"Come on, come on…" Velvette heard Vox muttering as she came down from her room for a late breakfast. Her partner was plugged into o neof the cords they kept around their loft, which allowed him to access every TV in the Pride Ring. It wasn't as powerful of a setup as the one in his main chamber, which not only allowed him to be able to see through every screen in all seven rings of Hell, but also allowed him to interact with them, giving him ways to communicate with those not within the Pride Ring. He couldn't actually do much there but he could at least speak. But the one in their loft was handy if he needed to check out something but didn't feel like going down to the main chamber.
Velvette frowned as she looked about the open floor of the loft. "Valentino spend the night at his club?"
"I have no idea," Vox admitted. He didn't look at her because he couldn't actually see her; when he was connected his body moved and his mouth spoke words but he was in a thousand different places at once. He knew she was there by her voice and being able to sense the electrical pulses in her brain (which was fucking weird as shit) but he couldn't actually SEE her. "Never came back last night." He paused, face twitching slightly. "He's been acting weird lately, honestly. I know he's pissy about that little whore of his spending so much time with Charlie Morningstar but it has to be something more." He waved her off. "Meh, he's probably on his period."
Velvette, rather than explain how that was VERY unlikely, moved to the kitchen to begin looking around to see what she could get for breakfast. While she could demand one of the servants go make something for her sometimes she liked to just get a bowl of cereal; nice, easy, quick. Other times they'd have leftovers from when she DID order out and she could always reheat those.
"Wot ya lookin' for this mornin'?" she asked as she browsed the fridge.
"Oh, trying to find Edwin Cerberus," Vox said casually, causing Velvette to start… and slam her head against the shelf she had been ducking under, nearly causing the milk to crash down on her.
"Fuckin' hell!" she cursed, rubbing her sore noggin.
"You okay?" Vox called out though it wasn't with that much concern. She honestly wasn't surprised; he could at some moments be the worst helicopter parent in the world, at other times he seemed to treat her little better than a decorative pillow: nice to have but easy to ignore.
'Though compared to me mum and dad…' Velvette thought to herself before shaking her head. 'Meh, don't wanna- OW!' She rubbed her head again, deciding that until the throbbing stopped she shouldn't be shaking her head so hard. Checking to make sure that she hadn't damaged the fridge Velvette decided to go easy and just make some eggs; there was left over ham from two days ago that could be heated up and they had some cheese that would work well. That decided she turned her focus back onto Vox as she began to make her breakfast. "Alright, why are ya spyin' on Cerberus?" She suddenly blinked, a horrifying thought entering her head. "Damn it, Vox, you better not be checking out his penis size or anythin' like that!"
"I would never do that… again." Velvette rolled her eyes at that. She had no problem with voyeurism but sometimes Vox truly didn't seem to realize when he was fucking pushing it. "And while that is important… after all, we can't have you not satisfied, as we all know how grumpy you get if you aren't being treated right-"
"Fuck you, I never get grumpy!" Velvette snapped in annoyance.
"-this isn't about Cerberus' cock size." He paused. "Though considering how large he got during that little reveal of his Overlord Status I'd say we don't have to worry about that."
Velvette shook her head. "So, still eager to bring him into the fold then?"
"Of course! That man knows how to put on a show!" Vox rubbed his hands together. "And you know how much I love a good show." He chuckled darkly at that before settling back down. "Cerberus hasn't even been in Hell a full year and already he's an overlord… even you didn't manage to become an Overlord that quick!"
Velvette glowered at that as she set about properly whipping up the eggs. She was the youngest overlord in terms of age when she'd died AND being the latest of the Overlords to achieve her rank. She would have been the quickest to become an overlord but at the moment Alastor held that record due to him seemingly arriving in Hell already at Overlord status; no one knew HOW he had managed it and Velvette had a feeling if the truth came out she would claim the record.
Or… at least… she would have before Edwin Cerberus had strolled in and made it look easy. He had her beat by several months. And the number of souls he held… they easily overtook her and Vox, making him a prime catch.
She paused, whipping her head in Vox's direction. "This is about our date, ain't it?"
"Of course it is!" Vox said with a laugh. "We need to get Cerberus hooked and drawn in. I want to make sure we forge an alliance with him fast, before anyone else realizes just how powerful he is and makes a move." He frowned. "Bad enough he is hanging around Alastor's latest pet project…"
Velvette also frowned at that. 'Yeah… last thing we need is the fuckin' Radio Demon gettin' his claws in him.' The thing that impressed her the most about Cerberus is the man was a natural showman. He understood that power was meaningless unless you wielded it in a way that made everyone stand up and pay attention. You could be able to crush suns in your hand… but if no one knew your name what was the bloody point? Edwin had taken the death of a single imp… and made it into a statement that all of Hell would never forget.
