While the thrill of the idea of challenging her physically is always there that is not the intent of his advances. As any well trained soldier he knows all too well that at least half of every battle is mental, a juggernaut in his own right he respected the psychological aspect of all things. If the mind is not strong the abilities of the body are all for naught. He watches carefully at the muscles tense and roll beneath her obsidian coat and that is when he stops, barely inside her personal space with the barest glimmer of a smile on his lips. It was a small victory of sorts, a thrill finding that which might not be a weakness but was something that might not often be spoken of aloud. While he did not tend to play games he was more than happy to win them. Competition is a driving force as much as the thrill of winning a battle, he thrives in anything that meets him head on.

He quirks an eyebrow at her smile, taking it as her pleasure at his words. Though gruff it seemed he was able to warm her to him quickly, another skill that perhaps would assist him in the task she lay before his large paws. He stills as she continues on, his gaze intensifying at her words that are loaded with both requirement and promise. She is right to assume he has a calculating mind, dissecting every word and turning them over and over in his head. It was an interesting idea to be sure, he had held positions ranging from the basest of foot shoulders to commanding his own men and in no particular order. He had no issues with pecking order, ultimately little desire to advance beyond a place he was content with, but her proposition, as she assumed, would provide him the direction he needed.

He let her words hang in the air, silence enveloping them but for the whisper of wind amongst the tall grasses of the swampland. He could tell she needed him, otherwise why would she have sought him out so fervently, and for a moment he considered asking more of her as he technically had the upper hand; but he was not one to ask more than he deserved and he could tell already she was not one to give more than that either. “Very well,” he rumbles, nodding his large head in agreement with her proposition, “I will serve beneath you for the allotted time. All I ask is at the close of this period you meet with me again to discuss your appraisal of my work and I to decide on what the future holds for us.” The last word falls from his lips as close to a whisper as he would ever get, a conspiratorial glint in his eye as if it were some big secret. She had done well to impress him this day and her hoped her way with words extended into other facets of her life.