Since Guts departed to carve out his own path, the Band of the Hawk has shrunk over the past year. Unknowing of their plight, Guts comes back to the Hawks—now commanded by his old comrade Casca—upon hearing a rumor concerning them. Formerly the protectors of Midland, the Band now faces pursuit as they struggle for survival and scheme to liberate their leader Griffith, who was jailed for treason. Yet the figure they rescue bears little resemblance to the Griffith of memory.
After a year of relentless, brutal torment, Griffith has become a husk of his once charismatic self. Unable to walk, speak, or wield a blade, all he possesses is the peculiar little charm known as the Crimson Behelit. The whole Band yearns for a resurgence, yet how much are they prepared to give up to reclaim their former glory? It seems unlikely, yet when Griffith's heart turns bleak and a solar eclipse darkens the heavens, the Behelit presents an option that will consign the Band to a crimson destiny haunting them forever.
