Following that, Nashetania continued to act as she pleased. Before long, the sun set, and night arrived. The two of them tied their horses by the side of the road and began setting up camp. Adlet wondered if Nashetania would be able to handle sleeping outdoors, having been raised in a palace, but she said she had done it many times, so she’d have no problems. Once Adlet was done laying out his bedding, he scanned the area, checking to see if there were any blind spots or cover where an enemy might hide. It was always best to be ready for a surprise attack.
“What’s wrong?” Nashetania asked him. Her eyelids were drooping, and she looked quite sleepy and carefree indeed.
“Hey, before we go to sleep, I’d like to ask you something,” said Adlet. “What happened with that killer who’s after the Braves?”
“Oh yes, I haven’t told you about that yet, have I?” Nashetania’s expression grew grim. It seemed the news was not good. “I didn’t tell you before, but in fact, six months ago, Goldof left on a journey in search of the Brave-killer.”
“Goldof…that’s a knight of yours, right?” Adlet knew the name. Goldof Auora: captain of the Black Horns knights. A prodigious young fighter and the pride of Piena’s royal army. He was the strongest knight in Piena, purported to rival Nashetania in strength.
“Unfortunately, I haven’t heard anything heartening. The last communication I had from him was a month and a half ago, and all he said was that he had no leads.”
“The killer might’ve taken him out.”
“I think not!” Unusually for her, Nashetania’s voice rose. “Goldof is strong. I’ve never beaten him.”
“What about that tournament last year?” he asked. Nashetania had been the victor of the Tournament Before the Divine the previous year. Adlet had heard that she had faced Goldof in the finals, and at the end of a desperate struggle, she had defeated him.
“At the very end, he went easy on me. But there’s no helping that…because of my position. But I’ve never been so frustrated in my life. That’s why I made him promise me—he’s not allowed to die until I can defeat him in a rematch. That’s why Goldof can’t die. He wouldn’t.” Nashetania deliberated for a bit. “…I think.”
“Do you have confidence in him or not?”
“I have confidence in him. But he’s a little too young. He’s still only sixteen.”
“That’s young, all right. Not like we can talk, though,” said Adlet. He was eighteen, and he had heard that Nashetania was the same age. They were rather young to be shouldering the fate of the world.
“But Goldof is strong. He’s just a little unreliable in certain ways,” she said.
“Well, I hope he’s as good as you say. So he hasn’t got any leads. Any other news?”
“Yes. The Saint of Sun, Leura, disappeared a month ago.”
“Leura? The Saint of Sun?” Adlet paused. That was another familiar name. That Saint was a living legend reported to wield the power of the Spirit of Sun. About forty years ago, during a war, she had displayed the full extent of her power. She had burned down a besieged castle by shining down rays of heat from the sky. Adlet had heard that she’d conquered over ten fortresses, all on her own. Once she was older, she’d taken over the role of the elder who governed the Saints, but by now, she should have retired from that job, too. “She’s famous, but she’s too old to be fighting, isn’t she?”
“Yes, she’s over eighty,” replied Nashetania. “No matter how powerful she might be, I don’t think she’s in any state to be joining the battlefield.”
“That’s weird, though. There should be others the killer would go after instead. Like me, or you, or Goldof. There’s even the Saint of Swamps, Chamo. There’re tons of powerful people out there.”
“I think it’s odd, too…” Nashetania furrowed her brows. Sitting here talking wouldn’t change anything.
“Well, whatever,” said Adlet. “Let’s get some sleep. We’ll find out about this Brave-killer sooner or later.”
“Sooner or later?”
“We’ll end up fighting them. No doubt about it.”
“Do you think the killer is a fiend? Or could it actually be a human?”
“I don’t know.”
Nashetania lay down on her bedding. Adlet closed his eyes, holding his knees to his chest. In that position, he could rest his mind and body while still staying alert. The evening went by without event, and so did the next day, and the next. The fact that nothing was happening only made Adlet more uneasy.