Crusch thought over Hedin's words for some time. Then, she asked with a skeptical tone.
"And how did you come to know of those abilities? And what credibility do they hold?"
"To tell you the truth..." At this point, Hedin had already begun to realize that Crusch had some sort of lie detection ability. Something related to the wind, perhaps.
And so, he smiled lightly and said, "I have faced the white whale before."
Wilhelm's eyes widened at the back and he almost stepped forward. Almost. At the last moment, he realized where he was standing and composed himself; but his emotions were like a turbulent ocean.
Crusch's expression underwent some changes. It was skepticism at first. Then confusion and finally, it rested at light surprise.
"You're... not lying." Her eyes were a bit turbulent.
"Are you... also one of it's survivors?"
"Survivor?" Hedin chuckled. "I'm a hunter, Lady Crusch. And a hunter must hunt. I hold no more connection with the white whale than a tiger running down it's prey.
"To frame it as anything but would be giving the whale too much credit on my part."
Silence again descended onto the room.
Hedin felt Wilhelm's eyes turn a bit sharper, lingering too long on his own figure. Felix on the other hand offered no real change in his expression, yet his emotions told of his doubt.
Crusch on the other hand seemed to get more and more surprised.
She could feel that Hedin did not lie. He truly did consider the White Whale as a prey he wished to hunt; just like a hunter stalking his prey. However, that claim was as absurd as saying that the witches were good.
It was paradoxical. And in truth, full of idiocy.
Looking at Hedin, Crusch suddenly began to double think her choices. This man was clearly not right in the head.
There was no guarantee of his information proving to be credible. And even if her divine protection confirmed his words, it could also be that Hedin genuinely believed such things.
Truths and lies were subjective, after all.
Would she want to ally herself with an insane individual, risking not only her own life but also of the people under her? Immediately, she thought of an answer.
Of course not.
Her eyes took on a stern expression and she spoke in a voice of steel.
"Sir Hedin. Your claims, while they do seem tantalizing, are not how I imagine any sane man talking." She closed her eyes and shook her head. "Even the sword saint himself would not talk so lightly of one of the three great mabeasts. You're really making me double think my choices here."
Listening to her, Hedin again realized his blunder. Inwardly, he berated himself again.
He had, after his confrontation with the white whale, took it as not too bad of a threat. Of course, it had some tricks up it's sleeve and he was pretty sure that last fog attack was lethal. But he felt that if he met it again, he could take it on.
He had become stronger in the time he had been here and the power he had cradled and the glory he commanded had only grown more and more. Comparing the whale to the Order of the Hunt, he felt that if there were 5 of his comrades, they could all take on the whale.
Provided they were not caught off guard and were given some time to charge up on glory.
However, in that mindset, he had failed to account for how everyone else viewed the whale. They were insurmountable calamities, running rampant for centuries. Entire villages and even some small countries might go dark due to them. Of course, his words would sound nothing but the ravings of the insane.
They might have sounded terrific in hindsight but they weren't exactly what he should have said when negotiating an important military alliance.
Although he alone was enough to deal with the whale as is, especially now that he knew it was coming, he could not take on hundreds of people flanking a village though.
He cleared his throat and met her eyes again, prepared not to make any more mistakes.
"It might sound like mad ravings, Lady Crusch. But the white whale is no easy foe. Any information is the difference between victory and defeat. And since I too shall be partaking in the battle, do I have any real reason to lie?
"The whale is a pain for everyone. That is the reason I am proposing this alliance. That and if the witch cultists succeed in whatever they are trying, it will tarnish the reputation of my camp.
"Otherwise, my camp is perfectly capable of rallying towards the whale ourselves too. We have me, Lord Mathers, Emilia and the Great Spirit of the End. Quite a terrific lineup."
Crusch's eyes narrowed once again. The gears in her mind began to spin and thoughts began to arise unbidden.
Felix and Wilhelm didn't interject.
Eventually, after what felt like an eternity had passed, Crusch closed her eyes and slowly nodded her head.
"Very well then." She extended her hand to Hedin.
"It is an alliance then. An alliance against the whale and the cult."
Hedin eagerly shook her hand and chuckled.
"Pleasure doing business with you."
He always wanted to say that line.
...
"I still think we shouldn't fight the whale." Rem's worried voice rang in Hedin's room.
The sun had begun to slant towards the horizon, sending fingers of light filtering through the windows.
A dim shadow hung low in the room, grasping at their feet and Hedin faced Rem with a resolute expression.
"There's no way to avoid it... well, there is, but it'll slow us down."
"But still!" Rem exclaimed. "The white whale isn't something to take lightly! It's a legendary beast! We could... you could..."
Hedin sighed, feeling a bit helpless.
Sir Wilhelm... this is really too difficult. He thought to himself.
"Rem." He called out softly.
The woman in question looked down at her feet, refusing to meet his eyes.
"Everything in the world eventually dies." He continued.
"Everything needs to meet their end. Someday, randomly, one can find their end. You can never really say."
Rem's hand trembled a little.
"But."
Her eyes shot up, looking into his crimson pupils.
"I can promise you this. A Hunter doesn't die until the job is done.
"Everything eventually dies. But the Hunt is forever. And so long as the hunt is on, I shall never die."
Walking to her, he extended his arms and smiled.
"That is my promise to you. We shall both see a new day tomorrow and save Arlam Village. Do you trust me on that?"
His words turned the outside light into grains of sand that fell atop the room. The sunlight seemed to seek his figure out, falling onto his back and casting the shadow across Rem's considerably smaller frame.
Her eyes shone with intensity.
To her, Hedin seemed to be a behemoth, large and looming like a mountain.
And so, she gently closer her eyes and leaned into his arms; sighing a breath of relief.
"Stupid." She muttered, gently tapping his chest.
"Air head." Hedin shot back playfully.
And in the soft embers of a coming battle, cheerful laughter reverberated in the room.
...
As the sun set below the horizon, an army gathered in the Karsten estate.
Hundreds upon hundreds of people, all armored and ready with weapons. Each held a resolute expression, telling of their conviction.
They had a common goal - eliminate the white whale and avenge the fallen or die trying.
Preferably the former.
Hedin roamed around with Rem, sightseeing.
Their own ground dragons were not bred and trained for battle. They were trained for normal luggage carrying and travel.
And so, he needed to borrow one or two from Crusch. He himself was in no need of one. Once they started fighting, he would be zooming through the plains.
His current arsenal of magic when combined with glory allowed him to perform insane feats without too puch preparation time. Imagine what he could do now that he knew of the danger.
But Rem needed one.
Just when he was thinking which ground dragon would be their steed, he heard a soft roar.
Turning his head, he saw a familiar dragon with a long snout and dark brown scales running towards them.
As it approached, it skidded to a halt and gently rubbed it's face on his body.
"Oh!" Hedin exclaimed, remembering the beast. "You're Patrasche, right?"
The dragon roared again.
And so it was decided.
Turning to Rem, Hedin smirked.
"It seems our ride is chosen."
...
...
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