บท 37: Chapter 37
Sitting on its hind legs within the streets near Kuoh Academy, a two-tailed black cat appeared to be in the process of brooding. Its eyes were downcast and unfocused, and its paws not even reaching out for the offered fish a kindly vendor had tossed towards it.
The vendor in question scratched at her temple, a befuddled expression over her face as the cat had never been one to turn down a free meal. It would always stare and nod as if in thanks after each offering, causing the vendor to feel a type of endearment towards it. Besides, the cat itself was rather unique. It possessed two tails.
In Japan, cats weren't only known to be rather friendly household pets, but as harbingers of luck and good fortune. Many shrines and temples in Japan were even constructed on their behalf.
However, two-tailed cats were different and were generally associated negatively in Japanese folklore. The vendor had a different opinion. As far as she was concerned, this cat was anything but negative fortune.
From the moment the vendor had begun feeding the cat, most of the vender's troubles somehow disappeared. The group of high school delinquents that scared away her general customers stopped coming, and even her shop itself had a rise in success when the cat called other cats into the area, drawing the business of numerous cat lovers.
Feeling concerned for the cat, the vendor was just about to approach when the cat slowly opened its mouth and took the offered fish between its teeth. Its head then bowed low in thanks before it absently slunk off into the shadows of the alley.
The vendor sighed in relief, and hoped that nothing was really troubling the cat. Then again, there wasn't much the vendor could do for it.
The cat refused to allow itself to be taken under the vendor's care, and as such, she could only leave it up to fate and go back to tending her shop.
With the vendor gone, the cat once again appeared from the shadows, the offered fish long since settled in its stomach. It licked its lips, but its expression was still glossed over; its feet walking it in no particular direction.
The cat had been to numerous places in its life.
The Underworld.
The Human world.
A dimension created by the Khaos Brigade.
And most recently, Kouh Academy.
In this regard, it was quite clear that the cat possessed information that very little could compare with. Yet, it was precisely because of this that it was immensely troubled. It didn't care a single bit about Devils, Angels, or Humans, but it did care for its sibling currently residing within Kuoh.
Based on the information the cat knew, it didn't have much time before it would be too late to do anything on behalf of its sibling. Therefore, it needed to act.
Hind legs pushing the cat forward, it meandered through the alleyways by jumping onto trash cans and miscellaneous object to bypass even the wire fences it occasionally ran into. Other times it got fed up and just directly jumped onto the roofs above.
It didn't seem to care that it was displaying agility that no cat could ever hope to emulate. All that mattered was forming a feasible plan in its mind.
What was about to happen were events outside of its own control. A problem relating to the relations between the pantheons and religions.
All it wanted to do was bring itself and its sibling out of the ensuing conflict. Unfortunately, doing so was far from just troublesome with its skill alone. Therefore, it needed help.
The cat knew of one source of aid, but it would feel guilty if it did so. It didn't want to endanger the first true friends it had ever made due to its own inability. The cat closed its eyes hard, trying to think of any alternatives.
It was then that a daring, yet plausible idea came to mind.
The cat shivered just thinking about it. Nonetheless, it still altered its current path.
It jumped back down from the building high rises and wearily made its way passed the Winged Angels patrolling the nearby area. Unlike the last time the cat had been here, there were now more than just the Angels secretly patrolling Kuoh's streets, Mid and High-Class Devils along with Fallen Angels participated now too.
The security was so tight that it was ironic that the person being secretly protected could be so ignorant of it. Then again, that was probably the intended point.
The moment the cat had first met him, it had no idea of the kind of person it was dealing with; rather, the cat simply wanted to amuse itself and, on a whim, aided the lucky fellow.
It was only afterwards that the cat realized that something about the person it had helped was familiar. A memory left forgotten possibly due to its lack of importance at the time.
Yet now, it was the only thing that the cat could think of after doing some previous investigation and coming across a particular hand-drawn portrait.
The person the cat had helped, it was perhaps one of the most iconic figures of the Underworld now under the New Satan Faction's management.
Marbas of the Seventy-Two Demons. The Hero of the Underworld.
He went after many other names as well such as Marbas the Unfathomable, The Lion of the Underworld, and even the Underworld's most desired Bachelor. Then again, the cat had heard news that Serafall did not take too kindly to the last title.
Regardless, none of that mattered as much as the realization of just how close the cat had been to such a legendary figure. It was because of this one experience that the cat had comprehended something. Far from the cold, callous, and disinterested Demon taught of in the Underworld's bibliotheca, Marbas was vastly different in person.
