After calming down the group who were worried about him, Argos led Ryner to a spot a bit away from them so that the two could talk in private. He had reverted back to normal after his wounds were completely healed thanks to his regenerative abilities. His body was feeling as heavy as lead because of the stress his transformation placed on him. It was a small price one had to pay when they had access to beastification.

“…” [Argos]

Despite his fatigue, Argos was sitting cross-legged with his back straight, showing his stubborn discipline. He took a peek at the man standing behind him in this peaceful clearing which had its grass-covered land leveled by their duel. The human was putting on a fresh pair of black pants and a red shirt after he took them out from a set of strange, blue rings. It was a unique ability of his that allowed him to store and take out any object at will.

“You mind? I’m changing.” [Ryner]

Ryner said as he held his shirt in his hands. His upper body that wasn’t hidden was riddled with fake scars. Unlike Argos’ whose clothes looked dirty and worn-out, the fight turned his to tatters and exposed his skin here and there. He couldn’t use body strengthening to reinforce his clothes, so they took every blow from the beastman and were torn by the powerful fists and claws. It was quite bad when Argos was pummeling him in the ground.

“Why are you so uncomfortable? We have already seen your scars.” [Argos]

Argos said as he looked in front, reminding the man that he and his family already got a glimpse of the scars covering his body.

“Yeah, thanks for reminding me.” [Ryner]

“Are you bothered by them?” [Argos]

“I don’t really like to show them off.” [Ryner]

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of. Those are proof of the battles you’ve returned from and the achievements you possess.” [Argos]

“I’m not ashamed. I’m just shy.” [Ryner]

“Shy?” [Argos]

“Yeah, shy… Damn it, I should have known this would happen. Maybe I should wear some armor, or that second skin to cover my scars.” [Ryner]

Ryner, having finished changing all while grumbling under his breath, went and sat next to him. With his legs crossed and one hand supporting his chin, he lazily stared at the peaceful scenery in front of him that was devastated by them.

“What is there to be shy about? You might have heard from Maya, but we Catallards value strength highly. Showing off how much you have trained and how much you have fought would earn you a great deal of respect. It’s what happened with my family.” [Argos]

Argos pointed to the side. Standing a fair distance were members of his clan and a blonde vampire. They were patiently waiting for them to finish talking and were sending glances in their direction every now and then. Seeing them, Ryner remembered how their expression slowly went from shock to awe when they saw his upper body. Strangely, it felt like they were looking at him with more respect than when he defeated the head of their clan. Evelyn, on the other hand, discretely wiped the drool at the corner of her mouth.

“Speaking of Maya, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.” [Ryner]

Ryner said, changing the topic.

“Why did you want to fight me? It wasn’t just because you wanted to see how strong I was, right?” [Ryner]

“What if I wanted to take revenge for when you defeated my son?” [Argos]

“You don’t look the type.” [Ryner]

“Hmph.” [Argos]

A faint smile emerged on the beastman’s face for a moment.

“And you believe that I fought you because you are involved with Maya?” [Argos]

“Are there any other reasons?” [Ryner]

“How about being suspicious of you, a human in a beastman capital city?” [Argos]

“And so you wanted to teach me my place? That really doesn’t sound like you.” [Ryner]

“You talk as if you know me while this is only our second meeting.” [Argos]

“I don’t know you. I just met people similar to you.” [Ryner]

“Thinking that I am the same as acquaintances you’ve met before is rather rude.” [Argos]

The beastman looked at the human with his usual scary expression. Ryner had shifted position and was now leaning back with his hands supporting him as he watched the sky.

“Maybe, but we’ve just fought. So I’d say that I know you better now.” [Ryner]

“…” [Argos]

For a moment, Argos went quiet and turned his sight to the blue sky as well.

“… How is Maya doing?” [Argos]

“She should be at her friend’s house, probably talking with her right now… What was her name again?” [Ryner]

“Suky.” [Argos]

This time, it was Ryner who stared at Argos.

“You know her?” [Ryner]

“We’ve never talked, but I know who she is.” [Argos]

Argos shook his head.

