Chapter 4
First Day as a Kuoh Academy Student!
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Araki was tidying his books at his desk. It was break time, and the classroom was emptying as his classmates went out for fresh air or to the academy cafeteria.
Araki, however, had no intention of leaving the classroom and decided to stay in. But suddenly, Issei appeared at the classroom door, walking toward him with two other young men at his side.
"Yo, Araki! Let me introduce you to my friends. This is Motohama, and this is Matsuda." Issei said enthusiastically, gesturing to his two friends beside him.
"Yo, I'm Motohama. Nice to meet you" The bespectacled young man said with equal enthusiasm, introducing himself as Motohama.
The young man with glasses greeted Araki warmly, making him feel genuinely happy to have a friend after such a long time. Although Motohama's appearance wasn't particularly impressive, Araki was willing to befriend anyone.
"And I'm Matsuda." Said the short-haired dude standing beside him, introducing himself as Matsuda.
The young man standing next to Motohama had short hair and eyes that appeared slightly narrower than those of the other students.
He was grinning widely at him, making Araki even more pleased. Not only had he made two new friends, but he'd also gained a companion who promised to be a lot of fun.
Araki immediately stood up and shook hands with Matsuda and Motohama, despite the sharp glares from the female students who happened to be in the classroom.
Araki was now aware that the female students seemed displeased with his growing friendship with Issei, Motohama, and Matsuda, but he had no idea why they harbored such animosity toward the trio.
"Hello, Motohama and Matsuda. My name is Kazuma Araki. I hope we can become good friends!" Araki replied warmly, flashing a wide smile at his new friends.
Much to Araki's surprise, Motohama and Matsuda suddenly grinned widely at him, making him feel slightly uneasy. And sure enough, in the blink of an eye, Issei swiftly grabbed Araki's hand and hurriedly pulled him out of the classroom.
"Hey, Issei! Where are you taking me?" Araki asked, bewildered and startled as Issei dragged him out of the classroom.
"Just be quiet, Araki." Issei interrupted quickly, a sinister grin spreading across his face. "We're taking you somewhere for something really fun."
"For some reason, I have a bad feeling about this." Araki murmured, his expression growing increasingly worried. He sensed that something terrible would happen if he let Issei drag him away.
"Relax, buddy. You're gonna love it." Motohama said with a wide grin, only intensifying Araki's discomfort.
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(Timeskip.)
"Damn, that hurts like hell." Issei groaned, his voice thick with pain. He was rubbing his bruised cheek.
Currently, Issei, Araki, Motohama, and Matsuda were in the back side of the Occult Research Club building, having been chased there by several angry girls after the trio was caught peeping on them while they were changing.
Fortunately, Araki hadn't followed through with his friends' perverted plan, which spared him from the beating that Issei, Matsuda, and Motohama endured.
Araki couldn't help but burst into laughter when he saw Issei's face covered in bruises. The three of them were truly foolish perverts. They even had the audacity to peep on the female students in the Judo club—a suicidal act, really.
"Didn't I tell you? That's way too dangerous. And why are you three so obsessed with girls' breasts?" Araki teased his three friends, occasionally bursting into laughter.
"Don't laugh at me, man! Besides, we only joined this academy for this reason!" Issei snapped back, his frustration palpable.
But then, Araki stopped laughing when he saw Issei, Motohama, and Matsuda in such a miserable state. He couldn't help them at all, as their predicament was entirely their own doing. He could only shake his head slowly and begin walking toward a nearby tree. Under its shade, he sat down and leaned against the trunk.
"And why did you two leave me behind?!" Issei demanded angrily to his two friends.
"Sorry, Issei. We were just really surprised when they found out." Motohama replied with an awkward smile, having barely escaped the wrath of the furious female students who wanted to kill him for what he'd done.
"That's right, Motohama! Blame yourself for not being fast enough to escape!" Matsuda added, his face contorted in pain.
Although both of them had managed to escape, they had still taken a few hard hits from the female students they had been peeping on. At least their condition wasn't as bad as Issei's current state.
Araki, overhearing his three friends' conversation, could only smile faintly as he gazed up at the brilliantly clear sky above him. He never would have imagined that his new friends would turn out to be a perverted young man with a penchant for peeping at female students while they changed clothes. It was truly an unexpected twist in his life at Kuoh Academy...
"Her red hair... It's so beautiful..." Issei murmured, his voice sounding like he was muttering to himself.
Araki, hearing Issei's strange mumbling, turned to look at his friend with a puzzled expression. All he could see was Issei staring intently at a window in the Occult Research Club building.
Araki, equally confused, followed Issei's gaze. What he saw left him speechless.
Araki's eyes widened instantly, his gaze fixed intently on the stunning girl with long, blood-red hair and a voluptuous figure. She alternated her gaze between him and Issei, causing Araki to raise his eyebrows slightly as he realized she was looking at him.
The crimson-haired girl smiled gently at him before vanishing from sight. Sensing something strange, Araki tilted his head in confusion. But when he noticed his three friends seemed to be discussing what had just happened, he slowly stood up and walked over to Issei, who was chatting with Matsuda and Motohama.
"Yo. Who's that?" Araki asked the trio, immediately drawing their sharp glares.
The three turned to him, their faces twisted with annoyance. Araki's question felt like an insult to someone they had long admired. They desperately wanted to beat him up right then and there, but ultimately they excused his ignorance, remembering he was just a new student.
