"What's this?" William asked. "Didn't you say earlier that you would not harm those who entered the Tower? Our talks have just ended and you're already breaking your word? I guess your words aren't as credible as you made us believe."
Avril and the other Leaders frowned at this development. They remembered that the Death Lord had said that no harm would come to them during their stay. If Morax were to really attack William then that was tantamount to going back on his words.
Someone who could break their promise easily, was someone not worth trusting. The leaders were not stupid people. They couldn't possibly trust someone who could easily take back their words depending on their mood.
If they really turned a blind eye to this injustice then they would never be able to fully trust the Dread Lord ever again.
Morax's obsidian eyes locked on William before an amused expression spread across the Dread Lord's face.
"Harm you? Perish the thought," Morax said. "I am merely asking you a question. So, what is your answer?"
"Like I said, what Death Lord?" William replied. "Bone Dragon? Is that edible?"
Avril, and the other Leaders, suddenly had the strong urge to beat the Half-Elf into oblivion. They had just sealed a deal with Morax, and he was already stirring up trouble.
Swiper, on the other hand, was very happy with this development. He was both awestruck and embarrassed at how shameful William could be.
Just admit it, dammit!
This was the collective thoughts of all the Leaders who were glaring at William from their positions.
The Half-Elf pretended that he wasn't aware of their eye signals, and continued to look at Morax with confusion.
"You have guts, I'll give you that," Morax said with a trace of admiration.
"You don't?" William replied. "Ah! Sorry, you're an Undead. Dead people don't have guts."
Goddamit! Bro, are you mad?!
If earlier the Leaders only wanted to beat Wiliam to oblivion, now, they wanted to hack him to pieces.
Lindir had already taken out his spear and was about to stab William's bum, but Eldon and Wade held back the Lizard with everything they had.
"Dammit, just let me stab him once!" Lindor roared in anger. He had never seen someone as dense and stupid as William.
None of them dared to provoke the Dread Lord in front of them because they wanted to resolve the conflict peacefully, but the Half-Elf was keen on going to hell, and all of them thought that he planned to bring them all with him.
Suddenly, Morax roared in laughter. No one could tell if his laughter was due to anger, or irritation, or maybe both. However, whatever his current feelings were, the Dread Lord made sure that it didn't show in his face.
Morax raised his hand and all the Death Lords sheathed their weapons and backed away.
"It's been a while since I met someone who has the audacity to lie to my face," Morax said. "Fine. Since we just finished our talks, I will turn a blind eye on this incident. However, if this happens again, I will no longer show any mercy. All of you may go."
"Thank you for your mercy, Lord Morax." Avril bowed. "We will do our best to find the mirrors for you."
"At least there is someone sensible among your group," Morax shifted his gaze on Avril, who had shown exceptional statesmanship in front of him. Very few people could have her composure when faced with such a situation.
Because of this Morax genuinely appreciated Avril's character.
"Your name is Avril, right?"
"Yes, Lord Morax."
The Dread Lord gave her a brief nod. "If you have any difficulties, feel free to talk to me using the crystal. I'll try to help fix those problems for you."
Avril had a vague understanding of what Morax was trying to say, but it was more than enough for her to give the Dread Lord another bow filled with respect.
"Thank you, Your Excellency," Avril replied. "We will now take our leave."
Avril turned around and walked towards the exit without looking back.
William held Lilith's and Raizel's hand and hurriedly followed behind Avril. It was as if he didn't want to be the last to leave the throne room, and suffer from an unexpected sneak attack from the Dread Lord that he had offended earlier.
Several minutes later, the group were safely back in their trucks.
It was at this moment when all the leaders glared and confronted William at the same time.
"Lad, you should have held back there," Elron said as he played with his beard. "That guy is a monster, we ain't gonna beat him even if we all attacked at the same time."
"What were you thinking?!" Lindir hissed in anger. "We worked so hard to come to an agreement, and you just decided to one-sidedly annoy Lord Morax! Are you seeking death, boy?!"
"William, there are times when men must compromise," Wade said through gritted teeth. "Fortunately, the Dread Lord decided to be merciful. Next time, don't bother to come with us when we meet with Lord Morax. If you want to die, you can die alone. Don't bring us to hell with you!"
The other Leaders said similar things, but William remained indifferent. When all of them had finished venting their anger at him, it was at that moment when the Half-Elf decided to break his silence.
"I only did what all of you were afraid to do," William replied. "This is only the first time we've met Morax, and you guys are already treating him like a trustworthy person. Remember that you are dealing with a Dread Lord. They specialize in lies and deceit. Are all of you so gullible that you'll trust his words at face value?"
It was at that moment when Avril suddenly had a realization and she looked at William with genuine surprise.
"So, you're saying that you tried to anger Lord Morax on purpose to know if he would go back on his words?" Avril asked.
"Of course," William replied. "I'm not you guys, who readily believe the words of a stranger. If his words cannot be trusted then what is the point of coming to an agreement with him? Someone had to play the villain. I did it for all of you, and this is how you repay me?"
William snorted at the Leaders who suddenly had awkward expressions on their faces. They didn't realize that the Half-Elf was purposely testing the Dread Lord to see if he would attack after saying that no harm would come to them after entering the tower.
Seeing the faces of the Leaders who berated him, William heaved a long sigh of disappointment, which made those who heard it avert their gazes in shame.
"It's fine," William said. "At least with this, we can say that we can trust Morax to a certain extent. However, don't be deceived. A being of that caliber should not be taken lightly. Let's go, Raizel. Let's return to the shelter."
Raizel nodded her head and started the engine of the truck. Soon, William's group left the others behind.
Avril stared at the leaving truck before looking at the golden crystal in her hand with complex emotions in her heart. She didn't know if she could believe Morax's words, but if the Dread Lord could grant her wish then she was willing to trust him once.
"I can't believe that you had this plan in mind," Lilith said after they were a mile away from Avril's group. "You were quite impressive back there."
William chuckled as he gave the Amazon Princess a side-long glance. "What I said back there was a lie."
"Hah? What do you mean, a lie?" Lilith asked in confusion. "What part of it was a lie?"
"Everything."
"Everything?"
William smirked. "This place is not safe. I'll tell you the rest after we return to the Shelter."
Lilith was still in a state of confusion, while Raizel, on the other hand, drove the truck without a word.
However, If one were to look closely, they would notice that the corner of the young beauty's lips were curled up into a smile.. It was as if she already knew that the meeting with Morax would end this way, and she simply went there to be a spectator.
