From the looks of it, it was a Selevas soldier, but considering his current situation that was no longer comforting. They appeared to be coming from the same direction that he had. They couldn't have followed him out here?
It was impossible for anyone from the capital to have followed him this far. He had used the Amethyst Ring to warp himself all the way out here, and even the hero wouldn't be able to figure out where he had gone.
That meant it had to be someone already out here, but there hadn't been any soldiers in Tel when he had left. Had one of the soldiers that the hero had sent out here already made it to Tel and gotten word of him?
He had tried to be as discreet as possible, but it wasn't crazy to think that someone could have figured out who he was. His former position came with a problematic amount of fame.
Whoever it was, there weren't many knights in the kingdom that could match him. He would just have to knock them out and be more careful about covering his tracks.
"Captain, is that you?" The soldier called out at him before he was near enough for Bjorn to make him out.
He knew that voice, but that was impossible. "If you're really who I think you are then you would already know."
"Fair enough," the boy said, galloping the rest of the way over to Bjorn. "But you taught me that it's rude to take advantage of my senses when interacting with normal people, and stupid to make them obvious to anyone else."
"Gerold, what are you doing out here? I assume they wouldn't have sent you of all people after me?"
"You've already taught me everything you know. I think I'd at least have a fighting chance by now." The boy pulled one of his spears off his back and hurled it at Bjorn, who easily picked it out of the air.
"You've got at least four or five years before your abilities catch up to your bloated opinion of yourself," Bjorn said with a chuckle, tossing the spear back. He put his sword away, but didn't lower his guard.
As arrogant as the boy could be, it wasn't entirely without merit. He was by far the most talented trainee that Bjorn had ever seen, and despite barely being past sixteen, he didn't doubt that the boy would be a match for him in just a few years. Bjorn couldn't fathom how he had followed him all the way out here.
"I think you had better tell me what you're doing out here." There was no need to ask how he had done it. No doubt he was about to get it in more detail than he would ever need.
"There's no way that anyone who knows anything would actually think that you would kill the king. The royal guard was wiped out in the space of a day, and I wanted to know why." A self satisfied grin quickly replaced his solemn expression. "The whole kingdom is in an uproar trying to find you. The hero put a thousand gold bounty on your head. Frankly, I don't know why nobody else could figure out where you had gone. You've gotten predictable in your old age."
Bjorn didn't think it was quite as obvious as the boy insisted. He had warped himself to where they had laid the Battle Queen to rest just a week before. Well it was probably enough for Gerold to say that nobody else could figure it out. Others might draw the connection, but see it as too obvious, while Gerold just went with his instincts without really thinking about it that much.
"So you followed me all the way out here just to figure out something that anyone could tell you? I'm sure the hero has made all of that public knowledge by now." He had trouble mentioning the hero without feeling dirty.
"Actually nobody really knows. The hero just said that you and the royal guard had been plotting to kill the king."
"And nobody questioned that?"
Gerold swallowed, showing more hesitation than Bjorn thought he had ever seen from him. "A few have questioned it in a way."
"What do you mean?"
"Well your good friend the Duke of Selene asked for elaboration on your motives. He said that as great a fool as you were, you weren't treasonous."
The Duke of Selene was a nasty man as far as Bjorn was concerned. He was corrupt and as disconnected as a man could possibly be from the needs of the people. "Of all the people to take my side," Bjorn muttered. "So what happened?"
"That's the thing. The Duke came forward just after you escaped, and that caused as big an uproar as you'd imagine. The hero had whipped everyone into a frenzy, but seeing someone who hated you as much as the Duke of Selene say that got people thinking." Gerold paused.
"Since when did you become so hesitant," Bjorn asked. It wasn't like Gerold to not just blurt out everything he thought.
"It's not that…Nobody really knows what happened. The hero called the Duke aside to discuss, and he came back carrying the Duke's head claiming that he had been part of your coup."
Bjorn was speechless.
"As I'm sure you'll agree, that just made things worse, and when I left the entire city was divided. Most people smartly realize that you two would never have worked together, particularly not to kill the king, but there's a small, but growing faction who are just eating up anything the hero says."
Bjorn didn't think he could hate the hero any more than he already did, but every word that Gerold said just seemed to stoke the flames. This was the time when humanity needed to come together. Kingdoms had to put aside differences, feuds had to be quelled, and grudges put aside for the sake of everyone's continued existence.
Ever since this new hero had appeared, things had been getting worse and worse. It was easy to set aside his own hurts and grievances, but could he do the same for the entire kingdom?
Could he afford to go back and create even more strife before the Great War? Could he afford to do nothing and let Selevar crumble before it could even stand against the demons? Selevar had led the coalition of humanity for as long as anyone could remember. What would happen if it was torn apart before the war started?
"I already know you didn't kill the king. It seems obvious that it was the hero, but I wanted to hear from you.
"I didn't kill the king, and it is no longer my concern who did it." He forced the words out despite not feeling them at all. He had to think this way for the sake of humanity. "I will find a way to fight against the demons on my own."
"You aren't going to come back?" Gerold sounded disappointed. "The hero has already dragged you and your reputation through the dirt, and now he's doing the same to the rest of the kingdom."
"My name and position mean nothing to me as long as there remains the looming threat of demons. Just because humanity has won every war so far doesn't mean that it is guaranteed. The Battle Queen herself spoke about the intensity of the war. I won't let my own pride get in the way."
Gerold looked frustrated, but when he spoke again there was no sign of it in his voice. "Well, in that case I'll stick with you. I'm already miles stronger than all the bimbos that the hero set up in the new Royal Guard, so there's no reason for me to go back. What's the plan?"
If it had been nearly anyone else, Bjorn would have turned them away without another thought. Gerold, however, was someone that he knew wouldn't slow him down. He wouldn't have to keep an eye out for the boy. Still…
"You should go back and fight with the rest of the kingdom. They're going to need knights like you when the fighting starts."
"I'll bet whatever you have planned will be way more helpful than anything they set me to doing back there," he said with disdain. "Even if it isn't, at least I'll still have someone that I can learn from." Despite the apparent concession, his tone made it clear that he didn't think he would have things to learn for much longer.
Bjorn did not, in fact, have some incredible plan like Gerold seemed to think, but he did have a feeling and if he had learned one thing over the years, it was that he had to trust his instincts. Perhaps Gerold had gotten more from him than he realized.
His mind made up, there was no more room for small talk. "We'll set up camp here and leave first thing in the morning. Catalog our supplies and tie the horses, we have an early morning ahead of us."