Chapter 19

- POV: Private First Class Brenner -

A few hours passed since I first lay down, and I found sleep to be very elusive. Tossing and turning as quietly as I could, I tried to force myself to just lose consciousness - only to fail and find myself wide eyed once more. "Goddammit," I muttered, my teeth gritted as frustration only continued to build up more and more as time went on.

The events of yesterday had been more frustrating than I'd have ever expected, especially given the bombshell I had to deal with. Despite the issues I was having with the idea of 'missing war', I was starting to see where it was coming from. "I probably miss war because it was a part of home," I mumbled to myself. "I've been fighting for a while...I'm probably just used to it..."

I rolled over, stretching my legs as I continued to try and get some rest, but it was just no use. My mind continued to race, and it was almost as stressful as any battle I'd ever fought. "Dammit..." I grumbled as I sat up, the several minutes I spent tossing and turning felt very much like a few hours. Brushing my uniform off, I walked towards the window to see the moonlight shining through the drapes.

Pushing them aside, I opened the window slowly to avoid creaking before resting my elbows on the sill, feeling the cold night air flow into the room. I breathed in, feeling my heartbeat starting to slow down as I took in the peaceful nature of the outdoors. "Probably should have just camped outside," I mumbled to myself as I rested my face on my hands, propped up by my elbows.

The quiet night did wonders to soothe my worries, and I wondered why I hadn't done this in the first place. It made thinking a lot quieter too, and I could feel my own head start to hurt a little less. As I sighed, I looked back at the bed - where Louise slept peacefully under the covers, the sound of soft breathing being easily heard in the silence.

I huffed softly before looking out the window, only to come face to face with a cloaked figure right right outside. It took me a second before reacting, my hand dropping to pull out my M1911 when the figure quickly pulled the hood off of her head.

I stumbled back upon seeing who it was. "Princess?" I choked. "What're you doing here?"

Princess Henrietta took the chance to climb inside, brushing off her cloak as she smiled at me. Almost instantly, I could tell that something was wrong by the way she smiled. Her expression was brittle and nervous, and it was clear that there was something that was troubling her. "I know it's the middle of the night, but...well, I must speak to Louise at once."

I frowned. "What's this about?" I asked, keeping my voice low. "We've both had a long day yesterday, and I dunno if waking her up is good right now."

Henrietta's smile dropped, and she looked saddened almost immediately. "It's...it's something very important," she whispered. "Please."

I looked down before nodding. "Alright," I mumbled as I headed over to her bed, grabbing her shoulder and jostling her not too gently. "Oi, you have a visitor."

Louise groaned, and she slowly opened her eyes. "What is it?" she grumbled as she sat up, rubbing her eyes. "It's still dark out..."

"I'm very sorry for waking you up, but...it's very important that you hear this," Henrietta said. Her voice almost instantly did its job, Louise's eyes widening in an instant before she clambered out of bed with her own covers wrapped haphazardly around her. I stepped back as Louise untangled herself from her blankets before dropping to her knees.

"Y-your Majesty!" Louise began, bowing her head quickly only before the princess held up a hand to stop her.

"Please. Not now," Henrietta said, her voice quiet. "No formalities today. I have...something I need to tell you."

Louise dropped the formalities as quickly as the princess had requested, and her panic turned into concern as she sat on her bed, inviting the princess to do the same. "Henrietta, what's wrong?" she asked.

"I...I have decided to marry into a noble family from Germania, in order to secure our own borders," the princess explained.

Louise gasped. "W-what? Why would you choose that nation?!" Louise cried.

"I'm afraid it can't be helped," the princess said sadly. "Our nation is small, and we're vulnerable to many forces outside of our borders. We need this alliance with Germania, and it's my duty as princess of Tristain to protect my people."

"Aren't political marriages kinda...what's the word? Fickle? Alliance or not, marriages these days aren't exactly equal," I said.

"It varies, and you may be correct. But I must take this chance to keep our nation safe from harm," Henrietta said, and I could tell that she was rather serious about the matter. "If it means a sacrifice from me, then so be it."

