Chapter 39: Fright
"Nice to meet you~."
After saying this, Suzuyashiki Juuzou revealed a smile.
"Huh~~?"
Marubushi Sai formed a claw-like hand with one hand, trembling in front of himself.
Shinohara Yukinori, standing nearby, saw this and pressed his hand to his forehead, looking like he had a splitting headache.
"Honestly."
Shinohara Yukinori's gaze swept over and immediately noticed Su Xiao behind Suzuyashiki Juuzou.
Marubushi Sai also noticed Su Xiao, and his previously stiff expression suddenly vanished.
"Shinohara, headquarters temporarily assigned him to us? Great!"
No wonder Marubushi Sai was so happy; District 14 had been almost single-handedly cleared by Su Xiao, something everyone had witnessed.
"Amaru, you might be getting your hopes up for nothing. Bai Ye has been transferred to District 24 for 'whack-a-mole,' working together with Arima Yoshikazu."
Marubushi Sai was startled.
"The depths of District 24? That damn place seems unreachable except by Zero Squad, right? Has Bai Ye become a member of Zero Squad? Doesn't Zero Squad have that rule?"
"Consider him a temporary member."
Hearing "temporary member," Marubushi Sai's eyes lit up.
"Temporary~ member, heh, that leaves room for negotiation. If the Black Reaper is present during the operation in District 11, even if the Owl shows up, we won't suffer too many casualties."
As he spoke, Marubushi Sai was already walking toward the door, stepping past Suzuyashiki Juuzou to warmly greet Su Xiao.
"First-Class Bai Ye, we've met before. We're in the middle of a meeting—please join us."
Faced with this sudden 'warmth,' Su Xiao was a bit taken aback.
"This~."
"The person First-Class Bai Ye is waiting for won't arrive for a while—at least a day."
Su Xiao found it hard to refuse, so he sat down in the meeting room.
"Um~, Third-Class Suzuyashiki, you can sit in for now."
Suzuyashiki Juuzou stared blankly at Marubushi Sai.
"Sit in?"
"Sit in outside the door!"
"Bam." The meeting room door was shut tight.
Marubushi Sai was clearly a grudge-holder, usually looking like a slacker, but he was indeed a reliable person.
Suzuyashiki Juuzou, wearing bright red slippers, leaned against the wall by the door as the meeting continued.
"Now then, let's talk about the key points of the operation. The Aogiri Tree is clearly acting with organization and discipline, so I conclude they have a leader. And based on past cases, their leader..."
Marubushi Sai began detailing the operation. Su Xiao yawned, resting his chin on his hand.
"I might give some very harsh orders, but please bear with them. I'm counting on you.
The operation is set for one week from now. We'll try to evacuate the surviving residents of District 11. Recently, ghoul sightings in District 14 have been astonishingly low, so we'll relocate them there. I'll handle the media.
That's all. Dismissed."
"Yes, sir."
The meeting finally ended. Su Xiao had already fallen asleep; the consecutive days of rushing around had left him exhausted.
"Bai Ye, let's go."
Shinohara Yukinori woke Su Xiao.
"Hmm? Over already? Marubushi Sai sure talks a lot."
Su Xiao yawned and stood up.
"Amaru is also worried about casualties this time. That's just how our job is—can't afford to be careless. No help for it."
Su Xiao and Shinohara Yukinori walked out together. They had worked together before, and Su Xiao's clearance of District 14 had also significantly impacted Shinohara Yukinori's career.
After all, it was during Shinohara Yukinori's management of District 14 that Su Xiao had cleared it.
As they stepped out of the meeting room, they saw Marubushi Sai at the door.
At that moment, a mischievous grin spread across Marubushi Sai's lips as he walked toward Suzuyashiki Juuzou, who was leaning against the wall.
"So you're Suzuyashiki Juuzou? A pretty scrawny little guy, huh."
Suzuyashiki Juuzou didn't respond, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Shinohara Yukinori, who had been chatting with Su Xiao, noticed this.
"This isn't good. I'll go over first."
Shinohara Yukinori hurried over.
Marubushi Sai, seeing that Suzuyashiki Juuzou was ignoring him, wasn't angry. Instead, he leaned his face close to Suzuyashiki Juuzou's, wearing a creepy uncle expression.
