Sephirot frowned as he looked at the words "complete kill" on the mission objective.
Valak was different from the Ancient Ogre and the Jotunn he had faced before.
Currently, it was merely a conscious projection parasitizing a human; its true body remained in Hell.
To slay it, he had to find a way to summon the demon's true form.
If he simply drove this consciousness back, it likely wouldn't satisfy the system's requirements.
Thinking of this, he glanced at Constantine beside him.
To set up a demon summoning magic circle, he had to convince Constantine.
To prevent any accidents, extra preparations were necessary.
As long as he completed this mission smoothly, his points would finally be enough to exchange for the thunder sword Alastor.
—--
"That's impossible!"
On the highway heading toward the Warrens, the speeding car suddenly slammed on its brakes and pulled over to the side of the road.
Constantine's hand holding his cigarette trembled slightly as he looked at Sephirot in the passenger seat as if looking at a madman.
"Sephirot, that's Valak, one of the seventy-two pillars of Solomon! You actually want to proactively draw a summoning circle and bring its true body out?!"
Constantine was agitated, even showing a faint trace of panic.
Sephirot glanced at him, knowing why the man was reacting so violently.
Years ago, in an attempt to save a young girl from a demon, Constantine had tried to be clever by summoning another demon from Hell.
The ritual spiraled out of control. Not only did he fail to save the girl, but he watched helplessly as she was dragged into the endless depths of Hell by the demon he had called forth.
That tragedy had become a lifelong trauma for him.
"Calm down, Constantine."
Sephirot spoke up. "Times have changed, and we aren't exactly defenseless."
"And what can the two of us do?"
Constantine shot back.
"I also contacted Papa Midnite."
Sephirot said calmly. "Though the barrier between the human world and Hell is damaged, the covenant between Heaven and Hell still exists. If Valak wants to ignore the rules and truly descend, it must pay a massive price to resist that covenant."
"The moment it descends into the human world will be its point of greatest vulnerability. At that time, combined with the suppression magic circle you two arrange beforehand, I will aim for a single fatal blow."
Constantine froze for a moment upon hearing Sephirot's words:
"You beat Papa Midnite to a pulp last time; aren't you afraid he'll tamper with the ritual and sell you out?"
"He's a pure businessman, and businessmen only chase profit. Besides, don't I have you?"
Sephirot replied.
Silence fell inside the car.
Constantine gripped the steering wheel, his left hand holding the cigarette out the window.
As the cold wind blew past, images of Sephirot blowing a demon apart with a single shot and dominantly overpowering Papa Midnite flashed involuntarily through his mind. He had to admit, the young man before him truly possessed the capital to stand against demons.
Constantine took a deep drag of his cigarette and asked in a low voice, "Why are you so obsessed with killing Valak? Wouldn't just driving it away be enough?"
Seeing that the other man had stopped arguing, Sephirot gave a faint smile and said, "Once it's done, consider it a favor I owe you."
—--
The neighbor's house.
The members of the Hodgson family were huddled together in the living room; they didn't dare return to their own haunted home.
Even though it was midday and the sun was shining brightly outside, the people inside the house couldn't feel a hint of warmth.
The second daughter, Janet Hodgson, lay pale-faced in Lorraine Warren's arms, having been the primary target of the malevolent spirit.
As an experienced medium, Lorraine could clearly feel the terror within the child's heart.
"When will the people from the Church arrive? Can they really solve this?"
The mother, Peggy, stood to the side, her eyes rimmed with red.
As a single mother, raising these five children on her own had been hard enough. After being tormented by the supernatural for several days, she was on the verge of a breakdown.
"Don't worry."
Lorraine softly comforted Janet and looked up at Peggy. "The person coming this time is a top exorcist registered with the Vatican. He has handled many difficult cases; he will definitely be able to end this crisis."
Just as she finished speaking, the sound of a car engine cutting out drifted in from outside.
Sephirot and Constantine stepped out of the car. The reporters waiting on both sides of the street were like sharks scenting blood, swarming forward with their cameras and microphones.
However, the focus of the flashes was entirely on Constantine.
As for Sephirot standing beside him, clad in a dark red coat with a shock of white hair swept across his forehead, no one paid him any mind.
By the time Constantine had impatiently dealt with the paparazzi, the Warrens had stepped out of the house to greet them with a nod.
Ed Warren's gaze lingered on Sephirot for a moment.
Looking at the young man's somewhat unconventional attire, the investigator felt a flicker of doubt; he didn't recall the Church having an exorcist so young and eccentric.
Sephirot ignored the scrutiny of the others. His mind was now entirely focused on summoning Valak and beating it to death.
"Go inside and get an overview of the situation first. I'll wait out here for Papa Midnite."
