"They're really going at it..." Yuuji said in amazement. He watched from the side as Gojo and Ciel were in an intense sparring match. Professional martial art combatants whose quick and strong movements created sharp winds that traveled all across the dojo.
Ciel wasn't holding back her punches in the least, since with Gojo's Infinity, there was no need to. Naturally, the same can be said about Gojo, since Ciel's immortality would prevent her from sustaining any lasting injuries. Even so, to go all out in this small dojo would destroy the entire building, along with the two other people in it. So for the most part, they were in an exchange of jujutsu, and a combination of other martial arts.
Not even against Yuuji had either Ciel or Gojo fought that much (and he was a little glad that they didn't). It was so impressive to look at, Yuuji couldn't help but stare, until Nanami slammed the flat side of his wrapped hatchet against Yuuji's cheek. It was not enough to knock Yuuji off his feet, more so to gain his attention, though it still hurt a lot.
"Pay attention," Nanami said as the boy grabbed his face in pain. The man was without his jacket and tie for his sparring with Yuuji, and he stepped back to regain his position. "Don't concern yourself over whose fighting around you. It'll leave you unguarded, and you might distract the other person fighting."
"R-Right," Yuuji rubbed his pained cheek before getting into his fighting stance again. He had to force himself to focus on his own training. He can't let himself hold Ciel back. Not anymore.
"You know, it really does feel like you are trying to kill me," Gojo jest as he deflected Ciel's kick to his torso - a kick that could break concrete and shatter a man's ribcage in one blow. His hands and Ciel's were in a lock as Ciel thrust more kicks, Gojo's enchanted blue eyes analyzing her every move.
"I figured it'd be insulting if I didn't act like it," Ciel said between breaths, avoiding another sweep of Gojo's leg and staying on her feet. She was beginning to adapt to Gojo's moves, even though it would still take some time for her to pass his guard, if not his Infinity.
If Ciel had to give it an estimation, Gojo's hand-to-hand combat was comparable to a millennium years worth of experience. Not even Roa, for all his time alive and revival, could match up to this, and Ciel imagined that the vampire's martial arts skills - even for someone who founded the Burial Agency - has dulled tremendously ever since he became a Dead Apostle, relying on his vampiric strength and magic alone now.
"You got a strange way of showing respect," Gojo twist Ciel's wrist to lock her joints. "I appreciate-"
Ciel jumped, twisting her body in mid-air to untighten her wrist, and with Gojo still clasping it, she used it as leverage to pull herself over and hurl a knee into Gojo's head.
"-the thought though!"
Gojo craned his head to the side and let the knee-strike land on his shoulder, a slight grin on his face as he pulled Ciel down. The second she landed, he then followed up with a quick palm strike to her stomach. She brought up her knee to deflect it, hitting underneath Gojo's palm, and although she avoided a direct hit, it still struck her at the side of her waist. Ciel bared with the pain, even as the air came up to her throat, stopping it with her closed lips. "Mmh-!"
God. That really is the worst attack to take from the sorcerer. It'd be even more awful if no one thinks to use any magical energy to defend against it. It could probably equate to the kick she endured from Sukuna, although she wasn't completely sure if it was his cursed body or Yuuji's she should commend. Either way, she'd hate to see what it would be like should Gojo put all his power into his strikes - which she has a feeling he intends to eventually show her if not today.
Gojo spun around to trip Ciel with a stomp of his feet and another throw of his hand. "Not done yet-!"
Ciel knew that was coming. Stopping her feet from crossing Gojo's, she immediately threw her free hand forward and redirect Gojo's palm strike, successfully letting it go past her waist.
"Oh-!"
With the heave of her shoulder, and the strength of twenty or so people that could wield the Seventh Holy Scripture, Ciel swung Gojo's body over her own.
Gojo slammed both his feet down and stopped himself from falling flat on the ground, pulling his arm to yank Ciel down with him, but Ciel stood her ground. Gojo quickly took advantage of this, however, and he swung his leg up for Ciel's head. Ciel had to let go of Gojo's hand to block the strong kick, hearing the impact loudly behind her backhand.
"I just realized something..." Gojo said, putting his hands on the floor and spun both his legs to separate himself and Ciel. He stood up easily, barely breaking a sweat unlike Ciel. "You used a swordsman stance."
Ciel was not surprised that Gojo was able to notice that. She let herself recuperate as Gojo continued, "It's not something I've seen other executors use. Did you learn it from somewhere?"
Ciel answered after a few breaths. "I did. From a Dead Apostle Ancestor, before I slayed him, of course."
"Damn! Alright, Ms. Van Helsing. That's one way a Student can bypass the Master," Gojo can't say he doesn't approve that way of graduating. It's something he'll have to look forward to with Megumi after all. "It looks to me though that it'd be more effective if you had a weapon with you. Let me guess... you use Seven, right?"
"You'd be correct," Ciel admitted, not seeing any harm not admitting to that. While she ought to think twice about revealing all her cards, now that Gojo was her teacher, it seemed impractical to not tell him all her weaponry and other strengths. She'd also much prefer to tell him more about Roa, but considering the method Gojo's superiors used to kill Yuuji...
