“I finally got hold of something excellent. I wasn’t going to lose it in a petty battle.” Griffith, Vol. 5 Ch. 2

This was Griffith’s reply to Guts’ question of “Our battle last night... Why did you save me?” Fair enough. But, thinking back, it gets weirder (homoerotic waterfight notwithstanding). Even though it was Guts’ first mission with the Hawks, Griffith assigned to him the most important and most dangerous task of rear guard. It was a lot of responsibility, but Griffith believed in him, and later personally returned with a couple of bodyguards to rescue him from hundreds of pursuing soldiers. Now fast-forward a few years, to the battle with Zodd the Immortal.

“Griffith, where are you going?” Caska, Vol. 5 Ch. 6

This time around, Guts was growing impatient that a single mystery warrior was holding back 500 men, and went alone into a dark tunnel to investigate. He soon realized that this wasn’t a human at all, but a giant demon named Zodd the Immortal, and he had no chance against him. And who do you think miraculously showed up at the first hint of Guts in trouble? Griffith! With reinforcements! They did no good, though, and Griffith ordered them to retreat while himself running straight into the monster’s path to help Guts escape.“ Griffith, where are you going?” indeed. He got knocked unconscious against a column, and they were both about to get killed, but then Zodd saw Griffith’s Behelit.

“If you call yourself a true friend of this man, be prepared. For when this man’s dream comes crashing down, you will face your own death. A death you can’t escape.” Zodd the Immortal, Vol. 5 Ch. 7

If it wasn’t for Zodd’s penchant for prophecy, both Guts and Griffith would be dead by now. This was the first foreshadowing of things to come. As Guts watched Zodd fly away, he didn’t know what to make of it all. Was he going to die? Was he really Griffith’s friend? What mattered right now was that they survived. He’d worry about the rest later. But something was still bothering him.

“Three years ago you said you didn’t want to lose a good soldier. But you risked your life for just one soldier. A rational person like you shouldn’t have done that.” Guts, Vol. 5 Ch. 8

Guts recognized that Griffith was acting above and beyond any reasonable sense of strategy by knowingly throwing himself into a hopeless situation. The logic of wanting to save an exceptionally powerful soldier broke down when doing so endangered the rest of the army, and especially its precious Commander. When confronted about it, Griffith became increasingly evasive. “You keep bringing up that topic. There’s no reason. No reason at all.” He’d stare off into space and turn the question back on Guts, “Is it necessary? A reason... A reason for me to help you. Do I need a reason for that?”

DISCLAIMER: Berserk and all the characters, story, and art therein is copyright Kentarou Miura. No copyright infringement is intended, and I hope that this essay inspires more people to read/watch Berserk! Translation by The Band of the Hawk.