Ready to go, Byakuya and Eto headed out.
Byakuya brought Eto directly to the Mado residence via Kamui.
Then rang the doorbell...
Ding-dong—
"Coming."
Before long, someone came to answer.
Hearing an unfamiliar voice from inside, Byakuya had already guessed who would be opening the door.
Sure enough, when it opened, a young woman neither of them had met appeared before them.
Well, that wasn't quite accurate—Eto had actually seen her ten years ago. It was Byakuya who had never met her but recognized her immediately.
The woman had the same hair color as Akira, even a similar hairstyle, and features that bore some resemblance to Akira.
Without a doubt, this young woman was Akira's mother, Mado Kasuka.
The former CCG's only female Associate Special Class Investigator, and once the strongest female investigator.
"You are...?"
Kasuka naturally didn't recognize Byakuya or Eto.
"I'm Amaha Byakuya."
"I'm Yoshimura Eto, also formerly known as the One-Eyed Owl."
Eto stated her identity directly.
Upon hearing Byakuya's name and Eto's identity, Kasuka's expression shifted twice in succession.
But her composure quickly returned.
"I see..."
Kasuka seemed to recall something.
She addressed Byakuya first: "So you're the Byakuya that Akira keeps mentioning. Thank you for looking after my daughter all this time."
"You must be Akira's mother then?"
Byakuya said.
"Yes, I'm Mado Kasuka. I used to work at the CCG as well, and I know you're the current CCG Director-General."
Kasuka nodded.
Though ghouls no longer existed, the CCG remained.
The CCG's mandate had shifted from "combating ghouls to maintain public safety" to a broader mission of maintaining public safety in general—essentially a higher-level police force with greater authority than regular police.
Some ghouls, even after becoming human, still hadn't changed their fundamentally twisted natures. These individuals remained potential criminals—dangerous ones at that.
But regardless, since the CCG's targets were no longer ghouls, they couldn't keep calling it the CCG (Commission of Counter Ghoul). They just hadn't decided on a new name yet.
"And this one..."
Kasuka's gaze shifted to Eto beside Byakuya.
Since Eto had already revealed her identity, Kasuka knew the girl before her was the One-Eyed Owl.
"You must be the Eto-san that Akira mentioned."
Kasuka said.
Akira had already told her some things about Eto.
Including their... complicated relationship.
"Oh? Akira-chan told you about me?"
Eto was somewhat surprised.
"Mm, Akira did tell me, but actually seeing you in person still feels hard to believe."
Kasuka remarked. "To think that the true face beneath the One-Eyed Owl's kakuja shell back then was such a cute young girl..."
She found it difficult to connect this petite, adorable girl before her with that vicious, terrifying One-Eyed Owl...