That was what the Vees needed.
'Everyone sees us as flashes in the pan. They think that Vox is just a fraud fakin' it til he makes it, that Valentino only matters because of who he employs, and everyone is waitin' on me ta make a mistake and be brought down. But if we can get Edwin ta join us…'
Now, Velvette wasn't quite like Vox and already planning out her wedding. In fact the mere idea that she might be tied down to someone was horrifying. Disgusting. Awful. She was Velvette! Free! Independent! Edwin and her, married? Oh, that would be horrible and wrong on so many levels! She just wanted him to sign a contract agreeing to attend parties with her and work with the Vees and maybe, if he wasn't all left hands in bed, be there if she needed a quick fuck.
'Though… those Sinnergram vids about couples are heating up,' she thought to herself. 'And the newly married damned souls are pretty good too…' Velvette moved over to the stove and set about getting the butter melted in her pan. "Alright, so the date…"
"We need to get it set up and I doubt you want to just call him."
"And have him think I'm fuckin' desperate?"
"I know, I know," Vox assured her. "That's why I'm saying that we need to stake him out. See where he is and then engineer a meet up. You two bump into each other and you bring up the date and get him to officially ask you. All that meet cute stuff that the movies are always going on about." He paused at that, tapping his screen. "Though… don't those movies have the two fucking right in the middle of the bus station when they meet?"
"Those are Valentino's movies," Velvette said. "Not all movies are like that." Seeing the butter was hot Velvette poured in her eggs, moving them to make sure that the curds developed properly. "Alright, so we just go over to the Hotel and wait him out. I can say I was, I don't know, doing some live vids. Oh!" She reached into her pocket and took out her phone, snapping a quick pic of her working on her omelet; just another way to make everyone jealous of her. Glamour icon, successful businesswoman, and she was a skilled cook? Total package.
"Well, we can't stake him out because apparently Cerberus is an early bird. Caught him on some security cameras already moving around Hell this morning." Velvette looked over and saw him frowning. "Couldn't get a look in his room and now the cameras around Hazbin are acting up."
~MC~MC~MC~
Vencent frowned as he sensed someone trying to get into his network and, with a mental shove, got the annoyance to go away before he returned to listening to Charlie Morningstar give the entire KaibaCorp Staff their introduction to living in Hell.
~MC~MC~MC~
"He's an early riser?" Velvette said in annoyance.
"Nothing wrong with that," Vox argued. "He can handle the morning stuff and let us sleep in and then we make sure the limo takes him home early. Besides, tell me you wouldn't prefer to know where your man was when everyone else was out partying?"
Velvette focused instead on throwing ham and cheese into her omelet.
"Thought so. Now, I am trying to find where he is at now, so we can figure out how to ambush him. Keep scanning the different stores and stuff… don't see him at any of the sex dungeons. None of the tailors either…"
Velvette though raised an eyebrow as she looked at a Sinnergram post one of her followers had posted (she liked to lurk on their feed, see if they had anything good she could steal). "I think I might have found him," she said.
That made Vox at once disconnect from the cable. "You what now?"
Velvette, settling at the table with her food, slid her phone over to Vox as he walked over. The post had caught Edwin coming out of a butcher shop, an annoyed look on his face. From what the poster had described it appeared that he hadn't been pleased at the sanitation of the place and had decided not to give it his business. Already people were posting about how they wouldn't go there either, how he was right to be disgusted, how they all deserved better…
He was a trendsetter too… the potential for a match up was looking better and better!
"Alright, let's go get him-" Vox said only for Velvette to hold up her hand.
"Uh, I know that screen bein' so thin means your brains ain't that big but even you should see that there ain't no way I'm goin' out like this." She gestured at the pajamas she was wearing. "No… not happenin'. I'm gonna eat me breakfast and then I'll figure out somethin' ta wear that will be noice and impressive and THEN I, and I alone, will go bump inta him." She leveled Vox with a cool stare. "Got it?"
"…yeah, sure sure, whatever you say."
Velvette rolled her eyes and took back her phone, scrolling through the crawl… but returning to the photo of Edwin.
Yeah…. This could work…
~MC~MC~MC~
Tristan honestly couldn't believe his good luck!
