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On the next normal Japanese day, nothing much changed. The students acted out the typical hustle and bustle that comes after the end of class and went home in small flocks. Teachers stayed behind for extra checking of papers or preparation for tomorrow. Those who were enrolled in any clubs dispersed around the school grounds, athletes to the sports fields, and the rest to their designated rooms.
How nice it was when your family actually bought out the entire school. Emeric could afford to build a separate two-story building that had everything from a kitchen and bathroom to rooms for various purposes.
Naturally, there were also many different students who repeatedly applied to join their little Occult Research Club. Some were trying to get closer to the two prettiest girls in the school in this way, and some were trying to get closer to him personally. Thank Lucifer that it was only girls. All submissions Emeric ordered to be ignored and burned. The club was for him a strictly private place for "his own", where he could calmly plan everything and put his thoughts in order.
Emeric glanced at the large mechanical clock. Akeno was supposed to bring their new addition soon. They had informed Ichika back in the morning that they would be coming for her after school. Actually, today Emeric wanted to skip school in the most casual way possible and start working closely with Ichika, but Akeno was against it. The Japanese mentality is such a thing, no amount of devilish miasmas can interfere with their "weird" work mechanisms.
Valerie simmered quietly on the couch and stared at one point. She hadn't spoken a word to him today. His decision to recruit Ichika displeased her greatly. The option that it wouldn't work out for him she hadn't considered. She knew too well.
Sighing and mentally complaining about the cockroaches in her head, Emeric once again opened the locket that had been making him pay more and more attention lately.
Who is Cleria? Who is "D.B."? Why did Greyfia lie about not knowing who they were?
Perhaps at another time he would have ignored the problem, but his proverbial intuition was screaming in his ear. This thing meant a lot!
In the last few days, especially yesterday, his "special" ability had shown itself incredibly clearly. He had often had doubts about his power, but yesterday had clearly poked his nose in its presence. What was it? Some mutation of Gremory's secondary power or something more than that after all? She'd had periodic aggravations before as well, but since yesterday, he'd been undaunted by the feeling of the presence of something grand in his mind. Something he simply wasn't capable of realizing.
«Hmmm... - he began to lightly squeeze the medallion in his hand. Some mythical sensation loomed in the background, and he tried to pull it towards him...
... He was surrounded by phantoms made up of indistinct glares that traced outlines of white light. It was impossible to tell where he was. If the two vague moving silhouettes he could still identify as belonging to people, the entire environment remained unknown to him. Just an endless dark fog in all directions.
He could not feel any part of his body. He was an outside observer who could not interfere with the flow of past...
«Thank you, brother! - a silhouette with female form threw itself at the other one's neck. - I'll give you credit for trying to bend!
«Ha ha ha ha," a pleasant male laugh was her answer.
He couldn't see the exact details, but only a blind man would have missed the warm family idyll. A perfect harmony between brother and sister.
«Claria, promise me you'll keep yourself safe," the taller silhouette looked into the smaller man's eyes. - Promise me, Claria.
«Brother, what the hell are you doing here? - She asked with a chuckle. - I'm not going to the Great War, I'm just going to be the caretaker of a small Japanese town. You won't even have time to miss me.
«Claria, all I care about is your safety... - the male silhouette took the other's face in his hands. - You're all I have left.
«But...
«Claria!
«All right, all right! - The silhouette waved its arms. - I promise! Brother, you're a real sissy.....
«... Oh, King!
Valerie's insistent pushing made him awake from the strange obsession. Emeric blotted his eyes and touched his forehead. Thick and copious pellets of sweat. Stretching his shoulders slightly, Emeric realized that the rest of his uniform was soaked as well.
A ringing slap from his queen's side made him clutch at his injured face.
«What the hell for?!
«I mean, for what? - Valerie began gently pulling back his eyelids to check his pupils. - You just froze in place and stared at one point! I sat like that for about ten minutes. - she took his face in her hands in a rather familiar gesture. - Are you okay? - She asked with genuine concern.
«Valerie," he said raspily. - You're not ignoring me anymore! Ha ha ha...
The serious atmosphere was instantly shattered.
«Idiot," Valerie rolled her eyes and leaned against the edge of his desk. Still, she couldn't hide the worry in her eyes. - How are you?
He took a breath and in two movements loosened his tie along with the top button. He stood up, did a few stretches and listened to how he felt. A little tired, but nothing critical. The buzzing in the back of my mind had subsided a little, but it hadn't disappeared.
What was that? Had he seen Cleria's memories of her brother? But how did he do it? He took the locket...
The locket!
