When Iwao Kuroiwa left Urie Kuki's office, the opponent was still leaning on the sofa with a look of astonishment, not saying a word, as if he had been scared silly, but Iwao Kuroiwa did not stay, because he knew that the news needed time for the opponent to digest.
As for what the news was? It was very simple: the biggest secret about the CCG's power holders!
— — — — — —
Iwao Kuroiwa was inside the headquarters when 'The Clowns' attacked the CCG headquarters. He naturally participated in that battle, but unfortunately, he was ultimately defeated. After all, he was best at mid-range combat and support. If it were before, he might have been able to rely on his personal strength to hold off the enemy for a while, but unfortunately, as he aged, his physical fitness also declined. In the end, he was directly slammed against the wall by the man wearing a strange clown mask after the opponent found an opening.
But just when he thought he was going to die, the opponent actually let him go.
And what was even more incredible was that not only did he survive, but the number of deaths in 'The Clowns' attack on the CCG headquarters this time was actually negligible. Most people were just injured. The opponent also did not go on a killing spree when they retreated afterwards. He was very puzzled by this.
Of course, it wasn't that he was seeking death, but as an Investigator who had dealt with Ghouls for decades, he didn't believe that these monsters would let them go without reason. After all, he had participated in the decisive battle with 'The Clowns' back then. The number of Investigators who died in that battle even exceeded three digits. He didn't believe that the leader of 'The Clowns' would repent after being imprisoned for decades, or rather, if the opponent had repented, why would they attack the CCG?
And what made him feel even stranger was that he did not actually see the corpses of the 'Director' and the 'General Chairman', or rather, when he saw them, the opponents were already tidied up remains.
In addition to that, in the General Chairman's office, he found many suspicious traces. Based on the battle traces in the room, it seemed like two Ghouls were fighting?
If this only made him suspicious, then the subsequent demolition of several rooms, including the General Chairman's office, gave the feeling of destroying evidence.
While everyone was focused on the matter of 'Lancer using magic' and 'Lancer betrayal,' he focused on the suspicious clues he had found, and as his investigation deepened, he ran into a very crucial problem — he didn't know who to find to confirm his clues.
Then he thought of Kishou Arima.
This young man, with whom he had previously cooperated, was now the backbone of the CCG, but what was even more concerning was the opponent's identity. The unwarranted support the General Chairman and Director gave him, and the opponent's subsequent support for Nimura Furuta after the two died, were extremely bizarre no matter how one looked at it.
With Kishou Arima's strength and reputation, it could be said that even with the General Chairman's will, as long as Kishou Arima had the slightest thought, others could grant him the position of Director through the Special Class Conference, but the problem was that Kishou Arima decisively chose to support Nimura Furuta, or rather, the current Washuu Furuta Souta.
And the others, constrained by Kishou Arima's reputation and the fact that quite a few people supported Nimura Furuta, basically chose to abstain. After all, if Kishou Arima didn't even compete, what right did others have to compete?
But these things, which seemed relatively normal before, felt incredibly awkward now that all the events were connected.
And the key to all the clues was related to one person — Kishou Arima.
Then Iwao Kuroiwa made a choice that no 'normal person' would make. He directly found Kishou Arima and laid out all the clues he had found on his desk without saying a word.
The two quietly confronted each other for more than ten minutes until Kishou Arima took off his glasses.
Undoubtedly, this psychological tactic of not saying a word succeeded.
And after the silence, he heard an unbelievable piece of news — the Washuu family was founded by Ghouls.
"How… how is that possible…"
Although Iwao Kuroiwa had his doubts, he suspected that Washuu Tsuneyoshi and the others had undergone the 'Quinx surgery' or the 'Half-Ghoul surgery', and no matter how he thought about it, he couldn't imagine that the Washuu family would actually be Ghouls?! This was completely unrealistic no matter how one looked at it!
