CODEX Part 2: The Secret Child of the Devil
Friends and Foes

When Jasper entered Zoe's apartment, he felt this sudden urge to leave as fast as he could. He tried but someone suddenly appeared in front of the front door and blocked him from his escape.

“Hello,” Gakhas' expressionless face did not help the situation. He was looking at Jasper as if he was ready to skin him alive.

“Don’t scare him. Just go ask Mark and Luke if they have a spare room. They should,” Zoe mumbled as she entered her apartment.

Jasper was amazed by how many people suddenly appeared in the room. Some came from the kitchen or another room in the apartment while others came in through the windows.

“What is this place?” He asked both in awe and fear.

“The Devil’s Den,” Iaosur got hit in the ribs as soon as he opened his mouth by Ezekiel.

Jasper’s eyes widened in fear and he looked ready to make a run for the front door.

Ezekiel turned to the newbie and smiled, “That’s not true. It’s a normal apartment with immoral entities. It will become your home in no time. You’re quite welcome unlike some others,” He said glancing warily at Eneizar.

The vanity demon scoffed and turned back to playing video games.

Zoe sighed and entered her room, leaving the door open so she could still see what was happening in the living room. She had a perfect view of Jasper’s sceptical face. Ezekiel was the first person to approach and shake hands with him.

“I’m Ezekiel and I’m 100% human.”

Zoe chuckled. That was how Rowan introduced himself when they first met.

“I’m Jasper.”

Ezekiel nodded and smiled. From just a handshake, the human could feel a lot of dark energy emitting from Jasper. He wasn’t aware of it before but now that he got to meet superior demons and Zoe, he noticed it.

“You don’t have to worry about anything. The safest place is next to her.” Ezekiel continued.

Jasper’s eyes moved from Eneizar to Iaosur and ended on Gakhas.

“I don’t feel safe,” The inheritor trailed, “They’re not human, are they?”

Ezekiel rubbed the back of his neck and chuckled nervously.

Right in time, Chen entered the living room from the kitchen, a bag of chips in his hand and a can of coke under his armpit.

“Hey! You’re the new uninvited guest?” The shorter human exclaimed, taking Jasper by surprise.

“I’m pretty sure she invited me,”

Chen hummed and inspected Jasper from head to toe before sniffing the air around the newbie. After he got an idea of whatever he was looking for, he smiled.

“Hello. I’m Chen,” he walked closer and stuck his hand out.

Jasper stared at his sticky hand with scepticism. Chen realized what was going on and wiped his hand on his pants before he stuck his hand in front of him again.

“Chen, go ask Mark if he has a bed available for my long lost childhood friend.”

Chen smiled and nodded, leaving right away with the coke and chips.

Zoe rolled her eyes and leaned against the doorframe, “He’s going to take a while if Mark asks him to play video games again.” She sighed and sat on the couch. She patted the empty space next to her and made a sign for Jasper to take it.

He did willingly.

“I have a few questions,” The inheritor started.

The commander could understand it was a lot to take in and was ready to offer him the answers he was looking for.

“Were you in a host club in Osaka?” He asked randomly.

Zoe froze. Eneizar and Iaosur glanced at each other before they started to laugh and even Ezekiel raised an eyebrow and walked closer, curious what Jasper meant.

“Um-maybe. Yes. I had something I had to take care of. Why?” She stuttered.

“I knew I saw you before. You are the one Jun asked out, aren’t you? Back in the host club?” He was genuine but she was blushing in embarrassment, “You embarrassed yourself in front of the hosts. I remember Ren and Kyouya gossiping about you. Well, they were talking about a Kyoko-san but I’m sure it was you. I could see you.”

The demons and Ezekiel were listening with such interest, almost like old gossiping ladies.

“What did you do with the hosts, Zoe?” Eneizar asked in a teasing manner.

She was really quick to respond, “Nothing.”

Iaosur nudged Jasper to say more.

“You told them that they look like characters from-“

She covered Jasper's mouth with her hand and smiled sarcastically.

“Well then, let’s call it a day and go do our business. Let’s go next door, Jasper.” She dragged him out of there. Once they were securely outside, she let him go, “Don’t give them any laughing material. They’re demons and will make it twice worse than it is.”

