“Hey, sister. Do you know where the old man is? I’ve been spreading my senses all over Kuoh but I haven’t found him. Is he in Grigori or something?”

“...”

Cleria was not sure how she should answer that question.

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|DxD|

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Faced with the blonde’s question, Cleria wasn’t sure how she should answer. From their short interaction just now, she knew that he valued family a lot. If he possibly found out that the reason Baraquiel didn’t arrive was because of his mistress…

She didn’t even dare imagine the consequences. The blonde was powerful, very powerful. That energy she felt from him transcended anything she had ever felt. Given how volatile the situation is, she was not sure what his reaction would be if he knew the ugly truth.

Yet she also couldn’t lie as well. Cleria had enough experience to know that when people reach a certain realm of power, their senses become so enhanced that spotting lies becomes very easy. While she couldn’t lie, she could certainly omit. She could provide the “where”, but she hoped he wouldn’t ask the “why”.

Getting her thoughts together, she replied to him.

“Currently, I do not know where Baraquiel is.”

Igor became confused. Any supernatural entity worth their salt would’ve sensed the massive amounts of power he released, regardless of where they were on Earth. He wasn’t sure if his power could transcend dimensional barriers, but there must’ve been atleast spies or informants from Grigori who would’ve informed him that something was happening in Kuoh.

He would not claim to know the old man very well, but he knew his character enough to know that if it concerned Kuoh, he would be the first to rush back.

“Did he not…come?”

Seeing the wheels of suspicion swirling in his head, Cleria couldn’t help but sigh.

“He did come here. You just arrived shortly after he left.”

“...”

That was quite the revelation of information. For one, it reignited his faith in the old man. Knowing that he atleast arrived reassured the blonde that his evaluation of him was not wrong.

He remained quiet without any change in his expression. He was trying to figure out why the old man would leave if he had arrived. His senses had already spread over Kuoh and the surrounding areas and there was not an inkling of Baraquiel’s presence. It irked him a bit that the only reason they missed Baraquiel was because Shuri didn’t get dressed in time.

Cleria was worried that he would get angry. The moment she saw his brows scrunch, her mind was already thinking up several ways to save Baraquiel. As disappointed as she was in the fallen, she pitied him, especially after seeing how much regret he had. It was why she was willing to persuade the blonde into granting him some sort of amnesty.

But contrary to expectations, Igor only sighed.

“Does he think that aunty is still dead?”

It was the only reasonable conjecture he could come to. He did not know why he left, but Igor certainly knew Baraquiel wouldn’t have left at all if he knew that Shuri was alive.

And Cleria’s words only served to confirm that for him.

“...yes. We all thought she was dead until you arrived with her. I…still can’t believe it myself. Seeing her alive and breathing is a miracle in of itself.”

A smile gradually formed on her face as she said those words, her heart truly happy that her best friend was alive. Yet while she was all smiles, it was the opposite for the blonde.

Igor could only rub his head with a sigh.

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“Haaaa…what to do? What…to..do.”

He kept looking into the sky in contemplation, his mind swirling with what he should first make his priority. There was still the issue of Asia being mistreated in the Vatican, something he hadn’t forgotten. He also had to go back and thank Vasco for giving him the information of the happenings in Kuoh because without him, he would’ve lost his loved ones and he wouldn’t even know.

It was also because of this scenario that he could relate to Baraquiel who seemingly didn’t know of what happened in Kuoh until is was too late. He wasn’t sure how the barriers and the magic notification worked, but he guessed that there was some sort of delay in the signal reaching him or some other type of issue. But something he was absolutely sure of was that he knew the old man loved his family and would be the first to charge in to defend them.

His most pressing concern now was if he should leave for the Vatican or find a way into Grigori. TakeAsia away from the people abusing her or find the grieving husband who still believed his wife was dead. Decisions…decisions. It was quite hard for him to decide what to do and more than half the time, he found himself locking onto Asia’s energy signature. But his brotherly desires had to wait.

Right now, he had to find Baraquiel.

