The bustling streets were filled with cars and the sounds of honking mixed with the chatter of passersby. Su Xiao walked down the street, holding a map in his hands.
He had arrived at District 14. Although he initially wanted to check out a café called Anding District, he decided to hold off for now, considering the strength of the café's manager. There was no need to confront the manager just yet. Unlike Takatsuki Izumi, who was also an SSS-class ghoul, the café manager was much more skilled in combat. However, due to his old age, the manager's fighting ability had declined.
Instead of seeking out the manager, it would be easier to deal with the ghouls in District 14.
Soon, Su Xiao found the CCG branch in District 14. As a third-class investigator, he walked straight into the branch. It was around 9 AM, and there were many investigators inside. Su Xiao's unfamiliar face caught the attention of several investigators, who were quite sensitive, a common trait among those in their line of work.
“Excuse me, where can I find Mr. Shinohara Yukiki?” Su Xiao asked at the reception desk, where a young female receptionist greeted him.
“Are you looking for Mr. Shinohara? May I ask who you are?” The receptionist smiled professionally and spoke gently.
“I’m the new third-class investigator, Bai Ye. I’m here to report for duty today.” Su Xiao presented his identification to her.
After confirming his credentials, the receptionist made a quick phone call. “Hello, Mr. Bai Ye. Mr. Shinohara is on the twelfth floor in his office. You should hurry, as he’s about to leave.”
Su Xiao took back his ID and headed straight for the elevator to the twelfth floor. The head of the CCG branch in District 14 was Special Investigator Shinohara Yukiki. Su Xiao had seen him in the original story; he was a middle-aged man with a buzz cut, known for being humble and easy to get along with.
“Knock, knock, knock~.”
“Come in.”
Su Xiao pushed open the office door. Inside, Shinohara Yukiki was organizing his Quinque, apparently preparing to go out.
“You're here quite early, third-class Bai Ye.” Shinohara put down the Quinque and sat behind his desk, gesturing for Su Xiao to take a seat while he searched for some documents.
“Let me see... Ah, here it is. Bai Chuan’s family member, 20 years old, has been training in combat skills since childhood, combat power SSS+?” Shinohara looked at Su Xiao in surprise, then carefully examined the document in his hand. He suspected he had read it wrong. He had only heard that a strong third-class investigator was being transferred, but he didn’t expect the person to have such high combat power.
It seemed that Su Xiao's title as a third-class investigator had misled Shinohara’s judgment.
“Hello, Mr. Shinohara.”
Shinohara's gaze kept shifting between Su Xiao and the document. He found it hard to believe that Su Xiao, who didn’t have a particularly strong build, possessed SSS+ combat power.
“Hello, third-class Bai Ye. However, before you officially take up your position, you need to undergo a combat assessment.”
“No problem, when do we start?”
With the main task (2) giving him twenty days, Su Xiao felt some of the tension ease off.
In terms of difficulty in the ghoul world, while he might not be the strongest, he was definitely not weak. Being sent to a world that wasn’t too challenging might be the intention of the Reincarnation Paradise.
The Reincarnation Paradise had tested him in the pirate world to see if he was qualified to become a hunter, and now, the ghoul world was like a reward for him.
After Su Xiao asked, Shinohara thought for a moment. “Let’s do it now. We can assess you right here.”
With that, Shinohara took off his suit jacket and started to stretch his arms.
Su Xiao understood that Shinohara wanted to spar with him; seeing is believing.
“I’ll go first.”
“Come on.”
Su Xiao’s eyes sharpened. Since this was a sparring assessment, Shinohara didn’t use his Quinque, and neither did Su Xiao use his “Dragon Slashing Flash.”
The office wasn’t very big, and with his agility stat of 13, Su Xiao quickly closed the distance to Shinohara.
Shinohara raised his fists defensively, feeling a bit alarmed by Su Xiao’s current momentum.
Without hesitation, Su Xiao threw a punch at Shinohara’s forearm.
“Bang.”
Shinohara instinctively stepped back two paces, feeling a sharp pain in his arm.
“What a heavy punch.”
As Shinohara retreated, Su Xiao launched a flurry of punches at Shinohara’s shoulders and forearms, landing several hits.
But as a special investigator, Shinohara was no pushover.
After taking a few hits, he shouted and swung his strong arms to push Su Xiao back.
The two quickly engaged in a flurry of strikes. Su Xiao’s style was light and agile, but every hit packed a punch. Meanwhile, Shinohara focused on solid defense, willing to take a few hits rather than expose his weaknesses.
“Bang, bang, bang~.”
The sound of their strikes echoed in the room. Both were getting more into the fight, losing themselves in the moment.
Su Xiao swept a kick toward Shinohara’s chest, but Shinohara sidestepped just in time to avoid the blow.
While he dodged, Su Xiao’s kick shattered the corner of a nearby desk.
“Crash.” The desk corner flew off, causing Shinohara to wince, but it only fueled his fighting spirit.
To become a special investigator in the CCG, one had to be brave; fighting powerful ghouls with just their bodies required immense courage.
After Su Xiao kicked the desk corner away, a sudden cry of pain came from a distance.
The cry interrupted their sparring, and both turned to see the source of the sound.
What caught Su Xiao’s eye was a boy with a head full of white hair.
At first glance, he looked more like a girl, with a fair face, a petite body, and androgynous clothing.
“Shizuo, are you okay?”
Shinohara rushed to the boy’s side, looking concerned. The boy had a bruise on his forehead, caused by the corner of the desk that Su Xiao had kicked away.
“I’m fine~. Mr. Shinohara, why did you stop? I haven’t seen enough yet.”
The newcomer was named Suzuya Juzou, and he was Shinohara’s subordinate.
In fact, Shinohara was not only Juzou’s superior but also his guardian, taking care of Juzou’s daily life.
Although Juzou had a feminine appearance, he was originally male, but his current gender was ‘none.’
He had been raised by a ghoul named Big Madam, who was an S-class ghoul.
Big Madam had a twisted obsession and was a sadist. When Juzou was young, he looked very much like a girl, but as he grew older, his feminine features began to change.
This change was intolerable for Big Madam, who cruelly crushed Juzou’s
to stop his masculinization and make him even more feminine.
Later, during a CCG raid, Juzou was unexpectedly rescued, which is how he became a ghoul investigator.
His unfortunate childhood had made Juzou’s personality a bit strange—lazy, lacking basic understanding, and a mix of masochism and sadism.
After checking Juzou’s injury, Shinohara confirmed he was indeed fine.
“Glad you’re okay. This is our new colleague, Bai Ye. Say hello.”
Shinohara stepped aside, encouraging Juzou to greet Su Xiao.
“Hello~! I’m Suzuya Juzou. Can I cut you?”
Juzou’s unusual greeting left Shinohara a bit helpless. The kid meant no harm; he just lacked basic common sense.
“Ha~. You little rascal.”
It started to rain, bringing a cool breeze. It was over twenty degrees, quite hot.
(End of chapter)