Naofumi never felt more awkward in his life. Here he was in the middle of the forest, the same place he was in yesterday with Rowan, and with a possible enemy kneeling beside him.
The four of them were hiding behind the same log from yesterday and kept a close watch on the river. Legrand had ordered his two wolves to hide in underbrush. That had been twenty minutes ago and the more time passed, the more Naofumi wished he was out of here.
He had to put his faith in Rowan finding any evidence of Gareth's disappearance in Legrand's belongings. It shouldn't be that long.
For now, he had to wait.
He looked to his left where Rachel was. She was sitting back against the log and when she caught Naofumi's gaze, she shrugged. He then turned to Mina who was on Legrand's left side. She too was sitting against the log and when her eyes met Naofumi's she shrugged as well.
Even they were unsure how to deal with the situation. If Rowan did find something, how would they approach Legrand? Hero he may be, but Naofumi wasn't an enforcer of the law. That was beyond his jurisdiction.
'Ok, maybe this wasn't the best thought out idea I ever had.' He thought bitterly. That's what he gets for coming up with an idea at 4 in the morning.
He remembers seeing the determination in Rowan's eyes when he discussed the plan with him. If he failed this mission, he'll fail Rowan.
Rowan, who thought of him as a hero.
It was time to do his part.
"Say, Legrand," Naofumi says. "While we're waiting, care to tell us a little about yourself?"
Again, a plan that isn't thought through, but if he could get as much information from Legrand, then it could help Rowan.
Legrand seemed surprised by his words. "You want to know about me?" He raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah. You are helping us and you did save me and Rachel from those bandits. I've been curious about you."
He could feel Rachel and Mina staring at him with curiosity.
He continues on. "You're the captain of the knights, right?"
"Yes," Legrand replies. "I rank high amongst the knights. I was granted knighthood by the previous captain. I was only a squire, but I did fight alongside them. He saw my potential and asked me to join his ranks."
"How'd you become the captain?"
Legrand chuckles. "Took a lot of years of fighting monsters and insurrectionists, but when the captain was on his deathbed, he appointed me as the captain. And here I am now."
Naofumi may not know a lot about knighthood but he knew Legrand betrayed some kind of code of honor if he made Gareth disappear.
Speaking of…
"Rowan told us you know Gareth. What was he like?"
"Gareth…" Legrand paused. "He's… not what you think. The man is a boisterous, easy-going, happy-go-lucky person. Not a single gray cloud could ever rain on his parade. He's a pretty damn good hunter despite his personality."
"How do you know him?" Mina asks.
"Well, a few years ago there were lots of leftover wave monsters roaming the countryside and the queen asked us to hunt them down. Though none of us were skilled hunters, she hired Gareth to assist us. That and he taught us the basic lessons in hunting."
Naofumi considered asking more about Gareth. Now that he knows how the two are acquainted, it should be easy to ask about where the man is.
Unless Legrand starts to get suspicious if he's pressed on about Gareth. Then he would trust him less. And if that were to happen, then they can kiss any information about Gareth good-bye.
This was getting harder and harder by the second. He was this far in, there's no going back until he has some kind of answer.
Legrand shot up. "Something's coming."
Naofumi didn't have time to react before something came running through the trees.
"Rowan?" Legrand held his hand in the air, halting the wolves who came out of the underbrush.
Rowan was panting hard. He had his hands on his knees, taking in deep breaths.
'Did he run here all the way from the village?' Naofumi thought.
Rachel stood. "Did he…" She looked to Naofumi for confirmation.
"Maybe, otherwise he wouldn't be here."
"What's going on?" Legrand stepped around the log. His two wolves flanked his sides.
Rowan took in more breaths before standing straight.
He looked straight at Legrand. "You." He looked angry. Something Naofumi has never seen on Rowan's face. Shy, awkward Rowan was one thing. An angry Rowan was something else.
That was when Naofumi noticed he was clutching something in his right hand.
Legrand didn't get a word out before Rowan spoke. "It was you. You made Gareth disappear!"
The captain's eyes widened. "What are you-"
Rowan held up what he was holding. A journal.
"Where did you get that?" Legrand all but shouted.
"I had some help," Rowan replied.
Legrand turned to glare at Rachel who just smiled coyly at him.
"Guess he was right all along," she says.
"It seems so," Mina says.
Naofumi went to stand by Rowan. "What did you find?"
Rowan opened the journal and stopped at a page. "It's written right here. 'He's finally gone. I don't have to worry about him anymore.' This was written a day after he gave Gareth the order."
Naofumi looked back at the captain. When he first met the man, he thought he could trust him. Now, all that trust is gone. It was sad really. He could hardly trust anyone here. Was this country so corrupt to the point where almost everyone was untrustworthy? Maybe so.
Time was still for a moment. No one moved or spoke.
Then, Legrand's face shifted. His brows furrowed in anger, his fists clenched tightly, and his eyes turned cold.
"I was right about you," Rowan says. "I knew you had something to do with it. Gareth liked you! He said you trained hard and taught you everything about hunting. Why would you do this to him?"
Naofumi could hear the pained desperation in Rowan's voice. He wanted answers, even if he wasn't going to like what Legrand had to say.
In some way, he could relate to that need. The need to know why. Why he was betrayed by Malty. Why half of the people seemed to hate him for no reason.
"I had my reasons," Legrand says through clenched teeth.
"That's all?" Rachel asks. "It's written here in what you did and that's all you have to say?"
"I don't need to explain myself to either of you."
"That is where you are wrong," Mina says. "You not only got rid of Rowan's master, but you're also withholding information about that. Does it not occur to you that something could've happened to Gareth?"
