The sunset had completely sunk below the horizon, and the last trace of warm light at the edge of the sky was replaced by a bluish gray dusk. Streetlights along both sides of the road gradually flickered on.
Amano Hiro and Rize continued walking at an unhurried pace, as if completely unaware of the two "tails" trailing behind them.
The shopping bags swayed gently in their hands, making faint rustling sounds that contrasted with the gradually quieting street.
"They are still following."
Rize's voice was very low, carrying a trace of coldness.
"That old man's eyes are unpleasant." The way Mado Kureo looked at her, like a hunter sizing up prey, instinctively filled her with disgust and vigilance.
"Mm." Amano Hiro responded lightly, his gaze sweeping over an intersection ahead.
One road was relatively lively and led toward the main thoroughfare. The other was a quieter path that wound deeper into a residential area.
"This way." He hardly hesitated and led Rize into the secluded path.
The small road was dimly lit. The few streetlights were spaced far apart, casting lonely yellow patches of light. On both sides stood the walls of old houses and tall trees, their shadows layered and shifting.
Not far behind them, when Mado Kureo saw them turn into the alley, he did not hesitate. Instead, he let out an even more excited low laugh. "Heh. Walking somewhere deserted on your own. Are you creating an opportunity for us. Amon-kun, pick up the pace."
Although Amon Koutarou felt it was somewhat rash, he still followed closely, his hand unconsciously pressing against the trigger of the white suitcase.
The alley grew deeper, and the surrounding houses became sparser. Human voices were almost nonexistent.
At that moment, Amano Hiro and Rize stopped at the same time and slowly turned around. The shopping bags were casually placed at their feet.
"You two."
Amano Hiro spoke, his voice especially clear in the silent alley, carrying a lazy hint of teasing.
"You have been following for so long. Aren't you tired. Or do CCG Investigators now work part time as stalkers?"
Mado Kureo and Amon Koutarou stepped out of the shadows and stopped about ten meters away.
Mado Kureo's mismatched eyes locked tightly onto Rize, the twisted smile on his face widening. "As expected. This kind of scent cannot be wrong. You are not an ordinary ghoul. Heh heh. Today's luck is really good."
Amon Koutarou, on the other hand, examined Amano Hiro more cautiously. This young man gave him a very strange feeling. He was overly calm, and he could not sense the distinct "smell" typical of a ghoul from him, yet that composure made him uneasy.
"We are CCG Investigators. We suspect you are connected to ghouls. Please cooperate with the investigation."
"Investigation?" Rize covered her mouth and laughed softly, but her eyes were as cold as frost.
"Do you mean arresting us and dismantling us for research. Just like you have always done to ghouls?"
"Enough nonsense." Mado Kureo abruptly opened his white briefcase, and his quinque unfolded instantly.
A thick, blue spike swung out with the sound of tearing air. "Amon-kun, the woman is mine. That boy does not look harmless either. Take them down together."
Amon Koutarou immediately activated his own quinque. The massive cylindrical weapon appeared in his hands as he said in a deep voice, "Understood."
The battle was about to erupt.
However, just as Mado Kureo's giant spike was about to swing down and Amon Koutarou prepared to charge,
a heart chilling, terrifying aura erupted violently from Amano Hiro like an invisible tsunami. It was not the oppressive force of a ghoul's kagune, but something more primal, more brutal, filled with pure destructive intent.
Mado Kureo and Amon Koutarou froze instantly, as if invisible hands had seized their throats. A fear born from the instinct of life itself nearly froze the blood in their veins.
In the next instant, under their horrified gazes, several dark red tendrils burst out from behind Amano Hiro.
Their surfaces were smooth yet brimming with power, their tips sharpening instantly into spear like points. Their speed exceeded the limits of visual capture.
Thud. Thud.
The muffled sound of blades piercing flesh rang out one after another.
Mado Kureo did not even have time to execute any effective evasion before two crimson tendrils precisely pierced through his shoulder and thigh.
The intense pain forced a short scream from him as his quinque fell from his grasp.
He stared wide eyed in disbelief as he was pinned midair, blood flowing steadily down the dark red tendrils.
Amon Koutarou fared slightly better. At the last possible moment, he barely managed to hold his quinque horizontally in front of him.
A tendril slammed heavily against the quinque, producing a loud metallic crash.
The enormous force sent him flying backward. He smashed heavily into the wall behind him, cracks instantly spreading across it. His throat tasted sweet as he spat out a mouthful of blood, and his quinque rolled to the side.
In a single exchange, two experienced CCG Investigators, one heavily injured and one lightly injured, completely lost their ability to fight.
Amano Hiro had not even moved his feet. He looked indifferently at Mado Kureo, suspended by the tendrils and twisted in pain, then glanced at Amon Koutarou, who was struggling to get up.
Amano Hiro's voice remained calm, but to their ears it sounded like the whisper of death. "You do not know your place. Then I will send you down."
The dark red tendrils writhed slightly, as if considering whether to end the two lives completely.
Rize stood at Amano Hiro's side, watching the investigators who had been so imposing moments ago now reduced to lambs awaiting slaughter. A trace of satisfaction flashed in her violet eyes.
But there was also deep wariness toward Amano Hiro's power.
She gently tugged at his sleeve and said softly, "If you kill them here, will the commotion be too great. The CCG will not let this go."
Amano Hiro was silent for a moment, then said coldly, "They have already seen our faces. Not killing them would be even more troublesome."
When Mado Kureo and Amon Koutarou heard this, their pupils shrank. They tried to resist, but before the overwhelming gap in strength, resistance was futile.
Moreover, both of them were already severely injured and could not react in time.
Two red tendrils swept across their necks at a speed impossible to discern. With a sharp sound, their heads flew into the air.
Thud. The two heads fell to the ground, expressions of shock, fear, and disbelief frozen permanently on their faces.
Crimson fluid spread out from beneath Amano Hiro's feet, instantly covering the corpses of Amon Koutarou and Mado Kureo, not sparing even the bloodstains on the ground.
A horrifying scene unfolded. The bodies seemed to melt beneath the crimson fluid, disappearing at a visible speed, leaving behind only one of Amon Koutarou's legs.
The alley returned to silence. Only the faint scent of blood in the air proved what had just occurred.
The crimson tendrils behind Amano Hiro slowly retracted into his body and vanished as if they had never existed.
He bent down, picked up the shopping bags and that leg from the ground, as if he had merely brushed away two annoying flies.
"Let's go," he said to Rize. "For dinner, I'll finally show you my skills."
Rize looked at his relaxed expression, took a deep breath to steady the waves in her heart, then wrapped her arm around his again. A smile reappeared on her face, though this time it carried a few more traces of genuine awe.
"All right, my dear."