At this point, Eto grinned, revealing his fangs to Mado Kureo.
On the ground, watching Eto's seemingly naive but actually emotionless so-called apology.
Mado Kureo clenched his teeth, trembling, then resolutely reached out and slapped Eto's face hard.
The quinque in his hand had long since fallen. Compared to Arima, even though Mado Kureo was promoted to Special Investigator on the spot, he was still just a child carrying a small knife.
Even if he had nothing left, Wu Xu would still use his bare hands to inflict the maximum damage he could on the One-Eyed Owl!
Seeing the slap coming towards his face, Eto was slightly taken aback, then squinted his eyes with amusement.
This is really... I feel like killing someone!
What a pity, what a real pity! It's a pity that the adults won't allow me to kill people so casually anymore.
However, I'm not unhappy, because while I'm not allowed to kill people indiscriminately, the adults also don't allow humans to lay a hand on ghouls anymore.
Thinking of this, Eto smiled and moved her cheek closer to Mado Kureo.
She herself, in the posture of a little girl, was slapped in the face by an investigator who displayed a deranged attitude in front of countless reporters.
Tsk tsk, Eto is a great writer with plenty of experience in hype. Even if he thought with his ample buttocks, he would know how the next news story would be written.
It was just a harmless slap; consider it a small sacrifice I'm making for the future of ghouls.
As she spoke, Eto was already bracing herself for a slap. Just as the hand was about to touch her cheek, she frowned slightly, and at the same time, she was ready to burst into tears.
But.
Clatter
Gawain instantly teleported to Eto's side and grabbed Mado Kureo's wrist.
At the same time, Eto raised her head and looked at Gawain with her eyes brimming with tears.
"Oh dear, we're saved! The adults are so kind!"
She said this, but no one knew who she meant by "saved"!
Seeing Eto's face instantly light up with a sweet smile, Gawain pulled Mado Kureo aside and then waved to Eto.
"Be serious, I hope you can truly cut ties with your past life of killing."
Putting aside your identity One-Eyed Owl, you're just a girl not even twenty years old; you deserve a more innocent life.
Even if fate strips you of all your innocence, even if the gods make your destiny full of twists and turns, I will do my best to change everything.
"What belongs to the gods belongs to the gods, and what belongs to Gawain belongs to Gawain!"
After speaking, Gawain left the slightly shocked Eto standing aside.
Then he pulled Mado Kureo up and gently straightened Mado Kureo's clothes.
"Dude, your hatred is almost overflowing and tangible."
But simply clinging to hatred won't accomplish revenge.
Rather than being controlled by hatred, to the point of ultimately dying at the hands of hatred.
It would be better to assess the situation and confront hatred with a more rational attitude.
I'm not advising you to forget anything; no one has the right to demand that someone forget the past.
But at least, only by living longer can there be more opportunities for revenge. So, are you really planning to die today?
After saying that, Gawain released Mado Kureo's hand and then patted Mado Kureo on the shoulder.
"Think about Arima Kishou. Do you think he's the kind of guy who would let ghouls run rampant, or watch them attack humans at will?"
Although he lost to me, one defeat is not enough to change the heart of a warrior who has fought for more than a decade.
But he wasn't just temporarily my subordinate, because he knew that while he couldn't fight against me, he wanted to personally find out what I wanted to do, and even see for himself how far I could go.
This kind of decision is destined to be more helpful to humanity than something as noble as sacrificing oneself.
As soon as he finished speaking, Gawain released Mado Kureo.
At the same time, he looked into the distance, where the crowd was beginning to separate, and Akira Mado, carrying Quinque and running nervously, appeared in Gawain's sight.
From a great distance, Akira Mado shouted with tears streaming down her face.
"Let go of my father!"
As she ran, she activated her quinque, and the launch port of the long-range quinque immediately emitted a dazzling light.
Okay, this girl looks gentle and refined, and has the style, demeanor, and appearance of a professional.
But just look at her crazy father and you'll know that the gene for madness was already written into the name Mado.
Gawain then teleported away and appeared in front of Akira Mado in the blink of an eye.
