Lucifer's Descendant System

Chapter 402 - Difference in Perspective

"When she gets more used to your presence, I'll tell you if she changes her mind," Noah said, the glee returning to the woman's face. "I hadn't imagined you'd be this interested in her, else I'd have introduced the two of you earlier," he told her, as he raised his hand, Lilith turning to look at him, having swallowed.

"I love serpents and snakes, they were always so amusing," she answered, reinforcing Noah the need to introduce the two.

'Why do humans like this form so much?' Lilith asked, almost as if rolling her eyes, though she was still staring straight at him.

'Well, I can't say much since I also love the look of a certain snake I saw once,' Noah said, smiling at the snake, before turning to face the woman in front and extending his hand so that Lilith could approach her. "Well, let's introduce you to one another. Lilith, this is Yangshu XXXX, head of the XXXX Family. And Ms. Yangshu, this is Lilith, she's my contracted monster."

At first, Yangshu felt he was either too keen on his monsters, or maybe even joking... But as her eyes met with the snake's purple, a feeling she hadn't felt in a rather long time emerged.

A feeling she last felt over twenty years ago, the last time she had fought a boss of an A Rank Fortress. She felt the blood rush to her legs, and sweat started pouring out from her palms. And in the dark slits on the center of the snake's eyes, a pressure that felt as if the monster in front of her was evaluating the worth of her very soul.

It was only then that it clicked. '"She" doesn't like being touched,' she thought, as she recalled Noah's words. This monster was, to him, the same as a person, and now she felt something she would never have imagined, as she was yet to hear of a single monster in this entire solar system being able to. The Unorthodox, the monsters able to comprehend and understand speech.

She had a gut feeling that this tiny snake in front of her was more than just able to comprehend what they were saying, she was able to respond back, and make herself clearly understood.

And in a sign Noah was surprised, both lowered their heads to one another, acknowledging each other's presence. 'I hadn't expected you to do something like this at all,' he asked Lilith first in mind, before she even raised her head.

'She is someone worth acknowledging. It's just that simple,' she responded, and finished as she started raising her head, at the same time the woman did.

"It was a rather amusing interaction, that of the two of you..." Noah said, unable to understand how to interpret the woman's behavior.

"No... The amusing part is that you were even able to keep a monster of this caliber under control this well," she said, taking a deep breath, before relaxing. "I had never seen anyone able to do it, it's a first, even for me," she said, looking up at him and smiling.

"The fact I was able to help her when she was very hurt has probably helped a lot to get her trust, I feel," Noah said, trying to lessen his importance in the matter.

"Even then. Just having been able to be of help, is already a reflection of your power. Most people, wouldn't be able to even face such a monster, let alone help it..." she said, making Noah question whether he was just lucky or Lilith was unbelievably unlucky to be reduced to a state he could even be of help back then, although something struck him as unusual, though he could not yet point it out.

'Where's she taking this whole "She's amazing" talk?' Lilith asked, turning towards Noah visibly confused.

'Oh...' he noticed what was odd. Although he knew for certain she was indeed a monumental and heartstopping monster, there was not anyone to this date that had identified her as such, especially since she had lost most of her power. Immediately, Noah's hairs stood on end, as he saw a woman who was one of the nine most powerful people on this planet stare at him with eyes full of anticipation.

'Just what did I get myself into...?" he thought, as he smiled at her, acknowledging her words, and resumed eating, the two silently eating, and they carefully weighed in their next sentence.

Before long, the two finished their entree, and both brought their drinks to their mouths. 'The silence is starting to get eerie. Say something," Lilith told him, as she climbed back his shoulder, and reduced herself to the size she used to appear as a collar. Before Noah could act, he noticed Yangshu lean forward, before muttering.

"Oh my... she's so adorable!" She pulled herself a little, noticing she said out loud, but was quickly reassured by Noah's smile, as she looked up to see him.

"I wholeheartedly agree, though I sometimes wake up completely restrained since she likes growing when relaxing," he said, touching Lilith's body, who quickly coiled around his fingers.

"Does this mean she isn't relaxed now?" Yangshu asked, worried.

"No, it's not like that." Noah raised his hands, denying it profusely. "I said relaxing as in, resting, sleeping and so on."

"I see..." she muttered, before making a comment. "I'm curious to know just how large she can get," she said, making Noah think before responding.

"Well... I too don't know the very limit, since she's still not recovered her full power," he said, enticing her imagination.

"I'm looking forward to witnessing her full strength some day. I only hope to be on your side," she told him, half-closing her eyes.

"I look forward to that day, since we will definitely be alongside each other, at least as far as our intentions are concerned," he told her, serving both as a warning and a compliment. Yangshu and Noah smiled at each other, signing a silent agreement. And as they did so, the main dish arrived, both the same, the simplest and most widely recognized piece of pasta.

Aglio i olio.

Noah looked at his plate, visibly confused. On it, he could see spaghetti he was already familiar with, garnished with a simple and slightly thickened yellow liquid that he recognized as seasoned oil. 'I've eaten this before, haven't I?' he asked himself, staring at the plate for a second.

Meanwhile, on a nearby table, Maggie was more than a little annoyed. "This is so unfair!" she exclaimed, pouting, and glancing over to the table in the distance.

"I know you wanted to spend time with him, but that woman is very important. I'm sure he'd rather be here with us," Carlos tried appeasing the girl, to no avail.

"Then do you know who she is?" Maggie further questioned, making him take a sip on his beer, since he did not.

"Maggie, I think he is right," Sha came to his rescue, making Maggie instantly calm down.

"Is he? I see... Then, do you know who she is?" she put a finger on her cheek, as she once again glanced over, seeing the two eat together, and now another dish be served. "Argh... I think he'll only get here when we are almost done," she complained, angrily shoving some fries in her mouth.

"If I recall... we saw her after the end of the Arena. I think she might be... No, was it that?" Sha interrupted herself mid-sentence, making everyone wonder what she was thinking, as she kept nodding to herself in silence.

"Come on, Sha. I'm getting curious now, say it already!" Khish jumped in, chewing on a squid ring she held with a fork.

"Yeah, tell the poor girl," even Al decided to butt in, but for another reason. She was curiously jealous, as the woman seemed to be older than herself.

"If I recall, she was... I think... Yeah... She was the head of one of the Nine Families," Sha said, completely unphased, looking up while tapping a finger on her mouth.

""WHAT!"" Three voices raised themselves in unison.

"Shhhhh!"

And apologized in unison, as some of the tables around turned while shushing them with their fingers. Sha was unexpectedly alarmed at their reaction, only finding solace in that Bel and Maggie seemed also untouched by the ridiculous information.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait! Hold on! Hold that thought! Did she just say the Head of one of the Nine?" Khish leaned forward, her eyes wide, shifting quickly between the other two voices, Al and Carlos, who shared her astonished expression while nodding short and quickly.

"Sha, do you understand what that means?" she turned to her sister, swallowing dry, as the pink healer lowered her gaze and furrowed her brows".

"Yeah, duh?" she said, making a weird expression with her lips that curled link in a smile, but in a way that was more akin to disgust. "I remember she talked to him more than once that day. She was the head of a family, but I don't know which."

The sheer difference in understanding of what the Nine Families meant for the people on the table was enough for the girls to question their world reality. For Khish, the Families were all-mighty entities able to wishfuly control even her own family, that controled her life like that of a puppet. For Al and Carlos, they were a symbol of fear and power.

For Bel and Maggie they were just a name.

And for Sha herself, being now an important person in one of them, they were just the name they gave to a group that included the company she worked for.