Rize Kamishiro, known among investigators as the ghoul "Binge Eater", was classified as an extremely dangerous target in the records of the Commission of Counter Ghoul.
Originally active in the 11th Ward, she had once violated the ghoul community's informal rules of predation. Her excessive hunting of humans eventually provoked retaliation from other ghouls in the area.
The conflict that followed left numerous casualties.
Afterward, she disappeared from the 11th Ward and later resurfaced in the relatively quiet 20th Ward.
However, her behavior did not change.
If anything, it worsened.
Unlike most ghouls—who could survive by consuming one human corpse per month—Rize hunted with terrifying frequency.
Two or three victims every week.
Such reckless predation inevitably attracted the attention of the CCG.
As a result, the pressure placed on the 20th Ward steadily increased.
Investigators began patrolling the district more aggressively.
Even the other ghouls living there were affected.
Rize's strength was well known among her own kind.
Few dared confront her directly.
This string of violent incidents eventually pushed the CCG into an unusually high-alert state.
"Speaking of which…"
Touka's voice interrupted Ren's thoughts.
"That guy… hasn't shown up at the café for several days."
Ren raised an eyebrow.
"A person like that?"
"Would someone like her really come here for coffee?"
"No."
Touka shook her head slightly.
Her gaze drifted somewhere beyond the counter.
"There's a college student."
"About your age."
"A regular customer."
Her voice lowered slightly.
"The Binge Eater has taken an interest in him."
Ren was somewhat surprised.
"Then why hasn't she simply eaten him?"
With Rize's appetite, delaying the hunt seemed unnecessary.
Touka's expression turned cold.
"That's the way she is."
"She enjoys playing with her prey first."
"Then she eats them slowly."
Her tone carried clear disgust.
"How despicable…"
Ren murmured.
Almost simultaneously—
Carnage whispered from deep within his consciousness.
"…How disgusting…"
"Furuta and the others are out running errands today."
A gentle voice suddenly sounded from the staircase.
Yoshimura slowly descended the steps.
Behind him walked Renji Yomo, silent as always.
"It must have been a long day for the two of you."
"You're too kind."
Ren waved casually.
A job paying 500,000 yen per month—how could that be considered hard work?
"The café is closing."
Yoshimura approached the counter.
His gentle gaze rested briefly on Ren.
"Kiryu-kun."
"Please be careful on your way home."
His words carried the warmth of an elder's concern.
"Thank you for your concern, Manager."
Ren smiled.
"I'll return to my apartment tonight to pack my belongings."
"I'll move in soon."
Leaving behind the warm lights and the lingering aroma of coffee at Anteiku—
He stepped into the evening streets.
The 20th Ward remained lively.
Pedestrians moved through the streets as usual, seemingly unaffected by the ghoul incident reported earlier.
He walked calmly along the unfamiliar route toward the apartment the system had provided.
At first—
Everything felt normal.
Voices from pedestrians.
Car horns.
Music drifting from nearby shops.
All blended into the familiar background noise of the city.
His thoughts drifted back to Touka's earlier conversation about the Binge Eater, and to the information Renji Yomo had brought regarding the CCG investigation.
Then—
A strange sensation crawled along his spine.
[…Hmm…]
Carnage spoke first.
Its voice carried both excitement and alertness.
[…We're being watched…]
[…There are insects following us…]
[…More than one…]
Ren remained calm.
"They probably don't have evidence."
He did not turn around.
Nor did he change his walking pace.
[…Left rear…]
[…Near the newspaper stand…]
[…Ahead to the right… under the streetlamp…]
[…That scent… the investigator from this morning…]
[…And another one… further away…]
Carnage's sensory perception was frighteningly sharp.
Even among the crowds, it easily detected multiple observers.
About fifteen meters behind him—
A man wearing glasses and a gray trench coat flipped casually through a magazine beside a newsstand.
Yet every few seconds, his gaze subtly swept toward Ren.
Across the street—
A young woman leaned casually against a lamppost.
She wore a baseball cap pulled low over her eyes while pretending to scroll through her phone.
Further away—
Another presence watched from somewhere within the crowd.
It was difficult to locate precisely.
But the feeling was unmistakable.
These people moved with discipline.
Their presence blended almost perfectly into the city.
Without Carnage's heightened senses—
An ordinary person would never notice them.
They were investigators from the CCG.
And there was more than one.
Ren's expression remained calm.
But inwardly—
His mood grew heavy.
The aftermath of the Aoba Alley incident had arrived sooner than expected.
Renji Yomo had been correct.
The CCG was treating the appearance of a possible third ghoul very seriously.
[Heh…]
Carnage laughed softly.
[…White doves…]
The symbiote's voice trembled with bloodthirsty excitement.
[…Three of them…]
[…Let's tear them apart… right here on the street…]
A violent killing instinct surged inside him.
"Shut up."
Ren suppressed the voice instantly.
He absolutely could not fight here.
If his identity were exposed—
He would immediately become a wanted target of the CCG.
And the peaceful life he had just begun would collapse overnight.
What he needed right now—
Was stability.
Not war with the entire CCG.
[Coward…]
Carnage sneered.
[Kill them…]
[Let their blood paint the street…]
"Quiet."
"If we become the public enemy of the 20th Ward, that 500,000 yen salary disappears."
Ren used the most practical argument he could think of.
Carnage fell silent.
For a moment.
[…Slave to money…]
The symbiote muttered disdainfully.
But the violent urge to slaughter gradually subsided.
He maintained the same pace.
Same direction.
Same calm expression.
To any observer—
He was simply an ordinary café employee heading home after work.
The investigators were merely conducting surveillance.
They had no evidence.
He simply needed to return to his apartment.
With that thought in mind—
He walked toward the subway entrance ahead.
Behind him—
He could clearly feel three pairs of eyes locked onto his back.
Cold.
Persistent.
The massive subway entrance swallowed the rushing crowd like the mouth of a giant beast.
Noise.
Movement.
And overlapping scents created a perfect natural barrier.
Ren calmly blended into the flow of people.
Inside the station hall—
Electronic screens displayed train schedules.
Announcements echoed overhead.
Footsteps and conversations filled the air.
He did not head for the main platforms.
Instead—
He walked toward a quieter side exit leading to a small underground shopping street.
Behind him—
The three investigators followed into the station.
Their presence lingered near the entrance.
The man with glasses merged into the crowd heading toward a busy line.
The woman in the baseball cap moved along a parallel corridor, watching him from beneath the brim.
"They're watching… smelling… listening…"
Carnage whispered with mocking amusement.
"Unfortunately…"
"They won't find anything."
"Because we…"
"Are perfect."
Ren said nothing.
But the tension in his chest did not ease.
Carnage could perfectly mimic human physiology.
Body temperature.
Heartbeat.
Breathing.
Even blood flow and weak bioelectric signals.
To the CCG's portable RC cell detectors, he would appear completely human.
As long as Carnage remained hidden—
No machine would detect anything unusual.
He followed the flow of people out of the station's side exit.
Soon he emerged onto a quieter street lined with old shops.
He did not stop.
He did not turn back.
Like any tired office worker eager to return home—
He continued walking toward his apartment building.