Chapter 182: The Kimono Cat Girl Who Came to Spy—Kuroka
Koneko was particularly agitated right now.
She was like a cat with its fur standing on end, bristling all over.
The reason for her current state was the sudden appearance of someone entirely unexpected—a woman wearing a black kimono.
This woman bore a striking resemblance to her in facial features, like a grown-up, mature version of Koneko. The only differences were her black hair and the cat ears on her head.
These cat ears weren't decorative accessories but genuine cat ears, as the woman was a member of the Nekomata clan.
More importantly, this woman was her older sister.
She never expected her sister to come looking for her.
Her sister, after all, was listed as an SS-level dangerous fugitive for killing the High-Class Devil who had adopted the two sisters.
After the murder, she fled alone, leaving Koneko behind, who nearly faced punishment.
Fortunately, Koneko was saved and adopted by Rias.
"What are you doing here!!!"
"Of course, I came to see my long-lost little sister, meow~"
The kimono-clad woman—Kuroka Toujou—responded by playfully making a cat-paw gesture.
However, her little sister showed no joy at seeing her long-separated older sister. Instead, she glared at her with anger.
Kuroka knew why.
Back then, when she killed the High-Class Devil who had adopted the two sisters, there were actually other hidden circumstances.
In reality, the so-called adoption was merely because they saw the exceptional potential of the sisters as Nekomata.
After Kuroka displayed this ability, the other party also set their sights on the younger sister.
Kuroka couldn't stand idly by, as this power was also dangerous.
Her parents had died in an accident while researching this power, and Kuroka didn't feel much sorrow over their deaths because they had never treated them as children but rather as experimental materials.
The high-class devil who later adopted them was actually the one who had sponsored their parents' research into the Nekomata's power.
So, Kuroka gradually sensed her power going out of control, and upon discovering that the other party intended to lay hands on her younger sister as well, her power ran wild and she killed the high-class devil.
As for why she fled alone without taking Koneko—or rather, Shirone Toujou, which was Koneko's real name—the reason she didn't bring her younger sister along was that Kuroka couldn't control her power at the time and was in a state prone to rampage.
She was afraid she might accidentally kill her younger sister, which is why she fled alone.
Shirone, unaware of the truth, harbored such anger toward her because of this.
No, perhaps Shirone had some inkling of the truth, but she couldn't accept being abandoned by her.
"Hurry up and leave here!!!"
Koneko once again spoke in an icy voice.
Regarding the events of that year, Buchou had actually investigated to some extent, so Koneko also knew some of the truth.
Her older sister might have left her behind to protect her back then.
But that was precisely what made Koneko so angry. They had promised to face everything together, no matter what happened, and that her sister would always keep her by her side—yet she had abandoned her just like that.
Afterward, it seemed her sister had also done many terrible things, as if she had completely fallen into darkness, which saddened Koneko deeply.
So, why had her sister come here at this time?
It certainly wasn't to see her, the younger sister. Most likely, it was related to the Three Factions Summit, or perhaps even that person.
Therefore, Koneko was very worried that her sister might offend him, which could lead to her being killed.
"Really, being so eager to drive your sister away breaks my heart, meow~"
As soon as she finished speaking, Koneko grabbed her sister's hand and headed toward the old school building's classroom.
Because her sister was too conspicuous here, she could easily be noticed by other students, drawing the attention of Rias-senpai and the others.
At this time, the old school building would be empty.
Although the Occult Research Club was located in the old school building area, and the cowardly vampire was usually there, the old school building was large, and they were heading to a rarely visited spot.
Besides, Gasper was forced to attend classes and wasn't in the old school building at the moment.
Everyone was in class and not in the old school building; they would only gather at the Occult Research Club in the old school building in the afternoon.
Opening the door to an abandoned clubroom whose past purpose was unknown, she pulled her sister inside.
"Sister, what exactly are you trying to do?"
"What am I trying to do, meow? Alright, I'll tell you. Don't get worked up—I'm just investigating this man."
Kuroka pulled a photo from her chest, and seeing her younger sister's pupils contract sharply, she found the reaction interesting.
"No, you absolutely cannot investigate him!"
"Why, meow?"
"Sister, if you don't want to die, absolutely do not investigate him, do not offend him!!!"
Koneko's voice carried a sense of urgency.
"So then, Shirone, what do you know? Tell your sister, so I don't have to risk my life investigating~"
These words made the adorable younger sister bite her lip tightly and glare fiercely at her.
"Well then, who exactly is he, meow? Just tell your sister~"
As she said this, Kuroka leisurely sat on the podium, casually swinging her plump legs.
Her unhurried demeanor made her younger sister even more anxious.
So, just who is this man?
If you offend him, you'll die?
How could her younger sister be so sure that even with her High-class Devil power, she would die?
Could this person be connected to the abnormal Demon God Bael who severely injured Vali?
After all, the intelligence about this person seems quite relevant.
The first place he appeared was the country where King Solomon's sacred coffin had an accident, and it was also heard that Solomon's ring was stolen.
Moreover, she also learned that King Solomon had once planned to deify the Seventy-Two Pillars of Demons, elevating them to Demon Gods, and the ring was a related special Sacred Gear containing a portion of the former Seventy-Two Pillars of Demons' power.
So, was this ring taken by someone to create the Demon God Bael?
And this person is the man in the photo?
But it's also strange—if she could investigate this far, the church and angels should be able to uncover this too, so why is there no movement?
This suggests the church must know who he is, hence the lack of special action.
Just as the sisters were conversing, less than five meters away from them, people were actually present.
It's just that magic camouflage was used here, making them invisible to the sisters.
These two people also maintained their previous surprised posture, as any significant movement might alert the sisters.
Originally, there was a barrier that completely blocked all sounds, but after Rias concealed her presence, he removed it.
But then an unexpected situation occurred—someone approached, so a simple camouflage magic was temporarily deployed, preventing any major movements.
Thus, they remained in the position where Rias had stumbled over and released something, maintaining close visual contact.
Witnessing that something changing, Rias couldn't help but curl her lips into what seemed like a seductive smile.
She had thought he would be as ascetic as angels.
Yet in this situation, under her charm, he couldn't control himself.
So, she couldn't resist mischievously reaching out to tease him, as payback for him teasing her earlier.