The Path that Can Go Very Wrong

"[Where are you?]"

Touka looked at the last message she sent to Kenzo and fell silent. She was in her last class of the day but couldn't help thinking about what she had learned about the man to whom she had given her heart and all her remaining love.

She now knew that Kenzo was the leader of the Three-Eyed Crow organization. She also learned more about the man's childhood and why he had issues with his father, despite the latter repenting every day of his life without exception. Touka understood it; she grasped Kenzo's intention to seek that freedom before being able to live peacefully and without any problems in the future.

What will become of our children, friends, and loved ones if we don't fight now?

Touka couldn't fathom it. Although she hated the fact that Ghouls ruled, she knew that Kenzo's goal wasn't that. But after pondering it for a few days, she wondered if others would see it the way she did. Of course not. They wouldn't understand what a Ghoul seeks and the freedom they long for as a species.

The fear of being caught, blamed, killed, and seen as demons by humans torments many. Kenzo might be the light, but the exposure he faced was so great that he would be the number one enemy of the country if he couldn't hide his identity well.

Could she help him? Touka knew that Kenzo wouldn't let her openly involve herself in that large-scale fight that was about to unfold. She assumed that if he had been preparing for the past eight years, he had a method to achieve it, but she didn't know that method, so all she could do was wait.

"What are you thinking about?" Yoriko, Touka's friend, held her by the shoulder and asked with a sly look.

"Eh? Nothing..." Touka smiled at her friend's mysterious look and asked, "Is something wrong?"

"Hmm, I have some experience in romance, and something tells me you're in love... Is that guy an idiot, or did you fight about something?" Sasaki, a short and slender girl with reddish-brown hair and gray eyes, who was about to leave school with Touka, gave her friend a deep look as if she had noticed something.

"It's nothing like that; he just didn't reply to one of my messages..." Touka murmured unconsciously.

"Mmm? Is it that big guy with muscles and broad shoulders? Friend, I never thought you'd like men with big muscles. You certainly have peculiar tastes. I'd also like him to hug me around the waist..."

Touka blushed and elbowed Sasaki, then said, "It's not like that; he has been wanting to work on some rather dangerous things lately..."

"You have to have more confidence. If he's not replying, it's because he's working or doing important things... If I explain what he does, you're just very in love, my friend." Sasaki, as an expert friend, began advising her friend Touka once again.

...

"Has the location been chosen?" Kenzo asked while looking at Number One, who was next to him carrying some documents.

"Yes, these places were proposed, and in the end, the old auditorium was chosen for the meeting." Number One showed Kenzo the meeting place as he sat, monitoring the progress of the missions in districts 15 and 19 that were still ongoing.

"It's a good location, so since we proposed the site, we must take care of security and welcome our guests very well." Kenzo nodded as he closed the documents since it wasn't necessary to keep looking.

"Do you think there will be some issues? They will definitely also propose absorbing our organization..." Number One wanted to know for his personal satisfaction what Kenzo would do in this situation.

"It's natural for disagreements to arise, but learning to handle them constructively is essential. If that happens, I'll seek compromise solutions or agreements that allow us to move forward without compromising the fundamental values of each organization. It's true that I'll seek a way for us to unite, but that proposal will be a bit complicated." Kenzo was debating whether to speak with his sister as the leader of the organization or as simply the Master Crow.

In one way or another, he believes that if he talks to his sister, they could reach an essential agreement, but a significant disagreement could also arise between both parties. If this happens, Kenzo would have his identity exposed as a Ghoul and a leader.

But somehow, without having concrete data, he believes that he can achieve significant things as both Kenzo and his sister. If they agree to unite, no one in all the districts would dare to stop them.

Only in that way would Kenzo accelerate his situation even more. He could even improve his position and take control of the grand plan he had been preparing for a long time.

"We need to prepare; we must show our prestige and also our hospitality," Kenzo said as he stood up and walked to the room where the captains would gather for this meeting.