"Like I care," Legrand scoffs. His glare intensified. "So what? What are you going to do now?"
This time it was Naofumi's turn to scoff. "Turn you in, obviously. We have evidence right here."
Legrand laughed. "You mean that little sentence? That's nothing! Maybe I'm referring to a bandit who was causing trouble. Or hell, maybe I'm referring to a member of the Black Foxes. You have nothing against me. None of you do."
"That's not true!" Rowan stepped forward until he was a good two feet away from Legrand. "Gareth has been gone for two months and hasn't sent a single letter. I doubt anyone knows where he is. And your journal entry was right around the time he left. Nothing is stopping me from going to Faubley and presenting your journal as evidence to the queen!"
'The queen isn't even here?" Naofumi thought. What kind of ruler isn't in their country especially in times in need? She better have a good excuse for not being here.
"Ha! Like that'll help you at all!" Legrand smiled and it was a smile of madness. "Then I'll just have to get rid of you too."
He whistles loud enough to startle birds in the trees, making them fly away.
The two wolves by his side growled and advanced. Rowan jumped back and had his bow and arrow ready.
"Chane shield!" Naofumi turned his shield into the Crystal Shield. Rachel and Mina had their weapons ready as well.
Around them, the forest was quiet.
Then a how ran out. Followed by more.
Wolves emerged from the trees. Grey wolves, black wolves, brown wolves, wolves that glowed green with magic, they came in from everywhere.
"This may be your home, Rowan, but it's home to my wolves as well." Legrand reached out and patted a wolf on its head.
He looked to Naofumi. "It's a shame you have to get involved here, Shield Hero. I never did believe what the Pope said about you, but you're just as meddlesome as Rowan. This'll just be collateral damage."
Naofumi could only hold in his rage as the crystal spikes on his shield sharpened.
Rowan, who did not falter from fear of the wolves, smiled. "The woods aren't the only home to wolves."
A pained cry rang out. Legrand shook from the cry and turned his head to the sound. Naofumi did the same and by the river, a wolf was buckled down to its kneed while a giant spider sank its fangs onto its back. It pulled back, ripping away the flesh from the wolf.
The wolves surrounding the injured wolf were ready to pounce but were stopped by rustling coming from the bushes.
Spiders of all kinds of species and sizes emerged. Naofumi turned back to Rowan and saw several spiders crawling out of his shawl and onto the ground. They glowed orange and began to grow as did the other spiders.
Soon, they were surrounded by a sea of wolves and spiders.
Rowan turned his attention to Naofumi. "I'm sorry you got involved in his," he said remorsefully.
To his surprise, Naofumi shook his head. "It's fine. I said I was going to help you find answers. And if I have to fight this son of a bitch and his wolves, I will."
His words shook Rowan to his core. Out of habit, he looked into Naofumi's eyes and there he saw determination, anger, and sympathy.
'I was right,' he thought. 'You are a hero.'
"Thank you."
"You'll pay for hurting my wolf," Legrand growled.
Naofumi, Rowan, Rachel, and Mina huddled closer.
"Kill them!"
"My spiders! Attack!"
In a split second, the forest erupted in battle.
The first wolf attempted to pounce on Naofumi. He intercepted with his Crystal Shield. The sound of spikes digging into flesh and the wolf's cry of pain was too much to bear. He shuddered when he pushed the wolf away who was lying on the forest floor bleeding. He didn't have a chance to recuperate before another wolf pounced on him.
He side-stepped and bashed his shield against the wolf's side. This time, the sound of flesh being torn and the wolf's cry didn't bother him. It was either them or him. And he was not going to die in some goddamn forest.
To his left, Rachel was holding off two wolves. She shot a fire spell at one of them, singeing its fur and skin. She barely had just enough time to jump back when a wolf attempted to bite her leg. The wolf was met with an ax to its neck.
"You ok?" Naofumi asked as another wolf pounced on him. This time he changed the shield to the Two Dog Head Shield. The dogs extended themselves to the nearest wolves and bit down on their necks.
"Peachy!" Rachel shot another fireball at a group of wolves. All but one jumped out of the way. The lone wolf that got hit by the fireball was writhing on the ground in pain.
"There's too many of them! Do you have any plans?"
"Just kill the fuckers, that's my plan!"
Not the most well thought out plan, but she was right. There couldn't be that many wolves in the forest compared to Rowan's spiders.
Speaking of which….
When no wolves came at him, he took the time to look past Legrand – who was standing by the river shouting orders – at the carnage of spiders and wolves.
Spiders have surrounded many of them while some jumped onto their backs and bit into them. There were all kinds of spiders. Some Naofumi knew from home and others that were obviously from here.
One spider, in particular, had a round, bulbous abdomen with swirls of purple and green. Instead of biting or webbing the wolves, the spider raised its abdomen and a green sigil materialized in front of it. A gush of wind blew away many of the wolves back, giving the other spiders the chance to attack them.
'Makes sense there are magical spiders too." Naofumi thought.
If there are magical spiders, then…
He remembered the glowing green wolves from earlier. He spun around and he spotted them.
Two were dead on the ground, their insides spilling as spiders surrounded their bodies.
'Where's the other-'
AROOOOOO!
A shockwave hit him hard. His ears rang like alarm bells and he covered them to no avail. The howl could still be heard through his hands. He gritted his teeth to the point where he thought they would crack from the pressure.
Finally, the howling stopped but he was still dazed from it. The world spun momentarily before he regained his balance.
He looked to his companions. Rachel, Mina, and Rowan were holding off as many wolves as they could. If they weren't affected by the howl, then he was the intended target. Where ever the wolf is, it needed to be taken out.