“Her abilities to move about undetected are exceptional. She used to sneak into our home to visit Maya when no one was around.” [Argos]

“Looks like you knew about her though.” [Ryner]

“She can’t get pass me or my wife so easily. I had informed her and the head of our branch family to ignore our uninvited guest since I would take care of any intruder. They guessed what I wanted to do and agreed.” [Argos]

The purple-haired man said as he remembered the days when Suky would secretly visit his daughter.

“You’ve been letting that Suky woman into your house in the past?” [Ryner]

“I wanted Maya to have a friend. If she did, maybe she could ask her for help to find another life... If this life didn’t work.” [Argos]

“Sounds like you actually care about her, even though you kicked her out.” [Ryner]

“… I do.” [Argos]

After a moment of silence, Argos affirmed so. The past was replaying before his eyes. Times of when Maya was still just a small child floated in his mind.

“She was born in the Catallard clan. Since the founding of the country, we and the Terdims have worked as the sword and shield of the king. Those born in our bloodline were always blessed with a considerable mana pool and fighting instincts, especially us, the main family. But, as Maya grew up, the truth became obvious.” [Argos]

A little girl who was doing nothing but training every day so that she could live up to her family’s expectations.

“She does not excel in combat, nor does she possess a large mana pool, or does she have talents in magic.” [Argos]

No matter how hard, she would always diligently practice to hone her skills.

“Something like that never happened before. We thought she was only a late bloomer and made her training stricter to help her talents mature as fast as possible. But, even after she became old enough to have her first mating season, nothing changed. So, we continued to wait. But even after two decades, it was still the same.” [Argos]

Her two older siblings showed great prowess befitting their clan at a young age. They were worthy of praise and Arka had a massive mana pool, just like his father.

“Her mana pool was much too small and she was not endowed with talents in combat that could allow her to ignore her shortcoming. She had the cardivore bloodline and there was no arguing that, but none of the gifts it bore. We didn’t know what to do, but just waiting and letting her train like she always did wouldn’t change anything.” [Argos]

When her younger siblings were born, it was the same as well. They were born gifted and they sharpened their skills through training, improving themselves.

“For us who seek and possess strength to fulfill our duty to protect our king, Maya couldn’t be considered one of us. Many… Many lost their respect and expectations for her. Rumors about an incompetent child were spreading through the city. It was no longer a friendly place for her, our home or the city.” [Argos]

Argos watched over his children as they all grew stronger, except for one. She was the abnormality that had never happened before. Before they knew it, she was already twenty-five years old, an age where she should be married. In the end, he couldn’t postpone it anymore. It was something that was bound to happen. It was something that should have happened when she had her first mating season.

She was disowned and exiled from the city.

“You know, you make it sound like banishing her was the best thing for her.” [Ryner]

Interrupting his long speech, Ryner lazily gave his impression as he was now lying on his side with his hand supporting his head.

“It was the only thing I could do for her.” [Argos]

So that Maya wouldn’t be exposed to the people’s mocking gaze in the city, she was forbidden from leaving the house.

So that she could have a real friend to depend on, Suky, who didn’t judge her like the others for her lack of strength despite being a Catallard, was allowed to sneak around their house.

So that her position in the clan wouldn’t grow worse, he didn’t favor her, which could invite more animosity, and silently watched over her.

“Don’t lie. There was a bunch of stuff you could have done for her.” [Ryner]

“I had my duty that I needed to fulfill as the head of the Catallard clan.” [Argos]

“And in the end, you chose your duty over your daughter. Stop spouting a bunch of crap and just admit it, kid. You didn’t do a good job as a father.” [Ryner]

“…!” [Argos]

Hearing the human who was obviously much younger than him calling him a kid caused Argos to glare at him. However, what really got to him was what he said at the end.

“What do you know about me? You have no right to judg-.” [Argos]

“Cause I look like I never had a kid?” [Ryner]

Ryner interrupted his words all while ignoring his hostility. There was a strange pressure in his voice.

