Chapter 154
The hunched investigator, with a full head of white hair and uneven eyes, held Quinque in one hand and spoke with relish.
Answer him.
Bang!!!
Before Kureo Mado could even make out a clear image, a figure spun out, cutting through the rain, knocking over a wet trash can on the street, and crashing heavily into a wall, even carving a cracked dent into the concrete surface.
The shattered, dark red Kagune dissipated in the sewage.
"They're all the same."
A tall, yet not at all bulky, Armored Figure crashed through the third-floor glass of the food shop and landed in front of Kureo Mado.
"What you're good at."
With that, Vera flung two ghouls, their limbs broken, spines bent, and Ghoul bruised and swollen, to the ground.
"Welcome to serve. Special Class Investigator Russell."
"Kureo Mado said with a sinister grin."
He immediately understood Vera's meaning: to extract information through interrogation.
"So, what kind of trash will these two pieces of trash lead to?"
153
Chapter 153: Investigate! Begin the Fishing! Begin the Killing!
A light drizzle.
"Ugh—! Hiss... Ha... Spare me—Gahhhhh—!"
The scene at the ransacked grocery store was cordoned off, and the wailing of police sirens was mixed with piercing screams that seemed to come straight from the back of someone's throat.
As Kureo Mado inserted needles into the eye mucous membranes of two half-dead Ghoul and injected Rc cells inhibitors, then dragged them to a special armored vehicle parked by the roadside for on-site interrogation with a chilling laugh, Vera ripped down the roller shutter door, waved inside, and signaled to the investigators who were blocking the perimeter that they could go and clean up the mess and gather intelligence.
A group of investigators dressed in field uniforms and carrying Quinque filed in.
To rebuild prestige in a profession where the death and disability rate of Ghoul investigators is higher than that of firefighters and narcotics officers in peacetime, the most direct and effective way is to lead a group to kill Ghoul.
Tap tap, tap tap—
Snap, snap snap—
No one present felt pity for the Ghoul, especially after seeing the food wholesale store run by the Ghoul group...
The food of Ghoul is people.
As soon as the door to the deepest warehouse opened, a strong stench of blood assaulted the senses. The cold storage was filled with pieces of meat, blood, and scattered human limbs and heads.
The rookies who had just graduated from the Countermeasures Education Center and the Investigator Training School suddenly staggered and covered their mouths, pretending to vomit.
Even the veterans who had passed their rookie phase looked particularly grim, but while searching for evidence and sealing off the stolen goods, they swiftly finished off the Ghoul corpses with shots. They aimed for the head.
"Ms. Russell. Our people have just raided and swept through the entertainment district. The suspected Ghoul 'Kurumi' has made a move. We believe we will soon have results regarding the hideout of the Ghoul organization 'The Women' (MADAM)."
The uniform was significantly different from that of the Japanese Ghoul Countermeasures Bureau. A burly white man with sunglasses and a bald eagle shield on his chest approached Vera from behind, holding an umbrella in one hand and a PDA tablet in the other, and spoke in a low voice in English.
Undoubtedly, he belongs to the North American Ghoul Countermeasures Committee.
It was the team that Vera brought with her when she applied for a transfer to Tokyo after being promoted to Special Investigator.
This time is different from her first arrival in 2014. The things she needs to do this time are difficult to handle alone; even she would be overwhelmed. The power of the system—when is a better time to utilize it?
"Dennis, how much do you think our actions will likely expose?"
Vera asked.
"The 7th Ward will be wiped out; any Ghoul with a brain can see that. But they probably don't know our specific battle plans and deployments. If this has been exposed, it means that there are serious problems within the CCG under the leadership of the Washuu Clan, and it can't be explained by mere grassroots corruption."
Dennis smiled at this point.
"Sir, you're not trying to set a trap again, are you?"
In North America, he was a senior agent who had worked with Vera for many years. He had been to the Brazilian rainforest, ventured into the Mexican wilderness, and explored the Yukon Valley. Having seen a lot, he was quite familiar with Vera's temperament.
"This is called prevention."