Now.
"Ah!"
Mina's shriek pulled him away from his search of the magic wolf.
She was on the ground, a wolf standing over her. The blade of her daggers shone in the grass far away from her.
Mina pushed away from the wolf and rolled away when a second one tried to go in for the kill. She was on her feet instantly and had her fan out.
Even without her daggers, she still had her fan.
Opening the fan, Mina spun on her toes and brought her fan up in a quick motion. Ice ascended from the ground, piercing and tossing the wolves aside. She retrieved her daggers and not a moment sooner when a wolf snuck up behind her and jumped. She ducked down and thrust one of her daggers into the wolf's belly.
"Never sneak up on a dancer," she said as the wolf fell hard to the ground.
'Good," Naofumi thought hastily. 'They're holding their own. That leaves…'
An arrow whizzed by and pierced a wolf in the side followed by another after.
Rowan was shooting arrows in rapid succession. Naofumi knew he had to focus on the wolves, but he couldn't help but be astonished at Rowan's skills.
The hunter walked back slowly while nocking arrows and releasing them as wolves moved in on him. One by one they fell. The last one avoided an arrow and ran at Rowan.
It was coming in fast. Rowan wouldn't have time to avoid it.
Then, to his amazement, Rowan crouched and jumped in the air. The wolf's paws hit the spot where Rowan had been and looked up.
Rowan had done a back-flip mid-air and had an arrow ready. He released the arrow and it landed right between the wolf's eyes. He landed gracefully on the ground reached into his quiver for more arrows.
'Woah…' Naofumi felt like he was staring at a completely different person. The Rowan he met was shy, timid, bashful, and blushed easily. Now he was fierce, raw, brave.
A fearsome hunter.
From the corner of his eyes, Naofumi saw something glimmering. It was the final magic wolf.
It stood perched on a rock. It took in a breath and Naofumi knew what was coming.
"Rowan!"
The hunter turned and saw the wolf. He wasted no time killing the wolf.
'Good,' Naofumi thought. 'That takes care of those.'
"Kill them! Go for their necks!" Legrand's voice carried over to all the wolves. Hearing their commander's voice urged them on. They came at them with feral strength and speed.
The four huddled close together, their backs facing each other as they killed the oncoming army of wolves.
"Go!" Rowan shouted. "Take them down!"
Spiders of all kinds pillaged their way through the wolves. Tearing them apart with their fangs and legs. Some even hurled magic at them.
"Never thought I'd be saying this but I'm glad spiders exist," Rachel says.
"They're making this easier for us." Mina waved her fan, launching shards of ice at the wolves.
The number of wolves started dwindling. Spiders were also killed as well but when one fell, another appeared from the forest growing from Rowan's growth spell.
Naofumi saw Legrand's face contort with pure rage. He bared his teeth.
'Just like a wolf…'
He is the leader of the pack. More and more wolves would swarm them if they don't take him out.
"I've got a plan."
His companions turned and gave him a questioning look.
"Mina, Rachel, distract the wolves. I'm going after Legrand. Rowan, take down any wolf that comes after me. Got it?"
The three nodded.
"Good. Now!"
He dashed forward whilst Mina and Rachel increased their usage of ice and fire magic. The wolves yelped and scattered, leaving a clear-cut path to Legrand.
The Captain yelled at the top of his lungs for his wolves to kill him. Naofumi had never seen someone look so feral. Legrand was more beast than human at this point.
A wolf tried to bite his calf but was taken down by Rowan.
'Just a little closer.'
The closer he got to Legrand, the more confident he was about his plan.
He skidded to a stop and had his changed his shield.
"What the-" Legrand's shock was all it took for Naofumi to go in.
"Air Strike Shield!"
The large green shield materialized and thrust at Legrand, striking him square in the stomach.
It launched him several feet back, tumbling to the ground.
"Shield Prison!"
Green shields encapsulated Legrand into a ball, shutting him off completely from his wolves.
The wolves sensed this and they all halted.
Many of them whimpered and looked back and forth between the prison and Naofumi and his party members.
From the inside of the prison, Naofumi could hear Legrand gasp for air.
"Spiders!" Rowan shouted. "Kill them!"
The horde of spiders descended on the confused wolves. Several of them took notice of their losing battle and ran off into the woods. The remaining few put up a fight but were killed in seconds.
The fresh tang of blood made Naofumi nauseous. This was too much. Blood in video games didn't compare to actual blood. The metallic smell and taste of it were overwhelming.
This was a blood bath.
Soon, the last of the wolves were killed.
Naofumi released Legrand from his prison and the captain collapsed to his knees. He was still breathing heavily, grasping at his stomach.
"You.." he managed to get out.
"Don't even try." Naofumi's shield change to the Two Dog Head Shield. The dogs growled, inching from the shield stopping just short of Legrand's face.
Behind him, Rowan came forward, glaring down at Legrand.
"It's over," he declared.
Legrand met his glare with one of his own but it faltered into a defeated face.
"Now," Rowan retrieved the journal from his pocket. "I want answers."
"As do I."
The voice surprised them all.
"What the?" Rachel spun around, looking for the source.
Their answer came in the sudden appearance of a masked woman who came around a large boulder next to the river.
Naofumi recognized the mask.
"You're…"
"Apologies for not properly introducing myself from a few days ago," the woman bowed. "I am one of the Queen's Shadows. I along with my comrades was the ones who halted Princess' Malty's tax poll on Lute Village. Forgive my late arrival."
The shadow held herself in strict formality, her posture perfect and voice smooth as silk yet having a commanding tone. Naofumi noticed the shadow had a leg strap similar to Mina's. It held three obsidian daggers.
