"This... this... well..."
Kiyotaka was instantly drenched in sweat, stammering incoherently with his mouth agape.
He thought the matter had been settled months ago and was long behind them—never expecting it to come to light here!
Roy's guess was correct.
That day, when he had stayed at Kita's place, Nijika Ijichi had been worried about her friend and came to check on her. Along the way, to prevent her family from worrying about the disaster that had occurred in the Okubo area, she had contacted them.
Nijika's family was small. Apart from her mother, who had passed away long ago, there was only her father—often busy with work and rarely home—and her older sister, Seika Ijichi, who ran this live house called "STARRY."
And then there was their uncle, Ijichi Kiyotaka, who had always looked after the sisters since they were young.
It was at this moment that Kiyotaka learned Nijika had been caught up in the Okubo incident and had even gotten involved with the person at the center of it. He found out Roy was staying at Kita's place.
Uneasy about an unknown sorcerer, Kiyotaka immediately ordered Nijika to return home, forbidding her from staying at Kita's.
That was why Nijika had gone home so early that day.
Shortly after, Ijichi Kiyotaka reported the information he had obtained from Nijika to his superiors. Yaga Masamichi was informed, and the next morning, led by Ijichi Kiyotaka, he went to Kita's place and recruited Roy into Jujutsu High.
Seika watched as her uncle broke out in cold sweat, fidgeting nervously. A trace of concern flickered in her eyes.
Her uncle's job was… unusual.
Seika knew this much—their whole family did. Kiyotaka's work was always shrouded in secrecy, seemingly tied to things best left unseen. Beyond that, they knew nothing. Given the unclear circumstances, she didn't dare interject carelessly, lest she make things worse.
"So that's why."
Roy glanced at the visibly uncomfortable Kiyotaka and let out a light, indifferent hum.
"Never mind. Don't dwell on it—you were just doing your job. I'm not blaming you. Today, I'm just here to listen to the live performance."
As he spoke, Roy pulled two tickets from his pocket and handed them to Seika.
"Two, please."
Kiyotaka immediately sighed in relief.
If Roy wasn't holding it against him, that was good!
Truthfully, he hadn't done anything wrong. But the sheer pressure from his superior was overwhelming—his boss could remove a high-ranking official from the higher-ups with a single trip to headquarters, and a single word could cost him his job. If Roy really wanted to punish him, there was nothing he could do.
The emperor's favor, whether as thunder or rain, was not something he could choose to fear or not.
"Welcome."
Seika stood up and accepted the tickets from Roy.
Her gaze suddenly paused, lingering on the cuffs of his sleeves.
They were spotless, as if freshly laundered.
Not just the cuffs—his arms, legs, even his shoes showed no trace of dampness. They were as dry as if he had walked here on a scorching summer day.
"Would you like something to drink? On the house."
"Thanks. A cola, then."
"And for the lady?"
"Me? I'm fine with anything."
Okita, upon hearing this, withdrew her gaze from the store's facilities and decorations, casually nodding in response to Seika's look.
Seika nodded understandingly and poured two cups of cola for them.
"Mr. Roy, and this young lady, please have a seat."
The space in front of the counter was small, with only a few chairs available.
Suddenly realizing this, Kiyotaka felt the chair beneath him grow uncomfortably warm and quickly offered it up.
Seika gave him an inexplicably speechless look.
She used to think her uncle, who was always busy yet maintained an air of mystery, was quite enigmatic. Regardless of how much truth or falsehood lay in his mysterious work, she deeply admired his dedication.
After all, work was essentially like dog crap.
No matter the reason, anyone who worked hard deserved respect.
But today, she discovered his corporate drone instincts were off the charts—his level of bootlicking was downright absurd.
"Seika, how many people have come in outside?"
"Only about ten scattered here and there..."
Backstage, Seika lifted the curtain slightly, peeking out at the scene below the stage.
Seeing the vast stage less than half-filled, her heart sank straight to the bottom of a lake.
The girls behind her fell silent like reefs swallowed by waves upon hearing this.
Suddenly, Seika's mouth formed an "O" shape as if she'd spotted something, and she frantically waved at the red-haired girl behind her.
"Kita-chan, Kita-chan! Look who that is!"
Ikuyo Kita, full of confusion, stepped up to the curtain and followed Seika's pointing finger toward the entrance. The moment she saw, she nearly lost it.
"Mr. Roy? Why is he here?!"
"Could there be something unclean in our store?"
"Don't say such ominous things! Today's our debut performance!"
Hearing the commotion, Ryo Yamada in the back couldn't resist poking her head out too.
Then she immediately retreated to her seat and started packing her bass into its case.
Seika, distracted by her actions, looked over in shock.
"Ryo, what are you doing?"
"Packing up to go home."
"I'll ask again—what are you doing?!"
