Quoted By:
Your latest Trait <span class="mu-r">Binding Oath</span> seems more detrimental than helpful. What sort of reward is there for keeping it? Or breaking it.
Reward or punishment aside, having Gareth finally put down her Lance is a great relief. Time for some social engineering. You turn immediately to the bloodied corpse of the Wyvern and begin hacking away with Frostbind. It is hideously dirty work; blood and bits of meat splatter all over. Somehow, all throughout this inelegant hacking, the Black Cloak remains pristine. It radiates an aura of disdain, as though declaring it is fit only for better and nobler works than what you are doing right now. You take a deep breath and stop. You made a show of incompetence; now to see what the Knight does.
A comical look of disbelief is plastered on the Errant Knight’s face.
"Hey, stand aside. The longer you take to gut this thing, the longer it takes for our Duel to happen."
Gareth takes out a knife to cut open the Wyvern. It is done with marvelous skill and economy of movement. She presses her body weight on the blade and drags it across, careful not to allow the knife in too deeply and stab the victims within. Sticky black blood gushes and steams the air.
<span class="mu-r">Trait: Kitchen Knight - Skilled in all manner of cookery.</span>
The knife pauses in its cutting as Gareth ponders her Trait activating. It seems she wasn't careful enough to guard it. You weren’t expecting that to happen, and it’s not a particularly helpful piece of information, but you’ll take it.
"How is cutting up a dead monster related to cookery?" You ask.
"I was thinking about my favorite manga when I started cutting this up. I got excited by the idea that I probably could go Dungeon Meshi on this Wyvern and eat it."
You suspect Gareth is an otaku of some sort. The Knight smiles as she begins to talk about what is clearly a manga she loves. All while disemboweling the Wyvern and revealing strangely purple entrails. It takes all your strength not to let your gorge rise and spew. At one point of the butchering, Gareth indicates you have to help pull at the entrails. You steel your nerve and help with tugging at the slippery, disgusting thing. It stretches from the pulling, and the membrane presses against something solid within. It reveals the horned head of a Baphomet. With a few quick slashes with her knife, Gareth parts the blubbery stomach to free the Baphomet underneath.
He lives. Just barely. Shallow stuttering gasps of breath labor onwards.
“Tis the Mason from the Castle.”
“Aye, a lucky goat he is.”
“Meep, hurry, hurry! Our shipmate might be alive!”
The three warriors carefully carry the Mason away as you and Gareth continue to cut away at the Wyvern. The second Baphomet to come out is a cold, still corpse. The digestive juices of the monster have worked to melt away parts of flesh, bone, and horn.
The hardened warriors wept at the sight. They reach out to their fallen comrade with suppressed sobs.
