Lancer, carrying Kirishima Touka, suddenly stumbled heavily. Touka, held tightly in his arms, almost hit the ground headfirst. She clearly had no idea what was going on—they had already escaped the collapsing area, so why was Lancer suddenly behaving so strangely?
Yet, though Touka was clueless, Lancer understood perfectly well.
The so-called "Secret Technique" was terrifyingly powerful—like his strike earlier, which could normally take down an S-rated Ghoul, and whose destructive power multiplied enormously when empowered. But the cost of that "secret" wasn't just for show.
Rapid decline in all physical attributes, multiplied physical exhaustion—these were just the visible symptoms. Even worse was the invisible mental fatigue.
Now that the empowerment was fading, his drastically reduced stats, coupled with extreme exhaustion and mental stress, had plunged him into a near-delirious state. Yet, right before losing consciousness, he still managed to press the emergency signal on his earpiece.
Thud!
Holding Touka, Lancer crashed directly onto the ground…
Touka, similarly thrown down, momentarily didn't understand what had happened. When she finally stood up, clutching her sore backside, she saw Lancer lying face-down. If not for the steady rise and fall of his breathing, she might've thought him dead.
Gazing down at the unconscious Lancer, Touka's expression grew complicated.
Her Kagune, unconsciously extended behind her, flickered restlessly, reflecting her tangled thoughts.
This person had nearly killed her younger brother. Then he'd driven Kaneki Ken into a desperate, life-and-death situation. It could be said their rescue mission might already have completely failed because of him. Yet…
Remembering how he'd protected her from Kaneki's Kagune, and recalling how he'd desperately carried her through the explosion-filled chaos, she found herself unable to strike him down.
Ever since the day her father had been taken away by CCG, she'd never again been held in someone's arms like this. True, this man's embrace was crude, lacking even a hint of gentleness or grace—but somehow, pressed tightly against him, she'd felt strangely safe. Even the explosions behind them had failed to disturb her heart in that moment.
Looking at Lancer's frowning face in unconsciousness, the hand she'd extended hovered hesitantly above him…
"Lancer?! Lancer!!"
At that moment, an anxious voice shouted from nearby, jolting Touka sharply out of her trance. Casting one final complicated glance at Lancer, she whispered quietly,
"The next time we meet, I will definitely kill you."
It was unclear whether those words were meant for the unconscious Lancer or for herself. Then she shakily got to her feet and vanished silently into the darkness…
"Lancer?! Medic, hurry!"
Meanwhile, Amon Koutarou, following the emergency signal, frantically called out for a medical team…
And from within the shadows, a pair of crimson eyes watched silently, only fading away once the medical team finally arrived.
...
Anteiku had lost Kaneki Ken. Ever since he'd been attacked by Lancer, he'd vanished without a trace. The only proof that Kaneki was still alive was the bloodied spear Lancer had hurled, lying abandoned by the roadside, with no corpse in sight.
Aogiri Tree had sacrificed hundreds of their disposable pawns and exhausted their precious supply of explosives, but in the end, achieved no strategic success. Instead, they had completely enraged the CCG. The 11th Ward was now a battlefield between Aogiri and the CCG, and driven by rage, the CCG had even begun deploying heavier weaponry. Previously, carbines or submachine guns had been standard—now machine guns had entered their regular armaments.
The CCG had mobilized over five hundred Investigators for this operation. Though the shopping mall was destroyed, the 11th Ward still hadn't returned to their control, meaning strategically this operation was effectively a failure. If not for Lancer's timely warning, it might've ended even worse, with massive casualties.
Clearly, no faction involved had truly won this conflict. At most, the CCG had fared slightly better.
Fortunately, due to Lancer's early warning, CCG casualties had been minimal, allowing them to keep the fighting contained in the 11th Ward. Nearby wards were heavily reinforced with armored units, effectively isolating the 11th Ward as a warzone.
Although the 11th Ward was completely locked down by the CCG, rumors still circulated among ordinary citizens. Marude Itsuki, after all, had confidently declared victory in a televised speech before the operation. So even if civilians didn't know the exact situation inside the 11th Ward, they knew it hadn't been retaken yet. Faced with mounting external pressure, the "Special Class Investigator Meeting" had no choice but to convene early.
Undoubtedly, this meeting would decide the future policy toward Aogiri Tree. Yet none of that mattered to Lancer. He already knew what would happen in that meeting. Currently, his entire body was wrapped in bandages as he lay helplessly in a bed at a CCG-affiliated hospital, staring miserably at the person in front of him.
"Madou Akira-san, I'm really fine. Although I can't exactly fight Ghouls right now, I can at least walk around normally. Even rehab training would be better than just lying in bed, right?"
"No. Associate Special Class Investigator Madou ordered me to make sure you rest in bed!"
"Ugh…"
Lancer covered his face in despair, utterly at a loss. Facing this person, he truly had no solution.
If it were Amon Koutarou watching over him, Amon would at least agree to accompany him for a short walk. But Madou Akira was absolutely inflexible and completely indifferent to his complaints.
Ordinarily, lying in bed accompanied by a beautiful woman would've been quite pleasant. But if this "beautiful woman" perpetually wore a cold, stern face, speaking constantly of "rules" and "requirements," the experience quickly became torture. Moreover, she was the daughter of his benefactor, making it impossible for him to simply run away…
Seeing Lancer's utterly miserable expression, Madou Akira seemed finally moved enough to make a small concession.
"Do you have anything you urgently need to handle? I can help you deal with it."
Urgent matters? Of course! There were two Ghouls still hiding in his home!
Although it hadn't even been a week since their last feeding, so theoretically there shouldn't be any problems, he hadn't saved the Fueguchi mother and daughter just to cruelly starve them.
Lancer sighed helplessly to the ceiling. What else could he do?
Bored, he began browsing through his "records" again—a task he'd already repeated countless times since waking.
This battle had, per usual, sent him straight into the hospital. Yet, he'd gained quite a lot as well. Along the way, in cooperation with Amon, he'd eliminated 23 ordinary Ghouls. Later, still alongside Amon, he took down two S-rated Ghouls. And finally, he'd even stolen Jason's kill from Suzuya Juuzou's hands.
Though strangely no missions had triggered this time, his harvest had still been considerable—he'd earned a full "1030 points," plus the 159 points he had previously stored…
For some reason, certain things in "Supplies" seemed to glow enticingly, irresistibly catching his eye.
---
A/N:
I realized I forgot to explain how points are earned, so let me add it here:
Ordinary Human: +1
Ordinary Ghoul: +10
S-rated Ghoul: +200
SS-rated Ghoul: +800
SSS-rated Ghoul: +3200
(Kakuja Ghouls grant double their standard points.)
Also, the points aren't simply currency, nor does the "System" possess intelligence. Lancer will gradually deduce exactly what the system is and its operational logic, including why no mission was triggered this time.
T/N: Rize was prob only +100 since he wasn't the reason she died :p prob the participation thing!
bonus chaps
100 stones -> 1 chapter
200 stones -> 2 chapters
300 stones -> 3 chapters
and so on
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