"So you just let him go just like that, I have to say we are getting way too used to letting the target go I hope you aren't going soft Aurora."
The commander sat on her char with the massive throne far behind her, she was alone with Aurora who had just finished delivering her report. The old woman sighed not too please with the news, but Aurora seemed quite confident with her hands on her pockets, merely shrugging in apology.
"It will be a waste to remove him from the board right now, he is a lot stronger than our information implied, and if Im right with the right approach we could push him to assist us in the future against the Bramante familial, consider it a long time investment on my part."
"Really? He doesn't sound that useful to me. Why didn't you kidnap him as you did with Mr.Abram?"
"As he is now, he will simply break if we try to turn him into an assassin, no we have to make sure to use him properly, with all that the Bramante did to him, they have to be the ones to push him over the edge." The commander smiled leaning more into her chair, for as imposing as her military attire was, she still find it hard to stand up for too long.
"Is that so. Well, manipulation was your job on the anti-devil corps, that is essential for a government dog after all, fine I'll trust your judgment on this one Aurora." She saluted the commander with a casual gesture preparing to retire.
"That said, If he is not fit to be a hunter, you know we can{t exactly let him go."
"I know, if he can't become an assassin, I will kill him myself, is my responsibility right?" Aurora walked away from the command room, Emilia couldn't see her face, but she could tell by her voice how serious she was. The old woman smiled slightly as she remained alone in the empty room.
***
"Seriously, you really just let him go, captain, we set a trap and everything, I really wish I could have gotten another good shot at him, I swear I could have blown his head off if I had another chance."Aurora reunited with her team on the training ground, they had taken the news that she had simply let their target go in all kinds of ways. Her teammate the very tall woman with the cowboy had come closer to her without any worries of upsetting her captain.
"Now Ms. Harvester. Your job is not to take down the demons is just to make sure, I have a good clean shot at them, don't go getting cocky, this guy was a moron but most demons will wipe us out if we give them a chance. " The woman wearing the black cowboy hat put her rifle over her shoulder and begrudgingly backed away. She was always carrying her sniper rifle, even at dinner, Aurora could bet she probably with that thing. This woman is a famous bounty hunter on the outskirts, but a complete eccentric. The kind of moron to keep trophies from her prey, Aurora didn't mind being a daredevil, but being reckless in the city of demons without a demon of your own was just plain suicide.
"Question, question!" Mr.Jeong raised his hand while standing at the side of Harvester, the short man with glasses was almost jumping.
"Yes, Mr. Jeong."
"Do we still get paid in full?"
"Yes you do, the mission was completed as far I'm concerned." He pumped his fist in the air.
"Yes, in that case, I don't really care that much if the man is still alive we can just hunt him again and get paid twice, works for me."Aurora couldn't help but laugh, this man really was as she expected. Unlike most of their recruit, he was not a mercenary or part of the warlord's army, he is a conman who has tricked warlords and no shortage of encampment of their fortunes, but she had a feeling he has to be a lot better on a fight than he looks like, after all, he is still breathing.
"So then, captain, you think he could be recruited? I figure that's the only reason you let that mailman run off, I have to say he could be of use, he also looks dumb enough to manipulate so it's a good opportunity in my eyes, brilliant captain, brilliant." Aurora didn't care much for his fake praise, but she was quite happy to see at least one of them understood.
"Haha, I understand now that the captain beat him, he has to obey her. He will come soon enough to plead his loyalty!" A huge truly man spoke loudly over everyone else, he was a man with a bizarre look to him, with a golden tooth among his broken teeth and a tomahawk hairstyle barely fitting into the hunter's suit attire.
"If only it was that easy."Jeong interrupted him.
"Why not? the weak must obey the strong, that is the law of the world!" He proclaimed loudly and Jeong merely raised his open palms giving up on explaining anything.
"Things are not that simple in the city as they are on the eastern tribes, Mr. Pig."
