When Tatara heard Ryohei Tanaka say they were going to "show some real power" and have Lucoa "change the battlefield," his expression shifted. He was about to speak—

—when he saw Lucoa raise her hand with a smile and snap her fingers.

The next thing he knew, the light around him dimmed. When his vision refocused, he was standing on a desolate, dilapidated street. In front of him were the heavily armed, neatly lined-up—but currently disoriented—CCG agents. Kureo and Akira Mado stood at the forefront, Quinques in hand, staring at him with expressions of utter shock.

Tatara was equally stunned, and a chill ran down his spine. 'She moved all of us here with just a snap of her fingers?' The most unnerving part was that he hadn't felt a thing. What kind of power was this? That woman, Lucoa... she was unbelievably powerful. God-like.

'Speaking of which, where am I? Am I alone?' Tatara quickly looked around and was pleasantly surprised to find that he had been transported to the exact location he had arranged to meet with Eto and the others. He could see his own people on the surrounding buildings. That figure with the white, wide-mouthed mask and high ponytail was unmistakably Noro.

High above, the One-Eyed Owl and the Non-Killing Owl froze in mid-air. One moment, the restaurant was right in front of them; the next, it, along with the entire Higashi-Yukigaya 3-chome, had vanished, replaced by this desolate street.

"My, my..." Two crimson meteors plummeted from the sky, crashing to the ground with a deafening "BOOM!" that sent rubble flying and dust billowing.

"Father and I were just near the restaurant. How did we suddenly end up here?" the One-Eyed Owl, a grotesque figure nearly three meters tall, asked Tatara through the swirling dust. "Mr. Tatara, do you know what's going on?"

"Yes," Tatara nodded. "The Culinary Sage asked Miss Lucoa to intervene. She moved us to another location." As he spoke, an eerie blue flame erupted from his body, and a wave of heat radiated outwards. "I only saw her snap her fingers, and then we were..."

The more he thought about it, the more incredible it seemed. How did Lucoa know the location of their planned battlefield without him saying a word? And she had teleported them with such precision! It was as if she were omniscient.

...

On the CCG's side, everyone from the commander down to the logistics staff was stunned to find themselves in a different location. The commander-in-chief, Yoshitoki Washuu, immediately got the story from Kureo Mado, but he found it hard to believe. How could someone exist in this world who could transport hundreds of people, along with their vehicles and equipment, to another place with a simple snap of their fingers? It was too fantastical. But having experienced it firsthand, he had no choice but to believe it.

Yoshitoki was floored. He had been planning to subdue Ryohei Tanaka, but now... subdue him? It was more likely he'd be the one getting subdued.

Before he could dwell on it, the two crimson meteors landed. Through the terminal screen, Yoshitoki saw the two figures in the dust, a cold glint in his eyes.

'Kuzen Yoshimura... and the One-Eyed Owl!'

...

Back at the restaurant—

"The troublesome ones have all been sent away. Everyone can leave in peace now," Ryohei Tanaka announced, glancing outside before turning to the remaining ghouls and then to the human customers.

"Back when I was running a food stall," he began, "I noticed that ghouls were among my customers. But since they were waiting in line patiently, I didn't make a fuss. After I opened the restaurant, ghouls continued to visit. Those who come to eat, I treat as ordinary customers. Those who cause trouble... I eliminate them."

"..." The few ghouls who hadn't left yet couldn't help but wipe the cold sweat from their brows. It felt like they had just narrowly escaped death. What a close call.

The human customers looked at Ryohei, confused, not quite understanding his point. Ryohei shrugged and continued, "All of you who come to my restaurant to eat, I will be responsible for your safety. That goes without saying during your meal, and you don't have to worry about being targeted by ghouls when you leave. If any ghoul dares to do so, we will make them disappear from the face of the earth. Please believe that we have the power to do so."

"Why don't you just kill all of these man-eating monsters?" someone from the crowd mustered the courage to ask. The ghouls in the room immediately glared at him, and he shrank back, terrified.

Ryohei glanced at the ghouls, who quickly put on innocent, harmless smiles. He then turned back to the questioner and said with a shrug, "What kind of chef kills a customer who comes to eat? At the end of the day, I'm just a simple, ordinary chef..."

( •᷄ὤ•᷅)?

'Huh?'

'You? Simple? Ordinary?'

'You've got to be kidding me!'

The human customers were speechless. The ghouls, on the other hand, breathed a collective sigh of relief. As long as he wasn't going to kill them, they were fine.

...

After seeing off the customers and doing a quick clean-up, Ryohei and the others went their separate ways. It was already past 9:30 PM. By the time they picked up Jashin-chan, it would be after ten, and there wouldn't be anything for her to do anyway. It would be better to get her tomorrow. There was no rush.

Ryohei paid no mind to the battle between the CCG and the ghouls. This wasn't some anime where the fight scenes were cool and exciting. In reality, it was just a gruesome mess of flying limbs, splattered brains, and pools of blood. Unless you had some serious psychological issues, no one would enjoy watching a fight to the death.

~~~

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