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Nishio Nishiki tasted the raw fish with enthusiasm, savoring its flavor.
"How is it?" Lin Yi asked eagerly.
"It's really good, just as I thought," he replied.
"Then have some more."
Lin Yi smiled and took the initiative to assist Nishio Nishiki with his food.
Nishio Nishiki ate a few more bites of sushi, but his expression remained unchanged. Although inwardly struggled to endure the taste.
Suddenly, Nishio Nishiki stood up during the meal.
"Thank you for your hospitality, but I need to excuse myself and go to the restroom."
"Go ahead," Lin Yi nodded, calmly continuing to sip his drink and eat sushi. As soon as Nishio Nishiki left the private room, Lin Yi expressed his surprise.
"I underestimated you," Lin Yi muttered, dipping his finger into the sauce Nishio Nishiki had used for the raw fish. He tasted it and immediately made a face.
An intense, pungent, and sour taste exploded on his taste buds.
"Now I have a reason," he thought.
Only a ghoul would be unable to taste the strong mustard and vinegar in the sauce.
As a CCG investigator, Lin Yi relied on reason and evidence to solve cases and make arrests. He didn't want to reveal his advantage of seeing the future.
By accidentally using the wrong seasoning and diligently discovering it, Investigator Lin successfully unraveled the mystery of the missing case. It was a perfect plan.
Shaking his head, Lin Yi quickly finished his drink, cleared the remaining sushi from the table, straightened his suit, and stood up. He made his way toward the restroom.
Inside the restroom...
"Ah!!!"
"Ugh!!"
Nishio Nishiki leaned over the toilet, continuously vomiting, his face pale and weak.
Unlike humans, a ghoul's tongue, tail, and digestive system were different. Human food was extremely unappetizing and difficult for them to swallow. Consuming it could even harm their bodies.
"Ugh!"
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" Nishio Nishiki was covered in cold sweat, pounding the wall next to him. Faint cracks spread across the wall.
"I will eat you for sure! How dare you force me to eat this?" Nishio Nishiki threatened, then started vomiting again.
"Hey, hey, hey, didn't your teachers teach you not to speak ill of others behind their backs?"
Suddenly, a cold questioning voice echoed.
Startled, Nishio Nishiki instantly stood up from the toilet, his hair standing on end. He stared at Lin Yi in horror.
"If you can't eat it, why pretend to struggle so much? Why waste the food? You might as well devour me and be done with it."
Nishio Nishiki's gaze turned terrifying. He transformed from a cheerful college student into a demonic creature, ready to devour.
At this point, if he couldn't understand the whole situation, he would be truly foolish.
"Bastard, you've been playing with me all along!"
In an instant, Nishio Nishiki's black pupils turned crimson, and the whites of his eyes turned black. Blood vessels burst around his eyes.
Vibrant green Kagune extended from his waist, resembling a snake's tongue with a forked end.
Nishio Nishiki, a member of the supporting cast, possessed exceptional potential that set him apart.
"You will regret this. I will dismember you just like the raw fish earlier and savor you slowly!" Nishio Nishiki seethed with genuine fury.
However, times had changed, and Lin Yi was no longer the naive young man who almost lost his life to an old man in the park.
Empowered by his Kagune, Nishio Nishiki charged at Lin Yi with incredible speed, delivering a powerful punch that created a whistling sound.
Nishio Nishiki believed that Lin Yi was frozen in place, incapable of moving.
"Heh, perhaps investigators are nothing special after all."
"Bang!"
But in the next moment, Nishio Nishiki's consciousness momentarily blanked out. He experienced a wave of pain, realizing that his arm had been broken.
He couldn't even perceive Lin Yi's movements clearly.
"Ah!"
Even his screams were delayed, though the pain still pierced his heart.
With his back turned to Lin Yi, Nishio Nishiki's right arm was twisted 360 degrees, looking grotesque.
As the Kagune on Nishio Nishiki's waist prepared to attack, Lin Yi reacted swiftly, delivering a powerful kick that sent Nishio Nishiki hurtling through the air. He crashed into the neighboring room, causing the wall to shatter and even breaking the toilet lid.
Approaching with a few steps, Lin Yi towered over him without a trace of pity. He kicked toward Nishio Nishiki's neck.
The sound of bones breaking resonated, and Nishio Nishiki was sent flying several meters away, coughing up blood.
The injuries were severe, and Nishio Nishiki was losing a significant amount of blood. The Kagune on his waist retracted, rendering them ineffective.
This couldn't even be considered a battle; it was a one-sided massacre.
"If you want to blame someone, blame yourself for standing against me."
Lin Yi pressed the button on his briefcase, summoning Jörmungandr. He stood there with a sword.
"Ah!"
The screams were short-lived before silence engulfed the room.
As Lin Yi sheathed his sword, the bathroom door opened. It was the sushi restaurant staff. With such a commotion in the restroom, they naturally sent someone to investigate.
They were met with a scene of devastation, blood flowing, and a lifeless body on the floor.
The staff members were terrified, screaming in shock.
Lin Yi, on the other hand, remained unfazed. He retrieved a business card from his pocket and handed it over.
Encountering such situations while hunting ghouls with Kureo Mado had become common. Being discovered by ordinary people was not surprising.
"CCG Investigation! Preserve the scene. Someone will handle it later."
"What? Okay."
The staff members were dumbfounded but quickly complied after a moment.
Lin Yi was grateful for his affiliation with the CCG. It provided him with numerous conveniences.
As for Nishio Nishiki's death, Lin Yi felt no remorse. Setting aside his role as a supporting character, Nishio Nishiki was merely a monster who preyed on humans. There was no reason to feel guilty for killing him.
If it had been a ghoul like Hinami Fueguchi, who had never taken a human life, Lin Yi might have considered turning a blind eye.
After the CCG branch members arrived to handle the aftermath, Lin Yi departed in a car.
Nishio Nishiki was just an A-level ghoul. Apart from adding another entry to Lin Yi's record and receiving praise from the branch, it didn't cause much of a stir.
With the disappearance case resolved, Lin Yi returned to his leisurely state, either playing video games with Kimi Nishino in the dorm or practicing swordsmanship at the martial arts gym.
It wasn't that he didn't want something to do; it was just that the 20th ward was too peaceful.
For a whole half month, there were only a few homicides, and preliminary investigations indicated they were accidental deaths, such as car accidents or fires. This ward seemed isolated from the rest, unlike the others.
One could say that the Anteiku shop managed the peaceful ward quite well.
The powerful ghouls who refused to be disciplined had been almost entirely expelled by the Anteiku shop. As for the weaker ghouls, with the shop's assistance, they didn't need to take risks by attacking humans.
Therefore, the entire stable ward existed in an unreal, dreamlike peace.