"Nothing at all..."
Under Rize's relentless pressure, Byakuya chose to simply drop the subject.
Now Banjou was thoroughly convinced that Byakuya was Rize's man—though that was essentially what Rize had always claimed publicly anyway.
Banjou didn't overthink things like Touka and the others, who all assumed Byakuya was merely Rize's "prey."
"Rize-san... I have something very important to tell you."
Then Banjou's expression turned grave.
Byakuya sat down across from Banjou, gesturing for Rize to sit beside him.
Though she had no interest in what Banjou had to say, Rize obligingly took the seat next to Byakuya.
"Ward 11 was originally under my management, but a ghoul organization called 'Aogiri Tree' suddenly invaded. Though I resisted with everything I had, they were too strong. I couldn't watch my companions sacrifice themselves for nothing, so all of Ward 11's ghouls had to submit to Aogiri Tree."
Banjou began recounting recent events. "Now they've started hunting CCG 'Doves.' At first I thought they were joking, but Ward 11's investigators have actually been almost completely wiped out..."
"Their next target is the ward north of Ward 11. They plan to forcibly absorb that area's ghouls while eliminating the investigators there."
"Aogiri Tree's leader seems to be some cold, ruthless man. For some reason he's searching for you, Rize-san—probably to eliminate you. Sooner or later he'll lead the organization to Ward 20. I'd suggest you flee as soon as possible, or just submit to them without resisting."
Banjou had said quite a lot in one breath.
He was supposed to follow Ayato's orders to find Rize, but instead he'd come to warn her—and had kindly alerted Anteiku's ghouls as well, even though it meant risking his life.
The three subordinates weren't surprised by their boss's actions. They were all native Ward 11 ghouls who'd followed him for a long time and knew exactly what kind of person he was.
"We understand. Thank you for the warning."
Byakuya nodded.
"So please flee quickly, Rize-san! Amaha-san, since you're Rize-san's man, take her and leave Ward 20!"
Banjou spoke urgently.
"Oh my, I'm not going anywhere~"
But Rize just smiled faintly. "This so-called 'Aogiri Tree' doesn't have what it takes to make me run and hide."
"But...! They're really strong—much stronger than Ward 11's former leaders. They're slaughtering Doves like toys!"
Banjou tried repeatedly to emphasize just how powerful Aogiri Tree was, worried Rize was underestimating them.
But Rize clearly wasn't taking it to heart.
"Don't worry. We have ways to handle this."
Byakuya said.
"Alright..."
Though Banjou was still worried, he couldn't exactly force Byakuya and Rize to flee.
"Since you've come, those others are probably close behind."
Byakuya remarked casually.
Originally, three executives should have followed shortly after Banjou: Ayato Kirishima, Yamori, and Nico. With Yamori now dead, he didn't know if it would just be Ayato and Nico, or if they'd send additional people.
Either way, unless Eto herself showed up, nothing posed a real threat to Byakuya.
"What others?"
Banjou seemed unaware that other Aogiri executives were also on the move; his tip-off had actually come too late.
"Like your boss, maybe? You'll find out soon enough. But I'd suggest you take your three subordinates and hide first—you don't want to get caught in the crossfire."
Byakuya's tone was casual as he offered the warning.
"My boss?!"
Banjou's heart jolted as he realized Byakuya meant Ayato Kirishima.
Come to think of it, he'd already found Anteiku and Rize but hadn't reported back to Ayato. Ayato was probably coming to find them himself!
But he didn't want to hide. He wasn't the type to fear death.
Just as Byakuya had predicted, Ayato had already reached the rooftop of the Anteiku building.
Having located Anteiku, he immediately dropped into freefall. With an ukaku kagune, he could control his body freely even in midair. When he reached the window of Anteiku, he smashed through it feet-first, shattered glass spraying everywhere.
That same kick was aimed directly at Banjou.
The sudden attack caught nearly everyone off guard—only Byakuya and Rize remained unfazed.
Byakuya reacted fastest, reaching out to grab Banjou and yank him backward while blocking Ayato's kick himself.
"Hm?"
Ayato was surprised. His kick had landed on the other guy's arm but had no effect whatsoever.
His first thought was that this young man must also be a ghoul, never imagining his true identity was a ghoul investigator...
But Ayato decided to ignore Byakuya for now. He wanted to deal with the slow, loose-lipped Banjou first.
If that "drag queen" Nico had reached Anteiku before him, not only would he lose credit, but Touka might be in danger too...
So he was furious about this.
"Aya... Ayato-sama, why are you here..."
The three subordinates were completely stunned by Ayato's sudden arrival.
"Stop!"
Touka called out, trying to halt Ayato.