He nodded and followed her closely.

“Why don’t I live with you?”

She knocked twice.

“Because it’s safer to keep you around humans. Unlike me, you don’t seem like someone with a bad childhood and bad relationship with your parents.”

He stared at her with a poker face, curious what exactly she was talking about.

“Don’t pity me. Don’t pity anyone.” She knocked again before she heard Mark’s voice approaching, “Keep it for yourself. You will pity your own life in a few months.”

He didn’t like the sound of that.

“So, he’s your long lost childhood friend?” Mark asked as soon as they entered.

She glanced instinctively at Chen. He really didn’t express it differently than what she told him.

“Yes. We’ve been far from each other for 10 years,”

Mark nodded and turned to Jasper with a blinding smile.

“Where have you been living all this time?” Mark asked.

“Japan/America.” They said at the same time. They glanced at each other and nodded, “America/Japan.”

Mark tilted his head to the side and chuckled.

“His parents are rich. He moved from Japan to America and then back to Japan,” Chen explained, not taking his eyes off playing video games with Luke.

“You know Zoe’s family is very strict, so is Jasper’s. He just ran from home and came to the first person he thought of which just happens to be Zoe,”

Zoe was amazed by how easy Chen could lie. He looked up from the game and winked at her before going back to killing zombies.

“That explains the hurry,” Mark was really gullible, “Well, we don’t have much space but you can take the couch. It’s an expendable one,”

Jasper smiled and thanked Mark, finding it easier to breath in his apartment.

That night, they had a dinner party. Everyone gathered at Zoe’s house and Andy had to possess Ezekiel again in order to cook.

Mark and Luke took a great liking in Jasper and would often ask him questions. Thankfully, he actually had answers unlike all the lies spread by Zoe.

“What did you do in Japan?” Mark asked curiously.

“I used to help in host clubs by day and act by night,”

Luke’s eyes widened and brightened, “You act? I do too in my free time! We should have a show off sometimes,”

Jasper laughed and glanced at Zoe warily. She was in deep thought, something was irking her and she knew it was one fresh demon that loved to watch from the shadows.

She got up and went into the bathroom. Elijah was in there, playing with the soap.

“Belphegor wants to pay you a visit soon. And Levi found a few demons that have disappeared from Hell. They’re low level demons, rebels even,” He started while joggling with the soap.

“You have to protect him, no matter what. That is your mission.” She stated the obvious.

Elijah rolled his eyes and got up from the bathtub. He threw the soap at her and left through the mirror. She looked down at the soap before she looked at the tub. He wrote the names of the demons that have disappeared on the wall with lemon scented body balsam.

Days passed quietly afterwards. Mark and Luke welcomed Jasper without the smallest suspicion. She only had to come up with a good excuse and that was it.

What was troublesome, however, was Elijah. He would appear in the house at the most inopportune moments and would do whatever he wanted. Jasper found it very troublesome and often was overwhelmed by the ghost.

That was why he asked Zoe for a way to calm him down. Seeing how they should have the conversation outside, Zoe brought Jasper to Dan's pastry store.

"Wrap a leash around his neck,"

Ezekiel stared at Zoe curiously. Did she just say that?

"That's not a good idea. Elijah is half envy demon, he is a low grade demon and can rebel any time. You might get yourself in more trouble," Ezekiel added, trying his best to help him make the best decision.

He couldn't agree with Zoe when she never even considered her own advice.

But Ezekiel didn't know just how bad Elijah was. Jasper could ignore it but living with two perceptive people was not easy. Mark couldn't ignore the disturbances in the living room for longer and Luke was traumatized after Elijah appeared in the bathroom and scared him while showering.

"Does the leash work?" He trailed, remembering just how much terror Elijah was bringing.

Zoe gave him two thumbs up, encouraging him to do so. Jasper walked out of the store and went to look for rope. He was sure he needed the best rope out there.

Ezekiel glared at her but didn't say anything.

"The silent treatment doesn't work on me," She started, glancing at her best friend.

"It's not like I didn't use it before,"

She raised an eyebrow and took a sip from her coffee, "It didn't work back then either,"

Ezekiel scoffed and got up. She watched him go and buy a muffin since he was losing a lot of magnesium because of her.