“Sister Cleria. Do you have a way to contact the old man or Uncle Azazel?”

Cleria sighed in relief, her heart at ease because he did not ask why Baraquiel did not arrive in time.

“Unfortunately I cannot, Dimori-san. Before everything happened, I was in the underworld and anything I had that could contact Azazel was handed over to the man himself.”

Igor furrowed his brows for a moment, wondering as to why she would cut off communication with the cadre.

That was until he remembered…

“Oh, right. Fallen Angels and Devils don’t get along.”

Cleria could only smile weakly, a statement that was sadly true.

“Yes…unfortunately.”

Having been in a relationship with Azazel for three years, it was of utmost importance that secrecy be preserved. Everytime she left for the Underworld to deliver her monthly report, the phone he made for her along with any other communication tools or items that would prove their relations would be handed over to him. This was a counter-measure just in case a scenario arose where someone would secretly try to investigate her. Her romantic rendezvous with Azazel did not need to be known yet.

Cleria was only scheduled to meet him the following week so she didn’t know if he would come yet. But given the amount of commotion that happened, she hoped he would arrive soon. The last she heard from him was over three months ago when he informed her that he was close to discovering something new and that it would be a secret.

In light of the current situation and her inability to communicate with either fallen, Igor decided on his plan.

“Can you send me to Grigori then? I’m sure that someone there must know where the old man is. Maybe he’s there himself. Who knows.”

Cleria hurriedly rebuked him.

“No! You cannot go there, Dimori-san! They’ll immediately kill you if you do!”

She was looking at him with pure panic on her face. The consequences of him going to the Underworld were far more than what he could ever imagine.

“Eh? Is because I’m human?”

“No! It’s because you’re Aryan!”

“?”

Cleria could see the look of loss on his face. She had no choice but to explain to him.

Heaving a sigh, she began.

“Look, Dimori-san. I, Baraquiel-san, Shemhazai-san, and Azazel-kun have all tried to keep your heritage a secret from the supernatural world for many years now. If you go to the Underworld, everyone will immediately identify you as Aryan and WILL kill you on sight, be it fallen or devils.”

“...”

Igor wanted to say he could teleport away if need be, but he wasn’t sure he could. He didn’t know if the Underworld was the same as the Heavenly Realm where his teleportation would be restricted and he didn’t want to try unnecessarily, atleast not yet.

But…

“Did you say all of them will try to fight me?”

A teeny weeny tiny part of him couldn’t help but salivate at the thought. It’s been a few months since he had a proper fight and his withdrawal symptoms were showing. Having gotten used to fighting for three years in the Heavenly Realm, his love for battle had increased tremendously. Just the prospect of another fight had his hands clenching and his aura surging. A maniacal grin was forming on his face. His fantasy of fighting ten thousand people alone was soon about to be fulfilled.

Unfortunately for Cleria, she had forgotten that Igor was someone who was looking for violence. Her sincere warning may have been the same as a green light to him. But she couldn’t allow him to go to the Underworld and entertaining the thought was something she would not do.

So she tried to plead with him again.

“Listen to me, Dimori-san! You can’t go to the Underworld! It’s dangerous there and-”

*Dakaang*

The door to the rooftop opened to reveal Akeno and Shuri walking together. As soon as the door opened, the little fallen rushed towards Igor with all her might.

“Big brother!”

She lunged forward and clung onto him like a Koala. She grabbed him by the shirt and looked at him with teary eyes.

“D-don’t leave. Please…?”

“...”

It was a very tough decision to make. Igor really wanted to go and fight in the Underworld. But he also really missed Akeno. On one hand, he could have the best battle of his life. On the other, there was the little chick who refused to break eye contact with him. She was just so cute that he found it a bit hard to refuse such a heartfelt request. That and he did miss her.

So just this once, he would reluctantly-

“Ara? Are you not hungry anymore Dimori-kun? I did promise to cook a full pot for you-”

“I’ll stay!”

There was no need to convince him any further. The Underworld was not going to run away, but the food would certainly grow cold.

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AN

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