"Also, you should get those wounds treated."
Byakuya reminded Hairu.
She'd completely ignored her injuries.
Though half-humans had strong constitutions, properly treating wounds was still best.
"Mm."
Hairu was obedient about this sort of thing. She got bandages and disinfectant from the logistics team and treated her wounds herself.
Afterwards, the remaining cleanup was left to the logistics personnel.
Byakuya and Hairu headed back to the branch first—mainly to check on the situation there, since some Grey Straw ghouls had gone to ambush CCG.
Houji and Takizawa stayed behind to secure the scene. Leaving only Rank 3 investigators here wasn't reassuring.
...
Byakuya's team had demolished Grey Straw's base with minimal effort. Meanwhile, the CCG branch was still locked in a fierce battle.
Two Grey Straw executives led a force to launch a surprise attack on the branch.
Though Byakuya had warned them Grey Straw might split their forces to ambush the branch, and the stationed investigators were mentally prepared, headquarters had still assigned relatively weak forces to Ward 21.
The two executives—barely S-minus in strength—were giving them serious trouble.
Even an S-minus ghoul corresponded to at least a First Class Investigator, approaching Associate Special Class combat strength.
Houji was already Ward 21's only Associate Special Class. Besides Byakuya, there were only two First Class Investigators. Everyone else ranked below that.
However, while the two executives were troublesome, Grey Straw couldn't breach CCG's defenses.
The reason was Byakuya's allocation—he'd kept nearly everyone at the branch. Even without Quinques, their anti-ghoul firearms alone made it difficult for Grey Straw to approach.
Lots of personnel meant heavy suppressive fire.
Only the two executives weren't significantly suppressed—they either blocked bullets or took no effective damage. The two First Class Investigators were keeping them occupied.
They didn't need one-on-one victories. The longer they stalled, the better their odds—they had numbers and ample equipment.
Then Byakuya and Hairu arrived.
"Commander Amaha's back!"
"Already?! Wait... why only the two of them? Where are the others? Don't tell me..."
"What are you thinking?! Commander Amaha can fight the One-Eyed Owl! How could he fail?"
"..."
The Doves' commotion caught the two Grey Straw executives' attention.
Commander?
Sounded like the one who'd led the assault on their base.
But the Doves should have sent a whole group. Only two returned—had their leader achieved total victory? These two Doves were probably the only survivors who escaped.
"We've won! Everyone charge! Tear those Doves apart!"
One executive roared.
Their blind faith in their leader's strength convinced them they'd already won. Grey Straw's morale skyrocketed, and they threw themselves at CCG even more recklessly.
They thought their leader would arrive any moment with reinforcements to completely annihilate the Doves—just like Aogiri Tree had done in Ward 11.
And they'd learn from Aogiri's mistakes: after eliminating these Doves, they'd relocate immediately so CCG couldn't find them for revenge.
Fantasy time.
Beautiful fantasies, but cruel reality. These two "defeated survivors" had actually destroyed their base...
Watching the ghouls surge forward with even greater momentum, Byakuya spoke calmly. "They probably don't know their leader's dead yet. Ihei-san, how are your injuries? Will they affect your movement?"
"Not at all."
Hairu smiled.
"Good. The other executive's yours. Make it quick."
With that, Byakuya unlocked his Quinque briefcase and charged at the enemy.
Ding! Host defeated an "S-rated ghoul." Reward: 20 Fusion Points!
Ding! Host defeated an "A-rated ghoul." Reward: 10 Fusion Points!
...
Ding! Host's cumulative Fusion Points have reached 3,000. System Shop upgraded from Lv1 to Lv2!
As Byakuya and Hairu killed the two executives in succession, the remaining ghouls gradually realized something was wrong.
Weren't they supposed to have the upper hand? Why was this happening?!
And where was their leader? Why hadn't he arrived with reinforcements?
As more and more companions fell, they completely crumbled.
But they'd come to CCG's territory. Did they think they could just run?
"AAARGH—!"
The surviving ghouls were quickly swallowed by overwhelming firepower.
As the last scream faded to silence, every Grey Straw member who'd attacked CCG had been eliminated.
"The Grey Straw Suppression Operation is complete. Only Ihei-san and I came back ahead—Houji-san and the others are still handling the scene. Please take care of cleanup here as well."
Byakuya briefly explained the situation to everyone.
Then he planned to focus on the system, having just been notified that the System Shop had reached Lv2. He wanted to see what was new.
Sitting in an empty room where no one would disturb him, Byakuya opened the system panel with a thought.
Ignoring less important information, he checked his current Fusion Points.
[Fusion Points: 1,940 (Cumulative: 3,050)]
Next, he opened the System Shop.
A second page had appeared. The first page still showed the Lv1 items. The new products were probably on page two.
He flipped to the second page.
[System Shop Lv2]
[Item 1: Akatsuki Robe]
[Details: The uniform of the Akatsuki Organization. Wearers are unconsciously influenced by the robe, gaining 20% increased loyalty to the Akatsuki leader and 10% overall ability enhancement. This effect is permanent.]
[Price: 1 Fusion Point]
[...]
...
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