When Viltez slowly relaxes, Autharyx feels a tension slip away from his own shoulders that he hadn't noticed until it was gone. It was a slightly disconcerting to find himself caring this much for the state of mind of another, let alone a mortal. He supposes it's just a part of pretending to be mortal, to have this body of his behave in ways that are strange and alien to his more reasonable self. It's probably perfectly normal for squishy mortal bodies to care about what happens to other squishy mortal bodies, lest they are left behind without the protection of numbers. Well, if this is to be an experiment in being a mortal, he should probably just follow along with it, right?

So he smiles when Viltez does and leaves his hand resting in the crook of his host's neck just because he enjoys the feeling of warm skin against his own. Viltez' tail comes up to curl around his shoulders, seemingly to mimic the point of contact he had created himself. Autharyx feels his smile widen on its own accord as the lethal blade presses against his cheek. See, perfectly normal contact that normal mortals shared. Well, at least if you ignore the part where apparently the tail has a mind of his own.

"There is no need to be thankful- or feel foolish for that matter. There is always sense in being cautious, and also in being fearful where it is needed." The humans that weren't at least a little fearful in his presence were always the one that ended up doing foolish things. Like trying to help themselves to his treasure or attacking him in his rest in the hope of gaining fame or fortune. Needless to say, it hadn't ended well for them. Viltez, however, has little to fear from common peasants. Even less so now that Autharyx is by his side.

"Only the foolish pride themselves on being without fear or caution. But I think that in this case it is clear that you have the advantage over farmers and traders," he says earnestly, trying to make Viltez feel better in his own, slightly misguided, way. "I have no doubts you could slay a score of them in combat should they ever be foolish enough to attack you." It feels a bit weird to compliment a mere mortal in this way, but Autharyx had seen him slice clean through pine cones as if they were made of butter. A few layers of cloth or leather will not protect their flesh for even a moment. If he were inclined to do so, Autharyx is sure Viltez would be able to defend a sizeable piece of territory.