Becoming a Monster

The expedition had been traveling for some time by the time they reached the mall situated roughly halfway between Ashenveil and the forest.

Despite everything occupying their thoughts, the strange structure still managed to draw attention as they passed.

For those born in this world, it was something they had yet to grow accustomed to.

Most of them had already seen the mall before. It was difficult not to when the massive structure stood along one of the paths leading toward the forest, but seeing it multiple times didn’t make something from an entirely different world any less strange.

Gazes continued wandering toward the structure as they walked. Some stared at the large windows covering portions of its exterior, while others focused on the unfamiliar materials and architecture that were unlike anything they would’ve normally seen within Ashenveil.

Even with their thoughts occupied by what they were about to face, some couldn’t help wondering what purpose such a massive building originally served.

However, there were also those who looked at the mall without any of the same curiosity.

The woman walking beside the blindfolded man was one of them.

Her gaze had remained on the structure for some time, but there was no awe or speculation in her expression. Instead, she looked at the mall with a familiarity that immediately separated her from most of those traveling around her.

She knew what it was.

More importantly, she knew what it had been before appearing in this world.

Her attention kept drifting across different parts of the building as they walked, her eyes occasionally clouding when a certain location triggered a strong memory. She was so distracted by her own thoughts that she didn’t notice the blindfolded man beside her had turned his attention toward her.

Despite his inability to see, he had little difficulty noticing the conflict in her emotions.

"I heard this was where you came from when you first appeared in our world."

The woman was startled by the sudden conversation, her head snapping toward him. The man wore a bright, innocent smile as he continued speaking.

"This place must hold a lot of sentimental value to you. Especially when it’s one of the last remnants of your old world."

For several seconds, the woman didn’t respond.

She had already been on edge since leaving the city. Her thoughts had constantly wandered toward what they were going to face once they reached the forest, along with several other concerns she hadn’t been able to put aside since making the decision to come.

Being suddenly pulled from those thoughts caused some of that tension to show on her face.

However, after noticing the blind man’s smile, she gradually relaxed.

There didn’t appear to be any ulterior motive behind his question. He had noticed her becoming distracted and seemed more concerned with pulling her away from whatever was bothering her than learning anything about the mall itself.

"Something like that," she eventually answered.

The blind man nodded, his smile remaining as he turned his attention forward again.

The interaction would’ve been touching to almost anyone watching.

Thalric wasn’t one of them.

He traveled with his own group near the front of the expedition, separated from the two by several others walking between them. Even so, his attention had wandered in their direction enough times since leaving the city for him to notice the relationship developing between them.

They weren’t close.

The space the woman maintained between them made that obvious, as did the number of times she became distracted by her own thoughts rather than engaging with the man beside her.

The blindfolded man, however, seemed intent on changing that.

Whenever the woman became too lost in her thoughts, he found some reason to speak with her. Sometimes it was nothing more than a question, while other times he found something around them capable of pulling her attention away from whatever had been bothering her.

Each attempt seemed intended to make her more comfortable around him.

And judging from their latest interaction, it was working.

Thalric’s own expression only became more strained.

He had thought he was prepared for nearly anything that could happen during this expedition. If the demon turned out to be a monster they couldn’t defeat, he had already accepted that possibility. If the nobles attempted to use the battle as an opportunity to coordinate his death, he was prepared for that as well.

The Church doing the same wouldn’t have surprised him either.

What Thalric hadn’t prepared himself for was the situation unfolding across from him.

His gaze shifted back to the blindfolded man.

Malachi.

Of all the people who could’ve been walking beside her, it had to be the person Thalric despised more than anyone else.

Normally, that alone would’ve been enough to sour his mood. Today, however, Malachi wasn’t the one Thalric found himself watching the most.

It was the woman beside him.

Bailey.

She shouldn’t have been here. And more importantly, she shouldn’t be with that man.

Thalric still couldn’t forget when he first noticed her before the expedition departed. It wasn’t even her presence that initially caught his attention, but the fact that he watched her approach Malachi of all people.

For a moment, Thalric genuinely thought he was seeing things. The woman looked like Bailey, possessing enough of the same features that he couldn’t help staring, but the situation was so unlikely that he found himself questioning whether she was merely someone who looked similar to her.

It was only when the woman happened to look in his direction did those doubts disappeared. Their eyes met for barely a moment before she visibly shrank away from his gaze, quickly turning her attention elsewhere in an obvious attempt to avoid him.

Seeing her here, with Malachi of all people, had truly affected the veteran in more ways than one.

Only he and a few others knew Bailey came from the same world as the demon they were preparing to kill. More importantly, she was one of the people who actually knew Noah before anyone in this world even knew he existed.

That made her presence concerning enough.

The fact that she was here alone made it worse.

Thalric had spent years dealing with people who survived by hiding their intentions, and his insight had become one of the reasons he remained alive for as long as he had. Remembering Bailey’s behavior recently and comparing it to what he was seeing now, he had already come to a conclusion he was increasingly confident in.

The others didn’t know she was here.

That realization had bothered him ever since he first noticed her, although not nearly as much as the question that followed.

Why?

The information surrounding Noah’s identity had been withheld for more than one reason.

Protecting Bailey and the others was obviously part of it. The Church had already pronounced Noah an enemy of God and mankind, and openly revealing that a group of humans maintained a connection with him, even if it was only during the time they were in their world, would’ve immediately placed all of them under suspicion.

But Thalric had another reason for keeping that connection hidden.

He had hoped to use it if everything went wrong.

If Noah proved impossible to defeat but could still be reasoned with, Bailey and the others gave them something Thalric otherwise wouldn’t have possessed. They were people Noah knew.

People who had no desire to see him killed and whose continued relationship with him could’ve given Thalric an opportunity to speak before the situation became impossible to salvage.

Even if none of them were present, Thalric could’ve spoken on their behalf.

He could’ve made it clear that their absence didn’t mean they had abandoned Noah or supported what was happening.

They were still his friends, and if Noah knew they wanted nothing to do with the people coming to kill him, Thalric hoped their connection would give him enough of a reason to negotiate if the battle turned against them.

It wasn’t much of a contingency.

But against something they might not be capable of defeating, Thalric would’ve taken whatever he could get.

Thalric understood that Noah’s presence, his influence in the forest, was disastrous for their city. If he ever had to make a choice, Thalric would always choose his city over the life of an outsider, especially if that outsider wasn’t human.

Yet, if all else failed, he still hoped to be able to form a connection with the demon only after he tried and failed to kill him.

Thalric knew it was hypocritical.

Cowardly even.

But with the Church here, he had to follow along with their script. If he tried to negotiate first, even if Noah agreed to allow humans safe passage through the forest to secure the city’s livelihood, the Church would brand him an ally of the demons.

So although it was unfair to Noah, Thalric was willing to take part in the attempt to kill him first.

If they succeeded, then the threat to Ashenveil would be dealt with.

If they failed, Thalric would swallow whatever pride he had left and try to convince Noah that not everyone standing against him had wanted this outcome. Paul and the others would’ve been his best evidence.

They knew Noah personally, still considered him one of their own, and most importantly, they had chosen not to stand among the people marching into his territory to kill him.

Thalric had hoped that distinction would mean something to Noah.