"Look who has finally returned... Tell me you have something of interest to me. I have had the most terrible day" the devil greeted the woman, that walked into his boudoir. He was visibly displeased and snapped at one of his servants to come closer and refill his glass of wine.
"Your Adventurers have found some sort of civilization, a grove filled with Tieflings and druids fighting each other. It looks like that both sides are trying to pull them to theirs and it seems the group is choosing to side with the Tieflings" the woman spoke and watched the devil lift himself out of the bathwater.
"They are siding with the Tieflings? How unusual... What's the quarrel about?" He asked, as he took a sip of his wine, while two servants were drying his skin. "The druids are performing a ritual to shelter the grove away from the world with the help of shadow druids. They will throw the Tieflings out, which will lead to their extinction" the woman replied with her eyes lowered to the ground.
"Hm, how heartbreaking" the devil spoke and chuckled "List them up for collecting, especially the young and weak ones"
The woman nodded and supressed a grimace of disgust. She knew better than to show what she really thought of him, if she wished to survive her contract until it came to an end.
"Is that all?" The tone in his voice shifted and her eyes switched upwards to look at the devil thats was awaiting her reply.
"Yes"
"Disappointing"
A heavy silence spread across the Boudoir, the woman didn't dare to break it and the devil enjoyed the subtile torture it brought upon her. The servants finished drying and dressing their master, before they left the two alone and scattered away.
"You do want your brother to survive, do you not?" He spoke after a while and took another sip of his wine, as he watched her starting to shift on the spot.
"Of course" she replied.
"Then why do you keep on disappointing me, little mortal?" He sighed and he placed his glass on a small tabled close to the edge of the water fountain. "I gave you such a simple little task and yet... You can't seem to do that. Do you not care that much about your little brother after all?"
His tone was low, calm but threatening.
"I do, you know that! I have reported everything I spotted and did what you asked me to-"
"Then look closer! You obviously haven't been paying attention to the important things! I am running out of time!" He interrupted her in a slight outburst of anger.
"Useless creature!" Raphael spat out and turned away frustrated, before he lowered himself on one of the sofas next to the wall with a thud.
The woman eyed him from her spot a few meters away. He often threw random fits of anger, but that reaction was even for him unusual.
"What is it about those Adventurers? If you would point me into the direction I should look at, I could-"
"Know your place" he interrupted her and glanced at her warningly.
The woman sighed, before she shook her head and crossed her arms. "No, you know what- If you want me to find out everything those people are hiding, then you have to finally tell me what all of this is about! How the hell am I supposed to gather info, if I don't even know what I'm looking for? No wonder you keep on being disappointed, because I don't know what I'm supposed to do here!"
She spoke, ignoring the fact she was playing a dangerous game. Talking back to him was always a bad idea, especially if he was already angry or instable like he was at the very moment.
Raphael chuckled and a look of amusement ran across from his face. "The little mortal is feeling confident today, I see... I do not remember allowing you to speak up this way"
"Urgh stop with the 'little mortal' and listen to what I'm saying for once!" The woman huffed back and pointed at the genuinely surprised devil sitting a few meters across her
"You dare to-" he spoke but got cut off.
"God damn it! Can you stop this ridiculous power play for a moment and lay things plain out and straight please?! I want to do my job here and be done, but you keep me in complete darkness, while asking of me to gather information I can't see. You are running out of time? Well so is my brother! He isn't gonna make it forver in that cell and maybe it's time you tell me what actually is going on, so I can finally do what you ask of me and be done with it!"
Silence. For quite a while there was only a pressuring silence after her own little outburst, before the devil hummed to himself and stood back up.
"Perhaps you are correct" He said to the woman's very surprise. "I should throw you into your cell for daring to defy me, but- go to the Archive and wait for me, now be gone! Before I change my mind mortal!" he spoke and waved her away. The woman nodded and quickly rushed out of the Boudoir, before he could change his mind as he had threatened.
When she was finally outside, she took in a deep breath and relaxed her tensed body. She expected him to blow up, or punish her for her behavior, but nothing.
"Hm, strange" she mumbled and shook her head, he never made sense to her and she could never anticipate any of his actions. The only person that really could get behind his plays was Hope, but she sadly had a bit of a loose screw mentally.
A gush of wind blew from her right when an illusion took shape next to her with a loud plop.
"I was just thinking about you, Hope" the woman chuckled and turned to look at her.
"Oh REALLY? oh wow! How sweet oh yes ahaha! Yes so ADORABLE" The dwarven woman laughed and clapped her hands together enthusiastically. "I thought of you too! Yes yes yes! What a COINCIDENCE! isn't it Evelin?"
The woman named Evelin smiled slightly and nodded "It is indeed! It's good to see you friend! I could use a bit of your advise right about now"
