Is It Wrong To Devour Monsters In The Dungeon - Chapter 10.2 (Patreon)

Lili was in such a good mood, that on the way to the place where her gnome deposit box was, she actually found herself humming.

Her good mood did not last long.

As she turned out of the main streets and made her way deeper into the city a foot came from behind her and crashed into her small back.

The force of it sent her rolling forward with a yelp of surprise, pain and shock, her huge supporter bag sliding off her shoulders during the fall as her face hit the dirt.

"Ugh…" she moaned, dazed for a moment before she realised what happened and quickly pushed herself up on her hands and knees and looked over her shoulder with a glare.

A glare that immediately fizzled out when she saw who it was exactly that struck her from behind.

"Well hello there Arde," Canoe Belway, one of the strongest level one adventurers in the Soma Familia, and one of the most violent and malicious grinned down at her, "Saw you made a new friend in nice shiny armour."

"Mr…Canoe…" Lili swallowed heavily, a sense of defeat already beginning to emanate from her core.

He ignored her and walked over to her bag, reaching in to the side pocket and pulling out two very familiar pouches filled with valis, "Woah now, look at this," he whistled, "This'll make my quota for this month twice over!" he laughed.

She grit her teeth, forcing herself not to reach into her cloak. The temptation was there to use her magic sword, but she couldn't just use it willy nilly.

It was her last resort for inside the dungeon, her last line of defence if things went incredibly wrong.

So instead, she did what she always did. She kept her mouth shut and her head bowed.

Enduring was all she could do.

"Seems you've got a good thing going on Arde," Canoe turned to her after admiring her money, his eyes glinting with malicious greed, "How 'bout you let me in on it? It's only fair, we're from the same Familia after all. And he looks like an easy mark, walking around with that shiny armour of his, looks like he came right from some noble family. "

Lili grit her teeth to stop herself from responding venomously. Was he an idiot? What part of Caelan made him look at all like an easy mark? This was why adventurers were stupid, Caelan might have been young but he towered over not only her, but Canoe as well. Just his presence alone when she saw him yesterday with Ged, before Ged even started a fight with him, was enough for her to feel that he was strong.

That he was someone that shouldn't be messed with. Entirely the reason why she'd forgone pocketing any of the magic stones he wanted from the trip in the dungeon.

"He's probably sitting on a ton of valis come to think about it, I mean that armour, looks like something straight from the Hephaestus Familia, probably cost a few million!" Canoe continued on, near drooling at the thought of the wealth Caelan Odhar possessed, "Think about it Arde, if we can get that off him and whatever else he has this will be like pocket change!" he jingled the sacks of valis at her.

He was flashing her own money at her, after robbing her…as a reason to help him rob someone who could kill her with a single blow.

But beyond that, someone who was fair to her.

…What should she do here? No matter how she thought, there was no way out of this situation without her losing something.

"…No." her mouth moved before her brain decided.

Her resentment was getting the better of her.

She cursed herself. But even still, her hand drifted towards her chest, towards where her magic sword was waiting.

It was hardly the strongest magic sword and it wouldn't do anything to the likes of a Minotaur.

But it was well enough to end Canoe.

"No?" Canoe frowned at her.

"No!" she repeated louder, plunging her hand into her cloak and wrapping her fingers around the cool metal of a hilt, "I won't help you." Lili snarled, standing up and facing the older chienthrope.

"Well that's too bad then Arde," Canoe frowned deeply at her, shaking his head, "Here I was gonna be nice and give you a cut, but now I'll just have to cut you instead." his hand drifted towards his belt, where a sheathed sabre lay waiting.

"Is that right?" a voice cut him off.

Both of their heads twisted to look towards the voice on instinct and Lili's heart caught in her throat as she saw who it was.

Caelan, outside of his armour and dressed in casual clothing, a sleeveless top and black pants with his hands in his pockets stared directly at Canoe, eyes cold.

"Mr. Caelan…" Lili gasped, eyes wide and panic rushing through her veins. When did he get here? What if he thought she was actually with Canoe?

Even if he didn't, he'd find out she was with the Soma Familia, or probably already knew now! After this, he wouldn't want anything to do with her.

No…no…no, this was bad, seriously bad! Why, why did things always go wrong for her just as they were looking up?

It wasn't fair!

She grit her teeth to force tears not to bud and her nails dug ineffectively into the stone ground beneath her as she slumped to her knees. With just two weeks of supporting Caelan she would be able to buy her freedom from the Soma Familia…and now….!

"Yes, it is right boy," Canoe completely ignored her, his frown turning into a wide grin as he looked at Caelan, "And look at you, completely saved me the trouble having to set you up and came to me out of your armour and everything." he grasped his sabre and pulled it free with the hand not holding the sacks of valis and pointed it at Caelan threateningly.

