Diadora and Asiyah, who he apparently never makes any important decisions without consulting, behaved in the nicest possible way. The kind of newlyweds who wouldn't hurt a fly. It was sickening.
At first there were cautious attempts to get him to react to their so-called "change". To this Emeric tactfully, without joking, tried to get off the subject. Wisdom, which had not been working correctly for the past few days, gave out an unequivocal reaction to Diadora, supposedly he was sincere. So he had to restrain his snideness, even Sona occasionally looked at him with bewilderment.
Emeric didn't believe it, no, he just didn't quite know what to do.
But after half an hour there followed a cautious, really cautious, attempt to offer his help in providing security, and in general in looking after the city, which might have an influx of various scum because of the soon-to-be summit of the three factions.
Here Emeric didn't think long.
He refused unequivocally and categorically. At the same time, he did not use the language of the mat, but gave a simple and clear "no".
For the first time he began to doubt his own Wisdom.
Diadora Astaroth was scum of the highest order in the past. He could not be excused or "sympathized with in any way". Even if one tried to come up with "aggravating" circumstances, such as a rough childhood or abusive parents... Nothing would exonerate him!
He raped and broke innocent virgins who had served the church in the past. And he did it simply because he could. Just because he had the power and could pay them off at any time. These were exactly the kind of creatures his sister had taught him to hate. Only the ambiguous, one might even say treacherous, feelings of his own gift restrained his impulses. It was hard to hit someone who didn't want to hurt you in any way, and seemed to actually feel remorse.
That's bullshit!
Emerick will under no circumstances have anything to do with this "redeemer of shit". Unless he actually shows his attitude with real action. And even then. Anyway, we need to stay away from this strange couple.
Is there a possibility that the "trauma" of the gift somehow confused him and gave him false results? Wisdom worked every once in a while, and in half of the successful cases it gave the wrong results. Endless, disorderly visions of everything and nothing, migraine, and even his "orientation in space", as if echoing these circumstances, increased! He can't find his way to the bathroom once in a while! In his own house! And this, by the way, was the hidden pride of the young demon! Remember at least the interior decoration.
I can't count the number of times he'd come into the common room in his sleep at first and find himself awkwardly silent and in his pajamas. On such occasions, Emeric pretended that was the plan and sat down at the communal table. In his pajamas and a "mess" on his head. The entourage would play along with him, stifling laughter.
Emeric grimaced as he once again felt the tingling inside his skull. That unbearable itch that you just couldn't reach no matter how hard you tried.
The situation became even worse when he realized that he had "separated" from Sona, who had volunteered to escort him. One minute, he's wandering around. I don't know where the hell he is, I think he's still in high school.
Emeric leaned against the corridor wall with a groan.
A sudden rush of weakness and pain nearly rendered him unconscious. It was the same feeling when a man stood up abruptly from the couch and caught a sudden drop in pressure, falling back down and unable to get his thoughts together.
«Shit! - The pain became unbearable! Emeric cried out in unbearable pain. - A-A-A-A-A!
One brief moment, and he ...
«What?
Emeric looked at his hands with genuine bewilderment. Holding some writing utensils of antiquity, such as quill and papyrus. His nose smelled the persistent odor of the ink in the small clay basin. And most incredible of all, his hands became darker!
He looked around the workstation and office with daze. Predictably not his! But what stood out was the expensive furniture made of exotic woods and the bookshelves that occupied all the walls of the office.
«What the fuck...? - With his swarthy hand, he felt a braid of hair on his chest. White and long!
His panicked twitching was stopped by an unexpected presence off to the side. Looking over there, he saw the balcony from which came a
«Amiyah...
The girl Solomon had stolen from under the nose of one of the kings of ancient India. Who, judging by all signs, was brought there by Indra and forced to memorize religious texts, where his humble person was exalted. A very murky story in which Solomon once again stole something from under someone's nose.
Then Solomon wanted to show him this very passage. And Emeric still doesn't understand why!
But judging from the small snippets of his vision, we can surmise that Amiyah was...
«My wife... - It came out of his mouth almost unconsciously. She had grown taller and prettier, dressed in native Indian garb. But the red dot on her forehead and the loving gaze directed straight at him made it impossible to make any mistaken assumptions. Bindi was applied only to married women.....
«Yes, My Beloved Raja? - With a touch of coquetry she withdrew and walked tantalizingly towards him, putting her hand on his shoulder. - You look strange... Is everything all right?
Emeric, who was in Solomon's body, wanted to answer, but the next moment he felt as if he had fallen to the floor again. The tugging sensation inside his stomach made the impression of a free, uncontrolled fall even stronger....