"You mean that the CCG, which exists to subjugate Ghouls and protect humans, is actually controlled by the Ghouls we swore to subjugate?! Does that mean you, Arima…"
The reason Iwao Kuroiwa dared to meet Kishou Arima was that in his opinion, although Kishou Arima was taciturn, he was an excellent Investigator, but the opponent's words directly overturned his worldview. Was the expression of a person who knew that his superior was a Ghoul and served him merely an act?
He had no way of knowing, but the Quinque in his hand was pointed at Kishou Arima.
He knew that he probably couldn't defeat the opponent, but at least he had to leave a clue…
But then he found that Kishou Arima was looking at him in silence, completely unfazed by the Quinque pointed at his head.
"I am not a Ghoul…"
Kishou Arima's words made Iwao Kuroiwa breathe a sigh of relief, but the words that followed immediately made his heart tremble violently.
"But I am not human either."
Even with Iwao Kuroiwa pointing a weapon at his head, Kishou Arima was as emotionally detached as ever. Although he was speaking words that were enough to subvert the 'reality' of this country, he gave the impression that he didn't care at all.
"What happens when a human and a Ghoul reproduce? Do you know?"
Kishou Arima's question made Iwao Kuroiwa freeze for a moment, but then he looked vigilantly at Kishou Arima in front of him.
Although the opponent could have dealt with him in the instant he froze, the opponent chose to ignore it, which was enough to indicate the opponent's goodwill, but Iwao Kuroiwa still dared not let down his guard. After all, 'those not of our kind are sure to be of a different mind,' and the opponent had already stated clearly that he was not human.
But Kishou Arima continued to speak to himself.
"The possibility of a human and a Ghoul giving birth to a child is extremely low. If a human male reproduces with a female Ghoul, the female Ghoul will find it very difficult to conceive a descendant, as the male's sperm is insufficient to fertilize the female. If a male Ghoul reproduces with a female human, although the male sperm and female ovum are more likely to combine, it is still difficult to sustain the pregnancy until the child is born due to the mother's capacity and energy supply, but difficult does not mean impossible…"
"One-Eyed Ghoul?"
Iwao Kuroiwa couldn't help but recall the nightmare that had plagued him for more than ten years, but Kishou Arima nodded and then shook his head.
"Yes and no. Naturally born One-Eyed Ghouls are indeed the result of human and Ghoul reproduction, but this possibility is one in ten thousand. There are only a few naturally born One-Eyed Ghouls in the entire world. In reality, more are like me — Half-Humans."
It was only here that Kishou Arima finally revealed his 'species', but Iwao Kuroiwa was even more confused, because he could not analyze what the so-called 'Half-Human' was from the term the opponent spoke. But fortunately, Kishou Arima was not one of those who liked to be deliberately mysterious.
"The Washuu family refers to 'Half-Humans' as a degraded version of the 'One-Eyed Ghoul'. In reality, this is indeed the case. Half-Ghouls possess physical capabilities not inferior to Ghouls, can eat normal human food, and naturally will not have inexplicable urges to eat, thereby attacking humans, but they also lack the Ghoul's signature Kagune…"
Speaking of this, Iwao Kuroiwa even felt a bit envious of the so-called 'Half-Humans'. In his opinion, the so-called Half-Humans were simply enhanced versions of ordinary people. At this time, he also finally understood why Kishou Arima surpassed ordinary people in all aspects of his metrics. It should be because of his 'Half-Human' physique, but then Kishou Arima shook his head.
"Special Class Marude, things are not as simple as you think. 'Half-Humans' having physical capabilities far exceeding ordinary people also requires paying a sufficient price, such as — life."
"Life?"
"That's right, life. Theoretically, no 'Half-Human' can live past the age of 30…"
"Then you…"
"Perhaps it's because my strength is relatively strong? But even so, I can still feel my life flowing away. I also don't know when I will no longer be able to stand up."
Kishou Arima described his situation with extreme calmness, and Iwao Kuroiwa looked at Kishou Arima in disbelief, seemingly unable to imagine that the 'strongest' whom most people thought could shelter the CCG for another 20 years had actually reached the end of his life.
