Chapter 168: The Elf Who Stirred the Pot
"Sebastian only pretended he didn’t guess it, just to give me some room to express myself—so I wouldn’t feel too defeated. I’m well aware of that. But would I really feel discouraged over something that small? If they’re willing to indulge me, then I’m happy to take the bait. Whether or not Sebastian and the others saw through my act... that part, I really don’t know."
"Anyway, this is just how I get along with the demons. Illiya, you don’t need to think too much about it. I’m guessing you elves don’t do things this way, right? Elves tend to be cold, don’t they? That’s what I read in books, at least. But I suppose you’d know your own kind better."
Illiya wasn’t quite sure whether Anos was secretly manipulative beneath his cheerful surface or just unusually honest.
But now that the subject had come up, Illiya thought back carefully on the century or so he had spent in the Elven Forest. And to his surprise, he realized that, in some ways, Anos wasn’t entirely wrong.
After all, elves were famously quiet (direct action was preferred, always), rarely left home (couldn’t be bothered with small talk), and were emotionally reserved (immersing themselves in their happy little worlds was the ideal). Those were their defining traits.
Sigh... in the end, elves and demons really were completely different.
Ever since that day had passed, the atmosphere throughout the Demon Realm had visibly grown tense.
Where demons in the Demon Palace or other areas would once casually stop to chat, now they merely offered polite greetings before hurrying off, their faces wearing expressions of unprecedented seriousness.
As one of the few who knew the truth, Illiya naturally understood the reason.
He honestly hadn’t expected the outcome to be this explosive.
In his earliest assumptions, he’d thought the demons—after learning that the Yaguk Theocracy had come with ill intentions—would simply ramp up their defenses and perhaps uncover some of the hidden "leaks" within the Demon Realm.
However, what he hadn’t expected was that a small spark he’d tossed into the fire would end up feeding an uncontrollable blaze.