Fire!
Hurry! Hurry!
All right! Heave!
Storm the fortress! Go!
A reward awaits whoever brings me the general's head!
See you!
Wait!
That's Bazuso!
Bazuso, who slayed thirty men by himself?
The one who wrestled down a bear?
What is it?
Step forth if you want your head split!
What is the meaning of this?
Take him down and make a name for yourself!
You go!
No, you!
He's out of my league.
These useless mercenaries!
Aye.
Their balls have shrunk to the size of nuts!
Everyone!
Have no mercy here!
Gouge out their eyes and drape them in their guts!
Then feed them to the pigs!
Who's that?
He's still a kid.
Who does he answer to?
Look at his sword.
He's just showing off.
In the end he'll just get his head split.
His enemy is Bazuso, you know?
Ten coins.
What?
The price for killing that iron freak.
We're mercenaries. We don't live off honor like knights do.
How dare you insult Bazuso...
Should you prove reliable.
Very well.
If you slay him true to your word, then seven silver coins are yours come morning.
You're a stingy one.
All right then.
You're going to regret this, boy.
Are you so eager to risk your life for seven silver coins?
He's so fast!
Look! He has Bazuso on the defensive!
What's going on?
I've never seen him like this.
Who is that?
Shit!
Don't be too full of yourself!
Withhold your blade!
Your skills have earned you my utmost admiration—
Bazuso...
Now!
The enemy's morale is broken!
Charge!
Seems like we've found ourselves a capable one here.
I wonder who he's with.
This isn't the time to be in awe.
He stole all our momentum.
Take it up with our dim-witted general then.
It's not our fault.
Hey, Griffith.
Who do you think is stronger between you two?
Don't be absurd.
Griffith of course.
Egg of the High King
Okay, next.
This is your wage for two months' work, plus the reward.
Hey, want to rethink it?
I'll triple your wage.
The clerk said I could hire you as a knight.
That's a dream come true for mercs like us.
Dreams?
Can you eat those?
Wait!
I'm offering you social standing and money!
What more could you want?
I don't want to be tied down.
Next!
Bandits, huh?
Okay! Attack!
Fuck!
Look!
This bastard's the real deal!
Look, he's wiping the floor with them.
What do we do?
He's got Corkus scared out of his wits.
To be fair, that guy's monstrously strong.
Yeah.
His victory over Bazuso wasn't a fluke.
What now?
I told them.
Go, Casca.
Why? This was Corkus' idea.
Fine.
You go!
Why me? This was your stupid idea!
Shit!
Come back you idiot!
No!
Fall back!
I'm sorry!
That sword is huge.
A woman?
Eat this!
Our Casca is being driven back!
You kidding me?
I'm finished.
Griffith!
Be careful!
He's skilled!
Griffith...
And this is your last day.
Do it, Griffith.
Will you sheathe your sword?
Guess not.
So fast.
Shit...
Sweet mother.
He only needed a single strike.
Gri... ffith...
Hey!
What's going on here?
Where am I?
Why are you here?
Griffith should have killed you when he had the chance!
You...
This one's for my horse!
Shit...
That bitch...
Okay!
You ought to thank Casca.
You'd lost a lot of blood and a deathly chill gripped you,
so she shared your bed to keep you warm for two days and two nights.
What?
Griffith told her to.
He said it's a woman's duty to warm the man.
Looking for trouble, Judeau?
Sorry, sorry.
Seems you're up and well.
Good morning, Griffith.
I'm Griffith.
What's your name?
Guts.
An impressive sword.
I wouldn't be able to swing it.
Will you walk with me?
Hey, Griffith.
Griffith.
Hey!
Well aren't you the popular one?
Hey...
Excellent.
That bastard...
Has he risen from the grave already?
Griffith.
What a peculiar atmosphere.
Where am I?
We're the Band of the Hawk.
Do you know us?
Yes.
You're one of the mercenary troupes no one wants to face on the battlefield.
You gave us a really hard time during that siege.
I see. Those were these people, huh?
Yes.
We're the Band of the Hawk.
I like the view.
Why?
Why did you avert your slash?
You could've easily killed me.
Because I want you, Guts.
Is that where your interests lie?
I saw your duel with Bazuso.
You were splendid.