"The Seventh Holy Scripture has six 'forms' suited for both close-quarters and distant attacks," Ciel began to explain, resting her hands on her hips. "If you prefer to see it personally, I can certainly answer to that."
By that, she means hitting Gojo with Seven's Whip-Sword form repeatedly.
"Hmmm. Maybe later," Gojo said, and then ushered Ciel over for a water break. He also whistled to Nanami and Yuuji, allowing all of them to end their training for the day - which by the looks of it Yuuji could certainly need after seeing that red mark on the young sorcerer's face.
"With how heavy Seven is, I wouldn't be surprised if she can turn into a tank too," Gojo added as he and Ciel walked to the bench at the wall.
"You really should know better than to call a girl 'heavy'," Ciel lectured, deciding not to elaborate whether Gojo's assumption was true or not.
"Why? Is it from personal experience?"
"I will hit you with the sun again if I have to."
"Huh? The sun?" From the side, Yuuji inquired as he and Nanami overheard the conversation, walking up to the resting teacher and new jujutsu student. Gojo took a seat on the bench as he grabbed a water bottle for himself.
"Oh, yeah. Me and Ciel had a somewhat serious match after her interview with Yaga-sensei," Gojo pointed at Ciel with his thumb, like a child telling on someone. "Threw a sword made out of sunlight at me."
"Seriously?!"
"You never told him?" Gojo asked Ciel.
Ciel lightly shrugged as she grabbed her water bottle. "I didn't think I should. I figured that was how you welcome all your students."
Considering that the entire forest burned down, it was several meters beyond Gojo's usual welcoming, Nanami thought to himself as he is given his own water bottle from Gojo.
"By the way, how'd you two enjoyed last night's date?" Gojo then randomly brought up, grinning teasingly at the couple as Yuuji and Ciel stood side by side.
Ciel was irritated at Gojo's lack of tact. Yuuji was a little embarrassed, although he did consider his answer regardless. "Ah, well..."
He and Ciel shared a look, and then immediately looked away, blushing.
"It was alright~" Yuuji rubbed the back of his head, his body swaying side to side as if in a love trance. Ciel was just doing her best to keep herself composed, even if she had to turn away and cover her face to do so.
"I see! I see!" Gojo laughed. "I hope you liked the gift I left you. Figured it'd be a good idea since it's a little like you watching movies, Yuuji-kun, except you'd be reading manga. But, eh, same difference."
Ciel didn't believe him in the slightest that that was his reason, but she chose not to get so worked up over it. She did get to discover that Vampire Hunter D had a good number of books existing, so overall, it really was a good night.
Nanami took a drink of water first before speaking. "You should be careful where you go out. Even with your disguises on, anyone spotting two people jumping from rooftop to rooftop is likely to bring unwanted attention. We'll join you on tonight's patrol, then bring you both back here for the time being (in separate rooms)."
"Ah. Yeah... Wait, you knew we were wearing disguises?" Yuuji asked, catching that little detail (he started paying attention to conversations more ever since the Yoshino Household incident).
"We tracked you down and found you in that manga cafe. Ciel-san saw to us personally," Nanami revealed.
"Wha-?! Is that true?" Yuuji looked to Ciel for confirmation.
Although Ciel did not like Nanami exposing her like that, she nodded, "I noticed them when we were looking through the library. I didn't want us to be disturbed, so I went up to them and sent them on their way."
"So bossy..." Gojo muttered as he drank his water.
"Huh... Still, I feel like I should know these things. We got to communicate on this sort of stuff, you know?" Yuuji gently admonishes with hands on his hips, looking to Ciel with a towel over his shoulders and a "we talked about this" face.
"It didn't seem like a pleasant thing to bring up. Nanami-san did kick your shin, after all (Yuuji: Ah. That's true) (Nanami: I have no regrets)." Although Ciel made this excuse, she was beginning to acknowledge her own tendency to evade the truth, much to her discomfort. She would like to be more honest, but years of secrecy and deception was so integrated into her, it wasn't exactly easy to remove said habits. Especially when there are certain secrets she preferred not to reveal.
"Speaking of movies..." Gojo began, steering them back to the topic, "I think that should be enough training for today. How about we watch some TV for a while (Just bought a new one)? I even got the perfect series I want to show right here."
He leaned over to reach his bag and brought it over to his lap. From the side, Nanami pulled out his watch to check the hour, "I still have some time before I'm needed elsewhere. I can stay for another thirty minutes."
"I'll make us some popcorn!" Yuuji volunteered with a raise of his hand.
"And I'll help Yuuji-kun with that," Ciel followed peppily before looking to Gojo. "How many movies will we be watching? If this is part of Yuuji-kun's training, we could bring the cursed dolls with us."
"Sure. It'll be interesting to see how far you have your cursed energy handled," Gojo said, overlooking Yuuji and Ciel giving a slight cough as he pulled out a few red DVD sets, presenting more than one version of the same media. "Especially for this series, cause we're going to be watching Hellsing!... What's with that face? I thought you'd like vampire-hunting shows?"
Kiyotaka Ijichi sat stiffly at the backseat of a moving police car. Despite how it appeared, he was not under arrest. Rather, he was accompanying two "police officers" who sat at the front seat as they drove.
