The Hoctus Trade?!

Getting back to the main area where everyone was at, the others were probably talking because they didn't chase after me or follow me back here.

But that doesn't matter, honestly I should look for Lex? I haven't seen him in a while and to be honest I do wanna talk to him, it's been too long, I wonder if he needs help around the brothel before it opens in a few weeks?

Actually I don't know if there's anything I can do, thats kinda why I wanna do something seperate to get extra money, but that's not the point now, I went thought what felt like a emotional breakdown back there and I want to just see him for a little, he is my guardian after all.

Walking throughout the masses around the room, when the heck did so many people get here? I knew this place was owned by some rich guy and important people were supposed to be coming, but I thought it was lower ranking important people since whores and brothel owners came?

Maybe... Actually I don't know, I'm not even going to try thinking into it, it's just going to hurt my brain, I should just go and try to look for Lex, him and Nara should be together so maybe I should look for her too?

Walking throughout the masses, "Hey, watch out," someone said as I bumped into them, "Oh, excuse me" I said back as I was trying to get though, but when I did, I then heard, "Hey Karin, did that motherfucker just hit you?! Hey you, I'll kick your ass if you don't drop down to you knees and beg for forgiveness!" Another gal said.

And hearing what she had to say clearly, I looked next to me to see. . .In all black, a gothic 2 peice dress with spider silk designs and pretty makeup and just everything looking outstanding, the lady standing there was none other than.

"Karin Clementines" I couldn't... Believe it....

Looking at her as she was looking down at me, I gulped, she's here, "The hell are you staring at, get down and beg for forgiveness!" another said and looking over there was some shorty in a green short dress next to her.

"Zoe, it's not the serious"

Looking at me as I'm letterally tripping balls like I'm seeing a freaking ghost right about now, she then went onto say, "My apologies, I should've been paying more attention"

She went on to apologize while the other one next to her was throwing a fit, and as I was standing there frozen in time she stepped away looking over to the others girl.

"What's the matter with you? Act professional"

"Sorry, that asshole just pissed me off"

"You're a mess, Zoe"

With them walking away, I rubbed my face and shook my head, "Am I hallucinating or what? Hahahaha!" but saying that and then turning around to see their backs and how they weren't disappearing, hold fuck it was for real. . .

* * *

Hearing steps approaching me from the side, "Hey, Aster how's it been? What are you doing over here alone?" his voice, Lex's voice said as he came over to me sitting in the corner thinking to myself, I'm in fucking shambles that's what I am right now and I can't deal with it by myself.

I seriously don't know how to do this.

Do I just go over to her and be like, ''Hey lady clementine, it's me Hiro Natsu in the flesh, I just look different after being rescued from wherever you had me trapped?''

That woman was literally my captor and warden.

Maybe I should leave while I can to avoid her before she finds me, but... I don't.. I don't know, I wanna talk to her. I wanna see her, I wanna make sure these last week's have been good and or bad, I want to know what she's been up to, what the hell is wrong with me? Why do I care?!

She literally had me captured against my will?!

And yet for some reason, I adore her...

But why, why am I thinking so much good about someone so fucking evil, so bad, toxic, vile, it's driving me insane...

"Hey, what happened to your hands?"

Feeling someone grab my left hand, I looked over to see Lex, I forgot he was here, I spaced out, looking at him he was looking at my hand and he looked confused?

He looked severely confused?

"Are you a corruptor?"

I'm confused? What is he talking about? Wait were we having a conversation? I don't remember, I can't recall so? I spaced out again? Ugh, I'm a freaking mess right now. . .

"What?"

"It's a mage class that specializes in corruption magic?"

"I don't know what you mean?"

Moving my hand palm up, he then pointed out at my finger tips, "See how their black and the black is going down in little misty swirls, it looks like a form of corruption, and I've only seen it once, but a Demon I knew used to have this ability called Corruption Touch, this looks different but it looks so similar" he said but then like an idiot touched them? "However..." pausing he then went on to say.

"But I can't sense any corruption so maybe not?"

Is there something wrong with him, he just said that they looked corruptive? Why would he go on and touch them, and why am I just sitting here letting him do all of this? Actually, fuck, what the hell are they, I wanna know myself?

Looking at them, "They look like coal char and black food dye being dropped into a tube of water" I commented and after doing that he grabbed my hand, examining it, was it something I said?

Did he have something else to say, looking at him I might have been correct as he then went on to open his mouth and more words came out, "Actually, it looks like a form of self currution, or maybe even your Sorcery?"

He commented, must be an expert or influencer because I'm going to keep that in the mental notes.

But I had a few things to say about it, it's just my option but I feel like I really have to say this before things start to escalate and we end up cutting my fingers open?

