A Demon's Fate

Chapter 9: A Dangerous Proposal

The teacher looked the three of us straight in the eye. He seemed to have a lot to talk about... "I'm surprised they never sent you in for beating up Noalda."

Cole stood in silence. That can't be why he was giving us those looks.

"And Miyouko, I'm surprised they didn't ding you for trespassing."

Wraithe knows about that?

"And Soma, I assume enthusiatic walks through the woods, killing everything that moves, is a norm for you?"

Soma glared at him sharply. Not even I knew he was killing homicidal vampire priests every night. Was there also a big-tittied police girl?

"Everywhere I look, strange shit is going on, and I'm finding you three in the center of it. I hope you aren't up to something."

He kept that same even tone, and I couldn't tell if he knew exactly what was going on. He probably knew more than we did.

John looked at us all once more, but we didn't have anything to say. Finally, he dismissed us without another word.

The three of us nod and exit as the bell rings.

As I sat in History, alone this time, I couldn't help but think of how alien things have become. I couldn't think of anything but demons, I'm distancing myself from everyone again, and there are so many secrets and mysteries that I can't tell what's real and what's not.

In addition, the upcoming battle worried me. Tensions were high between Soma and Cole and we were facing the devil himself! Supposedly, he's going to be tough to defeat...

"Tough," Kiryuin interrupted my thoughts with a hearty laugh, "More like impossible."

How do you know that?

"I know because I've seen him. In your current state, there's no way you can defeat him."

We have the Blue Flame backing us up right?

"We're stuck in a ground war with the king's troops. It's just going to be you and Soma."

I... can't fight though...

"No, you just haven't learned how. First, we need to find your Catalyst. The one object that holds your locked away emotions."

What do you mean?

"Trust me, you'll figure it out on your own. When you're about to die probably. I wonder what your Scythe will manifest as..." She seemed to trail away in thought.

If Soma's Demon Scythe is a shotgun, what would mine be? I pulled my scarf up and laid down on it.

Who knows... In any case, I had bigger things to worry about, like solving the Cole and Soma mystery!

As the minutes ticked by, school finally ended, and I would hopefully have a chance to talk with Soma on the matter.

Almost as luckily, I found Cole walking towards me through the crowd of students exiting the building. "Oh hey, Cole," I say as he reaches me.

"Hey Miyouko. Are you free right now?"

W-wow! I thought he was straightforward, but that was way faster than I thought! K-Kiryu, help...

"Or if you have plans with your girlfriend, that's fine!" he adds jokingly.

"N-no! I don't have plans..." I trailed.

"Oh, so then would you care to..." Cole stopped mid-sentence. I patiently waited as the room came to complete silence, all students having left the building. "...Take a walk with me?"

Ehh? That wasn't exactly the five star restaurant date I was expecting, but maybe Cole has simpler tastes than I thought. "Right now? Sure..."

Kiryuin finally tuned in to say, "Be careful." She was silent after that. Cole then impatiently motioned for me to join him, and I quickly ran over.

As it was only around three, the sun still shone in the sky, and it was surprisingly warm for the time of year. Cole was about to remove his coat, but hesitated, and put it back on.

"What's the matter?" I ask him.

"I think I need to disclose some things with you."

Ah, so this is business. Doesn't that figure?

"I was sent here to deal with a situation, and you're in the middle of it," he explains coolly. "I'm sorry if I came off as a stalker or something. I needed to get close to you, and I needed us to be alone."

I was about to give a remark about Soma's completely non-secretive way of revealing demons to me, but I refrained. Mentioning him in this conversation could have horrible consequences, and I needed to be careful, even when I joked. "What exactly did you want to tell me, eh?"

"I won't let them use you." He said it as if he had rehearsed in front of a mirror a thousand times, perfecting those six simple words. "I know that you may be the only one who can tackle this... king of hell... But I won't let an innocent get involved with this."

Innocent. If I could be called that after killing a demon, dying, witnessing a sheep explode, and getting possessed. "You know that I'm fundamentally involved anyway, right? That's something no one can help."

"I know that," Cole said simply. "...But I can protect you."

Wow... He was starting to sound a lot like Soma. Did Soma know that I was involved when he found me and told me about demons? Maybe they both are protecting me for the same reason...

"Well?" He stops for a moment and looks at me. "What's your answer?"

Kiryuin pops in again. "Turn him down. We need to stay focused."

What about fighting Akuretsu?

"He'll probably try to stop us. He doesn't want to see you hurt. Besides, we have too much on our plate, and Cole will draw attention to us."

"...Okay," I say at last. At the very least, I can choose to fight later, but I might lose Cole forever if I don't say yes now. Kiryuin was just going to have to deal with it.

"Ah, great!" Cole looks very relieved. "Then I guess I should reintroduce myself properly... My name is Cole Mathews, demon hunter of the american branch of Alva Silva and heir to the hunter family of Mathews in New York... At your service."