"Take it easy back there. It's not like we're taking you to prison," Yuugo Ando said, leisurely steering the wheel as he took a new street. "Although, with the way you're sitting, you make it seem like we're taking you to witness protection."
"A-Apologies. I'm just a little worried how my colleagues might react if they see me like this." Especially with Ijichi clasping his hands together as if he had cuffs on. He blamed it on his nerves.
"We could have taken your car, but it wouldn't really look right if two "officers" climbed in the back seat of a civilian's vehicle," Ando replied. "Especially right outside the station. There's also my car, but Berlusconi here thinks it's important to "keep up appearances." He wouldn't stop nagging about it all day."
"Considering your tendency to allude adding honorifics to people's names, you could use some lessons in keeping up with the decorum," Karius Berlusconi spoke up from the passenger seat. His eyes ever closed as he lowered his head slightly. "Take Ijichi-san for example. Mild-mannered. Pristine haircut. A full-time job, possibly overworked. He is the picture-perfect of a Japanese citizen! You could learn a thing or two from him."
"Um. Thank you?" Ijichi said.
"First of all, Karius, you're from Italy. I really don't think it's up to you to decide who acts like a proper Japanese," Ando said. "And give me a break. I haven't lived in Japan since I barely took my first steps. After finding out the kind of creepy ghosts lurking around here, I doubt I would have stayed in this haunted country - no offense, Ijichi."
"Oh. None taken," Ijichi understood. He imagined that, those who could see curses and did not desire to become sorcerers, would feel the same way.
"Says the man who works in an organization such as ours, though I'll concede, all three of us focus on behind the scenes matters, rather than fight on the frontlines. You should still take better pride in your culture, Ando-san. I'm sure Ijichi-san would be more than happy to help you connect to your roots. Who else better to ask than someone whose lived here all his life?"
"Erm. Pardon?"
"Geez. Way to volunteer the guy out of nowhere." Ando gave a sigh, giving a backhand-wave at Ijichi and telling him to not mind Karius. They drove for about twenty-five more minutes, and then finally they reached their destination. Ando putting the car in park on the side of the road at an empty street. "Alright. We're here."
They got out of the car. "So, we already crossed notes, but I think it's safe to say that just by looking at it, this place fits all the criteria of a Dead Apostle's lair - not to mention the kind of place you'd see in a horror flick."
The large abandoned hospital stood barren under the sun-setting sky, next to a dry, yellowish grass field. It looked to have been years since it was last cared for. A part of the hospital ceiling appeared to have collapsed, among other unstable structuring.
"Several weeks ago, the Burial Agency Agent had combed through the area, confirming signs and activities of a dead apostle," Karius explained, "However, it's been some time since this place was used as its lair, and there were no lingering undead she encountered."
Ijichi adjusted his glasses. "We had reports regarding this area. It used to be a gathering place for thugs and delinquents, until they've all suddenly disappeared. So far, thirty people went missing. We had several shamans go through this hospital, but there were no traces of curses or cursed energy, and so the case was passed onto the police."
"I've searched through the files back at the station about this hospital's history," Ando said as he walked alongside the hospital's entrance, his colleagues following him. "There was an 'incident' several years ago that led to its closure, although there wasn't a lot of media coverage. The police didn't have much either. If I have to take a guess, someone paid alot of money to keep what happened here quiet. Usually, that's our territory, but it never made it through the Church's channels, meaning someone else pulled some strings. As for the missing people, there've been no leads, no evidence of foul play, and the trail got cold from there... We neither got the dead, spirits, nor humans to account for, confirmed this hospital's vacancy, and it led all of our groups to stop looking into it anymore. So..."
He crouched before the dry grassy field. "What's wrong with this picture?"
"Based on Ciel-san's report of there having been a dead apostle thriving here once," Ijichi began as he observed the ominous-looking building. "Then there should at least be some curses drawn to it. Following the pattern of curses appearing after the presence of the semi-conscious undead, whether it is the vampire themself, or its underlings. Even if we should disregard those, there have been numerous rumors circulating this hospital, which are just as likely to give birth to new curses."
"Ciel-san informed to have not encounter any curses in there, assuming that a shaman must have exorcised the area already," Karius said. "Regardless, she did a thorough sweep. Baptizing the hospital one last time before leaving."
"Putting that together..." Ando clasped his hands in a prayer, as if to give his respect to the land, and the people who had been living in this once active vampire's lair. "We can assume that someone decided to make use of this place again, clearing out all the curses so that they won't get in the way or draw any attention, with whatever work they got going on in there. There may have not been any zombies anymore, but that doesn't mean that hasn't changed after Ciel...san left."
Ando made an emphasis on the honorific after Karius' pointed look. The brown haired man stood up straight, "How about now? You see anything lingering around, Ijichi-'san!'?"
There was pep this time as he referred to the sorcerer assistant. Ijichi's eyes honed in on the hospital building. "...Yes. There are traces of cursed energy now - signs of curse activity."
"Nice - or, well, not nice. Not for us. Just saying that's impressive you can see it that far."
Ijichi was internally grateful of the praise. Like a star shining by his face as he adjusted his glasses, reflecting the sun off them.
