be if she didn’t protect her students? But now she is on her knees, taken down by a single blow of the Death Knight’s scythe.
“Disappointing,” the Death Knight says. “You wield a Relic, and yet…”
Byleth doesn’t bother protesting that she had no time to unsheathe the Sword of the Creator, It would only waste precious breath. Her injury is grievous, could even be fatal if not seen to immediately, and normally she would retreat at this time. But based on the way the Death Knight is looming over her, she suspects she will not be able to make an exit.
“Professor!” Caspar cries.
“Go,” Byleth says. “I want you to gather everyone and get out of here. These are my commands. Understand?”
“But—” Caspar’s eyes burn with rage, but now isn’t the time to be blindsided by anger.
“I’m... counting on you...” Byleth says weakly. She has faith that her students will obey.
“Kill them,” the Death Knight commands to the last of the soldiers lying in wait.
“Halt. You’re having a bit too much fun,” comes a distorted voice.
Byleth watches, transfixed, as the Death Knight actually follows this new figure’s orders and disappears. Her unexpected savior is covered in armor from head to toe, so she cannot say for certain who it is. But there is something familiar in the stance. Does she know it from somewhere? Pain clouds her mind, making it hard to think.
“We will— Oh.” The masked figure turns their face to Byleth. “What’s this? He’s almost done you in.”
Approaching Byleth, they cautiously place a hand on her shoulder.
“This isn’t acceptable,” they say. “You won’t make it back in time. Did you not carry a vulnerary with you into battle?”
“Ah…” Byleth winces as she tries to explain. In truth, she had used hers up already. It was difficult just getting to the Death Knight’s room. But there’s really no point in telling the story, actually. It doesn’t matter.
“Professor!” Bernadetta screams.
Oh. Caspar had gone back and gathered everyone after all. They should be fleeing right now, though. She would say something, but admonishments would make for poor last words.
“Halt!” Ferdinand shouts. “Who are you, and what are you doing to the professor?”
“I? I am the Flame Emperor.” Byleth feels their hand move further down her back, and then suddenly, she is being picked up. “There is no choice. Your professor is coming with me.”
Byleth frowns, but not so much at the Flame Emperor’s actions as at their words. The… Flame Emperor? Surely it couldn’t be… Just because the heir to the Adrestian Empire happened to bear the Crest of Flames didn’t mean...
“Where are you taking her?” Hubert asks.
“To my camp,” the Flame Emperor says. “Fear not, she will return to you when she is well. Right now, worry about yourselves. We will cross paths again someday. For it is I who will reforge the world.”
Byleth’s breath catches, a recent memory stirring.
”As emperor, I will change the world. I swear it.”
Oh, Edelgard…
“You…” Byleth murmurs, trying to look into the Flame Emperor’s eyes.
“So you’re still holding on to consciousness…” the Flame Emperor mutters. “You’d do yourself less injury if you’d relax. Though I suppose you do not want to do so in the enemy’s arms.”
The Flame Emperor tilts their head downwards, their eyes catching the light in a flash of lavender.
And so Byleth heaves a sigh, convinced that she will indeed return to the monastery. With that belief, she allows herself to succumb to her wounds and slip into unconsciousness.
When Byleth awakes again, it is to the press of cool liquid against her lips. Instinctively, she spits it out, her eyes flying open and her hand flying to her side, though nothing is there. She is in an unfamiliar tent, and her sword is on the other side of it.
“Be at ease,” says the Flame Emperor, still masked and armored. “I’m not going to harm you.”
Byleth takes a steadying breath, then nods.
“I know,” she says.
The Flame Emperor pauses, their hand half-extended with a vial of concoction.
“It isn’t wise to be so trusting,” they say. “The man who gave you your wounds is under my command, after all.”
Byleth stares at her student. Just what Edelgard is playing at, she cannot begin to guess. But it is so obviously Edelgard. She keeps so much to herself that perhaps she can keep a secret from the other students and professors, but it won’t fool Byleth.
“You’ve healed some of my wounds already,” she says, going for the logical approach. “Why would you help me only to kill me now?”
The Flame Emperor hums, turning their face away. They press the concoction firmly into Byleth’s hand.
“It would be wasteful to kill you now,” they say. “Your power… I know it is greater than what you showed today. You were held back by your own allies. But if you had the right opportunity… You could change the world with the kind of power you wield.”
“Reforge it, you mean?” Byleth suggests, echoing the Flame Emperor’s words. “Create a world that does not sanction meaningless sacrifice?” she continues, echoing Edelgard’s.
