About ten minutes after Rokou had departed, a few figures began to appear near the site of the ghoul's corpse.
They were all clad in raincoats, and occasional flashes of lightning revealed glimpses of their faces.
All of them were women, each with distinct features. Their faces suggested they were young—not much older than high school age.
"President, it looks like we're a little late," one of the girls said. Beneath the brim of her raincoat, a few strands of black hair framed her face, which bore the soft, delicate lines characteristic of an East Asian beauty.
Her eyes sparkled like a shaft of morning light through the forest, clear and bright. Her skin, like the first petals of a flower, was pale with a faint blush of pink.
"It's obvious… and the wounds are precise. Clean cuts. Whoever did this is clearly skilled with a sword," another girl remarked, crouching down to examine the now-cold, mutilated body.
To her eyes, what might have made an ordinary person shudder—the deep, fatal cuts—looked as simple and ordinary as grass growing along a roadside.
"I wonder… who could have done this?"
"Unlikely to be the White Pigeons among humans. They aren't strong individually and always operate in groups. Even if they killed these ghouls, they would only secure the scene and call in their support teams to handle the bodies. So, it's probably an exorcist or a sorcerer."
"Rias… wasn't there news recently of Fallen Angels sneaking in? Perhaps it was one of their detached exorcists," the first girl suggested.
This girl was Himejima Junno. She, along with the girl named Rias, were students at Ku Wang Academy. On the surface, ordinary high school girls—but in reality, they were demons concealing their true identities.
Unlike the bloodthirsty devils in movies and TV, today's demons appeared human, blending seamlessly into society while maintaining a magical hierarchy far beyond ordinary humans.
Demons, Fallen Angels, Angels, and some human factions—all shared control over this world, dividing power among themselves.
Ku Wang City was part of demon territory, ruled by Rias Gremory, heiress of the pure-blood Gremory family. Assisting her in governing the city were her loyal followers.
"The ghouls were chased here and killed. The killer is incredibly skilled. The battle barely affected the surrounding environment," said Tatsuji Kotone, expressionless as always.
The white-haired girl, who had been crouched over the corpse, was smaller than both Junno and Rias, appearing almost like a middle school student.
"There's no trace of Holy attributes… probably not an exorcist," muttered the only male in the group, Kiba Yuto, scratching his head.
"Since we can't identify the culprit, let's head back for now. At least from what we can tell, they don't seem to harbor malice toward ordinary humans," Rias said, rising with a slightly troubled expression.
In recent years, the number of rogue demons, ghouls, and exorcists had steadily increased. This didn't even include other monsters born from humans, like cursed spirits or malicious entities.
Attacks like these kept occurring periodically, leaving Rias exhausted. If it weren't for the assistance from the human factions, managing such a large city with just her and her small group of followers would have been impossible.
Ku Wang Academy's Supernatural Research Club served as their base of operations.
"Rias, I have a guess about the ghoul we found dead earlier… I think we might know the culprit," Junno said, back at the club, towel-drying her damp hair after a shower.
At that moment, an image came to mind for Rias.
"You mean that transfer student… Rokou?" she asked, glancing back, her crimson hair swaying elegantly in the breeze.
Her long, red hair fell past her waist, contrasting beautifully with her snow-white skin. Beneath her school uniform skirt, her legs were flawless—fit, toned, and free of imperfection, clearly showing signs of physical training.
Hearing the name made Rias feel a strange mix of emotions, recalling the first time she had learned of him.
"Back when he was in the Kendo Club, didn't Kiba Yuto face Rokou in a match? After about five or six rounds, Yuto ended up losing to him," Junno said, her voice tinged with admiration.
"Yuto's skill was well-known… yet in the end, he lost."
"If not for that match, I wouldn't have even known someone like him existed in this school," Junno added.
"And Rias, you even tried to recruit him into your group back then. Do you remember what he said?"
Junno asked.
"Of course I remember… 'A true man never bows to others,'" Rias replied.
When Rias first heard that from Tatsuji, she had been utterly stunned. It was the first time someone had rejected her in such a way.