11th Ward, Aogiri Tree Base.
"Ahhh!"
A piercing scream echoed throughout the old building.
On the ground floor, a group of contractors had gathered. The scream just now belonged to the original protagonist, Ken Kaneki. These contractors, to boost their side's strength and keep the storyline on track, had collaborated with Ayato Kirishima to capture Kaneki and bring him to Aogiri Tree.
They were different from Su Xiao. Su Xiao didn't care whether the plot continued or not, as long as he could complete his mission. Even if the lack of a narrative guide made it slightly harder, Su Xiao wouldn't mind.
Personal strength was the only truth. Relying too much on the plot would lead to trouble once it inevitably derailed.
"Are you sure this is okay, Hothead?"
The speaker was Han Yu, whose spine shivered at the sound of the terrifying screams.
Han Yu couldn't help but wonder what kind of torture Kaneki was enduring to make him scream like that.
"It should be fine. In the original, it was Yamori who tortured him, but now it's Nico, the transvestite. His torture methods are almost the same as Yamori's."
Even Hothead, despite his confidence, felt a bit unsettled by Kaneki's continuous wails.
"Tell me, tell me, tell me! What is one thousand minus seven?"
A twisted, high-pitched shout echoed from upstairs, followed by more agonized screams.
"Kaneki… won't die, right?"
Hothead gulped nervously.
"Probably not. After all, he's the protagonist."
Both Hothead and Han Yu fell into an awkward silence.
At the back of the group of contractors, a small girl stood quietly—Xiluo, who had previously made a deal with Su Xiao.
Judging by her current position and the way the other contractors ignored her, it was clear that she had a very low status within Han Yu's adventurer team.
"Has that psycho from the CCG made any moves recently?"
Hothead asked casually, but Han Yu was taken aback by the question.
"Not much."
Han Yu responded but sneakily used a private message to send Hothead the following:
'That guy cleared out all the ghouls in the 14th Ward.'
Hothead froze in shock, waves of disbelief coursing through him. Clearing out an entire ward of ghouls—what kind of feat was that?
Hothead understood Han Yu's intent. This information needed to be kept secret from the other contractors, as it could greatly demoralize their faction.
Han Yu and Hothead both maintained control by ensuring that their team members knew as little as possible about certain developments.
Information superiority helped them secure leadership positions and ensured they could reap more benefits.
People were naturally selfish, and even more so in this temporary adventurer team, where everyone was constantly looking out for themselves.
Exploiting the contractors within temporary teams was an unspoken rule among team leaders.
The contractors being exploited were usually aware of it, but they had no choice. Without joining temporary teams, they wouldn't stand a chance of surviving the derivative worlds.
"So, the main mission hasn't started yet. How's your progress with your storyline task? I've completed over 50% of mine."
Hothead asked, steering the conversation away from dangerous topics.
"Eh, so-so. Finding ghoul investigators is tough. They're scattered all over the place, and the ones who roam around are few and far between. Most of my team is about 40% done."
Han Yu sighed.
After today, they would have 12 days left, and with the 11th Ward storyline about to kick off, it would be a prime opportunity.
Su Xiao's task was to drive out ghouls, while Han Yu and his group had to kill CCG investigators.
Of course, they didn't need to kill nearly as many investigators as Su Xiao needed to drive out ghouls. Each of them only had to kill five investigators.
If they had to kill as many investigators as Su Xiao needed to get rid of ghouls, they would have to wipe out all of Tokyo's investigators, which would still not be enough—the CCG's numbers were just too small.
Xiluo, overhearing their conversation, felt a deep sense of frustration.
She had already paid Han Yu, but her mission progress was still at zero. Han Yu's original words were, "Don't worry, you'll have plenty of chances later."
But Xiluo had a sharp intuition. She suspected Han Yu might be planning to betray her.
Even though she had paid and signed a contract with Han Yu, if she ran into someone unscrupulous, the contract wouldn't protect her much.
The contract only stated that Han Yu was supposed to help her complete her mission and try to protect her.