She wasn't just some trained guard for the queen.
Naofumi took note of this.
"Did you follow us?"
"Not at first, no." The shadow responded. "Originally I was supposed to be waiting at Lute Village to keep an eye on the princess. However, one of my comrades who is stationed at Haven Clove informed me via falcon mail that Legrand was in the village."
Rowan had a look of shock on his face. "Wait. One of you lives in Haven Clove."
"There are shadows scattered all over Melromarc," the shadow responded. "You may have even talked with them without knowing."
Naofumi found it unsettling that a secret task force had many operatives in different areas. Not to mention they belonged to a queen he knows absolutely nothing about. We're the friend or foe?
Friend, maybe. They did stop Malty before she could harm anyone in Lute Village.
'Too many secrets.' Naofumi thought bitterly. His companions were right. He needed to start asking more questions. Otherwise, he'll never survive here.
"Then you knew about Legrand?" Naofumi asked.
"We had our suspicion," the shadow replied.
"What do you know?" The urgency was palpable in Rowan's voice.
The shadow looked down at Legrand who was trying to push himself up. "Gareth is a well-known hunter throughout the entire continent. My comrade was there when Legrand came to Haven Clove and presented the order to Gareth. We keep close tabs on the king when the queen is away and not once did any of the other shadows hear the king give an order to Legrand regarding Gareth."
"Then Legrand forged a royal decree," Mina stated.
"Correct. Royal decrees made by either queen or king do not go unnoticed. Legrand knew of this but still forged one." The shadow kneeled down and pulled up Legrand's chin until they were facing eye to eye. "How bold of you to assume we don't keep an eye out on everyone."
Legrand could do nothing but stare helplessly back at the shadow.
The shadow let go of Legrand's chin and stood. "We did not confront him at first, as we believed Gareth would return from whatever hunt he was on. But Gareth's prolonged absence was enough for us to start investigating. However, word got around about Malty's plan for Lute Village and we had to prioritize that above all else. When my comrade informed me of Legrand's arrival at Have Clove, I knew I had to act fast and prove our suspicion of him. And it seemed we were right all along."
The shadow reached out her hand to Rowan. "May I see the journal?"
Rowan clutched the journal tightly before relenting and giving it to the shadow. She flipped through the pages before stopping. She knelt back down in front of Legrand and held the journal in front of him.
"Does this passage ring a bell?"
"…Yes." Legrand muttered.
"Then you know what this means for you?"
"…Yes."
The shadow stood, tucked the journal inside her cloak and grabbed Legrand by his arms and lifted him up.
Naofumi balked at the shadow's strength. She was a good foot and a half shorter than him!
"There's still the big question," the shadow said. "What did you make Gareth hunt."
Legrand did not answer. He merely looked at the ground.
This set off Naofumi. "Tell us!"
No luck. Legrand still looked at the ground.
"Please." Rowan pleaded. "Legrand, I don't know why you did this, but please. Gareth is important to me. I need to know. Please."
…
The silence was thick enough to be cut with a butter knife.
Finally, Legrand took in a breath and spoke.
"Hrym. I ordered him to hunt Hrym."
Mina let out a small gasp.
"You're kidding." Rachel looked appalled.
Rowan's eyes widened. His mouth hung open. Naofumi held still. Based on their reaction, this 'Hrym' was not a good thing.
"You what?!" Rowan trembled. "You… You…"
Legrand closed his eyes. "Yes. I did."
Rowan collapsed to his knees. "No," he said. "No. This can't be happening!"
A sudden rush of sympathy hit Naofumi. Whether it be from the sound of anguish coming from Rowan or the need to comfort him when he needed comfort himself after Malty's betrayal, he didn't know.
All he could do was place a hand on the hunter's shoulder. Rowan trembled underneath his hand.
"Legrand." The shadow adjusted her grip on his wrists. "You are to come with me to the capital to undergo a hearing from the High Council. A letter will be sent to the queen of your transgression. She will deliver your punishment. As of now, you are no longer captain of the Royal Knights."
Legrand didn't say anything. His hair was disheveled, his shoulders were slumped, and his blue eyes dimmed.
He was defeated.
The shadow started to lead him to the trees when Rowan stood.
"Wait!"
The shadow and Legrand stopped.
"Legrand." He came up to the former captain. "Please… tell me why you did it. Why? Gareth said nothing but great things about you! You were one of his pupils. I deserve the right to know."
Naofumi waited in anticipation. He wanted to know what would lead a man to essentially make another one disappear. He'd seen these kinds of things on the news about criminals who went out of their way to kill someone.
"Because…" Legrand looked to the side. "Because I couldn't be better than him."
"…what?" Rowan asked.
"When he first came to train the knights," Legrand explained, "I was mesmerized by how great of a hunter he was. He never showed fear when he would take us out on hunts. No matter how big the monster was, he and his cats were brave. I wanted to be like him. It was why I had become a knight in the first place. To protect my home and the people. To be a hero."
He let out a strained chuckle. "But I was no good. Every time I tried to defeat a monster I end up on the losing end. And Gareth would be the one to finish it. It happened over and over again. I even heard the other knights whispering about me. That I'm weak. That I'm no good. They kept praising Gareth while I was at the bottom! Even after he left, I could still hear the ridicule from the other knights.
"So, I trained. I busted my ass off until I got promoted to Captain. But that wasn't enough. I never forgot the humiliation. I wanted Gareth gone."
"You monster," Naofumi growled. "That's why you got rid of him? Jealousy? God, you knights and everyone one back at the capital are nothing but weak lowlifes!"
Legrand flinched at his words. "I-I'm not weak."
