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Chapter 29: Chief Goto

Chapter 29: Chapter 29: Chief Goto

"A club related to Devil Hunters? Is it called the Devil Hunter Club?"

Kotone Asaba immediately became a little curious about it.

In Part 2 of the original manga, the biggest high school in Tokyo had a Devil Hunter Club. Even the Famine Devil and the War Devil, or rather Asa Mitaka, were involved with it. However, from his current perspective, that was still four years in the future.

If the high school he was attending now also had a Devil Hunter Club, then he might unexpectedly meet someone there.

"No, it’s not. I think it’s called... what was it again...?"

Kobeni Higashiyama could not quite remember. She had never really paid much attention to those clubs in the first place.

"It’s called the Devil Research Club, Higashiyama."

Just then, a boy wearing glasses, with slightly long hair and a face that looked somewhat sickly pale, walked over.

Then he also said to Kotone Asaba, "So, Asaba, would you like to join our Devil Research Club?"

"Sorry, but I still want to create a different club myself."

After learning that it was the Devil Research Club, Kotone Asaba lost interest.

There was a huge difference between a Devil Research Club and a Devil Hunter Club.

Incidentally, in the schools Kotone Asaba knew from his previous life, there had been a distinction between clubs focused on hobbies and more official student departments organized by the school.

But in Japan, they were all generally called clubs. For example, the Devil Hunter Club was clearly more official in nature, while the Devil Research Club was clearly more hobby-based, but both were still referred to as clubs.

"All right. That really is a shame..."

The boy still had a smile on his face.

But those narrowed eyes made Kotone Asaba pay a little more attention to him.

He remembered that this boy’s name seemed to be Ivan Goto. When he had looked at each class roster earlier, he had memorized the names of all the students in Class 2-1.

After Ivan Goto left, Kobeni Higashiyama specifically said to Kotone Asaba, "That classmate just now, Goto, I think he’s the president of the Devil Research Club..."

However, she stopped halfway through.

What she had originally wanted to say was that Goto’s personality was a little strange. Anyone who rejected Goto’s invitation would not receive a friendly attitude from him afterward.

The only reason Goto had spoken normally to her just now was because he had never invited her before. After all, with her timid and weak personality, she was not suited to researching Devils or anything like that.

The reason she did not say it out loud was because she felt her own personality was not exactly normal either, so she had no right to talk about others.

"The president, huh... But I really don’t have much interest. Let’s go create the Reading Club instead."

Kotone Asaba said.

Hearing the words "Reading Club," Kobeni Higashiyama had a thought for a single instant. Was Asaba trying to create the Reading Club for her?

But she immediately cut off that thought, blushing as she shook her head hard. She felt that thinking that way was being far too self-important.

She felt it was probably because Asaba himself liked reading. After all, she had run into Asaba at the library before.

Normally, Kobeni Higashiyama would go to the library around this time, but right now, she had no interest in the library at all.

Kobeni Higashiyama followed behind Kotone Asaba, but at that moment, she suddenly remembered something and immediately asked, "By the way, will it just be the two of us? If we want to create a club, we usually need at least three or four people..."

"Then let’s find one more. Or do you know anyone suitable?"

In truth, Kotone Asaba had another option, which was to go directly to the principal. If he went to the principal, he would definitely be allowed to form a club as an exception.

"Someone suitable... Let me think..."

Kobeni Higashiyama did not have many classmates she was close with, and finding someone suitable was even harder.

Just then, someone suddenly patted Kobeni Higashiyama lightly on the shoulder from behind. "Kobeni, I heard what you two were saying just now. Why not let me join just to fill the numbers?"

Kobeni Higashiyama was almost frightened by the hand suddenly patting her shoulder, but after seeing who it was, she immediately relaxed. "Huh? Is that really okay?"

"We’re friends, aren’t we? Besides..."

At this point, the girl with twin-tails glanced meaningfully at Kotone Asaba beside her.

Through the look the twin-tailed girl gave her, Kobeni Higashiyama instantly understood what she was trying to say, and she shyly turned her face away.

"Hi, Asaba. I’m Kobeni’s friend, Rika Matsumoto. Can I join just to fill the numbers?"

The twin-tailed girl had a lively and open personality. Compared to Kobeni Higashiyama, she gave off a completely opposite impression.

"Of course. Welcome to the club. Then let’s go submit the application now."

After that, Kotone Asaba went to find the teacher in charge of this area and applied to establish the Reading Club.

Perhaps because his identity was rather special, the application was approved very smoothly, and they were even assigned a dedicated clubroom for the Reading Club.

As for a club adviser, they did not have one. Clubs at Japanese high schools usually had a teacher serve as their club adviser, and some schools even made that a strict requirement.

However, this high school did not have a strict rule about that. It was only verbally recommended. Whether they wanted a club adviser or not depended on the choice of the president and the club members.

Since Kotone Asaba wanted more freedom of movement, he chose not to have a club adviser.

And just like that, the Reading Club was officially established.

However, going through the application process naturally took quite a bit of time.

On top of that, Kobeni Higashiyama still had to continue showing him around the school, so club activities would only begin tomorrow.

Kotone Asaba also happened to need some preparation time. After returning home, he planned to go buy some books and place them in the clubroom.

...

It was already almost six in the evening.

Inside the Devil Research Club’s clubroom, the other members had all gone home. Only the president, Ivan Goto, was still in the room.

He sat in a chair with his head lowered, doing nothing, as if he were lost in thought.

The reason he had invited Kotone Asaba to join the Devil Research Club was because he was very curious about what Devil Kotone Asaba had contracted with to gain such incomprehensible strength. He wanted to research the Devil that had made a contract with Kotone Asaba, such as its personality, abilities, habits, and so on.

But Kotone Asaba had rejected his invitation, and he found that difficult to understand. How could some Reading Club be more interesting than researching Devils?

Or was Asaba simply looking down on him as an ordinary person?

Ivan Goto had already started imagining that Kotone Asaba had rejected him because he looked down on him as an ordinary person. After all, in his mind, researching Devils was the most interesting thing in the world.

In that case, if I make a contract with a Devil too... then that should be enough, right?

Thinking of this, Ivan Goto immediately stood up and opened a small abandoned dark room inside the clubroom. He cleared away the clutter from one spot, revealing the entrance to a basement that had been buried beneath the pile of junk just now...