How a Jealous Guy Interrogates 101

Stifling quietude prevailed for the next seconds to come, which didn't really make Eli's situation any better.

"Eli, can we talk outside for a moment?" Hal suddenly chimed in, an enigmatic smile splattered on his face.

Surprised, she just blinked at him for a second before slowly nodding. He then made his way to the door before telling Allen and the others to check on Noah again and wait for them to come back. As she followed suit and tilted her head towards his direction, she caught a passing glint in his inscrutable gaze. Some kind of aura was radiating from him. At this, she suddenly got the same feeling she had before Zeke and Noah barged inside the library earlier. It's as if another layer of facade was being added to a mask that's already thick.

For some reason, Hal appeared grinning, but wasn't really smiling at all, and this time, it gave her a different kind of vibe from when he'd make her blood run cold.

"Am I going to be scolded?" was all she managed to think of from this evaluation.

Eli then flinched at the possibility that she might get punished with a heavier assignment again, though she couldn't really tell what she did wrong. It's probable that Hal might've just seen through her lie, but that doesn't seem like it. He liked poking fun on her whenever he caught her lying, after all. He doesn't show that kind of face, and he'll most likely bust her out in front of everyone to embarrass her more. In other words, this was another level of peculiarity, but then again, it could just be a different matter this time.

"You done daydreaming?" Hal blurted out all of the sudden, snapping Eli out of her daze.

That's only when she realized that he took her to her favorite reading spot at the library. Lustrous gleam of yellow orange hues pooled the place, giving the view a reposeful ambience. The glass window shone a brilliant luster with the sun's golden rays dancing on its surface. Even with such a warm display, however, her company's dampened mood was paving way for a blizzard. Hal was now staring at her with half-lidded eyes, lips forming a downward curved line.

"I wasn't daydreaming..." Eli trailed off before tilting her head quizzically.

"Hey, Hal... Did something happen? You look deeply bothered."

"I am?" he asked, eyes widening in surprise.

"Yes...? Why do you sound like you only realized?"

Eli was answered by silence as he just continued staring at her. Though she meant to ask genuinely, she could tell that he wasn't too happy about her question. She doesn't even know what to make of from his reactions at this point. Hal, on the other hand, wasn't really aware of what kind of face he has at the moment. Only when she said it that he realized how he actually felt. It just seeps through his front without him knowing it, and now that he thought about it, he doesn't even understand why he's hiding it in the first place.

"Were you lying earlier?" Hal questioned, making her jolt in flummox.

"N-No...? I mean, no. Of course not," Eli replied, barely managing to pull herself together.

"Really? Why does it feel like you're still not telling me something...?" he continued before suddenly scooting closer to her and backing her into a bookshelf, making her breath hitch for a second. He then slowly leaned towards her, trapping her small frame. With a hooded expression, he just peered down at her, amber pupils glistening with an enigmatic emotion.

"...Something about you letting him sleep on your lap of all places, perhaps?"

Then, she stiffened, utterly stupefied.

On second thought, Hal must be playing around with her, after all. Just when she thought he'd ask about the antidotes, he suddenly brought up that awkward part of the story. He really caught her off guard with how random and out of the blue it was, but then again, that position was probably a bit too unsightly for them. It's all the more baffling since she and Noah didn't have that kind of relationship in the first place. They were even squabbling only recently, and it's not like both of them slept that way because they truly wanted to. Noah was just mistaking her as his mother at that time.

Even then, however, Eli felt somewhat relieved by Hal's question since it wasn't that serious all along.

"Woah...! Hal, you're actually this short?!" she enthused out of nowhere, face gleaming with zest and amusement, much to his flummox.

"So what if I am?" he retorted, narrowing his eyes at her in annoyance.

"Nothing~ Just a cute height and all."

"Boys don't feel flattered with that, you know. Why were you changing the subject, anyway? I asked you something."

"Wait! Let me see if I'm taller than you-"

"Stop that!"

Eli only burst into laughter as his face flushed red in embarrassment. Hal didn't really like topics about heights, and would get all this flustered when his was being made fun of. If people were to ask about anything that this perfectionist young Emperor could possibly lack, they'd need a measuring stick to find out. The tables seemed to have turned now, though. She's usually the one being toyed with, but now, she's the one doing the miffing.

"Just answer me, will you?" Hal mumbled with a deflated tone, making her laugh harder.

"Y-Yeah, o-okay... I-I'll say it..."

"Seriously."

"I will, I will!"

Her mirthful moment lasted for a few more minutes than she promised, though. When Eli finally settled down, Hal went back to pressuring her. Him doing so didn't really have much effect on her since she didn't have to lie about this one. She also got the chance to explain the situation more thoroughly, including Noah's peculiar orientation, his whimsical tendencies that startlingly turn violent, him calling her mother, and his childish behavior. While she's at it, she had him clear things up for her as well. The cascading chain of events left her no room to mull over everything, and the fact that she seemed to be clueless about Noah's conduct despite having read the book and gaining his step mother's memories didn't help at all.

"So, you're aware that Venus was his step mother, after all. You didn't act like you do every time you fussed about him," Hal remarked with an eyebrow lifted.

"It just probably slipped my mind..." Eli thought out loud in surprise and confusion.

Now that he said it, she felt like that this fact had only been a recent discovery even though she should've known it from the start. It's the same when she and Noah were quarreling back in Amethyst Falls. She kept getting taken aback by everything related to his and Venus's relationship when in reality, she already learned about it ages ago. It's quite a complicated matter since a lot of things had happened between them in the past. In fact, among the Four Heroes of Society, it was Noah who had the most interaction with Venus.

"Noah calling you the same way he used to call the Empress was unexpected, though. What's even more perplexing was that his desire revolved around her all along. It probably had something to do with that time," Hal continued with a solemn expression.

"That time?"

"When the Empress died, nobody shed a single tear. The whole empire only celebrated and rejoiced... Little did everyone know that there's actually one person who was weeping in secret. What's more, it's one of the people who mercilessly took her down and led the revolt."

"You mean... Noah cried for her?"

"He did. It seemed like he's hiding it all along - the fact that he still cared for her even after everything. He showed no hesitation to scheme her demise, though. He was all up for the plan to overthrow her since he wanted to take revenge for being used as the Empress's mad dog... That's why nobody would think that he'd grieve for her death."

Now, this one's mind-blowing.

It's never mentioned in the book, which she already expected given that it all happened after Venus died. Going by Hal's story, it also seemed like Noah himself didn't let anyone know. Nobody would ever see that coming considering how tragic his life became when he refused to take Hal's side and joined Venus in her bloody world conquest instead. When his best friend came and save him again, it's only then that he realized the pent-up frustrations, wrath, disappointments, and animosity he had towards her. Even from the reader's perspective, Noah didn't seem like he felt any remorse when Venus committed suicide in front of them.

"Only I know about this thing so you should keep it a secret from the others, especially Noah."

At that moment, all Eli could do was nod her head in silence.