Buio finally felt like replying: "well, now my interest is piqued. I intend to become the human demons fear someday myself. You could be my role model, if not for the fact that you're holding an innocent little girl hostage." The woman inhabiting the body of the child was obviously overwhelmed with mirth, as she began to laugh uncontrollably.
"You are every bit as fearless as the rumours suggested, where are my manners? Allow me to introduce myself. I am Shinigami Seishin... otherwise known as Hive, the founder of the prodigious organisation Bane."
Buio was rarely shocked or surprised by anything, at the moment he wasn't just shocked, he was utterly flabbergasted. Did the leader of the most wanted organization in the world just announce herself to him? Full name and all.
He tilted his head sideways asking her a silent question. 'Really?' She seemed to get what his action meant and chuckled slightly before replying: "Yes... the most wanted person in not just this kingdom but the world over just revealed her true identity to you!"
Buio was completely stumped, he didn't even know what to say at the moment. Meanwhile the notorious woman continued: "I tell you because i can, as a matter of fact i could even reveal most of my plan to you. Besides this isn't my real body, i hid that little inconvenient thing a long time ago."
She paused as if to let that particular fact settle into his thoughts, then continued: "You would have to find my original body to kill me and since you could never find it, how could you possibly stop me?"
This woman was something else. If he chose to believe everything she had said so far, she had just revealed her real name to him and the secret to how to kill her.
She had done so with no hesitation whatsoever at that. Hive's level of confidence was off the charts. When he thought about it, she was the most wanted woman or person in the world really... for a reason.
The most dangerous thing about the elusive criminal, was her intellect afterall.
Even if she was telling the truth nothing was preventing her from slipping in a white lie or two somewhere in between. The greatest lie one could devise was to tell someone the slightly twisted truth. Taking that fact into consideration, she might be lying about her real name. Telling the truth about how to go about killing her or any manner of varying ways that one could switch that sequence of revelations to form one decisive and utter deception.
The possibilities were simply too convoluted to consider them too much, doing so would only cost you a splitting headache and no solution for your troubles.
Just then one of Buio's beast bonds addressed him through their mental link. "Buio Pichi, that little child's face is smirking."
He didn't know what a smirk looked like but he had learned about what it's possible implications were a long time ago. 'So, she was most likely trying to mess with my head huh?'
"Well, now that i got the gears turning in you're head, lets move on to more important matters shall we?" Buio kept his head steadily facing in her direction.
"Yeah, let's. You got me here as planned and you now have my undivided attention, so what do you want?" He replied in a gruff tone.
Hive's reply came without even a moments delay: "You, why else would i take time out of my very busy schedule to come see you in person? Well sort of, i guess." Buio let out an irritated scoff.
"Hey, what more do you want? I can't just have my body exposed to the mercy of the world you know, many a prying eyes you see. I am most wanted as you well know, the authorities will come a knocking." She laughed at that last statement as if she had delivered some punchline.
"You've made quite a name for yourself already at your young age and i would be lying if i said i wasn't impressed. I even heard that you just achieved a flawless sweep at the Elite Force tournament, joined the Gold Badgers Guild and with that performance i'm sure you're part of the Elite force now. Are you not?"
This woman was well informed. With an ability like hers she could just pop a piece of her soul into any random civilian, wear their body around like a piece of clothing and no one would be the wiser.
Soul manipulation was an incredibly insidious ability indeed. Even the strongest mages were not immune to it's effects, given time and a few contingencies she could possess anyone.
Buio had spent some time thinking but not about her proposal to join Bane, he didn't need to think about it twice. So he opened his mouth and offered an unapologetic resounding: "No!"
"Tsk tsk tsk, I would have liked having someone like you on my side but alas it wasnt meant to be." The woman replied nonchalantly then sighed.
Buio raised an eyebrow behind his mask. 'She's gonna just accept my refusal of her offer, just like that?' If he was being honest he had expected some attempt at bargaining.
As if reading his mind she replied: "I don't see a reason to bargain with you further, you despise demons afterall. I on the other hand intend to utilize them, i had already deduced that there is a 99 percent chance that you'd say no even if i explained my goals to you."
Buio had already become accustomed to being surprised by her words and actions during their brief interaction. So this revelation didn't have as much of an impact as the others. One thing puzzled him tho.
"If you were already so sure I'd say no, then why did you bother making the effort to meet me then?" He replied shortly.
