A Field just south of Midah, early evening

Link stopped and pointed at a convenient large rock nearby when they came within view of the lynel. The Princess followed his gaze to the monster before hurriedly hiding behind the boulder he was pointing at. He followed.

"White with black stripes?" she whispered.

Link nodded. "Yes, your Highness. I've never seen nor heard of that coloring. Since various colorings in lynels indicate how powerful they are, I'm assuming this one is the most powerful one I've ever seen. If I'm wrong and it's especially weak instead, my mistake will simply mean an easier victory than expected."

The princess nodded. "I'm a skilled archer. If you wish, I can assist."

Link's breath caught. Oh no. He was NOT risking getting the Princess killed by a lynel. "Your highness, I don't doubt your skills, but it's likely my own exceed them just the same. Furthermore, I would not be able to properly concentrate on the fight if I didn't know your Highness to be safely away from it."

He'd been worried she'd be insulted or otherwise insist on assisting him, but she nodded. "I will keep watch from a safe distance, then."

Link swallowed. "I don't suppose I could convince Her Highness that a safe distance would be behind Midah's walls?" he asked.

Zelda scoffed. "I can't see that being necessary," she said, "and I think it likely that it would make it difficult to get you admitted inside the walls again if I were to go back now without you."

Link's eyes widened slightly: she was probably right. He'd been allowed in after she'd insisted on being allowed her escort- if she now showed that she was willing to be separated from him, they'd have an even harder time arguing he be allowed within Midah than they already had.

He glanced at the lynel again. It was too far from their hiding spot for its arrows to reach them, so if Link could keep it from coming closer to the large rock, the Princess would be safe staying right where she was.

"In that case, may I go confront the beast?"

She nodded.

Link didn't have to be given permission twice. He fished his magical cape out of his pouch and put it on, disappearing from sight, and started creeping directly towards the lynel.

As expected, the monster didn't notice him until Link was almost right on top of it. Link knew he'd be detected sooner or later: lynels relied mostly on their eyesight, but they could still hear and smell. Which of these two senses had found Link first didn't matter: what did was making sure the lynel now focused on him alone.

Link unclasped his cape and tossed it aside. The lynel immediately focused on him and started inhaling.

Link shot it in the eye before it could gather enough air to breath fire. The lynel roared and trashed, giving Link an opening.

Link pulled his bigger sword from his pouch and rushed the lynel, slashing a deep cut in the monster's side. The lynel responded by swinging his arm at him.

Thankfully, regardless of whether it was powerful or not, this lynel was just as slow as the rest of its species. Link easily dodged the arm and hacked at it with his sword, nearly severing it.

The lynel reared on its hind legs and galloped away before rushing back in a charge, its own weapon – an alarmingly large axe - out and held high above its head. Link stood his ground and just as the monster reached him and swung at him, parried the charge with his shield.

The lynel bounced back a step and Link trust his sword in the beast's chest. It only went in a few fingers' width, but the lynel obviously felt it: it roared and reared on its hind leg, dragging Link, who was still holding his sword, right up.

That was three serious wounds, and Link thought the lynel just looked pissed off rather than nearly defeated. This breed was definitely powerful. Using the sword as leverage, Link swung himself on the lynel's back. Since it had worked quite well back home, he took out his megaton hammer and swung it right at the back of the lynel's head.

The beast roared again and trashed harder, ejecting Link before crumbling into dust. Maran's sword fell back to the ground, undamaged.

Link landed a few steps away, attesting to the destroyed monster's power. "Good thing you're slow..." he muttered at the beast's remains.

He'd expected this lynel to be stronger than ones he'd faced before, but the sheer resilience and strength of this black and white lynel had still been an unpleasant surprise. At least he'd know better next time.

He turned back towards the Princess. She had left the cover of the rock and was walking towards him. He picked up his sword, cape and a hoof that hadn't disintegrated and walked towards her.

"Thank you for keeping me away," she said as soon as she was close enough. "An arrow to the EYE and it barely slowed down... you were very impressive."

"Thank you, your Highness," Link said. "To be honest, lynels are mostly just time consuming to destroy: they are powerful, but they don't possess that much speed, a flaw which makes their attacks easy to dodge or parry with enough training. This one was, thankfully, no exception."

