The Butler, Encounters (その執事、邂逅, Sono Shitsuji, Kaikō) is Chapter 9 of the Kuroshitsuji manga.
Summary
In November 1888, several prostitutes were murdered so brutally, the murderer was named Jack the Ripper. Ciel and Sebastian are standing outside, where Ciel is in pauper's clothes to be in disguise. They are on guard, waiting for the arrival of Jack the Ripper.
There is a brief flashback to the manor, where it is revealed that Sebastian had considered an alternate suspect, much to Ciel's annoyance, someone who was not human and was not a demon.
They hear a scream from the prostitute's house, despite not seeing anyone enter. As a blood splash lands on Ciel's face when he opens the door, Sebastian stops Ciel from witnessing the murder. It is shown that Grell is the murderer, and they come up with a feeble excuse for why they were there. Sebastian says it is impossible because they would have seen them enter, and questions how they got inside.
Grell reveals their true form, and Sebastian comments that he has never seen a Grim Reaper, who is supposed to be completely neutral, becoming a butler. Grell then reveals that they were working with Angelina.
Ciel said her name had been on the list of suspects, which apparently included Aleistor Chamber and Lau, but that no human could have committed the act. However, due to the acts required to carry off the scheme, both Angelina and Grell had to act together as Jack the Ripper. An additional connection between all the prostitutes was that they had all had an abortion at Angelina's hospital. The prostitute Sebastian and Ciel had been guarding was the last name on the list.
Angelina comments that it's sad that he figured it out because they cannot play chess together anymore. She screams that she won't go easy on him anymore, and Grell whips out their death scythe and attacks Ciel, which Sebastian is able to stop. Sebastian calls Grell's violation of the Grim Reaper rules and butler principles disgusting. Ciel then takes off his eye patch, while Sebastian removes his gloves, and orders Sebastian to capture them.
At the end of the chapter is a supplementary comic, which shows Angelina's lecture on how to be a lady, set before Ciel dressed up for Aleistor's party. Lau and Angelina are seen offering a variety of dresses for Ciel to wear to the party, which he looks quite unhappy about. They considered making the dress quite short, but because of Ciel's bitter smile, it was scrapped.
Sebastian is also forced to go into tutor mode and teach Ciel more dances, so he can assimilate at the party and successfully seduce Aleistor, a scheme Ciel was apparently not aware of. It states that in the end, Ciel "became" a first-class lady.
Characters in Order of Appearance
- Ciel Phantomhive
- Sebastian Michaelis
- Grell Sutcliff
- Angelina Dalles
- Lau
- Aleistor Chamber
- Mary Jane Kelly
