OCCULT RESEARCH CLUB – KUOH ACADEMY
Silence remained in the room for a few seconds after Xenovia and Irina left, but this time the atmosphere was no longer the same as before. The tension caused by the Church still lingered in the air, but the real focus remained elsewhere.
"Now that they're gone…" Gasper rested his arm on the sofa while shifting his gaze toward Rias. "Let's focus on something more important."
"What?" Rias asked, still irritated from the previous conversation. "Because honestly… those two were starting to give me a headache."
Akeno moved closer to her again after stepping away when the power of destruction slipped out of control, reclaiming her spot beside her friend while crossing her arms.
"The kidnappings." Gasper answered directly. "That remains the priority."
The atmosphere immediately turned serious.
"What did you discover, Gasper-kun?" Rias completely shifted her attention away from the exorcists.
"My bats found some traces." He kept a steady tone while organizing the information. "Besides the exorcists… they detected large traces of magic spread throughout parts of the city."
Akeno slightly narrowed her eyes.
"Fallen Angel magic?"
"I still don't have confirmation." Gasper answered in the same tone. "But it's definitely not something normal."
Rias rested her face against one hand while thinking quickly.
"That makes our job much easier." Her gaze became more focused. "If the traces are still active, then they haven't moved the kidnapped humans out of Kuoh yet."
Gasper lightly nodded.
"Then we need to act together." He shifted his gaze between Rias and Akeno. "We find the humans first… then eliminate whoever's behind this."
Akeno opened a small smile after hearing that.
"I like it when you simplify things like that."
Gasper ignored the light provocation while continuing to organize the situation in his head.
'But no Fallen Angel has appeared directly yet…'
The thought automatically led to Kokabiel.
And the memory from the anime came almost instantly.
'In the original story… that bastard almost killed everyone.'
The image of Rias injured, Akeno exhausted, and the chaos of the attack on Kuoh crossed his mind too quickly to ignore.
'Kokabiel isn't someone you can underestimate.'
His gaze hardened slightly before fully returning to the two girls.
"You both need to be extra careful."
Akeno slightly raised an eyebrow before opening a provocative smile.
"Ara ara…" She leaned slightly toward him. "Is Gasper-kun worried about his women?"
"Yes." Gasper answered without hesitation this time. "I'm worried about both of you."
Akeno froze for an instant.
Because this time there was no irony or hidden teasing behind his words. Gasper was genuinely worried, and that completely changed the way she received that conversation.
The provocative smile slowly faded while her gaze softened in a rare way, letting out a reaction far more honest than usual.
"...Thank you for worrying."
Rias also looked away for a moment before quietly sighing.
"I appreciate it too." She looked at him again right after. "But I'm not going to run from my responsibilities."
Her tone remained firm.
"This territory is mine."
Gasper nodded without difficulty.
"I wasn't expecting anything different."
He rested his arms on his knees while organizing the situation in his head, and this time his gaze lost whatever traces of lightness still remained after the exorcists left.
"But things still need to be done the right way." His tone remained calm. "I already know where the kidnapped people probably are."
Rias slightly narrowed her eyes.
"Then why don't we attack now?"
"Because there's still a problem." Gasper answered without hesitation. "We're certain the Fallen Angels are involved… but I still haven't found any of them directly."
Akeno crossed her arms immediately afterward, understanding the reasoning almost instantly.
"So it could be a trap."
"Exactly." Gasper confirmed. "If they're hiding their presence on purpose, it means they want to choose when they appear."
Silence fell for a few seconds inside the room while the three organized the possibilities.
Rias was the first to break the silence again.
"The best option is to wait for Sona and her peerage." She kept a firm gaze. "If someone powerful is really involved, acting separately would be stupid."
Gasper nodded without difficulty.
"I agree."
Akeno partially shifted her gaze toward the door Xenovia and Irina had left through minutes earlier.
"And those two?" Her tone became colder. "Do you really think they'll stay quiet?"
"No." Gasper answered immediately. "But I'm already keeping an eye on them too."
He rested his head against one hand for a moment before continuing.
"If the exorcists decide to act on their own, my bats will notice."
Rias slowly let out a breath, clearly calmer now that the conversation had finally returned to strategy instead of provocation.
"Then let's head back to the mansion." She stood up from the sofa immediately afterward. "We'll gather the rest of the peerage and think through a proper plan."
Akeno nodded while moving closer to her again.
"I also want to hear Koneko's and Kiba's opinions before we act."
Gasper stood up shortly after, following the two girls to the center of the room while Rias's demonic energy started appearing around her body again, this time far more controlled than before.
Rias naturally approached Gasper before activating the magic, while Akeno occupied the space right beside him without even needing to think about it.
SHUUUN.
The magic circle of the House of Gremory appeared beneath the three of them, spreading red light throughout the Occult Research Club before space itself slowly began to distort.
Seconds later, the energy disappeared together with them.
And the club became completely empty again.
ABANDONED HOUSE – KUOH
The woman backed against the wall while holding her small son in her arms, trying to stop her desperation from showing in front of the child. The boy trembled while clinging to her, clearly not fully understanding what was happening, but perfectly understanding that the two humans standing in front of them were dangerous.
"Please…" Her voice failed in the middle of the sentence. "Don't hurt my son…"
Kael completely lost patience with that.
"What a pain."
He advanced without hesitation.
THUD.
The kick struck the woman's body directly, throwing her onto the floor while the boy slipped out of her arms from the impact.
"WAAAAAHHH!!"
The child's crying immediately exploded throughout the abandoned house, loud, desperate, and completely consumed by fear.
The woman tried to stand up immediately, ignoring her own pain to reach her son again.
"My son!"
"What are you doing?" Selene frowned immediately while looking at Kael.
"What?" Kael partially turned his face toward her without any guilt. "You're complaining because of this?"
He pointed at the boy still crying on the floor.
"And you shut up."
The tone came out loaded with irritation while he stared directly at the child.
The boy froze immediately, but the crying didn't stop completely, remaining trapped between frightened sobs.
Selene observed that in silence.
And for the first time since joining that group, something inside her truly began to break.
'Why did I get involved in this…?'
Her eyes slowly lowered toward Kael while he continued complaining about the situation without realizing his own level of cruelty.
And at that moment, her gaze turned cold.
Very cold.
A thought slowly started forming inside her head.
'Kill Kael…'
The conclusion came quickly.
'And run away.'
She showed nothing externally, keeping a controlled expression while silently organizing her own plan.
What neither of them noticed…
Was that they weren't alone.
Outside the building, hidden among the shadows of another abandoned house, Darius observed everything in absolute silence.
His eyes weren't focused on Kael.
Nor on the woman.
Nor on the child.
They were locked onto Selene.
As if trying to understand exactly what she was thinking at that moment.
And above them…
On top of a broken lamppost partially consumed by darkness…
A small bat remained motionless.
Watching everything.
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