I frowned. This girl was a teenager at most, and she was already having to dedicate herself to decisions like these? It was not only messed up, but just plain sad. Still, I could see where she was coming from, and there was little that could be done to stop it.

"However, there is something that must be done before I go through with this marriage," Henrietta said as she stood up from the bed, walking to a corner of the room before facing the window. "It is something that I'm entrusting to the two of you."

"Please, we'll do anything we can to help!" Louise cried as she stood up as well, making her way over to the princess.

Henrietta looked down, resting her hands on the windowsill. "I must ask you to retrieve a letter - one that I sent to Prince Wales of the nation of Albion," she explained. "This letter must be found and taken away, or the marriage will be called off."

"You know, I'm kinda afraid to ask, but I'm also a little curious. What's in that letter?" I asked.

"Idiot, if she's asking us to take it away, then it's clearly private!" Louise snapped before turning to look at the princess once more. "But what does Albion have to do with this?"

"Albion is in a spot of political turmoil. The whole nation is unstable, and they're going through a dangerous situation right now," Henrietta said. "If word of that letter were to come out, then both Albion and Tristain will be in grave danger."

"And you want us to retrieve this letter. Is it in Albion?" I asked.

"Yes. I believe it to be in the possession of Prince Wales himself," Henrietta said. "I know the task I have set at hand is...a very difficult one. However, I am unable to entrust it to anyone else. I..." She looked down, her body trembling as emotion began to overtake her voice. "Please forgive me..."

Louise came over to her friend, hugging her gently from behind. "There is nothing to forgive. And you have no reason to feel sorrow," she said softly. "We would be honored to carry out this task for you, Henrietta. Please...don't cry."

Henrietta wiped her eyes before smiling. She turned around and proceeded to embrace Louise tightly as she sniffled. "Okay...I wish you the best of luck..." she whispered. "Thank you so much for doing this..."

The two hugged tightly as I leaned against the wall. I wasn't sure what to feel about getting dragged into apparent national secrets and backdoor politics, but it looks like I'm a part of this now. "So when are we supposed to..." I began.

The sound of the front door opening with a creaking sound silenced the three of us, and we turned to see Guiche at the doorway, arms crossed and dressed in his usual attire.

"Oh, you're fucking kidding me," I growled.

- the next morning -

So Guiche was apparently and unfortunately coming with us on this important task, having eavesdropped on the three of us for much of the conversation. The princess had allowed him to take part when Guiche dropped his last name - which was the last name of a very famous and chivalrous knight in the past: making him his son.

"Great," I mumbled, once again sitting on horseback with Louise sitting behind me. Guiche was mounted on a second horse behind us, checking the various supplies he had on his saddlebags before we set off.

As I gripped the reins, I looked down at Louise's hands wrapped around my waist, spotting the new accessory she wore on her right ring finger - a slim metallic ring with a blue gem in the middle. I remembered the princess giving the ring to her as a reward for accepting the quest before we all went to sleep.

It was worrying that it was easier to sleep thinking about the political craziness of this world than my own problems.

I let out a yawn as we prepared to set off when the ground in front of us began to shift loudly, a large dome of dirt forming before a large nose stuck itself out of the ground. I winced awkwardly as a large mole climbed out of the earth, sniffing wildly as it looked around.

"Verdante!" Guiche called, and we watched as he hopped off his horse and immediately tackled the large mole in a hug. "Oh, you thought I would leave you behind, didn't you? Don't worry, I won't make that mistake again!"

I raised an eyebrow. "Uh huh..." I mumbled. "So if he's really gonna come along, how are we gonna get him on horseback?"

"I don't think we'll be able to bring a giant mole along," Louise said, waving a hand dismissively at the dirty creature. "And besides, we're supposed to be waiting on an escort from the princess's personal guard."

"Hm, I think it's kinda cute," I remarked. Almost as it heard me, the mole - Verdante - turned to our horse and crawled away from Guiche, sniffing loudly at us as it approached.

"Eh?" was all I heard from Louise before the mole leapt up, planting its paws on the side of our saddle as it sniffed towards Louise's direction. The pink haired girl squealed and tumbled off the other side of the horse, only for Verdante to crawl under the steed and climb on top of her. "Eeek! What's it doing?!" she cried as the full weight of the mole threatened to press her into the ground.

