As a group of mercenaries—who knew whether they had been tempted by money or beauty—fled in all directions, the atmosphere at the scene suddenly became awkward.
Princess Charlotte opened her mouth several times, wanting to ask about Griffith, but for some reason, she could never bring herself to say it.
In her memories, Guts and Casca had rescued the dying Griffith back then, so logically, the three of them should have remained together ever since.
But she did not know about the ascension ritual that had sacrificed the entire Band of the Hawk, nor did she know that Griffith had transformed from a human into Femto, one of the God Hand.
Likewise, Guts did not know how to face this princess, who had practically become a princess without a kingdom, or the unspeakable relationship between her and Griffith.
The two stared at each other for a long while until the young knight finally broke the silence. "This isn't a place to talk. Let's rest for a while in the woods ahead. Otherwise, the smell of blood might attract wolves or other beasts."
"You're right. This really isn't a suitable place for a conversation."
Guts glanced at the mangled corpses and the large amount of blood scattered through the dirt and grass, then decisively agreed.
And so, the three of them continued along the uneven dirt road in a carriage for nearly half an hour. Once they were sure they had put enough distance between themselves and the battlefield, they abruptly turned into a clearing in the forest and began setting up camp around a fire.
Before long, the sky darkened, ushering in a night that filled people with dread.
With war having completely erupted in the eastern part of the continent, and many city-states and nations even being destroyed, anyone