He knew that he had a pretty great life. Really good friends. Parents that, despite his dad's need to control his future, did love him deeply. Money so that he didn't need to worry about how to buy clothes or food or the like. His friends were some of the best duelists in the world and honestly he was getting pretty good himself.
Yes, there had been negatives. His dad's controlling nature. The death of Edwin (and that still haunted him). Tea going missing.
But… he had a good life.
Yet he had never been what one could call 'Lucky In Love'. He'd gone on a few dates but that was about it. Nothing special. Nothing meaningful. He didn't know why… girls just never seemed that interested in him. He'd once asked Joey about it and his friend had claimed that Tristan was "bland and boring". Edwin had later told him, when he'd gone to talk to the man about several different things after Earth-2, that Tristan at the moment was seen as the 'normal guy' and girls didn't want normal.
"Right now the last thing a girl wants is a guy like their dad," Edwin had told him as the two of them had played Mario Kart (despite him being nearly a decade older physically and, as Tristan had later learned, 2 decades mentally, Edwin still was a big kid at times). "They want the wild guy who is different and unpredictable. That is nothing like they have ever experienced, to prove that life will go differently for them. Or the jock who is popular because they want the status symbol. The chance to dream of being powerful and famous. Or the bad boy they can 'fix' but not too much; no, they want him to be bad but they also want to make it that he acts presentable.
"Now this might last until college, or into their twenties… some don't ever grow out of it. But at some point, after the wild men leave them feeling like they never can have a chance to relax, the jocks prove to only have their glory days that are now past, and the bad boys refuse to change… they look at the normal guy, who has their act together and just wants something stable and meaningful… and they realize that's who they should be chasing. Its like a switch is flipped and suddenly you are the man they desire. Its… it's a hell of a thing."
Thinking about Edwin made Tristan feel a pang of sorrow; he missed his friend very much and knowing he was trapped in Hell? It made Tristan feel guilty about spending the day as he was. But he also knew that Edwin would be angry at him if he didn't live his life to the fullest.
And that's where him feeling the luck came in. Because by random chance he had met Octavia… and she was wonderful. Amazing. Perfect.
She dressed a bit more dark than he'd normally prefer but on her it just… worked. And while she did at times have a bit of a dark sense of humor she also had such a bright and joyous outlook on the world, getting so excited at what he showed her the day before, that it made her less dark and more… well, he didn't really have a word for it! His mind kept going to the night sky when the moon and the stars were fully out. That was the best way to put it.
Many people would have been annoyed that her dad was hanging around them but Tristan found himself like Stolas as well. He had insisted Tristan address him by his first name and he had been just a delight to talk to. He of course had pressed and questioned Tristan about a lot of things but he hadn't tried to threaten him or anything like that. He'd had worse grillings from Edwin about making sure he got his homework done than he had from Stolas wanting to know more about his life in Domino. Tristan had been able to learn more about the man too, and through him Octavia. The two of them were visiting for a while as there were some problems going on down where they lived; he mentioned living 'down there' so Tristan assumed they were from Australia. Stolas had recently divorced his wife and Octavia didn't have the best relationship with her mother. Stolas was some kind of astronomer and Octavia was interested in joining the 'family business' which, to be honest, if Tristan's father studied stars he would be far more interested in joining the family business as well.
At the end of the day Tristan and Octavia had exchanged numbers and he'd nearly crashed his bike three times trying to check his text messages rather than focusing on the road. It seemed Octavia had felt the same way about him and asked if Tristan could show her where to get more Duel Monster cards.
And… well…
"Calm down, man," Joey said with a slight smirk. "Ya seem ta be ready ta leap ta the moon, seein' as how jittery ya are."
"Leave him alone Joey," Yugi teased. "Tristan is just excited to introduce us to his new friend."
"Is she a mortal or immortal?" Neph asked. "I mean… is she… Jewish?"
"I… don't think so," Tristan said, glancing at the others who nodded slightly; they kept meaning to tell Nephthys that they knew she was a goddess and not a teenager but they always seemed to run out of time and honestly it didn't hurt to have a goddess on their side considering that they were thinking about going down to Hell.
They were all seated down stairs in Kame Game, Mr. Muto having agreed to let them loiter while waiting for Octavia to arrive as there wasn't much going on; school had been canceled due to… well, Tristan didn't know why.
~MC~MC~MC~
"I told ya I need them records on Seto Kaiba!" Blitzo declared.
