Becoming a Monster

Chapter 608: Chapter 607: A Step Toward Trust

The atmosphere had become strangely lifeless after some time had passed.

Despite what happened, there was no one on either side who bore any hostility anymore, yet neither side seemed capable of relaxing afterward either.

Morvyr’s elves remained noticeably more cautious around Noah. A residual fear, no different than a lasting trauma, was left in their hearts.

And it wasn’t just them; his own companions kept a closer watch on him than usual.

That bothered Noah more than anything else.

He had considerable control over his mana. Normally, an emotional outburst wouldn’t have been enough for him to lose control of his aura to that extent.

But ever since absorbing Ethaniel’s soul, those outbursts had become more severe.

His emotions seemed to be drawing out a part of him that he had always sought to contain. He could never allow himself to be too angry, too worried, too happy, lest he would make mistakes that could endanger everyone else.

But when he had these outbursts, it was just as liberating as it was worrying.

Thankfully, this time most of his hostility had been directed toward those standing in front of him.

Had his anger turned toward everything around him without distinction, his companions might have experienced something far worse than what they remembered from before.

Noah took a bit longer to look them over.

Everyone appeared fine now. That didn’t stop the faint disappointment he felt toward himself.

Still, there was little reason to dwell on it now.

His attention returned to everything Morvyr had told him. For what it was worth, Noah believed the elf had been honest.

Morvyr had revealed information that actively weakened his own position. And then endured Noah’s retaliation without once attempting to turn the situation into a fight.

That was enough for Noah to place a certain amount of trust in him.

His Queen was another matter entirely.

Noah had no assurance that Morvyr’s change in perspective would mean anything once he returned to her.

If he had that much arrogance when he first met him, there was a decent chance that the leader would be even worse.

That was another reason the coming battle mattered so much to Noah, and also why he actively made it to where it was bound to happen one way or the other.

Noah needed to become stronger.

As quickly as possible.

Whether the humans remained his greatest immediate threat or the demons decided that they would be better off trying to control him instead of working with him, strength was still the one thing capable of preventing either side from deciding his future for him.

His gaze settled on Morvyr again.

The elf had already withdrawn most of his mana, though the tension in his posture hadn’t completely disappeared.

Noah couldn’t blame him.

He had every reason to interpret Noah’s actions as hostile, yet he still chose restraint.

That gave Noah one more reason to believe that everything Morvyr said had been genuine.

And if the elf was willing to extend that much goodwill after everything that happened between them, Noah saw little reason not to return some of it.

An eye for an eye didn’t always have to involve taking something from someone else.

Kindness could be repaid in kind just as easily.

The thought caused some of the remaining tension in Noah’s expression to fade.

“Just so we’re clear… I don’t regret how I reacted.”

Noah noticed the faint change in Morvyr’s expression. Even more so in his elven subordinates. Of course he knew that, in their minds, he should apologize, but he believed they should be lucky that he didn’t do anything worse.

“Imagine if you were in my position. What would you do?”

Morvyr was only surprised by the question for a moment. It didn’t take long for his face to darken considerably as he entertained the thought.

When he at first acknowledged that what they planned to do was somewhat despicable, it didn’t hit as hard as when he had to imagine the roles reversed.

“I- I would’ve done much worse.” He said with near clenched teeth. It wasn’t that he was unwilling to admit it to deny the impact of what they tried to do. However, he felt that his hope of cooperation wasn’t going to happen.

The others weren’t much different.

Some of the elves behind Morvyr still appeared uncomfortable, but the indignation that had briefly surfaced after Noah’s first statement had noticeably diminished.

They had been on the receiving end of his anger, so naturally they hadn’t cared much about the reason behind it.

But after being forced to consider what their own reaction would have been under the same circumstances, apparently even they found it difficult to fault him entirely.

Noah noticed the change.

It slightly increased his appreciation for Morvyr. Not necessarily because his subordinates agreed with Noah, but because they were capable of looking past what had happened to them long enough to understand why it happened.

At the very least, it showed Noah that demons weren’t all just mindless beings bent on world destruction like he originally believed.

But that may also be because they might not be true demons. Or whatever Morvyr meant when he spoke of confirming his identity.

Noah looked back to Morvyr.

“As long as you’re aware of that, then we can try starting over.”

That was as close to an apology as Noah intended to give, and apparently, it was enough for Morvyr. His reaction showed that he was genuinely surprised by how quickly Noah had moved past what happened.

Despite the relief that overtook him, the elf wasn’t sure how to begin the next part of the conversation.

Morvyr had taken a considerable risk by revealing everything he had. If Noah expected him to continue showing that same transparency, then naturally Morvyr would expect something in return.

Noah had considered that as well. He simply didn’t see their positions as equal.

It was the demons who needed him. They were the ones who wanted this battle to happen and stood to benefit from his involvement. If they wanted something from him, then Noah believed it was only natural that they would be the ones expected to give more.

Even so, he was willing to extend Morvyr the same courtesy the elf had shown him.

“Two things.”

Noah held up two fingers, which did little to clarify what he meant. The confusion on Morvyr’s face was proof enough of that.

“To at least make sure that this… partnership is fair, you can ask me about two things. Whatever you choose, I’ll answer with as much transparency as you gave me.”

Morvyr stared at the two raised fingers for several seconds.

Two.

Somehow, being given a choice made things considerably more difficult.

There were far too many things he wanted to know about the being standing across from him. Questions had been accumulating from the moment he entered this territory, and nearly everything he witnessed afterward had only added several more.

His first instinct was obvious.

Are you truly a devil?

It was the question that had occupied his thoughts more than any other. The answer alone could change how he reported everything that happened here to the Queen.

Yet Morvyr hesitated.

Something about Noah’s wording finally caught his attention.

He hadn’t offered to answer two questions.

He had offered to answer questions about two things.

Morvyr’s eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at Noah again.

Whether Noah had intentionally worded his offer that way or simply hadn’t considered the distinction, Morvyr had no intention of wasting it.

More importantly, confirming Noah’s identity suddenly felt like a poor use of one of those opportunities.

Morvyr already believed he knew the answer.

Everything he had witnessed only made that belief stronger. Asking Noah directly would satisfy his own curiosity, but there were other mysteries surrounding him whose answers could prove considerably more useful.

His gaze subconsciously wandered away from Noah, towards the ominous cave.

Even now, Morvyr could feel the mana emanating from within it.

It had diminished considerably since Noah’s outburst. But less mana did nothing to lessen his curiosity about its source.

If anything, everything that happened had made him even more certain that whatever existed inside that cave would blow his mind like everything else.

The aura behind that being was already nearly equal to his own. He had a faint suspicion of what lay within there, but at the same time he couldn’t believe it if it were true.

Morvyr made his decision.

“Then… what’s inside that cave?”

Noah followed his gaze.

Of all the things Morvyr could have asked, that was one he had expected eventually.

“It’s not really a what; it’s who? But to answer your question, he’s one of my other companions, who just so happens to be the strongest here after me.”

Morvyr’s interest was piqued even more. He was already surprised that the devil would offer to answer any question, but the fact that he was actually being so open made Morvyr both eager and timid about what he should ask next.

“It- this partner of yours doesn’t happen to be a drake, right?”

Noah’s eyes narrowed in scrutiny before letting up. He remembered that Bolas had been in this forest for a long time. It would make sense for others to know about him.

Instead of answering, he felt it would be easier for Morvyr to see him in person.

“Bolas, you can come out now.”