Talks and a Preliminary Partnership (Seeking Investment!)

"I don't know much about the history of the Umbra Witches." Salomon shook his head lightly. "But not all contracts are established through paper and signatures. Some may be made with demons through poetry, dance, sacrifices, or all sorts of rituals that seem completely unrelated to contracts. I don't know how the Umbra Witches form their contracts, so I can't jump to conclusions.

But after the contract was made, your body must have undergone some changes. The most obvious one is your shadow. Your shadow no longer belongs to you, but to a demon—oh, it looks like a butterfly."

The Witch leaned toward Salomon. "Boya, you really are a hardhearted little thing. Being so stiff at such a young age won't do. The responsibility of protecting the world hasn't fallen on you yet. Big sister here hunts angels to protect humanity, you know. Those things aren't exactly good people. Can't you think of a way?"

"Then all you can do is try to live as long as possible, Bayonetta," the Arcanist said. "As long as you don't die on the battlefield, your powerful magic will be enough to keep you alive for many years. I don't think even time would have the heart to ravage your beauty, madam. You should at least remain beautiful by the time humanity starts emigrating into space."

"What a sweet mouth you have, little one." Bayonetta was not worried about where her soul would end up. That was not something she needed to consider now. At present, she only wanted to unravel the mysteries surrounding her.

Although Salomon had already told her part of her background, including the "fact" that she was the last remaining Umbra Witch, and that in Wigrid there was still a final Lumen Sage who held the Right Eye corresponding to the Left Eye, much remained shrouded in mist. The fragments she experienced in her dreams at midnight still could not be explained.

There was also the lipstick engraved with a spell, the item that had lain in the coffin with her. Even now, she did not know what it was for, but Bayonetta instinctively felt that it was important and always kept it on her person.

But she already had a goal: Wigrid.

In legend, the Umbra Witches and the Sage Clan corresponded to one another. If Salomon was right, then that Sage who held the Right Eye surely knew something. Yet she knew nothing about the Izawell Group that controlled Wigrid, nor about its president, Balder. That man had never appeared in any newspapers or videos.

Therefore, she needed a helper, someone who could help her investigate Wigrid. And now, standing before her was a Holy Child—a rebellious Holy Child, at that. How interesting. How coincidental. The moment Bayonetta saw the Holy Marks on Salomon's hand, she had already foreseen his potential, because he was destined to perform miracles upon the earth.

Bayonetta placed one hand on the table and propped her chin with the other. In a lilting tone, she said, "Big sister is a good person willing to help you storm Heaven. Won't you help big sister in return?"

"Use the future tense, Bayonetta. The simple present doesn't suit me. I don't want anything to do with Heaven right now. That's for the future. It's too early to say that to me now." Salomon shook his head. "Besides, without knowing the terms of the contract, there is no way to breach it. Not even the Lord of Hell can violate a contract. As for demons... well, I'd rather deal with devils. Who knows whether demons have the sanity to honor a contract?"

A slender hand with sharp red nails reached out of the darkness. The hand, with its distinctly inhuman bluish skin, slammed heavily onto the table. Silver knives and forks leaped up, reflecting the candlelight.

Salomon nearly jumped out of his chair as well. Then the inhuman hand vanished back into the shadows in an instant.

The sound of the slap against the table was especially conspicuous in this setting of whispers and dim candlelight.

"It's nothing, it's nothing. Nothing happened here." Salomon hurriedly stood up and quietly cast a spell, drawing the attention of the surrounding diners away from them. When he sat back down, he saw Bayonetta sitting there with a glass of wine in hand, smiling faintly.

Salomon looked around, then lowered his voice and asked Bayonetta, "Was that you?"

"No~" Bayonetta said with a smile. "You offended the wrong demon, Boya. Not all demons are chaotic lunatics. At least, the Demon Lord I made my contract with does not like being called that."

Salomon coughed softly twice. "Looks like I can't speak badly about demons in front of you?"

"But I don't think Madam would mind if you spoke badly about devils. It would be even better if you praised her beauty while you were at it." Bayonetta winked. "But there's something else troubling big sister. Don't you want to hear it?"

"Of course... not," Salomon said. "It's nothing more than your background, isn't it? I guess you intend to go to Wigrid for answers, but my current abilities aren't enough to support me running around in a place crowded with Upper Angels. I need to study. I need to train. My magic is not instinctive, Bayonetta. I need to construct precise spells in order to cast magic."

"What a pity." The Witch did not seem surprised by Salomon's refusal. She said, "But haven't you considered why the Sorcerer Supreme had you act alongside me? I don't think I can help you find a book that no one even knows the location of."

"Nothing more than practical experience and travel. Although the Darkhold is important too, I have plenty of time to look for it." The Arcanist shrugged. "I think it would be a bit excessive to throw me straight into a flock of winged birdmen. Even if I managed to escape, I'd definitely be badly injured.

Shouldn't a beginner village be full of errand quests? I'm great at finding cats and dogs. Don't think about making me unlock all my Holy Marks. At that rate, my brain would probably be roasted before I killed the enemy."

"You're not some child who still needs milk. Someone capable of killing angels saying he's weak is just ridiculous." Suddenly, the Witch shifted the topic in an unrelated direction. "They say the Sorcerer Supreme can see the future."

"You could say that. No further comment." Salomon pushed the dessert the waiter had brought back over to Bayonetta. There were all kinds of desserts here, and he did not mind trying them all.

After all, magic power was life force, and the main way to acquire life force was by eating. He had already spent the magic power for several necromantic spells. In order to grow taller, Salomon chose to eat more. That was absolutely not an excuse for gluttony.

"Then can it be understood this way? Everything that happens on Earth is within the Sorcerer Supreme's expectations?"

"You could understand it that way."

"So the Sorcerer Supreme had already seen our conversation in the past, yet the Venerable One still had you come find me. Does that mean the Sorcerer Supreme approves of you working with me?"

"Uh..." Salomon answered with difficulty. "You could say that..."

"Deal?" Bayonetta extended one hand. "Of course, I won't have you directly face a whole crowd of angels. I just need you to collect some things while I'm fighting."

"You'll help me?"

"I'll help you. We'll help each other—or perhaps more."

"Hah..." Salomon looked into Bayonetta's pale eyes and sighed helplessly. "Deal."

He took her hand.

After dinner, Salomon did not stay at the hotel overnight. He opened a portal back to Kamar-Taj, leaving Bayonetta behind.

Tomorrow morning, he would teleport directly to Bayonetta's hotel, because he really did not dare stay here any longer. It was an uncontrollable physiological reaction. Though it was not his intention, Salomon still found it somewhat embarrassing.

Good night.