The Blood Of Devil Hunter

-Los Angeles, United States-

"See you tomorrow. Thanks for this, James!"

A woman with a thick gray coat had just said goodbye to a man named James. Iris smiled widely as she held up the plastic wrap to James.

"You're welcome. Keep warm, Iris. Having the flu in winter sucks."

Iris laughed as she walked away from the small cafe near the city center. "Yes!" She shouted while waving her hand at James then turned and left.

Iris is a 24-year-old young woman who works as an employee at James' cafe. She lives with his adoptive parents in an apartment far from the city center.

Her life is very simple, living far from the city makes her unable to get along with girls her age. She has been working as an amateur barista at James' cafe for two years.

Robert's father was old and could not afford to do heavy work like his previous job as a butcher. And now Iris is the backbone of her family so that her adoptive parents can enjoy their old age together.

Iris rubbed her palms which she felt like they were frozen. The cold winter season at the beginning of November made her legs, which were wrapped in jeans, shiver with cold.

She stopped for a moment at a bus stop with other prospective passengers who were about to board the bus. When the bus came, several passengers got off and one by one the passengers also started to enter the bus.

But when Iris was queuing up to board the bus, a husky barked at her loudly. The employer of that dog tried to restrain his dog from attacking the person in front of him.

"I'm sorry Miss. My dog doesn't usually act like this. I'm sorry." Iris didn't answer a single word. Instead, she kept staring at the dog until she got on the bus.

Iris didn't know what had happened to the dog and suddenly she felt very uneasy. Even when she entered the bus the dog kept barking until the bus moved and left the bus stop.

After a long journey, Iris got off at the bus stop near her apartment. She must walk, go straight and then turn, her apartment two blocks ahead. Her hazel eyes caught a woman standing facing her.

Iris immediately stopped in her footsteps. Exactly three meters in front of her, she saw a woman with wavy dark brown hair wearing a maroon coat staring at her.

But since she didn't feel like she recognized the woman, she continued on her way and passed by the woman's left.

"Iris Anastasia Wood. Born June 22, 1997. Adopted child from Witt Orphanage... New York."

Suddenly the woman spoke. Iris stopped again in shock and fear, she turned to look at the woman's figure more closely. No one knows about her identity as an adopted child other than her family.

And also the woman knew about her status as an adopted child from the Witt orphanage. Iris felt her heartbeat ticking fast when their eyes met. The light hazel color of the woman's eyes made her even more frightened.

"Who are you? What do you want?" Iris asked with her voice slightly trembling.

She often meets many people while working at the café. But she had never seen someone who had the color like her eyes color. Then upon seeing that cold expression, Iris knew she was in danger right now.

She then immediately turned around to leave and got away from the woman as quickly as possible. But just as she was about to run, five men were standing about seven meters away from her.

She is trapped. With her back shaking, Iris tried to catch her breath while thinking of running away. She didn't have any weapons on her body. Around her, there was only white snow covering the road.

"I want to talk to you, Iris." Iris hastily looked back when the woman spoke again. Along with the five men who walked approached her.

"Stay away from me! I said stay away!" Iris immediately screamed in panic.

This falling snow was like a sprinkling of flowers that was leading Iris to her death's path. Her mind was confused because she was afraid that the six people who surrounded her wanted her life.

"Calm down Iris. I just wanted to talk to you."

"Liar! Get away from me!" Iris shouted again, stopping the five men from walking.

Iris couldn't understand the woman's words. If she just wants to talk to her, why surround her like this? She's not stupid of course. Iris quickly ran away from the woman.

But she knew this was an act of hopelessness that she was doing. Unable to fight back in that situation, Iris was immediately caught.

"Let me go! Please! Help! Somebody help me!" Iris shouted.

She tried to struggle but her hands were held behind her back. Both of her legs that tried to kick one of the men who surrounded her were also restrained.

In between hysterical Iris screaming, no one heard and helped her. Even the five men handling her didn't say a word either. She was crying in fear with one of the men smothering her mouth.

That day, Iris thought she would be killed. Premeditated kidnapping of which she is the victim. She continued to cry as she felt her body being carried.