Caelan didn't pay it attention, instead his eyes were on the sacks of valis, "I don't remember giving those to you fat ass." he bit out.

"And what of it? I wanted them so I took them from this useless supporter," Canoe scoffed and lashed out with a kick that caught the kneeling Lili in the face, drawing a cry of more surprise than pain from her, "What are you going to do ab-"

As he turned his attention back to Caelan, he never got the chance to finish. In that split moment he'd taken his attention off of the younger boy, he moved.

Something rippled along his feet that Lili couldn't make out and he accelerated into a blur.

The sole of his boot crashed into Canoe's face, bodily lifting the shorter, yet heavily muscled chienthrope up into the air before slamming him down into the ground hard enough to create spider web cracks in the stone pavement, his hands going limp and the sacks of valis and his weapon clattering to the ground.

"Sorry I couldn't hear you," Caelan glared down at the man beneath his foot, "Want to run that by me again?"

Lili stared wide eyed. It was over.

Just like that?

She knew Caelan was strong, incredibly strong, but Canoe wasn't weak. Yet…all it took was him looking away for a split second, and he was done for.

Canoe flailed beneath Caelan's boot, hands reaching up to scrabble at it, trying to push it off.

Only for Caelan to push down harder and a muffled moan of pain to echo through it.

"You alright Lili?" he asked, turning his attention to her and his glacial look being replaced by a warm smile.

…He wasn't mad at her?

"Lili…is fine…though a little surprised." she admitted haltingly, confusedly.

"Good," he nodded before huffing and rolling his eyes, "Fuck, I knew the Soma Familia was filled with shit heads and when I saw this idiot following you after I stored away my armour figured he was up to no good…but this beyond my expectations."

Lili's eyes widened, "You…knew?" she gaped at the boy.

"Had a feeling, which was confirmed with this little get together and you confirming it now," Caelan shrugged and shook his head, "Honestly, I heard the Soma Familia was a shit show but I didn't think it was this bad. Why even stick with a Familia like this?"

Despite herself, laughter bubbled up from Lili's throat and erupted from her lips. Yet it was not a joyous laughter.

It was bitter.

"Do you think Lili wouldn't have already left if I could have?" she scoffed angrily. All her self control was shredded away and it all rose to the surface now that it came to light in the face of someone so strong, so well off, someone not as pathetically weak and useless as her, "Lili was born in the Soma Familia! My parents were part of it and went and died trying to make money for that stupid wine and left me all alone! I can't leave even if I want to, Lord Soma doesn't care, all he cares about is making his wine and lets Zanis control the familia. And he won't let me leave unless Lili pays what he wants!"

Before long she was ranting and raving, everything she hated about the Soma Familia, everything she hated about herself tearing from her throat with all the force and emotion her tiny body could muster.

By time she was finished, her bitter laughter had turned into bitter crying, tears streaming down her cheeks as she vented everything she'd been bottling up for years.

"It's not fair…if only I was born strong like you Mr. Caelan…" she hiccupped.

"That's…a lot to take in," Caelan who had been silent until now nodded lightly, "Alright, I hear you loud and clear Lili."

She blinked the tears in her eyes away and looked up at him at his words. Only for her eyes to widen as he pushed down with his foot before her eyes.

And an echoing crack resounded through the alleyway there were in, Canoe's skull crunching beneath his foot and the chienthrope's body going limp.

"You…you killed him." she noted, blankly.

Just like that, he snuffed Canoe's life out as if it were nothing and he didn't even blink.

"He can't go running to the Soma Familia for back up if he's dead," Caelan replied uncaringly as he stepped off of the cooling corpse and walked over to her, crouching down to pat her on her hooded head, "Besides, not only was he wanting to target me already, he attacked you and robbed you."

"Because of…me?" Lili was confused and numb. Her emotions were completely drained after she unloaded everything.

"I told you already didn't I? I'm a bad guy. I'm selfish, I'm violent, I'm lustful and most of all, I'm greedy. I want it all. Fame, money, women, power," he grinned at her, "But I've also got standards. And the second I took you on as my supporter, you became my supporter, and your problems became my problems."

That…

"Did you…help Lili because I'm a girl?" she found herself asking.

"Partially," he unashamedly answered, "But I had my eye on a few supporters, scoping them out. You stood out. Sure, from your face I can tell you're cute, but beyond that. With that tiny body you carry around that massive bag bigger than any other supporter I see. I could tell right away you were special and I so I decided I wanted you as my supporter."

She was…special?

Nobody had ever called her special before.

"But...I'm small and weak and frail…" she replied, body trembling.

He scoffed, "Small for sure, adds to the cuteness. Frail? Sure, for now, but we can remedy that if you want, but one thing you aren't is weak." he replied, voice surprisingly warm for a boy who claimed to be a bad person.

With the hand atop her head, he pulled her hood back and revealed her entire face to him, before his hand gently touched her hair.

