Many things had changed simply because of Lancer's arrival.
Kaneki Ken, although not killed by Lancer, had vanished like a ghost, unseen for quite some time. Meanwhile, Mado Kureo survived. Though he'd opted for promotion and stepped back from frontline duties, he was now commanding the 20th Ward as its overall leader. The most immediate consequence of this was that Itsuki Marude and his assistant Suzuya Juuzou didn't stay permanently in the 20th Ward, instead continuing to patrol various wards.
After an entire day without field missions due to his injuries—spending his time in rehabilitation training at the branch office—Lancer finally escaped both Mado Akira's gaze and his colleagues' teasing, and made his way back home…
"Welcome back."
Two days had already passed, but looking at Fueguchi Ryouko and Fueguchi Hinami, who hid nervously behind her mother, Lancer still felt utterly conflicted.
As he removed his suit jacket, he clearly noticed Hinami trembling. Apparently, during these past two days, Fueguchi Ryouko had educated her daughter about certain 'adult knowledge.'
Lancer truly didn't know how to respond to this. He couldn't exactly bluntly say, "I'm not interested in flat-chested kids with no curves." Never mind whether they'd believe him or not—such words might even be misunderstood as hints!
Sigh~!
He'd only been soft-hearted that night. Now it had become such a mental burden.
"I've already eaten dinner outside. I'll rest first. You two...make yourselves comfortable."
Finishing his sentence, Lancer grabbed his briefcase and headed toward his study. Meanwhile, Fueguchi mother and daughter couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief as they watched him leave.
In fact, earlier today, they'd learned from Kirishima Touka about Lancer's participation in the recent "11th Ward Recapture Operation," as well as his killing of the Bin Brothers from Aogiri Tree.
The stronger Lancer appeared, the more uneasy the two of them felt. With Lancer's strength, resistance was impossible. Confined to this room, they had nothing to do but anxiously imagine worst-case scenarios.
Hinami was young and innocent, so her imagination stopped after barely scratching the surface. But Fueguchi Ryouko, as a married woman, clearly knew what men might do to women who couldn't resist.
Fortunately, the person they'd encountered was a fool like Lancer. Even though he'd privately admitted to being tempted that night, his rigid adherence to being "human" and his own moral code meant he'd rather rely on his own "five-fingered friend" than make a move.
But as the day of his departure drew nearer, Lancer increasingly pondered how to handle these two.
Once he disappeared, they would likely become the primary suspects behind his 'disappearance.' Their fate after that would be worse than death…
Was this what helplessness felt like?
Clearly, he wanted to do something, yet he lacked the strength to take action.
Since he'd spent the entire day practicing spear techniques at the branch training room, Lancer now just wanted to flop onto the tatami mats and laze around for a bit. With nothing else to do, he casually opened his system interface, smiling softly at the steady improvement of his attributes. But upon seeing the "Supplies," his expression grew complicated.
Just then, however, he noticed something——
[EMERGENCY FOOD | 5 POINTS]
STANDARD RATION THAT QUICKLY RESTORES STAMINA (UNIVERSAL)
Although Lancer often complained that this system felt too RPG-like, it differed greatly from a genuine RPG. For instance, he'd never seen an HP stat—so despite having a system, a bullet to the head would still mean instant death.
In this sense, it was frighteningly realistic. The "Stamina" stat was vital for bodily functions; if the "Hunger" debuff appeared, his attributes would continuously decrease. And now...
Filled with excitement, Lancer held up a sealed packet and rushed out of his room.
"Fueguchi Ryouko, come here for a moment."
Fueguchi Ryouko, who had been quietly speaking to her daughter, suddenly felt her heart turn cold upon seeing Lancer's excited expression. Still, she had long prepared herself for this possibility. Tenderly but firmly, she released Hinami's hand, gently stroked her daughter's head, took a deep breath, and then walked toward Lancer's room.
Meanwhile, Hinami stared blankly at the hand her mother had just released. After a moment, she gritted her teeth and squeezed something tightly in her hand.
