Reborn As An Evolving Monster

Chapter 255 The Look Away

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'I can see through the water. I can probably see through matter if I focus on my vision enough, but that's when it'll start to sting. Let's just try getting used to it slowly. I am curious as to how the Forest Of Yarnha would look, seen from this Eye.' Mark thought to himself as his right Eye continued shining behind the piece of cloth. 'Mm. If I can think about stuff like this while looking at her, then I have no reason to worry.'

Splash-

Elisa emerged from underwater.

Her ashen hair, her bright eyes, her tender skin, Mark watched it all as his Eye saw through the spinning wave-like barrier of water supposed to hide her.

'I don't want fighting or killing something beautiful to ever cause a problem. Now that I think about it, Yarnha was rather beautiful too. That Commander was on the uglier side though, so that's good.'

"Can't you turn away?"

"Don't want to."

"Please?" The blushing Elisa asked with her gaze locked on the water below and her arms around her breasts.

Mark sighed and scratched the back of his head.

After quiet deliberation, his lips parted.

"I can see you."

"Huh?"

"I can see through the water."

"W... What? Are you serious?" Elisa asked as she kicked with her legs, widening the distance between her and the white-scaled Monster.

The latter nodded before scratching its neck a second later.

  "Yeah." Mark answered.

He could see her, but she couldn't see him.

It was unfair, and made him feel slight disgust.

"How long... Have you been watching?"

Mark didn't really want to answer the question.

But he didn't want to lie either.

"A while now."

Lying about catching a peek? No.

That would be too 'Human'.

"So what? You've just been silently watching? Are you serious? That's disgusting. Is that seriously what you were doing??" While Elisa did stutter a bit, her outrage manage to reach him.

"Yeah." He answered after shrugging his shoulders.

"Th... Th... THEN STOP IT RIGHT NOW."

"Fine." 

Mark's right eye stopped shining. He closed it behind the piece of cloth.

"Did you stop? Did you?"

"I did."

"Are you lying?"

It was a strange thing to ask.

Mark found it somewhat endearing.

"No."

Unsure what to do or where to look, the blushing Elisa's eyes moved in every direction while her hands fiddled with strands of hair nervously.

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why did you do that?" She asked.

Elisa thought she would be more angry about it. In a way, she was even disappointed at the fact that she wasn't angrier.

"I need to get used to using this Eye."

"Yeah right. Is that your excuse? Perv-"

"I don't need an excuse. I haven't done anything wrong. That's why I told you about it too." Mark argued. He did feel a little something in his stomach, but that could have been his imagination.

Elisa let a hand hang on her nape as she stared at the water for a bit.

'Why do I even care? It's not like... Yeah. It's not like that at all. Like Krista... Like Krista...?'

Her eyes narrowed as she thought for a bit longer.

'Beautiful and feminine-looking Monsters are probably more common in the Monster Realm or other areas of the Rift. I can't let petty-'

The spinning wave came crashing, and he could see her once more. Only her head was out of the water though, so that's all he could see.

"You said I should think of you the same way I think of Krista, right?"

"Y... Yeah." Mark answered, slightly taken aback.

"Mm." Elisa nodded.

She started swimming closer to the edge of the pond.

Mark was about seven steps away from that edge.

'Is she mad? She's mad, isn't she? Damn... Seeing a Princess naked has a price, doesn't it? Hope it doesn't make the Corruption go-'

"Like Krista, huh?" Elisa pulled her arms out of the water and lay her hands on the ground once she arrived a the edge. "Let's test it."

"Huh-"

Suddenly, Elisa jumped out of the water.

She stood facing him. 

The Elf blushed slightly, but the brazen smile on her face was more than enough to make one forget about the blushing.

Proudly and shamelessly, she stood.

"So? Just like Krista?"

Refusing to react, Mark kept staring.

Gulp-

Her ashen hair.

Her bright eyes.

Her bold smile.

Her tender neck down which drops of water were sliding.

Her narrow yet athletic shoulders.

