Luthiel turned toward Morrigan, confusion written all over her face.
Grub shared a similar expression, though his was considerably more muted. He had learned by now that Morrigan rarely said anything without several layers beneath it, and the crooked grin she was wearing told him those layers were about to unfold. Morrigan took a long swig from her jug before speaking.
"Well, you betrayed us, cutie pie. So I can't just let you off the hook."
She set the jug down.
"Not just because it would make me look bad as a leader — though it absolutely would — but also because I just really don't like being tricked." She pointed at him with one clawed finger. "Or attempted to be tricked. Because, honey pie, I knew the whole fucking time."
Grub blinked and his eyes narrowed slightly.
"I knew you knew about the bracelet. But the whole time?"
Morrigan nodded casually. "Yep. Not too hard for someone like me." She leaned back and scratched her chin. "I even knew you were peeking on us during that Guardian meeting."
Grub's expression didn't change, but something inside his chest dropped.
"I'm assuming you went to the library with Luthiel and used the trip to search for the Dundun Ile?"
Grub nodded slowly. "Yeah. Sounds about right."
Luthiel's golden eyes went wide. She spun toward him.
"THAT'S WHY YOU LEFT FOR A BIT, ISN'T IT?"
Grub nodded again. Luthiel puffed her cheeks and looked like she wanted to hit him, heal him, and cry all at the same time. Grub wisely chose not to comment further.
Morrigan waved a hand dismissively.
"Anyways, what I'm saying is that I ain't just letting you walk free. You committed treason, even if your heart wasn't fully in it."
Grub looked down at the table.He had expected a reaction like this.
"But," Morrigan continued, raising a finger, "I ain't gonna be harsh with ya either. Because I like ya. And because I can tell you're not a bad guy."
She smirked and took another sip. "And of course, my intuition is rarely wrong."
Grub eyed her carefully. "So what are you going to do with me?"
Morrigan chuckled. She set the jug on the table and folded her hands.
"Well, there is one thing you must do. Lets call it earning your freedom"
Grub leaned in. So did Luthiel. Judging from her expression, she clearly didn't know what Morrigan had planned.
Morrigan stretched casually, cracking her neck. Then she spoke simply, as if she were ordering lunch.
"All you'll have to do is beat me in a match."
Luthiel's face went white. Lu's golden eyes widened in absolute horror. Her mitten-like hands gripped the edge of the table so hard the wood creaked.
Grub was calmer, but a twinge of doubt flickered behind his eyes. He studied Morrigan for a moment, then spoke.
"Beat you? Sure. I'll do it." He leaned back. "I'm guessing I can't beat you in terms of Anima or whatever you use. But you're old. If it's a purely physical match, I think I should have a chance."
He paused.
"Was that intentional? Setting conditions that give me a realistic shot at winning so I'd be set free?"
Luthiel's horrified expression somehow deepened. Morrigan, on the other hand, burst into laughter. A full, rolling, belly-deep cackle that made the water in her basin slosh violently.
"Oh, boy!" She slapped the table. "Give me a fucking break, hotshot!"
The old kappa laughed so hard she nearly spilled her beer. Wiping a tear from her eye, she pointed at him.
"Also, don't call me old. I'm still quite young, thank you very much." She grinned. "And I'd trust that you'll find me more than a worthy opponent."
Luthiel turned to Morrigan, her voice shaking.
"Y-you can't! There's no way Mister Grub will pass!" Her golden eyes glistened. "This is still sending him to his death!"
Grub stared at Luthiel for a moment. Her concern was genuine and deep and it hit him somewhere he didn't usually let things land. He pushed past it and turned back to Morrigan.
"Why is this the requirement anyway? Isn't there a normal trial system here?"
Morrigan shrugged. "Of course there is, silly boy. We've got trials for regular crimes. But when it comes to treason, I oversee the process personally. Me, or Pazuzu when I don't care enough to do it."
She grinned. "But of course I'll be hosting yours." She leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table.
"This match is something rarely done in the village. Essentially, if you beat the overseer in a game of their choosing, you gain the title of overseer over one trial, meaning you get to decide the outcome of that trial." She spread her hands. "Including your own. So if you beat me, you can simply pardon yourself."
Her eyes met his. "And then I'll take that nifty shitty bracelet off ya."
Suddenly, the room went still. Grub felt the weight of the words settle across his shoulders. Freedom, reeal freedom. He could have the bracelet off his wrist. No more countdown. No more kill switch. No more Lacerts holding his life on a button.
All he had to do was beat what seemed to be the strongest person in the village. Morrigan's eyes narrowed. The casual warmth in her voice cooled by several degrees.
