Chapter 152: Another Surprising One
A tinted vintage sedan, driven by Eduardo himself, was on its way to the location. The Prince sat in the passenger seat instead of moving in his own vehicle.
Ahead of them, the summon Hitman X moved across the rooftops, leaping from one to another as he scouted the path and kept a constant lead on the car.
Rayleigh’s presence in the same vehicle, along with the hitman’s advance scouting, were both precautions Ethan had insisted on. Given the Prince’s earlier display of hostility, it would have been careless for him to move without such measures in place.
Eventually, they arrived at a quiet part of town where the buildings were really old and less maintained.
They stepped out of the vehicle, with Eduardo and Ethan falling in behind Rayleigh. He led the way without a word until he came to a stop in front of a small, unremarkable house wedged between two larger structures.
He knocked in a very specific pattern. Three quick taps, a pause, two slower knocks, another pause, then one final tap.
There was movement from inside, then the sound of a lock being undone.
The door opened just a crack, and a young woman’s face appeared in the gap. Her eyes went to Rayleigh first, and she felt this visible relief right after.
Then her gaze moved to Ethan and Eduardo behind him, and her expression became guarded.
"It’s alright," Rayleigh said to her. "They’re with me."
The girl hesitated for another moment, then opened the door wider and stepped aside to let them in.
Ethan and Eduardo walked into the small house. The interior was sparse but clean. A single room served as both living space and bedroom, with a small partition separating a corner that looked like it functioned as a bathroom.
The girl closed the door behind them and locked it again.
She was young, probably around Isabella’s age, with long, wavy brown hair that fell past her shoulders and brown eyes. She wore a sweater and black shorts, nothing that would draw attention.
Rayleigh turned to her again and said gently with a nod, "show them what you actually look like"
The girl looked at Ethan and Eduardo once more, with uncertainty in her eyes but she trusted Rayleigh.
She closed her eyes and exhaled, and right then there was this sort of shimmer passed over her body.
When it cleared, two curved horns were now visible, protruding from the sides of her head, and her skin color had gone gray. She also had this sad look on her face as she turned away from the staring eyes.
Ethan’s eyes widened slightly.
"This is Ishtar," Rayleigh said, his voice calm. "And She’s a demon."
Ethan stared at the girl for a moment longer, then turned his gaze to Rayleigh. "Make sense of this"
Rayleigh then glanced at Ishtar, who had moved to sit on the bed, without saying anything either. Then he looked back at Ethan and Eduardo.
"Ishtar isn’t just any demon," Rayleigh began. "She’s the Heir Of the Rargid Family, and is like royalty among her people. Her family used to hold significant influence in one of the major territories on the demon continent, that was until they were wiped out by the others, leaving her as the only survivor."
Ethan listened intently. But it was then he understood that the family rivalries were just the same for the demon continent.
Rayleigh continued, "During our last expedition, we were supposed to infiltrate a certain house, when I discovered Ishtar. She was a prisoner and was being used by that House for a dangerous experiment."
He paused, then said, "I made a decision then that I would get her out of there. I did... and... well I couldn’t just leave her there cause she had no family, so I brought her back with us."
Ethan let out a breath. "If your task was infiltration, why deviate from it to get a prisoner out?"
Ishtar glanced at Ethan briefly, then turned away again.
Rayleigh staring at her, then answered. "It’s a lot to explain, but our true objective has always been to do whatever we can to stifle the power and influence of the demon continent. If I had left Ishtar there, the House might have succeeded one day, and I would have failed in that duty."
There was a brief pause before he turned towards Ethan and added this, "Inside Ishtar is something known as the Carrion Seal. Its history is long, but if the seal embedded within her were to be opened and triggered wrongly, it would cause an explosion powerful enough to wipe out an entire city."
Both Ethan and Eduardo widened their eyes in absolute shock, and the first thing that came from Ethan was, "Are you dumb? If you know she’s carrying something like that, why in the fuck will you bring it into this city?"
"I know how it sounds, but like i said, if it is triggered wrong." Rayleigh replied. "The house that captured her wasn’t trying to explode themselves ofcourse. They were trying to harness the power of the seal for a different purpose, to have it instead as a power source."
There was a pause before he added, "Just think of the amount of things they could make or power with the carrion seal as both fuel and battery—"
Ethan then interrupted, "I’m sorry but why isn’t this brought up with your Father instead? I’m pretty sure he doesn’t want this power whatever you speak of to fall into the hands of the enemy. What have I gotta do with it?"
Rayleigh sighed. "Because my father will do the exact same thing that House did with Ishtar. He will try to find a way to harness the same power, thereby killing her in the process..
..And this is why I called you here. I’ve been coming to see her and bringing stuff. But it’s getting harder to do without raising suspicion. People in this neighborhood are starting to notice. And if the wrong person figures out, her life is at risk."
Rayleigh met Ethan’s eyes. "That is why I want you to take her into your household.."
"Eh?" Ethan gave a funny looking expression of surprise.
Rayleigh quickly followed up, "All I’m asking for is anywhere from a few days to a few weeks, just enough time to figure out what to do with her next."
Ethan chuckled just a bit, "you can’t be serious, man. I don’t think the help you’re looking for will come from me"
"All you’re offering is shelter," Rayleigh continued. "Fine. If not for any other reason, can I ask you to do this for the sake of whatever it is you have going on with my sister?"
Ethan’s expression darkened into a frown as he raised a finger at Rayleigh.
"Listen to me," he said sharply. "Do not fucking bring Isabella into this, you hear me?"
He paced for a moment, then stopped and turned back.
"Do you know what could trigger this seal the wrong way?" he asked.
Rayleigh shook his head, indicating he had no idea.
Ethan threw his arms up in exasperation. "Do you even know what form this thing actually takes?"
Again, Rayleigh shook his head.
Ethan then turned to the girl. "And you... do you have any idea what the fuck is inside you?"
The girl said nothing to Ethan, but she looked frustrated enough and her eyes seemed teary.
Ethan who hadn’t glanced long enough to notice any of this, quickly turned to face Rayleigh and said, "The girl who’s a living bomb, can’t even speak to save her own life.
"She would if you stopped speaking to her like that." Rayleigh said, stepping forward slightly as the calm he had maintained began to falter.
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A/N: For Some Reason I can’t attach Ishtar’s Pictures here (the both phases of transformation). So check discord, I have them posted there!