Gawain snatched the Quinque from Akira Mado before she could fire it, crushing it into pieces while grabbing Akira Mado's hand.
"Don't go crazy like your father. It's understandable to hate me and Eto, but it's not right to beg for death. Be rational."
If you don't know how, I can teach you.
You can pretend to accept Eto's apology, and then secretly sabotage our actions.
You could also simply turn the tables and become Eto's best friend, gradually taking over her world. Then, you could at least fill Eto's heart with pain through betrayal.
You could also choose to side with me, gain my trust, and then inflict sufficient harm on me and Eto by betraying me.
There are countless ways to harm a person, but one of the most unthinkable is to die foolishly in front of the enemy.
Such behavior will only make the enemy laugh.
While courage is indeed the brightest morning star in the human soul.
But recklessness is not.
It's not stupid either.
An enemy will never learn to appreciate you.
You wouldn't really want to become the subject of ridicule, only to bring a disheartening smile to your hated enemies, would you?
"Akira Mado?"
At this point, Gawain released Akira Mado and then pointed to Mado Kureo, who was standing in the distance like a zombie, completely incapacitated.
Seeing her father, who stood like a statue in the breeze, devoid of any spirit, Akira Mado sobbed twice and ran to help Mado Kureo up.
Gawain had no time to pay attention to the interaction between the father and daughter, because the microphones that were gradually surging in from all directions had already filled the space around him.
After seeing Gawain's easygoing demeanor, many of the reporters around him abandoned their fear and even went so far as to surround Gawain for interviews!
Seeing Gawain being stopped by reporters, Mado Kureo, who was already exhausted, managed to squeeze out a bit of hatred again.
This time, it wasn't just the ghouls; even the humans were hated by Mado Kureo!
That's a ghoul, a man-eating monster!
Why would reporters swarm to interview someone like that?
I'm not crazy, it's this world that's crazy!
Unfortunately, the reporters couldn't hear Mado Kureo feelings.
Otherwise, a reporter would definitely have a good talk with Mado Kureo.
Living in such a fast-paced Tokyo like Tokyo, aren't there enough cannibalistic things out there?
Even without ghouls, aren't 99% of the people in Tokyo society constantly being devoured by the remaining 1%, their flesh and blood, time and fate relentlessly being gnawed at?
Whether it's a mortgage that you might never be able to pay off even in your old age, or the way that one percent of people define and exploit the other ninety-nine percent of people due to the information gap.
Everyone is just material to be eaten; compared to that one percent of humans, ghouls are actually the kinder ones.
Because ghouls can kill a person in an instant, even torture wouldn't last a week.
And the remaining one percent of humanity.
They won't kill you, but they'll make you wither away like a walking corpse until you're begging for death.
They won't torment you, but they will rob you of your achievements and make you lose your goals.
As we spend less and less time sleeping and more and more time dreaming.
Even if intelligent people are still isolated by information barriers, they will still be able to see things clearly.
It's not only cannibals that are worth fearing!
What we fear is not just the eating of flesh and blood.
Whether it's fate being divided or wealth being seized.
Everything that can destroy our lives is just as abhorrent and worthy of fear as ghouls.
For a forty-year-old with a family to support.
Unemployment is worse than being eaten.
Being eaten not only relieves stress, but also makes you someone your family misses.
And unemployment...
Once he loses his job, the overwhelming pressure will not only destroy him, but may even cause his family to no longer care about him.
And isn't that... isn't that more terrifying than death?
I wonder how many people have thought of this right now.
However, in order to get more sensational news, thereby obtaining higher bonuses and a more stable professional environment.
Numerous reporters pointed their microphones at Gawain, then bombarded him with questions one after another.
"Hello, Gawain, are you truly the legendary dragon who left its mark on Mount Fuji?"
"Hello Mr. Gawain, is the woman beside you really the great writer Sen Takatsuki?"
"Was Sen Takatsuki eaten by the One-Eyed Owl? Was that appearance a disguise of the One-Eyed Owl? Can you give a clear answer?"
"Are you and Sen Takatsuki dating? Was the investigator who attacked you because she was jealous of the famous writer Sen Takatsuki?"
