Chapter 409: _Hunting A Parasite

"Hunter Gabriel. Hunter Valentine." Kali was the first to speak once they were all inside, her eyes staying on Ambrose. "We’re all here."

She could already sense Ambrose’s hesitance toward Thoth.

The Guide had surprised them today, using an actual phone to contact them.

Why?

Because he wanted to see the people who encountered an Archon—beings who slaughtered the Pantheon in Kali’s vision—and lived.

"Didn’t know we were going to have a Grand Conclave part two tonight," Valentine flashed a sarcastic smile. "Otherwise I would’ve gotten wine."

Viktor snorted. "Vodka would be more suitable here."

Both men exchanged a look, ignoring the agitation on Wukong’s face.

"Let’s cut to the chase—" The monkey King had just taken a step forward when an unexpected voice joined in.

"Ambrose Hale," Thoth assessed the SS-Rank closely, eyes squinting with something unreadable. "Nice to finally meet you."

Ambrose blinked.

Oh, shit.

He was actually talking to him.

"T-The feeling is mutual," Ambrose nodded.

Thoth didn’t say anything.

Something was... very odd about this SS-Rank.

He heard all about his so-called reawakening. The third ever reawakened Hunter since the Emergence.

He also heard that it switched him from a Guide to an Esper. Yet standing here before the SS-Rank, he couldn’t bring himself to believe that.

The Guide had an almost fundamental understanding of Aether.

A reawakening was still a phenomenon he didn’t understand. But every previous person who’d gone through it never switched from one point to another.

So what changed with him?

Did it have something to do with his soul being from another universe?

Why couldn’t he accurately read or see his aether?

"Well," Loki clapped their hands when the silence drew out too long. "Now that we’re all acquainted, why don’t we all take seats?"

Ambrose breathed. "That sounds good."

Everyone settled on the couches in the living room.

Thoth’s gaze returned to Ambrose.

It wasn’t the kind of look one person gave another during a conversation.

It was analytical. Like a scholar studying an ancient language that shouldn’t exist.

Ambrose shifted slightly beneath the attention, resisting the urge to fidget.

"Is something wrong?" He finally asked.

Thoth didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, he leaned forward ever so slightly, his narrowed eyes never leaving Ambrose.

"Your aether."

The room fell quiet.

"What about it?" Apollo asked before Ambrose could.

"It doesn’t behave correctly."

Ambrose’s pulse skipped.

What?

Inside his mind, Aura’s calm voice echoed.

[Ordinary Guides are incapable of perceiving beyond the masking protocol.]

A brief pause followed.

[He is not an ordinary Guide.]

Well, that wasn’t exactly reassuring.

Thoth continued studying him.

"I cannot see your complete aether signature." His tone remained as level as ever. "Something obscures it. However..." He frowned ever so slightly. "The portions I can perceive resemble two perfectly synchronised currents occupying the same existence."

Silence.

Even Kali’s eyes flickered toward Ambrose.

The SS-Rank forced himself not to react.

He couldn’t.

Not when every instinct screamed that any unusual movement would only confirm Thoth’s suspicions.

"That’s oddly poetic," Ambrose laughed awkwardly.

"It wasn’t intended to be."

The response came so matter-of-factly that even Loki failed to suppress a snort.

Before the awkwardness could stretch any further, Kali cleared her throat.

"Thoth."

The bald Guide looked toward her.

"We didn’t come here to dissect Ambrose." A small pause. "We’re here because he encountered an Archon."

Thoth gave a single nod and leaned back without another word.

Kali turned toward Ambrose instead. "You interacted with the woman calling herself Ramona Richards."

"I did."

"What did she want?"

The question lingered in the room.

Ambrose instinctively glanced toward Gabriel, Devon, Viktor and the others.

Every one of them knew exactly why he hesitated.

Ramona hadn’t merely spoken about humanity. She had spoken about Orion.

About vessels.

About things nobody else in this room could ever know.

Not yet.

He slowly inhaled before choosing his next words with painstaking care.

"There wasn’t a single objective she outright admitted to," he began carefully. "But there is one thing I’m reasonably confident about."

Everyone’s attention sharpened.

"The body she’s inhabiting," He paused, "won’t be able to sustain her forever."

Apollo frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I mean exactly that." Ambrose folded his hands together. "Whatever an Archon truly is... I don’t think Ramona Richards’ body was built to contain one permanently. During our confrontation, I got the impression that her current vessel is already beginning to deteriorate."

Wukong clicked his tongue. "Oh, great." The Monkey King folded his arms instead. "So we’re back to square one."

His eyes swept across the room.

"If that body’s failing, then she’ll simply move on to another."

Yemoja’s expression tightened. "Meaning every human on Earth could become a potential target."

"Or every Hunter," Apollo corrected quietly.

Valentine rested an elbow against the armrest. "Preferably powerful ones."

Gabriel finally found his voice.

"If that’s true..." His brows drew together. "The next vessel could potentially grant her access to abilities she didn’t previously possess."

"And make killing the host even more difficult," Viktor added.

The atmosphere inside the living room noticeably darkened.

None of them liked where the discussion was heading.

If Ramona truly needed another body, humanity wasn’t merely hunting an invader anymore.

They were hunting a parasite capable of abandoning one battlefield and starting another whenever it became convenient.

Silence gradually settled over the room.

It was broken only by the soft ticking of the wall clock.

Then Thoth spoke again.

"You’re withholding something."

Every head turned.

Ambrose stiffened.

The SSS-Rank Guide regarded him with the same unreadable expression as before.

"You’ve answered every question truthfully." His next sentence came almost gently. "But not completely."

Nobody said a word.

Apollo slowly looked between the two men. "What is he talking about?"

Thoth ignored him.

His eyes never once left Ambrose.

"The information you’ve provided explains how dangerous the Archon is." He tilted his head by the smallest degree. "It does not explain why she chose Blue Diamond Academy of all places."

A chill crept down Ambrose’s spine.

There was no accusation in Thoth’s voice. Only certainty.

"You know what she was really after. Don’t you?"

The room had become so quiet that Ambrose could hear a child laughing from the nearest house in the neighbourhood.

Aura remained completely silent inside his mind.

For once, even she offered no guidance.

Ambrose closed his eyes and drew in a slow breath.

When he finally opened them again, his gaze drifted across every face in the room before settling on Kali.

"...Yes." His voice came out quieter than he intended. "There is something else."