Not long after entering the Ghoul Restaurant, Yue Shan Xi used the excuse of "having important matters to attend to" and handed them over to the restaurant's staff.
"Just follow their arrangements," Yue Shan Xi maintained his elegant smile, "We'll see each other again in a bit."
His gaze lingered on Kaneki Ken for a moment longer, filled with barely concealed anticipation.
With that, he turned and disappeared into the depths of the restaurant.
He Xi Qian Yu knew full well that Yue Shan Xi was going to prepare the ceremony for the "main course" later; Kaneki Ken was the true protagonist of tonight's feast.
"Gentlemen, please follow me." The waiter, dressed in a sharp black suit, bowed slightly and spoke respectfully.
…
The waiter led them separately to private bathrooms, requesting them to bathe first.
Warm water of a suitable temperature poured down, washing over his body. He Xi Qian Yu closed his eyes for a moment, letting the water flow over him.
After changing into the black suit prepared by the waiter, he was led to a luxurious reception room. Soon, a maid wearing a white, faceless mask entered, pushing a silver dining cart with a cup of richly aromatic coffee and several exquisite desserts.
"Some pre-dinner desserts, please enjoy." The maid set down the food, her voice devoid of emotion, then pushed the cart away and left.
He Xi Qian Yu glanced at the tempting desserts and coffee, with no intention of touching them.
The food Yue Shan Xi prepared for him likely contained human flesh.
"...Inside...there's something mixed in..." Slaughter's voice was low, "...You won't...like it..."
He Xi Qian Yu nodded.
As a human, he had an instinctive aversion to human flesh. Eating people, that was better left to Slaughter.
The waiter beside him, seeing that he remained motionless, said nothing more, merely standing quietly.
"Where is Kaneki Ken?" He Xi Qian Yu asked casually.
"Young Master Jin Mu has already gone up ahead," the waiter replied politely, "According to Young Master Yue Shan's request, you need to wait a little longer."
He Xi Qian Yu knew that Kaneki Ken was probably being chased relentlessly by the dismantler brought by Madam A at this moment.
After a while longer, the waiter glanced at his wristwatch and said calmly: "Tsuruki-xiansheng, it's time, please follow me."
This time he was led to a more spacious room. As soon as he stepped inside, two burly men, also wearing white masks, emerged from the shadows and stood on either side behind him, clearly guards from the Yue Shan family.
After the two stood still, a dull mechanical whirring sound came simultaneously from the floor beneath their feet and the ceiling above. A section of the ceiling slowly slid open, revealing a circular opening. Immediately after, the platform beneath his feet rose steadily, like a lift, carrying him upwards.
A few seconds later, the lift stopped. He Xi Qian Yu's vision suddenly cleared—a massive space, like an ancient Roman coliseum, appeared before him.
Blinding spotlights focused on the center of the arena, where Kaneki Ken, also dressed in a black suit, was running in terror, pursued closely by a massive figure wearing a blood-stained red hood.
The figure was like a mountain of flesh, with bulging, knotted muscles. His right hand dragged a huge steel saw stained with dark red grime, each swing bringing a dull rush of wind.
The circular stands were packed with Ghoul spectators wearing various ornate masks. They roared, screamed, and pounded on the railings frantically, the air thick with the smell of blood and morbid excitement.
Just as He Xi Qian Yu was about to step forward, the guard on his left spoke in a cold, hard voice, muffled by his mask:
"Young Master Yue Shan has instructed that you observe from here. You have a part in the 'tasting' segment later."
He Xi Qian Yu froze for a moment, then a cold smile tugged at the corner of his lips, and he laughed with a sense of relief.
That Yue Shan Xi fellow was truly a complete pervert.
He looked up, his gaze piercing through the clamor, accurately catching the familiar figure in the high-up stand's private box. Yue Shan Xi was elegantly leaning against the railing, his mask covering most of his face, but the exposed corner of his mouth clearly held a mocking smile.
"What if I say no?" He Xi Qian Yu slowly turned his head, looking at the two guards with a half-smile.
"Then we will take necessary measures," the other guard said, his voice devoid of emotion, but an oppressive aura emanated from him, "Please don't make things difficult for us."
"...Kill...them..." Slaughter's voice shrieked in his mind, filled with bloodthirsty frenzy, "...I want to see...rivers of blood..."
