Chapter 14

Ares’s Story The village is neither small nor large for its kind. It’s one of many mountain settlements, a ten days’ horse ride away from the capital, and its residents live pastoral existences tilling the fields. Daris Village is famous for producing a Hero. “You want to ask about Ares? Be my guest! I was his friend!” I questioned someone who would have been around Ares’s age had he still been with us. “Ares could do anything when he was little. He was strong, fast on his feet, and really good at school. He was good-looking, too. All the girls around our age had a crush on him.” The man seemed accustomed to either talking about Ares or being asked about him, because his answer flowed smoothly off his tongue. “Anyway, he was amazing. When he got a sword, it took him no time at all to outdo the adults. Our local priest taught him healing magic. And that’s not all, you know? He even managed to learn spellcasting from reading the crusty old books in the village chief’s house. Let me just say, never mind me, not even the chief could decipher what was in those books. They’re written in some special language, see? He studied up on how to read it. Now that’s the Hero for you!” Could the Hero already wield the sword, magic, and divine miracles when he was living in this village? “Of course. I’m sure you know that already, right? Ares is famous for it. The reason he’s the Hero is ’cause he was special.” Why did someone who was already so special go out of his way to attend Falm Academy? “‘Why’…? Wasn’t it so he could get recognized as the Hero? Or maybe he was scouting for party members, I guess? I don’t really know. I wonder if it’s ’cause the fortune teller told him to go to the capital.” “Fortune teller”? You mean the Prophet? “Yeah, that person. One day, they showed up in the village and said, ‘The Hero who shall save the world will come from this village.’ Everyone knew right away that it had to be Ares. He always did seem special.” The Prophet was known to give a proclamation when the world was in peril. They’d been active for over a thousand years, so it was debatable whether they were even human. It led credence to the idea that it was not the same person every time. Did Ares meet the Prophet directly? “Don’t ask me. The fellow disappeared quick. How do I put it? You could tell just by looking at this person that they were different from the rest of us. There was this dignified aura around ’em. Full of mystery, you’d say.” So Ares journeyed to the capital after hearing the prophecy? “Yep. That’s how it went. Made me think, Wow, that Ares sure is something.” What do you mean by “something”? “Well, nowadays, everything is all peaceful-like, but back then, the monsters were rampaging anywhere and everywhere. The road to the capital was dangerous. Trade was pretty spotty ’cause of that. My old man said it was hard on the village.” A fourteen-year-old boy traveled that dangerous road alone? “Sure did. But hey, I figure having an adult tag along would have slowed him down. He made it all by himself. That’s what I mean when I say he was something.” I parted ways with that bumbling villager and headed to Ares’s childhood home. Ares was the son of the current village chief. At the time he set out on his journey, his grandfather was in charge. “Thank you for coming all this way. I hear you want to ask questions about my son, Ares.” Ares’s mother—Shella, wife of the village chief—greeted me warmly, perhaps because we had exchanged letters beforehand arranging to meet. She appeared to be around fifty, but she had an air of elegance around her that made me imagine that she’d been quite the beauty when she was younger. What was Ares like as a child? “He was a well-behaved boy. Bright and clever, never much trouble to deal with. He even volunteered around the house. He really was…a good boy.” Shella spoke slowly in fond recollection. In your eyes, was he capable of doing everything? “It wasn’t so much that he could do everything and more that he was a resourceful child. But I don’t think he was quite as gifted as others say. Yes, he was fairly good with a sword and knew a little magic and healing, but he wasn’t a master at any of them. He might have stood out in a small village, but if he went somewhere with more people, I suppose they would think of him as a somewhat talented individual with a few unusual tricks up his sleeve.” Were you born elsewhere, may I ask? “Yes, I’m surprised you noticed. I was born and raised in the capital, not here in this village. My husband and I met at school when he came to the capital for his studies. I moved to the village after we got married. Both my husband and I were excellent students and athletes, as a matter of fact, so we didn’t think our son was unusually talented. We’ve never really said this aloud, though.” With a smile, Shella described that particular anecdote as a bit of a brag. But Ares was chosen as the Hero. “It was a mystery. As proud as I am of my son, he wasn’t that special. The villagers were convinced that the prophecy was about Ares, but my husband and I weren’t