Chapter 178: What do you think now?
Morris sighed, his gaze dropping for a fraction of a second.
"Sorry..." he said, his voice carrying the immense, crushing weight of his position. "But it’s just that, there’s still absolutely nothing known about you. Or your true origins. In a war where our enemies wear the faces of our neighbors, mystery breeds uncertainty. I have a responsibility to this guild, and right now, you are a complete ghost in our records."
Noah remained entirely silent for a long while, the heavy quietness stretching between them like an physical barrier in the empty, stone-walled war room.
He let the Grand Guild Master wait, intentionally allowing the tension to settle in the air before he finally chose to speak up, his voice steady and filtered through the thick fabric of his mask.
"Who am I?" Noah asked, tilting his head slightly, his tone entirely devoid of arrogance or malice.
"Just someone who is trying to do good. There’s really no other hidden motive to it, Morris."
"I am simply someone who can’t sit back and watch the world just get destroyed by things hidden in the dark, or let these corrupted shadows run wild across the continent while I happen to possess the power to stop them. If you are looking for a grand conspiracy, you won’t find one here."
Morris opened his mouth for a moment, his lips parting as if he were about to press further, demand a real name, or order his guards to block the exit until he got a satisfactory answer. But then, just as quickly, he closed it back up.
Noah could easily tell that the Grand Guild Master had far more to say, and a hundred more pointed questions he wanted to desperately ask, but the older man ultimately decided to simply keep quiet and let the matter drop.
Morris was a seasoned pragmatist above all else. He understood the brutal reality of their current situation, and he knew that no matter what Mr. White’s ultimate goals or private background were, the masked figure was a very powerful, irreplaceable ally to have on their side—especially since he was now officially integrated as a part of the adventurer guild’s ranks.
When facing an existential threat from the abyss, pushing an asset like Mr. White away just because they didn’t know his true identity or what face lay beneath the mask would be nothing but absolute stupidity.
The looming threat of the demon kingdom, the public declarations of war, and the terrifying issue of the half-breed shadow spies operating in their streets were far more important and immediate than whatever Mr. White’s true identity actually was.
They needed every single bit of strength they could gather, and questioning the background of the only person capable of dragging a three-horned demon into the light was a luxury the guild simply could not afford right now.
Morris let out another deep, ragged sigh, rubbing the bridge of his nose as he let out the built-up tension that had accumulated throughout the grueling emergency meeting.
He looked up, his expression softening into one of genuine, unfiltered appreciation.
"Since you completed the mission so incredibly well... even going so far as capturing one of the literal demons conducting the experiment alive, you’ve done far more than I ever expected," Morris admitted, his tone filled with a deep respect that few men ever earned from the leader of the guild.
The Grand Guild Master paused for a moment, leaning his weight slightly against the edge of the heavy, polished council table as he locked his piercing eyes onto Noah’s dark mask.
He gestured openly with his hand, indicating the vast resources of the entire organization were at his disposal.
"What kind of reward do you want for a feat like this..." Morris asked, his voice dead serious. "Just ask, and if it is within the guild’s power to grant it, it is yours."
*
A few minutes later, Noah was now seated comfortably on the edge of a massive bed in a large, expansive room that had been assigned to him.
The sheer scale of the accommodations was staggering, and the space practically screamed of extreme luxury from every single corner.
The huge bed he sat on was lined with the finest, softest fabrics, and the polished stone floor was so pristine that it brilliantly reflected the warm light of the enchanted lamps placed around the walls.
It was a room fit for high-ranking nobility, a direct testament to how much the Grand Guild Master valued his presence and his recent contributions to the guild’s cause.
As the quietness of the luxury suite settled around him, the ambient darkness near his feet began to change.
His shadow suddenly stirred against the polished floor, the dark ink-like liquid rippling and rising upward until it detached from the ground.
Kael emerged fully from the darkness, his powerful form solidifying as he took a seat directly in front of Noah on the floor.
Noah wasn’t putting on his mask anymore, having finally removed the heavy disguise the moment the heavy doors were locked and secured from the inside.
A confident smirk spread across his face as he looked down at Kael, thoroughly amused by the anticipation radiating from his ancient familiar.
By Noah’s left side, resting heavily on the soft mattress of the bed, was a fairly large, coarse brown bag that was tightly secured at the top with a thick piece of rope.
By his right side, arranged neatly on the sheets, were a pile of thick, leather-bound books stacked atop one another in a precise column.
These were the rewards he had extracted from Morris, the physical fruits of his capture of Yaroth.
Noah reached over and picked up the heavy brown bag, gripping it by its base before untying the rope.
With a fluid motion, he flipped it over, pouring out its contents directly onto the space between him and Kael.
A massive pile of beast cores dropped heavily from the opening, making a sharp, distinct clanging sound as they landed on top of one another, bouncing and scattering across the surface.