"I'm still a little near-sighted when it comes to that kind of stuff, at least until those ghosts are right up in my face." Ando pocketed his hands as he looked back at the hospital. "It's possible that things got picked up right where they left off."
"And for whatever reason, it was decided now not to make an effort to keep this place clean," Karius said, looking at the building as well, his white brows furrowing. "But why? Do they intend to be discovered? Could this be a trap?"
"Maybe they were hoping that, since shamans overlooked this place, they don't try to hide it anymore. At least, not until our agent came through. Maybe they decided to rush things..." Ando could only speculate with his sullen eyes staring ahead. "Either way, I'd say it falls under reasonable suspicion to give this place at least one more look. What says you fellas?"
"I agree," Ijichi nodded.
"Of course," Karius also agreed.
The three men stared at the bleak hospital building for another moment.
"I will call this in." Ijichi immediately pulled out his cell phone.
"I as well," Karius informed, searching up Mario's number on his own device. "They'll send someone within the hour."
"That's the kind of unanimous agreement I'm looking for!" Ando said in a chipper voice. "Like hell either of us are gonna waltz right into that death trap. I'd rather eat my own shoe than set foot in that..."
He stopped when he spotted a couple of small figures climbing out of an open window of the hospital. The scene took Ijichi and Karius by surprise.
"...place." Ando's shoulder slumped at the sight of children hurriedly pulling themselves out of the building. "Of course. This job is never that easy."
"Okay class! That about wraps up today's lecture. I'll see you girls tomorrow!" The cheerful tone of a young woman carried across the classroom as students from their desks prepared to leave. "Remember that afterschool club activities are postponed until further notice. Be home safely everyone!"
Noel was in hell.
She had only started working at Asagami Academy for less than a week now, and already it was like she was in the middle of a snake's pit. Not one student gave so much as a courtesy, questions of interest regarding herself, or even a smile.
Noel had much better luck gaining popularity amongst the boys back at Souya High, and all while acknowledging that none of the female students liked her. She could grace past that without any trouble. However, the issue here now is that there were no young man to be found, reasonably so in this private girls school. There were the male teachers, of course, but Noel could hardly think she would have a chance with any of them. She was just a "colleague" in their eyes. The new, bumbling teacher on the block that needed to be shown the ropes around here.
Naturally, it was just a face she puts up to gather intelligence. In some cases, she makes it more convincing than others in her line of work. Having naive young men swooning over her makes them susceptible to loosening their lips and slip out a few secrets or two, especially when talking about someone else - especially when that someone else is her target.
And especially if her target were to fall for her seduction tactics enough, that he may just turn into a vampire and try to bite her neck right then and there, confirming her and her colleagues suspicions. Thus, she was within justification to execute the vampire. Her chance to fulfill her mission - her lifelong revenge.
But not a single one of these girls want anything to do with her! Even if they didn't have an interest in the same sex, they could at least take it easy on Noel. She figured she might get a few green-eyed monsters here and there, but this is just ridiculous! They were all girls here. Girls share secrets! They hang out, share dating advices, gossip and etc. But every time Noel gets into class, give a friendly wink and a dazzling smile, she gets sent back death glares like she slept with their boyfriends!
It was even worse when it comes to that one particular girl. The current target of interest of her company, after what happened with Shiki Tohno went bust. She had a much better time charming him, and he'd been genuinely interesting also (even if she was going to kill him). It was a shame. Noel almost couldn't believe it, and wouldn't be as ready as to leave it just like that, but it couldn't be dismissed that Roa would take a female host this time too.
Maybe the perverted monster decided to switch teams after what happened with Ciel? There's nothing more alluring than a woman's body, after all. It would have been perfectly understandable, if it didn't make Noel shudder.
Noel began clearing up the chalkboard, hearing behind herself a small group of girls chattering by their seats. They were about to depart out of the classroom when Noel turned around and spoke up, "Ah! Tohno-chan? Could I speak to you for a moment?"
Stopping by the door along with her friends, Akiha Tohno turned to Noel.
The teacher gave her best, amicable smile. "It won't take long at all."
The girl with long black hair assess the taller woman. She then referred to her friends and nodded at them, promising to see each other tomorrow. The friends - though were all wary of Noel - seemed to easily accept Akiha's words, and then bid her a good evening, leaving the classroom one by one.
Akiha Tohno. Head of the Tohno Household after the death of Makihisa. A title that should have gone to Shiki, but due to his condition, was given to his sister instead. A young beauty with a serious disposition. She was different from Shiki and his unassuming presence, as the girl would instantly catch everyone's attention the moment she walked into the room. Noel suspects that if she were to attend Souya High, Akiha would have gain even more popularity than Ciel herself.
She certainly seemed less easy to approach than Shiki had been, even at the thought that he was Roa's next host, but Noel met far scarier monsters in her job. Some of them her own bosses. There's nothing to be fearful of so long as it's just a little girl she was dealing with, nothing more frightful than a Dead Apostle or Ciel anyhow.
Noel paid attention to the girl, and her pattern of leaving the academy as soon as classes are over, despite this being a boarding school. Apparently, Makihisa put in a request to have his daughter commute from home, granting this girl special permission to not live amongst school grounds yet still be able to attend. It seemed like a lot of trouble to have the daughter of the Tohno family be kept at home, away from easily accessible dormitories lived by other students, as soon as it gets dark outside. Makes one wonder why?