Curious as it had been then, there was no stopping the cat from witnessing the battle at the Peace Talks.
Even now it was rattled by the sheer scope and power of what it had seen. It was a battle not between Devils, Angels, Fallen, or Humans, but a battle of Faiths, and it had been overwhelming.
It was then that it realized that what it thought it knew of Marbas may not entirely be correct to surmise him. Instead, there was far more that the cat didn't know, and as such was wary.
Its entire plan was a gamble. What it was going to deal with wasn't just Marbas, but the de-facto leader of the Three Factions. The figure head of the God whose religion spanned between three large domains. The faith of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.
With the cat's current strength, it didn't harbour much hopes in coming out on top should its plans go awry.
Instead, it merely held onto its stubbornness, willing to sacrifice itself for a sibling it knew probably hated it. Be that as it may, perhaps that was the burden of an elder sibling.
Resolving itself despite its quivering body, it paused before a certain household after tirelessly waiting out the persistent patrols. Concealed by a thrown-out carton, it watched carefully as a silver-haired woman in a neat grey business suit knocked on the house's front door.
It clicked its tongue.
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It had only been around a day or two since the meeting he had with Odin, Sirzechs, Azazel, and Michael had concluded, and it was already beginning to show its effects.
As he stared at the attractive and slightly older woman in front of him, he was certain that another element had been mixed up into his hectic lifestyle.
"By Lord Odin's instructions, Rossweisse of the Valkyries and personal guard of the All Father has come to temporarily remain by your side," Rossweisse said with a tilt of her head.
She was a woman of fair height and admirable beauty, her silver hair falling down her back freely like a satin curtain that complimented her formal business attire. A work dress with a form fitting skirt that hugged evenly around her waist. She was standing directly at the front door. The earnest expression of her aqua coloured eyes along with her forward demeanour leaving nothing to be criticized about her. Her face was the literal picture of a dutiful woman of high achievement. Even the contours of her cheeks and facial features were unblemished, making it apparent that along with her general success came her young age.
In that sense, she could be considered a prodigy of her generation. In any case, it was the current awkwardness of the situation that had to be addressed.
She creased her forehead, a wry smile coming over her lips.
"Will you not invite me in?" Rossweisse asked, scratching her cheek with a finger.
Certainly, he should have had done so from the very beginning, but he was currently flanked at the moment.
Xenovia held his right arm and Irina, his left.
Together, both of the girls were staring fixedly at Rossweisse. Irina appeared completely out of her depth while Xenovia maintained a poker face.
The two had been discussing something between themselves as of late and it was Xenovia who seemed to have had assumed a teaching position after reading an extensive magazine. Said magazine was unknown to him as Xenovia had refused to let him see it, claiming its effect would decrease if he understood its secrets.
"Well, come right in," he eventually conceded despite the awkwardness.
Rossweisse nodded and promptly stepped into the house with her luggage.
"It's rather small for someone of your standing to be living in," she commented while inspecting the place. "I nearly mistook the six-story mansion I saw the Devils building down the road to be your dwelling."
"I suppose it's gotten a little small with the amount of people now living here," he said, frowning.
To begin with, the house wasn't even his. It belonged to an older couple related to the Church that had willingly lent it to him free of charge with Ayakoji's recommendation.
In regards to said older couple, there was no way he couldn't feel guilty.
The only place they resided within in their own house was a simple basement suite.
He had insisted that he take the small suite rather than the main house on numerous occasions, but the couple had adamantly refused again and again.
As he lost himself for a moment in his thoughts, Rossweisse took note of it due to her experience with Odin.
She had said that she was the Personal Guard of Odin, but in reality, her job was more akin to an attendant. Keen observation skills were just one of the many requirements that she needed to maintain her sanity. That, and tolerance. A lot of tolerance. In any case, she'd put the matter of housing aside for now until she could get into contact with some of the Underworld's leaders.
Unknowing of Rossweisse's thoughts, he continued his contemplation, his frown deepening.
The thing about Rossweisse's arrival was that there was simply no room left in the house other than his own. Admittedly, he hadn't really spent much time in it, but at least it had a bed he could sleep on.
In regards to Xenovia and Irina, their rooms were out of the question as he didn't want to inconvenience them.
Out of all rooms, his would be the quickest to vacate, and besides he had never been too picky with where he slept anyway. In the Underworld's Civil War, over half of his time sleeping was spent with his back pressed to a tree.
