Looking at the coffee cup, Byakuya sighed inwardly.
Manager Yoshimura had been waiting all this time for Eto to come to Anteiku—to personally make her a cup of coffee.
Unfortunately... years ago, the one time Eto Yoshimura had come, she'd stopped at the shop's entrance and gone no further.
From that moment on, Eto's hatred for her father had deepened, and she'd completely given up on this world. There was no way she would ever come to meet her father again.
"..."
Byakuya said nothing and accepted the coffee cup.
"Thank you..."
Handing this coffee cup to Byakuya also meant that Yoshimura was forcibly letting go of this attachment in his heart.
He knew he was certain to die this time, because he had no intention of continuing to live.
No matter what happened, Anteiku would cease to exist. This coffee shop that held all his memories of Ukina and Eto would be destroyed...
And his past self had committed too many sins. Perhaps death was his redemption.
The atmosphere grew heavy once more.
"When the time comes, please be careful, Amaha-san. I'm quite the dangerous 'Devil Ape,' you know!"
Despite knowing that Byakuya would appear before them as an "enemy" when the time came, Koma could still joke like this.
"Mm, I'll be careful. Thank you for the warning, Koma-san."
Byakuya smiled and nodded.
"You should pray you don't run into the 'Black Dog.' The Black Dog is far more terrifying than the Devil Ape."
Irimi said with a smile.
"—! What did you say? The Devil Ape is clearly the strongest."
Koma immediately objected.
This bit of playful banter lightened the atmosphere considerably.
"Amaha-kun needs to conserve his energy. You should head back and rest early."
Yoshimura said with concern.
"Mm, I will."
Byakuya nodded.
"Also, I hope Amaha-kun can go tell Touka-chan that Anteiku has closed."
Yoshimura made his final request.
Yomo already had too many people to look after. Having Amaha-kun deliver this news to Touka might be better.
He'd long since noticed... Touka's feelings for Amaha-kun...
Yoshimura then gave Byakuya Touka's address.
"No problem."
Byakuya said.
Before leaving, he finished the last sip of his coffee.
And then...
"The name 'Anteiku' may disappear, but everyone will definitely be safe."
Byakuya hadn't planned to reveal too much in advance, but right now, his emotions had been stirred by the Manager, Koma-san, and Irimi-san.
He spoke these words with a smile, his tone calm.
"Amaha-kun..."
Yoshimura didn't quite understand what Byakuya meant by saying this.
Was he simply trying to comfort them, or was he implying that on the battlefield, he would...
"Don't worry, Amaha-san. I am the 'Devil Ape' after all—I won't be taken down so easily. If you were to personally come after me, I might feel some pressure, but please don't hold back on my account."
Koma said with a smile.
"That's right, please don't hold back. We at Anteiku already owe you too much. We don't want to cause you trouble at a time like this."
Irimi was more direct.
They assumed Byakuya was planning to deliberately go easy on them when the time came, which could raise suspicion among the other investigators present—that First Class Amaha was colluding with Anteiku's ghouls.
But what they absolutely couldn't imagine was that when the time came, Byakuya's actions would be far more significant than simply holding back...
"I won't hold back. But I have just one request—please do your best to survive."
Byakuya said.
"Of course. If I can help it, I don't want to die either."
Koma said.
"We'll do our best..."
That was all Irimi could say.
"..."
Only Yoshimura remained silent.
Byakuya didn't say anything more about this. He simply left with a "Goodbye" and departed from Anteiku.
...
Meanwhile, Touka Kirishima had just returned home from school.
She was about to change out of her school uniform into her work clothes and head to Anteiku for her shift.
But just then, the doorbell suddenly rang.
"Coming. Who is it?"
"Kirishima-san."
Byakuya's voice came from outside the door.
...Byakuya?!
Touka froze for a moment before suddenly jolting.
It was Byakuya?
Wait—how did he even know where I live?
Touka was bewildered.
And this guy just shows up without any warning. She wasn't mentally prepared at all.
Seriously, this guy!
"Just a moment!"
Touka called out toward the door, then quickly walked to a certain table and checked her reflection in the mirror above it to make sure nothing was out of place.
Finding nothing wrong, she casually smoothed her bangs, then hurried to open the door for Byakuya.
Opening the door and seeing that Byakuya's expression was the same as usual, Touka spoke. "Why did you suddenly come here? And how did you know where I live?"
"The Manager told me."
Byakuya replied. "And... Anteiku has closed. Stay home for now and start packing your things. Yomo-san will probably come by later to pick you up. Go with him somewhere safe."
Touka was momentarily stunned. "...Closed? What happened?..."
"If I need to explain everything, let's go inside first. Walls have ears..."
Byakuya's tone remained calm.
"Okay."
Without another word, Touka grabbed Byakuya's hand and pulled him inside.
At this moment, she couldn't care less about embarrassment or shyness. She desperately wanted to know what had happened.
Anteiku suddenly closing, and being told to prepare to go somewhere safe—something major must have occurred.
[Ding! The host has completed "holding hands" with Touka Kirishima. Reward: 5 Fusion Points!]
This was Byakuya's first time inside Touka Kirishima's home, and Touka's first time bringing a boy into her house.
Yet neither of them was in the mood to think about such things right now.
Touka closed the door behind her and locked it to prevent anyone from barging in—inadvertently creating a situation where a young man and woman were alone together in a room.
...
Get 20+ chapters ahead on - P.a.t.r.e.o.n "RoseWhisky"