"Yes, sensei?" Akiha politely answered to the teacher. "You wish to speak with me?"
"I was just checking up on you. I've heard about your father. My condolences," Noel started off, holding her smile. "I hope things are okay at home. If you ever need anything, you're always free to come find me. Even just a chat is fine."
Although the offer seemed considerate, Akiha wasn't moved in the least. She was also instinctively put off by the sight of Noel's smile. While it appeared to be perfectly harmless, hiding no ulterior motive, it was the same sort of smile Akiha had seen within her own family. The kind of smile one makes when they want something out of another.
Akiha knew the impression this teacher gave off to the other girls. It was the latest hot topic of every lunch hour (and apparently in the group chats as well, though Akiha can't personally confirm it). Putting it frankly, none of the students liked this woman. Mostly based on intuition, it was also the behavior this teacher gave off. Acting young and frivolous as if they were all kindergartners, and they suspect Noel to be the sort of woman who pins after younger men to feel better about herself. Needless to say, everyone was on guard the moment she walked in. Not one of them were amused by her antics.
Akiha had a slightly different reason for disliking Noel. There was just something about the woman that rubbed her the wrong way, and while the tall brunette does appear to be an incompetent woman that bore no actual threat to her, she still couldn't help but think that there was more to Noel than what meets the eye. It was the same kind of hunch she felt a while ago, when Akiha felt someone's eyes following her on her way to school.
She can't say the timing of this woman's appearance wasn't curious as well, especially with what's been going on in the last month. She hid her caution under a calm expression. Pulling back the strands of her dark hair over her shoulder.
"There's no need," Akiha answered. "Father's health had been deteriorating for some time now. There was ample time to prepare ourselves of the inevitable, so the grief lasted only a day or so."
"I see. What a mature young lady you are," Noel commended. "I don't mean to pry. It's just that I've noticed you leaving school earlier than most students here. I've heard it from the other teachers. You live off campus, yes? It must be straining having to keep that up routinely."
"It was by my father's request," Akiha said, and decided to put an end to the discussion with a turn of her heel. "Apologies, sensei. But I prefer if you do not speak of my personal matters regardless if they are discussed in private. If it does not concern my academics, then I shall be on my way. I'm sure you have other important business to attend to as well. Please take your job more seriously, and cease familiarizing yourself with your students. It's inappropriate."
It was short and swift, sharply spoken by the head and blade of the Tohno Family, and Akiha walked out of the classroom.
"W-Wait! Wait! Hold on a minute!" Noel nearly tripped behind her desk as she hurried after Akiha. She did not expect to be cut down so quickly like that. Usually students would shut up and pay attention when a professor is talking, not leave at their own accord. That was the beauty of power imbalance! At least, when it benefits Noel. Who does this girl think she is? Telling a teacher how to do her job. Noel felt pity that Shiki had to live with such a pompous sister.
Realizing that talking to the daughter of the Tohno family would be much more difficult than expected, the executor could only persist. The woman knew she must have looked foolish, chasing after this girl who remained composed and continuously ignoring the shouting Noel, getting curious glances from onlookers and even a few chuckles from passing students. But no matter how pathetic she may seem, Noel can't let this moment slip past her. And she refused to let herself lose to a rich brat like this. Noel's dignity was on the line at this point!
Akiha finally stopped, turning to the pursuing teacher. Noel was surprised by the girl's abrupt halt, and managed to keep herself from stumbling, her heeled shoes clicking soundly against the tiles beneath their feet as she stood in place. The woman took a deep breath and casually rested a hand over her hip, burying the desire to smack the Tohno girl in the head with a friendly smile.
"Now now. There's no need to be so stern. I'm just trying to help you," Noel said. "You should be careful going out by yourself. There hasn't been any new murders, but the killer themselves still hasn't been found. You never know who they might target next."
"I'm quite capable of handling myself," Akiha asserted. "And besides, the killer's only active during the night, yes? It's precisely why I should return home as soon as possible."
"That's true. Although, I wonder why you don't just move here with the rest of your classmates? It'll save you the trouble of travelling all the time," Noel countered. "Since your father's no longer around, you shouldn't have to keep respecting his wishes, even if it's to honor him. You should accommodate yourself to your best interest. Or, was there a reason he needed you at home?"
The woman certainly knew nothing of manners, especially for her to talk so idly of Akiha's deceased parent. Not that Akiha held that much affection for the man in discussion.
"It's not an issue of travelling. I've no objections to the accommodations I currently hold, since it allows me to oversee our estate now that father is no longer with us. I suggest you keep your 'concerns'-"
Curiosity more like.
"-to yourself. As I said before, my personal matters are not for you to look into. Nor do I think they're a well enough excuse to make your life more interesting. Let alone gain you any company who isn't a tasteless idiot."
This little bitch-! Noel's smile began to strain. She now seriously hoped that this girl was Roa's next host, just so she can have an excuse to kill her without facing repercussions.
"Now, if that is all you wanted to discuss. I will be on my way then." With that, Akiha resumed her walk down the hall.