So saying it, "Maybe? But maybe it's just not that big of a deal" I was saying this honestly because it didn't feel like a big deal, I'm in my original form, maybe this is just part of what I truly look like?

But I guess I was wrong because he looked at me oddly like I had said something completely out of the question and should have said so, "When black stuff mysteriously appears, it sounds like a big big big big big deal?"

"That's a lot of bigs"

"Yeah, because it is"

"Oof..."

"Don't... ugh, Anyways, how have you been Hir- Aster"

"To be honest, not too well, you?"

"Ehh, I could be better. Hey, you wanna talk?"

He said the words I needed to hear, because I was planning on asking if he wanted to talk anyways, it wasn't about this but it was about something else, and I guess nows just a good time to talk about anything...

"Yeah..."

Coming around he sat across from me and as the room was full of chatter, he then came on to say, "Hey, wait before I do, what's with your eyes? They look dull?"

Before, if I remember Kasumi said that they looked like Rika's which I can only pressume that she ment, one of the, no it had to be the white succubus with those nightmare eyes, yeah her, I guess they changed back, the world isn't tinted and their normal color so I guess he's just talking about my eyes, are they dull? That's strange?

I've been lost okay, the world isn't that important these days and my minds a mess, I can barely tell real from fake.

And remembering what Lex said since it's been a few seconds and I haven't responded, he asked why my eyes looked dull, I don't really know, but I have a few guesses?

And some were, "Well, I've been crying a lot? I saw someone I knew from back when I was enslaved here? Kasumi forced me into an intervention not too long ago, and I slept with a cheating half orc and their girlfriend who's also my newer partner along with the half orc now? And I threw up a bit before all that became official and I might be a little coo-coo these days or just feel like it because I'm slowly falling apart..."

And to be honest, he just sat there with this look on his face as his lips curled into his mouth and with a blank face and expression which is the same thing but I feel like it might make it sound more drematic, he then spoke back.

"Wow..."

Is that all you have to say, no there's more?

"Okay, that was a lot, when the heck did all this happen?"

So that's not all you had to say, okay, I'll take it...

"This week? Last 2 days? It's been a rough week"

"I can... I can tell"

Bruh, you don't even know, it's been so long of a week...

"Lex, I don't know to do man, I'm on the verge of collapse from everything and I don't know what to do, I need some wisdom man, I seriously do" slamming my face into the table, "I don't know what to tell you?" he said back.

"Tell me anything, even if it's a lie"

"I've never lied to you, I won't start now"

Hearing him say that I started getting emotion, I swear if this was a book this arc would be the causes and effects of psychological damage and he's going to save me...

"Please..." Me

"I'm literally about to cry..." Me

"I'm overwhelmed and I don't know what to next, I don't know what to do about anything?! And I think that it's all my fault, I might have just done this all to myself?!" Me

Whining about this, he listened and without hesitation or wait said whatever was in his mind. And I love him for that, man I honestly do, he's the realist one I know and I love him as family, he's like the only one.

"Listen, I'm going to be honest, most of what's happening to you varies, sure, some of this is your fault, but that's because like I've been saying as of lately, you've been holding onto bad stuff for petty reasons, but most of it isn't your fault, it was all just a bad coincidence of fate"

Fate, here I hear her name again, those motherfuckers, they've been fucking with me since day 1, this is their fault, all their fault, all of this is because of them....

"There's no such thing as a bad coincidence"

"Even so, what you just need is a push, and I'll do it, shit, I ain't got anything better to do than to help my cute little incubus outta the pits of fate, haha, pits, I mean... Yah, hahaha sorry, it was funny, anyways, you just need a little push, you need strength, you wanna overcome fate dry fucking you, then, I guess I'll help you become stronger"

"Stronger? What? You're going to train me?"

"Fate can't affect the strong, and that's because the strong always reject fate and push past them, that's what makes them break mortal boundaries, that's why I'm so fond of humans, their always doing it, unlike most folk"

He made sense, a lot of sense, he really is wise.

Imma call him the wise incubus from now on.

"I guess... I'll take your words on it..."

"Good, follow me and we'll kill your tie to fate~"

He said motivating me and breaking me from my path of hate, yeah, I've been too much of a hater, I needed this.

"I love ya Uncle Lex..."

"Aww, thanks~ I'm always happy to help~"

I know he likes being called that, I'll give it to him for today.

. . . . .

But then just as we were talking and he brung up a casual topic for us to chat about, which was how annoying some people can be, suddenly out of the blue a familiar voice appeared and as it came to ear, "Testing? Testing?" I looked over, and it was, on the stage was. . .