Taking one step closer to his workstation he carefully picked up the silver accessory. There were differences, and not small ones. The entire surface was covered in a fine web of cracks. The locket, which only yesterday had looked like a brand new one, now resembled a very worn antique!
Valerie suddenly hugged him from the side and looked into his eyes devotedly.
«Emeric... - she whispered softly. He couldn't remember the last time she'd called him by his name. - Tell me.
«Я...
A sound on the first floor alerted them to the arrival of their expected guest. Akeno and Ichika were already heading toward them.
«My star," he gently fixed a stray lock of Valerie's hair. - I'll tell you all about it tonight...
When she nodded, Emeric smiled and kissed Valerie gently on the forehead. He took her hand and sat down on the couch in the center of the room.
The opening of the door and girlish chatter notified them of the arrival of a potential addition.
«Emeric-sama," Akeno motioned the pretty brown-haired girl over to them, who looked at him with red cheeks. - Just as you asked. Ichika Hiedo.
«Hello!" Ichika whispered embarrassedly and performed the traditional Japanese bow.
«Let me introduce myself, Emeric Gremory, and my umm friend, Valerie," Emeric thought for a moment. - Morningstar. You've already met Akeno...
«Uh-huh...
«Sit down," Emeric waited for Ichika to sit down. - You must try the tea that Akeno is making. It's practically the best I've ever had....
«Ooh-foo-foo," Akeno chuckled lightly. - Emeric-sama, did you really get another one? Do I need to take offense?
«I'm sorry, Akeno, I'm willing to make full restitution with my body.
«I'll remember, Emeric-sama, ooh-foo-foo....
After sipping tea, the room fell into an awkward silence.
«Ichika," he continued, waiting for her attention. - Perhaps you should have realized by now that the world is much deeper than most people know....
«Yes," Ichika nodded embarrassedly. - Those feathered ones...
«They were fallen angels," Ichika's eyes widened. - Angels who had fallen from His grace. Angels who had broken His dogmas....
«That means," she raised her index finger upward. - What's on top...
«Yes, the whole Bible is the real truth, and He's in there too," he swirled the tea in his cup. - Well, if you leave out some of the embellished details.....
«And you...
«Yes," he set the cup on the saucer, causing a clinking sound that made Ichika wince. - Other than you, there are no people in this room. We...
«Vampires! - Ichika shrieked. All her previous stiffness and embarrassment evaporated from her face. Ichika was thrilled. - I knew you were vampires! You're all so beautiful and rich and super-duper cool!
Emeric blinked perplexed once more. Strange, he was usually the one who puzzled the people around him. Apparently their potential addition had a real talent. She was just made for his entourage! But still...
«Mmm, why vampires? - He tilted his head.
«You're a rich and mysterious handsome man, who's also not human. - You are a rich and mysterious handsome man, who is not a human being....
Akeno clamped her mouth with the palm of her hand as Emerick's eyes widened in horror.
«No...
«Yeah, ha-ha-ha," Valerie held her stomach and spoke through her laughter. - You're-you're, uh, we're, ha-ha, Edward Cullen from Twilight!
Akeno couldn't stand it and joined Valerie. They started laughing together as Ichika looked from him to them in bewilderment.
«So you're not vampires?
«No!" Emeric stood up and stared her sternly in the eyes. - NO! NO! NO!
«Ko-horol," the queen called to him, lying on the floor. - Close the curtains, otherwise everyone will see you covered in glitter in the sun! HA-HA-HA-HA...
«Shut up, you silly sissies! - Emeric exploded with indignation, then turned to Hiedo. - We are demons! DEMONS! How could you even say that?!
«I-excuse me! - Ichika tried to sound apologetic, but her shaking shoulders gave her away.
«I'm a demon! - he was getting more and more furious. - I literally live in Hell! I'm closely related to the Lord of Hell! But... - he began nervously adjusting his shirt. - But Twilight is too much even for me!
«Ah," Ichika raised her hand as if she were in class. - If the supernatural world exists, Twilight might be partially true after all?
«No!" he waved his arms at the furious girl. The idea of recruitment seemed less and less tempting with each passing moment. - Twilight is a figment of the sick imagination of the author, who created the work specifically for such naive, mushy-pussy, teenage girls like you! And the artistic value of this work, naturally, does not bear! So poor a basis, that the authors had to turn the last parts into fucking X-Men....
«Is there any chance that one of the actors is a vampire after all? - she asked hopefully. - Robert Pattinson, for example...
«I don't know," he jerked his head irritably. - Well, maybe Kristen Stewart ...
«Really?!
«At least I think so," Emeric leaned back tiredly on the couch while Valerie and Akeno got rid of their last dose of laughter. - I can only justify this kind of acting by my sincere hatred of humanity.....
***
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