Coming to a decision, he nodded his head and glanced up only to see Rossweisse, Xenovia, and Irina confronting each other. It was apparent that in his distraction, the girls had come to their own conclusions.
They sat in the living room's couches, Rossweisse on one side and Xenovia and Irina on the other.
Rossweisse sighed as she shook her head, her hands clasping together. "You two can relax. I have no such intentions at the moment and just wish to fulfill my duties."
His mouth couldn't help but twitch when he heard the subject of their conversation as his current love life was actually too ambiguous for him to sort out at the moment. Therefore, he would rather forego the matter until he could settle things himself for an ideal outcome.
With Rossweisse's words though, the tension in the atmosphere somewhat alleviated. However, it wasn't completely gone.
Xenovia and Irina were muttering to each other, discussing in hushed tones that he didn't want to delve into. More so when Irina took out a note pad and began earnestly jotting notes down.
"She said 'at the moment,'" Xenovia whispered to Irina. "As such we can't fully trust her."
Irina solemnly agreed, and this was as much as he was willing to inadvertently listen to.
The two girls raised in isolation since youth continued to murmur and whisper to each other with a profound sense of enlightenment. Unfortunately, they remained ignorant of the fact that Rossweisse had already led away by him towards her specified room.
Once there, he rubbed at the bridge of his nose.
"Sorry," he said. "They aren't generally like that."
Rossweisse simply kept quiet, not expecting him to understand the smaller intricacies between women; not that she truly knew them herself. The title of the Valkyrie whose age equaled the number of years without a boyfriend wasn't without any truth after all.
Her mood suddenly plummeted, her expression sulking.
"Then if you'll excuse me," she said, entering what was once his room. "There's some unpacking I still have to do before sending word to Odin of my arrival here."
"Okay, no problems," he said.
With the current matters regarding Rossweisse solved, the only thing left to think about was how his night was going to go. He hadn't said anything, but his stuff was still inside his previous room, and he didn't want Rossweisse to feel guilty for accommodating it. Ergo, he couldn't even go and grab his pillow and clothes for the time being. With how late in the evening it was already, he feared that he wouldn't even get the chance.
He scratched at his head out of habit. There was something about the motion itself that seemed to calm him, and even in the future, Archer had not lost that particular trait either.
Walking aimlessly within the house, he steered clear of the living room where he knew Xenovia and Irina were still heatedly talking, and eventually an answer came to him.
In a household, even if all rooms were occupied, there was one place that was always left empty during the night.
His arm reached forward and turned the brass knob of a certain door.
The bathroom.
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The current Underworld was far from just idle, it was chaotic. Devils were abuzz on the streets and not even the High-Class and Ultimate-Class Devils were excluded. After all, two major events had occurred within the Underworld as of recent with one event that no one could possibly ignore.
The first event was the Young Devil's Gathering.
Every promising member of the younger generation was to attend to assess their potential under the scrutiny of the older generation, at least on the surface. In truth, the event would dictate the very power structure and standings of the remaining families of the Seventy-Two Pillars of the Underworld. A weaker generation of Devils within the Pillars would mean a decrease in the future influence amongst the family of the Devil in question.
Ergo, the gathering was an event that all ambitious members of the remaining families of the Seventy-Two Pillars placed great importance on. It was to the point where an intermission between the announcement of the event, and the actual beginning of the event had to be issued to give time for extensive training for participants.
In regards for the second matter talked heatedly of in the Underworld, it was far less complicated. It had to do with the capital city of Marbas and its head of governance, Adelina Swiftblade.
Due to Sirzechs prompt actions, Adelina didn't end up resigning from her position, but she did announce something else that immediately got the attention of all Devils participating in Rating Games.
She voiced her intentions to legally withdraw from Serafall's Peerage.
In response, Serafall offered none. No complaints whatsoever.
The Underworld went into an uproar. The matter of High-Class Devils trading their pieces wasn't anything uncommon, and in fact was done fairly periodically after a ritual of exchange. However, it was the person in question being traded that mattered.
Adelina Swiftblade was a Devil on the level of an Ultimate-Class. With recent news of her confrontation with Okita Souji and their subsequently scheduled bout, she only became more talked of. After all, it would still be Serafall's Knight vs Sirzechs's Knight who was hailed as the foremost sword master in the Underworld.
To many in the Underworld, Adelina was considered a free and exceedingly rare piece at the moment.
