"Is that so surprising?" Well, yes, probably. Fefnir and Leviathan would probably have burst into laughter at the very idea of Harpuia allowing himself to be anything close to relaxed. He really only came in two flavours: rigid perfectionist or unsettlingly ardent. Had he really let himself relax so much...?
Or had there even been a need to stay tense in the first place? He would have embraced the chance to fight if Zero saw fit to draw his weapon, without a doubt, but the thrill the Guardians found in battling Zero didn't seem to be a mutual one. If he fought, it was only because they had placed themselves unyieldingly in his way. While Harpuia neither asked nor expected for his life to be safe in Zero's hands, it had somehow proven to be on more than one occasion.
"If you had wanted to do something when my guard was down, you'd have done so long before we came here." There'd been no shortage of opportunities, after all, when Harpuia had been a much easier target than this.
Even if Harpuia couldn't understand the reason behind all that mercy -- even if he might have resented it each and every time -- he had to acknowledge its existence. For whatever reason, Zero seemed to think Harpuia had more worth alive than dead. A bit of a grim basis for trust, perhaps, but a natural one for soldiers. While not a friendly presence, so long as their end goal was more or less the same, Zero's presence was nonetheless a surprisingly safe one. Just as much as Zero was reassured by the thought Harpuia would strike him down if necessary, Harpuia just as readily accepted that Zero wouldn't strike him down because it wasn't necessary.
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Or had there even been a need to stay tense in the first place? He would have embraced the chance to fight if Zero saw fit to draw his weapon, without a doubt, but the thrill the Guardians found in battling Zero didn't seem to be a mutual one. If he fought, it was only because they had placed themselves unyieldingly in his way. While Harpuia neither asked nor expected for his life to be safe in Zero's hands, it had somehow proven to be on more than one occasion.
"If you had wanted to do something when my guard was down, you'd have done so long before we came here." There'd been no shortage of opportunities, after all, when Harpuia had been a much easier target than this.
Even if Harpuia couldn't understand the reason behind all that mercy -- even if he might have resented it each and every time -- he had to acknowledge its existence. For whatever reason, Zero seemed to think Harpuia had more worth alive than dead. A bit of a grim basis for trust, perhaps, but a natural one for soldiers. While not a friendly presence, so long as their end goal was more or less the same, Zero's presence was nonetheless a surprisingly safe one. Just as much as Zero was reassured by the thought Harpuia would strike him down if necessary, Harpuia just as readily accepted that Zero wouldn't strike him down because it wasn't necessary.