Guiche only chuckled however. "I see. Verdante adores gems, especially the valuable ones," he explained. I took a gander at what he was talking about, and I saw that the mole was indeed sniffing away at Louise's hand, where Princess Henrietta's ring rested on her finger.

I shook my head before hopping off the horse to land near the mole and the girl. "Okay, that's enough," I said as I walked over to the mole, grabbing it by the hands and starting to pull. "I'd rather not deal with a Louise pancake today!"

It didn't take long for the mole to move - though not by my own accord. A loud blast filled the air, and both the mole and I were slapped hard by a massive wave of dirt. The two of us tumbled in the air before landing in a heap a good few yards away. Thankfully, I landed on top of Verdante instead of the other way around, but my head pulsed with agony. "...ow!" I groaned as I rolled over.

My ears rang as I slowly slid off of the equally dazed mole, rubbing my eyes as I waited for the noise to stop. I could barely make out the sound of a thump, and the muffled sounds of voices. "Ugh..." I mumbled.

"Brenner? Brenner, wake up!"

"I'm awake, just having a killer headache right about now..." I groaned as I slowly blinked my blurry vision away. As I did so, I came face to face with Louise, who was kneeling before me. At first, I was taken aback by the worried expression on her face.

Then I looked up and noticed the man behind him. He was a good looking man, wearing a blue cape over a gray and blue uniform of sorts. Atop his head was a blue wide brimmed hat with a white band and a feather on one side. He sported blue eyes, long gray hair, and a thin goatee. Despite the gray hair, he looked younger than I'd expected, maybe in his late twenties.

"And who's this fancy guy?" I asked as I pulled myself to my feet, brushing off my own green fatigues.

"My name is Viscount Jean-Jacques Francis de Wardes. I lead the Griffon Knights and under orders of Princess Henrietta to escort you to your destination," the man said, formally with a bow. "It's a pleasure to meet you all."

I nodded, my face neutral as I took in his look and behavior, unsure of what to make of him. "Glad to have you, Jean," I said. "I'm also guessing that you were the one who threw me and this mole away?"

"Forgive me, I saw the creature atop my fiancé and assumed it to be a threat," the man said. "And please, call me Wardes."

I crossed my arms. "Your fiancé?" I asked with a raised eyebrow before looking over at Louise. "Something I should know, Louise?"

Louise flushed, before yelping as Wardes picked her up, bridal style. "Indeed. Lady Louise and I have been betrothed," he said, his tone going from professional to jovial. "I do hope that's not an issue."

It was an issue - mostly the age. Then again, I guess I shouldn't have been surprised. These were old times in comparison to what I knew in my old world, so it wasn't like I could enforce the rules and etiquette I knew of back at home. A quick glance at Louise told me that Wardes's apparent affection was as reciprocated as it was received.

"Hm," I mumbled with a shrug as I walked over to Louise and Wardes. "It wouldn't be. Although, Louise is kind of like a sister to me - and I don't exactly know you, so forgive me if I'm a little...reluctant about this."

Wardes smiled. "Of course," he said. "Well, then. I do hope this trip will allow us to get acquainted with each other, Mister..."

"Brenner. Private First Class of the 29th Infantry Division," I said before looking over at Guiche, who was fussing over the still dazed Verdante. "Come on, we'd better get going."

I turned around to reach the horses, only to come across a massive lion-like creature adorned with white and blue garb, reins, and a saddle. Its two front paws were eagle talons, and the head itself was that of an eagle's. The largest surprise of this creature was the massive pair of feathered wings on its back, folded back much like a landed bird's wings were. "Uh huh...is this your ride?" I asked.

"Indeed," Wardes said, walking past me whilst carrying Louise. He climbed aboard his griffon as I made my way back to the horse.

The journey was hardly entertaining - just long and boring. It was a good four to five hours of riding away from the lower and flat green fields near the institute to the high and jagged sand colored rocky mountains farther off. Louise and Wardes talked atop the creature - a griffon, Guiche had explained, while Guiche and I rode our horses separately behind.