It was a close call, though.
If his battle axe hadn't cracked,
your brains would've been the ones splattered in the dirt.
Sure would.
You're an honest soul.
The way you fight seems to me...
like you want to test whether you're truly alive.
It looks to me as if you purposely push yourself within an inch of your life
only to come back struggling tooth and nail.
That's the feeling I get.
You are an interesting one.
I want you, Guts.
And if I refuse?
Will you?
Absolutely!
You, pretending to know it all...
Big words for someone
who almost killed me!
Let's settle it!
If I win, I'll give you a gash in the chest to match my own.
And if I win?
You can make me your soldier or your whore. I don't care.
Very well.
Brute force appeals to me.
Griffith.
Don't interfere, Casca.
But...
I will get what I want.
I can't stomach that conceited attitude!
Fuck!
Hey, look!
That bastard's at it again!
Don't interfere!
Griffith's orders!
We can postpone this.
Your wounds haven't healed yet.
You're at a disadvantage.
Shut up!
Griffith!
Foul play!
You'll do anything to win.
This is getting increasingly interesting.
But you can't use your sword.
What now?
You can yield.
You talk too much.
Let me show you how to use your mouth in battle!
Griffith!
How do you like the taste of your own blood?
First time someone hit you?
Sorry your henchmen have to see this.
This is the end!
All right!
He's won!
You did well.
But this is it.
Will you yield?
Or would you prefer to have your shoulder dislocated?
Pick.
Asshole!
Okay!
Serves you right!
Now you belong to me.
He's never said that.
Griffith has never said that to anyone before.
So now I'm a member of the Band of the Hawk too, huh?
Guts, you will work for me.
You will work for what is important to me.
I will have my own country.
I will decide where you die, Guts.
Three Years Later
Maintain formation!
Show the dogs of Tudor the pride of Midland!
Don't let them escape!
Kill all that move!
The Black Sheep Iron Spears Heavy Knights are truly horrific.
Our forces are taking heavy casualties.
This command post will soon be endangered.
Where are they?
They who will defeat the black devils of Tudor...
Charge!
The Black Sheep Iron Spears Heavy Knights will take the Midland king's head!
How preposterous!
A single horseman against us?
Very well!
I shall trample you into the dust!
Ridiculous!
General Gien was slain in a single slash!
The enemy is alone!
Surround him!
But...
An attack from our rear?
That's...
The Band of the Hawk!
The reapers of the battlefield.
Why are they with Midland?
The Tudor army is on the retreat.
What a farce.
The tides of battle are not turned by a single mercenary.
The Band of the Hawk exceeds expectations.
Indeed. They have proven their money's worth.
They simply profited from the element of surprise.
You're giving them too much credit.
You cannot debate the fact that they defeated the invincible Black Sheep.
Their subsequent attack was extremely skillful.
They read the enemy's movements.
Both...
What is their leader called?
Griffith, Your Majesty.
Griffith...
Guts!
You were amazing, Guts!
You show-off, charging in by yourself.
Sorry. I rode off without permission.
Too afraid to stop and think.
It doesn't suit the commander.
Where are you going? We won.
Let's go drink to victory.
Yeah, let's.
Let's all drink!
Women!
Call some women!
Tonight, I'm getting wasted!
All right!
Follow me!
Why are you in charge, Corkus?
Guts is the one who saved the day.
Let's stick to custom.
Guts.
We need to talk.
Will you come with me,
Commander?
What were you trying to do out there?
What do you mean?
Don't play dumb.
Your job was to divert the enemy, nothing more.
Instead, you rushed ahead of your comrades and charged into the enemy ranks by yourself.
That might work sometimes,
but your ego could end up endangering the entire Band!
Mind your position!
Sorry.
I'll be more careful from now.
You haven't changed.
Those are just empty promises.
You haven't changed at all over the last three years.
All you want is to swing that sword of yours around the battlefield.
You don't spare a single thought for your comrades!
You're just a mad dog!
You're wrong!
I'm no longer my old self!
I'm do think about my comrades.
Drop it, you two.
Griffith!
I'll tell him myself.
You're too soft on him.
You two really don't get along.
It's not my fault!
She always attacks me.
Yes, perhaps, but it's been three years already.
