The fog had partially covered the entirety of Sector Seven, disturbing the traffic within it in a manner only a fog could. The Town itself was almost completely asleep at this late hour, nearing midnight, except for a few miscreants running around in the darkness.
They'd opted to ignore the curfew placed on the area after the last attack from the Revolutionary Army, which caused a devastating blow to the Emperor's Peace Patrol headquarters by stealing several weapons and classified information that the Warden Momonga demanded to be returned or suffer the consequences.
His threats never worked, people had come to know he rarely implemented them and only when the Emperor's men breathed down his neck, leaving him without a choice. People had seen the weakness within the Peace Patrols unit and used it for their own needs, making the area one of the worst places for a Noble to walk around without protection.
Here, laws and curfews were merely a suggestion than a rule. Some had dubbed it to be a lawless Sector, where the power was within people and with not the Emperor.
It was the result of having lived through the horrors the Emperor's army brought with them, the mere memory of it frightened citizens more than death itself.
I'd witnessed it first hand and knew what to expect when the Peace Patrols came knocking on our doors. But so far, I was as safe as I could get by being a member of Howling Aquilo. The name itself protected us in more ways than we thought it did, often taking us by surprise with how far we could go by acting under the organization's name.
Haruse Seiren, a precious childhood friend of mine, founded Howling Aquilo after the incident relating to me three years ago. At the very least, he revealed its existence to me back then, and that's when a few certain pieces fell into its places - I finally knew what Seiren had been up to during the times he was absent.
And yet, despite it all, I enjoyed watching the Warden Momonga running around like a headless chicken, nearly shitting his pants as he feared losing his position for allowing such an attack to take place in the first place.
And not just once.
The scale of the attack had been one of their largest, throwing everyone off with their audacity.
" - this can't go on!" He hollered, spit flying everywhere, rapidly blinking his eyes as he spoke. He was so angry that I could barely understand what he was saying. "I need to show the Emperor at least some results! Ones that won't end up with us all dead!"
I sat on a comfy chair in front of his desk, watching the man making a dent on his floor as he kept walking circles. It was hard to keep my expression as neutral as possible, it kept wanting to turn into either a grimace or straight out amused. He was more rattled than we'd originally thought him to be.
"And I was called here why?" I asked, not the least bit concerned for his position. It didn't matter what I, or we, owed him, I still disliked him for what he's done to get to his position. The things he still does and would keep doing just to keep his power, status, and money. He was driven by greed, one that I was more than familiar with.
I'd seen it destroy people.
And such, I'd be celebrating the day he'd get fired from his post as the Warden of Shimizu Town, Sector Three.
All he really did, day in and out, was sitting on his chair and stuffing his face with bacon and sweets, and sake. His once slim body had gained weight, and now he resembled more of a human-sized pig than anything else. I'd heard from his secretary that she has to order the Warden's clothes specifically from the factory. He simply didn't fit into the robes they had at hand.
She'd said it all with a giggle and a smile that she couldn't hide, even when she tried her best to do so. It had been an interesting sight.
The Warden spun around, facing me, fury visible in his small dark eyes.
"You're one of them, aren't you?!" Spit flew from his mouth, and I carefully edged back, not desiring to have anything of his on me. I hadn't even allowed him to shake my hand as he'd wanted to do upon our meeting.
I did hear his guards grumbling about my lack of manners, which I ignored.
"Them?" I asked, tilting my head as I gave him a look I knew would scare him, knowing perfectly well what he was talking about. But I wanted to ruffle his feathers a bit more, it was something we often did.
Me and the rest of my colleagues within Howling Aquilo.
It had become sort of a game among us to see, who managed to piss the Warden off faster (using the same tactics wasn't allowed). The reward was a simple satisfaction of enjoying Warden Momonga's red or purple face, depending on how angry or embarrassed he was.
"One of those sorcerers!" He spat, eyes narrowed in distaste.
It was no secret that the Warden wasn't fond of our existence. He didn't like the idea of asking for our help to solve the incidents his team couldn't, nor had any idea where to even begin with. The supernatural stuff wasn't tolerated among the Emperor's army, despite the Emperor himself being one of us. It was often viewed as something to be feared, rather than revered.
And I knew for a certain that he disliked the power clans held, especially the Hyuga clan, because it gave them more power than he as a Warden held. It was the reason why I let him get away with all that illegal shit he pulled behind the closed curtains. I wanted to see how far he would go to try and bring those assholes down, and possibly lend a hand.
If the situation suited me.
"It's not a name we've chosen to call ourselves," I said, slowly and carefully, eying the several wanted posters on his old, wooden walls. Some of them were heart-wrenchingly familiar, I'd known them before I dropped out of school.
And not once had I expected to find ourselves standing at separate positions, not with the way they'd acted at school. But what's done is done. You can't get the past back, no matter how much we wish for it.
The Town Center Headquarters building was older than me, even though it was nothing noteworthy nor a fitting place for a Warden of his status to reside in, but here he was - all because the clan heads refused to allow the Peace Patrols to use the nicer buildings in the Town, which belonged to them.
They didn't want the stink of commoners to ruin their properties.