"But if I do remove it, I will be putting my trust in you, boy."
The water in her basin went perfectly still.
"So if, by some one-in-a-million chance, I am wrong about you — and you do anything to hurt my village or my Luthiel — I will kill you where you stand."
The words carried no anger or bluster. Just the simple, absolute certainty of someone who had killed before and would do it again without hesitation.
Grub's eyes widened as well Luthiel's. He shook his head slowly. "Of course. I won't do anything to cause the need for that."
Morrigan's expression broke back into a smile so fast it was almost jarring.
"Of course ya won't, ya cutie!"
Luthiel, who still looked like she might pass out, turned to Morrigan and began trying to convince her of another way. Her words tumbled over each other as she listed alternatives, loopholes, anything that might spare Grub from facing the Great Sage Equal to Heaven in direct combat.
Morrigan listened patiently. Then she shook her head.
"No. I must be the one he faces. Treason is unforgivable in most aspects, and the Guardians will not accept a pardon unless it comes from a match overseen by me. Anyone else and they'll riot." She looked at Luthiel firmly. "Ya got it?"
Luthiel stopped talking. Her mouth closed. But her nerves didn't settle. Her mitten-like hands trembled slightly in her lap.
Seeing the doll girl's worry made Grub question his own confidence. He had assumed Morrigan was just an old woman with authority. With all the drinking, laziness, and crude language. It was easy to forget what she actually was.
But Luthiel knew. Luthiel had trained under her. And the look on her face right now said everything her mouth wouldn't.
This is not a fight you can win.
Grub pushed the doubt down and asked the only question that mattered.
"What do I have to do to win?"
Morrigan smiled.
"Simple. When the match starts, all you have to do is move me out of the circle."
Grub blinked. "Just that?"
"Just that."
He sat with it for a moment. A ring-out match. No killing required, or any complex victory condition. Just push the old kappa outside a drawn line.
It sounded deceptively easy. Which meant it was anything but. Grub thought for a moment, then another problem appeared.
"My injuries."
He gestured toward himself.
"My shoulder is stabbed. My ribs hurt. My head feels like it got kicked by a horse."
Morrigan rolled her eyes.
"Oh please."
Before he could finish, Morrigan reached across the table with both hands. One grabbed his face. The other pressed against his shoulder.
Warmth flooded through him. Different than the gradual, gentle warmth of El's healing. This was absolute and complete. Like every injury in his body had been identified, addressed, and dismissed in a single breath. His shoulder knitted together. His ribs realigned. The swelling in his jaw vanished. The cuts on his arms closed. Even the lingering soreness from the Jangushut burns faded to nothing.
In seconds, he felt completely better. Better than he had felt in weeks.
Grub stared at her, his eyes wide. "How did you—"
Morrigan winked. "They don't call me the Great Sage for nothing. Something that easy is child's play for someone with my Anima control."
Grub's mind raced. Her healing had been instantaneous. Even better than El's, and El specialized in it. Morrigan had done in seconds what would have taken El hours, and the result was flawless. Yet, Morrigan had performed it with barely any effort.
She had also deduced he was a spy almost immediately, and the Guardians treated her like a living legend. Even Pazuzu obeyed her, usually. And now she had erased injuries that could have taken weeks to heal with a casual touch. Grub swallowed.
This wasn't some eccentric village chief. This woman was a monster. Definitely the strongest person he had met since arriving in this world. Grub wasn't even sure if Colonel Gavial was on this level. Though he had no way to know.
And he had to beat her, somehow.
If her healing was this far beyond El's specialty, then her combat abilities were— Grub swallowed hard. There was no chance he could do this without Anima or Death and he had neither.
"When is the match?"
Morrigan smiled. "Once I finalize everything with the Guardians, it'll be tomorrow."
Grub's stomach dropped. "Tomorrow."
"Yep."
Shit.
Luthiel looked at him, her golden eyes brimming with worry.
"Mister Grub…"
Morrigan glanced between the two of them and groaned.
"Oh, stop with all that moping. Both of you." She stood up from her chair and grabbed her staff. "I warn you, boy — a kappa like me won't let you win this match just because I like ya. But I also want a good fight, and I want to give you the tools you need to even stand a chance."
Grub looked up. "What do you mean?"
Morrigan smirked. The water in her basin began to swirl.
"Well, today is when I said we would train, isn't it?"
She cracked her knuckles one at a time. Each pop echoed through the room like a small firecracker.
"Be prepared, cutie. And you too, my Luthiel." She grinned wide enough to show every tooth behind her beak. "We are going to cram one week's worth of training into a single day."
Luthiel's horrified expression refused to leave her face.