Get along, you two.
Three years, huh?
Yeah.
Three years since our duel.
That fight was fun.
That's how fighting ought to be like.
Let's go, then.
You've got people drinking to your name this evening.
Griffith...
I'm sorry about today's battle.
Fight for me, Guts.
You belong to me.
Have you heard about the man Griffith?
Yes. A truly alarming state of affairs.
It's true that since we have recruited the Band of the Hawk, we have been undefeated.
They are mercenaries.
Money is their only master.
During peacetime, they are no more than common bandits.
To praise men like them to the sky would be a foolish idea.
Verily. They belong in the gutter.
Handle them incorrectly and they will be nothing but trouble.
But if we hadn't employed them, Tudor would surely have burned us to the ground.
True.
Besides, I understand His Majesty's willingness in this matter.
That may be so, but—
Aye.
That may be so, but elevating a commoner to nobility is just not acceptable.
His Majesty is too whimsical.
I'm given to understand the Band of the Hawk was granted the honor of the vanguard in the last battle.
What?
Then what about Count Julius and his White Dragon Knights?
Relieved of their post, presumably.
Were Tudor to hold His Majesty captive, surely would they demand an exorbitant ransom.
The enemy, Lord Vodais, has died on the field.
Guts' column is still fighting the remnants of his army.
He seems to have unusual difficulty with them.
I didn't expect the fortress to be this difficult to take.
Why didn't you tell me sooner?
Well...
Someone said there's a huge treasure inside.
We heard screams in quick succession.
All the ones who went to check...
Whatever! I'll go.
Let go, Gaston!
Let me ask Griffith's generals for support, then.
Do that and I'll kill you.
Commander!
Don't follow me.
What happened to these corpses?
What on Earth...
Zodd the Immortal?
Yeah.
It seems he's come to bolster the enemy lines for this battle.
You mean Zodd the legendary mercenary?
They say the number of people he's killed could populate an entire country.
Zodd isn't feared simply because he's powerful.
Songs have been sung of his deeds for two hundred years now.
Two hundred years?
That's the reason they're calling him the Immortal.
So strong... Too strong.
My praise to you, boy.
It is rare indeed that I should exchange blows with someone for so long.
I see.
Our swordsmanship is at least on par.
Splendid.
Never has one targeted my sword.
You are the first man to bury his blade this deep in my flesh.
I am delighted.
Perhaps I have lived all these three hundred years merely
so that I would meet a foe such as you.
Impossible.
These kinds of monsters shouldn't exist.
Fight me!
Do not disappoint me.
Is this the extent of your power?
No.
For a human it has been most astounding.
Is that Zodd?
Focus!
Second row!
Fire!
Feel my wrath!
Who dares abase my battle?
Run! Run!
Casca! Lead the retreat!
Griffith will... fight him?
Guts.
You idiot...
Why did you come?
Voice your complaints after we've escaped.
Fight me!
Fight me until your limbs decorate the walls!
Oh, shit!
Griffith!
Can you move?
We're dead if I can't.
You take the left.
Now!
Guts! We have to run for it right now!
Griffith!
How fortuitous that I should meet two men that could wound me on the same day,
and how deplorable that I should lose them both so soon thereafter.
Stop!
He's my...
My...
Farewell, human.
It cannot!
The Egg of the High King...
Why is the Crimson Behelit here?
I see.
I see what artifice this is.
A warning, boy.
Nay, a prophecy.
If you consider yourself a true friend of this man,
then prepare yourself.
When the designs of this man come to naught,
death will come for you.
A death you cannot possibly escape!
What is that?
A demon?
What was that?
But otherwise...
True friend?
My death?
It makes no sense.
What was he saying?
Come to it, Griffith!
Griffith, are okay?
Don't come closer!
It's your fault this happened to Griffith.
It's your fault!
You haven't changed at all over the last three years.
You're just a mad dog!
It's your fault this happened to Griffith.
It's your fault!
Shit.
What's her deal?
Don't be upset.
You got hit much worse than I did, yet look at you.
You're a stone of a man.
Nosferatu Zodd?
I find his existence less than humorous.
If you look at it another way,
it's proof there are creatures in this world that the human intellect cannot fathom.
Gods, perhaps.
Don't you mean devils?
