"What a pity. I thought this would be another treasure chest."
Su Xiao tapped the ground with his long sword, his bare upper body covered in blood—mostly from the stunning beauty, Rize Kamishiro. Earlier, he had slashed open her abdomen, and blood had sprayed everywhere.
"Eto, hold him off."
Tatara's voice was low but deep and firm. Among the Aogiri Tree, he was one of the few who knew the true identity of Eto Yoshimura.
"You take Rize and go."
Eto's eyes locked onto Su Xiao, her gaze heavy with unease.
"Is that necessary?" Tatara frowned.
"It is. This human... he's a complete monster."
Eto removed her shirt, revealing her body wrapped in bandages, ready for a deadly confrontation with Su Xiao.
"Understood. We're leaving. Ayato, Noro, move."
Tatara no longer hesitated. With Ayato Kirishima present, it was inconvenient for Izumi Takatsuki to reveal her true identity.
As for Noro, he was well aware of her secret—after all, he was her adoptive father.
"Wait, we're just running away like cowards? That guy killed Yamori!" Ayato, wracked with pain, gritted his teeth in frustration. Su Xiao had nearly ended him earlier.
Tatara remained silent, his gaze quietly bearing down on Ayato, who eventually averted his eyes with a cold snort.
Suddenly, the sound of glass shattering echoed. Everyone turned toward the noise, only to see Rize making a desperate escape through the window.
This floor was over ten meters above the ground, but Rize had no other choice. Caught by the Aogiri Tree, she wouldn't die, but her fate would be grim. If Su Xiao got to her first, however, she would undoubtedly die. Jumping was her only option.
A loud crash followed by a car alarm blaring came from below.
Ignoring the remaining people in the room, Su Xiao dashed to the window just in time to catch a glimpse of a battered Rize staggering away. Despite the fall, she forced herself to flee into the dark alley ahead.
She had escaped. His prey had slipped through his fingers.
The smile on Su Xiao's face faded as he gripped the hilt of Dragon Slayer so tightly it creaked.
"I think... we've really pissed him off." Ayato muttered, a chill running down his spine. His instincts screamed danger, but the intense pain in his leg kept him rooted to the spot, sweat pouring from his forehead.
Su Xiao's icy glare swept over the group, the veins on his forehead bulging in frustration.
Even if he couldn't kill Rize, obtaining her kakuhou would have brought substantial rewards. But thanks to Aogiri Tree's interference, that opportunity had "jumped out the window."
"Since she escaped, you'll have to take her place, Eto Yoshimura!"
The mention of Eto's real name made everyone freeze—except Ayato, who looked confused, hearing the name for the first time.
"Take him away." Eto ordered, her voice no longer childlike but cold and commanding.
Noro's kagune burst forth, its jaws clamping down on Ayato.
"Noro, what are you doing? Let me go!" Ayato struggled in vain, the strength difference far too great.
Without hesitation, Noro leaped out the shattered window, seemingly pursuing Rize.
"Need help?" Tatara hesitated, clearly wary of Su Xiao's strength. A human this formidable was a rarity.
Ghouls had extremely sharp senses, surpassing those of most animals. The scent from Su Xiao's body indicated that he was a pure human—so pure it shocked Tatara.
In the ghoul world, even ordinary humans had small amounts of Rc cells in their bodies, which ghouls could sense. But Su Xiao's body was utterly devoid of any trace of Rc cells.
"No need. You go after Rize Kamishiro. She's vital to me—among my chosen targets, she's the most 'perfect.'"
With Ayato forcibly taken away, Eto no longer hid her true voice.
"CCG will be here soon. My men can't hold them off for long. Make it quick." Tatara instructed before leaping out of the window.
Now, only Su Xiao and Eto remained in the room.
"Who are you? How do you know my real name?" Eto demanded, her voice sharp and suspicious.
Though she was 25 years old, her petite frame barely reached 150 centimeters.
Her kakuhou began to stir. As the One-Eyed Owl, she housed ten kakuhou within her body.
As her kagune emerged, the bandages covering her body loosened.
"White Night," Su Xiao replied curtly, his answer making Eto pause.
"What?"
He offered no further explanation. His muscles tensed slightly, preparing for the battle.
The kagune engulfed Eto, enveloping her in a crimson mass until her original form was completely obscured.
Before Su Xiao now stood a monstrous being over 2.5 meters tall. Two pallid claws pressed against the ground, while her back bristled with spike-like protrusions—kagune gathered into a combination of shields and weapons.
Eto had entered her kakuja state.
Unlike regular ghouls, the transformation into a kakuja required consuming large numbers of other ghouls—a brutal process.