"Sure don't sound like it." Where was this anger coming from? Naofumi wasn't sure who he was angry for. Angry at Legrand for acting like a knight in shining armor only to be a despicable man? Angry for Rowan who looked devastated?
Legrand's shoulders slumped. "The old man is gone and yet," he casts his gaze at Rowan, "his legacy will humiliate me."
Rowan said nothing.
"That's enough out of you," the shadow said. "You have a lot to answer once we get back to the capital."
She tugged Legrand forward.
"Legrand."
Rowan's voice stopped them. The former knight turned his head to the hunter.
"Gareth told me he saw potential in you. That even after you've been tossed down by monsters, you still got up. He said you were brave. He said you were like your wolves. He believed in you. And knowing him, I know he'll forgive you for this. That's just the way he is."
Legrand's eyes widened.
"…yeah," he said. "That's how he is."
The shadow leads him to the trees and was out of sight.
"Rowan." Mina stands next to him. "Are you OK?" She puts a hand on his shoulder, rubbing it."
"…" Rowan stares at where the shadow and Legrand had gone through.
Naofumi wanted to say something to comfort Rowan, but what? Words like, "I'm sorry," and "It'll be OK," won't help. Not in this situation where this 'Hrym' was involved.
"Let's go back to Haven Clove," he suggested. "You can tell me about Hrym there."
The four of them went in the direction where they had come from when Naofumi stopped. He spotted the corpse of one of the magical wolves. Its green glow had completely faded but it's fur, Naofumi realized, was a frosted green.
An idea came to mind. He knelt down next to the wolf and reached out. He grabbed a fistful of fur and as hard as he could, he ripped it off. Not much came out so he did it again. Once he got a good amount, he tucked the fur into his pocket.
'I'll worry about that until tomorrow.'
He caught up with the group and they made their way back to the village.
When they returned to Haven Clove, the atmosphere had changed drastically. The villagers were talking loudly to each other. Naofumi could barely make out what any of them were saying but he did manage to hear Legrand's name. The shadow must've moved fast if she needed to collect Legrand's other stuff. There was also the hidden shadow. It was a fruitless endeavor, but Naofumi looked at the villagers to see if any stuck out. But none did. A shadow hiding in plain sight.
Rowan leads them to his house where they gathered in the living room. Spiders moved out of the way and for once, Naofumi wasn't afraid of them. He had other things on his mind.
"Rowan."
For a moment, Rowan didn't speak.
"I said I would help you. I'm not sure how, but if you want me to help, you have to tell me about Hrym. It's a monster, isn't it?"
Rowan nodded.
"Then tell me: what is it?"
Again, Rowan didn't speak.
"Hrym is a monster," he finally said. "It appeared over a thousand years ago after the first few waves of calamity."
"So it's a wave monster, then?"
"Not exactly," Rachel said.
Naofumi raises an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"The story of Hrym has been told since its first sighting. It's a monster, that much people know, but no one has ever seen what it looks like."
"So, it's from here? From Melromarc?"
"You aren't the first person to ask that question," Mina said. "Hrym's exact origins are shrouded in a fog. Some say it's a wave monster. Some say it's a monster from here. No one knows, really."
"Back up." Naofumi was being assaulted by too much information. "It's a monster. It's been around for a thousand years. What else?"
"It's…" Rowan sighed. "I wish I had all the answers. But Mina is right. No one, not even the most influential of scholars have been able to identify what Hrym is other than a monster.
"Documents and texts and accounts from way back then have said that after a wave was over, a monster lurked in the night. Those who were up at night say they saw something lurking in the darkness. It moved so fast they couldn't tell what it was."
"Isn't that just any nocturnal animal?" Naofumi asked.
"That's what people assumed. Except when Hrym was around, animals would start going crazy."
"Crazy how?"
"Feral, almost. Any animal would start acting up. Trained dogs would growl at their owners. Horses would break free from the stables and run around. You name it. When a shadowy creature is spotted around a village, the animals would react to its presence. That's how people knew it was Hrym. After it leaves, the animals would go back to normal. To this day, reports of animals acting strangely show that Hrym is still around, even after a thousand years."
Naofumi could now understand why they reacted when Legrand said Hrym. If a monster is capable of living over a thousand years and terrorize the population, then it was more than just an ordinary monster.
"Have people tried to hunt it?" He supplied.
"Yes…" Rowan said. "And each hunt ends in failure."
Naofumi grimaced. "What do you mean?"
"After the first couple of sightings, adventurers and hunters from all over the continent have claimed they would find Hrym and kill it. They would gather in large groups and head to where it was last spotted." He shook his head. "Each hunt ends in their deaths or they end up missing. Search parties were sent to find the bodies. When they did find them, they were beyond recognizable to the point where you had to look at the bones to see if it was a man or a woman. Hrym doesn't just kill. It kills with brute strength and savagery."
'Shit,' Naofumi shuddered at the thought of a monster like Hrym was out there, still alive.
"Even after many failures," Rowan continued, "there were many attempts to hunt Hrym. But when the body started to get higher and higher, and when it was obvious no one could kill it, people stopped trying."
"Is he really unstoppable."
Mina nodded. "Yes. I've only ever heard stories of Hrym growing up at the orphanage, but when its name is spoken, people know that it isn't just an ordinary monster. It's… something else. Something that can't be beaten."
How is it that just hearing about Hrym sent Naofumi into a state of momentary fear? This was just like the cryptids he heard back home. Forget Bigfoot and any other beast secretly hiding in his world. (If they existed.) Hrym easily tops them all.
He looked down at his shield.
'Maybe…'
"I know what you're thinking," Rachel said dismissively. "And it won't work."