Dan was restocking their croissants when he saw her alone and took the opportunity to finally have a word with her.

"You and your friends have an interesting relationship, don't you?"

She smiled and invited Daniel to take Ezekiel's place.

"What do you mean?" Zoe asked glancing at Ezekiel but he was looking elsewhere. Dan pointed outside and Zoe realized Iaosur and Eneizar were glaring at her because they couldn't enter.

"Did you ask for a priest to come and bless the store?"

Dan smiled and nodded, "A friend came over and gave us that advice. He said something about bad spirits bringing bad luck,"

That explained why the demons couldn't enter.

"How can he know that? Is he some kind of psychic?" She made it sound like a joke.

"Hans is a smart guy." Dan laughed and brushed it off.

"Hans...not a name you hear often," Zoe said and took a sip from her coffee.

"Yeah, we were classmates in high school and he's always been a bit...I wouldn't say religious, but he was very interested in religion."

"Well...doesn't that sound familiar,"

Zoe only hoped that Dan's friend was not the same Hans that tried to kill her.

Zoe's relationship with Dan continued to be very vague. He liked her and would probably move towards the next stage but there was always a reason not to, as if there was a wall around her and it was impossible to break it or jump over it.

"Stalking the commander again, Mehrdir?"

The demon froze, feeling the overwhelming energy behind him. His tone was bemused and he greatly enjoyed seeing the greed demon fight against his wishes.

"I'm still her guardian," Mehrdir mumbled, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

Beelzebub chuckled and walked next to his demon.

"I gave you a list of things you should do by the end of the foggy season. It will get even hotter down here and we're waiting for a few newcomers. There's a lot of work."

Mehrdir nodded but didn't take his eyes off her image, "I know that."

Beelzebub sighed and made her image disappear, transforming into nothing but a rotten tree.

Mehrdir suddenly felt the urge to cry out in pain as Beelzebub glared at him.

"You don't know anything, you little shit,"

Mehrdir got thrown aside and Beelzebub moved fast in order to catch him and slice his legs. The greed demon fell back with blood rushing out of his body. It hurt like heck and he was cringing and rolling in pain.

Beelzebub leaned over him and looked into his black eyes, "Do your job and stop acting like a coward."

Beelzebub disappeared and left the demon with a few questions and a lot of pain.

Eneizar was on his daily route to recruit some low demons to do his job when he almost walked over Mehrdir. He stopped when he heard a loud groan and looked down, feeling joy in seeing him in pain.

"Someone cut your legs, huh? I guess you can't run away now~" Eneizar's words came like a double-edged sword.

Mehrdir wanted nothing but to wait in silence for his legs to grow back but Eneizar couldn't leave now that he stumbled upon such an opportunity. He had to see Mehrdir squirm.

"Did you see Zoe's new boyfriend? He's human."

Mehrdir closed his eyes and crawled near a pile of thrash and human heads.

"And why are you telling me that? Does it look like it bothers me?"

Eneizar nodded right away, "It's obvious, friend,"

Mehrdir glared at the mention of that vague title. Eneizar had no idea what a friend was.

"Did you know? She made Ezekiel her legacy." Eneizar continued.

Mehrdir cringed as his legs started to form again. It was an ugly sight but Eneizar had seen worse.

"Ezekiel is a good choice."

The vanity demon chuckled as he watched his acquaintance with mischievous eyes.

"Do you know why she chose him?" Mehrdir wasn't particularly interested so he made a sign for Eneizar to leave. Instead, the vanity demon continued to talk, "Alright. I'm going to tell you then,"

Mehrdir stared at Eneizar in annoyance.

"She said -often, I might add- that she loves you. She doesn't want kids, though. Do you know what else I found out?" Eneizar flashed behind Mehrdir and whispered in his ear, "She found the inheritor."

The greed demon froze, "Maybe you heard wrong."

Eneizar laughed loudly, so much so that he looked insane.

"We both know what that means," His eyes narrowed and the heads around them turned away in fear, "The war is close. I can taste the blood already."

From what Mehrdir heard from Eneizar, he could easily say he figured out what he had to do.

