"It's really nothing private. Kirishima-san was just asking me about Rize-san."
Byakuya explained on Touka's behalf.
His calm demeanor—unlike Touka's flushed, emphatic denial—made it difficult for everyone to continue teasing.
Touka breathed a sigh of relief, but she found herself inexplicably fixating on one detail in Byakuya's words.
He called Rize "Rize-san," but called her "Kirishima-san." There was a substantial difference in the nature of those forms of address...
But she didn't bring it up. Asking someone to call her "Touka-san" directly would be too embarrassing.
While Touka was preoccupied with such things, Byakuya was conversing with Tsukiyama.
"Since you're following me now, why don't you take Matsumae and Kanae back to the Tsukiyama mansion? They just need to come when I call for them."
"That won't do. Matsumae and Kanae are now Amaha-sama's servants, so they should stay by your side to attend to you. Even my father wishes for them to fulfill their duties properly."
Tsukiyama replied.
Hearing the young master say this, neither Matsumae nor Kanae showed any dissatisfaction—they agreed with what he said.
"Fine..."
Byakuya was momentarily at a loss for words.
...
When closing time came, Tsukiyama returned to the Tsukiyama mansion on his own, while Matsumae and Kanae went home with Byakuya.
Perhaps because the young master had also chosen to follow this human boy, Kanae's resistance toward him had lessened considerably.
Walking home, Byakuya thought of something.
Including Tsukiyama now, and with Matsumae and Kanae essentially confirmed, the requirements for establishing the Akatsuki Organization had been met.
The two SS-rated ghouls were Rize and Matsumae. The four S-rated ghouls were Kurona, Nashiro, Kanae, and Tsukiyama.
It all depended on whether the system would classify Rize as SS-rated. Currently, the CCG still had the "Binge Eater" listed at S+, and since she'd essentially vanished from their radar lately, her danger rating wouldn't change.
Now that the personnel were assembled, the next step was preparing a "base."
Byakuya wasn't about to mooch off Anteiku for a base—he'd have to set up his own. The Tsukiyama Group's financial resources would come in handy for that.
Though technically his own house could serve as a base. It was large enough to work as a temporary headquarters for now.
But eventually, he'd need to prepare a proper base. Given its membership composition, the Akatsuki Organization would undoubtedly be classified by the CCG as a "ghoul organization." For something that would constantly be under CCG surveillance, the official base couldn't be set up casually.
For now, Byakuya just wanted to confirm one thing: the system's rating for Rize.
[Given Kamishiro Rize's extremely high growth potential and her innate ability to achieve kakuja form, the system conservatively rates her as SS-class!]
The system once again demonstrated its mind-reading-like ability, addressing the question in Byakuya's mind.
Good. The Akatsuki Organization now meets the establishment requirements.
Byakuya thought to himself.
The system's assessment was indeed objective. Not all kakuja were SSS-rated ghouls—Tatara could also achieve kakuja form, but his danger rating was only SS.
Although CCG ratings were based on danger level rather than pure combat power, the ratings did generally correspond to strength. The higher a ghoul's danger rating, the more their power matched that classification.
Take the SSS-rated "Non-Killing Owl" and "One-Eyed Owl"—that father-daughter pair. No SS-rated ghoul could even come close to their level of strength.
But Rize had always eaten purely for pleasure, with no pursuit of power. She'd never engaged in cannibalism—after all, ghoul flesh tasted awful. Though she possessed the innate ability to achieve kakuja form, she'd never used it. So from a strength perspective, she definitely didn't reach SSS level.
Now Byakuya had just one remaining issue: explaining the Akatsuki Organization to Tsukiyama, Matsumae, and Kanae.
He could certainly force them to obey, but that was meaningless to him. He'd prefer these three to join the Akatsuki Organization willingly.
Byakuya considered this part of the preparatory work for establishing the organization.
The same applied to Rize and the Yasuhisa sisters—he needed to explain to them the meaning of the Akatsuki Organization's existence.
...
So the first thing Byakuya did upon returning home was to call Rize, Kurona, and Nashiro to his room.
"Why is Byakuya suddenly calling all three of us to his room?"
After these past weeks of familiarity, Kurona could now naturally call him "Byakuya" without the awkwardness of earlier, when she'd stumbled and changed it to "Byakuya-san."
"Maybe Oniichan has something important to say?"
Nashiro spoke softly, her expression neutral. "Though it could also be that Oniichan is feeling lonely. After all, there are more and more girls in the house, and he's still single."
"Nashiro, how did your mind go there? But I can't exactly deny it makes sense..."
Kurona couldn't argue with that.
Thinking that that kind of thing might happen, her face reddened slightly without her control.
Nashiro, by contrast, showed no trace of embarrassment—as if she didn't care about such matters at all.
When they entered the room, they found Byakuya seated with a solemn expression.
It seemed this wasn't the second possibility they'd imagined—he had something important to tell them.
"What's going on? Calling all three of us here so suddenly."
Rize was the first to ask.
"Have a seat first. I have something important I want to discuss with you."
Byakuya's tone was serious.
"This serious..."
Seeing him like this, even Rize adopted a more earnest attitude.
Kurona and Nashiro obediently sat down on the bed.
"I'm planning to establish an organization—not simply a human organization, nor simply a ghoul organization."
Byakuya got straight to the point.
"Establish an organization? For what purpose?"
Rize immediately asked.
"The goal is to change the current state of this world. I want humans and ghouls to coexist peacefully. But my strength alone isn't enough—I need you."
Byakuya spoke frankly. "The organization will be called 'Akatsuki'—the character for 'dawn.' To bring daybreak and hope to this world."
...
Get 20+ chapters ahead on - P.a.t.r.e.o.n "RoseWhisky"