It was like she read his mind. "What's that supposed to mean."
"At some point, long after the Legendary Weapons came into existence, the four heroes decided they would work together and kill Hrym. It made sense when you think about it. Nothing says monster killer than weapons of legend."
She paused for a moment.
"When they hadn't reported back in a long time, a search party was sent. They found the four weapons on the ground and no sign of the heroes. This was over two hundred years ago. After that, no Cardinal Hero has even dared to hunt Hrym."
Naofumi slumped back in his seat. He recalled when he threw his shield in frustration after Malty's betrayal and how it teleported back to his arm. That meant the heroes were killed.
If the Cardinal Heroes can't kill Hrym, then no one can.
This is sounding more and more hopeless the more they talked about the monster.
"I just don't understand." Rowan rested his head on his hands. "Gareth knows Hrym can't be killed. He knows that. Why didn't he just ignore Legrand's order? Why…"
His breath came out in a shudder.
Gareth.
Naofumi knew nothing about the man. He is a complete stranger. Someone who he wouldn't pay attention too if it didn't involve him. He may as well be some random person, just like how he passes by so many people at his university.
However, he mattered to someone. Friends. Family. Rowan.
He looked up to his master in admiration. This shy boy was taught by one of the best hunters in the land. And to see him so defeated, so sad, Naofumi felt his heart clench.
He promised he would help.
"When did you meet him?"
Rowan looked up. "What?"
"I don't know anything about him. Just what you've said about him. He means a lot to you. And I'd like to get to know him better."
Naofumi could see the confusion in Rowan's eyes. He stared back at him, no doubt looking into his eyes to see the validity in them.
Rowan took in a breath and let it out.
"I met Gareth sixteen years go. It was a few months after I turned five."
Sixteen years ago
"Stop it!" Rowan thrashed his arms as hard as he could, but two older boys held them. All he could do was kick his feet.
"Or what?" An older boy sneered at him. "You're gonna cry?" He laughed mockingly. His friends laughed as well.
"Just give him back!" Rowan shouted. "He's mine!"
"This?" In the boy's hand, he held a spider no bigger than a coin sack. "It's just a stupid spider."
Rowan wanted to yell back. It wasn't stupid! It was a house spider he found outside his house. It was making a web on the ceiling of the living room and he called to it. He was starting to understand his abilities as a beastmaster and had fun calling to any spider in the village.
The spider lowered itself on from a strand of webbing and crawled onto his hand. Rowan giggled. Its feet on his hand was tickling him. It was a little bigger than any spider he played with. Bigger than the little jumping spiders, but smaller than the tarantulas he found when playing in the woods. It was a perfect size.
He took the spider out to a clearing that was only a short walk from the village and played with it. The spider seemed pleased to be in his hand. There were only two other beastmasters living in Haven Clove. A farmer who could herd his sheep all by himself and a woman who controlled ferrets. They had helped him as much as they could but since their animals weren't spiders, they mainly stuck to the basics of what a beastmaster is. One of them was sensing an animal's emotion.
Rowan had learned to read each spider he found. In a way, they were like the dogs farmers use to herd sheep. They're emotional but can't show it. Some spiders he found were happy. Some were angry. Some were very careful about where they lived. But they all felt comfortable around him. And that made Rowan happy.
He found it cool to control spiders. He knew some people don't like them. Then he later found out people had a phobia of spiders. Which was weird to him. Why would people be scared of spiders? His father had given him an encyclopedia for his fifth birthday and it was all about spiders. There were all kinds of spiders in the book. So many! It even said there were more spiders on the planet than there were humans and demi-humans and beastmen! He did notice some of them were dangerous and could easily kill people, but only if they were threatened.
The more he read, the more he got excited to grow into his ability!
The spider in his hand crawled all over his hand and Rowan laughed. It was so ticklish!
He was having so much fun, he didn't notice three boys approaching. By the time he saw their shadows looming over him, two of them grabbed him by the arms, causing the spider to fall. It landed awkwardly but managed to get onto its feet. But not before one of the boys grabbed it.
Rowan knew them. They were the boys who thought that Rowan was weird. Rowan knew others would think him controlling spiders was weird. But it wasn't weird. Not to him.
And his spiders weren't stupid like the boy said. He was stupid!
In his mind, he sensed the spider panicking. It didn't have venom, but it could bite. Then he remembered how he told the spiders he played with not to bite anyone. And he didn't want to hurt the boy even if he was being mean.
"You're nothing but a freak!" The boy barked. "A freak with freak spiders! Why couldn't you control dogs or cats or anything? Huh?"
Rowan didn't have an answer to that. What he knew from the beastmasters in his village was that it was completely random. He liked dogs and cats, but he liked spiders even more. He would never trade away his spiders for any other animal out there.
The boy scoffed. "Let's see how you like it when I do this."
He dropped the spider and didn't give it a chance to right itself from the ground. He lifted his foot and all the strength left Rowan's body when the boy stomped on the spider.
He didn't feel when the boys let go of him, nor did he hear them as they left laughing. Everything was muted. Like when he dunked himself in the bathtub filled with soapy water.
With little strength, he crawled to the spot where his spider had been crushed.
He paled when he saw the remains. Two of its legs were bent in wrong ways. The encyclopedia said spiders bleed pale blue blood. From its abdomen, blood and exploded from there.
To anyone, it was nothing more than a crushed spider. They won't even notice something so small and insignificant.
Not to Rowan. This spider was happy earlier. Now it's dead.
Tears clouded his vision.
'Spiders aren't stupid,' he thought. 'I'm not a freak. I'm not…'
There would be more people like those boys. People who hate spiders. People who would kill them mercilessly.