Noel knew when she should cut her losses and keep her mouth shut. It was clear that the Tohno heiress wanted nothing to do with the new teacher. She was not falling for Noel's acts or pleasant attitudes. And so the wisest move to make would be to retreat, rethink her approach, and then try again tomorrow.
Noel was not a wise person.
"My my. Whoever you have waiting at home, they must be a real catch."
Akiha's footsteps slowed.
"Oh, now that I think about it, you have a brother, don't you? I overheard you talking about him with your friends." Letting her temper run her mouth, Noel added thoughtlessly with that ever friendly smile of hers. "I hope he's a bit warmer than his cold, mean sister is. Do you think he might like me if we met in person? Maybe I should stop by and say hello?"
It was as if the temperature in the room dropped to several degrees. Noel's smile of triumph started to dampen a little as she felt an inexplicable chill up her back. Wanting to rile Akiha up, Noel was going to mention that she was actually transferred from Souya High, and maybe had a close encounter with Shiki Tohno, and then play it off as "wouldn't it be funny if you two were related somehow? haha".
But she was unable to get that far the moment she saw Akiha turn one last time, and met that icy glare of the Tohno Family Heir. A glare that could compete with Ciel's at her most serious. The sort of glare one makes when they want someone in their sight to disappear.
Monster.
The brunette woman felt compelled to summon her polearm.
"Ms. Noel!"
Noel gasped at the sound of her name. She hadn't realized she'd been holding her breath. Her back felt sweaty as she quickly turned to the caller behind (Noel made sure to keep her back against the wall, so that she could still keep an eye on Akiha).
"There you are," a fellow educator presented himself, unknowingly cutting through the tension between the women. "What are you doing? You're needed at the staff room. I know this has only been your first week here, but we don't tolerate this sort of negligence."
"R-Right! I'm sorry! I'll get right on that, sir!" Noel changed tune immediately. Standing upright with her heels clicked together.
"And you really must do something about that hairdo of yours. And your keychain dangling outside your bag. You're representing the school. We can't have our students believe it's appropriate to dress or carry however they like."
"My hair-?! What-?! I mean-! Y-Yes sir!" With a short apologetic bow of her head, Noel was quick to depart down the hall, taking any excuse to get away from the terrifying presence of Akiha Tohno.
"What a handful. I appreciate her good spirit, though," the man said after a sigh. He acknowledged Akiha and gave her a nod, bidding her a good afternoon before heading back to the staff room as well.
Akiha watched as the woman practically ran with her tail between her legs. The girl clutched the school bag in her hands, and then resumed her walk down the hall.
Hm. Perhaps I'm giving her too much credit.
With how pathetically the new teacher retreated, she might just be an ordinary woman after all. No way related to the current invasive group that's come to Japan. Dismissing the notion of Noel being any sort of threat, Akiha simply made her way home. If Akiha is quick, she could be there prior to her brother's arrival. Just to see if he'll actually be home on time for once.
"How about it kids? You could make some pretty decent pocket money if you tell us what you saw in there."
"Ando-san. I don't believe it's appropriate to be bribing children in this manner," Ijichi expressed his thoughts as the man beside him acted like a sketchy salesman. They stood in front of a group of children, between the ages of ten and thirteen, who were exploring the hospital ruin in a 'test of bravery' right before the sun went down.
"Ah. You got a point there. You think candies might work better?"
"Respectfully, I believe that makes it worse." What would someone say if they saw grown men giving candies to random children near abandoned places?
Karius stood near the two men, observing the hospital building they were now a few feet away from. One of the children, a twelve-year old boy, replied brashly, "We were just messing around. We didn't really see anything in there."
"Yeah. We just heard a noise and started running," another boy said. "We didn't even get that far inside."
"Uhuh..." Ando said, as he looked at another child. The youngest of their group who had his head lowered, obviously avoiding eye-contact as he gripped the ends of his striped shirt. It's possible that not all these boys can see curses, but that's not to say that all of them couldn't.
"There is still someone inside," Karius suddenly informed, not turning away from the hospital.
"Hm?" Ando looked back at the man.
"Ah-! There is?" Ijichi did not like the sound of that, looking at the hospital as well, worriedly now.
It was then that one of the children looked around himself. "Huh. Now that the sleepy guy mentioned it, I don't see Haruki anywhere."
"Did he stay behind?" One of the eldest children asked.
"Maybe he's hoping he'll see that girl with the blue hair again," another boy said.
"No way! He totally made her up. Just like when he made up those 'ghosts' he saw."
"Eh? Blue hair?" Ijichi and Ando picked that up. The nervous man in spectacles was the one to inquire first, "Um, excuse me, but did this young lady had a name?"
"He didn't say, just that she had glasses and was a high school student," the thirteen-year old boy answered.
That certainly sounds like Ciel-san... Ijichi thought to himself, having heard of her glasses-wearing disguise from Nanami, the same way Clark Kent wears his. He caught Ando's understanding look as they turned back to the ruins once more.
"...Reinforcements are on their way," Ijichi informed. "However, their main focus will be quarantining the area before sending someone inside."
"Our agent will receive word of this soon enough," Karius said. "She'll be here in a flash. The only question remaining is if the news will reach her on time-"
It was then that a young boy's scream broke through the air, and the men flinched upon hearing it.