"And if you want them you must duel me for them!" the Principal of Domino High declared. The two of them were standing on the roof of the high school (neither realized that it was where the Pharaoh had committed his first mind rape…er… shadow game. His first shadow game. Yeah) each wearing a duel disc and staring at each other intently. "Only by defeating me can you claim this file!"
"I don't think you should make private records a prize," his secretary stated nervously.
"No one asked ya, slut!" Blitzo called out mockingly before activating his duel disc. "Alright, lets get this fuckin' duel underway. I need those records to find Seto Kaiba so I can kill him!"
"I REALLY don't think you should make those private records a prize now!" the secretary declared in horror.
"Seto Kaiba has only attended a single day of school, what do I care?" the Principal said with a shrug. "Now then, I will start by summoning my Fiendsmith-"
"Uh, Millie?" Moxie said, leaning over to his wife, "where did Blitzo get that Duel Disc from?" He swallowed nervously. "P-please tell me he didn't use our paychecks to buy it!" The staff of IMP had marveled over the Duel Discs and wanted them desperately but the price made them far too out of they paygrade.
"Aw naw," Millie said with a smile, "he didn't do that! He stole it from some green haired kid."
~MC~MC~MC~
"…ow," Weevil Underwood moaned from the alley he'd been dumped in.
~MC~MC~MC~
"But don't ya think we should be focused solely on Ed?" Joey asked. "I mean, he's down in Hell right now, right? We need ta rescue him!"
"We're still waiting on the books we need to be delivered," Yugi reminded Joey. "Until they arrive there is little we can do."
"…yeah, I guess," Joey mumbled just as Mr. Muto entered from the back room. "Hey gramps, I've been meaning ta ask ya… how are sales doin' with Duel Monsters what with Battle City kinda… fizzlin' out?"
"Oh, they are doing well enough," Mr. Muto said. "Pegasus of course is pushing to keep Duel Monsters going strong. I was hoping that the Duel Discs would bring in a bigger boost to the game but with the government now looking into them…"
"Yeah, feels like they should have been more interested in something that can create hard light projects that can actually hurt people," Yugi said, brow furrowed. "Huh, that felt like an Edwin thing to say."
"Maybe his ghost is hauntin' ya, Yug!" Joey declared.
"I don't think so, Joey."
"Aw, ya said that about the Pharaoh too, remember?" Before Yugi could reply Joey grabbed him and forced his mouth open. "ED!? YA IN THERE MAN?!"
"I do not sense any ghosts around him," Neph said, "other than the Spirit of the Pharaoh and the 15 souls that are trapped in torment within the Millennium Puzzle … all of whom I know nothing about because I have not been told about it all, oh what a lovely shirt you are wearing today Mr. Muto."
"Thank you!" Mr. Muto said. "I got it from Penny's!"
"Ed!" Joey cried out. "Don't worry, I'll get ya out of there!"
"MMMMMPPFFF!" Yugi cried out as Joey tried to stick his hand down his throat.
"Have… we come at a bad time?"
Tristan instantly perked up as he saw Octavia standing there with her dad.
"No!" He said quickly, moving to greet them (and hip checking Joey away from Yugi, who gasped for air). "Just my friends being their own… selves." He winced at how lame that sounded.
"Hmmm, that reminded me of a… friend… of mine," Stolas said as he glanced at Yugi and Joey with a rather strange expression. "But I think we came here to look at cards?"
"Yes, yes you did!" Tristan said. "And after that I was going to make lunch for everyone, if you want to join us."
"You cook?" Octavia asked, surprised. "I've… always wanted to learn how to cook." She shifted, rubbing her arm. "My mother claimed such things were beneath me but… I did so want to learn how to cook. It is like magic itself! Mixing different things together that don't taste well on their own to make something delicious…"
"I'd love to show you!" Tristan said. "First, let me introduce you to everyone. This is Yugi and Joey." The two nodded and waved, though Yugi was also rubbing his sore jaw. "And this is Nephthys."
"Stolas," Neph said with a nod, "it is good to see you again, clearly human person. I am a teenage girl."
"…yes, you are."
Tristan frowned at that but moved on. He had learned that it did no good to try and ask what Neph was hinting at, as it only resulted in headaches. "And this is Yugi's grandpa, Mr. Muto."
"Nice to meet you," Octavia said.
"You as well," Mr. Muto said… before staring at Stolas. "So… you can't call, can't write?"
Stolas shifted uneasily at that. "I am sorry… I tried but… well the wedding…"
"Yes yes, I remember you saying it was your bachelor party… but I thought I was more than a cheap thrill to you."
"Solly…" Stolas whined as Mr. Muto moved to the backroom, Octavia's father giving chase.
