Sweet Bun Sunrise

Byleth

Linhardt, the monastery bell rang an hour ago.

Lin

(Just five more minutes...)

Byleth

This is the third time this week. The archbishop will hear about this.

Lin

Wait, Professor! I can explain—

Lin

(The research notes I borrowed from the restricted section...)

Byleth

'Forbidden Techniques of Crestology'? This isn't even in our curriculum.

Lin

Please, Professor... I wasn't sleeping. I was guarding something far more important than morning practice.

Byleth

(These notes... they're about the professor's own Crest. Why would Linhardt have these?)

Byleth

The book... it's responding to you.

Lin

Professor, don't read that page! It's—

Byleth

(This route... I've walked it before. In my dreams. In the darkness.)

Lin

You... you already knew about the Holy Tomb.

Byleth

How long have you been studying my Crest patterns, Linhardt?

Lin

Long enough to know why the underground route opened for you. Long enough to know what sleeps beneath the monastery.

Byleth

(The Holy Tomb isn't just a burial site. It's a seal. And I've been opening it in my sleep.)

Lin

Professor... you don't have to face what's down there alone. But we need to go tonight. Before the next full moon.

Lin

Professor, my body—it's splitting. I can't control it anymore.

Byleth

Your shadow—it's moving on its own. What kind of Crest magic is this?

Lin

(The moon phase is accelerating. My blood remembers what I shouldn't know.)

Byleth

(My heartbeat—it's syncing with something ancient. Something buried.)

Lin

Take my hand—before the other me remembers what the Crest of Cichol truly does!

Byleth

(Cichol? That's not Linhardt's Crest—it's mine. But how does he know its true name?)

Lin

Your touch—it's rewriting the seal. Professor, you're not just the key... you're the lock itself.

Byleth

(The Holy Tomb isn't a burial site. It's a prison. And I've been its warden all along.)

Lin

Then you understand why we must go tonight. Before the other wardens wake up.