"Weaklings, everyone in this city are weak, with their full row of teeth and not one war scar, weak. And Im, not a pig little man, I'm the wild boar of the east!"Jeon just sighed not caring to argue. The wild boar of the east that was indeed his name, he is one of the tribe men, violent raiders of the infamously dangerous east, apparently, he came all the way here to take the horns of a city demon back home and become a legend. He was not the best candidate for this kind of job, but they couldn't be picky at least as far as Aurora was concerned he was easy to handle, he became surprisingly obedient after she beat him down in a sparring match. Aurora only came here to make sure they were all in good shape and most were, but she spotted Aisha sitting away from the group, she was finding it really hard to adapt to the group and it was not a surprise compared to everyone else, this woman was the only one with no blood on her hands.
Aurora came close with her usual casual friendliness, the woman was staring at the ground still quite shcked from all that had happened.
"Hey there how you hanging up'right now. Had a rough first day on the job"She looked back at Aurora with a tired expression, not in the mood for her jocking tone.
"I almost died."
"Yeah, that happens, hopefully, you get used to it. You know is not too late for you to step back, believe is way more convenient for us if you stay safe down here." Aisha was holding her hands together with a sad expression.
"Is it because I'm a hostage right? You are using me to force Abrahm to kill for you."
"That's right, making sure you had all that you need was good enough a reason for him to kill people, at the beginning at least...If you ask me we don't need a hostage anymore he ended up being just the right man for this job a natural even."
"So that is why you are letting me become a hunter."
"Correct, even if you die Im sure that will only strengthen his resolve to be a hunter." Aisha closed her fist, shaking with anger.
"Is unfair all of you knew we grew up together and that memories were all fake, i can't stand that I have been lied like this, if it wasn't by Rush I may never have noticed."
"Well, it was his idea, the rest of us have no reason to lie, Abrahm said it was better for it to be that way, after all there is no getting your memories back."
"That just pisses me off."
"Well then, I would recommend speaking with him about it, you should have realized it on that hunt, there is no guarantee that either of you will be alive tomorrow...If you have something to say to him do it, else he will just slip away he tends to do that." Aisha didn't spoke she likely didn't have the words yet, reading the atmosphere Aurora sighed and walked away.
Having seen the state of the new recruit she returned to her tent. It was not particularly different from the other tends, but it had a sandbag and multiple weights for training the most notable thing in her living quarters being a huge mirror hidden away with a black curtain. She came close to it and removed the curtain seeing in the reflection her entire being. As she stare at her own face her expression twisted with an excited smile.
"Im glad we both agreed to let him go Aurora, I was worried you will finish him off, that would have been so sad."As she spoke with a giddy tone her expression turned sour suddenly.
"You sure wanted him alive, You were screaming about on my head it was quite annoying real, honestly I{m surprised you never lose on the chance of cutting someone down with your claws Amii." Aurora's serious expression was banished again as she smiled.
"It's a lot more fun for him to stay alive, he is such a mess of guilt and anger underneath all of his goofy charm, I want to twist him a little, I think it will be really fun if we make him into a killer like us, I want him to give up on that fear and get wild." Amii hugged herself with her arms, her right eye gleaming with a red tint.
"I forget sometimes the kind of demon you are, there is merit in keeping him alive, using people has always been my role even back then. I will use him as a tool but I don't believe he can become a hunter." Aurora crossed her arms a little unnerved by the girly mannerism Amii always used.
"Hahaha, now, now I know you are curious about him too. You know we can make him into a killer just like they made you into one, come on let's make him like us, you want to see his naivety broken and shatter, I want to take that innocence out of him." Amii clapped showing a sweet smile.
"We will do that...becoming a killer is easy all you need to do is to give up on tomorrow, we will work together on this but do not for a moment think I have any use for him as anything but a tool."
"Hehe, don't be shy we can have real fun with him, we just have to drag him down to our level." Aurora put the curtain over the mirror again hiding her own face from sight.
"Don't forget our real duty here demon, we have a job to do and a city to burn."