"Are you bringing the hoof as a proof of sort?" she asked.

He nodded. "Yes, Princess. I'm a bit concerned that someone might try to convince Master Sahesro that I'm only pretending to have defeated the lynel. If that happened, not only would it potentially make Sahesro weary of us and less inclined to help, he'd also remain unable to return to the field where he'd still believe a lynel waits."

Zelda nodded. "In an effort not to appear as though we expect the worse, would you be willing to stow the hoof in your pouch until and only if you have need of it?"

"Of course, your Highness," Link said.

The Princess was clearly a trained diplomat. It wasn't surprising, and was certainly not a bad thing: Link himself was constantly doing his best to avoid potentially bad situations from escalating, but he seldom had much luck at it. If the Princess turned out to be more talented at it than he was, he'd be very grateful for it. He put the hoof in his pouch and they started back for the nearest gate in Midah's Wall.

They weren't stopped this time, but several guards immediately surrounded them, escorting them again to their destination. Except for the mayor's absence, the trip to Sahestro's house was nearly identical to the earlier one: some people were awed or deferential, especially towards the Princess, while others snarled or yelled at Link.

Link ignored them, eager to finally get the information they'd come here for. If Sahesro was as knowledgeable as Syreene thought he was, he might know of past methods used to enhance or repair the Master Sword. The potential to break the curse on the Master Sword made it more than worth it to endure a few unkind words from some of the citizens of Midah.

Sahesro was waiting for them by his door. Zelda thought the historian had probably heard the approaching commotion, or possibly been waiting there since they'd left. He gestured them in and closed the door behind them, thus blocking most of the noise from outside.

Mnemo was waiting inside, and scowled at Link before sketching a bow to her.

She nodded at him. "Mayor Mnemo," she said. "I will confess now that I was shocked by your sudden departure earlier, but due to the pressing matters I am currently attending, I am electing to let it pass on this one occasion. Recent developments make me confident that we'll all enjoy each other's company much more now."

That taken care of, she turned her attention to Sahesro without waiting for a response from Mnemo, intent on ignoring the mayor as much as she could. Mnemo had after all made it clear that he was not asking for assistance, and she didn't want to give him an excuse to complain that what he said had been ignored by reporting the lynel's destruction directly to him.

"Master Sahesro, I'm pleased to tell you the lynel will no longer trouble you." She gestured towards Link. "The Hero has destroyed the creature."

Sahesro sighed and smiled. "Your Highness, that is a huge relief. I can't thank..."

"Destroyed?" the Mayor asked, interrupting. "Your Highness, are you saying the animal was murdered rather than chased away? Lynels are semi intelligent... surely you wouldn't condone their outright execution?"

Zelda's eyebrows shot up as she stared at the mayor. She knew Link had been recently accused of murdering a Hinox that had been in the process of flattening a village, she'd even mentioned it to Colonel Atlar on the Great Plateau, but to actually witness such nonsense was staggering.

She shot a look at Link. He was pinching the bridge of his nose, his eyes closed and brow furrowed and tension etched in his shoulders.

"Yes, Mister Mayor," she said, speaking just a tiny bit louder than necessary in a small room. "I am indeed saying that the lynel was destroyed, and I use the word destroyed because lynels are officially recognized as monsters, NOT semi intelligent animals. Even without that specific official recognition, classifying them is a simple matter: they cannot, as a species, reproduce; they do not age, nor die unless they are destroyed; and when destroyed, they turn to black dust. They are UNARGUABLY constructs of dark magic, Mayor Mnemo. Their destruction is considered a public service, and would never, NEVER be labeled as murder. Do I make myself clear?"

Link was staring at her with his eyes wide, his hand down and his shoulders relaxed again. She thought she could detect the ghost of a smile at the corner of his mouth, but she couldn't be certain. Either way, she was glad to be able to help with this particular kind of hurdle.

Mnemo weathered the lecture, bowing again and this time, holding it. "I sincerely apologize for my mistake, your Highness, and am grateful for the education."

Zelda was not at all certain the apology was in fact sincere, but attempting to police thoughts rather than deeds was not something her Father allowed, or his Mother before him, and as tempting as it sometimes was to stray from that policy, she knew better than to allow herself to.