Same thing.
Oh, right.
That thing you always have dangling around your neck.
That monster, you know...
It flew off when it saw that.
What is it?
A behelit.
I got it from a old fortune teller a long time ago.
Those who wear it are destined to hold the world in their grasp in return for their own flesh and blood.
The world, huh?
You have a terrible sense of humor.
Don't startle me like that.
I liked it.
That part of you will never change.
Nothing about me
will ever change.
Why?
I'm no more to you than any of your other soldiers.
Why come save me?
No reason in particular.
Do I need a reason every time I risk my life for you?
No, I...
Have your wounds already healed?
Your Majesty.
Hey, Guts.
You are in the presence of the king!
Show due respect!
Very well.
Raise your heads.
Lord Griffith.
Your Band of the Hawk has performed as admirably as always.
You honor me.
Your Majesty, offering such praise to who may as well be a newcomer is unheard of.
What harm is there in doing so?
It is undeniable that among the high nobility there is considerable disdain for those of low birth.
However, social status and dignity do not win wars.
Instead, I have chosen to put my hopes in you, whose abilities excel in that domain.
I am undeserving of such praise.
Words fail me to express my gratitude.
Who is the girl I see?
She is my daughter, Charlotte.
She dislikes stern men of arms, and has seldom left the castle.
Charlotte.
She is my only daughter, and I fear I have spoiled her.
Forgive me, Lord Griffith.
Let us go, Charlotte.
Are you unhurt?
My apologies.
Please be careful.
Um...
How dare you tarnish the princess' chastity so!
Listen, you old asshole!
I apologize for my transgression, Your Excellency.
That should be enough.
Now, princess.
Your father awaits you.
Yes, dear uncle.
Hey, why do we have to take part in this highborn pastime?
Ridiculous.
This is also part of the job.
Doesn't this beat leading a sortie on the battlefield?
Chances are that you won't end the day full of arrows or missing half of your face.
This one agrees with me.
You're no more than a killer.
Corkus, what are you...
Shut it!
Until now, only highborn knights were trusted to escort the king's hunt.
We should be honored.
All these years of toiling through the mud of the battlefield for this very purpose.
And you call it ridiculous?
Corkus!
If you want to swing your sword around that much, then do it alone, you brainless butcher.
Would you not call all this exceedingly exquisite?
We shall speak later.
Do you dislike the hunt?
The enjoyment men find in spilling blood leaves me perplexed.
During hunt and war both...
Oh, my!
Do this, my princess.
Your Excellency.
Wait.
Bide your time.
Hey! It went that way!
Corner it!
Please, stop!
Have no fear!
Calm down!
Are you hurt?
What is wrong?
I was so afraid!
My heart is still galloping.
I'm so...
We ought to have paid more attention.
Let us return.
The others are worried.
Griffith!
Guts!
Griffith!
Shit!
Griffith!
Hey, Princess!
What the hell happened?!
Where did the bolt come from?
This hurts...
Griffith!
Griffith...
Don't cry, Casca.
Griffith.
What about the bolt?
Don't touch it.
It's probably coated in poison.
But then...
No.
This shielded me.
The Egg of the High King.
Are you kidding?
You had that?
You're so lucky.
Unbelievable.
This is no ordinary stroke of luck.
This is a miracle.
I'll follow them through the thicket over there.
Griffith,
take off your armor.
We need to check for wounds.
This poison...
was expensive.
Really?
What are you doing?
Do you think you are fit for the White Dragon Knights with that kind of swordsmanship?
We're done here!
Father! I can still...
Adonis, my Lord.
We need to bandage your wounds.
It is precisely because you are so important to him that he subjects you to such harsh discipline.
Please do not resent him.
Assassinate?
Whom?
The second in line to the throne.
Count Julius, the White Dragon General.
The bolt that hit me was coated in poison.
A deadly poison the royal family has used for generations to assassinate those who oppose them.
This will be ugly.
Failure is out of the question.
Don't let yourself be identified.
That is precisely why I want you to do it.
Will you do it?
This ain't like you.
Just give me an order and stop grumbling.
Like always.
It grieves me to say this, but I fear you might have been a little—
Quiet, Hassan.
Adonis will not be a child forever.