The Flame Emperor grows still.
“Something along those lines,” they say.
“Are you asking me to join you?” Byleth asks. “Because if so, my answer is—”
“No,” the Flame Emperor quickly interrupts. “You must not decide so hastily. You don’t know my plans. The things I have to do…”
“Then tell me,” Byleth says. “You know I’ll listen.”
“I…” the Flame Emperor lets out a breath. “I will. Someday. But now isn’t the time. I’m not supposed to be here.”
“Where is ‘here,’ exactly?” Byleth asks.
“A couple hours’ walk from the monastery,” the Flame Emperor says, turning towards the entrance of the tent. “Which reminds me, I must go. Do finish that concoction while I’m away, Professor.”
Byleth nods solemnly, though it goes unseen.
“Thank you for saving me,” she says.
The Flame Emperor does not turn back around.
“That’s unnecessary,” they say quietly. “If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t have needed saving.”
“That isn’t an apology,” Byleth remarks.
“Because I don’t regret the path I’m following,” the Flame Emperor says. “I only hope that someday, you will… You will consider walking it with me.”
And with that, the Flame Emperor exits the tent.
Byleth downs the concoction.
“I want to walk your path, Edelgard,” she admits to thin air. “I too want to create a world where no one will ever suffer as you have.”
But for now, she can do nothing but wait. She does not know what the future will bring, but there are too many secrets being kept at the Garreg Mach Monastery, and one day something is bound to slip free. It’s all but a matter of time.
A half hour later, the sound of footsteps outside the tent draw her out of her thoughts.
“Professor,” Hubert greets in his typical smooth, unruffled tone. “It seems you weren’t taken very far after all. It is fortunate that we found you before any trouble did.”
“Professor!” Edelgard exclaims, entering behind Hubert. “Hubert told me you were captured by the Flame Emperor! Were you able to escape uninjured?”
Byleth frowns, glancing between her students. Could Hubert possibly be unaware of Edelgard’s role as the Flame Emperor? But no, she quickly rejects that idea. The two of them are surely too close for Edelgard to fool him, and he would not have shown up with her now unless he had already been aware of some plan.
“I’m fine,” she says. “The Flame Emperor healed me and then disappeared.”
She doesn’t see the point of playing this game when all three of the room’s occupants know what is going on. She has never been very fond of the theatrical dramas. The characters keep too much hidden, and yet they are always shocked to find that everything has gone rotten out of their sight. And now she feels like she is one of those characters, hiding knowledge that is already festering.
But she will defer to Edelgard in this matter. After all, most people wear a mask around others, even if it usually isn’t quite this literal. And moreover, if Edelgard wishes Byleth to stay utterly silent about her secret, then Byleth must do so, or else there cannot be trust between them.
“We should make haste back to Garreg Mach,” Hubert says. “They are already worried for you, Professor. If they believe that Lady Edelgard and I are missing as well, it would stir up unnecessary… commotion.”
“You’re supposed to ask permission before you leave the monastery,” Byleth points out, practicing her acting skills and pretending that she doesn’t know why they couldn’t have done that.
“It was an emergency, professor,” Edelgard says. “We did what we had to do.”
“Maybe you did,” Byleth says. As she pushes her way outside the tent, she brushes a hand against Edelgard’s arm. “If we slip back quietly, it’s possible nobody will notice you were gone. Come now, walk along the path with me.”
There is a literal path that stretches out in front of them. It will lead them back to Garreg Mach’s gates. If Byleth approaches them, everyone will be distracted by her reappearance, and Edelgard and Hubert will have an opportunity to get back inside without fuss. It is a sound strategy.
“Professor…” Edelgard narrows her eyes. “If that’s a joke, I don’t find it very funny.”
“No, I meant it,” Byleth says, meeting Edelgard’s gaze. It is still early in the morning, and it looks like it’s going to be a sunny day. It would be a nice time to go for tea if they were already at the monastery. But a walk would be good, too.
“Ah…” Edelgard laughs lightly. “When you make that expression, I find myself wanting to believe you.”
Byleth nods, feeling the smile she just realized she was wearing grow wider.
“I’ve been meaning to get you in private for a while,” she says. “Do you remember how we were talking about monastery mysteries last week? Hubert, I told you about this, too. I heard some gossip…”
And so the three of them return to the monastery, united in their shared pretenses. Byleth knows that the day she must choose to join or defy the Flame Emperor is fast approaching, and she knows, too, that she has already made her decision, whatever may come of it.
But for now, their days are still peaceful.