so sure.” You didn’t believe the prophecy? “Well… It was less about whether the prophecy was real and more about Ares. Besides, what kind of parent wants their child to fight the Demon Lord? I never wanted him to be in such danger. Perhaps it wasn’t that I disbelieved the prophecy so much as I didn’t want to believe it. I would have liked someone else to be the Hero.” But you still sent him out to be the Hero? “My father-in-law, who was the village chief at the time, was all for it. So were the villagers. They were enthusiastic about the idea of a Hero coming from their town. Back then, there was a grimness in the air because of the Demon Lord, and this village was no exception to that. Of course they’d be delighted about a Hero’s appearance. I couldn’t bring myself to go against the flow. The least we could do was send him to Falm Academy so that he could build his strength and find companions for his journey.” Was it your idea to enroll him? “Both me and my husband wanted it. We knew that Falm Academy was a place for training Heroes. But since we also knew that only the nobility went there, we told him he didn’t need to force himself. As long as he got stronger and found some friends, then anywhere would do. Since he was an open-minded boy, we thought he would work things out on his own, but he went to Falm Academy anyway.” What did Ares think of being chosen as the Hero? “He was a clever child, so when he saw what the mood was like in the village, he went along with what everyone wanted. But I think he felt uncertain of himself deep down. He knew his shortcomings better than anyone. Sometimes, I would wake up in the night and see him swinging his sword intently. He was so anxious that he couldn’t sleep.” And yet he defeated the Demon Lord. “And then he died. I know I should be happy because the world was saved, but neither I nor my husband found it in us to rejoice. Why did our son have to die? I find myself wondering that even now. If all it took to defeat the Demon Lord was a bright and clever person, then so many others could have done it. So why him…?” Shella wiped the tears trailing down her cheek. I turned my gaze away from her and looked around the room, where the presence of a sword caught my eye. Although it was clean, it was heavily worn. What is that? “His sword. Only his sword came back to us. It was passed down through this family for generations. I don’t know if he used it throughout his journey, but it was with him at the very end. It must have been a faithful companion. Getting that sword back was the only silver lining. It’s something to remember him by.” Did the Hero’s companions bring that sword to you? “I’ve never met the members of Ares’s party. It was Zack who brought the sword to us.” Who is Zack? “His cousin who’s the same age as him. He’s my sister-in-law’s child; both she and her husband were adventurers. They lost their lives in Malika. Zack’s father was from that country, so they both went to its aid when the Demon Lord invaded. Before they set off, they left Zack in our care.” How was Zack able to bring back the sword? “Because he went with Ares to the capital. When Ares died, he said he got hold of the sword. So he brought it back to the village.” I’m confused. Another villager said that Ares journeyed alone. “Well, he had bags to carry, for one thing. We couldn’t just send him off by himself. Besides, the two of them grew up together, and they got along very well. I think that having Zack by his side helped ease some of Ares’s anxieties. “The villagers don’t mention Zack because they love to exaggerate Ares’s achievements…or maybe they’ve just forgotten. He didn’t stand out very much in a crowd.” Where is Zack at the moment? “When he delivered the sword, he said, ‘I’m leaving on a journey.’ I haven’t seen him since. I encouraged him to stay in the village, but he was very insistent on leaving. ‘I’m sorry, I’m so sorry for letting Ares die,’ he told me. Even though he’d done nothing to apologize for…” Did Zack travel with Ares? “Only to the capital. He was a normal boy, so he didn’t go on the journey to fight the Demon Lord. He always did his best at everything, though I have to say he was the clumsy type. But he was a very good boy, you know? I think Ares gained a lot from being with him. Ares would start things, and Zack would go along with him until he finished. Did you know it’s very hard to learn things all by yourself? Ares was able to keep going because he had Zack doing it alongside him.” What do you think of the portrait of the Hero circulating the kingdom? “It looks very much like Ares. We even bought a large copy for ourselves to hang up.” Indeed, there was a large portrait of the Hero’s splendid visage displayed prominently in the house. Did Ares and Zack look alike? “They were cousins, so yes. But Ares had slightly bigger eyes and a longer nose. Just tiny things, really, but they made quite a different impression on others. Ares was often complimented on his looks, while people said Zack was unremarkable. It’s strange how the little things can make all the difference.”