Although he was short in stature, he was muscular; across his skin, which was tanned to a dark brown, ran several old scars, the proof of his experience in battle. Most of them had not been left by weapons, but by the claws and fangs of beasts. One such prominent scar was etched along his cheek, and he wore it proudly, almost as though it were a family crest.
In addition to these features, Nefritis, like Prodotis, wore armor that was unthinkably light by the standards of contemporary warfare. For clothing he wore only a loincloth and a scarlet cloak that hung from his shoulders. For armor, he wore bronze greaves on his shins, but the style of these suggested that they were there more for decoration. There was no helm upon his head—instead he wore a hood fashioned from a lion’s skin. If the legends were true, that was the pelt of the steel-clawed Nemean lion that Nefritis had slain long ago.
The boy hero, as if seeing Nue’s question as a naive attempt to create an opportunity to escape, showed her a smile whose magnanimity seemed out of place for a boy his age. Then, he gave her his answer. “Just so. I was twelve years old when I lost my life, meeting my end in the siege beneath the castle of Krios. In order to repay Lord Prodotis for once giving me food and lodging for a night, I allied with Krios in that war. Don’t look down on me just because I’m a young whelp. I have had adventures in every region of this land, and not even the other heroes of the Golden Age can match the number of beasts and monsters I’ve slain. All recognize my ability as a first-class hero. Don’t think you can escape me.”
Nefritis languidly spread out his arms, a spear and shield clutched in each hand, standing before Nue with a smile. She could see no opening in which to strike. Nue’s red eyes teared up in frustration as she growled deep in her throat to threaten her enemy. The hero Nefritis gave her a wry smile.
“I’m fond of women, but I do not care for children. Now, where was Achtida...?” For the first time, the boy hero showed an aspect of himself in keeping with his age—there was charm in the shy, wry smile he now showed. Perhaps this was his true face, though the content of his speech was still hardly something a child might say.
At this moment, the ground beneath their feet shook dramatically, and the tremors continued for quite some time. Nefritis opened his eyes wide, as if this was surprising to him as well.
“What’s all this? Another of Prodotis’s tricks...?” Nefritis said.
“Verily. My father has activated the final device within this city—behold Krios, the walking fortress. Originally it was intended to be the decisive weapon in our invasion of Vulcan of the Eleven Cities.” A voice rang out as another hero showed himself in the courtyard. This was the hero Kranos, son of the king of Krios, Prodotis. Kranos was the first of the Seven Generals Prodotis had called back down from the starlit sky and resurrected. Nefritis’s jade green eyes sparkled with affection at the sight.
“Ah, King Kranos! No, wait...since your father Prodotis has also been resurrected, I suppose it’s more accurate to call you ‘Prince’ again, is it not?”
“Call me whatever you like. Now then, this castle’s ambulation, which you were not informed of beforehand, must have shocked you. As well as the Titan princess over there...” With Kranos’s silver-colored eyes looking at her, Nue reflexively turned her head away and sulked.
Nefritis laughed heartily. “As you can see, she’s started to pout.”
The son of the hero did not so much as crack a smile. “Since we have been ordered to treat the princess as a guest for now, I will say this for her ears also. At present, our Castle Krios is advancing south with the power of its walking Titan engine, headed for the center of the continent.”
Nue couldn’t believe what she was hearing. These monsters—how could they... But it appeared that the ancient heroes’ attention was elsewhere. Nefritis looked perplexed. “South? Should we not ascend northward to attack Vulcan?”
“Father says that the time is not yet ripe for that. For now, we are headed to the kingdom of the Terean people—the white-walled Aspro Terea.”
“...With what aim?” asked Nefritis, adopting a serious expression befitting his heroic name. Kranos remained aloof in his response.
“Blood and new subjects. And after that, eternal life.” Nue, who listened intently, felt goosebumps suddenly stand up all over her skin. She did not know why, but she sensed something ominous beyond reckoning implied in Kranos’s words. It seemed that Nefritis had, at least to some extent, a similar impression.
“My word...does His Majesty, your father, still hope to bring his plans for the Titan goddess to fruition? Prince Kranos, did you not seek to dissuade him?”
“Father has already obtained new powers from the newcomers, the tribe known as ‘Reincarnators.’ We are not the same heroes the Tereans faced in the previous war. This time, I am certain we will succeed. I will simply serve at his side.”
Nefritis, arms folded, mulled this over for a spell, then nodded. “...Well, I suppose that’s fine too. We’re past the point of no return. In either case, we have already lost our people, so I, Nefritis, will follow you to the end.”
“And I thank you for it. Now then—it appears we are prepared.” Kranos looked up at the sky. What was he thinking in this moment—this hero who, five hundred years prior, had fought the Tereans as they besieged Krios until he was the last soldier standing, then met his end in a state of fury? The smile that showed at the corners of his lips spoke of inhuman cruelty.
“Let us now witness a fraction of my father’s new powers.” The southern sky was even darker than the blackness of night, shrouded by an enormous hole. The edge of the hole glowed with rainbow-colored light, blending with the air around it, and the pitch blackness inside it was scattered with countless points of light like stars.
This was a teleportation gate of the kind created by the Reincarnators. Nue had seen enough of them to last a lifetime. Krios continued its march, slowly making its way through the titanic teleportation gate. Beyond the portal, they found that they had advanced several kilometers in a single step, the scenery replaced by the pine forests south of Krios.
“My word. How strange...” Nefritis was shocked at the sight, but Kranos simply nodded.
“A sample of my father’s blood was introduced into the bloodstream of the Titan underneath the castle, and that culture grew and multiplied. I must say, this test-drive is going swimmingly...”
“You turned the Titan holding up the castle...into a Reincarnator...?” Nue murmured in shock. “A Titan one hundred times the size of a human also has one hundred times the volume of blood. Therefore the power of its Skill is also...a hundred times greater...” She was left at a loss for words.
Could she really afford to wait calmly for Dill to come and rescue her? With the heroes of antiquity aboard it, this castle headed toward the Reincarnator stronghold—the Tower Capital. What precisely did the heroes plan on doing there with their sinister technology? Was it really all right to leave them to it?
I might be the only one who can stop them, Nue thought.