There was no High-Class or higher Devil that wasn't interested in her. Numerous Devils from the Seventy-Two Pillars made plans to visit the city of Marbas in their agendas, all trying to find a way to recruit Adelina. It was all the more heated due to the Young Devil's Gathering. Should she be recruited as the Knight of any of those young devils' peerages, then it would be a catastrophe for the other participants.
Meanwhile, Adelina's current King was too busy to care about the news. Serafall had already predicted that Adelina would do such a thing from the moment Kuro's identity, well; Shirou now, was confirmed.
The blind faith, trust, and admiration Adelina had for Shirou had always been strong and it stemmed directly from her childhood. The one dream Serafall had learned from Adelina that she had as a youth was to one day serve as her Young Lord's sword. Now that an opportunity had come, it was impossible for Adelina to waste it. Serafall understood this and wordlessly gave her consent for Adelina's actions which was somehow interpreted by others in the wrong way to mean that she would trade Adelina for a certain price. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case.
Adelina was exceptional. If not for the fact that Serafall knew her so well, then she probably wouldn't have agreed to Adelina's request. Then again, as Shirou was technically her betrothed by the Underworld's standards, then Adelina would still indirectly be working for her anyway.
She nodded her head. Win-Wins were always nice. One just had to think in the long term.
"It's done," she said while dusting off her hands in a mock fashion.
The fluctuating Sitri magic circle in front of her ebbed before receding back into the air, assimilating with a larger array around the Academy. Her fortifications complete, she finished her initial objective in coming to Kuoh. All that was left were some personal and political matters.
For the sixth time she glanced at the mirror situated within the Student Council room and assessed herself. She was wearing a blue sweater with black pants buckled together by a thin brown leather belt, and a decorated shawl over her shoulders. To most of the students that had seen her in Kuoh Academy during the past few hours, they had to stop just to stare. She looked stunning as many women do when in love.
"You look fine," Sona said warmly, a smile reaching her eyes. "You don't have to keep checking anymore."
Face flushed red after being caught in the act, Serafall promptly coughed into her hand just to salvage a bit of her image.
"The defensive magic has finished being fortified. I also added a couple extra features," she said in an attempt to stifle the laughter in Sona's eyes.
To her dismay, it hardly worked, forcing her to shift the subject.
"Speaking of which, Sona," she began as her gaze darted around Kuoh Academy from an open window. "I don't see him here. Has he stopped coming?"
To be truthful, one of the reasons for her visit was the finalizing of a specific date. Shirou had once asked her if he could make a visit to the Sitri home and she had been unable to answer him at that time after the Peace Talks. However, that didn't stop her from preparing. Even now the Sitri household was making grand preparation for Shirou's visit. One of the most enthusiastic was Allon, her aide of all those years ago and now the head-butler of the family.
Sona paused after hearing her question, her mirth disappearing in an instant.
Serafall blinked in surprise, the change was too sudden. More so because it had been too long since she had last seen such an expression on Sona's face. Narrowed eyes, thinned lips, and hurried breathing. It was almost enough to cause one to worry let alone Serafall who had always been overprotective.
Sona was quick to realize this and composed herself while internally feeling panicked.
"Don't worry," she said coldly. "Shirou's just late today and will probably be here shortly." He has to.
The only reason Serafall wasn't in that ghastly magical-girl outfit was the embarrassment of having Shirou see her in it. If Shirou stopped coming to Kouh, then Sona was certain that the outfit would make its reappearance and that outcome was unacceptable.
For such a means, she had made ample preparations by sending Tsubaki, Saji, and all members of her peerage on a hunt for the man in question.
Yet where were they?
As the seconds turned into minutes, she was growing more and more unsettled.
On the outside though, she was exuding such confidence that gradually Serafall felt reassured.
It was then that the Student Council's door abruptly opened.
"M-Mission accomplished," Saji said, wiping the sweat off from his brow, but smiling nervously thereafter.
Sona discreetly signalled to Saji, yet all Saji could do was shake his head. By the time Sona understood why, the people following Saji entered the room.
Serrafall's expression blanked, darkening considerably in vexation.
"You needed me for something, Sona?" Shirou asked.
He was standing at the front of the door with Xenovia, Irina, and Rossweisse behind him who quickly entered. The reason Rossweisse had tagged along was because she was currently on duty and Odin had tasked her with temporarily being Shirou's aide. It was a two-way job where she could act as the messenger and informant of both individuals.
