Shinohara didn't need to warn him—Byakuya already knew.
Given Akira's personality, she'd probably consider going out for food and drinks a waste of time.
Still, he'd ask anyway. He was just passing along the invitation on behalf of Koori Ui and Shinohara—there was nothing awkward about it for him.
"Mm..."
Byakuya gave Shinohara a small nod.
"Amaha-san."
Just then, Rikai Souzu suddenly spoke up.
"Hm?"
Byakuya was slightly surprised. He'd barely exchanged any words with Rikai before.
"Are you good at drinking?"
For some reason, that was the question Rikai chose to ask.
"I suppose so. I don't usually drink, but my tolerance is decent enough."
He didn't particularly enjoy alcohol, but if it was with friends, he was willing to have a few.
"I see..."
Rikai said nothing more.
The truth was, he was too embarrassed to admit his own tolerance was terrible.
The conversation had ended rather abruptly, but Byakuya didn't think much of it.
[Ding! Host has triggered a Choice Mission!]
[Choice 1: Don't pursue this dead-end conversation any further. Reward: 1 Fusion Point!]
[Choice 2: Rikai Souzu is quiet and reserved by nature, but he's a kind and reliable young man. Take the initiative to chat with him more, and your relationship will quickly improve. Reward: 20 Fusion Points!]
The system's prompt reminded Byakuya of what he already knew about Rikai's personality. Like Shio Ihei, Rikai was one of those "drawn as a girl, written as a boy" cute characters, but where Shio was cheerful and outgoing, Rikai was quiet and withdrawn.
It occurred to him that Rikai's awkward attempt at conversation might have been his way of trying to get to know Byakuya better—he just couldn't think of a good topic, so he'd blurted out that random question about drinking.
And the system's choice wasn't difficult. Easy points for minimal effort—why not?
"Rikai Souzu? Or should I just call you Rikai?"
Byakuya took the initiative to continue the conversation.
With girls, he might need to be more careful. With boys, using first names directly was no big deal—as long as the other person didn't mind.
"Ah..."
Rikai looked momentarily startled. "That's... just Rikai is fine."
Clearly, he didn't mind at all.
In fact, his sudden attempt at small talk had been precisely because he wanted to build a better relationship with Byakuya. Now that they were colleagues in Squad Zero, it felt strange to remain so unfamiliar with each other.
"So, Rikai—when you brought up drinking earlier, was it because you don't want to? Or don't like it?"
Byakuya continued, "If that's the case, I can mention it to Shinohara-san and Ui-san. You can just do whatever feels comfortable."
"It's not that I don't want to... I just have a really low tolerance. I was curious if there's any way to improve it."
This was really just Rikai's way of keeping the conversation going—he wasn't genuinely concerned about his alcohol tolerance.
Now that they'd finally managed to talk, he didn't want to let the opportunity slip away.
"Improving tolerance, huh... There's really no good method. Either you're born with it, or you build it up by drinking more. But I wouldn't recommend that approach—drinking too much isn't healthy."
"Alright. I'll just take it easy when we're out, then."
Rikai nodded slightly.
He hadn't learned anything useful, but his mood had lifted considerably. After all, that hadn't been his real goal anyway.
[Ding! Host completed Choice 2. Reward: 20 Fusion Points!]
Not a lot, but easy enough to earn.
Having spent so much time with the system, Byakuya was starting to understand its patterns. Building relationships with certain canon characters could earn Fusion Points, and there was probably a lot of room to explore.
...
Later that afternoon, Byakuya and Akira sat in an office at the Ward 20 Branch, poring over documents related to the Ghoul Restaurant, preparing for tomorrow's official investigation.
He still hadn't mentioned the dinner invitation to Akira. By the time he'd found her, she was already completely absorbed in researching Ghoul Restaurant intelligence. He didn't want to interrupt.
"First Class Amaha, let's go to Ward 7 tomorrow to investigate the Ghoul Restaurant."
Akira suddenly spoke up. "According to these records, the CCG had already raided and destroyed a Ghoul Restaurant once before your infiltration. Yet somehow it managed to resurface in Ward 7. I suspect a new one still exists there."
"I agree. The Ghoul Restaurant is probably still operating in Ward 7."
Byakuya nodded.
"Mm."
Akira acknowledged him, then finally set down the pile of documents she'd been holding and rubbed her eyes gently.
She'd been studying these Ghoul Restaurant files for hours. Her eyes were strained, and she needed a short break.
Taking advantage of her brief pause, Byakuya spoke up. "Tonight, Ui-san and Shinohara-san want to invite us out for dinner. I've already agreed to go. What about you?"
His tone was perfectly calm and natural, his expression neutral. He sounded like he was simply relaying a message on their behalf.
"I'm sorry, but the answer is no. Today's work will keep me here until at least eight or nine. After nine, I don't eat anymore—I am a woman, after all..."
Akira declined without hesitation. "Thank you for passing along the message, and please express my thanks to Associate Special Class Ui and Special Class Shinohara for the invitation."
"Of course. I'll let them know tonight."
Byakuya wasn't the least bit surprised.
Perhaps she was being disciplined about her diet to maintain her figure. Or perhaps she simply considered it a waste of time but didn't want to reject her superiors too bluntly, so she'd phrased it diplomatically.
Either way, there was no chance Akira would join them for drinks.
"Now then, let's continue reviewing the Ghoul Restaurant materials. That break just wasted twelve seconds."
Akira was back in work mode.
Though her words carried another implication—that the dinner invitation itself had also been a waste of time.
...
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