Guiche chatted incessantly about the Griffon Knights, as well as what was known about Wardes himself - though I paid little attention. The thought of Louise being betrothed to the man wasn't what bothered me, but rather the shady nature of the man. I was aware of his status - specifically being the one entrusted by the princess herself to escort us, but there was something about him that seemed off...so to speak.

I simply sat up straight on my mount, keeping an eye on Wardes, who continued to carry Louise the same way he'd picked her up hours ago. Louise seemed to be comfortable, and was chatting happily with the man, but I kept a close and careful watch on him regardless. My instincts hadn't steered me wrong before, and I wasn't about to ignore them now.

"You should calm down," Derflinger remarked, speaking his first sentence of the day. "If you keep worrying about one thing, you'll completely miss all the other things you need to worry about."

"I hear you, but right now - something feels off," I said. "I don't know what, but something about that guy just feels wrong."

"Whatever you say, you're the boss man. Just don't get all violent," Derflinger said, only for me to brush off his warning as I continued to glare ahead at the griffon in front of the horses.

We reached a large town in the mountains - La Rochelle, according to Guiche. It was a very large settlement, with entire rows and columns of sand colored buildings visible even from a very great distance away. "Every single building in this town was carved from boulders with the use of sophisticated and very advanced earth magic techniques," Guiche explained as we entered the town. The griffon caught the eyes of many passersby, though Wardes and Louise paid little attention. I was glad for the lack of attention to myself - my attire likely would stand out if something more eye-catching hadn't been in front of us.

We reached a large inn facing the edge of the mountain, where a large balcony was built in on the side of the street. I leaned on a large railing carved out of rock, looking out at the admittedly impressive environment. Not even the national parks back home had a view like this.

"We'll rest here and return on our journey tomorrow," Wardes said.

"Yes, Lord Wardes!" Guiche called, his voice full of enthusiasm as he hopped off his mount and began to gather his things. I let out a noncommittal hum and waved a hand as I took in the view.

"You could at least answer him, Brenner," Louise complained. "Don't you think you're being rude?"

"He's a soldier, isn't he?" I asked. "He can handle it."

Wardes chuckled. "True. I was never one to act like my noble status anyways," he reassured as he collected his things from the pouches on his griffon's saddlebags. "I'll set up our rooms for the night. Please be inside when dinner comes around."

I waved a hand again as I continued to eye the environment around us. I could hear Louise's light footsteps stomping towards me. "You don't have to be so rude," she repeated, a frown on her face.

I looked over at her, taking in her stern expression before sighing. "Sorry, but...just look," I said. I gestured to the open air, and the view of everything around and below the mountains. "We don't have anything like this back at home. I just wanted to take it in, you know?"

Louise fell silent for a moment before she too came up beside me against the railing. "It is a beautiful view, isn't it?" she asked softly. The two of us admired the view together for a few minutes, the wind tugging at her cape as we rested. After the minutes had passed, Louise spoke up. "Umm...my parents were the ones who decided on my betrothal," she said.

I scowled. "Did they ask for your opinion first?" I asked.

"No...but I'm okay with the decision!" Louise said. "I've always looked up to him! He lost his parents at a young age, and he went through many hardships to hold the status that he does!"

I looked over at her, my ire softening. "Okay, so he's skilled and strong. I don't deny that," I said. "But something feels off."

"What do you mean?" Louise asked.

I was about to speak up before I shook my head. "It's nothing. Stupid worries and all that," I muttered as I pushed myself up off the railing and back towards the inn. "Come on, let's get our stuff inside."

- an hour later -

Dinner was a simple affair, with Louise telling Wardes all about everything that had happened when I'd first been summoned by her. The two chatted and laughed as we ate in the noisy and warm atmosphere, and I simply watched the conversation with mild interest.

"Ah, Guiche! Brenner! Louise was just telling me that the two of you had a duel at some point," Wardes said, breaking me out of my thoughts. Guiche choked on his food, and I only took a swig of water from my cup.

"Yeah. He deserved it," I said.

"I see," Wardes said, his tone laced with amusement. "And you also fought Fouquet the Sculptor with the Stave of Destruction as well?"