A small mole under the right side of her collarbone. Something that Mark hadn't noticed before. How could he have noticed it, when he hadn't been given the opportunity until now?

Under her collarbone...

Her-

Mark looked away.

"HA! SEE! SEE! LIKE KRISTA, YEAH RIGHT!"

"What?" The white-scaled Monster didn't move its gaze as it asked. Its tone seemed to imply confusion. 

"YOU LOOKED AWAY THAT'S WHAT! HA! Making it seem like you're pure. Like Krista, he says..." Elisa shook her head as she clicked her tongue repeatedly.

"Isn't looking away supposed to be the nice thing to do? I don't see why you're complaining."

"You don't get it, huh? Huh?" Elisa questioned as she brought her hands to her sides.

Mark was rather impressed. Both by how quickly her shame had disappeared, but also by how interested in the grass he had become after being forced to stare at it.

"Do you want me to look instead?"

"No."

"Then?"

"Then this proves that you're the kind who would look away. "

"So you don't want me to look away?"

"No."

"No... You don't want me to?" Mark asked as he started turning his gaze towards her.

"LOOK AWAY!" Elisa shouted as she tried her best to hide herself. Mark did as he was told. "You're not like Krista. You looked away. She wouldn't have looked away. But you were embarrassed. And that's why you should look away! I was right."

"Yeah... I don't know."

"I can prove it. Krista, look at me."

Mark lowered his gaze and found a seated Moonlit Feline cleaning its white fur.

"Look at me, Krista." Elisa repeated.

The Moonlit Feline, not enjoying being disturbed while taking care of its fur, rolled its eyes before directing its gaze towards Elisa.

Krista stared for a bit before,

"She looked away." Mark commented while pointing at the Moonlit Feline.

"THAT WAS A BOREDOM-RELATED LOOK AWAY! TOTALLY DIFFERENT."

"Right, right..." Mark muttered as he nodded. "So, are you getting dressed or...?"

Elisa lowered her gaze towards her naked body, blushed brightly, and leaped towards the clothes she had taken off earlier.

'She really is beauti-'

"No peeping." Elisa said as she crouched towards her clothes.

"I have no interest in that." Mark argued while continuing to look away from her.

Elisa brought a finger to her chin and thought a bit.

"Yeah, I can see that."

"See what?"

"You having no interest."

"Well, obviously. I am a Monster."

"Haha. Yeah. Okay." Mark's eyebrow twitched. "Oh, sorry. Guess it's a sensitive topic."

"What are you talking about?" He asked.

"Do I have to spell it out for you?" Elisa asked as she made the Wind dance around her, ridding her of the droplets of water.

"Isn't it about being a Monster?"

"Who knows...?" Elisa chuckled cheekily as the Wind made her hair flow wildly.

"Well, I don't for one."

"You don't?" She turned away from him after putting on her hunter's pants. 

Only then did Mark's gaze move towards Elisa.

Her long ashen hair.

Her bare back and shoulders.

Knowing that on the other side, lay exposed her-

"No." Mark answered after a bit.

Only her head turned towards him. 

She stared.

"Well..." He looked at her, and Elisa lowered her gaze. "You're not the kind who cares about such things... Usually."

Mark followed her gaze and,

"Seriously?" His eyes narrowed. Or rather, the one eye that wasn't covered narrowed.

"Yeah, I mean... There's a reason why I don't mind you being naked."

Mark lowered his gaze.

He stared silently for a bit.

'...'

It didn't take long before he felt something welling up inside him.

"Pfthahahahah!"

"What's so funny?" She asked as she pulled her hair out from her clothes grasp with a graceful motion, letting it fall down in an ashen cascade.

"A sexless Monster."

"Huh?"

"Don't you think that sounds funny?"

"Not really."

Mark pressed his lips. He really found it funny.

'That's the way Monsters were inside the Dungeon... So it makes sense.' The white-scaled Monster thought to itself.

The next second, Elisa turned around.

"Sexless? Do you mean you're... Does it mean you're... It does, doesn't it? Of course, it does. Why did I... How could I just assume that you were a guy??"

"Huh?"