The two silently looked at each other, and Iwao Kuroiwa sighed and lowered the weapon in his hand.
"Then why are you telling me this? Is it because you have already sensed that your time is short?"
Kishou Arima shook his head again.
"That is not the case. In reality, I have been considering whether to reveal this matter, and coincidentally, Special Class Marude, you found me, so I simply told you. That's all. Everything is… fate."
If it were an ordinary person, the conversation would probably have ended here, after all, they had already obtained the information they wanted, but Iwao Kuroiwa did not. He sat back down opposite Kishou Arima again.
"So why did you decide to tell me? Haven't you kept this a secret for so many years?"
Although Iwao Kuroiwa's physical fitness was declining, he knew that he was very healthy. As long as his old injuries did not recur and no accidents happened to him, he should be able to live for another 20 years, but Kishou Arima… he probably didn't know how long he could live.
Although he was the senior, at this time, he had a strange feeling, as if Kishou Arima, who was sitting in front of him, would die at any moment. He simply wanted to chat with the opponent, just as the opponent chose to reveal everything simply because of his question.
"Why didn't I say it before? Because I felt it was necessary to keep it a secret. That man… Washuu Tsuneyoshi, he was my teacher. He taught me how to use the sword, how to use Quinque, and how to survive. For me, who had no family, the opponent was my only family. Washuu Yoshitoki, he was my childhood friend. The two of us learned swordsmanship from the teacher together. He was my second family, and the Washuu family was my home, but now… the home is gone, and the family is gone. I no longer know why I should persevere…"
Although both his expression and voice were as usual, Iwao Kuroiwa realized that Kishou Arima at this time seemed very 'vulnerable'.
The CCG's strongest, the White Reaper who struck fear into the hearts of countless Ghouls, was actually just an 'old man' longing for family…
This was something Iwao Kuroiwa would never have imagined before.
But Kishou Arima's voice did not stop.
"Nimura Furuta was the 'successor' the teacher designated for me. He was supposed to take over my duty and become the protector of the CCG after my death, but no one expected Yoshitoki to lose his life in this attack, and I have also noticed that he… seems somewhat abnormal. The teacher's order was for me to protect the Washuu family, but how am I supposed to help a person who destroyed the Washuu family?"
Was Kishou Arima stupid? Undoubtedly, he was not stupid.
The destruction of the Washuu family, and the man who was supposed to become the sword of the Washuu family like himself inheriting the Washuu family, no one would probably believe that Kishou Arima had never suspected the opponent, but what if he suspected him?
He was the sword and shield of the Washuu family. He knew that the old man was using him, but he was willing to be used, but now, even the person who made him willing to be used no longer existed.
It can be said that this man, who seemed to have a heart of steel and ruthlessly killed Ghouls, was lost.
Having always moved forward under the control of others, he suddenly found himself 'free,' and besides continuing along the previous path, he didn't even know what he should do.
As for why he chatted with Iwao Kuroiwa?
Besides the fact that the opponent had already found clues, the more important reason was that he wanted to talk to someone, and Iwao Kuroiwa just happened to appear in front of him at this time.
However, Iwao Kuroiwa did not make a big fuss after learning about this. He just quietly left, but the flickering light in his eyes was enough to show that he had already made a decision in his heart.
— — — — — —
Urie Kuki was not the first Special Class Investigator Iwao Kuroiwa sought out, and naturally not the last.
For Iwao Kuroiwa, the CCG was not only his workplace but also the place where he dedicated his life. During this period, countless comrades, seniors, and subordinates had sacrificed themselves, but even so, he had never regretted it, because in his opinion, all the effort and sacrifice, including his own, were meaningful!
'Therefore, I absolutely cannot let everyone's efforts and sacrifices go to waste!'
Everyone thought that with Nimura Furuta's succession and the retreat of 'The Clowns', the CCG would enter a period of stability, but in reality, all of this was just the calm before the storm. The true curtain that was enough to subvert this world had only just been drawn…