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The Occult Research Club's once-lively reception room was now much quieter.
On the couch, Rias still sat there, one leg crossed over the other, an arm draped on the sofa's back. She angled her head downward, gaze fixed on her toes, quietly lost in thought.
A moment ago, she'd told Bokue and Akeno to go out shopping for suitable gifts—some token to bring to the Underworld. But she'd been a bit torn about it.
They'd parted only minutes before, yet in her mind, she could already see the entire scenario: Akeno liked Bokue.
As Rias's close friend for years, Rias was well aware how Akeno felt. An expression, a sigh, a tiny action—Rias could read them all easily. So she knew, deep down, that letting them go off together was basically giving them space to talk things out.
It was her small, guilty concession. She'd snatched him away first, after all—like cutting in line. This was the least she could do for Akeno.
Even so, it still gave her a faint pang of discomfort…
Thinking back to yesterday afternoon in that hotel room with Bokue, then imagining Akeno possibly going through the exact same motions, Rias involuntarily bit her lip.
For all she knew, at that very moment, they might be in some big cozy bed… Mm!
That sudden notion made her shoulders twitch—familiar sparks, like a tiny electric current, rippled through her body.
Wait—this feeling again…?
How? She'd only gotten it from Bokue's direct touch. He wasn't even here right now, so why…?
She realized with dismay that just 'imagining' certain scenarios about him triggered these bizarre sensations. Her nerves felt raw, the memory from the day before refusing to let her settle down.
The more she tried forcing herself to stay calm, the more her mind strayed to Bokue and Akeno's potential "Activities"… and the more flustered her body became.
A vicious cycle, looping endlessly.
Enduring for a while with no relief, Rias finally propped herself up off the couch. Struggling to keep her tone steady, she turned to Asia and Koneko, who sat across from her—Asia on one sofa, Koneko munching a snack on the other.
"Sorry, Asia, Koneko—I'm feeling a bit tired. Gonna head upstairs for some rest. If anything comes up, just call me, okay?"
"Mm."
Koneko gave a small nod to show she understood.
Asia looked worried. "Are you sure you're all right, Rias? If you don't mind, I can try healing you."
"N-no, that's not it… I'm just tired, that's all. Thanks anyway, Asia."
Rias smiled gently, waving off the offer, then left the reception room. Gripping the banister, she went upstairs step by step.
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Meanwhile—
at a nearby supermarket in the student district, Bokue and Akeno wandered among aisle after aisle. They'd taken on the chore of picking out gifts for the Underworld—Rias would reimburse them. But first, they had to figure out what they should buy, which wasn't straightforward.
After all, Bokue had never gone to the Underworld before and had no clue about its local culture. So in the end, it fell to Akeno to make the final decisions, while Bokue was on cart duty, pushing along a shopping cart so she could toss things in.
It did look suspiciously like a newlywed couple stocking groceries…
"Hey, Akeno—how about we buy this?"
Stopping in front of a display shelf, Bokue took down a packaged fugu (pufferfish) meal kit.
His logic was simple: Gifts for the in-laws often meant local specialties, usually culinary. But they'd travel in a few days, so fresh produce or meat wasn't practical.
Something that'd last, like meal kits, might be best. Next to the fugu sets were eel rice kits, sea urchin sets, etc. If Akeno agreed, he planned to grab a full assortment.
When he turned back, though, Akeno was gone from his side—she'd drifted further down an aisle to some kitchenware shelves, standing in front of a row of cups and mugs.
"…What's up, Akeno—planning to buy these?"
Pushing the cart over, Bokue gave a passing glance around the racks, confusion evident.
"No, I was just looking…"
Akeno's voice was soft. She shook her head but picked up a thermos shaped like a bamboo tube.
"What do you think of this, Bokue?"
"…What do I think?"
He eyed the bamboo-like thermos.
It reminded him of mankind's "back-to-nature" aesthetic: after mass-producing sturdy steel flasks, people realized they missed the simpler "bamboo cups" from ancient times. So someone invented a metal thermos in the shape of bamboo—an odd fusion of past and present. Bokue himself wasn't sure he liked or hated it, but using a thermos as a gift?
Given Rias's usual style—straight out of some elaborate European setting—would a "traditional Eastern bamboo thermos" come off strange as an Underworld present?
He was still pondering that question when Akeno turned her face toward him again, speaking in a quiet, almost mournful tone:
"If we carved the word 'HANA' (Flower) here, wouldn't it look just like the one you gave me back then?"
"…?!"
Those simple, hushed words struck him like thunder. Bokue's expression went from puzzled, to suspicious, to shocked in the space of a moment.
Watching the cascade of emotions flit across his face, Akeno's own beautiful yet weary face took on a pained sadness.
"…So why can't you remember? I've been waiting—waiting for you to realize on your own."
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