And then…warmth suffused her. The aches that came from Canoe's blows faded away and her body, exhausted from the long hours in the dungeon filled with energy.

"If you don't want to go back to the Soma Familia, then you don't need to, you can just come with me," Caelan told her, voice confident and grin widening, "If they want to take you back, they'll have to go through me, which just isn't possible for a Familia as weak as them."

Something stirred in her chest as she looked into his glowing red eyes. Menacing, reminding her of the monsters that scoured the dungeon below.

Yet…despite that, she felt oddly comforted by them.

They were strong eyes.

"But…you're only level one." was her last feeble defence. He was strong, maybe stronger than Zanis even despite being a level one. But, he couldn't take on the entire Soma Familia alone, there were hundreds of them.

…Right?

"For now, but I'm stronger than any level one you'll ever meet again," he assured her, "I told you a bit about my skill right? You thought it was a spell, and you aren't far off. My skill is called Typhon. It means the King of Monsters. It's a skill that's greed personified. By eating the magic stones of monsters I not only get stronger, but I gain their abilities as well."

Her eyes widened…..that was how he could breathe fire. The flame breath of an infant Dragon, or perhaps a Hellhound?

"So if you want to come with me, you don't need to worry about the Soma Familia anymore," Caelan assured her, "Give it a month at most and I'll be able to crush them all at once even if I have to take them all on in a War Game."

Despite everything she'd learned growing up, despite every instinct he'd honed when it came to adventurers. Despite how much she hated them all…

She couldn't help it.

"Okay, Lili will go with Mr. Caelan." she replied.

Lili submitted to the warm feeling in her chest despite it burning her so many times before.

Just this once, just this one final last time, she'd allow herself to hope and believe.

_____________

I am not Bell Cranel.

I am not infallibly kind. I'm not a naive farm boy wishing for love and yearning to become a hero. I'm not the hero who will turn the other cheek and forgive others for their transgressions.

I'm not the boy who who this world is looking for. I am not the one who the Gods speak about in hushed whispers in longing for a new age.

This is not the story of Bell Cranel, the Little Rookie, the Rabbit Foot, the one of crystal clear purity in his soul, Argonaut reincarnated and reborn to rise up and inspire everyone and lead the charge to defeat the One Eyed Black Dragon, save Orario and defeat the dungeon.

I am Caelan Odhar.

I'm ruthless. I'm violent. I'm lustful. Above all else, I am greedy. I am the boy who grew up around drug lords and gangsters. I am the boy who was taught how to use a knife properly to leave a mark and not kill when I was four. The boy who was introduced to carnal beastial fucking at five. I'm the boy who first saw a man beaten to death in the streets when I was seven years old.

This is the story of not the shining white hero with glistening ruby eyes, but the pitch black monster king with a searing crimson gaze. The beast that will stand atop all others. I am the one who will lie and manipulate to get what I want. I am the one who will devour the monsters and make their power mine. I am the one who will brutally maim and murder anyone who stands against me and threatens what is mine.

I will crush the One eyed Dragon.

I will slaughter the ones who threaten my home.

And I will grind the dungeon itself beneath my heel and force it to submit.

"Caeeeelaaaan, you're back!" Hestia greeted me with a massive beaming smile the second I walked through the entrance to the church, "Oh, who's this?" she asked, looking to my side.

Where Lili stood by my side.

My eyes took in Hestia, the beautiful goddess of the hearth. And my lover.

And the gaggle of empty barrels lined up at the front of the room, just beyond the pews. Exactly what I needed to fill with my healing and poisonous powders.

"This is Lili, she's my new supporter," I explained, putting the barrels out of mind for the moment, "She's from the Soma Familia, though she's having a bit of trouble with them at the moment, they're pricks to her, so I figured it would be better for her to bunk near me where it's safer."

"It's nice to meet you Lady Hestia." Lili bowed her head.

Hestia blinked, before shrugging, "Well, if that's what you think is best Caelan," she agreed, before sighing, shoulders slumping a bit, "Though it would be nice if I could get one day where you weren't doing something crazy."

I laughed, "Sorry, sorry my bad, how about I give you a massage with the healing powder?" I offered. When using the healing powders, I'd noticed it made my body feel good and all tingly.

"Trying to butter me up huh?" Hestia caught on instantly, crossing her arms under those lovely breasts of hers and narrowing her cute blue sapphire eyes at me, "….I can't say it's not tempting though."

Her stern look faded instantly.

She was just too much of a softie.

"I suppose you'll be wanting your status updated again as well, right?" she raised an eyebrow at me knowingly.

"My belly is full." I answered proudly.

"Figures," Hestia snorted, "Alright, let's go down then, you can come too Lili, it isn't much but make yourself at home."

Yes, I'm a monster of the highest order. The monster that even monsters fear. But nobody ever said monsters couldn't care about people.