He mustn't expect to get away with fulfilling his future duties as half-heartedly as he did today.
But...
That will be all. Leave me.
I will not be defeated here!
How did he end up being hailed as the hero who protected the princess now?
Wind?
Hey, Hassan!
Burglars!
I... I know you...
You are... Griffith's...
Hey...
No, I'm sure I heard something...
Someone's there!
An intruder!
Hey, is that...
Lord Adonis!
You bastard!
An intruder!
Fuck.
Fuck!
He has to be close!
Be prepared!
Why Adonis as well?
This is... so cruel...
Spread out!
Find him and don't led him escape from the castle!
There he is!
On the western ramparts!
Flank him!
Right about now, Griffith must dining on much finer food at the princess' banquet.
Perhaps, but when attended by people who aren't used to such events, it's probably just stiff and ceremonious.
What are you saying?
If you can eat as much good food as you want and bang some highborn ladies with oil in their hair, that's a small price to pay, right?
Bang, huh?
The whole thing is hosted by Charlotte.
You and your pipe dreams...
By the way, where's Guts?
Haven't seen him since morning.
He's probably off somewhere practicing by himself, that brainless butcher.
Please, Pippin.
Our columns were supposed to practice together today.
He never even offered an excuse.
That...
Guts!
Where were you wandering off all day?
Where's Griffith?
Griffith was invited to Charlotte's banquet...
He's probably at the Prom Rose mansion...
I see.
Hey! I'm not done talking to you!
Guts!
An arrow wound?
What a nice wind...
I simply can't seem to fit in with them.
I'm a little tired.
Here, Lady Charlotte.
Oh, my!
Thank you.
Wait.
Are you going to show up before him looking like that?
Don't make him lose face.
If you have some business with him, wait until those two are done talking.
I need this for a minute.
Hey...
Why do men like to shed blood,
you asked.
You are right in saying that it is one of the facets we, men, possess.
However, it is but a tool to obtain what our heart desires and keep it from harm's way.
I believe it to be a double-edged blade.
What your heart desires...
a lover?
No, a knight's honor?
Both are important, aren't they?
Fighting and dying for love and honor is what a knight desires above all else.
But for men there exists something even more important than that.
You know of it, I believe.
More important?
It is a dream formulated and fostered for your own sake.
A dream?
Men are entranced by their dreams regardless of birth, rank or social standing.
The dream supports them.
It makes them suffer and it breathes new life into them.
And it kills them.
Even after they've given up on it,
it continues to smolder in their hearts.
All men have a dream at least once in their lives.
They imagine themselves being martyrs to the god their dream has become.
Others live on powerlessly, birthed into the world.
I could not endure such a life.
Excuse me.
That must have been dreadfully boring for a lady such as yourself.
No, no.
You are...
an unusual person, Griffith.
You are nobler than any aristocrat,
and yet you've taught me to whistle with leaves.
You were akin to a child who grew up playing in the fields.
Now you play the role of a philosopher.
Your friends must be following you because of your charisma as well.
They are my precious comrades with whom I have escaped death many times before.
I would not call them friends, though.
Friends do not cling to another's dream.
They live for their own sake.
If there are those that oppose their dream,
then they resist them with all their heart and soul.
Even should it be me.
I believe that friends must
stand on an even ground.
Sir Griffith,
what is your dream?
Princess!
What is it?
This is huge!
Your uncle, Count Julius, has passed away!
What?
He was assassinated!
Somebody snuck into his castle and even killed his son Adonis!
The castle is in chaos!
The banquet has been aborted.
You are to return to the castle at once.
Those are His Majesty's orders.
Soldiers will be here soon.
Please make preparations at once.
We're going back, Guts.
If the Tudors were behind this, then the war...
Guts?
Preview
There's no time for doubt.
How will I strike?
How will I kill?
That's all.
I just wanted to be his blade...
What?
That castle is just somewhat large.
If we just follow Griffith's orders as always, we can't lose.
Lay down your lives!
There is no other way to survive!
We win if we survive!
Golden Age Chapter II The Capture of Doldrey
I thought I would bear witness myself.
To see what Griffith and the Band of the Hawk have done,
and just what he has attained.
And also,
what he is set on attaining in the future.
Opens To The Public June 2012