The curtain fell

The slash sacrificed all defense, carving a savage wound across Tsukiyama's chest. Warm blood gushed out at once. It was undoubtedly a devastating blow.

But not enough to kill him!

Louis's pupils constricted, but it was already too late to retreat. Tsukiyama's severed arm had regrown. With a bang, he grabbed Louis by the face and slammed him into the floor, crushing his ice-crystal mask. Blood instantly covered his face.

Nishiki Nishio was flung aside, and the bloodstained, blade-like kagune rose high.

"This wound won't just heal on its own! Eat! Eat!" The grievous injury had driven Tsukiyama into a frenzy. His blade-like kagune thrust straight at Louis's chest, intent on killing him in one strike.

As long as he could eat, a wound like this would heal in no time.

Just then, a dazzling burst of blood-red light bloomed inside the church, bringing a terrifying surge of killing intent. Louis only caught a brilliant crimson streak rushing past his face before Tsukiyama flew away like a cannonball, leaving a huge crater in the wall.

With her full power unleashed, Touka's ukaku shone like the sun behind her. She stood before Tsukiyama like a god of war.

"Tastes awful... ptooey..." Touka spat out half a finger as she spoke.

That was...

While staunching his bleeding, Louis looked at the half finger Touka had spat out. It was part of the arm he had torn off Tsukiyama earlier.

Tsukiyama suddenly scrambled out of the rubble. His blood-red eyes fixed on the radiant Touka, and instead of anger, he showed delight, looking extraordinarily excited. "I'm so excited, Touka! This is the real you!"

Just like him, getting excited even with death staring him in the face... Seeing this, Louis knew there was nothing left for him to do. He carefully peeled a bloodstained crystal shard off his face.

"Die..." Touka's disgust for Tsukiyama had reached its limit. The kagune behind her crystallized in an instant, firing a torrent of blood-red crystals into his kagune and body like bullets.

Even the toughest koukaku was shattered by the relentless barrage. After taking several heavy blows, Tsukiyama finally buckled and crashed to the floor.

"No..." Tsukiyama stared up at the church ceiling, his eyes wide. He could not believe he would die here.

A final gamble?

Tsukiyama's crimson eyes suddenly turned toward the unconscious Kimi nearby. As though he had made a decision, he scrambled up and charged toward her, heedless of his life.

"Not a chance!"

Already standing guard beside Kimi, Louis swept a kick across Tsukiyama's face and sent him flying.

At that, Touka finally stopped holding back. She darted close, severed his arm with her ukaku, then followed with a flurry of blows. Her final strike pierced straight through Tsukiyama's body.

An attack like that would prove fatal even to an S-Rank Ghoul.

Shuu Tsukiyama fell in the wrecked church and never rose again. He had never imagined he would die in a place like this.

The danger had passed, but it was not over yet.

Louis cast a wary glance at Touka. Blood already stained her face, and her red eyes were now fixed on Kimi, who had regained consciousness.

"It's all right now... Kimi..." As Nishiki Nishio untied Kimi's ropes, he suddenly sensed that brilliant red presence approaching behind him, brimming with killing intent.

"She knows what we are. She has to die." Touka's face was grim as she warned Nishiki Nishio in a commanding tone.

Although she could hardly bear it, she had to do this for the sake of her other companions. She had prepared herself for this possibility when she first started attending school.

"No..." Nishiki Nishio had barely uttered the word before she slapped him hard enough to send him flying. Yet somehow, he quickly found the strength to scramble back and shield Kimi Nishino with his body.

"I have nothing left..."

"Humans can't be trusted, but if it's her... I don't care even if she betrays me..."

"Please, let her go... I'll take her away... away from Ward 20... away from Tokyo..."

The once arrogant, overbearing Nishiki Nishio had become meek and pleading, begging Touka again and again. It was clear this human truly mattered to him.

Louis did not interrupt. Touka had had the chance to kill Kimi the instant she knocked Nishiki Nishio away, but she had not taken it. Rather than hesitating, she seemed to want to know how deep Nishiki Nishio's resolve ran.

Clearly, she already believed the story from earlier.

"How are you going to leave Ward 20 in your condition..." Touka withdrew the kagune behind her, and her eyes returned to normal.

"Come back to Anteiku with me. Let the manager decide tomorrow."

On the way back, Louis could not help asking Kaneki, "Did Touka bite you?"

"Huh? No..."

Touka said, "What nonsense are you talking about?"

Louis said, "Touka, why don't you take a bite out of Kaneki after all? Otherwise, I won't be able to explain myself..."

Kaneki said, "???"

Touka said, "Did Tsukiyama beat you stupid?"

Back in his room, Louis faced the mirror and removed the pieces of ice from his face one by one. His facial wounds had healed, but some scars remained. A full recovery would still take time.

My face is scarred...

The muscles in his right arm had been slashed. They would need at least a few hours to heal on their own.

My healing still can't match a ghoul's...

If it had been Kaneki, he probably would have recovered completely in a few minutes.

Dual Ability Users with physical enhancement and crystallization usually had great potential. Louis's instructor had told him the same thing back then. Yet his progress had always fallen short of expectations. By the time his comrades in the Elite Camp had all reached S-Rank, he was still crawling forward at A-Rank.

It was not that he had made no progress, but that he progressed far too slowly.

Over the years, he had more or less figured out why. Ability Users possessed tremendous latent potential, but only battles that took them past the brink of death could draw it out.

Today's battle with Tsukiyama had made him understand that profoundly. When death approached, every part of his body desperately wanted to survive, driving him to unconsciously push against his limits again and again.

The fastest way to grow stronger was to repeatedly fight with his life on the line.

"Aogiri Tree..." At the thought of an organization that lived for battle, Louis immediately thought of them, but he quickly rejected the idea.

They were nothing but lunatics and psychopaths. Joining without sufficient strength would only make him someone else's food. He had to become strong enough before leaving the shelter of Anteiku.

SS-Rank, or Campaign-Level Ability User... a rank of Ability User strong enough to affect the outcome of a small-scale battle. According to the system, their combat power corresponded to that of an SS-Rank Ghoul using Full Kakuja Transformation.

That level of combat power would be enough to survive in this world.

Louis could not help clenching his fists. Just thinking about that rank made his heart race, because it was a level he had never dared imagine reaching in his previous life.

Louis took a shower. Once he calmed down, he felt drained, so he climbed into bed and fell into a deep sleep.

[System: Strength increased. Overall combat power: A → A+]