Predecessors

As the midday sun began to pass, the duo stopped at the top of a small hill.

As Edward looked down at the valley below, his eyes widened and his jaw opened in fascination.

“Whoa…” He murmured.

It was an endless field of lush green grass, dotted with darker bushes. Here and there, small herds of sheep, horses, and cows grazed the dew-covered plants, while shepherds stood on guard nearby.

Colette grinned at him. “Beautiful, isn’t it? We call this The Sun-Blessed Frontier. And over at the center of the field…”

She pointed ahead to the shadow of a town in the distance.

“is the Outpost. We can rest and have lunch when we get there. But for now, let’s take a break and let our horses graze.”

Once they reached the bottom of the hill, they climbed off their horses, and Colette gave hers a pat on the side.

“Snack time, Julius.” She said affectionately.

The big horse huffed in acknowledgement, then walked into the field and lowered its head to nibble some grass.

Edward looked at his horse, which turned its head to meet his eyes. After an uncomfortable staring match, he awkwardly gestured to the field.

“Um…eat up, fella.” He ordered.

The horse stared at him a moment longer, then went to join Julius in grazing the grass. Meanwhile, Colette chuckled and patted Edward hard on the back, which almost made him fall forward.

“Show some more backbone, Hero!” She said jovially. “The horse doesn’t disrespect you, but it’d be much happier if you showed it some more care! Why don’t you give it a name?”

“It’s just a horse…” He grumbled while rubbing his back.

He let out a weary sigh and sat down on the grass, then stretched his legs as they felt a little numb from the riding. Colette did the same and stretched her arms, then reached into her pack and took out two pieces of jerky.

“Here, try this.” She said while handing him one.

He hesitantly took it, then took a small bite. He blinked as he chewed, taking in the full flavor.

“Salty…” He remarked, then took another bite. “A little spicy…Peppers?”

Colette chomped her own in half. “Mmm…yep! Simple, yet delicious, yeah?”

The clerk nodded in agreement, and for a while they fell into silence.

‘It’s all so…clean, and clear.’ Edward thought with intrigue. ‘Animals on Earth…could never look so healthy and free.’

“This land is beautiful.” He remarked, glancing at Colette.

She grinned with pride. “Nothing like yours, huh? You’re looking awfully relaxed now, ya know.”

He blinked in surprise, then looked aside with a frown. “Whatever…”

He shifted his focus to the blue sky, which was far more clear than the one on Earth. He took a deep breath, and let the cool breeze drift over him.

‘She’s right though…’ He thought with drowsy eyes. ‘When was the last time I relaxed like this?’

It only took another minute for his eyes to close completely, and for the darkness of sleep to overtake him.

__________________________________________

“Hey, wake up!”

Edward gasped and bolted upright as he heard a girl, though she didn’t sound like Colette…

He looked around in a daze, until his eyes fell upon a peculiar duo beside him.

“What the hell?” He muttered in confusion.

They were both girls around high school age. One had shoulder-length blonde hair, and the other sported a familiar shade of orange hair with long twintails.

The blondie, who wore a fencing uniform, was on her back with her hands behind her head, and smiling in a drowsy yet cocky way. The ginger, who sported a golden tiara and matching armor over a red blouse, had her hands on her hips as she stood over her companion.

“We can’t afford to laze around here, ya know?” She scolded.

“I’m just enjoying the new world.” The blonde girl said nonchalantly. “I’ve never slept on such soft ground before. Or any ground, really. The air is so clean too…”

Her eyes started to close again, but the other girl quickly leaned down to grab her collar and haul her up.

“Don’t you fall asleep on me, idiot!” The ginger complained, shaking her back and forth. “What kind of Chosen One takes a nap on the job!?”

‘Wow, what a bitch…’ Edward thought with twitching eyes.

He then blinked as he registered what she just said.

‘Wait…Chosen One? What’s going on here?’

The blonde fencer opened her eyes and winked. “Yeah yeah, I get it! You can let go of me, Jenny.”

The orange-haired girl’s lips wavered, and her face turned the same color as her blouse. She clutched the female Chosen One harder for a second, then released her and turned around with a huff.

“Hmph, it’s Princess Jenette!” She said while crossing her arms. “Ser Anastasia, you should know your place!”

Anastasia just grinned cheekily. “Alright, alright! But call me Anne, would you?”

The dream faded as Jenette stormed off, with Anne right on her heels.

________________________________________

Edward’s eyes opened for real this time, and he groggily staggered to his feet. At the same time, Colette stood up beside him with an amused smirk.

“About time you got up! The day is nearly over!” She announced.

He looked at the sky and saw the orange glow of the setting sun, and put a hand over his face in embarrassment.

“Dammit, I didn’t mean to fall asleep…” He grumbled.

Colette shrugged. “Eh, it’s fine. We’ll just have a late dinner when we get there. And the horses are happy.”

She pointed to the field ahead, where their steeds were laying on the ground in a content manner. She then beckoned Edward over as she began to walk towards them.

“Come on, let’s get moving!”

He shook his head in a weary manner, then went to catch up to her.

Minutes later, while they were riding on the horses, he thought about his earlier dream and what it meant.

‘That blonde girl was called The Chosen One, just like me. And that princess…Jenette? Is she related to Colette?’

The Devil herself noticed his troubled frown, and spoke up in a concerned manner.

“Hey, what’s on your mind?”

“Well…I had a weird dream.” He said with slight hesitation. “Is there anyone in your family named Jenette?”

Colette smirked knowingly. “Heh, that’s my great-grandmother, the previous Star Maiden! A real legend, she was!”

Edward blinked in surprise. “You mean…this whole thing happened before?”

“Yep, Nocturne tried to destroy everything once before, and back then it was my great-grandmother who was Solaris’s Star Maiden.”

Colette looked at the orange sky with a wistful smile on her face.

“They say Princess Jenette was the fiercest one of them all. Alongside the Hero Anastasia, she ended a century-long war with our neighboring kingdom, Draconis.”

Edward nodded, though his mind was on something else.

“That Hero of Worlds before me was in my dream too. What happened to her?”

“Well, she went on to save the universe. After that, she returned to Solaris and wedded Princess Jenette, thereby becoming her Consort. The Goddess Lumina then blessed them with a child, and the family line continued.”

However, the current hero’s thoughts were stuck on the ‘save the universe’ part. The more he thought about it, the more his eyes darkened in despair.

‘So even if I do somehow manage to complete this damn mission…there’s no guarantee this won’t happen again in the future? This is just…’

Colette, having noticed his silence, gave him a stern frown.

“Hey, I can guess what you’re thinking.” She said in a warning tone. “Don’t you dare say this is pointless.”

“But it is!” He snapped, scowling angrily. “We’re fighting a god who will just come back after we’ve beaten him! Don’t you realize that sooner or later, someone will fail and he will destroy everything?”

“So what? You’re just gonna stop fighting because the enemy won’t?”

Edward opened his mouth to retort, then closed it and looked down with a frustrated sigh.

“...What’s the point of trying to stop suffering, if it will never end?”

Colette shook her head. “Who knows, maybe it will. We won’t ever know if we don’t try. So chin up, and man up. Maybe that’s what our predecessors are trying to tell you.”

She grinned in a devilish manner and jerked a thumb to the longsword on her back.

“And I’ll whip ya into shape, whether you like it or not! I’m not gonna let you be a disappointment to those who came before us.”

Edward’s eyes widened with a tinge of dread, and he remembered how Colette fought the Champion the other day.

‘...This is not gonna end well…’ He thought in a defeated tone.

_________________________________________

Once they reached The Outpost, they left their horses in a stable by the gate and got cleared by a guard to pass through.

As they walked through the small town, Edward looked around at the buildings. Compared to the houses and shops in Leoneburg, the ones here were notably cheaper, being made of polished wood as opposed to stone. The streets were fewer and wider, making room for market stalls that were closed for the evening.

While there was a lack of people at this time, the few roaming around stopped to look at Colette with jaws dropped in awe.

“I-it’s Princess Colette!”

“It’s a pleasure to welcome you, milady!”

She chuckled and waved her hand. “Thank you, thank you!”

‘She’s really eating the attention…’ Edward thought with a look of disbelief.

A minute later, they arrived at an inn, where they were greeted by a glasses-wearing innkeeper.

“P-Princess Colette!” She stammered, bringing a hand to her red cheek. “How unexpected!”

The Princess grinned. “Hey Melissa, looking cute as always! I need to book two rooms for the night, if possible.”

“Of course, let me find some keys…”

After rummaging under the desk, Melissa brought out two gold keys and handed them to Colette.

“There you go. Is um…there anything else you need?”

Colette shook her head and took out a coin pouch. “Nah, that’s all. Here’s the fee, with an extra tip.”

She placed a few silver coins on the desk, then went to the stairs. As Edward followed her, he glanced back at the visibly disappointed and sullen innkeeper.

“Of course, she only has eyes for…” She murmured.

_________________________________________

When Edward opened the door to his room, he was met with a rather simple layout. A single bed was positioned in one corner, with a nightstand right beside it. A small table stood in the opposite corner, and a plate of cookies was placed on it.

‘Not as flashy compared to the one in the castle.’ He thought with a relieved sigh. ‘I like it more like this…’

As he went to set his things by the bed, Colette spoke from behind with an eager tone.

“You’re gonna love the food at the bar! They have some of the best meat dishes in the kingdom!”

Edward held a hand over his stomach, which was equal parts hungry and queasy.

‘That sounds good, but…’ He thought with hesitance.

“...I’ll pass, I’m not hungry.” He muttered as he sat on the bed.

Colette raised an eyebrow, but shrugged. “Eh, suit yourself. But I won’t let you ditch breakfast tomorrow.”

She walked out and shut the door behind her, and Edward rolled onto his side and stared at the wall. He replayed the earlier dream in his head, confused about what it meant for him.

‘Why am I dreaming about the past? Is the previous Chosen One trying to tell me something?’

He sighed in slight frustration and rolled onto his back, his eyes now focused on the ceiling.

‘Whatever…All I know is that there was a hero before me, and she succeeded. Yet, that god came back anyway, and now it’s my turn to save the universe…But can I really do it? And even if I can, won’t he just come back again?’

He shook his head and closed his eyes.

“Does this fight…really have an end?” He said quietly.

It took him a while to fall asleep. Thankfully, no more dreams came to disturb his slumber.