Book One The Black Lion Old Version

resolve to get stronger

Monica knew about the plan. It had been over 2 weeks since they returned, and she was about to be debriefed, as all of the rebellions had been crushed. The moment of truth was approaching; she saw Hubert, Hinata, along with Edelgard, who were going to discuss their course of action.

"We have to make a decision tomorrow. They're going to debrief you, and there's no way we could go on without making a decision one way or the other. What will it be?" Hubert asked Edelgard.

"I've considered multiple options. I've heard yours and Hinata's about how we should approach the exposure of our enemies. What do you think we should do, Monica? Edelgard asked her for her opinion; she didn't know if she would be able to contribute. She wasn't like her beloved when it came to planning out long-term plans, nor was she like Hubert when it came to strategy, or Hinata when it came to giving advice."

"I think revealing the identity of my kidnapper would go a long way of undermining our enemies. We have to tread carefully if we make a move too fast too soon we can endanger everything that we have built up into this point."Monica gave her opinion.

"What about you?"Edelgard asked Hinata.

"I've been told everything about our enemies, how deep they are rooted within the Empire, and even in Konoha, they are dangerous. There are those in the Konoha council who are members of them, Donzo being one of them. Which I was shocked to say the least." Hinata said, still trying to wrap her head around everything that she was told.

"Yes, those who Those Who Slither in the Dark are dangerous enemies, but arguably, more dangerous enemies are the Akatsuki, who we know even less about than Those Who Slither in the Dark. The only thing I do know from my spies is that they do not like each other." Hubert said in this is obvious information tone while those who know nothing about the Akatsuki wouldn't know.

"I do think deception is still a useful tool for pitting the Akatsuki and Those Who Slither in the Dark against each other, though it isn't without its risks. So, what's the course of action we're going to take, Edelgard-sama?" Hinata asked her in a formal tone.

"I don't like it, there's no choice though we will stick to the original plan and have Monica expose Thomas the librarian. Remember tell them as little as possible, don't tell them more than you absolutely must Monica."Edelgard warned.

"Understood, my lady." Monica had mentioned before she left tomorrow, would be a game-changer. She hoped it wouldn't backfire badly. There was too much at stake. There's too much that can go horribly wrong, and she couldn't afford to fail her lady. Everything was dependent on Monica revealing the identity of her kidnapper.

After Monica left Hinata couldn't help it feel apprehension about the choices that Edelgard and Hubert were making. She knew what she got herself into when she signed the blood pact lying and hiding things from her friends and loved ones was not something she reveled in. Edelgard knew she was troubled.

"Hina Chan, are you okay?"Edelgard asked her in her native tongue.

"These people that we are forced to have an alliance with, are you sure we should be working with such people? The kind of things they have done, the experiments... I." She couldn't get the words out when Hubert gave her all the paperwork of all the atrocities that were documented. She had almost thrown up in disgust. She truly despises them and could understand why Edelgard has a difficult time trusting people.

What disgusted her more was learning that her own clan are collaborators and some of them were even members. They were like cockroaches, they were everywhere it seemed.

"I know how you feel, but we cannot break our alliance with them too soon. You said yourself that it was too dangerous." Edelgard reminded her of what her position was.