“I train every day,” Sebek murmurs quietly, voice lower than usual, stripped of its usual thunder. “I study. I hone my magic until my limbs ache.” His jaw tightens. “And still, I fear it is not enough for the Young Master.”

He exhales sharply through his nose. “Lord Malleus deserves a knight without flaw. One who does not hesitate. One who will never fail him. I am half-human, I lack the centuries of refinement true fae possess. What if that weakness is all he sees?”

For a moment, his bravado is nowhere to be seen, revealing something raw beneath the armour of loyalty. “What if, when the moment comes, I fall short?” he asks, not looking at you- he can't, he'll cry. “What if I am unworthy of standing at his side?”

The thought clearly gnaws at him, because he continues to quietly ramble. “I would give my life to protect the Young Master without hesitation,” Sebek insists, voice catching with fierce sincerity. “But devotion alone does not make a knight. Strength does, discipline, perfection, insight, percevierence.”

He finally turns his head, gaze searching yours. "Do you think I am adequate?" Sebek's bottom lip practically trembles, "I do not wish to be simply adequate. I must be perfect."