A recurring element in the series is the titular artifact known as the "Fire Emblem". In Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light and other games set in Archanea, it is a shield inset with five magical gems named after its connection to dragons and weapons of war, being the "emblem of flame".[21][20] It also appears as a family crest in Genealogy of the Holy War, a family seal in The Binding Blade, a magic gemstone in The Sacred Stones, a bronze medallion holding a goddess of chaos in Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn, a sword in Fates, and hereditary magical sigils in Three Houses.[22][16][20] Other magical elements, including feuding gods and mystical species such as dragons and shapeshifters, are also recurring elements in the series.[7]
Rhea doesn't show this level of malice in any other route, and it only gets worse as Crimson Flower goes on. As the final boss, her last stand sees her set a city of innocents on fire in an attempt to burn the Adrestian army down with her. Sacrificing innocents is the clearest issue here, but it's an extension of one of her worst qualities even on routes where she's more of a good guy: speciesism. While she never hits this level of violence in the other paths, Rhea's love for her people borders on condescension. She lied to them about so many things because she didn't have faith in humanity to make the right choices. The Abyss library reveals that she actively hindered the inventions of the autopsy and the printing press, as well as preventing people from using oil, keeping Fódlan in a sort of medieval stasis. Her burning of Fhirdiad is the result of this speciesism being brought to the forefront, with her deciding that even the humans on her side aren't as important as getting revenge on the player and Edelgard.
So if Claude has hidden prejudices that keep him from helping as much in the war as he could, why would Hilda stay by his side even when the player chooses other routes? How is he such a charismatic commander? The answer is that Claude has self-control. The other three lords could charitably be described as "steamrollers" in their determination to see their goals through, which is good for when the going gets tough but bad for when it ends up putting innocents in the crossfire. Claude, meanwhile, is much more cautious in his approach to things, which helps keep the Alliance afloat as long as it is in non-Crimson Flower routes. He's also much more willing to cooperate with others in Verdant Wind than his fellow lords are in their own routes, putting aside his own dislike for Rhea and her policies in favor of rescuing her to find out the truth of Fódlan's past. Claude's walls are high, but they're not unscalable, and by the end of Verdant Wind he's really opened up.
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