"Please rise, Mister Mayor. Thank you for acknowledging the mistake, and I am delighted to prove informative."

"Princess, Hero, I am truly, very grateful," Sahesro said, falling into a kneel with his hand on his heart. "To be able to resume my research in this field safely is priceless to me. I believe you mentioned that I may be able to be of use to you as well?"

"Indeed," Zelda said. "Please rise, Master Sahesro, I'd much rather speak to you face to face."

The researched turned red and hurried to his feet, wringing his hands.

"So what is it, Hero? What can we, mean and evil Hylians that we are - if we're to believe your people, anyway - do for you?"

"Her Royal Highness Princess Zelda will explain to Master Sahesro, Mister Mayor," the Hero said. "Unless of course Her Highness would prefer I speak?" he added, turning to her.

"It... may be best, actually," Zelda said through gritted teeth. The urge to yell at Mnemo was rising fast.

Link nodded and turned his attention to Sahesro.

"We have heard that, on some occasion, the Hero was able to further increase the power of the Master Sword. My being identified as the Hero at an early age has allowed me to prepare for the Enemy, but I am concerned that the Enemy could have had time to prepare for me, as well. The Princess agrees that if there are ways to strengthen the Master Sword, it would be wise to seek them so as to maximize our chances of victory."

None of this was technically false, which Zelda appreciated. They could not allow the knowledge of the curse on the Master Sword to spread: the panic and judgment that would sweep through the population would only make things far, far worse. Lying to the people whose help they sought still didn't exactly feel good.

"You're quite correct," Sahesro said. "The Master Sword was made more powerful by the very first Hero – so much so that in some texts, he's credited with altogether assisting in its forging. The Hero of Legends also received help from extraordinary blacksmiths using mythical ore to enhance its actual physical blade. We have records of at least two other heroes who also imbued the sword with more magic."

Zelda held her breath.

"Miz Syreene has told us of your vast knowledge, and we have hope that you can help us duplicate some of those past efforts," Link said. "Do you have any information you can share with us that might help?"

Sahesro sighed and sagged. "Not as such, unfortunately. The blacksmiths are of course long dead, and the ore they used is no longer known to exist. I have no further information on the other instances of powering up the sword either... Syreene is well meaning but she credits me with more knowledge than I possess. I am an archeologist and I specialize in the various cursed eras, but I don't even share her passion for the actual Hero. I appreciate Him, of course!" he added hastily. "It's just that I feel there is little mystery left there to uncover. The Spirit of the Hero is reborn when needed... that's all there is to it."

Zelda's jaw clenched. Had they really come all the way here for nothing?

"However..." Sahesro continued. He trailed off, seemingly deep in thought.

"However?" the Hero repeated.

Sahesro sighed. "It's not much of a lead, I'm afraid, but if I were you, I would try to search the Forgotten Temple. Do you know of it? You might have been there already, in which case I truly am useless to you."

Mnemo harrumphed. "I'm sure the Princess appreciates your efforts regardless, Sahesro. It's not like her companion has done anything useful at all in the 11 years the Royal Family's been depleting the treasury for him, and yet they're still at it."

Zelda's fists clenched and it took every last bit of her willpower not to step over to the Mayor and straight up punch him the face.

"I'm completely unfamiliar with the Forgotten Temple," the Hero said. His voice was tense, but admirably level. He was looking straight at Sahesro and had angled his body away from the mayor altogether. "It is possible I know it under another name, or I may simply never have seen it. Do you know where it is located? And if I may ask, do you know what we may hope to find there?"

Sahesro brightened. "Ah, so I AM giving you some useful information! The Forgotten Temple lies at the north-eastern end of Tanagar Canyon, at the bottom of it. We... we have NO idea how it's there. Some of us think it was originally somewhere else altogether but whether it was or not, it's certainly extraordinary."

"I have seen it, then," the Hero said, "but I didn't know its name. I never realized it may have any connection to the Master Sword, either."