The word "try" left plenty of room for manipulation.
If Xiluo were to die, the contract would be voided, and Han Yu would only lose some Reincarnation Paradise coins—a painful but ultimately tolerable loss. Otherwise, Han Yu wouldn't have signed the contract in the first place.
Under normal circumstances, Han Yu wouldn't betray her. But Su Xiao's presence was putting immense pressure on Han Yu.
Han Yu no longer cared about Xiluo's coins, nor her life.
With powerful enemies looming, the contractors were each harboring their own hidden agendas. Even within the alliance between Han Yu and Hothead, there was an air of mutual suspicion.
...
20th Ward, CCG Branch.
After receiving orders from headquarters, Su Xiao headed for the CCG branch in the 20th Ward. It wasn't far from the 14th Ward, so driving there didn't take long.
Standing outside the branch building, Su Xiao stretched his body.
With the main mission now essentially complete, Su Xiao finally felt a bit more relaxed. He could finish the task anytime he wanted, which relieved much of the tension he'd been under.
It was 5 p.m., and the soft evening sun bathed everything in a warm, golden hue. The horizon was painted with a glowing expanse of clouds, and in the nearby park, a few elderly people were drinking tea and chatting.
"Perfect weather for training."
Since entering the ghoul world, Su Xiao had been engaged in high-intensity battles.
If his time in Reincarnation Paradise had been about learning combat techniques, then this was the real test.
Through these blood-soaked battles, Su Xiao felt his swordsmanship improve. The sensation that Koushirou had described, where the blade became an extension of his body, was becoming more apparent.
"Mr. White Night~!"
A white blur rapidly approached. Su Xiao instinctively reached for Dragon Flash, but then recognized the familiar figure.
"Suzuya."
Su Xiao chuckled. He had a good impression of Juuzou Suzuya. They had fought together and shared a certain camaraderie.
There was a bond that formed through fighting side by side, one that was stronger than most other connections.
"Mr. White Night~, what brings you here?"
Juuzou's voice was as cheerful as ever.
"I'm here to meet someone, and you can just call me White Night, no need for 'Mr.'"
Su Xiao was here to meet someone, though he wasn't sure exactly who.
"I got lost earlier. This is the 20th Ward branch, right? I've been looking all afternoon. Oh, White Night~, do you know where the meeting room is?"
Su Xiao nodded and led Juuzou inside. He had been to the 20th Ward branch before.
As soon as they entered, Su Xiao noticed something off. Everywhere they walked, people would stare at him as if he were some rare creature. Some female investigators even discreetly took out their phones to snap pictures.
At that moment, in the 20th Ward branch's meeting room, Special Class Investigator Marude Itsuki was hosting a meeting.
The room was filled with dozens of CCG investigators. In addition to Marude, there were two other Special Class Investigators and three Associate Special Class Investigators. The number of First Class Investigators present was even higher.
This kind of gathering was a rare occurrence in CCG history.
Though Marude was a Special Class Investigator, he rarely participated in combat. His talent for commanding far exceeded his fighting abilities.
He was the CCG's field commander, especially adept at handling large-scale battles.
With Marude's fiery rhetoric, the investigators in the room were getting fired up.
"This is a war between humanity and the ghouls! So, I want all of you to entrust your lives to me for the time being. And just so you know, that's an order! You don't have the right to refuse!"
At that moment, Marude was building up to his final, most impactful statement. It was the culmination of days of thought, meant to inspire everyone present before battle.
"Bang!"
The door to the meeting room suddenly swung open with a loud crash, startling several investigators.
"Sorry~, I'm Juuzou Suzuya from Shinohara's team. I got lost and ended up late."
Juuzou stood with his arms stretched out in front of him, which explained why the door had been flung open so forcefully.
Standing behind Juuzou, Su Xiao had a perfect view of Marude's face. The Special Class Investigator wore an expression that could only be described as "utterly dumbfounded."
The room was dead silent. It seemed like the little angel Juuzou had caused some trouble.
(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.