Okumura Syndicate

Chapter 56: Spellroom rummage

It was the next day, and this time Aster was alone in the infirmary. He thought about what happened with Viper yesterday afternoon when Demitris was getting his final dose of her potion. The sadness in her eyes was fully visible, and it was obvious she tried to hide it from everyone under her murderous exterior. If Aster wanted to find out what it was, he needed to play close attention.

All this had gone by so fast, he didn't even linger on the fact that Edward ordered him not to say anything about the identity of the traitorous associate to Rou. He would've told Demitris yesterday, but he had another request for the auburn haired boy, maybe another time he'd tell him the truth.

Demitris, free to leave the infirmary, can now explore the sorcery department for themself on Aster's word before he left. "Go for a look around", he said, but Demitris didn't like having generalised instructions, without clear direction on every move, he'd just get lost. When they first joined the syndicate, he wasn't aware they needed a routine like this, but it seemed he did.

It was early morning, so the spell room was empty, leaving Demitris with free reign to slip through. He was visibly fearful. What if the sorcerers stop them and turn him to stone? He shouldn't think about details now, all they needed to do was check the room for anything incriminating.

Upon analysing the room, all Demitris could find were various experiments left over time, some successful, some failed, others in progress. The potions reminded him of the escapades he had done with Rou, maybe the sorcery and combat departments weren't as different as he thought. They cleared away many of the non valuables off Viper's desk and took a look.

Looking further into Viper's desk caused Demitris to notice something surprising. Beneath all the paperwork about potions and sorcery were photos of 2 girls holding hands. On closer examination of the pictures, Demitris realised that one of the girls was a younger Viper, looking happier than he'd ever seen her. The only time Demitris looked that happy was when they were around Rou. Could Viper be in love with the other girl in the picture?

Demitris put the photos down as he slowly wiped away a tear. The thought of being separated from your lover, whether through death or other means, it broke the boy's heart. If they ever were unable to see Rou, he was unsure they'd be able to live. Demitris cleaned up the mess he made on the desks. After all, everyone had to work soon.

However, on his way out, Demitris came across Vox wandering down the halls. "Demitris! Didn't expect to see you down here, how're you doing?", he asks politely. Demitris felt tense in his shoulders, he can't tell the truth, he'd tell Viper. "I was just...taking the scenic route to work, the sorcery department is beautiful. Don't you think?", he shudders awkwardly.

"Indeed it is, I was just coming up here to do some early morning spells.", Vox chuckled. Demitris glanced at the fae in amazement, "You're so lucky Vox, you're a consigliere, you can do any job you want. Even the boss doesn't get that much freedom. They both laughed together, "Heh, I suppose he doesn't. Well I'll see you later, don't be late for work.", Vox remarked. "See you Vox!", Demitris replied.

Demitris heads out of the sorcery department and off to room 114, he needs to visit Aster as soon as he can to tell him what he found, as much as it hurts him. Eventually, the pieces will be ready to find out the mystery of Viper's attitude, or maybe even more.