"Most historians and archeologists believe it does," Sahesro said vividly. "It's not my area of expertise, but it's famous enough that I've heard of it quite a lot, simply from corresponding and conversing with my colleagues. The leading theory is that it is connected to the very creation of the Master Sword. To the very first Hero. I won't bore you with the details, but your first reaction is probably to wonder how any structure would have survived THIS long. This much, we have no answer for other than being quite sure that it did. Generation after generation of archaeologists keep finding proof after proof that the temple predates Hyrule, predates the CURSE. We believe magic is involved in its continued existence, of course."

The Hero was stock still, eyes wide. Zelda suddenly thought it was possible the Hero was having trouble believing the timeline he was being presented with. She cleared her throat.

"What you say matches what little I know of the temple myself," she said. "Perhaps I should have thought of visiting it myself, but I must confess that although I knew of it and of how old it is believed to be, I was unaware that we had reason to believe it might be connected to the Master Sword."

"It's the statue, your Highness," Sahesro said. "I don't know the details, unfortunately, but I have heard there's some evidence that the sword once rested in the inner chamber of the giant Goddess statue within the temple."

Zelda smiled. "In that case, the Forgotten Temple would certainly be worth a visit. Thank you, Master Sahesro. Hero, did you have any other questions?"

"No, your Highness," Link replied. He bowed to Sahesro. "Thank you for your wisdom, and may your research continue to enlighten your soul with the joy of discovery."

Sahesro grinned and rubbed the back of his head. "Goddess, you're most welcome! Good luck. For all our sake."

The Hero turned to the Mayor next, bowing again.

"Thank you as well, Mayor Mnemo, for allowing me into your fair town. Your Highness," he added, turning to Zelda. "Shall we resume our travels?"

Zelda nodded, and after a last goodbye to Sahesro and a nod to the mayor, the Hero and herself were on their way, escorted once more all the way to the gate leading outside of the town. They found their horses waiting in the stables near the gate, mounted them and were gladly on their way.

Link wasn't sorry to hear the gate of Midah close behind them, but there was one concern that needed to be addressed: it was getting dark, and they would need to decide where to stay for the night.

"Your Highness?" he said.

The Princess jumped a bit, the call having seemingly startled her out of a trance. She turned towards him. "Yes, Hero?"

"The nearest to the Forgotten Temple I can travel to with my ocarina would be the woods just outside Maritta. As the bird flies, it wouldn't be very far at all, but we'll need to go partway around the north-eastern End of the canyon to reach the Ruins Pass on the Tabantha side."

"You will need to teach me the song," the Princess said. "I would suggest we rest for the night in Maritta rather than ride right away." She paused, expression thoughtful.

"Hero? Do you think this Lynel was part of the monster outbreak you mentioned?"

Link took a second to think on it. A few days ago, he would have thought no lynel could be part of a coordinated outbreak: they did not work well with other monsters, including other lynels. The attack on Given, however, had had several of them, which meant that the Enemy was able to coax or control them well enough to get them wherever they wanted them.

"It's possible, your Highness," he said, "but I can't say any more than that with any certainty."

"I find myself almost glad we do not have a way to travel directly to the Forgotten Temple," the Princess said, "I know you haven't been able to find any monsters so far, except for this one lynel that may or may not have been part of the outbreak, but perhaps we'll have more luck with two pairs of eyes, and I feel as though we should make every effort to make the population safer in parallel to our main objective. With that in mind, I think our incurring some delay from having to travel by road for a bit is more than acceptable."

Link's eyes widened. He'd expected to have to make this very speech TO the Princess. In hindsight, that expectation felt foolish and a bit disrespectful: of course the Princess would be just as desirous to stem the monster outbreak as he was. If anything, he'd have to make sure she didn't charge at them herself. She'd looked and sounded as though she had been tempted to do precisely that to the Mayor of Midah, after all. He held back a smile at the thought.

"I had the very same thought, your Highness," he said.

She smiled. "I'm not surprised. Well then… this looks like a good spot."

They were in a forest again. The evening was quickly turning into night, especially with the sunset blocked from view by the trees that surrounded Link and Zelda.

"Peace, Poe," Zelda said.

Poe obediently stopped. Link tugged on his reins gently and Butter stopped too.

Zelda took her ocarina out of her pocket and turned to Link expectantly. "So. How does the song to Maritta go?" she asked.