"Sit down, buddy." Motohama whispered, his voice barely audible but still reaching Araki's ears.
"Alright." Araki replied tersely, immediately taking a seat beside Motohama, who had just told him to sit.
"Listen, Araki," Motohama said, his expression suddenly serious. "That red-haired girl earlier is Rias Gremory. She's the most beautiful girl in the entire Academy! And she's been the president of the Occult Research Club for three years!"
"Oh... I see." Araki replied briefly, nodding slowly. His nonchalant reaction only fueled Motohama, Matsuda, and Issei's frustration.
"Is that all the reaction you're going to give us?" Motohama asked, his voice tinged with annoyance. Araki looked bewildered by his friends' obvious irritation.
"What's wrong with that?" Araki asked, his expression blank and genuinely puzzled.
"Let me tell you, buddy! Just so you know, her measurements are 99-58-90!!" Motohama shouted, his spittle flying onto Araki's face.
"Alright, I get it... Wait, how could you possibly know that?" Araki replied, utterly astonished, as he began wiping Motohama's saliva off his sunglasses.
"Heh heh... Don't underestimate me. With these glasses, I can tell the bust size of every girl in the Academy!" Motohama retorted with a lecherous grin, adjusting his glasses.
"I understand..." Araki replied, his expression flat. He shouldn't have asked that question in the first place.
As his three friends began discussing their fantasies about Rias Gremory, Araki turned his gaze back to the window of the Occult Research Club building. Just moments ago, Rias had been standing there, gazing at him with a gentle smile.
Suddenly, Araki realized that the break time was almost over and the next class would begin soon. He stood up again, gently patted Issei's shoulder, and gave him a faint smile.
"It's almost time for class... You guys should head back too." Araki said to the three of them before walking away, leaving Issei with his two friends behind.
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(Flashback.)
•Inside the Occult Research Club building•
Initially, Rias was playing chess when she heard a commotion coming from the back of the Occult Research Club building. She paused briefly before deciding to investigate the source of the noise.
Rias walked slowly toward a large window that happened to face the back of the building, where the commotion she had heard earlier seemed to originate.
As she scanned the scene through the window, she spotted three young men chatting among themselves, while the fourth leaned against a tree trunk, gazing up at the beautiful sky.
Rias smiled warmly at the brown-haired one before turning her gaze to other, the white-haired one, leaning against the tree trunk. Both of them intrigued her deeply, as she sensed something hidden within each of them.
After observing the two of them, she decided to take action—but later. Rias slowly began to back away after finishing her observation, returning to the game that had been interrupted earlier.
"Checkmate..." Rias murmured, moving one of her chess pieces.
"Ara... Ara... You've defeated me again, Club President." The girl before her said, her voice tinged with disappointment.
"It was too easy, Akeno..." Rias replied casually, offering the girl a faint smile.
The girl was strikingly beautiful, with a delicate face and long, lustrous black hair tied into a ponytail with an orange hair tie.
"And I even increased the difficulty..." Akeno sighed softly, realizing she had lost.
"Akeno... do you know anything about those outside the back of this building?" Rias asked, her gaze fixed intently on Akeno, inquiring about the guy she had seen earlier behind the building.
"Ohh... The brown-haired one is Issei Hyoudou. He's in class 2-B, if I remember correctly..." Akeno replied, tapping her index finger against her cheek as she recalled the notorious pervert.
"And the other one...?" Rias asked again, her gaze fixed on Akeno, brimming with curiosity.
"The other one?" Akeno asked Rias, confused by her question.
"The one with white hair... and sunglasses..." Rias replied, immediately making Akeno realize who she was referring to.
"Ohhh... That young man... His name is Kazuma Araki. He's in class 2-B, the same as Issei. I've met him before too." Akeno replied, licking her lips with evident interest, her cheeks beginning to flush.
"Thank you, Akeno. I'm going to take a bath now. Please handle the club matters while I'm gone." Rias said gently, expressing her gratitude for the information Akeno had provided.
Then, she rose from her seat to freshen up. Seeing that Rias was about to take a bath, Akeno decided to leave the room, as she still had some matters to attend to.
"Very well, Club President." Akeno replied before walking out of the room.
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(Current time.)
Araki was walking home from Kuoh Academy, just as he had done before, appearing to stroll alone down the increasingly deserted streets. But everything changed when he heard a shout calling his name from behind.
Araki stopped walking and turned around abruptly, spotting Issei running toward him. His brows furrowed instantly; this was the first time Issei had ever run up to him like this.
"What's wrong, Issei?" Araki asked, confused as he stared at the panting brown-haired dude standing before him.
"I thought we lived near each other... Would you mind if I walked home with you?" Issei replied, trying to catch his breath.
"Sure, not at all." Araki answered curtly, and the two began walking home together.
(Short Timeskip.)
It didn't take long for Issei and Araki to find themselves on a pedestrian bridge, bathed in the fading orange-red glow of the setting sun. As they walked, the two of them chatted about countless topics until an unimaginable event suddenly occurred.
"Wait!" A voice shouted from behind Araki and Issei, who were walking slowly.
The shout immediately made Araki and Issei stop in their tracks and turn around. They saw a girl with long black hair standing before them.
"Yes... Is there anything we can help you with, miss?" Araki asked, smiling warmly at the strange girl.
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