Warden Momonga snorted, not even bothering to hide his distaste towards me. If he couldn't stand the clans, then my mere presence was even worse. And yet, being the smart man he was - the Warden knew he could use me in his own, dirty little schemes and games towards the clans. It wasn't a secret that I was no longer favored by my clan after I almost killed my older brother three years ago.
It had been a moment of insanity, yet I didn't regret it.
The Hyuga clan had desperately tried to cover the mess up, but the Warden had eyes and ears within the clan and had heard about it before they could utter the word, Emperor. Rather than allowing them to kill me, for a second time, he got me out of the compound with an excuse of my powers being useful to the Emperor's Army.
My family had no choice but to relent. In a way, I owed the Warden my life for giving me the position that Seiren had promised me upon my return.
"But it's something people started to call us," I finished, thinking of those who lived in other Nations, or even closer - different Sectors had different names for who we were, and what we did.
Although, the most common name was a sorcerer. Much for my amusement. Another name was one I didn't dare to say, fearing the connection Warden Momonga would make.
"Like I care about any of that!" The Warden snarled, and I couldn't help but let a small smile creep on my lips. Aya 13, Ran 14, Setsu 22, and Fu 35. I was catching up, slowly but steadily. Fu merely had talent in pissing people off, giving him an advantage I didn't have. Or used.
"I just need you to give me any and all kind of information you manage to find out about those Revolutionary bastards," he slammed his fist against the ancient-looking desk.
The vase with wilting flowers almost lost its balance due to the impact, I watched it with fascination as it wobbled for nearly a minute before it stopped. I could almost hear my disappointment falling like a coin, having hoped the water would spill on his paperwork that laid all over the desk.
Fu would get a heart attack if he were here, unlike us - he was organized to the point of obsession. Setsu would simply stare at it, before walking away as he muttered a few select choices of words.
"Is it just information you're seeking from me?" I asked, watching as he pulled on his mustache Hercule Poirot would envy. It was polished to the point it almost shined under the light, like a glass. "Nothing else?"
"I wouldn't mind if you'd end up taking a few heads with you while you're at it."
"That's gonna cost you double of what you promised," I said, knowing full well that Setsu was gonna send him a bill with more than what I'd just said.
He didn't like dealing with the Warden, always muttered how things often got messy and how by the end of the day, he'd end up with a headache.
It was a never-ending circle.
"Plus what you already owe us."
He threw me a nasty look, muttering particularly nasty curses under his breath. "Tell that Fuwa I'll pay if you actually do your jobs properly."
Sensing that the conversation was about to be finished, I stood up, also because I wanted to get out of here. How he managed to stay here for an entire day, I didn't know. It was smelly and almost suffocating to be here.
"Without destroying public property!" He added, pointing an accusing finger at me, as he picked up a thick envelope and threw it at me. I caught it with ease, acting all innocent towards his accusation.
It'd been Fu, who'd destroyed almost half of Sector Five's outer area, during his mission to capture a Deserter, who'd turned out to be more than what was written in his profile.
Before that, it was Ran, who'd obliterated an entire village as he went after hordes of demons, and then it was me...I'd rather not say what I did. But it wasn't as horrible as Ran's incident, nor the fact when Setsu nearly turned the Peace Patrol members into mindless dolls. After that, there was barely someone who thought it to be a smart idea to mess with him.
It never ended up well, despite Setsu's lack of belief in him being our leader.
"Then, let's just hope that things won't come to that, shall we, Warden Momonga?"
With that, I spun around and dismissed myself from his presence. The two guards, who'd been standing at the door for the entire duration of my visit, neither did nor said anything as they watched me leaving the premises. I could faintly hear the Warden grumbling something under his breath as I walked away, probably regretting the fact that he needed to use us in the first place.
Not that I knew what really went on in his head, nor was I interested to know.
The Warden's secretary shouted something after me, but I didn't stop until I was out on the foggy streets. The sky itself was turning darker and darker with every passing minute, and while the street lights were lit, there were areas where the fog proved to be stronger.
I pulled my goat closer, shivering lightly at the sudden cold that hit me on the doorway, and gave the street a wary look before I took off towards our headquarters a few blocks away. The streets weren't as empty looking as they appeared to the normal people, I easily spotted a few demons lurking around the darker corners.
Lurking and waiting for a chance to drag an unsuspecting human to their death.
"The tip of my tongue, the blaze set on my soul," I muttered, walking past the Creatures of the Night, pulling out several Shikigami papers. "Wolf and fox, I permit you to devour the demons behind us."
The light enveloped two of four papers before it took the shape of a big, white and black wolf, and a three-tailed fox.
I didn't look back, there was no need as the sounds of snarling and growling were enough to indicate what was going on there. The night was suddenly filled with howls and jaws breaking the monster's bones. The scent of blood filled my senses.
"Spell 45, Release: Izanami's Red-Torch," I finished the spell, causing the Shikigami to explode in a red light that common people couldn't see. All it left behind was the spot of blood on the ground and the scent of blood that lingered in the air, visible to those who could see through the Layers.
To the common people, it would look like a puddle of old water.
Nights like this: foggy, no moonlight getting past the clouds, and too dark for my taste was not to my taste. In fact, I hated it but it's not like I could've ignored the Warden's call. Not when he had the ability to throw me to jail.
And I wasn't gonna let it happen, not anytime soon.