Chapter 72: Paradise? Are You Kidding Me?

The café fell silent.

Shoko Kōsaki, Yoshinori Fūma, and Nishio Kinkaku were all inside the café.

“I’m sorry—my staff recently went through a tragic event and are emotionally unstable.”

Yoshinori Fūma, the café owner, stepped forward and gestured politely.

“This guy is…”

Shoko Kōsaki murmured, staring at Su Xiao in shock.

Shoko Kōsaki is a semi-heroine of the original story, a ghoul.

Ghouls in the An Ding District differ from others—they rarely prey on humans, feeding only on the corpses of those who committed suicide.

Tucking back her light blue short hair, Shoko Kōsaki hesitated, then finally stepped forward to serve as a waitress.

In this An Ding District café, both the owner and the waitstaff are ghouls.

This is a café that gathers many ghouls.

The owner, Yoshinori Fūma, is a formidable figure—a Class SSS ghoul.

In his youth, he committed countless killings; in old age, he came to District 20 and opened this café.

His goal: to foster harmony between ghouls and humans—they don’t hunt humans, they simply wish to survive.

Su Xiao sat at the counter, while Suzuya Shūzō glanced curiously around.

“What would you like, sir?”

The owner’s white hair was neatly combed; he wore a waiter’s uniform, his expression gentle, like an elderly gentleman.

Strangely, his eyes seemed perpetually closed—perhaps because they were too small?

“Since I’m here, I’ll have a coffee—I’ve heard your café’s coffee is ‘excellent.’”

Su Xiao wasn’t here to fight—he was here to gather intelligence.

He hadn’t seen Jin Muyan inside; two possibilities: either Jin Muyan was absent, or he’d been captured by the Bronze Tree—Su Xiao favored the latter.

“Please wait a moment.”

The owner bustled about—he recognized Su Xiao and personally attended to this great plague.

Shoko Kōsaki placed a towel on the counter before Su Xiao, bowed slightly, and turned to leave.

“Wait.”

Su Xiao’s sudden call froze Shoko Kōsaki’s body.

“W-what is it, sir?”

Shoko Kōsaki kept her head down, feigning shyness, avoiding Su Xiao’s gaze.

“You should have a brother—or a younger brother, right?”

The moment Su Xiao spoke those words, a chill rose from Shoko Kōsaki’s feet, surging straight to her brain.

“No—I don’t have a brother.”

Since Su Xiao entered, Shoko Kōsaki had worn a terrified expression; Su Xiao merely tapped her lightly.

“Sir, your coffee is ready.”

The owner handed over a cup of coffee, gesturing for Su Xiao to enjoy.

“Shoko, prepare tomorrow’s ingredients.”

Shoko Kōsaki felt as if granted amnesty and hurried toward the back room.

The distinct aroma of coffee drifted over; Su Xiao had no habit of drinking coffee, but upon smelling its rich fragrance, he couldn’t resist lifting the cup and taking a sip.

The coffee touched his tongue—Su Xiao’s eyebrows lifted.

“Good.”

The owner smiled.

“Thank you for your praise.”

The owner picked up a cup of coffee, stepped from behind the counter, and sat beside Su Xiao.

“You don’t often drink coffee, do you? Coffee must be savored slowly—otherwise, the flavor suffers. Just like life: bitter, yet within bitterness, other tastes emerge.”

“I don’t drink coffee—I came because a ‘friend’ works here. I just wanted to check in. Too bad—he’s not here today.”

Su Xiao continued sipping his coffee.

“A friend?”

The owner frowned at Su Xiao.

“Yes—a friend. His name is Jin Muyan. Could you contact him? We haven’t seen each other in a long time.”

Su Xiao set down his cup, gazing meaningfully at the owner.

“Ah, Jin Muyan—he recently took a long trip and asked for leave. What a pity.”

Su Xiao now firmly believed Jin Muyan was in trouble.

“I see. Then never mind.”

Su Xiao drained the last of his coffee.

“Shūzō, let’s go.”

Su Xiao appeared relaxed, yet he sensed every unseen gaze—those eyes, glancing his way, confirmed they recognized his identity.

Su Xiao made as if to reach for money.

“No need—this one’s on me.”

The owner stood, his expression calm.

Though their interaction was brief, Su Xiao sensed the owner differed from most ghouls he’d met—he lacked the madness, the perversity.

He resembled an aged sage; his wrinkled face occasionally revealed weary resignation toward the world.

“Then, thank you.”

Su Xiao and the owner stood facing each other.

“Sir, if you ever return, please come again to the An Ding District for coffee—even at night. The surroundings are perfectly safe.”

The owner’s words carried multiple meanings.

They were an invitation, a gesture of goodwill—and subtly conveyed that District 20 differed from District 14: here, ghouls were peaceful, they wouldn’t harm humans.

They also pleaded: don’t launch a purge of District 20.

The owner likely already knew what Su Xiao had discovered.

Purging a district of ghouls was a terrifying prospect to ghouls.

The owner feared Su Xiao’s title: the Black Reaper.

“Perhaps we’ll meet again soon.”

Su Xiao smiled at the owner, a flicker of red light passing through his eyes.

Slinging his coat over his arm, Su Xiao walked out of the café.

The owner returned to his seat and sighed. Shoko Kōsaki emerged from the back room.

“Is this guy the new Black Reaper? He’s definitely a madman…”

Shoko looked worried—she feared Su Xiao would purge District 20; if he did, the An Ding District would have to relocate.

“What a terrifying guy.”

Nishio Kinkaku was only a Class A ghoul—he feared Su Xiao even more, his legs trembling.

Su Xiao had killed more Class A ghouls than Nishio had ever seen.

“Pure humans can be this strong? If I’m not mistaken, he came looking for Jin Muyan…”

After the owner spoke, the café fell silent.

On the way back to the CCG branch, Suzuya Shūzō was unusually cheerful.

“Huh? Huh? Back at that café, I had a strange feeling.”

Suzuya’s instincts were sharp—everyone else there, besides them, was a ghoul.

“Who knows.”

Walking down the night street, Su Xiao lit a cigarette.

Suzuya Shūzō darted to Su Xiao’s left, then, for some reason, switched to his right.

“Brother Baiye, how do you become as strong as you are?”

“Opportunity, relentless training, and not fearing death.”

Suzuya nodded, half-understanding.

Five minutes later, the two returned to the CCG branch.

After returning to his temporary quarters, Su Xiao showered, then lay on his bed bare-chested.

A blood-red card appeared in Su Xiao’s hand—he prepared to activate the Queen’s dropped “Crimson Card,” hoping to obtain something useful.

Tomorrow he might head to District 24; gaining extra combat power or supplies would be helpful.

【Use Crimson Card? Yes/No.】

He selected “Use.” The Crimson Card slowly dissolved into a pale red liquid, floating in midair.

The pale red liquid suddenly began spinning rapidly, forming a vortex before Su Xiao.

One end of the vortex was just wide enough for a hand—he reached in.

After fumbling, his fingers brushed against something smooth, soft, and supple.

Su Xiao smiled—he’d touched an item. Maybe the “Grand Chief” Black Hand? His luck was still good.

He pulled his hand out of the crimson vortex—the Cycle Paradise prompt came.

Receiving the Tishi from the Lunhuileyuan , Su Xiao’s smile vanished; he froze in place, then muttered a curse after a long while.

The Lunhuileyuan ’s prompt was:

【You randomly drew a “Silk Bra.”】