[82] : Jealous Sister, Sore Fingers

~ Support & Read 18 Advanced Chapters on My Patreon!

~ Don't Forget Powerstones!

<><><><><>

Ten minutes later, three beautiful high-school-aged girls found themselves seated together in a nearby restaurant, all brought together by a certain familiar name.

"I see… so Busujima-san, you're a Jujutsu sorcerer affiliated with Japan's Jujutsu Association. I guess in some sense, we're colleagues then!"

Irina smiled warmly, breaking the ice. She tilted her head curiously and continued,

"But schools should have been dismissed hours ago—why are you still out this late? Were you working on a mission?"

Busujima Saeko shook her head gently, carefully sipping her mushroom soup from a spoon before placing it down.

"No, I was just training at the school's Kendo club until late. It was purely coincidental that I encountered that incident on my way home."

Saeko paused slightly, then continued,

"Speaking of which, I overheard that man mention a 'Holy Sword' earlier—is that your target?"

She watched the two white-robed girls in front of her quietly, carefully observing their expressions. Even though they'd mentioned knowing her kouhai, Bokue, she herself wasn't particularly close with him—much less with people claiming to know him. It never hurt to remain cautious.

Irina exchanged a subtle glance with Xenovia before answering casually,

"Well… something like that. That person earlier is a traitor from the Vatican Church. His group stole certain valuable items from us, and our mission here is to retrieve them."

"Those 'Holy Swords', correct?"

"Yes," Xenovia nodded seriously. "Busujima-san, have you perhaps seen any suspicious clergymen carrying unusual weaponry around here recently?"

Saeko considered the question carefully before shaking her head slowly,

"…No, I haven't."

Indeed, it would have been highly unlikely. Due to a lack of manpower, most Jujutsu sorcerers had their hands full either dealing with curses or on their way to dealing with curses. They hardly had time to notice any strange priests wandering around town.

Irina sighed slightly, visibly disappointed for only a brief second before bouncing right back cheerfully.

"Oh well! Can't be helped, I suppose. Let's stop talking about work then—Busujima-san, how did you and Bokue first meet?"

"Me?"

Saeko paused again, then smiled faintly.

"It was during a mission. He saved me—something like that, I guess."

Irina rolled her eyes playfully, cutting into her steak,

"Ugh…another one of his heroic rescues, huh? Well, I guess it can't be helped. That guy has always been like that, even since we were kids."

"Hehehe, is that so."

Busujima Saeko chuckled softly to herself, seeing how completely Irina had embraced her role as "Bokue's childhood sweetheart". Realizing there wasn't much more useful information to be gathered here, she calmly changed topics.

"Do you two have any plans after dinner?"

"Hmm… Normally, we'd keep working until the job's done. But after the encounter we just had, our targets are probably extra cautious right now. Continuing the search tonight would likely yield nothing, so maybe we'll just wander around nearby for a bit. For example, checking out some art exhibits or something?"

Saeko shook her head, looking faintly amused,

"An art exhibit? I don't recommend it."

"Eh, why?"

"Because I've heard most places nearby only sell fake, low-quality paintings."

Irina's eyes widened slightly,

"Ah…really? Then never mind."

❁❁❁❁

Meanwhile, high above Sumida Ward—634 meters in the air atop Tokyo Skytree—two figures appeared, silently overlooking the dazzlingly lit cityscape below.

A handsome silver-haired youth, clad in sleek black clothes adorned with decorative metal chains, spoke up first, calmly addressing the older man sitting at the edge of the high platform. Gusts of wind sent those chains clinking softly against one another.

"Azazel. Why did you call me here to Tokyo, especially at a place like this?"

Hearing the voice behind him, the middle-aged man—Azazel—turned around leisurely, revealing a ruggedly handsome face. Though age had left its mark, one could clearly see hints of the dashing young man he once was. His dark brown hair, dyed gold in the front like a stylish delinquent from his youth, added an oddly charming touch.

Azazel produced a sake jug and cup seemingly out of thin air, raising them invitingly toward the silver-haired youth standing not far behind.

"It's been a while, Vali. How about it? Care for a drink?"

Vali frowned slightly, clear distaste flashing across his normally indifferent features.

"Drinking in a place like this? I'll pass. Hurry up and get to the point, or I'm leaving."

"Easy, easy~"

Azazel laughed gently, raising his hands to placate him.

"Actually, there are two reasons I asked you to come here. The first concerns one of my former subordinates—Kokabiel. It seems he's planning something troublesome recently. Due to my position, it's inconvenient for me to act personally, so I'd like you to handle him."

Vali raised an eyebrow, slightly annoyed,

"Your own subordinate causes trouble, and yet you can't handle it yourself?"

Azazel shrugged carelessly, turning back to stare at the city lights beneath.

"Exactly. I have a pretty good idea of what he's planning—essentially, reigniting conflict between Heaven, Hell, and us fallen angels. If I, the Governor-General, take action personally, it'd make me look weak, and people might start questioning my authority—potentially even overthrowing me altogether."

"And if I were removed and replaced by another Governor-General, odds are good we'd get some warmonger, someone far worse. I've worked too hard to maintain this fragile balance, you see."

"So, the safest bet is to pretend I know nothing at all."

Vali remained silent for two seconds before muttering quietly,

"…How boring."

But even as he grumbled, he didn't explicitly refuse.

"And the second thing?"

Azazel deliberately paused, smiling mysteriously,

"Ah, about that—the red one you've been searching for all this time… I have news that he's finally appeared. And he's right here in this city."

"Oh?"

❁❁❁❁

At the same time, in a high-end apartment in Chūō Ward, a certain young man who had finished dinner was casually relaxing on his sofa, playing horror games and casually indulging in a leisurely night with his cute black cat-girl companion—when suddenly, without warning, he sneezed violently.

His abs contracted sharply with no forewarning, causing a sudden surge forward.

Under the girl's startled cry, a powerful jet of water shot forth, splashing precisely onto the television screen across the room.

"What the—! Quick, grab some towels—no wait, cut the power first!"

As the black-haired girl trembled lightly from the sudden excitement, not too far away, at Kuoh Academy's old school building, another delicate figure was experiencing her own…unexpected troubles.

Koneko lay on her bed in a quiet room, breath rapid and heavy. Her snow-white cat ears had popped straight up uncontrollably, and beneath her, two fluffy tails twisted tightly around each other.

She maintained that tense posture for a long, breathless moment before gradually relaxing again. Under the soft bedside lamp, Koneko raised her hand, noticing her fingers shimmering wetly.

(Why… Just thinking of Bokue-senpai now makes me like this…)

She buried her blushing face into the pillow, deeply embarrassed.

(I'm…I'm becoming weird…)

<><><><><>

~ 18 Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!

https://p-atreon.com/dragonnx

(Just remove the hyphen to access Patreon normally.)

<><><><><>

Keep the chapters coming—Support with Power Stones!