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Hector could see the wisdom in not getting too attached to people, but he'd always considered it a complete impossibility. He'd never felt like he had any control over that sort of thing. Whether he grew to like or dislike someone--for him, that had always been something that just happened on its own.

And quite frankly, he had considered that to be a weakness within himself. An inability to control his emotions, to prevent himself from being vulnerable.

It was strange to imagine struggling with the complete opposite problem, but he supposed it made sense. Especially for a servant.

'It was a difficult decision to release him,' said Garovel. 'It always is, when it's a matter of mental instability. Even now, I wonder if perhaps I pulled the trigger too early, if perhaps I could have brought him back around.'

'W-was there a final straw?' asked Hector. 'Something unforgivable he did?'

Garovel's skeletal expression twisted a little. 'Not exactly. It was a combination of lots of little things. Overall callousness. The way he talked to me and his supposed comrades. I had seen it before, and I didn't want to wait until he went so far as to actually kill some innocent person.

'And I'll admit, releasing him without such obvious justification might've actually been too callous on MY part, not his. I had grown to hate him over the years.'

Hector didn't know what to say.

The reaper wasn't done, though. 'And while I'm being brutally honest here... My relationship with Simon--I do think it colored my decision to choose you as my next servant.'

That didn't exactly sound like a compliment, but Hector also felt like he kind of understood what the reaper meant.

'To say that you've exceeded all my expectations would be an understatement,' said Garovel, 'but I think you know that by now. Or at least, I hope you do.'