1st Ward, TSC Headquarters
Although this was a new institution formed from the merger of the former CCG and Aogiri Tree, most of the original CCG investigators had chosen to stay.
After experiencing the Dragon, many had grown more tolerant of ghouls.
Of course, there were still a number of investigators who harbored deep hatred toward ghouls—those who had suffered great personal loss, whose loved ones had been brutally murdered, even their entire families destroyed. These people chose to resign, and no one blamed them.
After all, no one else could forgive ghouls on their behalf.
The Mado family, however, chose to stay.
Right now, Byakuya and Eto were catching up with the Mados at headquarters.
"You know, when we first found out that Miss Eto was the One-Eyed Owl, we were completely shocked" Kasuka said, still with a note of amazement.
Back then, she had nearly died at the hands of the Owl — if it hadn't been for Byakuya, she wouldn't have survived. She'd never imagined that the woman she'd come to see as Byakuya's partner was none other than the infamous SSS-rated ghoul.
"Chairman Byakuya, did you and Miss Eto already know each other back then?" Kureo asked with a smile.
"Sort of. Though we weren't close yet at the time" Byakuya replied calmly.
He didn't intend to explain too much—especially not the part where, in another version of events, Kasuka would have met a tragic end.
Eto, on the other hand, was much more direct.
"Yeah, back then I thought Byakuya had betrayed me. I wanted to cut his hands off. But to be honest, if he hadn't been there…"
She trailed off, but the message was clear enough.
The air grew a little tense.
If Eto hadn't brought it up, things might have stayed relaxed—but her words reminded Kasuka how close she'd come to dying that day. The gap in power between her and the One-Eyed Owl had been overwhelming.
Kureo also understood. If Eto had killed Akira, he would've lost all reason and sought revenge, even at the cost of his own life.
Just then, Eto added,
"But if I were to go back to that moment as the person I am now, I wouldn't have done something so cruel. So… I want to sincerely apologize for what the 'me' back then almost did."
Her words had a double meaning.
"The 'me' back then" didn't just refer to her past self in this timeline—it also included the Eto from the original timeline, the one where Byakuya never existed.
No one knew Eto better than herself. She was very aware that if Byakuya hadn't been there, she wouldn't have hesitated to do something unforgivable.
Her tone was sincere. Kasuka and Kureo were momentarily stunned.
Was she… really apologizing?
They both knew Eto didn't have to apologize. As the One-Eyed Owl, she had more than enough power to ignore them entirely.
"No, no—it's fine. You didn't actually hurt me back then" Kasuka replied quickly, feeling like she didn't deserve such an apology.
"Yes, there's no need to dwell on it" Kureo added.
Since it hadn't actually happened, they couldn't hold it against her.
Had things gone differently—had Byakuya not been there, and had Kasuka ended up like her original fate—there would've been no smiles in this room today.
Byakuya watched this scene unfold, genuinely pleased.
Eto and the Mado family had finally found closure.
"By the way, we just had a new batch of recruits join the TSC. Chairman Byakuya, would you be interested in meeting them?" Kureo asked suddenly.
"Got a list?" Byakuya inquired.
"Yes, I happen to have it right here." Kureo handed him a document.
"Let me take a look."
As Byakuya scanned the list, a familiar name jumped out at him.
"Koutarou Amon..."
Of course Byakuya recognized the name.
In the original timeline, if Kaneki was the protagonist on the ghoul side, then Amon was undoubtedly the human counterpart — at least early on.
"Oh?" Kureo raised his eyebrows. "This list only includes names, no rankings. Yet Chairman Byakuya picked out our top rookie Amon at a glance?"
"Not really" Byakuya replied. "The name just sounded familiar. I remember that during an operation, the squad captured an SS-rated ghoul known as The Priest. The only surviving child from the orphanage was named Amon, if I recall correctly."
It was a seamless explanation—because it had actually happened.
"That's right! I'm surprised you remember that, Chairman. He's grown a lot since then. One of our most promising candidates" Kureo confirmed.
"Excellent. The TSC needs fresh blood like him" Byakuya said approvingly.
The former CCG hadn't truly disappeared—just rebranded. Their Investigator Academy still existed, just with the titles and terms updated.
This specialized school continued to train candidates to combat the Dragon's Orphans, and had even begun experimenting with ghoul recruits.
After all, the TSC was now a hybrid organization of humans and ghouls. Developing capable ghouls was a necessary step forward.
"To be honest, I'm quite interested in young Amon" Kureo said, like a man asking for a favor.
"I'd like to request partnering with him."
With just one word from Byakuya, the request would be granted.
"Of course" Byakuya nodded.
After all, in the original timeline, Amon had been Kureo's partner—and nearly his son-in-law.