Constantine nodded and followed the Warrens into the neighbor's house.
Before long, a black Mercedes pulled up to the curb, and Papa Midnite stepped out, dressed in a formal suit.
He shot a glance at Sephirot, a trace of wariness flickering deep in his eyes, and intentionally maintained a safe social distance.
"Five million US dollars, just as we agreed. This is a business where lives are on the line."
"Money is no object. Did you bring all the materials?"
Sephirot agreed without hesitation.
Papa Midnite nodded and patted the trunk of the car.
At that moment, Constantine emerged from the house, followed by the Hodgson family and the Warrens. Sephirot nodded to them. "Go inside."
Ed Warren suddenly stepped forward and volunteered, "We'll go in with you. Perhaps we can be of some help."
"Then please do us the favor of staying outside. Try to keep the neighbors and reporters as far back as possible to prevent any casualties later."
Sephirot's tone was flat, but it carried an undeniable air of authority.
The Warrens froze for a moment, looking hesitantly at Constantine, who was in charge.
Constantine furrowed his brow and gave them a nod.
Pushing open the front door of the Hodgson family home, a sensation of chilling cold enveloped Sephirot.
A red light flickered in the depths of Sephirot's eyes. In his vision, black mist permeated every corner of the house, eventually converging in a room on the second floor.
He looked up toward that room.
If he remembered correctly, this was the bedroom from the original events that had been covered in crosses, the stronghold Valak had chosen for its possession.
Sephirot signaled for Papa Midnite and Constantine to head upstairs first to set up the magic circle, while he stayed behind to watch Janet, preventing the demon from pulling any tricks.
—--
More than an hour later.
Sephirot went up to the second floor, leading Janet into the room.
The air was thick with an indescribable odor, something like urine mixed with a fishy stench; it was hard to imagine what kind of materials Papa Midnite had brought along.
The floor, walls, and even the ceiling of the room were now covered in dense sorcery inscriptions.
A complex magic circle was drawn in the center of the floor, surrounded by ring after ring of diverse magic circle patterns.
The ordinary crosses that had originally hung on the walls had all been replaced with crosses made of sterling silver.
The three men placed the trembling Janet in the center of the magic circle.
"Don't be afraid. Just wait a minute or two, and you'll be safe," Sephirot comforted her.
Almost the instant she stepped into the magic circle, Janet's head snapped down, like a puppet that had lost its strings.
When she lifted her head again, her youthful face had turned ashen, and her pupils had yellowed and narrowed into vertical slits. Her mouth twisted into an exaggerated grin as she stared maliciously at the men in the room.
Looking at her like this, Sephirot realized the rumors that Valak commanded serpents were clearly not unfounded.
Seeing that the demon had completely taken over the girl, Constantine quickly pulled an old Bible and a cross soaked in Holy Water from his person, beginning to chant the Exorcism incantation loudly.
As the Latin echoed through the room, Janet let out an inhuman, miserable shriek.
Clutching her head in agony, her body rolled back and forth on the ground. One moment she was screaming, "No! No!"
The next, her face would contort as she cursed, "Damn exorcist!"
As the incantation grew more rapid, Constantine stepped forward and slammed the cross against Janet's forehead, shouting, "In the name of the Lord! I cast you out!"
Sizzle...
White smoke rose from the girl's forehead as a dark shadow was forcibly driven out by the cross.
An evil spirit dressed in a nun's habit appeared, her face like a corpse's, with only two points of yellow light glowing in deep-set eye sockets.
The moment the evil spirit manifested, Sephirot raised his right hand. A purple ghost hand appeared out of thin air, grabbing Janet from the floor and tossing her out of the room.
"Do it!" he barked coldly.
(Translated by yourtl.app)
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TL NOTES — CROSSOVER GUIDE
Some references in this chapter come from source universes that may be unfamiliar to some readers. The notes below provide the context needed to understand them without leaving the page.
CHARACTERS
Janet Hodgson — The second daughter of the Hodgson family and the primary target of Valak's possession in this chapter. In The Conjuring 2, she is an 11-year-old girl living in Enfield, England, whose body becomes the demon's main channel for manifesting in the human world.
Peggy Hodgson — Janet's mother and head of the Hodgson household. A single mother raising five children, she is depicted in The Conjuring 2 as deeply shaken by the haunting and desperate for help.
EVENTS
The Enfield Poltergeist — A real paranormal case from 1977 in Enfield, north London, involving the Hodgson family. Strange phenomena, moving furniture, and apparent possession of Janet were reported and investigated by multiple parties, including Ed and Lorraine Warren. The case became the basis for The Conjuring 2 (2016), in which Valak is revealed to be the entity manipulating the haunting from behind the scenes.