"Do you eat properly? Hey, do you have a dick down there?"
Clearly, this grudge-holding Marubushi Sai was picking a fight because Suzuyashiki Juuzou had interrupted his meeting earlier.
"Huh?"
Hearing 'do you have a dick down there,' Suzuyashiki Juuzou showed some reaction.
"Forget it, forget it, Amaru. Suzuyashiki just got to the branch, so he's probably tired. Let him be. Let's go eat first."
Shinohara Yukinori pushed Marubushi Sai's shoulders with both hands, and the two walked out.
"What's the big deal? I was just chatting with him."
"Forget it, we'll talk tomorrow. Let's go."
After saying this, Shinohara Yukinori turned back and mouthed a 'please' to Su Xiao.
Suzuyashiki Juuzou had just arrived in District 20 and didn't know anyone. Moreover, this little white-haired kid had no basic sense of right and wrong and was prone to causing trouble.
In District 14, only two people could handle Suzuyashiki Juuzou. One was Shinohara Yukinori, who had reformed Suzuyashiki Juuzou through kindness and treated him well.
The second was Su Xiao. If Suzuyashiki Juuzou didn't obey, Su Xiao would beat him until he did.
...
After Marubushi Sai left, Suzuyashiki Juuzou tilted his head, looking in the direction Marubushi Sai had gone. Those light red eyes deeply memorized Marubushi Sai's appearance.
This little white-haired Suzuyashiki Juuzou also held grudges.
"How are you planning to get revenge? With your current combat power, Marubushi Sai could kill you within ten minutes."
Suzuyashiki Juuzou withdrew his gaze.
"Bai Ye~, I'm hungry~."
"Let's go."
Su Xiao led Suzuyashiki Juuzou out of the branch. After searching nearby, they found a barbecue restaurant.
The restaurant was luxuriously decorated, clearly with a high per-person cost.
Su Xiao wasn't short on money. Before leaving District 14, he had collected a sizable bonus from the District 14 branch.
"Sir, please come in."
The waiter led Su Xiao and the other to a seat.
Suzuyashiki Juuzou ordered a portion of beef so expensive it would make anyone's jaw drop, then grinned foolishly at Su Xiao.
Su Xiao ordered a large amount of meat and fish.
Soon, a wire-mesh self-service grill was brought to them.
The beef Suzuyashiki Juuzou had ordered was a type of fillet called 'wagyu.'
"Sizzle sizzle~."
Oil beads appeared on the surface of the beef on the self-service grill, sizzling as animal fat dripped onto the charcoal.
Su Xiao tried a piece. The taste was indeed excellent—tender meat, a smooth texture, and an unforgettable aftertaste when paired with the special sauce.
After a hearty meal, Su Xiao walked somewhat idly along the street. Since entering the derivative world, he had been constantly busy.
Now that he suddenly had free time, he felt a bit unaccustomed to it.
The sky was already dimming. As he walked, Su Xiao noticed a café in the distance.
Looking closely, the café's name was unmistakably 'Anteiku'!
This was a coincidence. Su Xiao hadn't been specifically looking for Anteiku; he was just strolling after his meal.
Since he was already here, he might as well go in and check things out. It would also help him gauge the general situation of the ghoul side.
Although Anteiku's combat strength was formidable, with the manager, Shuu Tsukiyama, Enji Koma, and others, in District 20, as long as Su Xiao didn't make the first move, Anteiku wouldn't dare to either, unless they wanted to stop living in District 20.
Su Xiao pushed open the café door, and the bell above it let out a crisp jingle.
"Welcome."
A somewhat soft, childish voice came through.
Su Xiao walked into the café and found a little girl with short, tea-colored hair and fair skin standing before him.
He recognized this little girl. She was Hinami Fueguchi, who had recently lost her parents.
For some reason, upon seeing Su Xiao, Hinami froze in place, as if she had seen something terrifying.
"No, don't come near me."
Hinami's voice carried a sob as she plopped down onto the ground.
Su Xiao had killed too many ghouls recently, and his body was saturated with bloodlust. Hinami, however, had an innate ability—extremely strong perception.