"Are you from East Country or Europe? We have already verified with the household registration department that we don't have your identity information in Tokyo or even anywhere else in Japan."
"Are you a secret weapon from the East Country?"
"Does the East Country have the idea of disrupting the stable relationship between ghouls and humans worldwide?"
"Mr. Gawain, do you really intend to destroy the CCG?"
In an instant, countless questions were thrown at them by the reporters.
When reporters ask questions, they don't actually want the real answers.
They crave the most newsworthy and attention-grabbing answers.
In an instant, Gawain found the question that best suited him and would satisfy all the reporters, and prepared the corresponding answer.
"Ladies and gentlemen, that girl is indeed the great writer Sen Takatsuki that you all mentioned."
Of course, she is indeed the One-Eyed Owl that everyone has heard of!
As for whether Sen Takatsuki is Akira Mado vying for Mado Akira's affections.
As a man, I actually hope they're fighting over a man.
"But now is not the time to discuss these things. Everyone step back. I will address these issues one by one at a press conference after I leave the CCG!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Gawain gently pushed with his right hand.
His electric current instantly became entangled in the omnipresent signal currents in the Tokyo air, and then easily invaded the nerves of everyone present.
The next moment, the people gathered around the scorching heat became like puppets, uncontrollably making way for Gawain.
While those people were making way and Gawain was answering questions...
Eto was also speaking to Akira Mado, who was supporting her Pops.
"So you're Akira Mado? I'm sorry I killed your mother."
As a daughter, it may be cruel of me to say this, but I still hope you can understand that the reason I killed your mother was simply because your mother and the CCG she belonged to wanted to kill me.
Hate me? Then keep hating me, just like I hate you all.
Tsk tsk, your dad still has that same gritted-teeth look on his face.
But at the same time your father lost his lover, and you lost your mother.
My mother and my father's lover were also taken away by you humans!
Snap!
Eto patted Akira Mado on the shoulder.
Thump.
Akira Mado's knees buckled, and she was kneeling on the ground in the blink of an eye.
In the distance, Arima shook his head, then came to Eto's side and patted Eto on the shoulder.
"Alright, the adults have dispersed the reporters and the crowd. We should head to the CCG headquarters now."
Let's not forget, we have more important things to do.
One thing I admire about adults is that they are really efficient and decisive in doing things.
The conflict between humans and ghouls is destined to be irreconcilable, so today is the day we take down the mastermind behind it all.
If we sever the influence of the Washuu Clan, then without their manipulation, the conflict between humans and ghouls will no longer be complicated by the influence of the upper world.
This is wonderful! My dream of so many years has come true today.
So, when you're in front of the camera, be sure to smile more!
At this point, Arima smiled and made his move, completely destroying the communication devices on Akira Mado and Mado Kureo.
Because they broke away from the CCG's plan to intercept One-Eyed Owl, they hadn't turned on their communication devices at all, and now, even if they wanted to, they couldn't.
Upon hearing Arima's words, Akira Mado immediately snapped out of her daze and asked anxiously.
"The mastermind? Washuu?"
"You're going to kill the police chief?!"
Unlike Akira Mado, Mado Kureo's clarity of mind was indeed filled with malice.
He had barely uttered a single sentence when Arima raised his right hand and slammed it down on Mado Kureo's head.
"Yeah, what will happen if you find out?"
I was controlled by Washuu and lived in the shadows for over a decade.
Today, I can finally live a little more openly.
Little girl, I'm entrusting your father to your care.
We're going to follow Gawain and do something big!
Just wait and see.
This world, or rather, this damned Tokyo.
Everything will soon change for the better!
At this point, Arima pushed Akira Mado aside, and then he and Eto came to Gawain's side.
Looking at the two people behind him, Gawain glanced at the shocked Akira Mado in the distance and said.
"So you've openly stated your goal? Well, we'd better speed things up a bit."
Without communication, can we still make phone calls? Washuu will receive a death signal soon.
But that's alright, because I'll always be faster than them.
Eto, today is your day to apologize, but today...
It will also be the day that Washuu apologizes to you.
The kind of apology that involves risking one's life!