She sighed as if she was extremely exhausted: "Okay let me explain something to you, first I'll start with a question." Buio listened intently wondering where this was going if the woman already believed it to be pointless.
"Purple Coat, what do you do with the demons you happen to defeat in battle?" He saw no reason to hide the truth so he immediately gave her his reply: "I siphon their body's of the mana they possess before i even kill them."
Atmospheric mana bobbed up and down in the vicinity of the little girls head, as the villian used her body to convey her expression. "Sound choice." She replied.
"I like that answer, this should help you see that i'm not the evil bastard they would have people believe i am." She added in a matter of fact manner.
"Here is my plan young man. Demons are inherently more powerful than even the beings who happen to be above average. Are they not?" She asked but Buio figured that was a rhetorical question, seeing as she didn't allow him enough time to answer.
"So i intend to do what you do in a sense, i will use them to become more powerful. However it is a rather cumbersome task to siphon their mana from them, you must know this yourself seeing as you've done it countless times i assume."
She tapped the little child she was occupying over the section of her body where her heart should be. "I am not heartless and cruel as the rumors portray me to be, i'm just a broken soul which strives for a certain goal."
She held the face of the little girl and continued: "I want to become powerful enough to protect every women and child from the cruelties of this world."
She held up the little girls hand. "I was once as powerless as this child now is, i went through horrible things i would not wish upon my worst enemy."
Her voice grew sinister as she continued: "I want to harvest as many demon souls as possible, the more powerful the better. In their dimension they are nothing but souls completely powerless against me. If I can control them and make them work for the benefit of humanity i can bring this world true peace."
Hive was starting to sound pretty convincing, except for one major detail. "I will eradicate all the men who are unwilling to serve me." Buio sighed inwardly: 'I knew it, tyrants always preach peace while trying to convince everyone that the ends justified the means.'
"Join me Purple Coat," she said her voice now rumbling. "Join me and i will spare you!" Buio was unfazed. "I must humbly decline." He replied firmly.
"Suit yourself, if you stay out of my way i will spare you... for the time being. However if you get in my way, make no mistake, i will kill you in a way that will make you wish you were never born."
Buio shook his head in utter resignation. "You know you had me in the first half, but you lost me when you got to the indiscriminate slaughter part."
She grunted and spat: "Not indiscriminate slaughter, indiscriminate slaughter of grown men. Little boys are excluded i can mold them, they would still be young i could mold them to be better men once they reach adulthood."
Buio was done listening. "Will you be finished sometime soon by any chance?" He asked sarcasm purposefully apparent in his voice. One of his beast bonds started to snicker. "She rolled her eyes, it's quite comical on a child's face." Buio almost reprimanded the beast bond out loud.
"Okay, i'm done. Do as you please, but as i said before stay out of my way or you'll regret it. Oh and here's something to ponder about as i take my leave." The woman paused as if purposefully trying to build suspense.
"My organization has already infiltrated most of this kingdom, my subbordinates are everywhere. I, am everywhere."
As soon as she finished speaking the little girls body began to shake, Buio sensed as a human shaped distortion appeared outside the girls body. Sadly before he could even move it sank into the ground below her feet, too close for him to do anything without potentially harming the innocent child.
Hive's soul fragment raced away underground below multiple buildings. He would have to risk destroying property and endangering lives in the process just to catch the mere fragment of the woman's soul.
No wonder she was so damn hard to catch. As he stood there considering the ramifications of everything he had just learned, Gomu and Hanabira raced towards him.
The little girl who had been taken hostage arrived first tho, tackling his legs in a bear hug and wetting his clothes with her tears.
"I assume you two heard all of that?" He inquired as his teammates arrived within range.
"Yeah, we heard," they replied in unison. "Can one of you help this little girl to find her parents or something?" He asked shortly afterwards. "We'll handle it, what are you going to do?" They inquired. Buio didn't need to think he had already decided before the tyrants speech ended.
"I'm going to report this incident to the Supreme magi of course," he replied aloud to his teammates. Inwardly he added 'and i guess it's time some of my Permaclones get to work.'
Inside Buio's dark dimension Abyss stopped training and began notifying the other permaclones about the most recent event.
Buio could have done it but he had other matters to take into consideration. His adoptive family for example. If Hive harmed them, she would be the one wishing she was never born.