“It can’t be helped. You’re not a normal family. You can’t just be a parent because of your obligations. You need to protect the king. Your clan’s reputation directly affects the nation’s. Every Catallard needs to be strong and live up to everyone’s expectations. There’s a whole bunch of reason that I’ve heard of before and I don’t need to know you to understand them.” [Ryner]

The black-haired man shifted his position again to rest on his back and stared at the sky.

“And I said it before. I got to know you better after we tried to kill each other. Like I thought, I’ve met a few people that were quite like you. Those guys were all strong warriors. They were great in fights, but were clumsy in everything else.” [Ryner]

He turned his head slightly to look at the huge beastman whose glare was slowly diminishing in intensity.

“No offense, kid. You’re not a bad guy, but you seriously didn’t do much for Maya.” [Ryner]

“… Let’s leave it at that… And don’t call me kid again.” [Argos]

“If you say so.” [Ryner]

The two fell silent as no more words were exchanged. Argos closed his eyes and took a deep breath to sort out his feelings. His once-in-a-lifetime confession about his worries when raising Maya gave him quite a bit of irritation in return. However, he had to talk to the man that his daughter had chosen to follow.

“… Ryner.” [Argos]

After exhaling, Argos broke the silence. While sitting cross-legged, he turned his body to face the human and stared at him with his scary face.

“… Please take care of Maya.” [Argos]

He made his earnest request and bowed his head.

“No way.” [Ryner]

Unfortunately for the huge beastman, Ryner instantly rejected him, causing him to look up with a dumbfounded expression.

“Taking care of her means that she needs to stick with me for the rest of her life, right? But, I promised her that she’d be able to go back home and beat the crap out of anyone who made fun of her. I kept my promise and she’s no longer exiled from Ofauvra too. So, whether she stays here or leaves for somewhere else is up to her.” [Ryner]

“She’s not bound to me”, he said as he crossed his arms behind his head and yawned.

“…” [Argos]

After hearing the reason for his refusal, Argos blinked twice and shifted back to his previous position.

“She’s gotten strong.” [Argos]

“Yeah.” [Ryner]

“You made her strong.” [Argos]

“Pretty much.” [Ryner]

“… If she ever gets in trouble, will you lend her a hand?” [Argos]

“Mhh, probably.” [Ryner]

“… Heh.” [Argos]

A small grin appeared on Argos’ scary and always serious face.

“You said before that you wanted to know me better. Did you find out what you wanted?” [Argos]

“Yeah.” [Ryner]

“Can you tell me what it was?” [Argos]

“Maya said that she didn’t hate her clan. Well, she was happily beating up her brother, but she actually didn’t hate any of you. I guess I was curious since I don’t usually see something like that.” [Ryner]

Ryner raised his upper body and sat cross-legged.

“Now I sort of know why… I think.” [Ryner]

The human said as he tilted his head, sounding rather unsure. To these words that he uttered in a carefree manner, Argos only kept quiet.

When they were done talking and went to join the group waiting for them at a distance, the beastmen there had a strangely tense expression.

“He defeated me in a fair duel. Are there any complaints?” [Argos]

When the head of the clan asked as such, no one said anything. Arka, who was the eldest child, took a step forward. His hands were tightly clenched into fists, but he relaxed his muscles after a short while and gazed straight at Ryner. With his back straight, he knocked his fists together in front of his chest and bowed to him. Following his lead, his mother, his sister and the rest of the clan did the same.

Ryner watched them with his sleepy-looking eyes. His expression concealed his thoughts on the respect he just obtained from them. On the side, Evelyn watched over this scene with a small smile on her face. As for Argos, he nodded and grunted with satisfaction upon seeing this.

“Ryner.” [Argos]

Putting a hand on the black-haired human’s shoulder, the head of the Catallard clan told him the one important thing he had waited for.

“I got a message from his majesty. Your request to enter the ruin was approved.” [Argos]

*Author note* ELF CHAPTER NEXT.

Since chapter production is slow, I'll write an elf chapter to switch gears and try to get it back to normal.