Chapter 315 A Monster With A Name, III
The Dungeon.
Throughout the Land, there were hundreds if not thousands of different Dungeons.
Yet, when they talked to one another, the word Dungeon could only refer to -that- one.
The one where they had met.
Elisa.
A Dark Elven Princess. Joyous, full of hope, and love for the world.
Through no fault of her own, she was captured, subjected to the curse that is Corruption Magic, and isolated.
While her people were going mad, she was forced to watch. When she didn't watch, their cries would reach her.
How long had she spent in that room? Alone and quivering?
How long had she fought against the Corruption she had been subjected to?
How many times did the pain, sadness, and loneliness feel too heavy to bear?
How many times had the thought of taking her own life crossed her mind?
Too many to count.
But everything changed when...
Mark.
A Human Reborn as a Monster in a different world.
Information about said world was kept from him for a long time.
Were there Humans in this World? It could a long time for that answer to be given.
Held prisoner by the Dungeon's walls, all he could do was fight and climb.
But it wasn't all bad. Thankfully, a passion for fighting was quickly developed.
Still, fighting and killing. Fighting and killing. Is that all this world had to offer?
If that was the case, Mark wouldn't have minded.
In fact, it would have been much simpler if that were the case.
-Try to kill me, and I'll try to kill you-
Such a life, while crude and lacking in meaning, wouldn't have been so bad.
Have fun fighting until you die.
For someone who, for the majority of his past life, was stuck in a hospital room, unable to move freely, it would have been enough.
And if fighting, if living freely that way could bring status, if it could have made him King Of All Monsters, then all the better.
In a world of Monsters, he wouldn't have minded living as one.
But if the world has more to offer then...
More to offer? Does it?
Perhaps it does.
At least, that is what his gut told him every time he laid eyes on her.
Elisa.
Attacked, captured, corrupted, trapped.
What for? To become food for the Devourer.
That was the plan.
The plan of those who made the Dungeon.
The plan of those who, in doing so, brought them together.
But Mark found more than food in Elisa. More than something to Devour.
Through their shared struggles, they had formed an alliance. They had signed a Contract.
Both had been trapped inside the Dungeon. Both couldn't remember their past. Both didn't know the Outside.
Mark only knew the Dungeon, while Elisa only knew the Elven Forest. Indeed, she had never stepped outside that Forest. Until...
In Elisa, Mark had found an excellent fighter.
An excellent warrior to have by his side.
He had found a teacher. She knew a lot of Magic and the World after all.
He had found a companion, with whom to travel the hostile Outside.
He had found someone who shared his struggles.
And more than anything, Mark had found someone he could talk to. Someone he could joke around with. Someone he could laugh with.
Someone he could let his guard down around.
The same could have been said about Levi or the Fire Spirit. But it was different. Perhaps because she was a woman?
A woman. That's right. She was.
But what about him?
He was a man.
Human? Monster?
In a peculiar way, those seemed less important. Not as defining.
Mark stared down and into her eyes. Elisa's chest and chin were connected to him. He could feel them. Her softness. Her warmth.
And as a man, he wanted to move closer to her. To decrease the distance even further. Who wouldn't after all with such a beauty so close?
But he couldn't do so quickly. He couldn't rush it. For the longest time, he had let her approach him. The opposite was rather complicated to do.
Why? Because he was a Monster.
Mark was acutely aware of how ugly he was. How monstrous he looked. How scary his face was.
In a world of Monsters, ugliness is both a weapon and a shield.
It is a tool. The uglier something looks, the less likely one is to approach it.
The Unique Evolution that had taken place on the Dungeon's 5th Floor.
At the time, Mark was quite pleased with the result. He -did- look intimidating after all.
In a world of Monsters, not many things are more important than that.
But that ugliness, what about now?
From very early on, Mark could notice it. How startled Elisa would be every time he turned around suddenly. Every time she saw his face suddenly.
The world has more to offer than fighting and killing.
That ugliness isn't necessary, Mark.
But then, why haven't you...
Elisa looked up.
His fangs, his bone structure, his nose, the scales covering his face. nOVe.LB(1n
Scary and off-putting.
She thought about the earlier scene. He had laid his head on her thigh, before turning away. Was he hiding his face? Perhaps. Was he hiding it... For me? Perhaps.
The more she thought, the more she remembered. Other moments during which he had acted in a similar fashion.
'Always catering to me, huh?' Elisa asked internally.
His face was frightening. It was ugly.
And it was scary.
Therefore, she didn't look at his face, but focused on his eye instead.
His face was that of a Monster.
But his eye, his pupil, the look in his eye, Elisa didn't dislike those.
Is ignoring the rest of his face truly a solution?
Perhaps not.
But the eyes are the window to the soul, aren't they?
Elisa liked what she saw beyond that window.
And so, ever so gently, she pulled down on his arms.
Mark lowered his head, and Elisa rose to the tip of her toes.
He kissed her, and she kissed him back.