A silence descended, the distinct sound of glass breaking resounding in Sona's ears as she stared apprehensively at her sister.
Serafall just stood there, unmoving before she balled her hands into fists and gradually loosened them.
By this point, Shirou had long since noticed her.
"Uhm, hi," he said in greeting, ignorant of the tension in the atmosphere.
"Hi," Serafall replied back flatly, and yet her attention had already shifted from Shirou and instead to Irina and the others, a twitch in her brow. "And this is?"
"I'm Irina Shidou," Irina introduced.
"Rossweisse, Valkyrie of the Norse, on a political mission," Rossweisse tilted her head politely.
As for Xenovia, Serafall had already met Xenovia in the meeting where she was unknowingly trying to set Shirou up with Sona. Just recalling that incident left Serafall flustered, so she had chosen to forget about it only for it to turn up now.
Still, there was something that had to be addressed.
"From the Norse?" Serafall homed in on a particular point while glancing at Rossweisse.
Rossweisse nodded before explaining, a perplexed expression on her face. "Lord Odin had a meeting prior with Sirzechs about this. Did he not inform you?" She asked.
"No. No he didn't."
A light flashed in Serafall's eyes, but it was quickly smothered.
She stared at the competition and understood just how many women were trying to mingle with Shirou's life. She was no longer in the mood to mention the matter about the Sitri household unless she could get Shirou alone first. With that thought in mind, an idea soon formulated.
"Good, this works out well," Serafall said smiling, ignoring the way Sona seemed to tense up at her behaviour.
Serafall then walked up to Shirou and stopped right in front of him, creating a magic circle that led to the Underworld.
"Now that you're here, there's an event called the Young Devils Gathering in the Underworld that I can inform you of," she said.
"Young Devils Gathering?" Shirou asked questioningly.
"Yes, it's a very important event with preparations underway that involve you to an extent. As such, there are certain detail we need to discuss," Serafall informed.
Xenovia crossed her arms watching on silently, feeling that something was off about the situation. As a woman, she had been able to detect the look on Serafall's eyes when she had walked into the room, and as such was already wary.
"Why don't we just speak of the matters here?" She asked.
"Because there are others who need to participate in the discussion," Serafall replied back evenly. "The other Great Satans for example."
Hearing Serafall's explanation, Xenovia could find no faults with it and simply pursed her lips. As for Irina, she didn't really have much of an understanding of the Underworld's matters and just kept silent.
"Then if you would step into the magic circle, it'll take you to a place where we can discuss things properly." Serafall said while gesturing for Shirou to proceed.
If Shirou had anything to say about things, then all he could say was that he trusted Serafall. She wouldn't do anything to harm him let alone others. It wasn't in her personality, and the matter of the Young Devils Gathering actually seemed important.
With that in mind, he nodded to Serafall before stepping onto the magic circle and disappearing. Xenovia and Irina glanced at each other, and soon followed, leaving only Rossweisse who remained still.
She raised a brow, eyes scanning the magic circle still on the ground.
"A two-step teleportation array," she analyzed. "Depending on the creator's thoughts, those who step in can be sent to two different locations."
Sona's lips twitched when she heard Rossweisse's analysis already suspecting what had just happened. In fact, she never would have had expected her elder sister to have had such a mischievous side.
Sona stared judgementally, her steady gaze enough for Serafall's ears to be tinged red, but, Serafall offered no other response as it was a fact that she needed to discuss the Young Devils Gathering with Shirou. Was it wrong of her to want to do so with him alone?
Unfortunately, Rossweisse appeared to be proficient in magic systems.
Rossweisse blinked as Serafall's attention fell on her.
"Before this gets out of hand, let me just say that I'm only here as an aide. I'll pretend I didn't see or hear anything," Rossweisse said, causing Serafall's features to soften.
In the next moment though, Rossweisse eyes narrowed. "Your full name is Serafall Leviathan, right? One of the new Four Great Satans of the Underworld," Rossweisse asked.
Serafall nodded, for her name and title wasn't exactly something that was hidden. "Is there something you need?"
"Yes actually." Rossweisse said while crossing her arms and biting her lip pensively. "Are you aware of Shirou's living conditions?" She asked, carefully.
"What about them?"
Serafall's tone was curiously, her body moving away from the magic circle on the floor to stand closer to Rossweisse who began explaining.
"His current house itself isn't bad, but it's too small. There aren't enough rooms."
Serafall nodded her head. "Okay?"