"Don't you get it? Clearly, something big is about to happen here. The whole place might be destroyed by tonight. We should escape while we still can!"
Ryo spoke with utmost seriousness, her hands moving even faster as she packed.
"Stop saying such ominous things!"
"Our band really has no future, huh... heh, hehehe..."
Hitori Gotoh crouched in a corner, absentmindedly drawing circles on the ground, her expression shattered and her body shrouded in dark energy.
A vague aura swirled around her, gradually twisting into shape under her relentless negativity, as if about to solidify.
"Bocchi-chan! Don't lose hope!"
Ikuyo, horrified, rushed over and yanked Hitori up, shaking her left and right like a rattle drum to snap her out of it.
"That's right, our band can still be saved!"
"It's not even showtime yet—don't despair!"
Nijika and Ryo were startled by Kita's reaction and quickly rushed to Hitori's side, doing their utmost to comfort her.
According to Ikuyo, Bocchi-chan could generate cursed spirits—those monsters—on her own.
Cursed spirits are born from human negative emotions, so it's not Bocchi-chan's fault.
But to prevent such monsters from appearing, whenever Bocchi-chan was deeply discouraged and Kita-chan was alarmed, Nijika and Ryo had to rush to Bocchi-chan's side, pampering her like a baby and showering her with abundant love and care, determined to help her recover as quickly as possible.
Otherwise, they'd have to face the cursed spirits Bocchi-chan single-handedly created—as ordinary humans!
Wouldn't that be deadly?
"Honestly, it's a bit annoying," Ryo muttered under her breath.
"Shut up!" Nijika smacked her on the forehead.
"Bocchi-chan definitely doesn't want this either! All we need to do is comfort and pamper her a little more. If monsters really did appear, Bocchi-chan would be the most troubled by it!"
Truly, Mama Nijika!
Ikuyo marveled at Mama Nijika's boundless compassion.
"You guys keep comforting Bocchi-chan—I'll go ask Mr. Roy!"
With Nijika's approving gaze, Ikuyo quickly left the backstage area.
She jogged all the way to the viewing area near the exhibition hall entrance.
"Mr. Roy, long time no see!"
Ikuyo greeted Roy, who was sitting there, with a bright, heartfelt smile.
Come to think of it, it had been months since she last saw Mr. Roy. People in his line of work must be really busy, huh?
Is that his girlfriend next to him? She's so pretty!
"Well, if it isn't Ikuyo! It really has been a while. Nothing bad happened since then, right?"
Roy was genuinely happy to see Kita-chan too, his face lighting up with a cheerful smile.
Unlike his feelings for Utaha or the Nakano sisters, Roy's affection for Kita-chan and Bocchi-chan had always been pure—not as potential romantic partners, but more like daughters. There wasn't a single inappropriate thought in his mind.
Just seeing them made him feel better.
However, upon hearing how Roy addressed her, Ikuyo's smile stiffened slightly.
"I've been quite healthy lately, nothing bad happened... If possible, could you call me Kita instead? Being called 'Ikuyo' is a bit... overwhelming."
Seika and Kiyotaka stared in amazement. How did Kita know someone as important as Roy?
"Mr. Roy, may I ask—is there a reason you're here today?" Ikuyo carefully worded her question, trying not to pry too much into the hidden world.
"Hm? Oh, don't worry. I'm just here to watch your performance." Roy raised an eyebrow, quickly understanding her concern, and reassured her with a smile.
"Good luck—I'm looking forward to it!"
"Yes, we'll do our best! But how did you know about our band and our performance today?"
"You'll have to ask your guitarist about that."
Relieved to hear he was only here for their show, and encouraged by his anticipation, Ikuyo felt her spirits lift.
As soon as she returned backstage, she relayed the information she had obtained to the other three.
"I never expected Bocchi-chan to have the guts to give the ticket to that person!"
Ryo looked at the utterly bewildered Bocchi-chan, her face brimming with admiration.
"If I ran into that person—no, if I even encountered anything related to him, I'd basically run the other way. Bocchi-chan is seriously amazing!"
It wasn't that she disliked that person.
Ryo's impression of Roy wasn't actually bad. She didn't dislike handsome guys, but she was someone who preferred stability and didn't want to get dragged into that kind of world. She was firmly in the "avoid at all costs" camp.
Bocchi-chan stared at the three of them with a look that clearly said, "What are you all talking about?"
"So, Kita-chan, did you ask how to deal with Bocchi-chan's… unique constitution?"
"Nijika, your sister and uncle are both there! How was I supposed to ask?"
"Oh, right…"
"After the performance ends, I'll go ask Mr. Roy myself."
That was the only option left.
Nijika nodded solemnly, her heart heavy.
The real problem at hand was their band's upcoming debut performance!