Inside the stronghold building in Ward 9 that Aogiri Tree had seized...
"I heard we caught someone important during our operations a while back, so we've been taking things slower lately."
"How would I know? The executives lead, and we follow. None of us knows what we're actually doing."
"Who cares? They've seen our faces anyway. Better to raise hell than rot in that godforsaken Ward 24."
"Weird. Speaking of which, why haven't we seen Eyepatch lately?"
"You didn't hear? He fell out with the executives up top and had a huge fight with them. After that, I heard he ran off with Ice Mask. Both were badly wounded. Who knows if they even made it out of the Ghoul Investigators' encirclement..."
The ghouls guarding the entrance chatted out of boredom. As ordinary members, they knew little of what was going on.
"Speaking of which, Ice Mask fought Executive Eto during the last operation. Anyone know who won?"
"Heh, all I know is that Mr. Tatara and Eto came out just fine afterward. Those rumors about Ice Mask are just scare stories. In a real fight, he's no match for our Aogiri Tree Executives."
The ghoul snorted and gestured dismissively, but suddenly noticed that the others beside him had stopped talking, their bodies rigid as though facing a formidable enemy.
"What's wrong with you guys..." the ghoul grumbled in irritation. But a moment later, he felt an eerie chill pass beside him, accompanied by faint footsteps.
"Tap... tap..."
When ordinary enemies approached, even if they concealed their appearance and footsteps, their scent would quickly reveal their location. Yet this visitor evaded their senses like a ghost. They barely noticed him even when he was right in front of them.
"What..." Turning around, he caught sight of an upright figure walking