Link smiled: expediency was definitely nice to see after the day he'd been having. They wouldn't get any further than Maritta tonight regardless, but they could at least aim for an early evening that would allow them an early morning tomorrow.

He took out his ocarina, focused on NOT travelling, and played the Market Song.

The princess turned out to be a quick study: she reproduced the song almost perfectly after hearing it once and was playing it as well as he did within three attempts.

"Has your Highness ever traveled by Ocarina with a horse before?" Link asked.

Zelda tilted her head. "I haven't, no. What should I know?"

Link dismounted and extended his hand. "Horses get frightened by the noise and the light, and then by the change in scenery. Butter is somewhat used to it and relatively easy to soothe afterward, but I'm not sure how Poe will react. It would be safer for your Highness not to be riding while being transported by the music: Poe seems well trained, but she might still throw her rider off in a panic."

Zelda accepted his hand and dismounted. "You truly are a life saver," she said. "I had no idea. Now then, if not by physically being on her, how do I get the magic to transport Poe as well?"

"You must be holding on to her, Princess," Link said. "Through experimentation, I've discovered that holding on to the horse's bridle is sufficient. I find the safest position is right next to their front leg, too close for them to kick. I also hold on to them tightly to prevent rearing."

He frowned, looking at Poe. "If your Highness would allow it, I would prefer to hold on to both Butter and Poe myself this time, just in case Poe is particularly distraught."

Zelda nodded. Pointless pride put aside, the Hero was both stronger, more agile, and more experienced with horses than she was.

"Thank you, Princess," Link said.

He took hold of both sets of reins, twisting them in his hands, and positioning himself between Poe and Butter with the Princess a few steps ahead of them. Poe looked at him impassively. Butter nickered and stomped.

"It's okay, Butter. Be brave and show Poe how it's done, won't you?" Link said.

He brought the Ocarina he was still holding as well to his lips. The thought that he really had his hands full tonight occurred and he swallowed back the urge to share it. He was NOT going to submit the Princess of Hyrule to the stupid puns produced by his brains whenever he was on edge.

The Princess held up her own ocarina. "On three?" she suggested.

Link nodded. "As you wish, Princess."

"Then one, two, three."

They played together in near perfect harmony, and disappeared from Faron.

North Hyrule Plains, Late Evening of the same day

Remiss was glad to finally pass the outskirt farms of Miduna. The city was their destination for the night, and after a full day of riding, give or take a few breaks for themselves and the horses, even his impatience to get to the archery contest was losing out to his fatigue.

Shade seemed to share in Remiss' exhaustion, her posture having deteriorated from ramrod straight on her saddle to a much more casual slump.

"I AM grateful my movements aren't restricted," Remiss said. "I'm sorry it means you get dragged along."

Shade waved off the apology. "My duties don't usually include a lot of travel, so this is not at all unpleasant to me," she said. "I am looking forward to a rest right now, but getting me on the road endears you to me, not the opposite."

Remiss chuckled. "Not endeared enough for you to stop talking like an official proclamation yet, obviously."

Shade scoffed. "I am talking in the way that is natural to me," she said.

Remiss shrugged. "If you say so. Ah!" He pointed ahead. "There's an Inn. I don't suppose your extensive education and knowledge covers which Miduna Inns are best?"

"At the moment, I would say that the one closest to our current location is the best in town," she replied. "Let's enter and if we've reasons to conclude I am wildly incorrect in that, we can always leave again."

The Inn turned out to be named The North Plain Inn. Whether it was good or not, it was clearly popular judging by the noise coming from inside. They tied their horses near the door, took their bags and went inside.

The main room was large, and packed. There must have been a hundred people, many of which in one central group engaged in a lively conversation with the person manning the bar. Shade's steps suddenly became quiet as she listened in.

Remiss didn't bother. He walked straight to the person at the bar.

"Good evening!" he said jovially. "Are you the Innkeeper? Would you have a room with two beds available? A meal would be very welcomed too."

"I am," the man answered, and looked Remiss up and down. Remiss kept his pose relaxed. He was out of uniform, as was Shade, out of a desire to have people speak to them freely. The innkeeper performing a quick judgement was expected.

