Byakuya had considered that merely bisecting Scarecrow might not kill him. That's why he wasn't surprised when Scarecrow launched one last attack at Hairu in that state.
Having anticipated this and still bisecting him meant he was absolutely certain he could protect Hairu.
He definitely wouldn't watch her die the same way again—he'd seen that scene before his transmigration...
In that instant, Byakuya used the Body Flicker Technique, appearing behind Hairu in a flash.
He shifted 13's Jason to shield form, blocking the strike for her.
Scarecrow's attack made Hairu instinctively step back—and she bumped into Byakuya.
"Don't be afraid. It's over now."
Having caught Hairu against his chest, Byakuya spoke right beside her ear.
"Amaha... senpai?..."
Only then did Hairu realize Amaha-senpai had suddenly appeared behind her, his shield-form Quinque raised in front of her, blocking that attack.
Next, Byakuya shifted Jason to its ranged cannon form and fired point-blank at Scarecrow's head.
Ding! Host defeated S-rated ghoul "Scarecrow." Reward: 35 Fusion Points!
Being the same S-rated tier, Leader Scarecrow was far stronger than those two executives, hence the higher point reward.
With his head blown apart, Scarecrow was finally, thoroughly dead.
Even ghoul regeneration had limits. Bisection plus headshot—an ordinary ghoul would have died twice over.
The only ghouls who could survive this were complete kakuja, and only if they had human flesh to rapidly replenish RC cells and boost regeneration.
Seeing their leader dead, the remaining Grey Straw members completely crumbled.
Forget Byakuya and Hairu being unbeatable—they couldn't handle the other two Doves either.
Houji alone could dominate them. He was Associate Special Class in title but already possessed Special Class combat strength—just not promoted yet. Two more years and he would be.
Even having to watch Takizawa's back, he faced minimal pressure against these ordinary members.
Grey Straw's morale utterly collapsed. Byakuya's team quickly mopped up.
Ding! Host defeated a "B-rated ghoul." Reward: 5 Fusion Points!
Ding! Host defeated an "A-rated ghoul." Reward: 10 Fusion Points!
...
When it ended, not a single ghoul had escaped.
Captured, killed outright, or surrendered.
Byakuya didn't make things difficult for those who surrendered. He'd already earned the Fusion Points for defeating them. Just toss them in Cochlea.
Months ago, Aogiri Tree's attack on Cochlea had released over a hundred ghouls. Plenty of empty cells now.
Ding! Host successfully completed the Grey Straw Suppression Operation as commander. Reward: 40 Fusion Points!
Ding! Host completed Choice Two: "In the face of Fusion Points and achievements, cute juniors are irrelevant." Reward: 20 Fusion Points!
This operation had netted Byakuya several hundred Fusion Points.
He hadn't counted exactly, but his cumulative total was probably approaching 3,000 points—the threshold for upgrading the System Shop to Lv2, which would unlock more purchasable items.
Byakuya's performance had undoubtedly far exceeded Hairu's, completing the system's choice mission.
"I couldn't beat Amaha-senpai again. I thought this time I'd finally get praise from Arima-san."
As the battle ended, Hairu sat on the ground resting, hugging her knees.
Byakuya, standing beside her, spoke up. "If you want praise that badly, I could praise you. Unless you only want it from Arima-san—then forget I said anything."
Hairu looked up, eyes showing surprise. She hadn't expected Amaha-senpai to say something like that.
She nodded. "Sure, but Amaha-senpai doesn't seem like the type to genuinely praise people."
"Who says?... Anyway, I think your performance this time was excellent. Even if I hadn't intervened, the half-kakuja Scarecrow would've eventually fallen to you."
Byakuya said.
It was actually his intervention—bisecting Scarecrow—that had nearly gotten Hairu killed.
Of course, he hadn't deliberately put her in danger. He'd only acted because he was absolutely certain he could protect her.
Then Byakuya pointed out her flaw. "The only issue is you sometimes get careless. Try not to do that when fighting ghouls. Like today—if you hadn't gotten careless, you probably wouldn't have been injured."
He emphasized this point again. Otherwise, someday it might become the cause of her death...
"Mm... so is Amaha-senpai worried about me?"
Hairu's tone was curious.
Her abdominal and thigh wounds were still visible—unhealed. Half-humans had superior physical abilities but lacked ghoul regeneration.
"What else? Minor scrapes are fine, but if you suffered irreversible damage, or if something happened to you... I'd have a real headache as your superior. Even if only temporarily..."
Byakuya said frankly.
Hairu smiled softly. "I'll be more careful. So Amaha-senpai won't be sad."
"You should say 'for your own safety.'"
Byakuya sighed lightly.
Having a junior like this was quite exhausting...
"Earlier, Houji-san said Amaha-senpai is similar to Arima-san. But to me, you feel different."
Hairu suddenly added.
"Obviously. Arima-san and I are different people. How could we be exactly alike?"
Byakuya said casually.
"Mm~"
Hairu didn't elaborate, but her expression suggested she was in quite a good mood.
...
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