Chapter 82: You Have Been Captured Alive
Kishou Arima and Eto Yoshimura exchanged a glance. Eto looked displeased but still nodded.
"Our previous plan was to cultivate a new generation of 'King.' That plan has now failed, so we must resort to extremes. In this world, only one of ghouls and humans can exist; the two should not coexist. Or rather, ghouls should never have appeared in this world. Currently, the V Organization holds too much power. I have a way to make them lose everything. Once the V Organization disappears, the world will change."
Kishou Arima's words surprised Su Xiao. He couldn't help but glance at Eto Yoshimura beside him, thinking to himself, *Eto, a ghoul, is right here—are you sure it's okay to say that? Besides, Kishou Arima isn't fully human either; he's a half-human born from the union of a ghoul and a human.*
"Make the ghouls of V lose everything? Eto Yoshimura, would you agree to that? Your father is a member of V. If the ghouls of V are different from ordinary ghouls, wouldn't you be affected too?"
Su Xiao suddenly felt that what Kishou Arima was saying might not be reliable.
"It doesn't matter. As long as those people pay the price, anything is fine."
The V Organization had caused Eto Yoshimura to lose her mother, leaving her to grow up alone in District 24 with only her foster father, Noro. But Noro could only take care of her daily needs; he couldn't give her parental love.
Eto Yoshimura's expression didn't seem like she was lying.
The plan the two had prepared for thirteen years had come to nothing, and with Kishou Arima's time running out, they had to step in themselves.
"Actually, our goal in cultivating a 'King' was to make the new 'King' strong enough to destroy 'that thing.' As long as 'that thing' exists, the world will continue to twist. Whether humans or ghouls win in the end doesn't matter to us."
At this point, everything became clear.
Although Kishou Arima was a member of V, he was cooperating with Eto Yoshimura to cultivate the next 'King.'
Now, the 'King' they had their eyes on had fallen early, leaving them deeply disappointed. The King they had chosen might not have been worth cultivating.
But Su Xiao's appearance gave them another possibility.
Why bother cultivating a King? They could just team up with the person in front of them and go straight to the final plan.
That was why, back in the central city, Kishou Arima had tested Su Xiao.
Kishou Arima was probing whether Su Xiao would be loyal to the CCG to the death. From Su Xiao's words and actions, Kishou Arima learned that Su Xiao wasn't blindly loyal to the CCG, which led to this moment where Kishou Arima came to propose cooperation.
Now, for Su Xiao to understand their specific plan, he needed to show his stance.
But he had one concern: if even the cooperation between Kishou Arima and Eto Yoshimura couldn't accomplish it, just how dangerous was it?
Just then, a notification from Reincarnation Paradise dispelled Su Xiao's concerns.
[You have triggered a hidden mission: Source. Accept/Decline?]
Hidden Mission: Source.
Difficulty Level: Lv.6.
Mission Briefing: Source, the core object of the derivative world.
Mission Information: Follow the guidance of plot character Kishou Arima to find the Source and obtain it.
Mission Time Limit: 6 natural days.
Mission Reward: 2 Attribute Points, Soul Crystal (Small) ×3.
Mission Penalty: All Attributes -3.
...
Seeing the mission reward of [Soul Crystal (Small) ×3], Su Xiao had already decided to complete this mission.
The greater the danger, the higher the reward. If he backed down because of the risk, he would never grow stronger.
To stand out among the many contractors, he needed extraordinary courage and perseverance; otherwise, Reincarnation Paradise would eliminate him, and he would eventually die.
After Su Xiao chose to accept the mission, another notification from Reincarnation Paradise appeared.
[You have accepted the hidden mission: Source.]
[You have formed a 'Temporary Plot Adventure Group' with plot characters: Kishou Arima and Eto Yoshimura.]
[The Temporary Plot Adventure Group can be exited at any time with no penalty.]
[Current members of the Temporary Plot Adventure Group: Contractor No. 13013 (Hunter), Kishou Arima, Eto Yoshimura.]
Su Xiao raised an eyebrow. This 'Temporary Plot Adventure Group' was unexpectedly troublesome. He could tolerate no friendly fire immunity—such a function wouldn't exist in Reincarnation Paradise anyway—but what was with the ability to exit at any time? That made betraying the team far too convenient.
In reality, this was Reincarnation Paradise's indirect way of helping Su Xiao. If Kishou Arima or Eto Yoshimura were about to betray him, they would automatically exit the 'Temporary Plot Adventure Group,' allowing Su Xiao to be warned in advance.
A dozen seconds later, he realized this function might have been designed specifically for him...
"I'll temporarily agree to cooperate with you. Tell me your plan. How can I cooperate if I don't even know what we're doing?"
Kishou Arima nodded.
"Here's the situation. At the bottom of the blasted vertical shaft in the central city, there's a very dangerous area. In a certain spot within that area, something called the 'Source' is hidden. I don't know exactly what it is, but one thing is certain: destroying it would deal a devastating blow to the V Organization."
After hearing Kishou Arima's description, Su Xiao was momentarily stunned.
So that convenient team-leaving function was prepared for him~.
Kishou Arima and Eto Yoshimura wanted to destroy the Source, while Su Xiao's mission was to obtain it.
The three of them would be teammates until they found the 'Source,' but after that, it was uncertain.
"Is that so? Let's set aside the fact that the upper half of that shaft has collapsed. If we go deep into it, we'll encounter those original species. I don't need to tell you how troublesome they are. Besides, if I help you two destroy this so-called 'Source,' what do I get?"
If he wanted to play the part, he had to do it thoroughly. If Su Xiao agreed without any conditions, it would make the other two suspicious.
"After it's done, I'll give you a Koukaku as a reward. That Koukaku is called 'The Owl.'"
Kishou Arima was really going all out, offering his strongest Koukaku.
"Oh? The SSS-rank Koukaku 'The Owl'?"
"That's right."
Su Xiao pretended to ponder, as if hesitating.
"If you had that Koukaku, you'd definitely become stronger."
Eto Yoshimura also joined in the persuasion.
Logically, since Su Xiao had ruined their plan, the two should have teamed up to deal with him.
But at this point, even killing Su Xiao wouldn't help, especially since they weren't sure they could kill him. Moreover, someone as powerful as Su Xiao with a simple background was rare.
"I agree. But before we carry out your plan, I need to go back to the surface first. There's something I have to do."
Su Xiao needed to return to the surface to spend all his CCG contribution points and complete his main mission as soon as possible.
When he executed the 'Hidden Mission: Source,' he would be opposing the CCG, so it was safer to finish the main mission first.
"Of course, we need to return to the surface. We also have to recruit others. The three of us alone might not be enough."
Su Xiao remained silent. Kishou Arima looked at Eto Yoshimura.
"What are you looking at me for?"
"You've been 'captured alive' by me and Bai Ye."
"Huh?"
Eto Yoshimura was stunned, and Su Xiao was equally confused.
"I plan to..."
Kishou Arima began describing his idea to the two.
Five minutes later, Eto Yoshimura sighed.
"Fine, I've been 'captured alive.' But I want to state in advance: don't inject me with Rc cell suppressant, and you two have to personally 'escort' me."
Eto Yoshimura's words made a hint of worry appear in Su Xiao's eyes. Eto seemed to trust Kishou Arima a lot, which was unfavorable for his mission.
But for now, the priority was returning to the surface. He could imagine that the news of him and Kishou Arima 'capturing alive' the One-Eyed Owl would shock the CCG.