Even after leaving the Ward 20 Branch, Mutsuki remained preoccupied with the matter.
Though this was her first time meeting Suzuya, she'd heard back at the Academy that he was a strange, unapproachable boy who liked to self-harm.
Come to think of it, just seeing Suzuya's appearance today had surprised her.
He looked adorable—almost like a girl. In fact, most girls probably couldn't compare to him.
Beyond that, spending time with Suzuya had shown her he wasn't the eccentric loner the rumors made him out to be.
She knew Suzuya had been ostracized by classmates at the Academy, just like her... Had there also been rumors about his personality...?
"Associate Special Class Amaha, why... doesn't First Class Suzuya seem to hold any grudge against me at all..."
As they walked back, Mutsuki voiced her confusion.
"Well, there's no special reason, really. If I had to say something, it's that Juuzou is kind."
Byakuya said.
"Oh."
Mutsuki nodded.
"I thought First Class Suzuya would be strange and eccentric like the rumors said. I was scared. But I never expected..."
Mutsuki sighed.
"Actually, he wasn't always like this. It was only after going through certain things that he... But even before, he probably wouldn't have gotten angry at you."
Byakuya said. "That kid has always been kind at heart, no matter when. He just didn't have a normal sense of morality before."
"Mm."
With the matter cleared up with Suzuya, Mutsuki felt an enormous weight lift from her shoulders.
Though Suzuya's attitude had actually made her feel even more guilty...
"Associate Special Class Amaha, thank you so much."
Mutsuki expressed her gratitude earnestly. "Without your help, I never would have had the courage to come and clear things up with First Class Suzuya..."
"This is just what I should do as your superior."
Byakuya smiled lightly.
Speaking of which, Suzuya had transformed back into his kind, adorable black-haired self under his superior Shinohara's devoted care, along with attention from Byakuya and others.
Mutsuki's "darkening"—technically her hair changed from dark green to white—was triggered by near-death trauma. She'd been captured by a necrophiliac ghoul named Torso and held prisoner, leading to the subconscious emergence of her dark side...
Setting aside the kind of devoted care Shinohara had shown, simply preventing Mutsuki from experiencing that death-threatening trauma would probably be enough to prevent her transformation.
...
Several days later.
With applications submitted by Byakuya and Kiyoko, CCG headquarters finally assigned a mission to the Quinx Squad.
However, the initial mission was quite simple—just investigating a few B-rated ghouls.
"Though this mission is on the easy side, at least they finally have work to do."
Byakuya remarked after reviewing the mission details.
"Three B-rated ghouls who've committed crimes together. Simple enough for Kurona and Nashiro, but a good fit for those four newcomers. After all, they haven't had any real combat experience with their internal kagune yet—unlike Kurona and Nashiro, who have plenty of experience."
Kiyoko observed.
"Mm. Let's have Kurona and Nashiro lead the team this time."
Byakuya said.
Kurona and Nashiro were already squad leaders of the Quinx Squad. Having them lead a mission of this difficulty level was appropriate.
For higher-difficulty missions or large-scale operations, that would require Byakuya and Kiyoko to accompany them.
"This works out well—they're close to promotion to Associate Special Class anyway. Let them get a feel for what being a superior is like."
Kiyoko nodded. "Plus, managing those four newcomers will be a challenge in itself."
Though Kiyoko lacked Byakuya's omniscient perspective, she'd taken care to learn about Urie and the other three.
Urie in particular—as the orphan of Mikito Urie—stood out. Based on his Academy performance, he tended toward glory-seeking with weak team awareness. And CCG investigators relied heavily on teamwork...
Conflict between Urie and his teammates was inevitable.
"Exactly. I see you've done your homework on them, Kiyoko-nee."
Byakuya observed.
"I'm their superior too, after all."
Kiyoko replied evenly. "Now let's go inform them about the mission. And then..."
"While they're out on their mission, we'll have some free time. Want to go get a drink tonight?"
Kiyoko suddenly invited Byakuya for drinks.
...
On the day they learned of their assignment, the Quinx Squad set out on their investigation mission.
Though Urie and the other three didn't know Kurona and Nashiro's true strength, they knew both held the rank of First Class Investigator.
That alone outranked the Rank 2 and Rank 3 investigators among them.
For now, none of them had any objections to Kurona and Nashiro serving as squad leaders.
Of course, Shirazu, Saiko, and Mutsuki would likely never object. Only Urie was the relatively unpredictable variable...
Byakuya and Kiyoko felt comfortable letting Kurona and Nashiro handle this operation.
After all, both sisters possessed at least S-rated combat strength. Three B-rated ghouls posed no threat whatsoever. Managing the team dynamics might actually prove more challenging than the mission itself...
This was the Quinx Squad's first field mission. Without three to five days of work, it probably wouldn't be resolved.
The process would involve investigation followed by extermination. Investigation always took time.
That evening...
Having accepted the invitation, Byakuya accompanied Kiyoko to a small bar.
"Do you enjoy drinking, Kiyoko-nee? I never knew before."
Byakuya asked.
"It's alright. I only drink when I'm feeling stressed."
Kiyoko said. "Last time I drank was probably with Shinohara-san and the others. I still remember how Shinohara-san got drunk and started tossing a colleague around like a toy..."
She trailed off mid-sentence.
Given Shinohara's current condition...
After a pause, Kiyoko continued. "I don't usually like coming to places like this alone to drink, so I asked you to keep me company. I hope I'm not being a bother?"
...
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