With her head covered in black cloth, she was forced to walk by someone behind her. She was brought into the car. Not knowing where she was going while she couldn't hold her cry.

After she heard the sound of the car door closing, Iris lowered her head. Who is she asking for help now?

When they arrived, she was brought inside that place. And suddenly Iris heard a loud voice. "Hey, Eva! Who did you bring with you?"

"Shut up Jack. Don't scare her."

"Is this that person?"

"Yes. Bring it into the room."

Iris just listened to the people talking. For some reason, the atmosphere is very different when outside the room. She then sat on a chair and then the black cloth covering her head was removed.

There were four people in the room, including the woman she saw last. One of them whistled when he saw Iris's face. Iris's expression was still wary looking at them.

"Look at this woman. Her appearance is too flashy." Said a man who had been whistling just now.

If the black duct tape covering her mouth was removed, she would lash out and scream to free herself. Her eyes stared intently at the woman who kidnapped her.

"I know this is scary for you, Iris. But I had to do this. I'm Eva, Evangeline Bowen. And they're all my friends." Eva said who was a little awkward as Iris glared at her.

"...."

"...."

And after Eva introduced herself, the atmosphere suddenly became silent for no reason. And how stupid was Eva when she realizes that Iris was still tied and her mouth was still affixed by duct tape.

"Tsk! Idiot! Quickly untie the rope and duct tape." Eva said who immediately got a chuckle from the man who mocked Iris earlier.

"I thought you'd forget to take the duct tape off. I swear it's still hilarious even though it's happened the seventh time." Eva huffed in annoyance as she tapped her index finger on the table.

"Shut up Jack! You embarrass me."

Jack then untied Iris' hand and leg straps. Then lastly he pulled Iris's chin a little rough before he opened the duct tape on her mouth.

"I'm quite surprised they didn't find this woman in the middle of Los Angeles. I mean, look at how she looks!" Jack looked back. Looking at Eva and his friends who seemed relaxed.

Iris was still watching with a high degree of vigilance. Judging from the expressions of these four people, it could be that they were changing the atmosphere to calm her down a bit before they killed her.

But when Iris looked here and there, she didn't find a single sharp object. Like a knife to skin her body or even a big saw to cut her body. She was sure she would be mutilated.

Her mind was already bad after she was kidnapped on the side of the road. The worst possibility if kidnapped is none other than to be killed or maybe sold right? Iris had seen the terrible news about the murders on television many times.

"Who are you? Why did you arrest me?" Iris started to speak.

Suddenly a man who was standing right behind Eva's chair approached and sat down on the edge of the table.

"I thought this woman was mute." Said the man with a smile.

Eva shook her head as she watched her comrades which frightened Iris even more. She stood up and walked to a table by the door and brewed coffee there.

The room that became their gathering place was not too wide. There was only a long, dark blue sofa by the coffee counter. A square table with three chairs.

The walls are painted in peach that even looks like a room touched by a woman's hand. Iris didn't understand why she got into this strange atmosphere.

"Relax, Iris. This asshole is Jack, who sits at the table named Martin, and this man in my back is named Tommy." Eva handed a mug of coffee to Iris while introducing her partners one by one.

Iris still didn't understand who they were and what was the purpose of capturing her like this. Just explaining the name didn't make her understand what problem they had with her.

"Since when did you notice her, Eva? We didn't even realize she had been in LA this whole time." Tommy, who was quieter than the others, finally spoke up. He walked over to the counter to make coffee too.

Eva was suddenly speechless because she had lived in Los Angeles all this time, she had never seen her. If only yesterday she had not bought coffee at the café where she worked, maybe Eva would never know.

"She lives far from the city. That's why I didn't know her whereabouts." Eva said as she leaned her body against the wall.

"So what now? Allan went to Moscow and Sharon was in the lab. Nobody taught this woman." The man named Martin pointed at Iris while talking to Eva.

"Then why not you Martin?" Tommy suggested suddenly. His mouth was sipping the bitter taste of the coffee he had just brewed.

Martin folded his arms in front of his chest. "I'm very busy. This afternoon I have to go to Croatia. If you want to replace me, that's fine with me."

Tommy snorted as he looked to the side. "No thanks. I've been very busy too." "Then why not me? How?"