"Eh?" Joey said, scratching his head. "What was dat about?"
"Mr. Muto and Stolas fucked," Nephthys stated.
All of them just ignored her, Tristan happily discussing with Octavia the different cards that Mr. Muto had and the stories behind how he had come to get them.
~MC~MC~MC~
"They would never let me into this market if they knew what I really was," Aria said with giddy delight as we shopped through that surprisingly normal looking grocery store. Maybe the whole point was to torture people with the blandness of it all, with the soulless covers to popular songs, the florescent lights, the off-white floors, and the metal shelves that held the product. But honestly, it was nice to have a bit of normal.
We were still looking into hiring a chef for Hazbin; Aria's friend Bianca wanted to open up a restaurant and that would be fine to give us some variety but I was pushing Charlie to hire on a cook for the staff. One we could all trust not to poison us or serve as demon flesh… or rather Sinner Demon or sentient Hellborn flesh. It was proving to be a massive undertaking and it didn't help that Charlie was being both too picky and too quick to just accept someone. Picky in that someone needed to be on board 100% with her goals (which was insane considering most of the staff, save for me and Vaggie, didn't really believe in her project) and too quick in that any sob story had her wanting to help the person out. I had been forced to be mean and shoot down a lot of those, using the Thieves to do background checks to discover the dark secrets.
'If you didn't want to be co-partner in this you shouldn't have fronted the cash…' I reminded myself. I was making so much money now thanks to the jewelry business and the cuts I got from the souls I owned that I had officially stepped in to sponsor Hazbin. That made me, Charlie, and Alastor co-partners and with Alastor most times buggering off to do anything but help that meant it was me and Charlie running things.
Case in point… shopping for groceries.
"Just another thing we need to fix," I muttered darkly. Aria was currently in her human disguise, little devil horn headband in place, and was looking about the store in awe. I HATED that she couldn't be herself in public without Sinners looking down on her and while it would take thousands of years most likely I was going to fix the fucking Hellborn problem, one way or another. "Alright, what next?" I asked.
Aria held up her phone, a new purchase that she had argued for. After my actions with Crimson all of Hell had seen her, Angel Dust, and Husk standing next to me, along with the KaibaCorp Staff. The first three though had been seen with me before and that had marked them as my 'inner circle', with Aria now being seen as my second in command due to comments I had made to the press as we were leaving that I didn't own her soul. While Overlords could have seconds that they owned the souls of one that was there because of faith and trust was seen as being VERY high on the food chain.
She had suffered through… well, several panic attacks, but the rest of our friends had managed to talk her down and now she was taking her role VERY seriously. She refused to allow herself to be the reason why I failed as an Overlord. Thus the phone that let her manage all my appointments, lists, and duties.
"Alright, so we have all the stuff you wanted so now we go for the requests." I nodded; I was trying to get everyone to at least branch away from fast food because it was fucking expensive so there were staples that we would always get. My money, my rules, even if Charlie was footing half the bill. But after that there were the requests that everyone had put in. They could, of course, just buy it themselves but if it wasn't insane I would allow it. "Husk said he and Cassie will handle buying the booze."
"Make sure Cassie knows to be smart about that," I told her as we moved to another aisle to let a bored looking imp mother and her baby through. I smiled and waved at the child, the mother giving me a startled look and hurrying off. Bugger, fucking bigotry. "I'm putting them on a strict allowance when it comes to alcohol…" Under my breath I muttered, "And that is more than I like spending." I understood though that the main staff of Hazbin preferred to drink, with even Charlie enjoying good wines and mixed beverages, so I sucked up spending so much for booze. "But while I don't want to have them blow through everything in a day I also want them to get some decent stuff… no need to poison everyone."
"Got it," Aria said. "Alright, so since we are on Husk he asked if we could make some good southern cooking. Vencent said he would cook that as he is hungering for that too. They gave us a list of spices, rubs, sauces, meats…" She trailed off and I shrugged.
"Yeah, sounds decent enough. And probably good that Vencent and Husk handle that, since they'll probably complain about my Yankee tastes-"
Around the corner Velvette appeared, pulling her cart with one hand while she scrolled through her phone with the other.
"...okay then," I muttered. On one hand my bullshit senses were tingling, telling me that this was a set up. A created run in. That she wanted to see me and this was all staged. On the other I reminded myself that she could honestly do her own shopping. A lot of those influencers and Life Bloggers liked to do everything on their own because it made them at once look down to earth AND superior.
