Those demons, who usually hid in the corners like rats, were now frequently wandering the streets and causing trouble.
It was bringing no small amount of grief to his work.
Constantine had a lingering sense that all this chaos was inextricably linked to the impending arrival of Mammon.
In fact, Mammon's descent was likely right around the corner!
That would explain why these demons were acting so restless and excited.
What made him feel most powerless, however, was his total lack of information; he was completely in the dark.
He only knew the outcome, that Mammon was coming, thanks to Sephirot and Papa Midnite.
But as for how he was coming, when he was coming, and where he would appear, Constantine was flying blind.
It wasn't that Constantine hadn't thought about asking Sephirot, but his damned pride wouldn't allow him to bow his head to some green kid.
He had also tried to visit Papa Midnite, only to find that the man, who usually tolerated a chat, had flatly refused to see him this time.
Fortunately, that was when Angela came knocking.
This policewoman had been brought to him by Sephirot himself.
Based on what Constantine knew of Sephirot, the kind of guy who wouldn't lift a finger unless there was something in it for him, he wouldn't involve himself in an ordinary person's business for no reason.
This meant that Angela, or her deceased sister Isabel, must be hiding clues regarding Mammon's arrival!
Thus, having just confirmed in Hell that Isabel had indeed committed suicide, Constantine immediately brought Angela to the hospital room where she had lived.
He was convinced that as twin sisters, Isabel must have left a warning for Angela before she died, using a method only the two of them would understand.
He had to get his hands on this information before Sephirot arrived; only then could he use it as leverage to trade for intel with the kid.
"...So, just because she claimed she could see demons, you people locked her up in a hellhole like this?"
Constantine stood with his hands shoved in his trench coat pockets, surveying the room with a sarcastic tone.
Standing to the side, Angela was overcome by the memory of the place and nodded painfully. "Yes."
"Since it was a suicide, she must have left a clue."
Constantine began rummaging through the bed and the cabinets. "Think carefully. Did you two have any special codes? Any habits for hiding things?"
Angela shook her head blankly. "No... I don't know what she would have left."
"FUCK!"
Constantine was growing irritable. If he couldn't find a lead, he'd be under Sephirot's thumb again, and he hated that feeling.
He stood up abruptly, grabbing Angela by the shoulders and pinning her with his gaze. "Think! Any detail will do!"
Startled by his sudden aggression, Angela instinctively tried to pull away, only to find his grip surprisingly strong.
"Let go of me! I really don't know!"
Angela pushed back against him. "What exactly are you looking for?!" Constantine was about to say something when a voice interrupted him.
"Ahem..."
"You two, this is a hospital, and I have a student with me..."
Sephirot leaned against the doorframe, watching the tangled pair with an entertained expression.
Carrie followed behind him obediently, curiously scanning the infirmary.
Constantine's expression stiffened, and he quickly let go.
Angela took two steps back, smoothing her rumpled clothes and glaring at Constantine.
"Constantine, did you find out the cause of her sister's death?"
Sephirot asked.
Constantine replied with a cold face: "I did."
"Isabel did indeed commit suicide. Her soul is in Hell."
"Furthermore, she and Angela are twins."
"Then just now... what was this about?"
Sephirot arched an eyebrow, his gaze shifting between the two.
Having straightened her clothes, Angela explained coldly: "He thinks that because Isabel and I are twins, she must have left me a message through some method before she died."
"I don't think his reasoning is wrong,"
Sephirot nodded, adding casually,
"Perhaps you could try breathing on the glass?"
Angela froze at his words, a buried memory suddenly surfacing.
When they were little, she and Isabel would often hide under the covers using flashlights to send signals, or communicate by writing words on foggy glass!
As if possessed, she rushed to the floor-to-ceiling window on the balcony and exhaled a large breath of warm air onto the cold glass.
A white mist covered the glass, and crooked handwriting emerged.
[Sister, beware the demons.]
Angela covered her mouth in shock, turning to look at Sephirot: "How did you know?!"
Constantine's eyes widened as well, staring intently at Sephirot.
This guy, not only was his combat power terrifying, but could he also see the future?!
Only then did he notice Carrie standing behind Sephirot.
Looking at this frail, freckled girl who looked like she might blow over in the wind, he let out a cold laugh: "Bringing a little girl into this kind of mess?"
"Sephirot, when did you switch careers to become a babysitter?"
Sephirot glanced at him, smiling without a word.
A little girl?
If someone actually pushed her too far, she could snap a demon's neck in each hand.
Angela stared blankly at the handwriting on the glass, her mind replaying the painful life her sister had lived.
"Beware the demons..."
Angela murmured to herself, tears finally breaking through, "We should have known all along..."
"We could both see those things since we were children..."
She turned around, looking at Sephirot and Constantine with a trembling voice: "You both knew already, didn't you?"
Constantine remained silent; he had already guessed as much after returning from Hell.
As identical twins, if the younger sister possessed the gift of mediumship, how could the older sister possibly be a normal person with no perception?
It was simply that Angela had known how to pretend and lie from a young age, hiding the fact that she could see demons from the adults. Watching her younger sister be sent to a hospital as a mental patient, she finally forced herself to suppress her mediumship.
In a world of ordinary people who did not understand, possessing such a gift was nothing but a tragedy.
"I would have died in her place..."
Angela collapsed to the floor, her voice breaking with sobs. "It's my fault!"
"If I hadn't lied back then, she wouldn't have died here all alone!"
She snapped her head up and looked at Constantine. "Please! Help me restore my gift! I want to see exactly what she went through!"
"Impossible."
Constantine refused decisively, looking down coldly at the woman on the floor. "Once you can see them, they can see you too."
"Those demons will tear you to pieces."
Angela was desperate; she turned her gaze toward Sephirot.
Sephirot looked at her and gave a slight shake of his head.
He truly could not help with such things.
Ashen-faced, Angela spiraled into despair, but just then, Sephirot spoke again.
"Constantine, Mammon's plan for arrival is inextricably linked to her."
"What?!"
Constantine's fingers, holding a cigarette, gave a sudden jerk.
"For Mammon to descend into the human world, one of the indispensable conditions is the need for a human with a mediumistic constitution to serve as the vessel for his birth."
Sephirot looked at the kneeling Angela and continued, "Isabel chose suicide specifically to sabotage this plan."
"Now that the vessel is gone, who do you think those demons will set their sights on?"
Constantine's expression changed instantly. He blurted out, "What else? What other conditions are needed for Mammon's arrival?!"
"There is also–"