"No!" Eva immediately balked when Jack suggested to himself. "We'll wait for Allan to come back."

"Excuse me, what's your business with me? What do you want from me?" Iris asked, interrupting their conversation with an annoyed tone.

She was silent listening even made her head hurt because of their unclear conversation. Who is Allan? Who is Sharon? Why do they go abroad? There were so many questions in her head.

Eva rubbed the back of her sore neck. She felt very sorry for Iris because she also couldn't explain in detail who they were.

"Iris, I'll explain this slowly." Iris, who didn't like Eva's words, hit the table with a bang.

"Stop this bullshit! I don't care if you're an assassin syndicate or you're a member of human trafficking. Quickly settle your business with me and stop making me wait. I'm sick of hearing your talk." Said Iris still looking at Eva with annoyance.

Tommy and Martin looked at each other for a moment when they saw Iris who thought they were bad people. They then looked at Eva with eyes that demanded an explanation.

Eva smiled sourly after hearing Iris' babble "She rebelled and screamed for help. I panicked, okay?" Eva said defensively.

Tommy shook his head in disbelief with Eva. No wonder Iris thought they were a dangerous criminal syndicate. Martin got off the table and walked over to Eva.

"Then this woman is your responsibility." Martin said then left the room.

Jack smiled mischievously while Tommy tapped Eva on the shoulder once and then followed Martin out of the room.

"I'm sorry honey, I can't teach you because I have to work this afternoon."

Iris looked at Jack annoyed and slapped the man's hand as it touched her. Like Jack is coming from another planet because of his brash attitude. But Jack kept smiling while touching her red hair.

"See you in two weeks, honey. I hope you'll give me a chance after I get back."

Eva rolled her eyes lazily. Iris got goosebumps in her chair as she held her hand to keep from slapping the obscure man.

And everyone left Eva and herself in that room. Iris was still waiting for the woman named Eva to explain the situation. If it's true that they're not a criminal syndicate, there shouldn't be a need to kidnap him like that right?

Iris folded her arms across her chest waiting for Eva to speak. She had to cook dinner for her parents after coming home from work. But instead, she ended up in this nowhere.

"Well... If you had followed my wish to speak. Maybe it wouldn't have ended like this." Eva tried to explain. Iris snorted harshly because Eva blames her after all the crazy events earlier.

"How did you know about me being adopted? My adoptive father and mother never told anyone about it." Iris suspected that this group was a secret group that would extract information from her.

But suddenly Eva removed her brown hair which turned out to be a wig and then put it on the table. Iris furrowed her brows deeply as she noticed Eva's hair color.

While untying her hair, Eva sat down on the chair opposite Iris. Her expression turned completely serious. The awkward smile has been lost on her lips.

Whether she likes it or not, Eva has to force Iris to join her organization.

"Let's talk about this. Ah! I'm sorry I haven't greeted you yet. Welcome to the Devil Hunter base. You're the 1,456th batch."

Iris was instantly rendered speechless. What did she say? Devil Hunters? What organization is that? Iris's mouth opened because she thought that Eva kidnapped her for a very important reason. But in fact, this is very unimportant.

In all her life Iris had never heard of a child calling their group Devil Hunter. But the woman in front of her was an adult woman who was estimated to be over 28 years old.

"Wait a second. Devil Hunter? ... Are you kidding me?" Iris asked while laughing a little dryly. Maybe she was joking with her although she hoped Eva wouldn't do that.

Eva rolled her eyes lazily. That's why she didn't want to take on the task of teaching the new members because it was always the same thing that happens. She sighed and then stood up from her chair.

"Come with me."

Iris thought for a while whether she should join or not since she didn't want to get involved in their organization's ridiculous activities. Devil Hunters? Demon hunting?

Will their agenda come to the psychics to find out the whereabouts of the devil? Iris sighed heavily. She decided to follow Eva.

After Eva finished explaining at length, Iris would refuse the invitation to join this organization, and then she would go home.

Eva carried Iris out of the room. There Iris saw for herself how the atmosphere inside the Devil Hunter's headquarters was. Everything seems normal and nothing special.

Like an ordinary house, it's just that each room is quite spacious. The two of them walked through the living room where she could see several people talking.

