Erica lifted the pot lid and peered inside. Seeing the stew bubbling, she picked up a spoon, took a small taste, shook her head, and covered it again.
The little girl in her old dress was a bit nervous, even forgetting to put down the spoon. There was a stranger in the cabin. Even though Guts had said this was his friend, Erica still felt a little constrained.
Holding the spoon like that, she cautiously approached Guts, who was sitting cross-legged on the wooden floor. She sat down behind him, then peeked out to look at the stranger, a little shy.
Seeing a little girl like Erica, timid as a fawn, Nidhogg smiled kindly at her.
Guts was in the middle of exchanging pleasantries with Nidhogg when he noticed him suddenly smiling behind him. He turned his head, saw Erica hiding behind him, and couldn't help but shake his head and smile.
"It's alright, Erica. This guy's not a bad person. In a sense, you could even call him a hero. You like those stories, don't you? He's the heroic knight in those tales."
"What do you mean 'in a sense'?" Nidhogg rolled his eyes and complained.
Erica listened to Guts's words and gave Nidhogg a slight nod, but still remained silent.
"Is it okay for her to listen to the topics we're about to discuss?" Guts hesitated.
Just then, he felt one of Erica's hands grip his clothing, as if she didn't want to be left out of the conversation.
Nidhogg glanced at Erica—this little girl who had a deep connection with Guts, Casca, and Rickert. He hesitated for a moment, then finally decided to let her stay.
Some harsh, stark realities of the world might as well be revealed sooner rather than later. Farnese, who had grown up in the Holy City since childhood, was a negative example. If Erica didn't understand now, they could just treat it as a fairy tale.
"Let her stay." Nidhogg made the decision.
Guts looked at Erica again, and Erica also cast him a hopeful glance. He had to compromise, raised his hands, and said helplessly, "Alright, alright."
Erica was clearly a little excited and finally smiled, her cheeks flushing.
"Then let's start with my side." Guts smiled and said. "After all, my story is relatively short."
So Guts began to speak about what had happened after Nidhogg left the Hawk Company.
The days of serving the king and nobles, the victory in defending Doldrey Castle, the promotions of Griffith and the Hawk Company, the rumors of Nidhogg's feat—infiltrating Doldrey Castle—and the encounter with "Zodd the Immortal"...
When he got to "Zodd the Immortal," Guts clearly spent much more time on it than on previous topics. The detailed explanation of the cause and effect showed how deeply Zodd's terror had impressed him.
Following that were Griffith's conspiracy, General Julius's rebellion, Guts's charge into the enemy ranks and killing General Julius, and Griffith's defeat of the White Dragon Knights...
When it came to Griffith's secret conversation with him that night, Guts didn't mention it. He understood why Griffith had told him alone—some dark secrets were meant for only two people to know.
However, even though Guts didn't say it, Nidhogg had already guessed. But he didn't say a word and simply asked Guts to continue.
In the end, the Hawk Company became the White Phoenix Knights. Everyone became famous. But Guts was fully determined to leave the Hawk Company.
This idea had been sown in his heart when Nidhogg left the Hawk Company.
But it truly took root when he overheard a conversation between Griffith and Princess Charlotte.
At that time, Princess Charlotte was talking about Griffith's subordinates in the Hawk Company. But Griffith said:
"They are different from friends. People should not cling to others' dreams. Their own reasons for survival should be determined by themselves, without coercion from anyone."
"If someone hinders you from realizing your dreams, you must fight them with all your might—even if it's you... To me, so-called friends are such 'equals.'"
At that moment, Guts's heart felt as if it had been struck hard. He realized that he was far from being able to stand beside Griffith and call himself his "friend."
Therefore, when the Hawk Company reached the peak of honor, Guts resolutely stepped back and decided to leave, to find his own dream.
Of course, he hadn't found that dream yet. But he wasn't idle. After a chance encounter with the blacksmith Godo and Erica, he had stayed here and begun training with his sword at the valley waterfall.
He wanted to find answers through his training. He never expected that, months later, he would unexpectedly run into Nidhogg today.
Erica, sitting to the side, had unconsciously put down her spoon. She rested her chin on her hands, lying on the wooden floor, listening intently and with pleasure as Guts told his story.
Guts had been here for months, and this was the first time Erica had learned about Guts's past.
Though she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, Erica still felt she could envision those scenes—the kind you could only find in legends and songs. Such rises and falls, such magic, such sadness...
Whether a monster like Zodd existed or not, weren't there villains like monsters and dragons in stories? Zodd was that kind of character.
She was a little disappointed, though—that brother Guts hadn't encountered Zodd again and defeated him. That was a bit different from the ending of traditional hero tales.
Erica was truly listening to Guts's account as a story and was completely absorbed in it.
When Guts finished telling his story, he raised his hand and gestured. "My story is pretty ordinary. I think whatever you've been through is probably much more special than mine. Let me hear why you haven't come back."
When Erica heard this, she didn't believe it.
If brother Guts's story could only be considered "ordinary," then what other legends existed in the world?
Did they expect everyone to be like the legendary "Moon Knight" or "Flame Dragon"? That was too harsh.
Besides, could the story of brother Guts's friend before him really be more exciting than brother Guts's? She didn't believe it.
Nidhogg seemed to see through Erica's cautious thoughts and smiled at her, causing Erica's eyes to dart away involuntarily.
However, when Nidhogg began to speak, her eyes turned back and gradually widened, shining brighter and brighter.
"Guts, since you've already encountered 'Zodd the Immortal,' I think some things will be easier to explain."
Nidhogg said calmly.
"Once you've crossed the boundary between reality and fantasy, a lot becomes much easier to accept."
Guts couldn't help but frown.
So this really is related to Zodd?
So Nidhogg, not caring whether Guts would believe him or whether Erica could understand, spoke of the astral world, monsters, Apostles, Beherits, demon-subduing rituals, and the God Hand.
He focused on the difference between the Crimson Beherit and ordinary Beherits, the difference between the God Hand and Apostles, the difference between the Eclipse and ordinary demon-subduing rituals, and the conditions for triggering the Eclipse and the demon-subduing ritual.
The more Guts listened, the more tightly his brows knitted together—especially when he realized that the stone Griffith carried was the Crimson Beherit.