"I don't have any room left with two beds, sorry," the innkeeper continued after his cursory inspection, "but I have one that's big enough to add in a futon, we'll set you up. Come on, I'll show you so you can drop your bags." He turned around towards the back of the room. "OY! Kinny! Get their horses to the stable!" He turned back to them. "You do have horses, right?"

"Yes," Remiss said. "They're in front. Two brown mares, Castle Town Horse Rental tack on both."

Grib turned towards the back again. "Two brown mares from CTR!" he cried out.

He then walked around the bar and gestured them to follow. They were guided up the stairs and about halfway along the upstairs hall before Grib unlocked a door and gestured them in.

"Come back down when you're ready, we're just getting dinner on the go now," he said. "Room and board is going to be forty rupees each, but that includes as much food as you want tonight and in the morning. Beer's extra. Name's Grib. If you need me. We'll get a futon brough up and set up while you're eating."

He left them then without waiting for a response, obviously eager to get back to the main room and the conversation Remiss and Shade had interrupted.

Remiss turned to Shade. "Hear anything interesting?" he asked.

"Local gossip that did not include anything about remarkable fighters or hero-like individuals," she replied. "I would suggest we attempt to steer the conversation towards the Hero, both to find out if anyone knows the source of the rumors about Link and whether anyone knows a better candidate for the title."

Remiss nodded. "Agreed. Let's go."

They left their bags and went back down to the main room.

As promised, food was starting to come out of the kitchen. Remiss found a free table not too far from the bar and sat there with Shade.

Bowls of a thick stew were soon put down in front of them, along with baskets of bread and a plate of cheese.

They started in while listening for an opening to join the conversation. They didn't have to wait long.

"Hey, Red!" someone called out. "I'd make a better Dad for little Gerudo kids than him!"

From the bar, Grib cleared his throat loudly. "Not funny," he said, his voice calm but carrying.

Shade's eyes widened.

"Sorry," the person who'd called out muttered.

The room was then silent for a second, long enough for Remiss to seize the opening.

"We get jokes like that all the time," he said, shaking his head. "She's my baby cousin for crying out loud," he improvised.

"Remember when Dad was there and he just punched the joker like, automatically?" Shade asked with a chuckle. "Words come out of mouth, fist goes in. Not one second apart."

Remiss chuckled too.

"Not surprised you get the jokes a lot," Grib said, refilling someone's glass as he talked. "I cut it in the bud every time, don't want the place to turn into a nest of vipers. I know the guy who said that, he's fine, but if word gets out I tolerate stupid jokes on non Hylians, or people who look a bit like non Hylians, someone's gonna come around with worst 'jokes' and see if they fly too. Most people around town are decent folks, but you're never going to find anywhere that doesn't have a few rotten apples and I'm not having them in MY Inn."

"You're quite the defender," Shade said. "Did we stumble into a secret hero society?"

Grib barked a laugh. "No chance," he said. "Although the Hero did come here, once."

Remiss' eyes widened. Shade stopped eating.

"Did he?" she asked. "Lucky you! I wish I could meet him."

Remiss smirked. Shade was play acting like someone who wasn't a Sheikah and who talked normally, but being jealous of someone who had met Link was definitely not an act.

"He's a sweetheart," a woman at a nearby table said. "Polite, and helpful too! My cuccoos had just run off when he came here, and I told him about it, and he found and brought back every last one of them! He wouldn't let me pay him, either, but he liked my paintings so I gave him one. He was right pleased about it, too!"

"I heard a ton of stories like that!" Shade said. She then sobered. "You guys get Hyrule Watch here? Last issue got me all riled up."

"It's around," someone else said. "Piece of trash that it is. It's always finding something bad to say about non Hylians, especially Sea Folks, or about Link in particular."

"I was in Hope last month, never saw nicer people," someone else piped in.

Remiss held back a sigh and listened in as the conversation veered back and forth on how wonderful Link was and how it wasn't just Sea Folks: Gerudos and Gorons and Zoras were nice too, and Kokiris were straight up adorable – or so they assumed, nobody present having ever actually seen one in real life.

It was shaping up to be a lovely evening if you wanted to witness unity in Hyrule. If you were trying to track a different hero than Link or to get some insider information on Hyrule Watch and their sources, not so much.