The silence that followed hung like a fragile thread between them.

Amon's hand remained on Syl's back.

He could feel her trembling. The previously quick and shallow breaths turned into small, uneven ones, trying to find rhythm again. Her skin was warm beneath his palm, and his gaze settled on the large scars left behind by the many-legged Golem and cauterized by Akane.

"Hey," he whispered. "I thought the walls made you feel safer."

"Ha!" Syl chuckled. Unfortunately, humor was not a good addition to the mix of emotions that swirled inside her, and almost caused tears to start going down her face. "It's not safety I'm worried about." She said, sneakily bringing the bed sheets to her wet eyes. "I'm just…" Syl bit her lip, her gaze still on the floor beyond the edge of the bed. "Thinking about stuff."

The flickering candlelight traced her profile, from the curve of her cheek, to the curve of her hips.

"That's the problem with thinkers," Amon hummed with a joking tone. "They think too much and don't know when to stop."

"What else am I supposed to do?" Her tone sharpened slightly. "Just blindly walk and pray that everything will be alright?"

Amon chuckled quietly, the sound deep and low. "Everything will be alright.."

Her brow furrowed, and her body turned further away from him. "You don't know that…" She whispered.

"Sure, I do." He re-adjusted himself to sit with his back against the bed's headboard. "Right now, we're in a comfortable bed, in a large room, within a castle-like building protected by numerous magic traps and barriers. What could go wrong?"

"I know that things are fine now." Syl said with a sigh. "It's just… We need to be prepared for what comes next."

"What comes next?"

"Everything!" Syl suddenly raised her voice, elbow digging into the bed as she pushed herself up. She was practically lying on her stomach, and Amon felt torn between the desire to stare at her breasts pressed against the bed, at the outline of her butt below the sheets, and her at her beautiful, blushing face and glistening eyelashes. "Vulkan, a Demon General, is going to come for that thing. He's sure to send the rest of my tribe, as well as the Chief. We're not in a good position!"

"I thought you had left your tribe behind." Amon whispered after a moment.

"I did." Syl raised an eyebrow. "What's your point?"

"I guess we're forming a new tribe now." He shrugged.

"A new tribe?" She chuckled, almost mockingly. "Yeah, right."

"Why not?" He asked, seemingly offended. "We've got a reject from the Hobgoblins, a sacrificed Fox from the Werebeasts, and Demons that betrayed a Demon General to join us. I'd say we have our chances. A new rising power type of thing."

"So you want us to be a sixth army, or a sixth power. The Orcs, the Hobgoblins, the Werebeasts, the Demons, the Humans… And us."

"Exactly." Amon said with a smile. "We just need a rejected Orc and a couple of rejected Humans, then we'll be set."

"Haha!" She laughed. "That's stupid."

"Why do you say that? I think we can make quite the colorful bunch."

"Yeah, it sure be a colorful bunch. Walk the world collecting rejects left and right, that sounds great."

"Doesn't it?" Amon smiled.

Syl stared at him for a moment, before turning around the moment that a smile cracked her lips. "This is stupid." She whispered.

"Maybe." He shrugged.

The two remained silent for a bit.

"If you need a couple of Humans, you could take those under Levia." Syl whispered, staring at the ceiling. "They're obedient enough, since they're willing to give her their lives."

"That's true, but obedience isn't enough." Amon said, slipping down the headboard and under the sheets.

"It's not?" She asked, turning her head towards him.

"I want special rejects." Amon explained as he lay a hand on her cheek. "Like you."

Syl froze momentarily. As time had passed, he had slowly moved closer and closer.

While she was still at the edge of the bed, right now, his face was only a couple of inches away from hers.

That did not matter much though. She stared into his eyes, curious.

"Special… How?" Syl asked with a gulp. "How am I special?"

"You're the only Hobgoblin to have acted the way you have, which is enough to describe you as different from the others, no?"

"I guess…"

"You ordered both the Goblins and the Hobgoblins when you fought that thing. Your orders and leadership are the only reasons they survived that. Without you, they all would have died."

"I wish they had." Syl muttered with a sigh.

"You went back for Akane, you protecteed her, fought alongside her, you told me all kinds of interesting things, and more importantly…" He moved a bit closer again. "You've been more useful to your tribe than any other Hobgoblin has been, probably ever."

"You…" The blushing Syl pursed her lips, trying her best not to let her embarrassment show. "You think so?"

"Yeah, I even made the other Hobgoblins admit it."

"Really? Wait… They're dead though, right?"

"Yes."

"Good." She sighed. "You got me worried there for a second. It should take a very long time for news to reach the Hobgoblins now. As long as Levia doesn't betray us, the Demons shouldn't be aware of anything either-"

Syl's words were interrupted as Amon's hand lay below her chin, thumb against her lips. "You think way too much."

She pressed her lips together with a shrug.

"You don't need to worry so much." Amon said as he turned on his back and stretched his arms. "The Chief will soon how realize how useful you are and how useful you've been. In fact, I'm counting on it."

"Counting on it…?" She whispered with a raised eyebrow.

Amon turned his head towards her and smiled.

Her confused expression deepened, and his hand suddenly wrapped around her wrist.

"What the…" She stuttered. "What are you doing?"

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