Vera glanced at him, took the PDA tablet, and pulled up information about 'Nutto', 'MADAM', and 'BigMadam'.
Compiled by Kureo Mado.
It must be said that although this guy has an eccentric personality and a stubborn and unpleasant temper, his abilities as a top-level investigator are still extremely outstanding.
Especially in their passion and keen sense for investigating Ghoul cases.
Even after being seriously injured in the District 20 and lying in bed for two months, he didn't rest. He focused on analyzing and verifying various suspected Ghoul cases that the CCG hadn't fully investigated, and went to conduct on-site investigations as soon as he could get out of bed.
In terms of merit and seniority, he should have been promoted to Associate Special Investigator long ago, but he refused many times because he did not want to be tied down by trivial matters.
The appearance and residence of 'Kurumi' were actually investigated by Kureo Mado before Vera returned to Tokyo, and he planned to play the long game and leave it for the time being. Unexpectedly, Vera returned to her post.
One wants to get things done but lacks the ability and authority, while the other is worried about where to put his three initial initiatives upon taking office.
They hit it off immediately.
"Let Dick and the others continue to monitor."
Vera said.
"Clear."
Dennis nodded, walked to the side, pressed the microphone, and began to give instructions.
Vera continued reviewing the documents.
This 'Nutcracker' is actually a hostess.
She's quite good-looking, has a nice figure, dresses in a revealing style, and is used to wearing a mask and sexy lingerie. She has a history of repeatedly crushing male clients' testicles.
A pretty flamboyant character in JPG.
Secretly, they are human traffickers who selectively eat women prettier than themselves and have connections with the Ghoul organization "Women." They frequently engage in human trafficking, capturing humans who meet specific requirements and then reselling them to "Women" for consumption, or keeping them as pets or auctioning them off.
'The Women', as the name suggests, is a group of elegant ladies and socialites among the Ghoul.
BigMadam, whose real name is unknown, is the head of the Ghoul Restaurant and performance of the "Women's" organization. She is known as the Madam and is an SS-rank official. She has repeatedly alarmed the CCG, but each time the CCG launched an expulsion operation against her, it ended in failure.
Juuzou Suzuya, an asexual boy, was a pet he rescued during a CCG raid on the 'Women's' Ghoul Restaurant. Yukino Shinoara was the commander of that operation.
Speaking of Ghoul Restaurant, there's an even more upscale one in Ward 7, organized by the so-called Mr. MM, Mr. MM, who is connected to the S-rank Ghoul 'Gourmet'. Data from the Market Supervision Bureau, delving deeper into the cross-shareholding behind cash flow and land ownership, reveals the looming presence of a group called the Moonlight Group.
"There are quite a few big fish."
Knowing the true nature of the Moonlight Group, Vera couldn't resist the urge to act.
I didn't mean anything by it; I just coveted those rare S+ and SS-grade Kakuhou and the assets of the Moonlight Group.
More accurately, it's the North American Ghoul Committee that Vera represents, her Direct Superior and backers—the Attorney General, the Attorney General, and the members of the House and Senate. For now, she's just having soup and some meat broth.
Through her silver tongue, she also carried out a mission on this trip.
That is—the pig has been fattened up and it's time to slaughter it.
Tap, tap.
The sound of footsteps splashing through puddles drew closer. "Special Class Investigator Russell., the fish that escaped into the sewers have been dealt with."
A rough, hoarse male voice.
Vera put down her PDA, turned to the side and nodded, "Yes, thank you for your hard work, Hachikawa Jun Tokutō."
With a spiral-shaped brass-colored Quinque encircling his entire right arm, Chu Hachikawa, wearing a specially made high-necked coat that covered his mouth, walked over.
Is it [new]?
He focused his gaze and glanced at Vera, who was completely encased in the Living Quinque Armor. "The coverage is even wider than that of Special Investigator Shinohara and Special Investigator Kuroiwa..."
The ultimate in high-end customization.
"Unfortunately, there aren't enough raw materials to make the [new]. There are still too few high-grade Kakuhou of the quality of the Kakuja 'Corpse Collector'. According to Dr. Chigyou's and my ideas, they should be assigned to the level of Associate Special Class Investigator."
