fate enkidu

The ref raised his arm. “Welcome to the fifth round of the tournament! We start with our remaining winged combatants, Roc and Ingram!” As the audience cheered in anticipation, the two foes glared each other down. Normally, Roc would enter the ring with a stoic scowl, sharpening his mind for battle while spitefully feeding on the boos from beastman haters, but this time, he was smiling.

Alexis gave a sad smile and hugged her knees to her chest. “Though I complained about it initially, I’ve had a lot of fun here at the Knight’s Sheath. I love living and working with Sophia, I love helping the girls and keeping them safe, I love punishing the arrogant and entitled ogres that come in here and think they can do whatever they want, and I love reading those books on quiet and lazy afternoons. But still, part of me wishes… that Sophia and I had come along with you and Valia on your journey. I was angry at you for what happened, but all this time, I’ve missed you. I missed talking to you, I missed eating with you, I missed arguing with you, and fighting alongside you. Why didn’t you invite us? Why… did you leave us behind?”

“Well, I can’t judge. I’ve done far worse for far less. Still, I can’t imagine Lupin would approve, nor will Cyrilo or any other beastman in the country. Slavery is already a foundation of Uther, and add the vitriol Galvin has been spewing, and it’ll put an even bigger target on their backs, and they won’t like it. I imagine that’s what concerns you, when things inevitably go south and blood spills. And I’m sure I don’t need to remind you of my earlier warning.”“No, you don’t. I made your objections clear.”