«Ha... Ha... - Heavy, panicked sighs began to escape from his chest. The unpleasant sensation of the damp shirt against his back sobered his mind.
Emeric looked around dazedly. He was standing right in front of his clubhouse. Absolutely no memory of how he'd gotten here!
«Shit... - Emeric shook his head, chasing the mess out of his head. - What the hell, Solomon...?
For a few minutes he was right in King Solomon's body! And he'd bet his liver it was planned by that obnoxious old man! Already a second vision of one particular person, Amiyah, formerly a servant but later to become his consort.
«What are you trying to tell me, Solomon? - Emeric mumbled his question under his breath at the incomprehensible movements of the mysterious person.
The experience of the last hours of his life had completely dulled his senses. So Emeric didn't notice the presence behind him.
«Hey," a strong hand took his shoulder. - Are you okay?
Emeric, not showing his surprise at his own carelessness in making him fail to notice the 'heavy' presence right behind him, calmly turned toward the unexpected visitor.
«Barakiel... - His eyebrows rose upward. What he hadn't expected to see was the father of his beloved Akeno.
The first word that came to mind when he saw Barakiel was stern. He had a serious expression, unlike his superior, Azazel. Looking at his contented, rough face with a thick beard, the image of a colonel with experience came to mind. It was a big contrast to his beautiful and gentle daughter, but the latter, by her own admission, was an exact copy of her mother.
This was not their first meeting, but their second.
Once upon a time, long ago in the human world, he was taken to an unknown Japanese derby, where he was helped by a similarly lost girl his age. As some might have realized, she was Akeno, but unlike his "systematic wandering", her choice was a fully conscious one. The girl, grief-stricken for her mother and resentful of her father, didn't know where to put herself, so she simply wandered and cast out evil spirits, in exchange for a brief shelter and food. Seeing him, just as lost and unsure of what to do, Akeno reached out to him. Emeric, by virtue of his curiosity and intuition, had spent days building bridges and helping to fight all sorts of evil. With his constant dripping and promises of a permanent home and protection, Akeno, who deep down wanted stability, agreed to become part of his entourage.
Before doing so, Emeric had to have a serious talk with Barakiel, who was invisibly watching over his child, who refused to accept his help. Emeric swore that he would keep her safe, but the stern father didn't fully believe him, so he had to involve his sister, who was over the moon when Barakiel contacted her and told her that he had found her once again lost brother. Barakiel couldn't ignore Lucifer's assurances any longer, so after making them promise to send news of their daughter's condition, he reluctantly nodded for his daughter to join her entourage. It was likely that Azazel, who wanted to make a similar connection, had also joined the negotiations at some point. The Grigori leader had been preparing for a relationship for a long time, so it was no surprise that Akeno had unwittingly become one of the first bridges between demons and the fallen.
The details of the whole agreement, including the constant questioning by Barakiel, Akeno knew about, but didn't really mind. She simply told him not to go near her.
Emeric didn't really have anything against her father. He wasn't some irresponsible drunkard or a cruel tyrant, he'd just been unlucky in his day. He loved his daughter. But Emeric didn't go to Akeno to talk about "reconciliation". He waited for the girl's grief for her mother to subside. Apparently, this conflict was destined to be resolved soon.
«Yo, father-in-law," Emeric smiled dashingly and pretended that his recent disheveled appearance, which did not make him look good, was only a figment of the fallen man's imagination.
The fallen man wrinkled his nose at this treatment, but nodded affirmatively. It was a good thing he didn't mind, even if he wasn't a naive boy!
«Emeric... - Barakiel wanted to say something, but shook his head, sighing tiredly. It was clear that the man had had enough of the subject, but he still didn't give up.
«Akeno...? - Emeric strode toward the man, guessing the topic.
«Akeno," he nodded in slight relief. - I wanted to... Eh... Can you help me? Ever since the peace summit was announced, I've always wanted to come here, but I knew Akeno wouldn't listen to me. But the recent circumstances might keep me busy for a long time, so I wanted to at least ask you to...'' - Barakiel rubbed his brow irritably. - I don't know... Just to help, maybe?
It was obvious that his daughter's resentment was hurting, but the loving father did not give up. You can respect him for that. But his reservation...
«Recent circumstances? - Emeric tilted his head slightly. - What happened?
«The Templar Order has become fully active," he ran his hand tiredly over his beard. - Their forces were far greater than we could have expected.... They are attacking the centers of power of the entire Church and building up their power. For example," Barakiel huffed again, his military mindset and lifestyle taking its toll. - Just yesterday they kidnapped Durandal!
«Shit!...
***
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