Golden Age (8)

The morning after the feast, Judeau finds Guts back on the battlements and asks what he makes of the Band of the Falcon. Guts observes that these fighters differ from other mercenary companies, younger men who value one another over coin. When he asks Judeau's opinion of Griffith, the answer comes only vaguely: people are drawn to Griffith without knowing why and long to help him reach his aims.

Summoned by the commander, Guts finds Griffith naked and dousing himself with cold water to sober up, and the two fall into a water fight Griffith starts. As things calm, Guts notices an odd pendant at Griffith's neck. Griffith names it a Beherit, the Egg of the King, and says its bearer is fated to win the world at the cost of his own flesh and blood. Asked why he rode back to save him, Griffith speaks of his dream to build a kingdom of his own, reminds Guts that he owns him now, and declares that he alone will choose the hour of Guts' death.

Left to wonder how Griffith intends to realize such a dream, Guts is found by Rickert and Pippin, who congratulate him on being given command of ten men. Casca again watches him from high in the fort. Three years pass, and Guts, now eighteen, is shown still fighting at the band's side.

Guts recognizes the unusual closeness of the Band of the Falcon and the strange devotion Griffith inspires. Griffith reveals his Beherit, the Egg of the King, and his dream of building a kingdom, and claims the right to decide when Guts dies. A three-year jump shows Guts at eighteen still serving with the band.

The chapter foreshadows the central bargain of the series by introducing Griffith's Beherit and its promise of a kingdom bought with flesh and blood. It defines the bond and the possessive claim Griffith holds over Guts. The time skip closes the early Golden Age chapters and sets up Guts' rise within the band.