"It's not a stave, but yeah," I said. "A lot of crazy stuff happened a while ago."

"I can understand that. I've had my own fair share of wild adventures as a Griffon Knight," Wardes chuckled. "Although, drinking a love potion of sorts was...less than ideal to process."

I eyed Louise, who flinched and looked away. "You told him? Seriously?" I asked.

"Don't worry, that will remain a secret. My position grants me plenty of information as well, most of which vital to the safety of Tristain and its people," Wardes explained, pointing his fork at me as he leaned his arm against the table. "And the information I received about you is most...interesting indeed."

I leaned back in my seat. "So?" I asked.

"I'd like to have a spar with you tomorrow, if that's alright with you," Wardes said, surprising Louise and Guiche. "I'd like to understand your capabilities as Louise's familiar."

"L-Lord Wardes, there's really no time to be holding such distracting fights," Louise protested.

"I don't mind," I said as I finished my water. "Besides, I'm interested in what you're capable of."

Wardes smiled. "Great," he said as he finished the drink in his own cup. "We shall fight in the morning. But for now, we are to get some sleep. We should get to our room." Wardes stood up and turned to Louise, taking her smaller hand and ushering her to stand. "Come, Louise."

I felt my eyebrow twitch. Louise looked away, blushing profusely. "W-we can't! We aren't married. Not yet!" she protested.

"It's no issue at all. We are engaged, after all. It's only fitting that the two of us catch up further in private," Wardes reassured. "Besides..." He leaned in close to whisper something in her ear. Louise's eyes widened, and her embarrassment gave way to a serious expression as she nodded.

I eyed the two of them as they left, leaving their empty plates stacked neatly. I frowned before I finished up my own food, ignoring Guiche as I cleaned up and left to go to sleep, feeling what little positivity I had shrivel up and die in favor of my own mounting frustration.

- the next day -

I woke up an hour before the sun rose, finding it very hard to feel drowsy as I sat up. Once I'd cleaned up and gotten dressed, I was as awake as I could get. Grabbing my rifle and slinging it tightly against my body, I picked up Derflinger and checked him over - the old sword sleeping soundly in his scabbard.

As I was about to sling him over my shoulder too, I spotted the symbols on the back of my hand, and I remembered what I was. "Hmmm..." I mumbled.

The sound of sliding metal distracted me. "What's up?" he asked. "Is it morning already?"

"No," I said, lowering my hand to get a better look at it. "Just thinking..."

"About what? Don't tell me you're still pissed off at that Wardes guy," Derflinger remarked.

"I wasn't, but thanks for the reminder," I grumbled. "No, I was thinking about whatever's on my hand, as well as a few other things." I sat back on my bed, resting Derflinger against the wooden post as I thought back to the spirit of the lake. "That spirit from the other day called me Gandalfr. And she's not the only one who's said it. I've always wondered..."

"You're asking now?" Derflinger asked.

"I just hadn't had the time to think about that. Not with everything happening lately," I said. "But, now's as good a time as any. So what is it, exactly?"

Derflinger fell silent for a moment before he spoke up once more. "To be Gandalfr is to be the Left Hand of God," he said. "Familiars of Gandalfr that wield weapons will gain the skills needed to wield it."

I thought back to that weapon - the Stave of Destruction. It was a bazooka built in 1968, yet I was somehow able to use it despite never using a weapon such as that in my life. "That explains a few things," I muttered as I eyed the symbol on my hand. "It would've been nice knowing this earlier. I mean, you did keep silent about this kind of stuff back at the school."

"You never asked," Derflinger responded.

I frowned. "That can't be your only excuse," I muttered. I was sure if Derflinger had shoulders, he would have shrugged, and I sighed. "I'm guessing there's a catch to this."

"Yeah. I won't do all the fighting for you - I am just a sword. You'll get the skill to use me or any other weapon, but that means you have to make use of that skill yourself," Derflinger said. "So if you wanna win against that Wardes guy, you'll have to play it smart."

I fell into silence, thoughtfully processing his words. "Wardes," I thought as I leaned against the railing with the view overlooking the town. "There's something off about you..."