"Do you know where I found Shirou sleeping at this morning?" Rossweiss asked, turning her gaze away in shame, somewhat hesitant to admit to what she had seen.
"Where?"
Rossweisse fiddled with her fingers before speaking in a small voice.
"The bathtub."
Serafall, Sona, and Saji stiffened in disbelief. If any Angel, Devil, or Fallen heard news that the newest leader of the Alliance of the Three Factions slept in a bathtub, no one would believe it. Furthermore, it was no mystery to Rossweisse just why Shirou had ended up where he did, it was for her sake. Therefore, she was determined to fix things.
At the same time Rossweisse words registered in Serafall's mind, something snapped as she recalled what she knew of Shirou in the Underworld's Civil War. A lonely Demon without friends nor family. Had she not discovered him, he may very well have had faded into history. This wasn't what Shirou deserved.
He had given her his all, and she promised him the world. She had promised to herself in the Underworld's Civil War that when it eventually ended she would give him a life grander than whatever miseries he had ever experienced. Riches, joys, entertainment, she had vowed to stop at no expense to give it all to him. And what did she just hear?
A bathtub? A bathtub of all things?!
Her mood darkened as she quickly made the proper arrangements with Rossweisse: her talk with Shirou could wait for the time being.
Meanwhile, a two-tailed cat took the opportunity while everyone was distracted to flash into the magic circle still on the ground. It had waited for far too long already and was growing anxious especially because it took the risk of coming to Kuoh Academy. There was no doubt that its sibling would sense it due to their deep connection with Senjutsu. Thus, it had no time to consider anything nor care about the injuries on its person.
As Serafall wasn't actively directing which place the cat would be teleported to, it was all up to chance.
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The place he arrived at after taking a step into the magic circle was a homely area. A round table was set up in front of him with two chairs facing each other. Snack and drink were placed on top of the table's surface and offered in saucers and cups. A piping hot tea pot was at the center with a trail of steam coming out from the nozzle.
Around him was a small room with a window granting a grand view of blooming underworld lilies and roses. Couches and other furniture were decorated luxuriously in a matter akin to the expectation in Devil-aesthetics he had grown used to in the Underworld's Civil War.
Strangely, no matter how long he waited after taking a seat at the round table in front of him, neither Xenovia, Irina, or Serafall came. His fingers began absently tapping on the table's hard wood, his eyes zoning out as they focused on a grandfather clock by the wall. Eventually, the light of a magic circle activating dyed the room in a pale blue.
However, the new arrival was far from the people he was expecting. It was a familiar two-tailed cat instead that landed roughly on its side and released a pained meow. Its black fur was singed and it was cut in a few places, revealing traces of dried blood, but no matter how injured it was, its eyes were focused intently on him.
In regards to the cat, he obviously knew it. It was the same cat that ended up being taken with him to the dimension created by the Khaos Brigade. It was also the very same cat that had aided him in saving the Angels in the dimensional space. Without it, he may have had been delayed for too long and been unable to come to Irina's aid in time. Naturally, he was grateful and had a good opinion of the cat.
"What are you doing here?" He asked, absently raising a hand and healing the cat's wounds with a bit of divine light.
The cat froze momentarily, but seemed to gather itself in the next moment.
It nodded to him in thanks, before growing apprehensive, acting differently from how it had before.
"I won't hurt you, just relax," he said feeling the uncertainty in the cat's gaze.
Thereafter a voice replied while thick smoke suddenly suffused the area, obscuring visibility.
"R-Really?" the voice said.
He immediately grew perplexed, an arm shielding his face by instinct. By the time the smoke cleared, it was evident that the cat was gone. In its place was a young woman with long parted black hair and a pair of slitted cat-like pupils staring at him uneasily: the caution in her gaze surprising him as he had never met the woman before. What he didn't know was the sheer impact his demonstration of strength and ability had given during the Peace Talks. It wasn't the strength of God that got the woman on edge, but the spectacle that she had witnessed at the end with the twisted and malefic power of the Demon of the Underworld.
From a third-person perspective, it was ruthless. There was no emotion nor regard as Shirou with All the World's Evil had executed the Sumerian God, Utu in a merciless fashion.
It was reasonable then that the woman was somewhat fearful.
Still, something seemed to win out in her mind and she approached him with a feigned strength.
"I helped you once," she tried to say confidently but failed due to the anxiousness of her tone. "Therefore, can you just hear me out? In exchange, I have information. Something big is going to happen soon."
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