As if sensing what I was thinking Velvette held up her phone and began to record. "Alright, so I know you all wonder how the fuck Vox eats, what with him havin' a screen for a head, but I'm not lettin' ya know because hey, that would ruin the fun of things! But what I can tell ya is that I have plan ta laugh my ass off when watching him try and be dignified while eatin' spaghetti tonight, because ain't no one able ta eat spaghetti and look collected and cool." She flashed a middle finger at the screen and then dropped it, her sharp smile falling into a more considerate look.
"Maybe we can go check out some other things?" Aria said nervously.
"If you are nervous just stand there and look tough," I told her only for Aria to gesture at her tiny body. "Hey, I'm not the one who can't figure out how to make my human disguise look tall and buff!"
"Well… fancy seein' ya here, Edwin," Velvette said, looking me up and down as she pushed her cart over. "Good ta see that ya ain't lettin' bein' an Overlord go ta your head. Least ya know ta do your own shoppin'."
"I can see that being a common problem," I stated. "Someone becomes an overlord, thinks they can now do whatever they want."
"Vox and Val warned me 'bout that… said that too many Overlords think they are too big for their panties and fuck things up quick. Never seen it myself… you are the first Overlord to rise after me. Be nice I ain't no longer called the baby."
"Yeah, could see how that would get annoying," I said. "And I also see their point. Power… power is an interesting thing. Its like trying to ride a tornado: once you get on you better know how to stay on, because if you get bucked off that thing you are NEVER getting back on again."
"Huh… I like that. Need ta word it bit better, make it a bit more poetic-"
"Less American, you mean," I said with a smirk. "You really will never let go of us not only kicking your asses in the Revolution but also bailing you out… twice."
Velvette shot me a dark look. "Just because you have no culture…"
"Right right." I paused, letting the words hang. "Also I should respect my elders?"
"YOU TAKE THAT BACK!" Velvette roared and I forced myself not to cackle at her utter anger at being called old. I merely watched her slowly glance over at Aria, who gulped and did her best not to squirm. "And who is this? Latest girl toy?"
Aria's worries over Velvette died in an instant.
"NO!" She began to gag. "Beelzebub no!" She began to scrap her tongue with her teeth. "He's-" I thought she tried to say 'like' but it was garbled by her disgust, "- my brother! Ugh!"
"Brother?" Velvette said, surprised.
"Aria Cerberus," I chimed in quickly, deciding that her slip of the tongue was the perfect cover story. "Little sister and Second In Command of all my holdings." I huffed. "And unlike some in Hell I don't get off fucking family members."
"Right, sorry 'bout that," Velvette said and I was a touch surprised to realize she meant that. "Get how that would be stomach churning." It made me wonder how many times people had assumed Velvette was fucking Vox and Valentino. I wasn't sure just HOW they saw themselves but I got the sense from my spies that Vox at least saw it as Father/Daughter relationship. "Ya know, this reminds me… we still need to settle our little argument. Can't have ya thinkin' I don't understand good sex." She folded her arms and tilted her head. "But since ya ain't a real man who will throw me on that pile of produce and fuck me brains out-"
"Aka a Two Pump Chump who sees their partners as sperm dumpsters."
"-I guess we should discuss our date." Now it was her turn to pause. "Unless you are too scared."
"Of going on a date with one of the most influential Overlords in Hell who has an army of followers who can make my life suck if she puts up a Sinnergram complaining about what socks I wear?" I arched an eyebrow. "No, that gives me the warm and fuzzies."
Velvette clearly was warring with the fact that I was complimenting her and also being a sarcastic asshole and finally decided to just split the difference. "Never know until ya try, Edwin."
"Alright then… what's your calendar look like?" Aria at once took out her phone again.
"Well, promised ta do me vid on Vox embarassin' himself tonight. What about tomorrow?"
"We have nothing line up after 4pm," Aria said.
"7pm then?" Velvette suggested.
"That would work."
"Great!" Velvette slipped her phone back into her pocket before leaning in real close. "You better be ready, Edwin… I plan to squeeze every bit I can out of ya like you're a bottle of mayo."
I forced myself not to react to that as Velvette pushed her cart away.
"Well… that was… uh…" Aria mumbled.
"Yup," I said softly.
~MC~MC~MC~
The footage of Edwin Cerberus revealing himself to be an Overlord played over and over again, the watcher focused on that even as his minions brought him more souls willing to sell themselves to him out of the desire to be part of his grand organization.
"The Millennium Key…" Malik Ishtar whispered, eyes flashing darkly.