Her expression darkened. She hadn't expected her long-absent brother to appear like this.
"Yo, long time no see, dumbass sis."
Ayato spoke mockingly.
Being siblings, there was an obvious resemblance in their features.
Ayato dressed like a delinquent: slightly long, messy hair, hands stuffed in his pockets, radiating an air of rebellious indifference.
"Idiot. Where the hell have you been..."
Touka didn't know where Ayato had disappeared to all this time. Her wayward brother was giving her a headache.
"Social experience, of course. Unlike you, a peace-loving fool, I'm a real ghoul."
Ayato sneered dismissively.
"Brat's still as cocky as ever..."
Touka muttered darkly.
"Who's the brat here? Wake up and face reality, dumbass sis..."
Before Ayato could finish, the coffee shop door suddenly swung open, accompanied by an effeminate man's voice.
"Oh my~"
A man wearing colorful sunglasses and dressed like a drag queen walked in. His chin had a peculiar shape that looked like a butt...
This was Nico, the SS-rated ghoul from the Clowns organization.
That's right—he wasn't actually an Aogiri Tree member. He just liked tagging along with Yamori because he'd taken a fancy to him.
Though Yamori had been eliminated by a ghoul investigator, Nico had still come to Ward 20 because he wanted to see who had killed Yamori.
Behind Nico were two figures in gray cloaks—they were the actual Aogiri executives. They wore white masks marked with a red "P" and a red "X" respectively, known as the "Bin Brothers."
"Ayato-chan, I knew you had a sister, but I didn't expect her to be a waitress here. And you siblings are both so pretty—makes me jealous~"
Nico swayed as he walked in, his voice grating and uncomfortable, especially combined with that face of his...
"..."
Touka immediately sensed danger. Her instincts told her this drag queen was dangerous...
Hinami and Ryouko had both been frightened by these aggressive intruders. Little Hinami hid behind her mother, not daring to show herself.
Ayato shot Nico an annoyed look. This guy was fast.
"By the way, you just said 'Rize,' right? So that woman is the 'Binge Eater'?"
Ayato asked Byakuya coldly.
"Indeed, the scent on her is definitely the Binge Eater's. But she's so beautiful—I'd love to become good girlfriends with Rize-san~"
Before Byakuya could respond, Nico answered first.
Rize sat there looking serene. Though the drag queen's voice disgusted her, she said nothing.
"I'm asking you!"
Byakuya's silence had only irritated Ayato further—investigators were already a sore spot for him.
He lunged forward with a savage expression. At that moment, Byakuya instantly opened his briefcase, and 13's Jason appeared in his hand.
"Speaking of which, this is your 'Yamori'-san."
Byakuya said flatly.
His first sentence made Nico, Ayato, and the Bin Brothers all freeze.
They only knew Yamori had been eliminated by a Dove in Ward 20. They hadn't known the specific Dove was the young man standing right in front of them!
"Oh my..."
Nico exclaimed in surprise.
He was suddenly very interested in this handsome young human. Good-looking, nice build, and that intoxicating sweet scent—his heart was already fluttering~
Without another word, Byakuya gripped 13's Jason in its longsword form and charged at Ayato.
Ayato was at most an S-rated ghoul—in raw strength, significantly inferior to Yamori. He was certainly no match for Byakuya.
Byakuya's speed was so fast it startled Ayato. He snapped back to attention and, not daring to be careless, immediately released his ukaku.
His ukaku resembled Touka's but was far more complete—a pair of reddish-purple wing-like kagune spread wide, firing a barrage of projectiles at Byakuya.
Byakuya switched forms seamlessly. The instant Ayato began firing, his Quinque shifted from sword to shield mode, effortlessly blocking every projectile.
Even with Ayato's hasty evasion, he couldn't escape Byakuya's speed. Byakuya's Quinque, having switched back to sword form at lightning speed, sliced through both of Ayato's wings, also inflicting significant—though not fatal—damage to his kakuhou.
"Gah—!"
Ayato collapsed to his knees, his face contorted in pain.
Then Byakuya kicked him in the abdomen, sending him flying toward Nico.
Nico looked mildly surprised. He hadn't expected Ayato-kun to be defeated so quickly. No wonder Yamori had been eliminated by this guy.
The Bin Brothers rushed forward to shield Ayato.
Ayato clutched his stomach, staring at Byakuya in disbelief.
Why was this Dove so powerful?!
And it seemed like the guy hadn't tried to kill him?
He'd genuinely thought he was going to die just now.
"You... you actually held back...?"
Ayato couldn't help asking incredulously.
Byakuya replied expressionlessly: "Is that so surprising? What adult gets angry at a child?"