When she had just woken up.
Yoshimura Eto walked out of the bedroom with her hair still sticking up in all directions.
Her hair was already naturally messy and curly to begin with, and after being mussed up from sleep it looked even wilder.
She had never slept as comfortably as she had last night. Back in the 24th Ward, she always slept lying directly on the ground, and she had to constantly stay alert for ghouls who might jump out and attack her at any moment...
It was probably precisely because she slept too comfortably that her hair exploded like this.
But with Eto's adorably delicate features, no matter how messy her hair was, she still didn't look strange or ugly at all.
After they finished breakfast and were about to head out.
Yoshimura Eto had already changed into her new clothes, but the only thing she hadn't fixed was her hair.
Or rather, Eto had never had the habit of brushing her hair at all.
"Your hair is sticking up everywhere. You're not going to brush it before going out?"
Ihei Byakuya couldn't help saying when he saw her.
"Is it?"
Yoshimura Eto finally checked the mirror. She hadn't paid any attention earlier. "I think it's fine. It should be okay like this."
"Let me at least brush it a bit for you. We're going to sign up at the CCG. It's necessary to look somewhat presentable."
Ihei Byakuya picked up a comb nearby.
Then he sat on the sofa and signaled for Eto to sit in front of him.
Yoshimura Eto wasn't particularly eager, but she still obediently sat down in front of Byakuya.
Even though her natural curls couldn't be straightened no matter how he combed, at least the puffed-up strands were smoothed out.
With Ihei Byakuya combing and touching her hair, Yoshimura Eto suddenly felt a strange, indescribable sensation.
After all, no girl casually let a boy touch her hair. Even if Eto wasn't consciously aware of such a thing, her subconscious still reacted.
And, more importantly, other than her foster father, Yoshimura Eto had never received affection from anyone since she was little. She had never felt true fatherly nor motherly love.
Originally... the person who should have been behind her combing her hair should have been her father or mother...
"Are you done yet?"
That strange feeling made Yoshimura Eto a little irritated, and she urged Byakuya.
"Almost."
Ihei Byakuya straightened Eto's messy hair.
He had never combed a girl's hair before, so he had no experience. He was basically just doing it randomly.
Afterward, Ihei Byakuya took Eto to the CCG branch of their ward. While clocking in for work, he also helped Eto complete her registration.
...
13th Ward, CCG Branch.
"Third-Class Ihei, this little girl is only twelve years old. Are you sure you want her to register?"
The staff member in charge of the procedure confirmed with Ihei Byakuya.
"Yes. Her family was killed by ghouls, so she only wants revenge against ghouls."
Ihei Byakuya nodded.
"I feel like she should go to the shelter first. Isn't twelve a bit too young...?"
The staff member suggested.
"No. I just want to become a ghoul investigator as soon as possible."
At this moment, Yoshimura Eto spoke with a firm tone.
"Little girl, let me warn you in advance: that 'Academy' uses elite-style education. Graduating smoothly isn't easy. You need to be mentally prepared."
The staff member kindly reminded her.
"I understand."
Yoshimura Eto nodded slightly.
"Then that's that. Just wait for the notification."
The staff member accepted the already completed registration form.
The name Yoshimura Eto filled in on the registration form was "Eto," directly avoiding her surname, and Byakuya also explained the reason for her.
As for family members, they simply wrote that they had been killed by ghouls, so there was no need to fill anything in.
There were countless unclear murder cases in this world, most committed by ghouls. When the victims were eaten until only a few bones remained, or even nothing at all, it was impossible to identify who had died.
Because it was so hard to investigate, Yoshimura Eto was able to leave the family section blank.
However, the CCG's identity checks truly weren't strict. Even a problematic child raised by ghouls like Suzuya Juuzou could join smoothly. As long as the Rc scanner gate didn't go off, it was basically fine.
After all, the CCG was constantly short-staffed. A single large-scale extermination operation could empty out the forces of half the Tokyo branches. To recruit as many people as possible, they wouldn't set too many restrictions.
The only requirement was a relatively high baseline of ability; otherwise weak investigators would just be cannon fodder on the battlefield.
"Is that all? I thought they would at least test my strength first."
At this moment, Yoshimura Eto asked Byakuya.
"Yeah. There aren't any real requirements for registration or admission. As long as you want to sign up, you can get in. The hard part is graduating."
Ihei Byakuya explained.
But with Eto's strength, graduation would definitely be easy. Even the physical examination during hiring wouldn't be a problem.
It worked the same way as the Rc scanner gate.
Inside the CCG, there were half-humans from the Sunlit Garden mixed in, and even ghouls from the Washuu family...
Yes, the Washuu family was actually a ghoul family.
But neither the Rc scanner gate nor the hiring physical exams worked on Washuu ghouls and half-humans.
This was because the Washuu family had tampered with the devices.
Simply put, they had set up a "whitelist" for their bloodline. It was like an account with whitelist privileges, no matter how blatantly it used cheats, it wouldn't get banned, because the system didn't check whitelisted accounts at all.
And although Yoshimura Eto did not carry Washuu blood, she was the daughter of Yoshimura Kuzen. Yoshimura Kuzen had once worked for the Washuu family, so Kuzen's bloodline was also on the whitelist.
In other words, even if Yoshimura Eto had a Kagune inside her, the CCG would never detect it.
Otherwise some of the high-ranking CCG members would have been exposed long ago. Those people were pure ghouls of the Washuu family and far more likely to be exposed than Eto, a half-ghoul, since they couldn't even eat human food.
So ironically, Yoshimura Eto was extremely safe inside the CCG...
"Graduate? I'll work hard."
Although she didn't take it seriously in her heart, Yoshimura Eto still pretended to on the surface.
"Do you want to go home first? Or wait here? I need to meet my superior."
Walking through the branch corridor, Ihei Byakuya asked Eto.
Since Eto was still an outsider, many areas inside the CCG branch were off-limits. The only reason she could walk this far was because Byakuya brought her along.
"I'll wait."
Yoshimura Eto wanted to learn more about the CCG. This would help with her revenge plan.
Leaving Eto standing in the corridor for now, Ihei Byakuya entered the office.
To his surprise, as soon as he went in, he saw someone he found somewhat familiar...
"Third-Class Ihei, you're here. I am Senior Investigator Aura Kiyoko."