"That's Haruki!" The boys behind them shouted.
"M-Maybe he got scared by an animal? A rat, maybe?" The twelve-year old boy suggested, and then spotted their youngest friend suddenly trembling. "Hey, are you okay?"
Ando observed the scared child behind him. The child appearing to understand what that scream meant, and was on the brink of tears as if he had something tearing through his heart, wanting to come out, but couldn't out of fear of being judged or childish.
He stopped his shivering when he felt a hand placed over his head.
"You're worried that we might not believe you, aren't you?"
The youngest looked up to see Ando's calm stare.
"Or - maybe you're more worried that you'll be run out of town if you tell anyone, huh? Just cause you see something others don't, or want to." There was familiarity in his voice as Ando patted the child's head. "Don't worry. We work in a business that handles this kind of stuff all the time. You don't need to say anything, I hear you loud and clear."
The child looked ready to cry, this time in relief as Ando retreated his hand and approached the building.
"Hold it there, hero."
He grabbed Ijichi's shoulder as the spectacled man was about to climb through the open window.
"Now I'm pretty sure as a sorcerer assistant, you're not exactly experienced in dealing with curses face to face."
"Um, well... no." Had life worked out differently, Ijichi would have been down that path. "However, I am a fighter."
"Sure buddy, sure," Ando totally believed that as he patted Ijichi's shoulder. "And I have a gun. So, the way I see, we get in, scope out a few things, and then get out. Quick and simple. Absolutely no hard labor needs to be involved. Best of all, we're not walking into the heart of the nest and the sun is still out - even if it is just setting."
"Are you sure that is wise?" Karius said, though the man was already adjusting his brown gloves, a faint fragrance of holy magic emanating from them. "From what I understood, sorcerer-assistants are not meant to fight. Moreover, what do we hope to gain out of this?"
"For starters, this guy was planning on going in whether we're with him or not. Can't exactly let him fend for himself on good conscience, and figured it's the least we can do for all the trouble our Church put him and his school through." Ando laid a hand on his holster, where he touched the grip of his weapon. He ushered Ijichi to step back, and he took lead in climbing through the window, stepping onto the frame
"Plus, he doesn't need to fight," Ando said. "He just needs to be our eyes. I'm sure it's just a couple of stragglers anyway. Or what do you call them? Fly Heads? Heh. That'd be a lucky break, wouldn't it?"
"-These are a hell of a lot bigger than flies!"
Ando pulled the trigger of his pistol repeatedly, blowing apart another curse at its swallow of his blessed bullet.
The three men ran down the hallway of the hospital ruins as they were chased down by curses of all sizes. They were within a corridor on the upper floor, in the middle of the building, meaning no windows to jump out of. Ijichi was carrying the rescued child as Ando and Karius provided him cover, together racing for the nearest stairwell, which they were able to find.
Karius's gloved hands glowed, a white flame of holy magic erupted, and he pulled his hand back, clenching it into a fist. A manifestation of a sword was conjured, and he fired it at an approaching curse the size of a bull. The sword successfully pierced through the curse, as well as a few others behind it.
"The things I do just to be a decent Catholic. Worst of all is that you don't even get a reward after this!" Ando quickly reloaded his pistol as he rushed down the stairs. It was that moment that a curse slithered out from the wall, appearing from his read. "Oh cra-!"
There was a physical strike from a small entity against the curse. A single smack at its face, and that was all the distraction Ando needed for him to finish reloading and fired his weapon. "A familiar?"
"My shikigami," Ijichi revealed under his breath, adjusting his hold of the frightened child as he resumed down the steps. "Apologies, it's not that useful in a fight."
"It sure saved my skin good enough! Appreciate the help."
"You're welcome. Please praise me a little more."
"Huh? Sorry. I didn't hear that last part."
"We're almost to the exit - is what I was saying."
The men made haste to reach the last floor, and spotted the fire exit. However, Karius looked at it once, and then outstretched his hand. "Hold a moment."
He unleashed another holy rite and fired the sword from his hand, piercing the floor ahead of them. The floor burst into white flames, and the curses that were hiding underneath the broken tiles were forced out, burning and screaming nonsensical phrases repeatedly. "-I neeeed mmmmore sssssedates!" "Th-There'ssss nooo p-puuulse!"
"Well! There goes our exit." Ando had to ridicule their own luck, and then turned to another doorway, leading back into the hospital, but a better chance to break out through a window on the first floor now. He whistled to the other men to follow and they did so.
They fought their way through curses, successfully keeping many at bay, until there was only an empty hallway they arrive to. The men took this time to breath, holding themselves up by the wall - apart from Karius who was calm as usual.
After getting their stamina back somewhat, Ando stood up from the floor. Scratching his head with his palm. "Looks like we've kept them back for now. Geez this place stinks. Not surprising for an old vampire's base-"
In his slight lean, he accidentally pushes open an already ajar, two-way door.
"-!"
He stood in place as he looked inside. "...Huh."
Ijichi had set down the child when he noticed Ando's reaction, and he approached the man from behind. "What's wrong?"
Karius noticed the particular disturbed expression written all over Ando's face, and he too went to see. Together, they looked over the brown-haired man's shoulders, and froze.
