[color=goldenrod][i][h2][center]Gerard Segremors[/center][/h2][/i][/color]
[center][@Raineh Daze][@VitaVitaAR][@Crimson Paladin][@PaulHaynek][/center]

[color=goldenrod][i]I don't deserve to fight alongside a comrade as exemplary as Sir Fleuri Jodeau.[/i][/color] 

Gerard marvelously concealed a sigh of relief from his now-captivated audience, nodding along with the avatar of his Goddess's mercy's recounting of the skirmish. Paladin Tyaethe's abandonment was worrying, yes, but as he followed her gaze during the brief dialogue between the three he found it to be an inevitability. Their Captain had found herself similarly accosted by high society— and even without the slimy air that surrounded the man, it was only natural that she prioritize supporting their representative. Not some newbie in over his head. 

Still, that had left him in a bit of a bind. He was lucky to have not lost their attention the moment "bandit" left his mouth, in truth. As the knights had written off this mission on the ride to it, he would have expected those who hadn't witnessed the man's ferocity firsthand to make the same mistake. But it seemed that there was yet one knight he could rely upon to set him upright as he stumbled his way through this, a man who, continually, seemed as the ideal Gerard chased. With Jarde in tow, all it took him was three sentences.

[color=goldenrod]"It was as Sir Jodeau says. I don't know about a Fallen Divine, but he [i]was[/i] a monster of a man. He cut down the burning tree to separate the Captain from the rest of us,"[/color] he continued, gesturing towards the collected nobleman. [color=goldenrod]"Though if I'm going to speak of my participation in our clash with Jeremiah, I owe it to him that I even got there."[/color]

He was no braggart, and knew when others deserved credit. Especially more than they were allotting themselves. Fleuri's humility reflected well upon him, and Gerard respected the man all the more for it, but it did not change that he was instrumental in whatever tale the former mercenary had of the Bandit King.

[color=goldenrod]"You cleared the path for me, Sir, and urged me forward."[/color] he said, meeting the eyes of the man backing away. [color=goldenrod]"For that I have to thank you."[/color]

And as he gave him an opportunity then, so too did he now... right? Despite commanding the conversation with grace, the eldest of the three knights had ceded the attention back to he and Jarde, just as he'd cut off that trio of bandits to let Gerard and Renar pass unobstructed and engage Jeremiah in earnest.

If he knew not to waste one, then surely the other held a similar weight. 

Court was its own battlefield.

Approach it with courage.

[color=goldenrod]"Anyways,"[/color] he continued, inclining his head to Angenese and her drill-haired friend, still yet unnamed. "[color=goldenrod]I won't lie to you two, it would be a tough fight for me on my own. The man held a sword the size of me— in simply parrying a quick thrust, he forced me to spin with the strike against my blade, or risk it getting snapped."[/color] he said, first raising a hand to roughly eye level to illustrate the immense sword Jeremiah had carried, then motioning with his head to the pommel that peeked over his right shoulder.

He really wasn't sure how to appease the youngest of the three, clad in all black. Obviously she held little interest in a tale of battle, and seemed to be of a more realistic mind than her peers regarding the skirmish. Certainly nowhere near so awestruck.

[color=goldenrod]"In fact, I'm certain of it."[/color] he gestured to Jarde, then Fanilly, then Tyaethe. [color=goldenrod]"Without our teamwork, on my own I wouldn't have been standing here to regale you. He was that kind of monster. Stronger than me by far, and despite his size, at least as fast— and [i]skilled[/i] enough to turn aside not only my own attack, but those of everyone there save the Captain, who managed to knock an arm out of commission. And he still fought through it."[/color]

Not quite an embellishment. Knight-Captain Fanilly definitely did cripple that hand, it was just before he'd arrived.

[color=goldenrod]"It wasn't until our dear Artificer, who unfortunately couldn't attend tonight, blew him up that I landed a solid hit— right at the end. Sir Devaron here's much quicker on his feet than I— his agility, from what I recall, served him much better than my aggression."[/color] he looked to Jarde for confirmation. Perhaps passing the ball to him would give an opportunity to ask what troubled the third of their number— much like dividing a group of opponents in battle.