Tokyo's 20th Ward looked peaceful in the afternoon light—coffee shops dotted the streets, salarymen hurried past, students laughed together. To the untrained eye, nothing seemed unusual. But Ken Kaneki knew better than most that appearances could be deceiving.
He sat at a corner table in Café Anteiku, a boy with black hair and dark eyes, possessing an average Japanese male physique. Across from him sat his best friend Nagachika Hideo—blonde-haired, golden-eyed, and currently too busy failing to flirt with their waitress to pay Kaneki any attention.
The waitress, Kirishima Touka, had striking blue hair with bangs covering one eye and an athletic build. She maintained her professional composure with impressive patience.
"Will that be all, sir?" Touka asked.
"Yeah!" Hideo replied enthusiastically.
Kaneki sighed, embarrassed by his friend's persistence. "Please stop badgering the poor girl, Hideo. She clearly isn't interested."
"Fine, fine!" Hideo waved dismissively before his eyes caught something across the café. "Anyway… is that her? The girl you're so in love with, sitting over there?"
"Hide! Shh! Shh!" Kaneki hissed, panic flooding his face.
But Hideo was right—though it wasn't love, merely admiration from afar.
The woman in question was a mature beauty with purple hair and matching eyes behind red-rimmed glasses. She held a book titled The Black Goat in delicate hands. Her name was Kamishiro Rize, and Kaneki had been working up the courage to speak to her for weeks.
"So she's the reason you come here so much. Is that why you called me over?" Hide smirked. "You finally grew some balls to ask her out?"
"No, it's not that. It's just… my cousin is visiting Tokyo, and I wanted you to meet him."
"Huh? That jerk?"
"No, not him. This is from my mom's other sister. They don't live in Tokyo."
"So you still have some extended family?"
"Yeah, he graduated high school not long ago."
"Really? Which school?"
"Hakoniwa Academy."
Hide's eyes widened. "WHOA! Hakoniwa Academy? That's one of the most elite schools in Japan—they only accept students with perfect grades or exceptional talents. Your cousin must be some kind of genius!"
"Yeah, he really is, isn't he?" Kaneki allowed himself a small smile of pride.
Across the café, Rize appeared absorbed in her book, but she was listening intently. Her enhanced hearing picked up every word—a useful advantage of being a ghoul. Like most of the staff and several patrons in Anteiku, she wasn't human. The café served as a haven for ghouls trying to live peacefully, though Rize herself had different appetites.
She'd been watching Kaneki for weeks now, drawn by something in his scent. He could be a good snack, she thought, licking her lips discreetly. The boy was unassuming, vulnerable—
Suddenly, every ghoul in the café froze.
A scent unlike anything Rize had encountered in decades washed over her. Rich, intoxicating, impossibly divine. Her book nearly slipped from her fingers. Around the room, other ghouls stiffened, eyes widening, some trembling slightly.
What is that?
The bell above the door chimed. A boy entered—blue eyes, dark hair, swimmer's build—moving with casual confidence. Kumagawa Misogi.
"Is that him?" Hide whispered.
"Yes," Kaneki confirmed.
Kumagawa spotted them and started over, waving. But halfway across the café, he paused beside Rize's table.
"Excuse me," he said, gesturing to her book. "Isn't that one of Takasugi Sen's works?"
Rize looked up, momentarily thrown off balance. This human—this source of that incredible scent—was speaking to her. She recovered quickly, slipping into her practiced charm. "Oh? How interesting. I don't meet many people interested in his writing."
"Maybe we can talk more about it," Kumagawa suggested.
"How about four o'clock?"
"District center?"
"It's a date." Rize finished her coffee, packed her book, and allowed herself a cheerful smile before departing, leaving a faint trail of that intoxicating scent behind.
As Kumagawa approached their table, Hide clapped Kaneki's shoulder and looked him dead in the eyes. "You just got NTR'd."
Kaneki let out a groan of despair.
"Your cousin is really smooth," Hide said, grinning. "I already like him. Are you two actually related?"
"Yo!" Kumagawa called out.
Kaneki snapped out of his misery, recomposed himself, and made introductions. After exchanging pleasantries, Hide was still buzzing with energy.
"Mad respect for what you just did! Although Kaneki isn't so thrilled about it."
"Ehhh, Ken-chan liked her?" Kumagawa raised an eyebrow.
"It's alright…" Kaneki muttered.
"Maybe this will cheer you up." Kumagawa pulled two pieces of paper from his jacket and handed them over.
Both boys froze, staring.
"T… T… T… this…" Kaneki stammered.
"You got tickets to Kiyoterae!?" Hide exclaimed. "How did you—these are impossible to get!"
"Let's just say I have a friend."
"Are you sure this is alright?" Kaneki asked. "Wouldn't it be better to take Rize there?"
