Chapter 97: Honesty Is….

This wasn’t what he’d been envisioning...

At least, he’d been expecting it to happen on the next thing they killed, not the Wind Whipper.

He’d figured that even if they won, Dita would be the one to land the final blow. And even if Yulis or Ralph managed it, the reward would only be 4 EXP, given that Tier 9 F- and E-Classes awarded the same amount.

Writhing and wriggling on the ground, Peace howled:

"Akwawooo!"

’C-correlation does n-not equal causation!’

Holding her bleeding side, Maura asked:

"Are you okay...?"

In response, Peace, frothing at the mouth, flashed her a thumbs-up before returning to floundering like a fish, having completely forgotten she couldn’t see.

His bones felt like they were stretching and folding in on themselves. Perhaps quite literally this time.

His ankle bones were moving on their own, realigning and fusing seamlessly, as though they’d never been broken.

Much the same was happening with his knee, the bones sliding and clicking back into place.

Even in places where his bones hadn’t moved, Peace could feel infinitesimal changes. As though foreign layers of bone were being grafted onto his own, thickening them from within. With each new layer, they pushed against his muscles and compressed his nerves.

’Guahak! Fuah! Shit!’

With each passing second, the pain worsened.

Tears began to stream down his face.

He maintained only enough control over his body to move his head, tilting it towards where the Wind Whipper had been slain.

Guided by the purple light exuding from Maura’s hand, the others were marching toward him.

Volkar was looking right at Peace as he said:

"Uh, friend? Why are your eyes glowing?"

Shaking, Peace drew a trembling hand to his cheek, touching his skin.

"Akwh- whath?!"

And accidentally cut himself.

His body had involuntarily entered the Hybrid state.

Not only that...

His claws had grown longer. His arms seemed to have lengthened, too, even if only by a smidge.

Between labored breaths, Maura said:

"Something... is definitely not right... with him."

"N-no! I’m g-good!"

Maura shook her head.

"That’s not... reassuring."

At last, Peace felt his bones settle.

They stopped squirming and growing inside his body.

The pain didn’t vanish; however, it began to diminish into a dull ache. Something far more manageable.

Rolling onto his side, Peace clawed at the floor as he tried to push himself up.

Yulis, who’d heard the commotion, raced toward them.

"What’s going on?!"

Ralph and Dita were close behind him.

The three skidded to a stop, the lantern in Yulis’s hand illuminating all six of them once again.

In that light, all eyes fell upon Peace.

"What the—?!"

"Um..."

"Pariah, what happened to you?"

"Friend, you don’t look so hot."

"Night Elf... care to explain?"

At first, Peace was confused as he picked himself up.

Then, he looked at the floor around him.

Copious amounts of blood and several humanoid bones lay on the ground.

The bones weren’t particularly large. Judging from their size and shape, they must have come from a hand or foot. Maybe both, given how many there were.

But...

’My... hands and feet?’

If not, where had the bones come from?!

While the transformation had been painful enough for Peace to entertain the possibility that some of his bones had been extracted, the idea made no sense.

Bones didn’t simply fall out.

As for the blood...

Peace could most definitely accept that it was his.

He vaguely remembered the sensation of it leaking out of him as his body ’evolved.’

But the ’why’ and ’how’ eluded him.

Whatever method it had used to escape his body was anything but normal. Had it seeped through his skin like sweat? Escaped through his mouth or some other orifice?

And there was enough of it to account for nearly half the blood in his body. If it was all his, by all rights, he should have been dead.

’Eugh...’

With long, wicked claws and deep crimson eyes comparable to those of his previous rank’s Aggressive state, Peace gave them a wry smile.

"I, uh... I’m a little confused as well."

Ralph, the mangled flesh of his right hand seeping blood that dripped onto the floor and mingled with the pool around Peace, said:

"I’m afraid I can’t accept that answer this time, Pariah. Explain, now."

Peace looked toward Dita, only to see that she wore an expression much like Ralph’s. One that reminded him of the look she’d given him after he’d slain the Blood Warden.

The look of uncertainty...

The look of fear.

Yulis and the others wore similar expressions, perhaps even more pronounced.

Something about the fear ain their eyes gave Peace pause. His heart felt like it sank into his stomach.

Especially when he looked at Ralph.

It wasn’t the same look he’d worn when they first met, when he’d genuinely believed Peace was one of the Night Parade.

No, this was the look of someone betrayed.

’Ah, damn it...’

Peace scratched the back of his head lightly.

’Honesty is the best policy.’

While many of his truths would get him killed, he’d be a fool not to reveal the ones that could save him.

What use did a corpse have for a secret?

The same logic he used when he ate the bones in front of Dita, only now he planned to explain much more.

Peace sighed, letting his clawed hands fall to his sides.

"This... is from a Trait. An uncharted one."

Scowling, Ralph tossed his shield aside. The knuckles of his left hand whitened as he clenched the hilt of his sword.

"Is that so? It’s because of a Trait that your resemblance to one of the Night Parade has grown...? I’m afraid I’m not so credulous."

Peace bit his lip, his teeth easily slicing a thin line into his flesh.

"My nails, teeth, eyes... have changed before."

Ralph nodded.

"Correct, I did observe that. I was most definitely suspicious then, and more so now. The slits of your eyes... why are they vertical? And explain everything else."

Peace reeled back.

"I... uh. They are?"

"Mhm..."

"That’s uh... I didn’t know that. And all of this... I don’t really understand it. But I promise to explain what I can. And, once again, I promise I’m not one of them."