This was given to her by Kirishima Touka. It wasn't high-tech—just a simple "switch." When pressed, it would send a signal to the other side. Ryouko had explicitly warned against involving Anteiku in their family issues. But Hinami wasn't as mature as her mother; persuaded repeatedly by Touka, she'd hidden the switch close to her body.
Completely oblivious, Lancer simply handed the sealed packet over when Ryouko entered.
"Here, try it."
Strangely though, Fueguchi Ryouko didn't take the sealed packet. Instead, she bit her lip and whispered quietly:
"Lancer-san, there's no need for this. I've said it before—if you truly desire it...I'm willing to do anything. You don't need...such things. Of course, if it's meant as an...aphrodisiac, I'll also…"
Wait, what? Aphrodisiac? What kind of meal needs an aphrodisiac?
Initially dumbfounded, Lancer's brain quickly caught on—after all, he'd played his share of H-games. He instantly realized her implication, causing his expression to grow increasingly awkward.
"Ryouko-san, I believe I've made this clear more than once already. While I, Lancer, might not be any sort of hero, I'll never stoop so low as to force a woman. I'd prefer not having to say this again (because it's exhausting). As for what's in my hand…it's simply food."
Food?
His words left Ryouko stunned. She'd prepared herself either to endure human food disgustingly or starve.
Touka had informed her about Lancer's stance on Ghouls earlier today. Given his beliefs, Ryouko doubted he'd ever feed them human flesh—then what was inside?
Encouraged by Lancer's gaze, she opened the sealed packet, revealing a brown, finger-sized cylindrical bar and a pouch of white liquid.
Honestly, this looked extremely suspicious, but Ryouko steeled herself and ate it, pouring the white fluid into her mouth afterward.
Expecting nausea, she'd immediately swallowed the mixture without tasting it. But after swallowing, she froze completely.
"How is it?"
"…"
Her response was to immediately devour all the remaining food, before covering her mouth with her hands as tears burst uncontrollably from her eyes.
Indeed, she began to weep right there.
The greatest wish she and her husband had was for their daughter to live a normal life. Then her husband died at Jason's hands, his Kakuhou turned into a Quinque by the CCG. Though she and Hinami weren't being mistreated for now, their current life filled them with anxiety. But if they had this… if they had this, perhaps they could truly live normally…
Crash—!
At that exact moment, the sound of shattering glass came from behind, causing Lancer's hand to instinctively grip his Quinque.
As he'd always said: in this world, the lessons he learned best were caution and humility. Unless he was at a branch or HQ, he never fully let his guard down, and he never went anywhere without his Quinque. Almost immediately after hearing the noise, he activated his Quinque and thrust fiercely behind him.
Pshhk—!
Clearly, the attacker hadn't expected such a swift and fierce reaction. Barely able to shift slightly, the figure's right arm was pierced straight through by Lancer's spear. But as Lancer's attack connected, his eyes widened in shock.
"Rabbit?"
Indeed, it was the Rabbit mask!
Yet unlike "history," Fueguchi Ryouko hadn't died. Thus, she and Hinami hadn't attacked Mado Kureo, and consequently, the "Rabbit," an S-rated Ghoul, was not yet on the CCG's wanted list.
But none of that mattered—because "Rabbit" was Kirishima Touka!
What the hell? Why was she suddenly attacking him tonight?
Though unclear what had triggered this, Lancer instantly took a defensive stance.
No matter who the opponent was, survival came first. Only if he lived could he worry about anything else.
On the other side, Kirishima Touka hadn't expected Lancer's merciless strike, especially considering he'd previously saved her life. But surprise quickly faded, replaced immediately by uncontrollable fury.
What had she just seen?
Initially, when she first heard the 'alarm,' she still had doubts. After all, she'd known Lancer for months, and he'd never done anything inappropriate. Even the last time she visited, he hadn't made any moves. Thus, at first, she only intended to quietly investigate. But when she climbed up to the window, the scene she witnessed was beyond belief!
