Which means you've been exposed to the nature of the tower?

[Hm. The knight glanced from fish to fish. The colorful ones caught his attention the most. Despite the danger it was peaceful.]</small.

It's not always terrible. [Ganta needed to know that much. He could meet some very kind people here and hopefully help him along the way.

Darres was taken aback by the question. How does he answer that?]

I've always been this way?

[He didn't reply to the first comment. Did Darres say something wrong? It was a harsh environment to adapt to, but it had its perks when you overlooked all of the bad.]

I don't know how to be anything else.

It's easy to build strength when you have others to protect. [He'll always support Ishtar and others. Whether it be emotionally, or in battle.]

Her majesty--[well] my wife has lived through many trials. [Many where he wasn't around to protect her, and he can't help but feel a little guilty about it even if he had no control over it.] She's a strong person, but she's still human. We all are.

Everyone needs someone to fall back into.

[Darres shifted his weight from one foot to the next as he heard what the other had to say.]

Don't apologize for being open. It's probably not healthy to let those feelings sit.

[The knight folded his arms over his chest trying to figure out how to combat what Ganta might have experienced in his world and here.]

I don't think you should treat each experience as the same, or assume your experience will result with the same outcome. Exposing your vulnerability will always make it easy for you to get hurt, but not everyone is out to cheat you.

[He's not sure...if he's saying the right things, but he has a general idea where Ganta was coming from.]

I...[Darres wasn't sure if it was appropriate to bring this up. Normally he would never reveal his past, but in the tower he was doing many things he wouldn't normally do.] Use to be an orphan. I lived on the streets, and treated each day like it would be my last. [You never really knew if you were going to fall ill, or die of starvation. Guards ignored the slums, not wanting to have any part in it.]

But my chapter drew to a close when one of the Generals of my wife chose to adopt me and took me under her wing because she saw potential. She wanted me, a mere commoner, to protect the princess of our country upon my 18th birthday. Truth be told, I have watched over her and protected her ever since she wanted me to become her personal royal [babysitter] guard. There's no length I won't achieve to insure her safety.

[He kind of rambled didn't he? He was bad at this.]

I guess what I'm trying to say is you can rely on people if you let them. Don't be afraid to come to me if you need help. I'll do what I can. Don't feel like you have to take it all on by yourself. In the tower especially, it's important to grow bonds.

[Had he managed to mess this up? Darres wasn't very good...with this socializing. Animals were so much easier to understand, and here he was trying to convey this importance onto a boy he only just met. Darres remained calm and docile.]

I understand if you don't trust me, but I'll still try to help you. You don't deserve to feel like you're alone. This place will test your limits, and it's easy to lose sight of yourself...don't...feel powerless. You're not.

[Darres had no powers. Nothing special to defend himself with. All he had was skill alone, his beliefs, and a drive to continue. He's been to hell and back and he knew things he sometimes wished he never learned.]

I'm sorry for imposing.

[He wasn't quite expecting a response like that, and the similar pasts was a mere coincidence, or the very reason why Darres felt like he understood what Ganta was trying to say. Even then, how would he go about teaching something like that?

Darres was uncertain, but he wasn't the type to give up.]

I'll do what I can.

[Friends? Darres used that word sparingly. Especially back home it was business before everything else.]

...My wife...

[She was a queen. She was a wife, and she was the mother of his children. She was also his friend. She was many things to him.]

[The last time he said someone wasn't his friend, that person died on him. He later found out that the person who died considered Darres to be a close friend. It was a dark feeling.]

Some people probably consider me their friend?

[He...just wasn't sure who considered him to be their friend.]

[He knew how very cruel the reality what Ganta said just was.]

I don't talk to many people. [...] Or often.

[Just two that he could think of. So really. How could he have friends if he didn't talk to people?]

[Perhaps their definition of friends were very different. Whatever the case...]

It's true that they don't. [A sigh.]

Being that you're still new here. Shouldn't you be more worried about settling?

Because if you treat this place like a prison, it will weaken your spirit.

[While the confinement of their reality was no joke, it was bad to always think with the glass half empty. Of course Darres always had a way to maintain his harmonious like demeanor.]

Has she been in the tower previously? How long has she been missing?

And you haven't seen her in this span of time?