Chapter 7: He Could No Longer Remember
The location of the clubroom—or to be precise, the activity space for the "Occult Research Club" Fukuki was part of—was not in a typical classroom on campus. Instead, it was located in the old school building at the back of the academy.
To even call it an "old school building" felt like an understatement.
Normally, the phrase "old school building" conjures images of mid-20th-century tube-like structures with peeling walls, rickety doors seemingly ready to fall off at any moment, shattered or missing windows, and interiors filled with rusted bunk beds and scattered garbage.
But the truth was, Kuoh Academy's old school building was more akin to a charming Western-style house. Despite being entirely wooden, the building had stood resiliently through years of weathering. Sunlight gleamed off its western wall, which was covered in ivy, blending harmoniously with the surrounding natural scenery.
When Fukuki arrived at the foot of the building, he noticed the second-floor window was open. A red-haired girl sat at the window, her beauty and chest as stunning as those of Nurse Hasegawa. She rested her elbows on the windowsill, propping up her chin as she gazed into the distance, lost in thought.
Was she completely absorbed in daydreaming?
Looking up from below, Fukuki couldn't help but raise his voice a little.
"Rias."
"Huh…!"
It was as if her thoughts were abruptly pulled back to reality. The red-haired girl at the window—Rias—was momentarily flustered and instinctively looked down at the source of the voice.
When the boy's face below came into view, her expression softened into an uncontainable smile. She gently patted her ample chest, causing small ripples, as though her fingertips had brushed a tranquil surface of water.
"Ah, Fukuki, you're here! I was just wondering when you'd arrive. Come in, I'll come down right away."
"Alright."
Fukuki gave her an OK gesture and stepped into the old school building.
As mentioned before, though called the old school building, it was essentially a Western-style house. The first floor even had a reception room, which was usually used for club activities.
When Fukuki entered the reception room, everyone else was already there.
The spacious room had a three-seater sofa on each side, placed about two meters from the walls and facing each other with a coffee table in between. At the far end, there was a large desk. The red-haired girl Fukuki had just seen at the window—Rias—was now standing gracefully in front of the desk, arms crossed.
On the left-side sofa sat two other girls.
One had long, smooth black hair tied into a high ponytail. Her face was beautiful, and her slightly downturned eyes gave her an air of a gentle, nurturing wife. Her ample chest seemed to surpass even Rias's in sheer size, creating a striking visual impression.
The other girl was petite, contrasting sharply with the two older-looking women. With short, shoulder-length white hair adorned by a black cat-shaped hairclip, she sat quietly on the sofa, nibbling on a slice of cake.
"Sorry for the delay, Akeno-senpai, Koneko. I was held up a bit on the way here."
Fukuki, carrying a briefcase, walked into the room and took a seat on the right-side sofa, placing the briefcase on the coffee table.
Hearing the name "Akeno-senpai," the black-haired beauty who had been silently observing Fukuki since his entrance blinked, her gaze dimming slightly as if hiding some emotion.
Meanwhile, the petite white-haired girl paused her cake-nibbling and looked up. She softly murmured a quiet acknowledgment, "Mm," as if greeting him.
At this point, Rias pushed herself off the desk, her hands lightly pressing against its surface, and gracefully walked over to the sofa next to Fukuki, sitting down beside him.
"Well, regardless of the delay, I must first thank you, Fukuki, for your help last night. Without you, Akeno, Koneko, and I might not have been able to capture the target with our limited manpower. Anyway, enough of the formalities. Since everyone's here, let's see what you've brought, Fukuki. This is what we confiscated from the stray demon we eliminated yesterday, right?"
Rias reached for the handle of the briefcase and attempted to open it, but even after unlocking the latches, she found it stubbornly shut.
"Hm? Why won't it open?"
The suitcase, which should have easily opened with a simple pull after undoing the latch, felt as if some mischievous individual had filled its gaps with industrial-strength glue. No matter how hard he tried, it wouldn't budge.
"Oh, my apologies. I nearly forgot,"
Keikain Fukuki suddenly smacked his forehead, extending a finger to lightly tap on the suitcase. A faint golden spiritual energy shimmered momentarily at the latch, and the once unyielding suitcase opened instantly.
Just like last night and this morning, a shriveled, purplish-black human finger lay silently inside.
"This is…"
Rias was momentarily stunned, not expecting to find a human finger inside.
Fukuki shrugged and explained,
"Well, the suitcase didn't originally have any seals. But as I've mentioned, with cat in the house, he managed to pry it open while I was showering last night. Oh, and the finger originally had a sealing talisman wrapped around it, but it was losing its effectiveness over time. So, I removed it and used the suitcase as a medium to reseal it instead."
"As for the finger's origins, I did a little research online. From what I can gather, this finger seems to be an artifact in the custody of the Jujutsu Society. They classify it as a Special Grade Cursed Object, though I couldn't tell why it's so highly sealed…"
"Please, let me take a closer look,"
Before he could finish, the long-haired, elegant Akeno stood up from the opposite sofa. After politely seeking his permission, she picked up the finger from the suitcase and studied it carefully under the light of the ornate chandelier above.
About half a minute later, she placed it back down with a soft exhale.
"Hmm… I'm not entirely certain yet, but based on the finger's characteristics and your mention of the Jujutsu Society, this is likely one of the fingers left behind by the King of Curses, Ryomen Sukuna, a thousand years ago."
"You've heard of him, Akeno-senpai?" Fukuki was surprised.
"Hmm…"
Akeno nodded slightly, offering an explanation.
"Rias and Koneko know this, but before becoming a devil under Rias, my mother was a miko from the Himejima Clan. I've read some family records since childhood. Did I ever tell you this before, Fukuki-kun?"
"Not that I remember. I don't think so,"
Fukuki thought about it seriously and then shook his head.
As far as he could recall, there had been no such mention.
"I see. Well, now you know,"
Akeno offered a faint smile, though there was a trace of melancholy in it.
As expected… He doesn't remember.