Eli was not entirely surprised by the Queen's words. There had been a suspicion in the back of his mind from the moment he received the invitation that it might be an unfair contest, perhaps multiple opponents pitted against him with words of praise and favor for his skill to make it seem as if it was equally balanced. At best he had expected to face a very skilled opponent with far more experience than himself. Facing a massive butcher of a man was not the best of scenarios, but it wasn't the worst Eli had thought up in the past few days either. He at least had some sort of chance against a single opponent, whereas facing off against half a dozen knights or a few men with bows would have been tantamount to outright murder.

"Have no fear, I won't let on that I know. Nobody will know that you told me." Eli kept his voice steady, more for Queen Julia's benefit than his own. "I will slay this monster tomorrow. Knowing that I won't be facing a man of honor makes things much simpler, in fact. I dislike killing good men, but my opponent sounds like nothing of the sort." In truth Eli felt his odds for victory were one in three at best, probably less than that, but he'd found that confidence was always the best answer to worried panic. "Thank you for sharing this, Your Grace. I shall sleep easy tonight knowing what I face on the morrow."