Eto herself had devoured countless powerful ghouls to achieve this form.
"Haah~."
In her kakuja form, Eto exhaled a red mist from her gaping maw.
"Hahaha, such a pure human. I've never seen one like you. I bet you'll taste amazing."
Her demeanor shifted dramatically, her tone wild and erratic.
The mental state of a kakuja was often unstable. The abundance of Rc cells in their bodies made them incredibly aggressive, affecting their brains.
Though Eto had mastered her emotions to a degree, her personality had grown far more uninhibited.
Su Xiao heightened his vigilance. If Eto's earlier presence had been a level 5 threat, she was now at least a 13.
Taking a deep breath, Su Xiao steadied himself. He couldn't let anger cloud his judgment in battle.
"Your strength has increased significantly. Even your personality has changed." Su Xiao noted coolly.
Instead of charging forward, he began to circle Eto, each step deliberate.
Eto turned with him, ensuring she always faced her opponent.
When Su Xiao feinted a forward lunge, Eto raised her claw, prepared to counter.
But he stopped mid-motion, his move a bluff. He remained patient, waiting for the perfect opening.
Eto, growing impatient, roared and lunged on all fours toward Su Xiao.
In her kakuja form, her speed wasn't exceptional, but her sheer presence was overwhelming—like a charging armored vehicle.
The wind whipped against Su Xiao's face as she closed in.
Standing upright, Eto swung a pale claw toward Su Xiao's head.
He tilted his body to the side, her claw narrowly missing and sending a gust of air past his ear, lifting his black hair.
But before he could recover, the sword-like kagune on her shoulder slashed toward him.
With no time to dodge, Su Xiao chose to meet the attack head-on.
Gripping his blade with both hands, he struck her kagune with all his might.
"Boom!"
A loud crash echoed through the air as the floor tiles beneath them shattered in a wide radius, and dust billowed everywhere.
The immense force transmitted through his blade caused Su Xiao's expression to shift, but what followed surprised him even more.
The blue energy shimmering on Dragon Slayer—the unique power of Azure Steel Shadow—poured into Eto Yoshimura's body.
Eto let out a sharp screech, instinctively retreating.
Su Xiao wasn't about to miss such an opportunity. With a swift slash, he severed one of Eto's claws.
Losing the limb that supported her weight, Eto's body toppled sideways.
Without hesitation, Su Xiao delivered another strike, this time carving into her back. A large portion of her kagune was obliterated, disintegrating into countless crimson fragments that scattered through the air like fragile, glowing petals.
The radiant shards of her kagune floating in the air were hauntingly beautiful.
Enraged by the severe injuries, Eto gritted her teeth against the searing pain caused by the Rc cells burning within her. With her remaining claw, she swiped fiercely at Su Xiao's abdomen.
Though Su Xiao leaped back immediately, he was just a fraction too slow. Deep claw marks appeared across his lower abdomen, and blood began to drip onto the ground.
His quick reflexes had saved him. If he'd been even a little slower, his intestines would have been torn out.
"Huff... huff..."
Eto propped herself up with her remaining claw. The man standing before her—known as "White Night"—exuded an aura of sharpness and precision that made her uneasy.
She couldn't keep fighting. The sudden, excruciating pain earlier had left her at a disadvantage.
Without further hesitation, Eto bolted toward the window.
Su Xiao, clutching the wound on his abdomen with one hand and gripping his blade with the other, wasn't about to let her escape easily. He pursued her at a quick pace.
Eto leaped through the window, her body soaring into the air.
Su Xiao skidded to a halt at the edge, his blade in hand, coldly watching her descent.
Mid-air, Eto turned her head. The kagune covering her head split open slightly, revealing the lower half of her pale face.
To Su Xiao's surprise, she smiled at him.
He didn't jump after her. While his strength and agility were remarkable, his endurance wasn't high enough to survive a fall from such a height unscathed. A jump from over ten meters might not kill him, but it would likely leave his legs injured—something he couldn't afford in his current situation.
There were too many ghouls from Aogiri Tree present tonight, and the terrain didn't favor him. It was clear he wouldn't be able to finish Eto here.
Just as Su Xiao decided to retreat, he noticed a man not far away. The figure, clad in a suit and holding a metal briefcase, stood frozen in place, staring at him in shock.
"Amon Koutarou?"
The scene Amon Koutarou had just witnessed—Su Xiao relentlessly pursuing and nearly killing the One-Eyed Owl—had left him completely stunned.
(End of Chapter)
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Translator's Note :- I am Not that familiar with a lot of the fictional worlds mentioned in the story. So if I make a mistake naming something please correct me by writing a paragraph comment on the mistake. Thank you.