So You Might be Soulless (Season 2)

2|| Princess

The rest of the meeting proceeded without a hitch, or mention of the demon Princess, but Diya found it hard to grapple with their words and force meaning into it. Afterwards, she heard Sebastian speaking and was vaguely aware of her giving an excuse and leaving as fast as possible.

She grabbed her cloak from the rack and ignored the disdainful looks the palace guards gave her as she crossed the gates. As Diya delved into the shadiest alleys of the Capital, she pulled up her hood.

Beggars and lechers approached, their features contorted into either desperation or greed. Diya released a small amount of her aura and they scampered away like frightened rats. Her lips twisted into a sneer. Pathetic.

With clammy hands, she handed over seven chrysums to the manager of a run-down hotel- of which she was a regular. The manager took with eager eyes and promised not to let anyone disturb Diya.

Diya shut and bolted the door behind her and let out a sigh. The room was bare with rotting, wooden floorboards and a ceiling that sagged from the excess weight of moisture. Her nose wrinkled at the pungent scent of a stale corpse- the source being a mutilated mouse in the corner.

She raised her right sleeve and summoned a shard of shadow. With barely more than a wince, she made a gash on her arm and allowed the blood to trickle down in a rough circle.

Bending down, she traced a symbol and murmured words that she'd said a thousand times before. Black smoke emerged from the sigils and coalesced into a glittering, swirling oval of darkness as it rose.

Switching to the demonic tongue, Diya spoke, "I, Princess Eris of the Shadows, daughter of the Queen and King Consort, request to be put through to my family."

The oval glowed then fizzled into a throne room Diya knew so well that she could name every feature of the room with her eyes closed.

Her gaze tracked the long, wooden table dominating the centre and she caught sight of the scratch that she made when she was four and had attempted to cut her own food, the black and gold ribbons hung from the walls and edged with paint from an unfortunate accident with a magic spell and even a chair with one leg slightly shorter than the others after Eirian played a prank on Kyler. Diya even caught sight of a crayon drawing she'd made, the edges furled and yellowed with age yet kept on a place of honour on the wall as if it was inlaid with gold.

"Eris? Is that you?" Eirian emerged and adjusted her glasses with a wide smile. "Hey! Guys look- it's her!"

"Eris is back?" A red-headed demon appeared, the hard lines of his face softened by the warmth in his eyes. "Eris! Is it really you?"

"Azrael-san!" Diya gasped, pressing a trembling hand to her mouth. To her great shame, tears gathered in her eyes and she wiped them away with her sleeve. "It's been too long."

"Two years," he whispered with a soft smile. Then a mischievous note uplifted his tone. "Two years I've not been by your side and you've already gotten yourself into trouble! Did you hit your head or something? Why're you working for the Imperial bastards?"

Diya scratched the back of her neck. "It's a very long story."

Azrael reached out to hug her, but flinched upon realising it was merely an illusion. He swallowed thickly and attempted a smile. "Lucas-san's return was delayed, wasn't it? Aunt and Uncle said he was going to be back soon now."

Diya inhaled shakily, remembering how her chest hurt as her heart clenched at the painful thought of not being able to see her brother for a while longer. "When he comes back, we'll have a reunion- a proper one this time."

"I can't wait."

Diya pulled herself together, aware that the magic wouldn't last long. "Anyways, this isn't a social call. Is Kyler-san there? I need to talk to him."