Shen's expression suddenly turned serious, and the anger on his face deepened.
"Those two are both traitors to the Kinkou Order! Zed founded the Shadow Order and calls himself the Master of the Shadow Order. He used to be my senior brother, but later he killed our master and left the order. Alanta is our senior sister. Although she left the order too, I don't hate her. She took good care of me when I was young, so I'm still very grateful to her."
From what he'd said at first, I'd thought there was no hope. But his later words gave me an opening, so I told Shen what had happened. "Actually... Zed killed Alanta, and she left behind a daughter."
Shen was shocked when he heard that. "What! You're saying that bastard Zed killed Senior Sister Alanta?!" Then he looked at Akali. "And this child...?"
"That's right. She's Alanta's daughter, Akali. I rescued her. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner—I was afraid you might harm her. But it seems I was wrong."
"There's nothing to apologize for. On the contrary, I'm very grateful you saved Senior Sister's daughter. If you'll allow it, let me raise her."
Shen had volunteered to take on the responsibility himself, and I couldn't have been happier. Since he was so humble, courteous, and loyal, I had nothing to worry about.
Akali naturally had no objections. As long as she could learn useful skills, she didn't care where she lived.
With that matter settled, it was time to get down to business: finding a true hero.
Ever since Poppy had started traveling with me, she'd rarely mentioned searching for a hero. It seemed she was only looking for friendship. Perhaps friendship was the very purpose she'd been created for.
We hadn't heard anything about a hero who could defeat the dark sorceress along the way. Instead, Poppy had been the one acting justly and bravely, coming to the aid of anyone in trouble.
I thought the hero Oren had mentioned was Poppy herself; she just didn't realize it. After all those years fighting dark mages, she must have learned plenty of ways to counter Dark Magic. Maybe she could even defeat LeBlanc!
But... where had she gone?
Oh, right. I'd also promised Witt I'd help Lux find Ageless Water. I had time now, and I could ask Shen for help.
"By the way, Master Shen, I'd like to ask for your help with something. Do you know where I can find Ageless Water?"
"Why are you looking for that? Isn't it something women use to preserve their looks?"
"I'm looking for it on behalf of a friend. I'd appreciate your guidance, Master."
"You're too kind. Ageless Water is a special substance produced at the source of the Navori River, on the highest peak southwest of Prexian. The terrain there is treacherous, and an eccentric old man guards it. They say he's very difficult to deal with and isn't tempted by money or beauty. Few people have managed to get their hands on it. As for what Ageless Water does, I really don't know."
"Thank you. I came here with a friend. If she comes looking for me, please tell her where I've gone."
"Of course!"
After making the arrangements, I set off. The mountain where the Ageless Water could be found was easy to spot; I could see its summit towering into the clouds from far away. I tightened my clothes and followed the river upstream.
When I was nearly at the summit, I came upon a relatively flat clearing. A few sheep were grazing there, unafraid of people. It looked like someone was raising them.
Sure enough, I hadn't gone far before I spotted a tall old man. He was riding a ram, looking completely at ease. He must be the eccentric person Shen had told me about.
"Hello, sir. Are you the one guarding the Ageless Water?"
The old man didn't answer, so I cautiously asked again. Only then did he raise his eyelids and look me up and down.
"If you want the Ageless Water, all you have to do is wrestle the ram beneath me and beat it. Then you can do as you please!"
I looked at the ram. It was practically bigger than a water buffalo, with deep-brown, curly fleece like a blanket. Its enormous horns spiraled forward, as if proclaiming its inviolable might.
Wrestling wasn't the same as fighting in an arena. The Man-eating Bear I'd killed in the arena was bigger than this ram, and it was a ferocious carnivore, but I hadn't needed to match its strength. I'd just needed to kill it with a weapon.
Wrestling meant I'd have to match the ram's strength head-on. If I lost, it might gore a hole through my stomach.
Of course, I could take the Ageless Water by force, but that would make me no better than a bandit. So I accepted the challenge. I was fairly confident in my strength.
The old man dismounted and drew a line behind each of us. Whoever pushed their opponent across the line first would win. I gripped the ram's horns with both hands, waiting for the old man to shout the signal so I could push with all my might.
I struck first, shoving the ram back a whole step with a sudden burst of strength. It was less than half a step from losing, but I couldn't push it any farther.
The ram recovered and began pushing forward. I bent over and fought desperately to hold it back. We were locked in a stalemate; neither of us could move forward, and neither would give ground.
I hadn't expected it to be so strong. Since brute force wasn't working, I had to try something else. I started pushing its head down, hoping to force it onto its knees, but I couldn't budge it, even with my face red from the effort.
After struggling for a while longer, I thought of another plan. We were both pushing with all our strength. If I suddenly stepped backward, the ram would lose its balance and fall to its knees!
The trick worked perfectly. Just as I'd expected, the ram fell over, and I pushed it straight past the line!
"That doesn't count as cheating, does it, sir?"
"Clever little trick! But you'd better watch out behind you."
At the old man's warning, I turned around and saw the ram charging at me. This wasn't a wrestling match anymore. It was obviously furious about what I'd done!
I hurried to dodge, but I'd used too much strength and was moving a little slowly. I had no choice but to grab its horns again. At the same time, I saw its brown eyes turn red.
"Sir, make it stop! Why has it suddenly gone berserk?"
"It's no use. You've angered it. No one can talk it down now. You'll have to subdue it."
That was easier said than done. This ram was strange, as hard as cast iron. How could I possibly subdue it? And the old man showed no sign of helping me.
The ram kept advancing, its horns almost against my chest. As I stared into its red eyes, unsure what to do, I suddenly saw a flicker of fear in them. Then it dropped to its knees again!
This time, it hadn't knelt because I'd subdued it or tricked it into falling. It had truly bowed down before me, and the blood-red color had vanished from its eyes!
The old man was astonished. He, too, fell to his knees alongside the ram. "So you're the Shepherd! Forgive me for my ignorance and offense."
I was the Shepherd? Wasn't the old man the Shepherd? I had no idea what he was talking about, so I quickly helped him up.
"Please get up. What do you mean, the Shepherd? I don't understand."
"You really don't know?"
I shook my head. I truly had no idea, so the old man explained everything to me in detail, leaving me more and more astonished.
The next part is behind a paywall, though it's only a couple of dollars. If you like the story, please support the official release. Thank you!
Pirated sites may only have the earliest draft, before the plot or prose has been polished, so it might read a little rough. I apologize to those who read that version!