"No hurry…" He Xi Qian Yu's gaze returned to the frantic figure in the arena, "Let Jin Mu...learn his lesson first…"
Last time it was Nishio Nishiki, this time it's Kaneki Ken, each one more troublesome than the last.
He stood silently in the shadows, watching Kaneki Ken flee in despair, until the corpulent dismantler grinned, raised his steel saw high, and was about to cleave Kaneki Ken in half.
"Time is almost up." Just as He Xi Qian Yu was about to move, a large hand in a black glove pressed down on his shoulder again.
"Please don't…"
"Pfft—" The guard's words abruptly cut off.
Two scarlet tentacles, like venomous snakes, suddenly shot out with a sharp tearing sound through the air, piercing the heads of the two guards with incredible precision.
The two burly bodies didn't even have time to grunt before they crashed to the ground.
…
"What to do… what to do…" Kaneki Ken leaned against the cold wall, with nowhere left to retreat.
The dismantler's massive shadow completely enveloped him, and the huge steel saw gleamed with a cold light, descending with the aura of death.
He trembled like a sieve, his eyes filled only with boundless despair.
He couldn't run anymore.
He closed his eyes in despair, awaiting death's arrival.
One second…
Two seconds…
Three seconds…
The anticipated sharp pain did not come, only a warm liquid splashed across his face.
Kaneki Ken trembled, slowly opening his eyes.
Before him, the mountain-like dismantler stood frozen in place, his chest completely pierced by a terrifying tentacle oozing dark red viscous fluid. Blood gushed out from the massive wound like a bursting dam, staining the ground. The horrifying steel saw clanged into the pool of blood.
"Thud!!!"
The dismantler's massive body lost all support and crashed heavily to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Amidst the dust, a familiar figure slowly retracted his scarlet tentacles.
"Brother Qianyu!"
…
"Bastard!"
"What is he doing?!"
The surrounding stands instantly erupted, angry shouts surging like a tide, mixed with the roars of Ghouls.
He Xi Qian Yu paid no heed, merely extended his hand and pulled the limp Kaneki Ken from the pool of blood.
"Mr. Yomo has been training you lately, hasn't he?" his voice was steady, his gaze sweeping over Kaneki Ken's disheveled but largely intact body, "Can you protect yourself?"
Kaneki Ken, still shaken, nodded vigorously.
"That's good." He Xi Qian Yu's gaze turned to the stands, sweeping over the angry masked faces, finally settling on Yue Shan Xi's face.
"Jin Mu," he gently patted Kaneki Ken's shoulder, his voice low, "Today I'll teach you the third, and final, lesson."
"All misfortune in this world stems from the inadequacy of the person involved."
As his voice fell, he spread his arms and, under countless gazes of astonishment, anger, and greed, walked step by step towards the spotlight in the center of the arena.
"Everyone," his voice clearly echoed throughout the entire arena, "The game of make-believe should end now."
Unlike the previous "covering" gradual change, this time, a viscous scarlet substance seeped from beneath his skin. His body seemed to be torn apart by an internal force, emitting sounds of flesh tearing and bones deforming. Red tendrils pierced out like thorns, enveloping him and reconstructing his form.
The fully formed Slaughter stood nearly three meters tall, completely covered in flowing dark red symbiotic tissue. The muscle lines on his body appeared torn, sharp thorns extended from his head, and fangs grew in his mouth.
His claws were enormous, his finger-claws like the scythes of the Grim Reaper. Behind him, several scarlet tentacles writhed wildly, their tips adorned with sharp barbs that glinted coldly.
Slaughter's pale, pupil-less eyes swept over the two headless bodies of the guards on the ground, a hint of disdain flashing in his gaze.
If the Yue Shan family's guards were all at this level, then they posed no threat to him at all.
As for these guys in the stands? He Xi Qian Yu felt only mockery. This pampered, self-proclaimed noble bunch adhered to their so-called sophisticated dining philosophy, scoffing at acts of "Ghoul."
Among them, let alone a Ghoul, it was impossible for even a decent half-Ghoul to exist.
Moreover, even if he tore this place down today, they wouldn't dare call the police—their Ghoul identities simply couldn't withstand CCG's investigation.
In other words, even if Slaughter went on a rampage here, they wouldn't have to bear any consequences.
Slaughter excitedly opened his massive, fanged maw, his tentacles behind him writhing madly like wild pythons, and unleashed a destructive roar at the terrified audience in the stands:
"Let there be carnage!!!"