Chapter 28: You Know What I’m Getting At, Right?

Become… a member of the Gremory family?

The suddenness of the question left the nun completely unprepared. She sat on the sofa with wide, blinking eyes, looking adorably bewildered.

Huh? Why has the topic suddenly shifted to me?

A giant question mark seemed to rise above Asia's head.

"Member? What does that mean?"

"It means becoming a part of our family," Akeno explained, scooting closer to the boy sitting next to her. They were now so close that their waists and shoulders were practically touching.

"Oh, right. There's something else I forgot to tell you, Asia. Actually, everyone in the Gremory family… we're all devils~"

Whoosh!

As if to prove her point, Akeno smiled and snapped her fingers. In the next instant, a pair of large, bat-like devil wings unfolded from her back.

One wing extended unobstructed in front of Asia, while the other curled slightly around the boy next to her, gently brushing against his shoulder as she leaned in closer.

From the other side of the sofa came Rias's irritated voice.

"Akeno, your wings are poking into my side!"

"Oops, my bad. I just wanted to show Asia and got carried away~" Akeno replied with an unflinching smile. She wrapped her arms around the boy's arm and spoke in a soft voice.

"Let's move over a little, shall we? devil wings aren't our primary weapons, but if they accidentally hit someone, it can still hurt quite a bit."

As she spoke, she pressed the boy's arm firmly into the deep valley between her peaks and pulled him slightly to the side.

This move caused the red-haired girl on the other side of the sofa to grit her teeth, a metaphorical crossroad appearing on her forehead.

What is going on today? Are they determined to mess with me?

"Wait…"

It was only at this point that Asia finally processed the situation. Her eyes widened in shock, and her already pale complexion turned even whiter.

"Does this mean… Rias-senpai, Akeno-senpai, and Koneko-chan are all… devils?!"

"That's right," Akeno replied cheerfully, still half-leaning on the boy.

"Then what about Fukuki-san?!"

"I'm human," he answered.

"Th-That's good, then…"

Hearing that the boy was still human, Asia visibly relaxed.

But then she immediately realized how dangerous her thoughts were. What do you mean, 'that's good'? There's nothing good about this!

She recalled how, back when she was a saint in the Church, everyone treated devils with hatred and suspicion. The mere mention of devils would incite gnashing of teeth and vengeful rhetoric. Even showing a neutral attitude toward them was enough to draw accusations of weakness.

And here she was, sitting calmly among devils, not to mention a boy who was part of an onmyōji i family yet mingled with a pureblood devil clan. Was it that onmyōji in Japan was just more open-minded, or had Japan already fallen under devil influence?

Asia felt her head start to spin.

"Well, if you insist, I guess I could be considered a bit of an 'outlier' among onmyōji," Fukuki said with a shrug.

"Although the mainstream belief in the onmyōji profession is still that humans and yokai or devils must be in absolute opposition—this includes some stubborn elders in my own family—I've had my own experiences growing up. I judge friends based on their character, not their race or allegiance."

"Besides, the guardian of Kyoto's Yasaka Shrine is the Eastern Commander of the Japanese yokai world, a nine-tailed heavenly fox. She manages Kyoto's weather and even collaborates with the official meteorological department. And yet, you don't see exorcists rushing to fight her. Is it because she's not considered a yokai? Or maybe...they just can't win and prefer to pick easier targets?"

Fukuki spread his hands as if to emphasize his point. "In the end, your social circle is something you must discern and define for yourself. Deciding everything solely based on alliances is unreliable."

"Exactly," Rias chimed in, her mood visibly improved after Fukuki's explanation.

"If we're being specific, Akeno was once a shrine maiden. But now, she's my Queen."

"Q-Queen?" Asia's jaw dropped even further. Did this mean Akeno-senpai and Rias-senpai were married?

"Not the kind of queen you're imagining!" Rias quickly waved her hands, realizing Asia's misunderstanding.

"For devils, we assign roles based on chess pieces. I'm the King, Akeno is my Queen, and Koneko is my Rook. Most devil families indeed choose a female devil as their Queen if the King is male, often forming couples, but not all devil families operate like that. My brother and I certainly don't."

"Your...brother, Rias-senpai?" Asia tilted her head in confusion.

"Akeno explained, "Lord Sirzechs. He's Rias-sama's older brother and one of the Four Great Satans in the underworld."

"Four Great Satans!?" Asia gasped in awe. "I didn't realize Rias-senpai's brother was such an incredible person..."

"To put it simply," Rias continued, adopting a more patient tone, "the King is like a student council president. The Queen would be the vice president, and the other roles correspond to heads of various departments. For instance, the Rook, Knight, and Bishop positions."

"If you decide to join us, Asia, you would most likely take on the Bishop role. That way, not only could you see Fukuki every day, but you'd also be able to assist him in battles—like healing his injuries. Unlike your previous church, we would never give you up."

Not that they'd ever seen Fukuki injured, of course.

"Never gonna give you up..." Fukuki hummed the tune of a classic pop song under his breath.

Akeno couldn't help but chuckle at his sudden outburst, covering her mouth with a finger to stop him from continuing. Despite her efforts, the atmosphere, carefully built up to this point, inevitably cracked.

Rias gave him a helpless glare, while Koneko looked away, hiding a small smile behind a snack. Asia, having little exposure to internet culture, didn't get the reference but nodded earnestly.

"So, I just need to fight alongside Fukuki-san?" Asia hesitated but eventually said, "I understand, but I'll need some time to think about it."

"Of course," Rias replied with patience.

As the conversation wound down, Fukuki felt his phone buzz in his pocket. Taking it out, he saw a message from Saeko Busujima. It was brief:

"Can we meet somewhere after the club activity? There's something we need to discuss."

Attached was a selfie of her waiting at the school gate.

Looks like the Jujutsu Society had finally reached a decision.