NOVEL NEXT Chapter 707: Quest Act Two
"Ahhhrgg," he let out a soft groan, laying on a large sofa in a massive tent fitted with chandeliers.
Damon had been busy… doing a whole lot of nothing all this time—or rather, he had been getting some much-needed rest and recuperation.
The first day of the war games had come to an end, which meant that Damon had gone twenty-four hours while protecting Waton.
The prince was still alive, and Damon was horribly injured.
Glancing at his system panel, he waited for the last few seconds that would mark the announcement of his quest coming to an end.
[Quest]
[Dominators Burden]
[Completed]
Damon smiled as he waited for the reward. His expression had been pale, but Damon felt more energized than ever. At last, after such a long wait, he would be able to restore Matia's complete personality.
A few seconds passed, then nothing. Nothing happened. He didn't get his reward.
He frowned as he noticed a new prompt pop up.
[Quest]
[Act Two]
[Feast of Shadows]
You have hungered for days. Now I present you a feast. Feed and be filled with the bounties of the flesh and soul.
Devour six goddess races and one demon.
[Reward: Level Up]
Damon's eyes twitched. What about his initial reward? Why wasn't he getting it? Damon bit his lip, then sighed.
Well, no matter. He could more or less guess why.
It was a chain quest, so maybe he would get all the rewards at the end when he had completed every objective.
He sighed again.
At least this quest was easier than the last, though also quite troublesome. Damon had initially not liked the idea of killing and cannibalizing people when he first got the system, but now he was used to it.
'I just have to devour six people to pass, which should be easy since I have my shadow clone loose. Devouring a demon won't be difficult either.'
He paused, his brows furrowing.
Right, speaking of which, his soul was still damaged. He had tried a few things, but why had he assumed he couldn't fix the soul backlash he was suffering from by devouring other people?
He had devoured a demon, but… hmm, he was feeling a little better now that he thought about it.
Though it was a negligible difference, it was minuscule enough for him to miss it before.
"It works though."
What did that mean for Damon? Didn't that mean if he hunted and devoured many souls and fed his shadow the good old-fashioned way, his soul would heal?
Was this not encouraging him to commit a massacre? He was acutely aware that his system had been driving him to be an enemy of the goddess races since the beginning.
He glanced at his shadow at his feet, his companion that had gained a will of its own. It was quieter these days. It wasn't as lively or bustling as it was before.
It hardly did anything unless it needed to, unlike in the past when it was so animated.
Damon glanced at it, feeling as though his shadow was looking back at him.
"These days I'm the one who's being more expressive."
It was almost like his shadow was more reserved and quiet, keeping to itself.
Almost like how Damon had been before, while Damon was now more like his shadow, expressive and doing what he pleased. He smiled more, interacted with people more.
It was like his shadow was keeping the parts of him he didn't want active at the moment.
"In the end, it's just… me."
Why was he only spotting this difference now? And how mundane had he grown to think having a living shadow was? He had adapted to this strangeness until it became his norm.
His gaze lowered with a chilling calm.
'Well, it wouldn't matter soon anyway. The cure, I'll get it soon. The elixir. When I do, I will have completed my goals.'
It would be a fitting end to this tall tale.
Shaking his head, he couldn't let his guard down yet. Damon glanced at his shadow, and slowly, a figure began to rise from it.
A woman with dark hair and armor that covered her from head to toe. Her armor radiated a chilling cold that spread like winter around her. Her blue eyes glowed faintly from behind the visor.
Damon glanced at her, and the first thing he said was,
"I'm afraid I have bad news."
The woman in armor didn't move, but he could tell she was listening to him, even without a reaction.
He sighed.
"I… I just checked the rankings. It seems you're dead last."
Matia didn't really say anything. Then again, she wasn't very vocal these days, and even if she was, she probably wouldn't have cared. But Damon wasn't done, he had some complaints.
Slapping his knees, he groaned.
"Can you believe it? Eva is number one! Somehow she found a way to cheat. And I know what you want to say—'but how, you don't have any proof, this is a wild accusation.'"
He raised his hand, feeling his head throb in pain, but he wasn't done.
"Ohh, I have evidence alright."
Matia didn't even move. She just looked at him as he ranted on and on about how Evangeline was cheating, even with clearly no evidence.
"She's colluding against me, I tell you! If she wins, she's going to gloat in my face till the day I die. We have to stop her."
Matia nodded slowly. It was sort of her job to agree with him.
Besides, she actually liked this side of him. She had a feeling Evangeline might run into some Damon troubles pretty soon.
After he was done ranting, he clapped his hands.
"Ahem, ahem…" He cleared his throat.
"Wendy… come inside."
A woman entered. When she did, her gaze stopped at Matia, then she squinted her eyes.
Damon cleared his throat again.
"Ohh, this is Wendy. She'll be working with you. Wendy, this is Matia, she's my friend."
Matia's mouth opened under her helm as if she wanted to say something to correct Damon and clarify her position as a knight, but she was slow to say those words.
Then, the flap of wings echoed out.
"Caw, caw."
A raven cried out, landing on Damon's shoulder.
"Found Renata. Caw, caw."
Damon spread his shadow perception, sure enough, Renata was right outside the tent.
He smiled… evilly.