Why couldn't they see how special they were! Why!
Rowan sprang up and ran for the woods. He knew the woods like the back of his hand so getting lost wasn't an issue. He ran and ran. Anything to get away from those boys.
'I'm not a freak! I'm-'
"Ah!"
An exposed tree root caught his foot. He landed face-first onto the patchy grass. The breath was knocked out of him.
He didn't bother to get up. His arms hurt; his legs hurt.
'I… I'm not… a…'
He buried his face in the ground and sobbed.
Why did they have to be so mean? Just because he was different? Just because he liked spiders? None of it made sense to him.
Why would someone kill animals just to be cruel? His spiders were trained. They were nice and caught all the flies and mosquitoes in the house.
Rowan sobbed for the spider the boy killed. He sobbed for the times when he knew people would make fun of him.
"Mrrrow."
Something wet bopped his head.
Rowan looked up and could barely see what touched him. He blinked away the tears and he saw a black kitty.
The kitty was a little bigger than the cats in the village. It had yellow eyes like some of them but something about this kitty was different.
The kitty came closer and licked his cheek. Puppies and dogs licked his cheek when the farmers let children play on their farm. This was no different.
The kitty continued licking his cheek. It licked away the tears that fell.
"Ho there, young lad!"
Rowan gasped softly as a man came into view. The kitty scampered to the man and rubbed itself against his legs.
The man was dressed in green and brown clothes and a dirty black cape. His hair was red but Rowan could see some gray on the sides. On his back was a bow and attached to a belt loop was a quiver filled with arrows.
A hunter. The village had many hunters, as did the other villages in the woodlands. Rowan would see them leave the village and come back with all kinds of animals he had never seen. Even magical ones.
This mad wasn't familiar to him. Haven Clove might be big, but he would've remembered someone with a black kitty.
The man crouched down. "What's wrong, boy?" He sounded concern. "Are you lost?"
Rowan tried to speak but he could barely get a word out. He shook his head.
"Did you hurt yourself?"
He shook his head.
"Then why the tears? You must be sad about something."
The man spoke softly. His brown eyes were inviting. His parents always said to never trust strangers. But for some reason, Rowan felt safe around this mad. He couldn't tell why, but the man wasn't dangerous even with his bow and arrows.
"I… S-some boy c-called me a f-f-freak."
The man frowned. "Why would they say that? You don't look like a freak to me."
"B-because t-they…" He sat up and rubbed his tears away. "Because they d-don't like me."
"How come?"
"I… I c-control sp-spiders."
"Ah." The man nodded. "You're a beastmaster, then."
Rowan nodded.
"I'm a beastmaster too, you know."
"R-really?"
"Yep! Cats, in fact. Like this one right here."
The black kitty came forward and butted its head against Rowan's chest. He giggled. Puppies and kitties are so soft and cuddly.
"She seems to like you," the man said.
"What kind of kitty is she, mister?" Rowan asked. "She's big for a kitty."
"That's because she's a black panther. I found her in my travels wandering around. Her mother had died and I took her in." The man reached forward and scratched the panther's chin, earning a purr from the cat.
Rowan had never heard of a panther. He knew other cats existed but not a panther.
"C-can I pet her?"
"Of course!" The man said joyfully. "She's taken a liking to you already and you've only just met her!"
Slowly, Rowan rubbed the panther's back. The panther then started to lick his face.
"Hehe!" Rowan giggled some more.
"Alright, Mishka," the man said. "That's enough or you'll cover him in drool."
The panther – Mishka – stopped her licking and curled herself on Rowan's lap, purring.
"Now then." The man sat down in front of Rowan. "Feeling better?"
"… a little."
"Good! If you're feeling better, then would you mind telling me about why you're sad? Was it because those boys called you a freak?"
"…yes."
"That's not nice of them." The man shook his head. "You should just ignore them. Boys like those are ignorant."
"Ignorant?" Rowan never heard that word.
"It means they're not smart about some things," the man said.
Stupid, basically. Rowan could agree with that.
"Ignorant people say and do the meanest of things. Did they do anything besides name call you?"
"They…" It was hard to get the words out knowing he'll have to remember what they did. "They killed one of my spiders."
The man patted him on the head. It was like when his father did the same thing after being read a bedtime story. It's comforting.
"Clearly," the man said, "they know nothing about the importance of spiders. Or any animal for that matter?"
Rowan felt relief knowing someone understood that spiders are important.
"Every animal," the man continued, "is important. No matter what anyone says, they're important. Without them, we as people would not be able to function in life. They're not only necessary, but some of them can also be friends to us too. Except cockroaches. They can die off." The man did a scrunched-up face, which made Rowan laugh.
"I don't like cockroaches either."
"Who does?"
The sadness from earlier was starting to go away now. The spider may be gone, but Rowan knows there are more spiders out there. More to befriend and more to play with.
"Can you answer me one question, lad?"
"What is it, mister?"
"Have you ever thought of being a hunter? Most beastmasters become skilled hunters."
The thought had come to Rowan a few times when he saw the hunters of his village. They looked so cool and strong. He was still too young to go on any hunts. The only time he has ever held a bow was when his parents bought him a small bow replica that was a toy rather than an actual bow. Some nights he took it with him to bed and dreamed of hunting big monsters with his spiders.
Could he? Being he's from a forest village, hunting is second nature to a lot of people. Some were made for it and others not. It was hard work, that he knew.
But if he could hunt monsters and train his spiders more, then he could become strong too.
'Strong like this man,' he thought.
"Yes." He finally said.
