Chapiter 8

Hiro was surprised at the luck he had to get the opportunity to make a contract with the Angel Demon.

"He mentioned villagers right? If I'm correct then Makima hasn't found him yet, so I could really change his fate" thought Hiro happily.

The reason Hiro wanted to change the Angel Demon's fate wasn't out of pure kindness, far from it.

Hiro wanted to monopolize his completely overpowered ability for himself and if possible, enlist him with Power in a small team that would work for him.

"It all depends on if I can succeed in becoming his friend or ally since he is quite similar to Power in the fact that he is very loyal to those he sees as close to him" Hiro could only appreciate this idea.

Since Hiro had started exploiting his ability to contract with demons, he had understood that he would need to maintain a long-term relationship with them and not just make a contract and leave.

He had already resigned himself to being a manipulator and a crook if necessary with the demons to obtain their friendship or temporarily become their ally.

"Okay, I'll call you Angel like the villagers and I want us to be friends" said Hiro.

"From my knowledge, the Angel Demon is a simple being and not as crafty as Makima or the Future Demon. So it's better to try being friends with him and be direct about my intentions" he thought.

"Friends with me?" There was clearly hesitation in his voice that Hiro could clearly detect.

"Yes, being friends. You know, people who help each other and appreciate each other" Hiro could only try to explain the notion of friendship.

"Yes I know, but my power prevents me from contacting others at the risk of stealing their lifespan" explained Angel, even though he omitted telling Hiro that he could create various weapons with different abilities thanks to the years stolen from victims.

"Maybe he still doesn't trust me enough to tell me about all his abilities. It's understandable. He is a simple person but that doesn't mean he's stupid" Hiro could only mentally sigh since he would have to work on their mutual trust later.

"You must be very lonely. Listen, I have an idea: what if we make a contract for now? Specifically an alliance contract while waiting for you to see me as a friend" Hiro proposed.

"An alliance? What do I gain from this whole alliance?" Angel could only feel intrigued by Hiro.

"It was the first time someone tried so hard to be his friend since the old fisherman from the village and his granddaughter" thought Angel as his heart began to warm up.

"The alliance will be simple: we can exchange information between the two of us without having dishonest intentions that would harm the other" Hiro explained calmly.

"Okay, that sounds good. I accept even if I don't have much useful information to exchange with you" Angel could only give a self-deprecating smile in the face of his intellectual poverty.

"Don't worry, it's not that important. I proposed this alliance for future use and right now it's more like an investment"

"And to show you my good faith, I advise you to leave your current village since you will lose all your loved ones if you stay"

Hiro's words were like a bomb in Angel's ears.

"How can you say that with such certainty and why should I believe this information?" Angel could only try to get more information.

He had to know why this person who claimed to want to be his friend said such things.

"It's simple, I have a contract with the Future Demon. So it's logical that I tell the truth about a future event right?" Hiro explained.

"And just to remind you, we have an alliance contract that prevents me from giving you information with the intention of harming you. Did you forget?" Hiro finished.

After a moment of silence, Hiro could tell Angel was lost in thought.

"I would like to know more, like why are you helping me and also why me leaving the village will save it."

"You're really greedy huh? I could tell you but what would I gain? And anyway it's not important for your survival."

"All you need to know more is that if you listen to me you'll be spared from a lot of tragedies including your own death" Hiro explained calmly.

In truth, Hiro lost nothing by explaining it to him but he would lose his pressure tool over him. But he still had to give him some vague but crucial elements to strengthen their future collaboration if the friendship option didn't work.

"When Angel leaves his village, he will taste loneliness again and like Power I will be his one and only reliable ally. So it will be easy for me to gain their loyalty" thought Hiro.

If Kilua or Alluka could see Hiro now, they wouldn't recognize him.

After some pointless discussions which were essentially Angel trying to gain more information about his future, Hiro politely decided to end the conversation and went to sleep.

===================================

Somewhere in an unknown location

"It's getting late, I wonder how much fun Kilua and Hiro are having in my absence" Zeno muttered.

"Currently, Kilua must have understood that he is not an ordinary child and that he should not expect to have ordinary friends in this world" thought Zeno, mocking Kilua's little wish to have friends a bit.

Zeno Zoldyck was proud of Kilua's growth. But unfortunately, even though Kilua is extremely talented, he has a naturally tender heart.

Zeno could only hope that the Zoldyck blood could correct that.

On the other hand, Zeno had the highest expectations for Kilua's twin brother.

"Hiro is more intelligent, wiser too and of course more cunning but unfortunately, he doesn't trust the whole family, that's his only flaw" Zeno mentally sighed while walking to the end of an alley.

"The reason I let Silva train Kilua and not Hiro even though the latter is more talented is simple"

"In a family like the Zoldycks, trust is paramount to being the head of the family. Even though Hiro has enormous talent, unfortunately he trusts no one"

"His love for Kilua and Nanika doesn't mean he trusts them, far from it, they just love each other that's all"

Zeno arrived at the end of an alley and leapt with a jump to the top of a small building.

Afterwards, he remained silent as he recapped his thoughts about the twins.

"It's unfortunate but I couldn't inform Silva of my understanding of Hiro otherwise he would have wanted to bet on him, specifically on his Zoldyck blood like he's currently doing with Kilua."

"But Silva doesn't have my experience, he doesn't understand that some things can't be easily influenced or controlled. In Hiro's case, I have to use the kite method to hope to control him for the good of the Zoldyck family" after this last thought, a fresh breeze caressed Zeno's long mustache.

[Author's note: the kite method mentioned by Zeno means giving Hiro freedom but keeping him tied down by a string which is Kilua and Alluka here]

While Zeno was lost in thought looking at the sky that was becoming more and more starry, there were footsteps behind him.

"You're late Illumi" said Zeno, still with his back turned.

"Sorry grandfather, I met an acquaintance of mine along the way" Illumi explained.

Zeno simply nodded without adding anything else.

"I would like to know grandfather, why did father want me to monitor Kilua and Hiro?" Illumi asked doubtfully.

Illumi had asked this because normally, each Zoldyck child takes the Heaven's Arena test without receiving help from the Zoldyck family, except for housing and food for a maximum of 1 year. And after that, they are left to fend for themselves.

But strangely, Silva had shown blatant favoritism towards the twins by asking him to monitor them and watch over them in the shadows.

"I don't understand why father would ask me that since I find Kilua can easily reach the 200th floor of Heaven's Arena even if it takes him 2 or 3 years. And for Hiro, it will take him at least 4 years minimum" Illumi could not understand his father's thinking.

"Tell me Illumi, what do you think of Hiro?" Zeno abruptly asked.

Illumi looked at his grandfather's back with eyes filled with confusion at the sudden question.

"I find him talented and hardworking but he's always behind Kilua in all the activities they do together."

"Apart from that, I don't know him well since I rarely meet him and he doesn't seem to be particularly fond of me" Illumi finished.

"I never understood why he avoids me so much when I haven't offended him in any way right?" Illumi couldn't help but wonder now that he was thinking about it better.

"I see" Zeno simply said.

"You just have to understand that you have an important mission, so don't disappoint your father and one day you will understand Illumi" Zeno left without giving Illumi time to get answers to his doubts.