That bastard!!
"Scumbag!!"
Even though she was already injured, Kirishima Touka's words came out ice-cold, utterly emotionless.
Somehow, hearing the voice from behind that mask, Lancer felt a strange sense of guilt—as if he'd just abandoned his wife or something. Was this his imagination?
"Though I don't know what you mean, Miss Masked Ghoul, before I kill you, I must clarify one thing! I'm not a scumbag!"
To conceal that he knew her true identity, Lancer deliberately pretended to be ignorant. Yet, saying such words still made him feel extremely awkward, as though he was deliberately shirking responsibility.
Fortunately, Touka, currently consumed by rage at MAX level, didn't notice this strange detail. To her, Lancer's defense was nothing but shameless excuses!
Earlier, when she climbed up, she'd clearly seen Ryouko-san kneeling on the floor. Then, as Lancer moved aside, she saw Fueguchi Ryouko's tearful face covering her mouth, white fluid still lingering at the corner of her lips.
Did she even need to think about what that meant?
Though Touka was a Ghoul, she attended school and had taken "health education" classes. Not to mention, her friend Yoriko occasionally teased her, so she naturally knew about these sorts of things.
However, Fueguchi Ryouko, still dazed by Touka's sudden intrusion, started blushing furiously. As a married woman, how could she not understand what Touka was implying? Subconsciously, she touched the corner of her mouth, and without realizing it, gently licked away the white liquid there…
Being a beautiful widow with an attractive figure, her small gesture naturally drew the attention of both others in the room. But ironically, this action dissolved the previously tense atmosphere in an instant.
"You…you misunderstood! Investigator Lancer just gave me some kind of 'food.' I was just a bit emotional…"
Food? Could it be that she hadn't eaten in a long time? No! If it were just ordinary 'meat,' Ryouko-san wouldn't act like this. And eating human flesh involuntarily activates a Ghoul's kakugan. Could it be—
"Ryouko-san! You didn't just eat…that, did you?!"
Seeing Ryouko nod, Touka, still gripping her wounded shoulder, began trembling uncontrollably.
But her trembling wasn't from pain—it was pure excitement!
Finally…finally, there was a way for Ghouls to live normally, just like humans!
Touka had lived following her father's teachings all her life. Her greatest wish was to fully blend into human society—to share everything openly with her best friend Yoriko, instead of constantly living in secrecy.
After the wave of excitement subsided, her immediate thought was: I have to tell Manager Yoshimura about this right away!
However, just as she turned to leave, a spear blocked her path.
"Excuse me…Unknown Masked Ghoul-san, you didn't really think I'd let you go that easily, did you? Even setting aside your identity as a Ghoul, my room…aren't you planning to compensate me for the damage?"
Lancer had originally intended merely to scare her a little. But what he didn't anticipate was that, at precisely that moment, a large hand rested gently on his spear.
"If it's compensation you want, allow me to handle it."
Hearing the deep voice behind him, Lancer's eyes widened in absolute shock.
"Owl?!!"
With a swift, cowardly leap backward, Lancer shamelessly hid himself behind Fueguchi Ryouko. Though it was undeniably disgraceful, when facing a boss-level character, survival trumped dignity. After all, never in his wildest dreams had he imagined he'd encounter the infamous Non-Killing Owl at home. This legendary figure rarely took direct action even in the original storyline.
Right now, Lancer felt like a rookie adventurer who'd just left the beginner's village, leveled up a bit, returned home to show off—and accidentally encountered the Final Boss.
I encountered the Final Boss at home, what do I do? Waiting online! Urgent!
That sentence perfectly described Lancer's current mental state.
---
T/N: LMAOOOOO well he is about to leave....
bonus chaps
100 stones -> 1 chapter
200 stones -> 2 chapters
300 stones -> 3 chapters
and so on
discord.gg/wisetl
patreon.com/wisetl