Chapter 43: Special Guests Part 3
"Oh my god."
"Chifuyu, she might be the cutest girl to grace our planet."
"Cuuuute!" Kagura dashes over to Ariel and squeezes her like a doll.
One of the things Kagura bought while shopping last night was a pair of cat ears. She purchased them on a whim, but is receiving the ultimate payoff.
"You are really cute, Ariel.." Even Iris is attracted to it.
Shinatsu is used to the tomfoolery that goes around her, so she just laughs at their dumbness. Ariel blushes from everyone's compliments.
"We should do this as an attraction for the cafe."
"You mean like have Ariel as a poster girl?"
"Maybe, if she wants to."
"Hey, that's a nice idea! Ariel, try acting like you're welcoming customers in."
"Okay. I'll try."
The others watch in anticipation.
"Welcome to Odd Jobs Cafe… Nya~"
"...."
"CUUUUTE!" The others shout in unison.
"Heh. Maybe I'll give it a try." Ariel rubs the back of her head while giggling.
"There's another pair, right? Someone should try it on."
"Shinatsu, you put them on. You have twin tails after all."
"Ugh.. I can't argue with that logic."
Following Kagura's suggestion, Shinatsu goes to put on the cat ears.
"Ohhh!"
"Say what Ariel said."
"Absolutely not."
"Not too bad, huh?"
"Not bad at all."
Chifuyu and Diego fist-bump behind their backs. As Odd Jobs continues their comedic act, a special guest enters the building. The door bell rings and everyone looks to the entrance.
"Sorry, we're closed."
"No need to worry, I'm not a customer."
"You're…"
"…."
5 members look on in confusion, while 1 is overcome with distress.
"Amelia.." Shinatsu says in a low tone.
"That's right, you're Amelia Boreas, a Special Rank Hunter, and Ms. Nailah's sister! What brings you here?"
"I came to see how my sweet little sister's business has been going. Looks like she was able to get some promising youth."
Amelia wouldn't know this since this information hasn't been disclosed to anyone else, but Nailah has left Kagura to deal with most of the management for Odd Jobs. Naturally, it was her choice to take responsibility for her idea.
"So you're a relative of Ms. Nailah. It's nice to meet you, I'm Chifuyu Kyotani." Our protagonist greets the visitor, unaware of her true motives.
Amelia gives a deathly cold stare for a second, that both Chifuyu and Ariel notice. Iris sees this as well. She was going to introduce herself, but now she's too scared to.
'Wow, this lady's a hottie.' The new member's mind is completely on this woman's body however. "The name's Diego Pegula, very pleased to meet you."
Ignoring both the males, she walks straight to Shinatsu.
"Hello, my dear niece. You seem to be enjoying your time here." Amelia lightly puts her hand on Shinatsu's shoulder, but it felt as if an immense pressure was trying to bury her underground. She leans in closer to her niece and whispers into her ear. "I see you're getting cozy at this place, don't forget why I sent you here. You were kicked out of the Boreas family, so I'm giving you a reason to continue living. If you're successful, I might even put in word to the leader to let you back in."
Chills are sent down Shinatsu's very soul.
The others look on edge. The air of Odd Jobs changed as soon as Amelia set foot inside. Kagura now sees this Special Rank Hunter didn't simply come to visit.
"Um.. Is something the matter, Ms. Amelia?"
"No. You children seem to have a very nice place here. I hear you've also taken out a few vampires. Keep up the good work."
As Amelia walks back to the door, Shinatsu takes off her cat ears with a dismal countenance.
"You've only been here a minute, would you like some tea?"
"I'm fine. Oh, but I would like to speak with one of you." Amelia points at Ariel. "You, let's talk. Somewhere private."
'Why does she wanna talk with Ariel? Shit, does she know?' Chifuyu is questioning her motives. Ariel looks over at him, he nods telling her to go. 'Whatever her goal is, Ariel can handle herself.'
She slowly walks to Amelia. "Well then Odd Jobs, until next time." With that, the unexpected guest leaves with Ariel in tow.
Without saying a word, she follows the Hunter to her car. She's not worried, but has no idea what this person wants to do. Ariel's eyes begin to wander to a specific place, Amelia's cleavage. She didn't notice before because she had to focus up in case this woman planned anything, but Amelia's rack was several times her size. Despite the situation, Ariel makes a face that holds a combination of stupefaction and silliness. Coming back to her senses, she sees a chauffeur holding the door open for her.
While getting in the passenger seat, Amelia gives her gratitude to Ariel. "Thanks for cooperating."
She loses track of how long they've been driving. An hour, 2 hours? They've been on the road for close to 5 hours now, and not a single word has been spoken. Finally, the car comes to a stop.
"We're here." Amelia gets out, Ariel follows suit. Stepping out, she lays eyes on their destination.
A graveyard.
The Special Rank Hunter begins to walk, and although she doesn't say anything, Ariel figures she's supposed to follow her. As far as they can see, only tombstones are in sight.
"This is a graveyard for humans who were killed by vampires."
"I see."
Amelia gives Ariel a malicious side-eye.
"You make me sick. You may have the President fooled, but not me."
"Erm.."
"What's your end goal? I know you're true identity, Vampire Lord."
"I figured you did. Since you know who I am, you should know what my goal is."
"To end the war between vampires and humans? Even if you're telling the truth, I'd never let a filthy monster join our side."
"Well you don't have that authority, do you? After all, here I am."
"Such insolence, when all the lives lost here are because of you!"
A sudden punch hits the vampire square on her cheek, causing a tooth to get knocked out of its socket. Ariel spits it out with a glare in her eyes.
"You dare look at me like that. VAMPIRE!"
Amelia curses the Vampire Lord as she brutally beats her up, even pulling one of her ponytail buns out. "You can't attack me because of your vow, so I'll be reminding you of your place here!" The Hunter laughs maniacally as she continues to bring down a ruthless beating upon the enemy in front of her. Ariel takes it without any retaliation. After countless minutes, Amelia stops to catch her breath.
Ariel could've fled, or at least blocked the hits. But she let herself receive the Hunter's anger. Even though it probably isn't going to make Amelia feel better, she still let it happen anyway.
"It's true that I'm to blame for the deaths of every human in Shioto, because I was the first to invade." They've already been over that if Ariel didn't come first, another army of vampires would've. But the truth of the matter is, Ariel did. So she has to live with that. But it's also true that if she didn't, she probably wouldn't have come to the point she's at right now. Thus, there can't be any room for regret. "I won't make any excuses. For that reason, it's my responsibility to see that this world is liberated from the threat of vampires. Then, after that is my world. I will end this never-ending war. You don't have to believe me, I already have those that do. This is my resolve."
Ariel lays her soul bare, for Amelia to see. Sadly, she will never accept vampires.
"Is that so? Cherish the rest of the time you'll have here then. The next time you see me, it will be to cut you down."
Amelia Boreas leaves. Ariel lies down on the ground, looking at the night sky.
"Guess she's not giving me a ride back.."
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone