CHAPTER 328: OLD ’NEW’ ENEMY

The fallen angel looked absolutely terrified right now with his whole body trembling like a leaf caught in a storm.

His eyes were wide, pupils shrinking to tiny dots, and his face was drained of all color as if every drop of blood had abandoned him. He looked exactly like someone who had just stared death in the face... and realized death was staring back.

I’m going to get killed...! I’m going to get killed...! I’m going to get killed...! I’m going to get killed...! I’m going to get killed...! I’m going to get killed...! I’m going to get killed...! I’m going to get killed...!

The words echoed over and over inside his head, pounding against his skull until they were all he could hear. His breathing was quick and shallow, his chest rising and falling in panicked bursts. At this point, there wasn’t a damn thing he could do.

If he didn’t somehow calm this monster down right now, his head was going to end up rolling on the ground.

"I-I really don’t know who you’re talking about!" he shouted, voice cracking under the weight of his fear. "I’ve never even heard that name before! If you’re saying it when they’re pretending to be normal, then there’s no way I could know who they are!"

Kouhei’s eyes stayed fixed on him, sharp and unblinking. The fallen angel looked cornered—like a rat trapped in a cage, thrashing around with no way out. He clearly had no options left and was just spitting out whatever might save his skin.

Not that it mattered. Fallen angels weren’t exactly known for knowing Yui anyway.

"Please, let me go!" he begged, desperation dripping from every word. "If you let me go, I’ll find that person for you! I’m a fallen angel—I can track them down easily!" His mouth was trembling so much that his words were broken by spits of saliva flying from his lips. His eyes darted frantically, searching for any hint of mercy.

Kouhei stood there for a moment, as if considering it.

"You’re dumb for thinking I would!"

The fallen angel lunged at him without hesitation, his whole body springing forward like a last-ditch gamble for survival—

"Nghh?!"

—but he didn’t even get to feel it. It was too fast. There was no pain, no time to react, and no chance to register what had just happened.

His head was already severed from his body.

For a brief, pitiful moment, his hands twitched upward, as if trying to catch his falling head before it hit the ground. But gravity didn’t care. The head dropped with a heavy thud, and his body crumpled right after, lifeless.

The kill was clean, quick and brutal in its efficiency. Just like before.

Kouhei’s gaze lingered on the fallen angel for a few seconds before the corpse began to glow with an unnatural dark light. In an instant, the body dissolved into nothing, swallowed whole by the darkness, leaving no trace behind.

That’s when it hit him.

"?!"

The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. Someone was watching him.

He whipped his head toward the direction of that unseen gaze, sharp and alert—but the instant he did, the feeling vanished.

As if whoever it was had frozen the moment they realized he’d caught them.

"...Was that just... my imagination?" Kouhei wondered, his voice low.

No. He was sure of it. That kind of presence wasn’t something you could just imagine—it was too real, too sharp, and too there. But the way it disappeared the second he noticed... it sent a creeping unease through him, like cold water running down his spine.

The tension sat heavy in his chest, making it hard to think straight.

Still, lingering here wasn’t smart. For now, he turned away from the scene and started heading back to Chihiro.

***

Far away, hidden in a place even Kouhei couldn’t detect, a woman stood watching. She was the same woman who had been with Takahashi earlier.

From the start, she knew Takahashi’s intentions because... well, his eyes had made it obvious he wanted to bed her. She didn’t give a damn. All she cared about was having him buy her a good meal. But then she saw Kouhei earlier, and everything shifted. Something about him made her pause. She swore she’d seen him somewhere before.

And on top of that, she had already started digging into someone connected to Takahashi’s school. And that made her curiosity more pronounced.

When she got a clearer look at Kouhei, watching him effortlessly handle a fallen angel, realization clicked in her mind.

That boy... was probably the Child of Anti-Prophecy.

"I didn’t think he’d turn out like this," she murmured with a crooked smile. "At first, he looked pathetic—like some weak kid—but now... he’s a total hottie. Is that what happens when you’re part demon? Or maybe he’s already fully turned into one?"

She wasn’t just some bystander. She was one of the demon hunters who had attacked the Sarushima Mansion back then.

"I heard he clashed with Souichiro of the Great House of Sarushima in a faction war—and actually won. I thought it was bullshit at first. But after seeing him slice through that fallen angel like it was nothing... yeah. I can believe it now. Even if it still sounds crazy, there’s no way I can deny it anymore."

A laugh slipped from her lips, low and amused.

"Still... the fact that he felt my gaze, even when I was hiding and masking my presence—that’s impressive. I didn’t expect that at all." She ran her tongue slowly across her lips, eyes glinting. "I’m not gonna risk ambushing you here. Alone, I wouldn’t stand a chance. But an entire division of demon hunters? That’d be a different story."

Her expression softened into something more curious, almost playful.

"...Hmm. But damn... he’s hot. I didn’t think I’d be saying this, but yeah—he’s that hot." She tilted her head, half in thought, half in intrigue. "Did I just find the love of my life? My first love? ...Well, I guess time’s the only one who can answer that. For now... I’ll just keep watching."

She turned and began walking away.

A sudden ringtone broke the silence.

She slipped her hand into her pocket, pulled out her phone, and glanced at the caller ID. Her father. She didn’t bother answering.

The moment she ended the call, her phone’s wallpaper lit up—a picture of her hugging a young woman.

To her, that girl was more precious than anything else in the world. Her little sister.

If Kouhei—or even Takahashi—saw that photo, they’d recognize the girl instantly. It was only natural. She was their classmate, after all.

Ichinose Hiyori.

"Hiyori-chan’s still depressed... I’ve gotta find something that’ll make her smile again. If I can’t... then onee-chan will be... sad," she whispered to herself.

***

Kouhei finally made it back to the Saionji Mansion, the weight of the day pressing down on his shoulders like a boulder.

Chihiro eased the car to a smooth stop in front of the mansion’s gates, the engine humming quietly before she shifted into park. Kouhei opened the door, stepping out into the cool air of the evening.

"I’m going to head home now, Kouhei-sama," Chihiro said, her voice calm and composed, yet carrying that subtle warmth she always seemed to have when speaking to him.

"You can stay here, you know?" Kouhei offered, glancing at her from over his shoulder.

"It’s fine," she replied, giving him a small, polite smile. "Besides, I don’t want to bother you too much."

He almost wanted to laugh at that. She bother him? Not at all. If anything, it felt like he was the one constantly leaning on her for help. Still, if she saw it that way, there wasn’t much he could do to change her mind.

Even now, it was hard for him to wrap his head around the fact that a woman like Chihiro—mature, capable, and far more experienced—was helping him like this, almost as if she were his personal attendant. He never wanted to treat this like some master–subordinate relationship... but sometimes, that’s exactly how it felt.

Well, calling her "older" was a little misleading. She was a demon—someone who had been alive for far longer than he could imagine—yet she looked like she was in her mid-twenties, her beauty untouched by time. Her face was smooth, her posture elegant, her presence commanding yet gentle. Still, appearance-wise, she was older than Kouhei, and the idea of having a woman like her follow him around like a subordinate was... a little embarrassing.

But then again, that was her role. She was his subordinate, and she was simply carrying out his orders.

"Thank you again, Chihiro-san," Kouhei said, his voice carrying genuine gratitude.

"There’s no problem at all," she answered with a faint smile. "If you need my help, I’ll come to you again."

With that, she turned the wheel, the car rolling smoothly down the driveway before disappearing into the street.

Kouhei stood there for a moment, letting the silence settle before heading inside. He was dead tired. Every muscle in his body ached, and his mind felt heavy. All he wanted now was a hot bath to melt away the exhaustion clinging to him.

He grabbed some clean clothes from his room, rubbing his neck as he made his way toward the bathroom. He was so worn out that he didn’t even notice the faint glow of light spilling out from the thin gap at the bottom of the bathroom door—a quiet warning that someone was already inside.

Without a second thought, he reached for the handle and pushed the door open.

In his defense, the door wasn’t locked. And in his current state, it felt natural to assume that an unlocked door meant no one was using it.

But the moment the door swung inward, his fatigue evaporated like steam.

What he saw made him freeze in place.

Kozue was inside—completely naked—her bare skin glistening under the soft light as steam curled and drifted around her. Droplets of water rolled down her body in slow, shimmering trails as she ran her hands over her curves, washing herself without realizing she now had an audience. The scent of soap and warm water filled the air, mingling with the faint heat of the bath, wrapping the small space in a haze that made it hard to think straight.

Kouhei’s breath caught in his throat.