Brothers

Three months later, an incredible story spread throughout the Kingdom of Lordaeron: an eight-year-old child had survived for seven whole days in the snowy wilderness of Alterac. Yet no one knew his name. Uther had sealed off all news, and only a few people involved and those who knew Nathanos were aware that he was still alive.

Marius Farm

Daphne was watching the bread when she suddenly heard her husband Bred calling out.

"Nathanos, Nathanos? Nathanos!"

"What is it?"

"He's gone again. Damn it, how many times have I told him not to run off?"

Daphne set down her kitchen knife. "Nathanos should be near the Sodori River. He's been going there often lately."

"Oh no, dear, how can you let him disappear right under our noses? What if he gets lost again? We only just found each other again."

"He won't run off. He told me he was going to the Sodori River, and he's been coming home on time these past few days."

Bred looked west. The Sodori River was not far from the farm. Just as Daphne had said, Nathanos had been going there almost every day lately, returning in the evening with fish and clam meat.

Hoofbeats sounded outside the farm, accompanied by the frantic clucking of chickens. A knight stopped outside Marius Farm, having come specifically to visit. A booming voice rang out, and Bred immediately went outside to greet him.

At the Sodori River, Nathanos had come here every day since returning home. He jumped into the river, where chunks of ice drifted past, sank to the bottom, held his breath, and trained his endurance. He stayed there until his ears began to ring, using the rhythm of his heartbeat to judge whether he had reached his limit. If Bred knew he was doing this, he would stop him even at the cost of his life, so Nathanos used fishing as an excuse.

"Whew..." Nathanos emerged from the water. He quickly climbed ashore and got dressed, but his training was not over. After leaving the water, he waited for his body to gradually warm up before beginning climbing exercises—not only on slopes, but in tall trees as well. Whenever he climbed to a high place, he gazed into the distance, fixed his eyes on a single direction, then narrowed his focus to a hillside or a tree, then further to a stone or a leaf. Besides that, Nathanos often entered a meditative state, sensing every movement of the wind and grass around him, listening to every faint sound. Sometimes, he even stared at one thing for hours. He wanted to improve his perception and judgment. It was difficult, and Nathanos knew it would take years of effort, but he had confidence in his willpower.

When he returned home, laughter and conversation drifted from inside the house. He heard his father laughing, along with the laughter of his mentor, Uther.

"Nathanos, you're back?" Daphne kissed his cheek and took the fish from his hands.

"Child, come meet Lord Uther. He came especially to see you."

Nathanos nodded. Uther's eyes lit up when he saw him, but even now, he could not figure out how Nathanos had survived back then. It had been nothing short of a miracle. Uther vaguely remembered that, several months ago, when Nathanos had returned to his family once more, his parents had been beside themselves with excitement. They had even held one another all night without saying a word, yet they had both experienced the feeling of regaining something precious beyond measure. Uther had asked Nathanos several times why he had fallen from the cliff, whether someone had deliberately harmed him, but the boy had never answered directly. He only said no, or smiled at Uther, as if telling him he had never fallen from a cliff at all and that everything had merely been a joke. In the end, the matter was left unresolved, but Uther believed Nathanos had his own reasons.

"We were talking about you, Nathanos," Uther said, then glanced at his father, Bred. "I heard you wrote letters to your parents."

The boy nodded. Bred looked at him proudly and said to Uther, "When I received his letter, I could hardly believe it. You know, Lord Uther, at first I thought Jonathan had played a prank on me by pretending to be Nathanos. But his brother told me he hadn't."

"You should trust Nathanos."

"Of course. I always have," Bred said.

Uther stroked his chin upon hearing that, then said to Nathanos, "Child, I heard from your uncle Jonathan that you once wanted to become a Ranger?"

"Not anymore, Mentor. I've given up that dream. I have other things to do now."

Uther nodded. If Nathanos had truly still been insisting on it, he would certainly have advised him otherwise. It was impossible for a human to become a Ranger.

"If you want to learn archery, I can teach you. It might even help your father fend off wolf packs."

The boy looked at Bred, then nodded firmly at Uther.

"Don't tease him, Lord Uther. There aren't any wolf packs around here."

Bred and Uther laughed together. At dinnertime, Uther and Bred drank and chatted, while Nathanos returned to his room alone. He took out a piece of parchment marked with most of Alterac's terrain. Nathanos would never forget what he had experienced during those seven days he was missing; the memories remained vivid. Now that he was honing his observational skills, he was slowly learning to draw maps. They might come in handy someday.

"Really? Sally is pregnant?"

Downstairs, his father's voice was full of surprise. Nathanos heard it too, as did his mother, who was asking Uther when it had happened.

"Yes. The last time I met Jonathan, he told me the good news. I remember how excited he was. He said he would come back here in a few days to tell you the happy news himself."

"I never expected him to become a father too."

"Nathanos is going to have a brother."

"Don't say that too soon. It could be a girl."

A brother? Nathanos had never considered that. What would it be like if he had a younger brother? Maybe terrible. Maybe wonderful. Before he knew it, Nathanos was actually a little nervous. In his heart, he swore that he would protect the brother who was about to be born. It was the duty of an elder brother.

Several months later, one week after Nathanos's ninth birthday. Marius Farm seemed to have returned to nine years earlier, when Nathanos had just been born. Bred had been the nervous one then, but this time, it was Jonathan.

"Don't be nervous, don't be nervous," Bred said reassuringly. "The Holy Light will bless Sally and your child."

"I know that, Bred." Jonathan rubbed his hands together and paced back and forth. "I'm just excited. Yes, excited."

"Nathanos!" Bred called to the boy beside him. The boy ran over, his eyes wide as he waited for what his father would say next.

"See your Uncle Jonathan? He's scratching at himself like a monkey. When you have children someday, you must stay calm."

"Hey, Bred, I may be nervous, but I'm not like you, kneeling on the ground and praying for the Holy Light's protection."

Bred smiled. "You might be doing exactly that soon enough."

"Stop joking around. Sally is in a lot of pain right now."

Jonathan was right. Even with Daphne and Kana helping to care for her, Sally's labor was still extremely painful. At last, after everyone had struggled for several hours, a baby's cry finally rang out from inside the house. Jonathan rushed in at once. It was a boy, fair-skinned, just like Nathanos had been.

"Quick, give your son a name," Bred said.

"I decided long ago. His name will be Stephan. Stephan Marius."

"Stephan Marius?" Nathanos murmured. He looked at the baby in his uncle's arms. This was life.