REINCARNATION PARADISE

Chapter 43: Chapter 43: The High School Girl



"Hey, hey, we're all colleagues here. We need to get along peacefully, Suzuya. You can't greet your coworkers like that."

Shinohara Yukinori stepped between the two, starting to teach Juuzou Suzuya some basic manners.

For someone who didn't even understand basic social norms, Su Xiao wasn't going to get worked up. Still, he made a mental note that he'd teach this kid a lesson someday.

"Oh, I see~. So that's how it is. I'm sorry~."

Juzo smiled and apologized to Su Xiao, surprisingly sincere despite his contradictory personality.

"Mr. Shinohara, is the test over?"

Shinohara stretched his arms, still feeling the numbness, and nodded.

"It's over. You're now officially a CCG Ghoul Investigator."

Shinohara's tone became serious.

"Becoming a Ghoul Investigator is a heavy responsibility. Our primary duty is to protect civilians and eliminate the ghouls that prey on them. It may cost us our lives, but we cannot hesitate..."

The passionate speech went on, and though Su Xiao found it boring, he didn't show any impatience.

"That's about it. If you're ready, you can start taking on assignments now. However, as a third-class investigator, you can't act alone—you need to work under the supervision of a senior investigator..."

Su Xiao coughed lightly.

"Mr. Shinohara, who exactly do you think can protect me?"

Shinohara chuckled, shaking his head.

"Well, that's... the rules."

"I can handle things alone. We're just here to eliminate ghouls, right? As long as the goal is achieved, the process doesn't matter."

After a moment of hesitation, Shinohara nodded. Indeed, Su Xiao didn't need a senior investigator to protect him—if anything, it was likely the other way around.

"If that's the case, then I'll give you a lead on a ghoul."

Shinohara went to his desk and handed Su Xiao a file.

Su Xiao skimmed through it. The information was chaotic—strange noises from the sewers, missing female students, and similar reports.

"This is our daily routine. Ghouls are cunning, especially in the 14th Ward, which isn't entirely safe but isn't chaotic either."

Eliminating ghouls wasn't simple.

Most of the ghouls in the 14th Ward hid among ordinary people. They only revealed their true selves when hunting, and the rest of the time, they remained concealed.

Ghouls only needed to feed once or twice a month to sustain themselves. The challenge lay in identifying them before they killed.

For Su Xiao, the hardest part of eliminating a ghoul was locating them. Once he found them, everything else was easy.

"The information you have likely all points to the same ghoul. Find them and eliminate them."

Shinohara's expression grew serious, and there was a glint of killing intent in his eyes.

"No problem."

Su Xiao turned to leave. Although he had plenty of time, there was no reason to waste it.

"By the way, White Night, remember to stop by the supply department to pick up some tools. They'll be useful."

Su Xiao paused for a moment, nodded, and left.

"Another cold colleague, huh? This is gonna be a headache."

Shinohara slumped into his chair, rubbing his forehead. Seeing Juuzou still grinning beside him, Shinohara's headache only grew worse.

After visiting the supply department and collecting various tools, Su Xiao arrived at a park an hour later, sitting on a bench by the side of the path.

The park was lush and shady, with a gentle breeze rustling the leaves. The noontime sun scorched the earth, and cicadas screeched from the trees.

The park was mostly empty due to the heat, but Su Xiao sat in the cool shade of the trees, feeling comfortable.

The intel Shinohara gave wasn't very detailed, but it did give him a rough target. Over the past six months, multiple people had gone missing in this park.

The CCG had a clear division of labor. Ordinary investigators focused on gathering clues since they lacked the strength for combat.

When the clues suggested a possible ghoul encounter, a senior investigator would lead a team to avoid unnecessary casualties among the lower-ranked investigators.

Even so, five investigators had already disappeared from this park.

Shinohara had been planning to inspect the area himself, but Su Xiao had taken over.

Su Xiao kept an eye on the people passing by, but after a long wait, he found nothing suspicious. Still, he wasn't in a hurry.

According to Shinohara, there hadn't been a disappearance in this park for two weeks.

The ghoul would show up soon. This was their hunting ground, after all.

Ghouls, like wild animals, marked territories for hunting, and they would fight to protect those areas from other ghouls.

Within the next three days, the ghoul would likely appear—and this one wouldn't be weak. It was unlikely to be below A-rank.

Most ghouls met their end because they couldn't control their hunger, which eventually led investigators to discover them.

Patience was key to success. Su Xiao simply sat on the bench and waited quietly.

Time flew by, and it was already past three in the afternoon.

A soothing melody drifted from a distant building.

"A school?"

Su Xiao looked toward the building, and half an hour later, more people began walking through the park—mostly high school students who had just finished class.

Ghouls tended to hunt at night, so Su Xiao was preparing to stay overnight in the park.

"Hey there, sitting alone? Feeling lonely?"

A high school girl in a uniform sat down next to Su Xiao. She wore a light blouse and a black skirt.

Su Xiao's eyes narrowed slightly.

"…"

He said nothing.

"Tch, what a boring guy."

Seeing that Su Xiao didn't respond, the girl stood up and left.

As night fell, the park's streetlights flickered on.

Su Xiao had been staking out the park all afternoon and was starting to feel hungry. Just as he was about to leave for dinner, a short scream broke the silence.

The scream was brief, barely a moment long, but Su Xiao's sharp senses caught it.

He immediately stood up and sprinted toward the source of the sound, which came from a corner of the park, not far from where he had been sitting.

When he arrived, he scanned the area, but there was nothing—no people, not even shadows.

He didn't doubt his hearing, though. Something had definitely happened here.

After carefully inspecting the area, Su Xiao found a few drops of blood near a flowerbed, along with a broken fingernail.

He touched the blood. It was cool but not yet coagulated, meaning it was fresh.

"Crunch, crunch~."

The sound of flesh being torn and chewed came from the nearby woods. Silently, Su Xiao entered the forest, and a gruesome scene unfolded before him.

A victim, whose face he couldn't make out, lay sprawled on the ground. A ghoul was crouched over them, feasting.

Finding the ghoul should have been good news, but Su Xiao frowned.

This ghoul wasn't strong—probably only B-rank. Its crude eating habits should've made it easy for regular investigators to track down.

Judging by its ravenous behavior, Su Xiao guessed what had happened.

This wasn't the ghoul's usual hunting ground, but it had gotten so desperate from hunger that it had to take the risk.

"Who gave you permission to hunt in my territory, mutt? Do you have a death wish?"

A sharp female voice echoed through the trees, and at the same moment, a thin kagune lashed out toward the feeding ghoul.

Splat.

The ghoul's head flew off before it could even respond, fear frozen on its face.

The owner of the kagune stepped out from between the trees. When Su Xiao saw her, he was surprised.

It was the same high school girl he had seen earlier in the day.

She was a ghoul.

(End of Chapter)

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Translator's Note :- I am Not that familiar with a lot of the fictional worlds mentioned in the story. So if I make a mistake naming something please correct me by writing a paragraph comment on the mistake. Thank you.


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