Defender of the Planet

Huh? I get the feeling there's something going on outside the village...

Kreh! Kreeeeh!

A monster?! What's it doing here?

I've gotta stop it before it gets to Pador and causes some real trouble!

Graaawr!

Why is it acting so strange?

It seems so strong, yet its hits feel like nothing at all? It's like it's trying to pull its punches on purpose or something.

That's enough, small one. I will banish the monster, as is the rule.

Huh? Rule? Hey, wait!

Grrr!

You pitiful creature... Has the miasma corrupted you so much that you have forgotten your duty?

Hahhh!!!

Whoa! You okay?! You just took that hit straight on! You know what, stay back. I'll finish it, !

Do NOT interfere!

Raaahhh!

It...ran away?

I see... Fate soon comes for him as well...

Hey, um...sir? Why did you let that monster go? You seem plenty strong, you could have killed it easily.

...Because that is not our way.

Not your way? You mean that rule you mentioned before?

Yes, one of our most ancient rules at that. A rule protected by all defenders of the village. Monsters of that ilk do not approach titan homes normally. It is the curse which bids them do so. That is why we must do no more than turn them away.

But...

Hey! Are you all right?!

I thought I heard a monster over here... Oh, Elder! You didn't do anything reckless again, did you?

...I'll be on my way.

H-Hey, hold on! Shouldn't we treat your injuries first?!

There is no need.

Do you know him? He didn't seem like a bad guy...

It is...a long story. Do you mind coming over to my place? I'd like to ask you a favor.

A favor? Sure! I'll help if I can. And, you know, I like a good long story.

Glad to hear it! I'll head on over and meet you there.

Welcome! Glad you could make it, small one.

Yeah! So, what was the favor you wanted to ask me about?

I want you to give this to the elder.

Medicine? Why can't you just give it to him yourself?

I wish it were that easy. Unfortunately, he's too stubborn for his own good. He's a stubborn man, you see. Despite his age, he acts as if he his wounds will just heal on their own and refuses any medical treatment.

Now that you mention it, he did just kind of leave when you tried to help back there.

Can you tell me more about him?

He has lived in the village longer than anyone I know. He's what we call a guardian.

A guardian? So he's like a soldier?

You could say that. Guardians used to work as protectors of the village. They were responsible for keeping the village safe from monsters that lost their sanity to the dark god's curse. The elder is the last one left, though.

Why's that?

Because even without guardians around, the village is safe enough as it is. Plus, no one wants to live by their strict rules.

Oh, yeah... He mentioned one of those rules when he chased that monster off.

Yes. "One must not slay the forest monsters of old."

But isn't it dangerous to just let them go?

He says, because of the miasma, they're so easy to spot that chasing them off is good enough.

...But isn't that more of a reason not to let them go?

Beats me. I'll never understand how these old titans think.

But I do know the elder is stubborn as all get-out about that rule in particular. Chasing monsters away takes more strength and skill than killing them does. Not to mention how they're covered in miasma. Plus, the elder always fights them bare- handed so that he doesn't kill them, even by accident. No one else can keep up.

So he follows that rule even at the risk of his own life, huh...

Exactly. And he's constantly getting hurt. That's why I'm asking you to give him this medicine. It's not just me who's worried. We all are.

Okay. I'll do it!

I don't think he's back yet, so you'll probably find him somewhere still in the forest.

The Valley of the Ancients, right? I'll go have a look around.

Where could he be? He couldn't have gotten too far, right?

You're the small one from before...

What are you doing here? A nest of raging monsters is no place for a human.

You're injured, aren't you? A friend in Pador asked me to give you this medicine.

That greenhorn... Fine. Give it here.

So, I gotta ask. Why do you put yourself at such risk? Your body won't last if you keep this up, you know?

So he told you, did he? Let's get one thing clear. It's not out of some kind of mercy or kindness.

It isn't? I thought you felt bad about them being cursed.

I won't deny that I do to a certain extent. But that's not the main reason...

What is the main reason, then?

Resistance...

Resistance? I dunno what it is you're resisting, but I guess you have your reasons. But are they really worth getting that beat up for? Everyone's worried about you, and you know how dangerous this is. You'll just be fighting the same battles over and over without end, don't you see that?

Yes. Because these battles have no end, small one.

Huh? What do you mean?!

Graaawr!

...Blast!

That sounded like monsters!

Go find somewhere safe, small one. I will handle this...

Wait! I can help!

Good! You're okay! We'll take it from here!

