The Red Hand

"Too bad he didn't have a piece of toast in his mouth, then the whole boy meets girl thing would be complete." Amakusa chuckled.

"Isn't it usually the other way around?" Yumi had seen the type of scene that Amakusa was talking about, but it was always a girl running with toast, not a guy.

"Either way, you'd better watch out, Akagi. Otherwise, you might find yourself smitten with him and joining his little group!" Amakusa snickered as she looked at Akagi. The Demon had changed into her Rishia form shortly after landing outside the city, largely because Elariel insisted that anything looking like a Demon entering the Holy City would not be welcome.

"Ha. Ha. Keep up the jokes, and I'll brainwash you and make you join his harem pet." Akagi rolled her eyes.

"You wouldn't!" Amakusa exclaimed.

"This is me we're talking about soooooo." Akagi snickered. "Shall I pronounce you man and wife now or later? And what color do you want the wedding to be? I think purple suits you well."

"I'm good..." Amakusa sighed. "But regardless, I didn't expect to run into him literally." She looked down at the visibly distressed Kanato. “Though it is good to see this idiot again.”

"You... I... Remember now..." Kanato winced as his memories returned. “You were the one... The one who beat us...”

"Oh? I'm surprised that you recognized me in this form." Akagi said with amusement. “That's a little unexpected.”

"I... I can just tell..." Kanato said as he stared into Akagi's eyes. From the outside, her false appearance looked like a normal girl, but the Hero was well aware of the darkness that lurked within. "Demon Lord..." His use of that phrase made Akagi's lips curl into a terrible smile.

"Well if your human disguise has already been seen through then maybe you should've just come in cat form?" Halifax laughed. "We could've passed you off as some cuddly little creature we found in the woods!"

{I could've even made you do tricks for snacks!} (Halifax)

"I debated it." Akagi laughed.

“You should've done it.” Halifax snickered.

"Come on, get up." Amakusa sighed as she helped Kanato off the ground. “And ignore those two idiots. I swear that they share the same brain cell...”

"Thanks for that, Shiroe." Kanato smiled as he looked at her before doing a double take. "Wait! SHIROE?!?"

"That took longer than it should've..." Elariel facepalmed.

{Good thing we didn't change her into puppy mode yet.} (Halifax)

"Harem Heroes tend to be idiots." Akagi laughed. “So don't be too harsh on him.”

"Shiroe!" Kanato pulled her into a hug, startling her. "You're okay! You're safe!" He started to cry slightly. "Thank god! Thank god!"

"Oh no..." Amakusa groaned. "Uh... Somebody help me! I'm not good with this emotional stuff!" She looked for aid, but everyone else either ignored her, looked away or shook their heads.

{YOU BASTARDS!} (Amakusa)

"Hold up! This is no time for a happy reunion!" Kanato pushed away from her slightly, keeping a tight grip on her shoulders. "Shiroe, Hitomi has Alm and She's planning on killing her!" His words were light lightning through Amakusa's body, and she quickly grabbed the Hero by the collar after casting aside his weak grip.

"WHAT?!?" Amakusa's voice would've been loud enough to attract all kinds of attention from people passing through the gate had it not been for Akagi placing a sound-blocking barrier around them a moment prior. "Hold on! Hitomi has Alm?!? And she's planning on what?!?" She slammed her foot against the ground, causing a minor quake. "WHERE IS SHE?!? TAKE ME THERE, NOW!"

{I'LL FUCKING END PEOPLE!} (Amakusa)

"Hold on, slow down." Elariel put herself in between the two of them, pushing them apart.

"Wait, Elariel's here too?!?" Kanato yelped as he realized that the maid was actually the time Goddess.

{I'm very glad that I've put that barrier up...} (Akagi)

"We'll discuss me later. Right now, take a deep breath and explain what's going on. You've never gotten this worked up before, Kanato." Elariel said with a calming voice.

"Y-Yeah..." Kanato did as he was asked before explaining everything that he'd seen. Naturally, Amakusa was none to pleased with things, while Halifax seemed utterly disgusted.

"Akagi, please give me the order to cut that bitch to ribbons." Amakusa started laughing like a psychopath, and her eyes turned yandere as she imagined skinning Rafferty alive and using her pelt as a floor mat. "I WILL FUCKING END YOU, YOU STUPID FOX!"

{Ah, she's gone mad... Well, it was only a matter of time hanging around this bunch.} (Halifax)

"Akagi." Elariel turned to the Demon with that look in her eye.

"It's those Primordials, isn't it?" Akagi had already figured out what was going on, and the Goddess confirmed her suspicions.

{So we've got sealed away powerful beings needing sacrifices to be free, and Kanato overheard this Rafferty girl saying something about needing power to complete 'the plan.' Yeaaaaah, something's not kosher with this.} (Akagi)

"Dammit! Now we've got more bastards using blood sacrifices!" Halifax growled. "First the Gods go off the deep end, and now we've got Primordials pulling this same shit! Dammit! Is there nothing sacred left n this world?!?"

{Better yet, is there no one in this world that's not an asshole?!? What kind of place is this where the DEMON KITTY is the nicest thing I've run into in YEARS?!?} (Halifax)

"We have to get down there and put a stop to this! Rafferty is lying to Hitomi about what's going on! She's being deceived into thinking that this is some kind of plan by the Gods to save the world!" Kanato exclaimed, his face flushed and his emotions kicking into overdrive.

"Oh, don't worry I'll help her." Amakusa had a terrible smile on her face. "Help her pass into the next world!" She moved to rocket forward, but Akagi stopped her with a few words.