Looking over, on the stage past the messes of people was lady Clementine and that short stack, "Hey is this thing working? Oh it is! Awsome~ Hey how is everyone this evening, my name is Karin Clementine, and this is my assistant Zoe Mackleson!"

Karin then started explaining exactly why she was on the stage and what her goals where, and to be honest I was expecting something more shadowy but appearnlty her and the girl she was with were here to gather business in trading, she spoke of some Faction named the Hoctus and how they were willing to exchange pounds of high grade silver in exchange like resources for their settlement near the South lands outside of Nefumia's walls.

Her speech was well planned and executed perfectly, it almost memorized me, no, I'm pretty sure it had, but it wasn't her words that got me, well, sort of.

But her, I think I'm...

I'm in love with Karin Clementine?

I don't understand this but the more she spoke, the more I was looking at her, the more my chest aches and my mind raced, I don't understand it but I can't make this up or even deny it anymore, so, I'm pretty sure this is love, I still don't understand it but it's the only logical explanation I got.

Or at least it's the only thing I understood...

I'm lost in a void and for some reason, I feel like she's my only light as cheesey as it sounds, that's how I feel.

"It's a trap"

"Huh?"

Looking next to me to see Lex sitting next to me, he glanced over and with a serious face, he said it again.

"It's a trap, look at her, don't you sense the malice coming off every word? She's doing a good job at hiding it from the humans, but from a trained demon, it's impossible"

"I don't understand, she's just talking that's all"

"Talking?"

"Yeah, she's just looking for trade?"

But I guess I didn't understand that well be he began explaining things to me, "Aster, the Hoctus Faction is a Necromancer Faction that serves under the 6th Litch General Benjamin Hoctus"

He said and I chuckled, "Benjiman Hoctus? That's the silliest name ever, are you sure that's it?" I said but looking at me he was completely serious and I stiffened up.

"Benjamin Hoctus sounds pretty badass, yeah, I take back"

I said but he sighed and then looked to the stage where she was speaking, talking about how it would be a safe trip especially with the trade route she knew to avoid zombies which was obviously set up by her for them not to go to.

"You really think she's planning something?"

And looking to me seriouser than before, "There's no such thing as a good necromancer apart of the Litches faction, I can assure you that, after all, they learned that magic from our kind, and not any good of our kind"

"So just a regular Demon?"

"No, Necromancy was taught by a Demon lord"

"Really"

"Yeah, and it's teaching passed down are ment for other demons not mortal hands, after all, it's highly curruptive"

"That sounds bad"

"It is, how do you think the Litches came to be"

"I know how they came to be"

"You do?"

"Yeah, little bit of forbidden magic passed down by a hag, demon, and or other master of the forbidden arts and then they move their soul into a box and that how they end up immortal but it fucks up their bodies"

"...Correct..."

"I'm smart, hahaha"

"For someone who didn't even know they were an incubus or what an incubus was 4 months ago, you sure know a lot?"

"Don't forget, I'm still a Sorcerer~"

"Oh yeah... Forgot about that"

Damn I was almost caught in the act, sigh, that would have been a tough one to explain, "Anyways, what's next?"

"What do you mean?"

"It's a trap right, should we tell the others?"

But as I said that he just looked around, looking to the big bosses all around and then moving his and up signaling a waiter for a champagne, and when he got one, after no response for a whole ass minute leaving, he took a sip and then opened his mouth using words.

"I'll let my men pass the word around, let's just wait and see for now, if it affects us we'll take action immediately, if not then let's prepare our nest for what's to come encase it does come our way, I'll pass the word around of possible danger when we get back to the district, but it's up to them if they wanna risk the trade offer, I know it's a trap but they're not ones to believe others words on a whim"

He said like the wise one he was.

I guess I'll listen to him and stick by his side then.

"Hiro? Hey Hiro is that you! Hiro Natsu is that you!"

Suddenly a voice came out from nowhere, and as I heard that, her voice, Karin, her voice became silent as she stopped mid sentence due to whoever this was.

And turning her attention to whoever's screaming that was, along with everyone else there who was in the crowd not to mention mine since it was my fucking old name.

Everyone looked to a girl who was passing throughout the mass and as she came fast, it was only a few seconds after when the girl with black hair and eyes wearing a blue dress was standing before me, in front of me, and smiling brightly, but that wasn't the big issue...

"Hiro???" Karin's voice on the mic.

"Hey, do you remember me, wow you look so different? It's Angelica! I'm from the Azmeralda clan, you didn't forget me now have you? I couldn't forget you, as you can tell~!"

And looking over to the stage, she was looking dead at me with shock all over her face, and looking at her and crossing eyes, we noticed each other, and...

I think I'm about to pass out. . .