You two go protect the village!

This monster's different from the one we saw earlier... Should we chase this one away, too?

...No. This one is of a foul ilk. The curse has swallowed it completely. All that remains is its bitter fate.

All right. I'll do what I can to help.

But I wonder... Does this monster's arrival mean that I am indeed the last remaining guardian?

What? You mean there were other guardians like you?

...No. Never mind. Brace yourself! The battle begins!

All those strikes, and still it stands? I never thought I'd see a monster with such a strong curse in this day and age...

Don't worry. I can finish this...

No... Stand down. This fight is mine to finish.

Although...I am sure you feel some regret that the hands sending you to your fate are not the ones you expected.

What does that mean?

That sound!

What's going on? More monsters?!

Hey! It's that monster from before!

...Hmph. It's about time.

Huh?! What are you doing?!

...I am letting him fulfill HIS duty.

Huh?

What's going on?! Why did it kill the other monster?

It ran away again...

...So the time has come. Fear not. I shall give you a proper end...

Run along, small one. This is my duty...

I'll go with you! That monster was acting strange, wasn't it? I can't let you fight it alone.

...... Do as you please...

I made it! Are you okay, sir?

Calm yourself. You'll only agitate the creature further.

That's a lot of miasma... Is this also part of that curse you were talking about?

Indeed. This creature has accumulated the curse over a great many years.

What?! Then why did you let such a dangerous monster...

...Because it is no different from us.

What do you mean?

Long ago, when the dark god's wrath fell upon the land, we titans were afflicted with an indelible curse. However, we were not the only ones whose fates were changed by the curse. The wise animals that had lived in the forest since time immemorial went mad from the miasma and were corrupted into monsters.

So you're the same because you all suffer from the dark god's curse?

Not just that... They too are guardians.

They are?!

Some time after the guardians of old began hunting monsters, it is said that they were witness to monsters eating one another. ...That after the battle, the victor simply vanished, leaving only the stench of curse. It paid no heed to the guardians at all.

They witnessed many such battles where monsters consumed their kin. That was when the guardians began to wonder... ...Perhaps those monsters, too, were protecting this land from the curse.

And is this one of those monsters?

Their descendant. His ancestors have protected this land by feasting on the curse for generations... Once the mother goddess' blessing was cast upon the land, those who fell to the curse dwindled, as did the guardian monsters. This one is the last of its kind.

Oh...

We titan guardians have also dwindled in number. Fighting cursed monsters as well as the curse of our own has taken its toll. As new life has spread through the land, our role has gradually diminished, and with it, our numbers.

I heard you're the last one in the village...

Yes... And this will be my last great undertaking.

...You've done well protecting your family's legacy brave guardian. May we meet again on the other side...

Urk!

Hey! Are you all right?

This is nothing. These old bones have withstood a curse or two in their time.

Didn't you say that the curse has been causing the number of monsters and guardians from Pador to go down? How have you stayed a guardian for so long?

An old fool's resistance.

Resistance...

We titans cannot escape our cursed fate. After thousands of years of fighting, we eventually came to accept the curse with meek resignation.

Still...

It is deeply frustrating. With the mighty physical strength and overwhelmingly long lifespans we were given, we once ruled the entire world... All to be laid low by a measly curse...

Elder...

I will not speak ill of our current ways of patiently waiting for fate to come and claim us. ...But I couldn't bear it. I desperately wanted to leave behind some proof that we lived in this land.

That is why I decided to fight until my last breath to make sure that not one mote of curse will be passed to future generations. Even if the curse never leaves me, the will of the mother goddess will be passed on as long as this land is full of life. ...At least, that is what I believe.

......

I need not meet a beautiful or graceful end. I will continue my struggle, ugly and bitter... I will fight the curse, my fate, and cling to life until the very end so that I may carve my name as a warrior into the planet itself. That stubbornness is what keeps me alive. I am not living a long life so much as refusing to die.

Don't say that... Honestly, I should be thanking you.

Hmph. What for?

You and the other guardians...you weren't just protecting Pador and this forest. You were protecting everyone on the planet. It's thanks to you all that we get to be here.

...It is my duty, that is all.

You know... The fight to keep this planet safe may never end.

But...that doesn't mean the fight has to die with you.

Who would take my place? This is no easy task.

I can do it. I'm like you, I want to protect the future.

Hmph. Big talk for a small man.

But if there are young folks like you in the world... Perhaps there was meaning to my life... To my resistance after all.