"Good! I was actually on my way to Haven Clove to move there, so it's nice to have someone show me around." He stood and held out his hand. "Now come, lad. Once I get settled down and talk to your parents, your training as a hunter starts. I know you're going to do great. I can see it in your eyes."
"My eyes?"
"Something I learned when hunting." The man winked.
Rowan didn't know what that meant, but he could learn.
He reached out and grabbed the man's hand.
"Oh, my name is Gareth, by the way," the man – Gareth – said.
"I'm Rowan."
"Nice to meet you, Rowan." Gareth smiled.
Mishka ran happily in circles around them.
This was the start of something new and fun. He could feel it.
"That's… wow."
Naofumi never had someone like Gareth in his life. A mentor to help him improve his skills. He has his parents, brothers, and the handful of online friends he has when playing MMORPGs.
Gareth was more than a master to Rowan. He was a friend.
"He's really important to you, huh?"
"He is. If it weren't for him, I wouldn't be the person that I am. I'm still shy, I'm not good at starting conversations. But now I'm braver to fight monsters, stand up for myself, and do things I never thought of doing if he hadn't come. Now he's…"
"Maybe not all is lost," Mina said. "Have you heard of when Hrym was last sighted?"
"Um…" Rowan drums his fingers on his lap. "I think it was last spotted near the mountains. Other than that, there haven't been any sightings of it. I doubt it's still there, but Gareth may be following a trail."
"Then there's still hope. If you can find him, maybe you can convince him to come back."
"I guess so. But there's still the issue of where he is. I don't think he's out of the country. There have only been a few times when Hrym was spotted in Siltvelt, Faubley, and the other countries. Hrym mainly wanders Melromarc."
Rachel sighed and leaned back. "This does sound tough. What about his family? Do you think they know anything?"
"Not likely," Rowan replied. "He had a wife but she passed away from illness two years before he moved to Haven Clove. He does come from a large family. Five brothers, four sisters, and lots of nieces and nephews. They know he can be gone for a while when he's on a hunt, so I doubt any of them know where he is."
From the looks of it, Naofumi had to agree with Rachel. This is tough. With no leads on where Gareth is, it might as well be finding a needle in a haystack. He didn't know how big Melromarc is, or the other countries. Finding Gareth is going to be difficult. More so with a thousand-year-old monster that is strong enough to kill the Cardinal Heroes running around.
There was more he could do. Much more. He needed that strength and determination to help others. Before, it had been only him and no one else. Then came Rachel, saving Lute Village, Mina, Westbrook, and now Legrand. Whatever path he had been on originally, he strayed off it and took a new one.
One that helped others. One that made him be a hero.
There are still people out there like the King, Malty, and Legrand. His barriers would always stay up. But meeting new people, people who were honest and wanted to help, he could let his walls down for just a bit.
"Listen."
He stood and went directly in front of Rowan. The hunter looked up with a questioning gaze.
"I don't know Gareth. I don't know much about you either. But I can tell how much he means to you. How much he means to the village as well. So…"
'Here goes nothing.'
"If you want, you can travel with us."
Rowan's mouth made an O shape and his eyebrows shot up.
"Look, I'm not liked by most of the people here. Being with me can be difficult. But since I'm one of the Four Heroes, I get to travel more. If you go and try to find Gareth on your own, you may run into some trouble. With three other people, it increases your chances of survival. You don't have to answer right away-"
"Yes!" Rowan sprang up from his chair. "Yes! Yes! Thank you! You have no idea how much this means to me. I knew you were a hero."
"Uh-Umm…"
"Guess we have a new party member." Rachel stood and put a hand on Rowan's shoulder. "Welcome to the team."
"I'm proud of you, Naofumi," Mina said. "You may be a prickly porcupine, but under all those quills, you're a softie."
"A softie with a babyface," Rachel laughed.
Naofumi looked away, cheeks red. "S-stop it." Despite being embarrassed, he smiled.
"Wait." Suddenly, he remembered why he was in Haven Clove, to begin with. "I completely forgot about what's going on in Lute Village! We still need a silver moose."
"Actually," Rowan went to a corner of the living room, crouched down and reached for something. "I've been thinking. Maybe instead of a silver moose, we can use one of my spiders.
He returned and in his hand was a spider. It was big enough to fit in his hand. Its legs were long enough to wrap around Rowan's hand and from what Naofumi could guess, has twisted joints.
"This is a huntsman spider. Not only are they able to squeeze into small spaces because of their flattened appearance, but they're also very fast.
"How fast."
"Fast enough that if I use my growth spell, it can outrun a Tyrera."
The world was starting to look more hopeful.
"In that case, yeah, that could work."
"Great. We'll leave tomorrow morning. I have to pack and tell my parents where I'm going. Again, I can't thank you enough for doing this, Naofumi."
"No problem, Rowan." He realized he was still smiling.
Tomorrow, he'll return to Lute Village, beat Motoyasu in the race, and from there, who knows.
The future is blank, but he's going to make it colorful.
New Party Member Added!
Name: Rowan Blake
LV: 39
Race: Human
Age: 21
Class: None
Occupation: Hunter
Hey all! Sorry for the long delay. Fight scenes can be a real pain to get through. But here we are with an update.
So, Hrym. Hrym's existence came to mind when I started to plan out each of the characters. Every character has a reason to go on a journey and in Rowan's case, it's finding Gareth and possibly hunting Hrym. When thinking about Hrym, I wanted to create a monster that is powerful enough to even kill a legendary Hero. Yes, even Glass herself wouldn't be able to kill Hrym. What exactly is Hrym? Keep reading and see! ;)
Next chapter will go over the race, a few stuff from the anime, and something new involving Rachel.
Stay tuned!