Yes!! Hugely agreed. I've been writing Raphael as Wyll's patron in my big magnum opus that will be finished in 100 years, and it's shocking just HOW much better Raphael works as Wyll's patron for both Wyll and the plot.
The question of Wyll's contract gets more interesting because we see maaaany examples of Raphael's other contracts and how those worked out for the people who signed. We know exactly what fates could await him, and we see exactly how dangerous Raphael is to his contractors. But we also see that Raphael is fallible – it might be possible to outwit him.
Wyll's performance of heroism now has two things to complicate it: his father's idealized example, which he does not feel he can live up to, and Raphael, who narrates and performs the role of a generous host in the same campy, dramatic register as we see Will dip into for The Blade. It would completely make sense that a 17yo Wyll who loves wonder-tales and believes in heroes would be taken in by someone like Raphael. Raphael is obsessed with controlling his own story and image, and he is powerful enough to put some of the world into order to do that. Taking Wyll as a warlock is like casting him in Raphael's play, and Wyll is so, so eager to audition for the role of "hero."
Needless to say, this is much, much more characterful texture to the warlock/patron relationship than what I can only describe as "sexy racism" that characterizes Wyll and Mizora. As written, Mizora doesn't really reflect anything about Wyll's character. Wyll isn't overly tempted by anything she represents. But Raphael? Wyll is extremely tempted by story and narrative to the point that it informs his worst trait: his extremely black and white thinking about monsters (bad, whom he can kill) vs innocents (good, whom he is duty-bound to protect).
Wyll's story then becomes Wyll, choosing to write his own narrative instead of playing parts given to him by the narratives of others. He reclaims his agency, and maybe he can grow to embrace more nuance along the way.
If a companion is tied to it, the House of Hope finally makes a lot of sense as a detour! It's now a huge reinforcement of just how risky it is to make a deal with Raphael, which both the player and Wyll may have done. All the hundreds of souls trapped there made deals, and basically none of them anticipated Raphael's cruelty, even if they thought they did. There's also Hope (very pointed name), who becomes a pretty direct foil for Wyll as someone whom Raphael has taken a particular interest in who resists the narrative and is punished for it. Plus, PLUS, wouldn't it be a great and genuinely heroic quest for Wyll to free all the souls his patron has trapped? To grow enough narrative weight of his own that he can overpower Raphael's narrative of being a generous benefactor giving people what they want and show it for the lie it is?
It just WORKS. Also, most importantly, it's about ten thousand times more fun to write than Wyll's canonical pact. I wish it was what was in the game.
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