Due to a lack of information, Ken Kaneki was completely unable to figure out what was going on, and because he didn't want to contact 'Anteiku' too much and waste the 'facade' he had painstakingly created before, Ken Kaneki could only choose to stand silently in the distance. Although he couldn't figure out exactly what was happening, he basically confirmed that the problem should not be serious, as the attitudes of the other people in the shop were quite calm.
'Help me check if there's any problem with the pigeon coop recently?'
In order to completely conceal himself, Ken Kaneki not only hid his whereabouts, but even used unregistered cards for communication tools like his phone for safety, and even when communicating via email, he mostly used veiled language to prevent others from finding out.
Hideyoshi Nagachika, on the other side, replied to Ken Kaneki's email with a 'I'll clean it up after I get off work' and then naturally deleted the email.
After barely making arrangements, he stopped thinking too much and watched the two people in the distance with a serious expression. If anything happened, he would definitely not stand idly by.
After the two arrived at a piece of ruins, Lancer opened the briefcase beside him without needing the opponent to say anything, and then a black Quinque was taken out. With a seemingly casual flick, the Quinque, which was only the length of an arm, instantly transformed into a black long spear as tall as a person.
As a First-Class Investigator, Lancer could apply for a new Quinque even if his Quinque was damaged, but high-quality Quinques were basically custom-made, so the case Lancer was carrying at this time contained only a Quinque made from an A-rank Ghoul's Kakuhou, which was part of the CCG's inventory. This was already a decent weapon for ordinary Investigators, but for Lancer, it was just an ordinary 'consumable.' In fact, he wouldn't have bothered with this if it weren't to conceal the fact that he could use 'magic.'
"Let me see the changes in First-Class Investigator Lancer over these two years."
"Just try not to be too surprised later."
After saying that, Lancer initiated the attack first, but what made Yoshimura Kuzen feel strange was that when he deflected Lancer Quinque with his Kagune, he felt that something was not right, as if Lancer previous strike was too ordinary?
But before he could think further, a cold glint appeared before his eyes.
"Puchi~!"
No one expected that with just a single exchange between the two, the Kagune on Yoshimura Kuzen's right side, which resembled an arm, was directly cut off.
"That was just a greeting to start with, but it seems Manager, you still underestimated me a little? Are you serious now?"
Yoshimura Kuzen's response was very simple. The severed Kagune quickly regenerated, and at the same time, the Ukaku Kagune on his back also began to glow. There was no doubt that this was a sign that the opponent was fully accelerating the activation of his Kagune.
"Pupu Pu~!"
The wing-like Kagune fiercely swung, and dozens of cold-glinting Kagune shards flew towards Lancer, but Lancer only spun the long spear in his hand fiercely, followed by another seemingly reckless series of jabs, but his combat uniform was completely unharmed. This was enough to show that the previous round of attacks had no effect on him.
"I'm coming!"
Under normal circumstances, Lancer would naturally not speak during combat, as he didn't like talking much, let alone chatting with the enemy, and he constantly reminded himself not to be like those villains in some movies who liked to talk. If he had to say something to the enemy, he should at least ensure the opponent had only one breath left.
But since this was a 'test,' it didn't matter. Or rather, the more strength Yoshimura Kuzen displayed, the happier Lancer would be, because he hoped to find more information about 'Takatsuki Sen' from her father.
However, when he actually engaged in close combat with the opponent, he was somewhat surprised. It wasn't just because Yoshimura Kuzen's strength and the intensity of his Kagune were slightly weaker than those of 'Takatsuki Sen,' whom he had attacked before. However, based on the combat power currently displayed, the opponent in front of him was actually more troublesome.
But thinking about it carefully, this was not surprising.
Takatsuki Sen was powerful, but that was mainly due to her own special talent, but what about Yoshimura Kuzen?
With a good amount of white hair, he lived during the most chaotic period for Ghouls. Having fought his way out of that era, he could be said to be battle-hardened. After all, major battles between the Aogiri Tree and the CCG like the current ones might not happen even once every few years, but back then, there were at least a few every year, and the outcome was usually the Ghoul organization being eradicated.
Yoshimura Kuzen had much more experience in dealing with both Ghouls and Investigators. If it weren't for his age causing his strength to decline, and he wasn't in his peak state, Lancer would probably be in more trouble right now.
And Yoshimura Kuzen on the other side also began to notice the abnormality on Lancer body as he fought Lancer.
Of course, it wasn't that Lancer strength or combat ability suddenly changed. It was that the opponent was still somewhat flustered by his attacks at first, but as time passed, Lancer fighting became more and more natural, and he even suspected that Lancer had already seen through his fighting style.
"How did you do that?"
Yoshimura Kuzen couldn't help but ask when he forced Lancer back once more.
"It's just practice makes perfect."
"?"
This was Yoshimura Kuzen's first encounter with Lancer. He didn't seem to quite understand the meaning of Lancer words, but Lancer had no intention of explaining. Their relationship was not good enough for him to reveal his secrets.
As for why Lancer said, 'practice makes perfect'? What he was familiar with was not Yoshimura Kuzen's fighting habits, but he had long been accustomed to fighting all sorts of enemies with different habits.
Are Ghouls terrifying?
They are terrifying, no doubt. They possess physical qualities far superior to ordinary people, and they also possess Kagune that can be controlled at will, but in reality, many powerful Ghouls have been suppressed by the CCG through continuous fighting with Ghouls. The key to this is 'information.'
Through the sacrifices of Investigators, they acquired information about the enemy again and again, and then formulated tactics based on the information, finally defeating the enemy in one fell swoop.
Humans are weak compared to Ghouls, so they learned to use the enemy to create 'weapons'; when a single individual could not defeat the enemy, they relied on the power of the collective. It was through the continuous sacrifices of countless Investigators that they managed to suppress the Ghouls, at least on the surface.
And what about Lancer?
Although he did not have information about Yoshimura Kuzen, he had long been accustomed to this kind of battle fought with his eyes closed (i.e., in the dark).
He uses Ukaku Kagune for long-range attacks?
Compared to those spells, the destructive power might not be much worse, but the level of strangeness is far inferior.
Powerful physical qualities? Amazing defense provided by the Koukaku Kagune?
No matter how powerful, can they be more powerful than those monsters whose size is ten times, or even dozens of times, that of a normal person?
A fighting style that is far different from other Ghouls because he became a 'Kakuja'?
Can it be stranger than the combined enemies from various worlds?
The Lancer of this time was no longer the rookie who had to flee in panic when facing an SS-rank Ghoul more than two years ago, but a 'Lancer' (Spearman) who had been tempered by a thousand battles!
And now was the time for him to show his edge!