Inside appeared to be the cafeteria area, and within the cafeteria was a horde.
Countless numbers of rotting corpses stood like mannequins, filling up the whole room. Curses leeched off of their withered bodies, with more floating idly floating.
If not for the warding protection spell Karius had casted over them, the sort of spell that could hide their presence from weak-leveled enemies, the men would have been spotted right away. It was the sort of spell used when they tread into this place, hoping to find the lost child and escape without being spotted once, but upon finding the little boy and seeing him about to be skewered by one of the curses, they had no choice but to attack, drawing attention to themselves.
Here, that was no longer an issue. And so, at the sight of absolute dread, as well as the source of this putrid smell, Ando slowly closes the cafeteria door. "...I'm pretty sure our executor would have noticed this."
Which certainly confirms that something happened after she left here.
"Well. At least we covered the investigation part. Easy job. Right? Easy. So... let's just ease our way out of this place, calmly, and without making too much noise."
And so they did, through the windows, and left the hospital area without looking back once, practically dashing down the hill while Ijichi made sure the curtain would stay up.
"You really had us worried Haruki!" One of the boys said. "But I guess you won the bravery test, alright. We'll try an abandoned park next."
Everyone stood outside the entire lot as the children reprimand their foolish friend. Ando and Ijichi had their hands on the ground, gasping for air after leaving the area in such a hurry. Karius remained unfazed next to them.
"Gasps... Gasps... How about... you kids... find new hobbies instead?" Ando was the one say this between breaths, pulling himself back up with a stretch and sound pop of his back. "Like... the Arcade?"
"Erm, by chance, this blue-haired young lady your friends mentioned, was she wielding long black swords?" Ijichi asked the rescued boy.
The young boy nodded, fidgeting his hands together. "Yes. They were really cool. I... was hoping that, maybe I could see her again, if I go through places like this some more. I figured it'd be alright."
"What makes you so sure?" Karius asked the boy.
"Cause she'd be around to save me," the boy simply answered.
The three men stared at the child.
Ando rubbed his own face, wiping off the sweat from himself. "Kid. Don't you know you're not supposed to be adventuring through dangerous places like this? You've seen those ghosts, yeah?
"Y-Yeah."
"Then you really should just stay clear of spooky buildings from now on," Ando crouched with his head slumped between his shoulders. "You're kind of making her efforts useless by doing that."
"O-Oh... Sorry."
Although the boy learned his lesson, the men had made a disturbing discovery within that hospital wing. A rare sight of both groups of natural enemies mingling together, as if they were one.
I'm really regretting moving back to Japan, Ando complained to himself, mentally adding this instance to the list. He knew there was going to be a lot of paperwork involved too. Just whose cereal did he piss in to get this kind of bad luck?
Author's Note:
Fun Fact: Was gonna add in another romantic scene between Yuuji and Ciel at the end because this is basically a fluff arc now, buuut then this idea came and now we're heading for a cool fight scene next chapter! I can finally show off Ciel and Yuuji's teamwork! Lets see if their training is paying off so far - well Yuuji's anyway.
I swear I did not intend this to happen, but it pretty much fits the pattern Tsukihime and Jujutsu Kaisen has. If something pleasant is happening, usually there's something bad coming after that. I don't think the 'bad' thing will happen here, but it goes to show that they can't always have it easy. At least the two strongest adults are around.
While I had an idea of Megumi and Nobara coming in and answering the call, I think it'd be decided by everyone at Jujutsu High to have Gojo and Nanami, along with Ciel (and secretly Yuuji as well, you'll find out how they'll sneak him in next chapter lol) deal with the lair not knowing if the Dead Apostle is inside or not. They don't want a repeat of the Detention Center Incident now.
While we haven't seen much of Karius and Ando and what they can do (apart from wiki saying that Ando wields a gun), I like the idea of Karius being the mage/swordsman while Ando is the Archer/Rogue, and Ijichi being a Paladin/Bard, mostly focusing on passive effects rather than offensive (with no healing ability).
It's pretty evident that Nasu has plans for the abandoned hospital in the Tsukihime Remake, with Shiki having been in the middle of whatever happened there, only for him not to remember it either to push back the trauma, or because he was brainwashed by Makihisa into forgetting. I personally think Dr. Arach had a part in it, if not the vampire who ran the entire hospital. She is a doctor, and with Red Garden coming up, it's the perfect opportunity to fully flesh out her character and we'll finally get some answers as to who the heck she is. What her connection is to the Tohno Family, and etc.
It could be SHIKI though, but I would think it'd be safer to keep him at the house to keep him restrained, but who knows? Maybe they did decide to take him to the hospital, only for him to wake up and bite everyone into becoming undead, and that's when they had to restrain him, with the underground school being the closest spot they could take him. Like, it wasn't enough that he nearly killed Akiha and Shiki, huh? He had to kill a bunch of other people too.
Since there's not a lot of information about what the heck went on before and after Ciel investigated the abandoned hospital, I have free reign to decide what to do with it! I hope you enjoyed this build-up chapter, cause we're about to have some action in this Two-Months Training Arc.
See ya next time! (Going on a break to cool the engines in my head. Later!)