III
Later that night, there was a knock on Link's door. To his surprise, it was Zelda. She seemed nervous, sad, and certainly not the calm and noble demeanor that she portrayed on the throne. "Link," she began, "I'm sorry about all of this. I tried to convince Roam to forget this, but he was too persistent. He also threatened to bring it to the council, and claim that I was letting my personal feelings to you cloud my judgment. There was nothing I could do but to allow this to happen. I'm sorry." She seemed on the verge of tears.

Link was stunned. He had assumed that Roam met with Zelda beforehand, but this blackmail was news to him. Personal feelings? Granted, she probably talked to him more than anyone else, but there was no great chemistry present. Apparently others thought otherwise. Link was quite uncomfortable standing there seeing his queen so distressed, and so tried to ease her conscience. "But he does have a point. If there is any chance that I cannot effectively use the Triforce, then it must be discovered now."

"No," she cried, visibly showing her disbelief. "You will be able to use it. I know it. You can't be like Ganon." She paused, looking down, trying to collect herself. "This is a fruitless quest. The Master Sword has been lost for hundreds of years. It could be buried, or stolen, or sold, or even destroyed. It must be impossible to find by now. How will it prove anything if you cannot find something like this?"

"I will find it," Link said quietly, even starting to believe it himself. "I have to prove myself worthy. I may not even know where to start, but I will find the Master Sword."

Zelda had calmed down somewhat. "I hope you do. Perhaps then Roam and everyone else will stop doubting you. And I believe I can help you. Link, Hyrule is a very ancient country. However, we have also been through many wars, and peace was never possible for too long. Long ago, the center of Hyrule was in the West, from the other side of the great Goronian Range. The royal library has some information from this time. There is a passage that states that the Master Sword was laid to rest in the woods near a village called Kakariko. The Outcast Village should be able to help you across the mountains. But from there, we have no records of where Kakariko might lie. I'm sorry, but this is the most information I could find."

Link sighed, thankful for even this much information. "A town cannot simply disappear. Certainly, the people to the West will know where it is. Thank you. With this information, I believe I truly will complete my quest."

Zelda grew quiet again. After an awkward period of silence, she spoke up. "Link, there are still monsters out there that want you dead. Please, be careful." With that, she kissed him lightly on the cheek and left the room.

The kiss had caught Link entirely off guard. He sat down, gazing at the door. Did Zelda truly have feelings for him? It was all really confusing. But he never had a chance to talk to her again. She was apparently constantly busy, and neither of the two had time for idle talk. Link spent much of his time brooding and preparing for the journey, as he had nothing else to do. He could not even try to talk Roam out of this, as the latter had left on leave due to the sudden illness of his sister, who lived in Mido. But his thoughts were never far from Zelda. Before he left, as Zelda gave her official blessing to his quest, she managed to smile hesitantly at him. He smiled back, trying to give her a sense of confidence. She regained her composure, and the rest of the ceremony was strictly formal. Yet it seemed to Link that she stalled the end of the ceremony as long as possible, and he was sure he felt her staring at him for a long time as he rode away from the North Castle.