"I don't have your kind of exaggerated physical strength. My body can't handle the [new] load."
Chu Hachikawa shook his head with self-awareness, showing no greed or jealousy.
As the two talked, the squad members who had arrived with Chu Hachikawa and the Metropolitan Police Department's blockade personnel ignored the Ghoul screaming and writhing in agony on the ground.
Kureo Mado, his hands and body stained with blood, walked over with a smile.
"These are their food orders."
He handed Vera a blood-stained, crumpled piece of paper.
"Ingredients. These trash, tch... They sort and sell the kidnapped and knocked-out people. The low-quality ones are slaughtered on the spot and sold as ingredients in the store, while the high-quality ones are sent to Ghoul Restaurant, auctions, clubs, and even kept as pets..."
"Those damned beasts."
It's hard to become numb to this kind of thing no matter how many times you see it. The investigators and ordinary uniformed officers from the Metropolitan Police Department present all showed anger upon hearing this.
Kureo Mado stared with his uneven eyes and said, "So, Special Class Investigator, if you ask me, you're too kind and rational towards Ghoul. They don't deserve it. Sometimes, you should act on impulse."
His words were filled with deep malice towards the entire Ghoul race.
"I am not worthy. But I have my own considerations."
Vera took the paper. On it were the 'order' dates of some buyers and several marked addresses.
Pointing at the two who were nearly dead, she snapped her fingers at Chu Hachikawa, "Get rid of them."
"Learn."
Chu Hachikawa raised his right hand, and with a whoosh, two yellow Kagune pierced the heads of the two Ghouls, their blood staining the ground once more.
Seeing all this, Kureo Mado shrugged.
Even if he didn't say it, he was quite grateful to Vera deep down.
He was saved by the other party, and his only daughter's career became brighter and more promising because she married him.
He considered welcoming dinners a waste of time; it would be better to give the other party a summary report on the recent Ghoul Disaster in Tokyo Metropolis, helping them get started quickly. He had personally investigated and collected this information, and in his view, this was the best gift for an excellent investigator.
Vera's willingness to accept the gift further encouraged and convinced him of its value.
In particular, after reviewing the case report about the taxi serial murders, in which the heads and feet of all the female victims were removed and discarded, the other party made a phone call and summoned the head of the Tokyo Taxi Association, the head of the Metropolitan Police Department's Traffic Department, and berated him as if he were a grandson.
Under Vera's orders, the taxi association changed its attitude of shirking responsibility, delaying, and non-violent non-cooperation, and began to fully cooperate.
The A-rank Ghoul codenamed 'Torso,' who enjoyed molesting and preying on women, along with many other Ghoul hiding within the taxi system to hunt, were captured and killed.
Previously, when he went to push for evidence collection and investigation, those scoundrels kept shirking their responsibilities and only bowed without doing anything because they were afraid of affecting the association's reputation and the taxis' revenue.
Kureo Mado knew very well that he had benefited from Vera's influence.
In addition to his/her rank CCG Special Investigator.
His official position is Commander of the Special Countermeasures Squad for Districts 6 and 7. He is also the Deputy Chief of Countermeasures Division II. The former is a temporary position, while the latter is a permanent one. Marude Souta is the Chief of Section II.
Most importantly, Vera also holds international positions: Security Affairs Assistant of the United Nations Ghoul Countermeasures Steering Committee, Plenipotentiary Special Investigator the North American Ghoul Countermeasures Committee [Tokyo].
This is why Vera can command the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department and related civil society groups, and even directly interfere with management, summoning them at will and dismissing them at will.
To some extent, among Japanese agencies outside the Ghoul Countermeasures Bureau, Vera's words carried more weight than those of Director Washuu.
Snap, snap.
Vera clapped her hands, not dwelling on the issue of original sin of Ghoul with Kureo Mado, and held up the 'ingredients' order in her hand.
"Use that as a guide, the sweep begins. Special Investigator Shinohara team is already on its way."
Let's start the killing.
The first fire.
We must make sure it's burning brightly!