"Boss! New member?" Ask one of the people in the group. Eva just waved her hand and walked past the living room.

"Why do they look so relaxed? When Jack, Martin, and Tommy look like the busiest people on earth." Iris asked because she was confused about the purpose of this organization being formed.

But Eva didn't chuckle as she did in that room earlier. She continued to walk calmly through the corridor which was filled with candles.

Along the walls were old photos in a formal style that Iris didn't recognize. And each of those photos has one candle burning underneath. A long cabinet that contains many objects that are also on display there.

"I don't care if you believe everything I say or not. I will tell you how this organization was formed." Eva said suddenly without turning to look at Iris.

The two of them kept walking past the photos. Iris continued to stare at the photos one by one as she passed them. She thought they were people she believed to be a demon.

But Iris didn't know what all the candles were for. But when she saw one of the photos, one of the candles had gone out because it had run out, Eva stopped and replaced it with a new candle and then lit it.

"Who are these people?" Iris asked and then she was silent when she saw Eva's expression turning sad.

Iris knew it wasn't a made-up expression. As if all the photos on display are like a death photo with a candle that is always burning.

Iris locked her mouth as tightly as possible when Eva walked back again. She had seen a thin piece of iron that seemed to be made of platinum with a name on it.

"They are all Hunters who died in the line of duty."

And suddenly Iris stopped in her tracks. In this corridor, on the right and the left, there are so many photos and candles. She looked back again with a drifting mind.

How many photos are on display here? They had walked three turns but this photo display was endless. Iris then followed behind Eva with a million questions in her head.

Is this organization incorporated in the military? Died on duty? Are they the fighters against the invaders? Iris was getting restless. If she was sent to the battlefield, she could have fainted because she had never held a gun before.

"This happened thousands of years ago. When humans just found out about the existence of The Devil on earth. They massacred many humans out of revenge until the human population was reduced by almost 50%. This story has been passed down from the ancestors of the Hunters. Anyone hearing this story will certainly laugh and ridicule us like crazy."

Iris also stopped in her tracks as Eva lit the burning candle. If what Eva told was just gibberish, of course, they wouldn't be able to find old photos there.

"From when civilization began to develop, Hunters created this gallery in memory of their comrades who died. And this tradition continues to this day." Eva said walking back. But Iris no longer followed Eva.

"So you recruited me to join the war against the invaders? Why don't you leave this military task to the national defense agency? I'm sure the United States will help if it deals with the human population." Iris gave an input that made Eva shake her head in frustration.

If Eva and her group were troubled by the difficulty of contacting the president, she would help as best she could. Even though she just wanted to run away from her duties and responsibilities.

Eva didn't know what to say especially if her misunderstanding went that far. After all, there was no way he would bring a devil here and show it to Iris for her to believe.

"A devil can't be killed with ordinary bullets. They won't die even if you rip his heart out. Or even if you crush his body into small pieces he will still live. I hope you can focus on what I'm telling you. Demons are humans' natural enemies and the most dangerous things on earth." Eva glanced at Iris with a sharp gaze as she looked back.

Iris knows that. She was trying to digest all the nonsense stories into her brain. Logically, such a story cannot be accepted by human reason.

"Does the devil exist?" Iris asked again. This time with a tone that wanted to be convincing.

But suddenly Eva stopped walking as she stood in front of a door made of teak wood. When Eva opened the door, Iris met Tommy's face. The quiet man standing facing them.

"Devils are real. Humans will die if you split their bodies into two parts. But demons are not. Humans they consider like cattle to them. Seeing humans multiply with their offspring, seeing human greed but they are blind when they see human nature full of love and affection."

Eva stepped into that room followed by Iris behind her while continuing to tell her what a demon was. Iris felt such a gloomy atmosphere spread out like empty air filled the room.

"If they can't die by splitting their bodies or shooting them in the head. How can we fight them?" Iris asked, starting to believe the fairy tale a little.

She saw Tommy who was wiping his gun with a red cloth. The man who was the most sparing of smiles looked at Iris seriously. Eva no longer answered Iris's question and chose to sit on a chair.

"The only weapon that can kill a demon is... your blood."