He was in front of Mammon's castle and he was in no position to ask for favours. He left his original master for the commander but Mammon was more open-minded than other demons so Mehrdir was betting on that.

"Ungrateful scum. How dare you return here? You should be on your knees, apologizing and kissing my feet to keep you alive!"

Mehrdir didn't expect him to be so mad. He might have not been the reason but he just added fuel to the fire.

"I have a favour to ask,"

Mammon raised an eyebrow and automatically raised his hand. Mehrdir felt his body freeze and fear crawled up his skin. He managed to look down and see larvae trying to enter his body while some nasty-looking worms were already leaving marks on his body. It was unpleasing.

"You have a favour to ask? You, from me?! A favour?!" Mammon exclaimed, "What do I get if I accept? Theoretically speaking, of course."

Mehrdir had to think quickly, "Zoe's legacy. He's the greedy type." That piqued his interest.

Mammon hummed before he replied, "Bring him to me first."

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Mammon puckered his lips and looked to the side. He had another idea.

"Use Iaosur,"

Mehrdir sighed in relief when the larvae transformed into dust but he had another problem now.

Ezekiel was going home from another painful day at school when someone pulled his arm and covered his mouth. With everything he went through, his fear level was still somewhere low.

"It's me. We have to talk."

Ezekiel recognized that voice by reflex.

"Me who? The long lost asshole?"

Mehrdir stared at the short human with judging dark eyes.

"Yes him. Now, you have to summon Mammon before I have to ask Iaosur to push you in front of a car."

Ezekiel blinked while registering his words, "Why would that happen?"

Mehrdir coughed and took a few steps back, his eyes looking innocently at the human.

"Mammon is interested in you, Zoe's anchor."

Ezekiel turned around and smiled sarcastically before he punched the demon, every ounce of kindness disappearing from both of them.

"Are you out of your mind? Do I look like an idiot to you? Am I an easy prey?" Mehrdir would have commented if his chin wasn't hurting a bit so he let Ezekiel continue, "What do I get out of this? A ticket to Mammon's leisure apartments?" The human was being too brave in his position.

Mehrdir tilted his head to the side in confusion, not getting anything from what Ezekiel said. The human rubbed his forehead and motioned for him to go on.

"Anyway, it's for Zoe's sake. Eneizar knows that she found the inheritor."

"Of course, he knows. Jasper's living with us. Well, with Mark and Luke, Zoe's apartment has been full ever since Gakhas came into the picture."

Mehrdir frowned, "Gakhas? Why the heck would he be living with Zoe?"

"He's been exiled because he almost sent you-know-who in Neverland. Is that not entirely true?" Ezekiel could already feel a knot forming in his chest.

"He did that. He did a lot actually, but for that, you need to have an immense amount of power and will. He has both and he is good at manipulating people. He loves manipulating humans into doing things for him but that is the reason he hasn't been exiled. He is good at what he does."

Ezekiel shrugged, "He said Belial exiled him,"

"What did Belphegor say?"

"He is not on my speed dial, sorry."

Mehrdir rubbed his temples and started to pace around, worried.

"Gakhas may be a spy sent by Belial. I'm sure he sent someone to eavesdrop around both parties but then again, maybe Bel still has some kind of power over his demon," The greed demon was rambling.

Ezekiel rolled his eyes and rubbed his neck, tired and hungry.

"Look, if I have to do something, just tell me what and I will."

Mehrdir stopped and stared at the puppy human with a blank expression.

"You have to give half of your life away," Mehrdir started, Ezekiel's eyes widening, "And no matter how many good deeds you do, you won't get to meet the Big Guy,"

The human took a very deep and precious breath before he decided.

"Fine, I'm in. My fate seems to end in a pit no matter which path I take."

On his way home, Ezekiel fidgeted and thought only about what Mehrdir said. He had to give half of his life away, had to conjure a circle of demons, and cast his life into one of them. If he had to give it, he was going to use Iaosur. He was trustworthy and had Zoe's mark, which was perfect.

"Now, where did I put that spell book?"

He went home, not to Zoe's place. Ezekiel needed a few days to sink in the information and he needed time to learn more about the process of exchanging energy between a human and a demon.

Zoe could manage to live on her own for a while, hopefully.

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