"Bad pet! Stay!" Akagi told Amakusa to keep put, and she did, reluctantly.

"LET ME GO! I'M GOING TO RING THAT CRAZY BITCHE'S CHICKEN NECK! SHE'S GOING TO KILL ALM!" Amakusa struggled against her orders but wasn't able to move.

{LET ME GO!} (Amakusa)

"Listen, the last thing I need is you running into the City looking like a murderhobo out to cause trouble and carnage, despite how funny that would be." Akagi sighed. "Besides, do you even know where you're going? Or are you just going to rampage around like an idiot?"

"Into Hitomi's room!" Amakusa retorted.

"And okay, now hear me out. What's the plan after that?" Akagi deadpanned.

"I'll fucking kill the both of them." Amakusa said with a horrible smile.

"Neat plan, love the murderous smile, but there's a small problem with that course of action." Akagi put her hand on Amakusa's shoulder to calm her down.

"And what might that be?" Amakusa rolled her eyes.

"You'll die." Elariel interjected.

"How? Hitomi can't beat me, and Rafferty is powerless!" Amakusa scoffed.

"She's likely only as powerless as she's made you think she is." Yumi jumped in to offer her own thoughts. "I'd imagine that these Primordials are powering her up in some way, and if you walk into the sealing room alone, I'd imagine that you'd lose, badly."

{Gods are always at their most powerful when you get close to them, and even sealed, they would be dangerous beings, especially if that seal has been weakened. I can't imagine that Primordials would be much different in that regard. So if she went in alone..;.} (Yumi)

"Not to mention that I highly doubt that Ro and Zo would pick some random girl off the street to do their dirty work." Elariel sighed. “So there's no way that Rafferty is just some ordinary mortal girl.”

{I'd imagine that she's actually something akin to an Avatar or Familiar. Primordials are more than capable of creating both, but how did we fail to notice something like this? Reflia should've been monitoring the seal and I should've sensed her energy the few times I've met her, did she find a way to mask the fact that she was a familiar?} (Elariel)

"I suppose this does save me the trouble of tracking them down." Akagi stretched and rolled her neck. "So where do we need to go?" She asked the Goddess for directions.

"There's a secret passageway below the Central Cathedral. It's underneath the large statue of Gale in the main room." Elariel explained how to get to the sealing chamber. “That's the main passage and its likely not guarded.”

"Hmmm, then if we're going into the city its best if I change your appearance further then." Akagi snapped her fingers, changing Elariel to look like a bland village girl. "I'd imagine the people here are more apt to recognize you, and its still not time for the other Gods to realize that you've joined team Kitty." She snapped her fingers again, transforming Amakusa as well.

"Why..." Amakusa pouted, her ears drooping.

“Because its best this way.” Akagi smiled.

"You... Um..." Kanato looked away, slightly embarrassed.

{Cute...} (Kanato)

"Say one more word, and I will castrate you." Amakusaa glared at him, making him shudder.

"Alright, let's go!" Akagi cheerfully charged forward, followed by the rest of the group. Kanato was still a bit overwhelmed by the events and only just noticed that the fairies that were following him had vanished again.

{Where did they go? I guess being around a Demon Lord is just too much for them.} (Kanato)

"What are you looking for?" Halifax noticed his worry and asked the Hero about what had him so concerned. "Your head is practically on a swivel."

"I... I... Um... Well, I met some fairies on the way here. They were the ones who told me about a Spirit being held within the Holy City. The three of them were just with me a moment ago, but they've vanished." Kanato explained as he looked around.

"Fairies?" Halifax furrowed her brow. "Fairies rarely leave the Whistlewoods, so why would they venture with you all the way this North?"

{This is quite far outside of their normal territory and most don't like dealing with outsiders.} (Halifax)

"I... I don't know." Kanato gave a wry smile. He hadn't given much thought to the Fairies or their motives and was now facing the all important question of why.

"Maybe they were a figment of your imagination!" Akagi snickered as she teased him. "He probably dreamt them up out of madness!"

"I'm suddenly reminded of that movie we watched where that man painted a face on the ball to talk to because he was lonely." Yumi laughed.

"Ummmm." Kanato thought for a moment, hoping that he could disprove such claims. "I don't think I went crazy. Other people talked to them a few times and they ate a whole bunch of food that I bought for them..."

{Please tell me I didn't imagine three fairies and talked to myself during this whole trip...} (Kanato)

"You didn't go crazy." Elariel sighed, interjecting to stop Akagi from convincing the Hero that he'd lost his marbles. "I can sense three fairies within the Holy City. They're shadowing us from afar and are most likely the three you're talking about. Their kind tend to dislike Gods, so combine that with this one here, and we're basically the last thing they want to go near. Not to mention that I'd imagine that these Fairies have little interest in getting near the two sealed idiots."

“Oi! Are you saying that I scare people away?” Akagi asked, pretending to be hurt.

“Are you saying that you don't?” Elariel retorted.

“You're just jealous of my kittyness.” Akagi stuck her tongue out.

"Don't Fairies worship Primordials?" Yumi asked, ignoring the bickering in the background. "Why would they be afraid of these two then?"

"Because Ro and Zo are not like the others. They tend to favor destruction, and blood rituals are something that no other Primordial would sanction. Thus, while Fairies venerate their kind, there's no way they would like these two troublesome twins..." Elariel sighed as she recalled how much of a pain they were in the past.

{I don't even want to imagine how many lives were sacrificed to break our Divine Seal. Ro, Zo. I know how much you want vengeance on us, but was that really worth sacrificing the lives of so many innocent people? Then again, perhaps I'm not one to judge...} (Elariel)