Nidhogg was fine, but Guts, who had actually drawn his sword on Griffith, was already marked for "execution" in her mind.
"So, what do you think?" Griffith repeated his offer from the previous night. "The Hawks are no ordinary mercenary band, living only to eat and die. Sooner or later, I will lead them to greater heights."
"Join me. I won't let your swords swing for nothing, and I won't let you die in some meaningless skirmish. You should shine with the Hawks, not remain nameless mercenaries."
"I will prove to you that you will be the sharpest edge of my sword."
Hearing this, the jealousy burning in Casca's heart flared hotter, but she refused to show it in front of Griffith, the man she admired so desperately.
Nidhogg had already thought this through during the night.
The Eclipse was still a long way off. If he left now, he wouldn't be caught in the sacrifice. More importantly, staying meant he could complete his quests and level up.
If he truly wanted to save as many lives as possible when the Eclipse came, he needed power. His current strength was nowhere near enough.
So he turned to Guts and spoke first.
"I think we should stay with the Hawks. Instead of wandering from army to army, living hand-to-mouth, always one bad wound away from being a cripple, always alone... it's better to stay here."
Griffith's smile widened slightly as he watched Guts.
Guts's face was serious. He looked at them both. Words didn't come easily to him. He still wouldn't say "yes" out loud, but his silence was agreement.
Griffith understood. He chuckled softly, then gestured to Casca.
Casca hesitated for just a moment, then brought over two contracts of employment. "Look these over. If there are no problems, sign."
Nidhogg and Guts glanced at each other. Seeing no issues, they signed with the quill. They were officially mercenaries of the Hawk Company.
And so, Nidhogg and Guts remained with the Hawks.
In the days that followed, however, their situations within the company could not have been more different.
Guts remained silent and solitary. Aside from Nidhogg, Griffith, and Rickert, no one in the Hawks wanted anything to do with him. He didn't mind. He preferred it that way.
Nidhogg was different. His unassuming demeanor quickly disarmed the Hawks' initial resistance to him. Then, he used the opportunity to complete his quests, gradually demonstrating his strength and earning their respect.
His first target was Rickert, who was eager to spar with him.
Rickert was one of the youngest Hawks. He wasn't skilled with a sword, preferring a crossbow. When he agreed to a practice bout with Nidhogg, he was defeated almost instantly.
He didn't feel ashamed, though. He thanked Nidhogg for the lesson.
The onlookers, however, were merciless with their teasing. Corkus laughed the loudest.
Corkus had a sharp, cunning face. He'd been a thief before joining the Hawks, and even now, he occasionally engaged in some less-than-honest activities. He was cynical and sharp-tongued.
Besides Casca, Corkus was the one who resented Guts the most.
But after witnessing Guts's fight with Griffith, and seeing that Nidhogg and Guts shared a tent, he didn't dare provoke Guts openly. He contented himself with watching the show.
He hadn't expected Nidhogg to turn the tables on him.
"I heard you're one of the veterans here," Nidhogg said, his tone deliberately provoking. "Rickert lost to me, a new recruit. Don't you want to show him how it's done?"
The watching Hawks immediately began to chant and jeer.
"Go on! Go on! Go on!" Corkus waved them off in disgust, then turned to face Nidhogg. He was nervous, but he couldn't back down now. "Fine. Let's do this."
Corkus also favored the longsword. He thought, If I can't beat Guts, I can't beat this guy either?
He was wrong.
He couldn't beat Nidhogg. He was disarmed in just two exchanges.
「Short-term Quest」 Defeat Rickert (Completed) / Defeat Corkus (Completed)
「Reward」 LV 21 → LV 22
Nidhogg had completed two quests back-to-back for a single level. The gains were slowing down considerably compared to before.
He'd saved Corkus some face by simply disarming him, not humiliating him further. He sheathed his longsword, stepped forward, and offered a hand to Corkus, who was sitting on the ground.
"Good form with the sword," Nidhogg said.
Corkus, initially mortified, was startled by the compliment. In front of everyone, Nidhogg had praised his swordsmanship.
His face reddened, and then he let out a sigh.
"Well, that's that." Corkus grabbed Nidhogg's hand and hauled himself up. Most of the resentment in his chest had dissolved. "You won. I lost. Fair and square."
「Short-term Quest」 Encounter Key Members of the Hawk Company (3/6)
Nidhogg saw the notification and smiled with satisfaction.
The quest was more than halfway done.
After that, Nidhogg and Corkus got along well. They'd greet each other, sometimes share a drink and some conversation. They gradually became friendly.
Nidhogg's next targets were Judeau and Pippin.
Judeau was a young man, skilled with throwing knives. Pippin was a giant of a man, quiet and strong, who favored a massive spiked club.
One was quick and agile, the other possessed almost superhuman strength. They presented a greater challenge.
But in the half-month since joining the Hawks, Nidhogg had been honing his swordsmanship, integrating the combat memories in his mind. With Guts as a regular sparring partner, his own skill had grown rapidly.
Even so, he only gained a single level from training. Then he defeated Judeau and Pippin, one after the other, gaining another level. He was now LV 24, closing in on the mid-term quest's requirement of LV 27.
Judeau and Pippin both acknowledged him. The "Encounter Key Members" quest was now at five-sixths complete. Only Casca remained.
Casca had heard about Nidhogg challenging people across the camp. The day after Judeau lost to Nidhogg, Corkus had even joked about it, saying Nidhogg would be coming for her sooner or later.
She had watched Nidhogg's fight with Pippin from the crowd.
When they'd finished, she said nothing. She just turned and walked away, her expression cold. No one could read her thoughts.
But Nidhogg didn't have time to seek out Casca for a duel. Griffith gave the order to break camp.
The Hawk Company was marching to join the army of the Kingdom of Midland. They were preparing to face the Tudor Empire's forces.
The Kingdom of Midland and the Tudor Empire were the two main combatants in the Hundred-Year War. The conflict had dragged on for a century, with no clear victor.
Griffith saw this war as his chance. He would demonstrate his command abilities and the Hawks' strength on this grand stage, earning the recognition he needed to fuel his ambition.
This war had to be fought. The Hawks had to shine. Otherwise, it was all meaningless.