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The sun smiled down upon Garreg Mach, its rays bringing a kind warmth to the courtyard where Seteth and Byleth were telling stories to the children of the monastery. The children's faces were brimming with excitement and wonder as Seteth told tales of Saint Indech and Saint Cichol's great feats together, showing off Bernadetta's colorful illustrations as he read each page.
"Wow, Saint Indech is so smart! I wish I could be smart like him!"
"Saint Cichol's got a cool spear! I bet it's super pointy!!!"
"Why weren't Saint Macuil and Saint Cethleann in this story, Mister Seteth?"
Seteth took care to answer each child's comment and question, gently but lively in tone. He firmly believed that stories and fables, especially those with strong morals, helped children grow into incredible adults, and he also loved the strong excitement the children always thanked him with.
This marked the first time Byleth had come along with him to storytime, and she cherished how sweet he was with the children. It was also a wonderful opportunity to experience Seteth's fables as they were meant to be read—to children, rather than an adult reading in silence. Her smile as she watched him was soft, adoring.
As the children's barrage of questions seemed to come to an end, one child blurted out, "Hey Mister Seteth? Does Miss Byleth have a story for us too?!"
"YEAH!!!" another shouted. "More stories!"
Even Rhea's insistence that she become a professor didn't surprise her as much as this! Byleth's eyes were wide with surprise, her face flushed, and she looked to Seteth, fumbling for words.
"Well I am—I am not sure if she came prepared today!" Not wanting to put her on the spot or embarrass her, he allowed her to further answer for herself.
Byleth sat frozen for a moment, pondering. She hadn't read many fables growing up herself, and she didn't have any of Seteth's memorized to the point of performance. She racked her brain for any scrap of story, when she gasped in realization.
"Actually, I do have a story to tell! I don't have a book with pictures like Mister Seteth, but…" She was met with thunderous excitement from the children.
Seteth's face melted into relief, with a dash of curiosity. What story had she to tell?
She tried to imitate Seteth's speech patterns as she began her tale. "This is a story my father would tell me many nights before bed when I was young, traveling with mercenaries. It is the story of a great legendary hero!"
Once upon a time, a great war waged between the Divine Dragons and the Degenerated Dragons. The Divine Dragons believed humans were kind, while the Degenerated Dragons hated mankind. The leader of the Divine Dragons, Naga, forged a powerful sword called the Falchion from one of her own fangs. When the two tribes went to war, the human Anri received Falchion, and used it to defeat the most menacing Degenerated Dragon, The Shadow Dragon! Anri then founded the Kingdom of Altea, and passed the sword down through generations.
Generations later, the Shadow Dragon was reborn and threatened the kingdom once more. King Cornelius departed with Falchion to defeat the Shadow Dragon with aid from the Kingdom of Gra. But, tragedy struck when the king of Gra, Jiol, betrayed and defeated King Cornelius, and took Falchion for himself.
Back in Altea, the castle was overtaken by a coup, too! Queen Liza was defeated, survived by her children Prince Marth and Princess Elice. Princess Elice urged Prince Marth to flee, so that he would be safe. Accompanied by his faithful knights, Prince Marth was able to escape to the island Kingdom of Talys, where his friend Princess Caeda lived, but Princess Elice was captured by the evil dark mage Gharnef.
Prince Marth and his forces strategically planned to take back Altea. First, they liberated the Kingdom of Aurelis, and Prince Marth received the Binding Shield, proving that he would be the hero to defeat the Shadow Dragon.
Then, they set out to defeat the country that had betrayed them, the Kingdom of Gra. While they were successful, the heroic sword Falchion was nowhere to be found! Prince Marth's tactician thought perhaps the evil dark mage Gharnef had stolen Falchion too. Despite their efforts, they were unable to find neither Gharnef nor Falchion, so Prince Marth decided to free Altea next.
After freeing Altea in a grueling battle, Prince Marth and his forces traveled to Thabes to defeat Gharnef. One of his mages defeated Gharnef using the power of starlight, and Prince Marth was able to rescue his sister and recover Falchion!
With Falchion at his side, Prince Marth took on the evil Shadow Dragon, and with a slice of his blade, was able to defeat him, just like the legendary hero Anri!
When the war was over, Prince Marth returned to Talys to tell Princess Caeda he was in love with her, and they lived happily ever after!
Byleth took a deep breath, and let out a sigh of relief. She didn't talk this much straight even during her lectures! She turned to see the children's faces a bit confused, but excited by the tale.
"Wow, Prince Marth is so cool! I wanna be like him when I grow up!"
"Princess Caeda sounds really pretty!! She got to marry a Prince!"
"I wanna sword like Falchion!"
A familiar voice broke through the children's excited cries. "What a spectacular story! How in Fódlan did you remember so many names and details?" Seteth exclaimed, beaming with pride and curiosity. His emerald eyes shone brightly in awe of her storytelling.
Sheepishly and blushing, Byleth responded, "It was a common legend growing up. A lot of the mercenaries would tell the tale—sometimes the details would change a bit, but it was… mostly intact each time."
Seteth gripped the air with passion radiating from his being. "We should coauthor a written version of this tale together! Perhaps we could even have Bernadetta or Hilda illustrate this, too!"
"YEAH!"
"Whoa that'd be so cool Mister Seteth!"
"Wait you mean Miss Byleth can write stories too? Woohoo!"
"GraawwwWWWWwww!!! I'm the Shadow Dragon!"
Byleth smiled, honored that her father's bedtime tales might be passed on to even more children. "That sounds absolutely wonderful, Seteth. Perhaps we can discuss it further over tea later? I think we have some excited little princes, princesses, and dragons who need tending to!"