"Papa...?"
In the heat of the moment, Mayu instinctively called out 'Papa', momentarily forgetting that she was supposed to address him as Byakuya-nii when they were outside.
The latter had already stepped in front of Mayu. In his hand, a golden briefcase had appeared; it was none other than the SSS-rated Quinque, "Owl".
The reason he hadn't acted earlier was simple; he had been waiting for Blood Demon to reveal himself as a ghoul.
A ghoul investigator couldn't attack someone without definitive proof.
Now that his opponent had openly deployed a kagune, Byakuya was free to strike.
Although using an SSS-rated Quinque against an A+ rated ghoul was extreme overkill, Byakuya had no other Quinques on hand at the moment.
His "Tsukikage" and "Fūrei" were still with Arima, and he had yet to retrieve them.
Not that he planned to. He might as well visit the CCG Research Lab later and pick up another S-rated Quinque.
"Don't worry. Papa is very strong."
Eto reassured Mayu, giving her hand a gentle squeeze.
Aside from the three of them, the only other presence here was this clown of a ghoul standing before them. Since this ghoul was as good as dead, there was no need to be mindful of formalities anymore.
"Mm..."
Even so, Mayu couldn't help but feel a little anxious.
Her perspective was still limited. Until today, she had never left the 19th Ward. To her, Blood Demon was the strongest ghoul in this area.
It was similar to how Uruka Minami was regarded as one of the strongest ghouls in the 13th Ward, each ward had its own hierarchy of power.
Aside from V and the Washuu clan in the 1st Ward and Aogiri Tree in the 24th Ward, the only SSS-rated ghoul in Tokyo was Yoshimura Kuzen, the Non-Killing Owl of the 20th Ward.
So in Mayu's eyes, the Blood Demon was an opponent far beyond her ability to handle.
"A Dove?!"
Blood Demon's gaze locked onto the Quinque briefcase in Byakuya's hand. "You're one of those Doves, and yet you're protecting this ghoul?!"
His tone was filled with disbelief, he had never seen a ghoul investigator shield a ghoul before.
Byakuya didn't even spare him a response.
Instead, he calmly withdrew one of the twin blades of "Owl".
Blood Demon narrowed his eyes, trying to identify the Quinque.
He didn't recognize it but something about it felt intimidating.
Feeling utterly ignored, the Blood Demon's expression twisted with rage.
"Then die!"
Three blood-red bikaku kagune erupted from his back, their razor-sharp tips converging into a single deadly strike aimed straight at Byakuya.
"Papa, watch out!"
Mayu cried out in alarm.
But Byakuya didn't dodge.
Instead, he stepped forward.
With an inhuman level of body control, he twisted his torso, shifting just enough that the three kagune barely grazed past his left side, missing him entirely.
A flash of steel and the razor-sharp blade of "Owl" cut upward in a precise arc; in an instant, all three kagune were severed.
A sharp wave of pain shot through the Blood Demon's kagune. His eyes widened in disbelief as he watched his severed bikaku hit the ground.
His kagune wasn't particularly durable, but it shouldn't have been this easy to cut through!
Byakuya gave him no time to recover.
While Blood Demon was still reeling from the shock, Byakuya flipped his grip on his Quinque and sliced, the blade cut cleanly through his neck.
The Blood Demon's head dropped to the ground.
This time, it wasn't just intense pain; the Blood Demon felt a strange sense of disorientation.
His vision spun as if the world had been flipped upside down, and before he could process what was happening, he heard a distinct thud; it was the sound of his own head hitting the ground.
Even as his severed head lay on the pavement, his mind still couldn't comprehend what had just happened.
What… what the hell just happened?
A moment later, Byakuya destroyed the kakuhou in the Blood Demon's torso, ensuring that he was well and truly beyond saving.
Mayu's small mouth hung open in shock, her large, bright eyes filled with pure disbelief.
She simply couldn't fathom it; the Blood Demon, a ghoul who had terrorized the 19th Ward with absolute dominance, had been killed so effortlessly by Papa?!
This…
Only now did Mayu begin to realize..
Papa isn't just some ordinary person…
He's not even just some regular ghoul investigator!
"I wasn't wrong, was I?" Eto said with a soft smile. "Papa really is strong."
"Mm!"
Mayu finally smiled as well.
Her Koukaku and Bikaku retracted, and her kakugan faded away as well.
"Do you want to eat it?"
Eto suddenly asked.
"Huh…? Eat what?"
Mayu was momentarily confused, not understanding what Mama was referring to.
"The kakuhou, of course." Eto-nee explained casually. "I heard that ghouls can grow stronger through cannibalism. That guy wasn't exactly weak;if you eat his kakuhou, you should be able to boost your power by a lot."
"Oh…"
Mayu finally understood, but her face immediately showed hesitation.
"But… but I don't want to do that…"
Mayu was still too young to accept something as gruesome as cannibalism.
More than that, Blood Demon had killed her parents the same way, the very thought of consuming another ghoul like that made her feel deeply repulsed.
Up until now, she had barely dared to even use her kagune, except for today, when she had been forced into it.
She had never taken a life before.
In fact, most young ghouls struggled with killing.
Even Hoito Roma, as a child, had only eaten rotting flesh; until she tasted fresh human meat for the first time, after which she became insatiable.
Since Mayu refused to eat the kakuhou, Byakuya didn't insist.
Instead, he pulled out his phone and began calling the CCG, informing them to come collect the Blood Demon's corpse.
He had no interest in dealing with the clean-up, nor could he leave the body lying in the street where pedestrians might stumble across it.
"Alright, alright." Eto chuckled lightly. "It was my bad for bringing up something like that. Just forget about it."
"No, it's not your fault. I'm just too weak…"
Mayu would never blame Mama.
Deep down, she knew the truth; Right now, all I do is cause trouble for Papa and Mama…
Whenever there's danger, all I can do is drag them down…
Maybe she should force herself to grow stronger even through cannibalism.
She hated being a useless burden.
So, clenching her fists, she gritted her teeth and said, "Maybe… I should give it a try."
"There's no need."
Byakuya's voice was gentle, yet firm.
"If you don't want to do something, you don't have to force yourself."
His gaze softened as he continued, "Besides, your talent is already remarkable; Having both a koukaku and bikaku makes you a hybrid kagune user, your potential is incredibly high."