@MinGenius
He wasn't responsible from his point of view maybe.
I believe he was doing great, the problem is that his subordinate didn't trust him and initiated a conflict that they could never hope to win.
The old man knew things were gonna get ugly and made the right call to retreat.
His subordinate was trying to save his men and being the info back.
If only he wasn't ordered to keep quiet about the witches, then maybe, the kid would trust him more and wouldn't have gotten them to fight a boss battle.
@sif99
I don't see it as forced, there were plenty of instances where his sense of justice was shown and his distrust of their leader as well.