"No, it's fine. Rize-chan doesn't seem like the type to enjoy loud concerts anyway."
Several hours later, Kumagawa found himself at the district center. Rize had arrived early, already waiting when he appeared. They started with dinner at a quiet restaurant overlooking the city—soft amber lighting, the gentle clink of silverware, the aroma of grilled fish and spices wafting through the air. Rize declined to eat, claiming she was on a diet, but she sipped wine slowly, watching Kumagawa with those hungry purple eyes. The conversation flowed easily around books. While Kumagawa enjoyed Takasugi Sen's work, he admitted his true preference was H.P. Lovecraft.
"I've read some of his work too," Rize said, genuine interest lighting her eyes. "His cosmic horror has a certain… appetite to it."
They caught a movie afterward in a smaller theater—some psychological thriller where the protagonist slowly lost their grip on reality, the audience tense and silent, occasionally jumping at carefully placed scares. Neither paid much attention to the screen; Kumagawa's presence was far more intoxicating than any film.
Eventually, they found themselves walking through Tokyo's quieter streets as evening fell. The district grew darker, buildings giving way to warehouses and narrow alleys. Neon signs reflected off wet pavement where streetlights created pockets of illumination. The city's pulse slowed, the nightlife transitioning from salarymen to something more dangerous.
Throughout the entire date, Rize's focus never wavered from Kumagawa. Her hunger built with every passing moment, that divine scent calling to her predatory instincts. Soon, she thought. Very soon. If he noticed her intensity, he gave no sign.
"This was a great date, Kumagawa-san!" Rize said as they walked deeper into the shadows.
"Yeah, I really enjoyed it as well."
Her voice dropped, taking on a sinister edge. "Truly…"
Her eyes changed—sclera bleeding to black, pupils igniting crimson red. Four tentacles burst from her back in a spray of crimson light: her Rinkaku kagune, her true nature revealed.
"I really wanted to taste you," she breathed, madness creeping into her voice.
Before Kumagawa could react, she lunged. Her head fell to his shoulder, teeth sinking deep into his flesh. Blood welled up, and the taste—oh, the taste—sent electricity through her entire body. She'd never experienced anything like it.
What she didn't notice, too absorbed in feeding, was Kumagawa's complete lack of panic. No screaming, no struggling, just calm acceptance.
He sighed. "I expected this to happen, but I really hoped you'd be tasting my dick instead."
Rize pulled back, confused—and that's when she felt his hands groping her breasts. Pleasure shot through her unexpectedly, a moan escaping as she licked blood from her lips.
"Eh, I guess this isn't so bad either," he said casually.
"So delicious," she panted, her body responding to both his taste and his touch, a small orgasm rippling through her.
One of her tentacles lashed out, binding his leg. Her smile widened predatorially. "The date was good, but… now this is my type of fun!"
Then Kumagawa did something impossible.
He pulled his leg back—not breaking free, but dragging her entire body through the dirt like she weighed nothing. The tentacle released reflexively, and she tumbled across the alley. She recovered instantly, landing in a crouch, her smile now matching his.
"I have to say, I've never had prey fight back… This is a good change of pace," she said, genuine excitement coloring her voice.
Rize launched a barrage of strikes with her kagune—precision jabs that could pierce concrete. Kumagawa dodged every single one, moving with lazy grace. When he raised his fist, she pulled her kagune back defensively, no longer underestimating him.
His punch connected.
The impact blasted her backward dozens of meters, her body crashing through a brick wall in an explosion of dust and debris. When she emerged from the rubble, she saw Kumagawa had already turned away, examining his hand casually.
Rage flared. Being looked down on by a human?
She launched her kagune in a surprise attack, piercing clean through his chest. Blood bloomed across his shirt—a fatal wound.
But Kumagawa didn't fall. He didn't even flinch.
Instead, a smile spread across his face, stretching impossibly wide, far beyond human limits. A dark aura erupted from him, heavy and suffocating, like staring into an abyss.
In that moment, Rize understood. She wasn't the predator here.
She was the prey.
Before she could retreat, Kumagawa gripped her kagune and yanked her forward. She stumbled, and he caught her, lowering her gently to the ground. Confusion replaced fear.
Then she heard it—a metallic groaning above them.
Steel construction bars, dislodged from somewhere above, plummeted toward them. Her life flashed before her eyes. She squeezed them shut, waiting for impact.
It never came.
When she opened her eyes, Kumagawa stood over her, steel bars across his back and shoulders. He'd shielded her with his own body. Impossibly, there wasn't a scratch on him. He tossed the steel aside like they were made of foam.
Rize stared up at him, completely at a loss.
He smiled down at her—not sinister this time, but genuinely warm.
"So… will there be a second date?"
"Eh?"