The Truth behind the Mask

Liam knew that it was better for others to stay away from him. There was no way that anyone would be comfortable around him once his origin was exposed either way.

He didn't trust anyone, no matter how naive they seemed at the first glance. The lessons he learned in the past were more than enough to show him quite clearly that everyone would have the same reaction once they found out about his bloodline and origin. It was easier to betray him than to stay by his side.

That was something Liam learned from a young age. Even if someone could ignore that he was human and devil, it was not possible for anyone to ignore his origin. He vividly recalled the Halflings who took him in thinking that he was just like them. The terror-filled gaze with which they stared at him after they found out that…

Liam nearly shuddered as he made his way to the closest door that led straight to the main entrance of the gymnasium.

"Do you want to open the main entrance already?" Felix asked when he noticed where Liam was going.

"I will take your leave and bring some more survivors," Liam answered with a nod. He looked at Felix and his people who were to his right. Felix seemed to be doing decently fine and some of his people weren't doing that bad either.

However, Liam's focus quickly diverted to something he saw from the corner of his eye.

His ducklings had gotten up from the ground and were following him!

"You guys should think about an answer while I'm away…not…." Liam was at a loss for words at the sight of the dozen or more students who stared blankly at him when he tried to remind them again. He simply rolled his eyes and muttered, "...forget it…"

Liam didn't think that it was troublesome if his identity were to be exposed during the next few fights but he wanted to avoid getting poked in the back by a bunch of steel spears if possible.

"Just stay back, kids. You can follow me after the rain stops if you want to become stronger…" He thus said, while waving at the students to make it clear that he meant them.

Though he couldn't help but glance pitifully at them and think, 'If you can find me once the rain stops that is.'

However, it didn't look like the students wanted to give him an opportunity to leave without them.

"Why can we only follow you after the rain stops? The storm might not end in the next few days!" Rex said in a voice loud enough for everyone around them to hear. He was one of the few students who dared to say something against Liam's decision, but the other students simply nodded their heads, too terrified to open their mouths.

"No questions!" Liam cut him off sharply. He was slowly losing his patience, and Felix kept watching the scene as a neutral spectator. He raised his eyebrows and continued to observe.

"...but why?" Rex continued to retort, just a bit quieter this time. He looked at the ground and tiptoed around, which was enough for Liam to stare coldly at Rex with the desire to snap his neck.

"You guys won't be lacking food, or water for the next few days. That means y'all can just kill the remaining rats all around the gymnasium. It is unlikely that the Elite Ratatuo will focus on you guys since they will fight other monsters on their level. But even if they were to focus on you guys, poke their eyes, and pierce their butts. Don't panic and just kill them. Pay attention to your safety, otherwise, I will not get my re…you guys will die!

Following me right now is equal to a suicide mission for you guys, and even for me since you guys are more of a deadweight than being helpful right now… I don't want to see anyone here die while I slowly move away, which will definitely happen once I take you guys with me!" Liam explained while beating around the bush.

He had a slip of his tongue which thankfully none of the students noticed as he used his 'worry' about the students' health as an excuse to go out alone.

Labeling them as deathweight was harsh but necessary. It prevented most students from beginning to grumble like Rex a while ago and save him a lot of trouble. They knew that he was stronger than them and that he could go to places where they would only hold him back if they are with him.

Liam was satisfied with the reaction of most students, and was relieved but his satisfaction did not stay long when he saw the expressions of the faces of Olivia, Kian, and Rex.

'These fuckers…'

It was quite obvious that he wouldn't be able to get rid of the most annoying ducklings. They would keep following him even if he didn't want that to happen. Liam chose to change his approach to the situation given the predicament he was facing.

Thus, he did something that most would consider extremely stupid. He nodded his head, motioned the students to follow him and he left the gymnasium with more than a dozen ducklings following him. Felix looked at them with a wry smile on his face.

"Why do I feel like something big is going to happen soon?"

While Felix was not sure what his gut feeling was telling him, Liam and the others left the gymnasium through the main entrance. They encountered a few monsters outside but they sensed Liam's bad mood and the bloodlust that radiated from him.

The weakest monsters chose to flee upon seeing him while the other monsters maintained a certain distance from him.

Once Liam and the others were far enough from the gymnasium, he halted in his tracks.

'Let's see if you guys will continue following me after that…' He thought to himself as he removed the black devil mask. Others may think that it was stupid to expose himself to the students but he didn't really plan to return to the gymnasium either way.

He wanted the students to become stronger and turn the gymnasium into an impenetrable fortress while he would pull more natives inside the gymnasium. It was not necessary for him to be inside the gymnasium to complete the customized mission!

With that in mind, Liam turned around, unveiling his face to the students who froze in their tracks.

"Hello there, I am Liam Wandel, one of the trespassers of Haltan!"

"..."

"..."

"Nah…you're just handsome…"